Spending a couple of days in Phoenix. I only have time to visit one brewery. Which one would you choose?
Phoenix is a big place. Any clue where you are staying? Will you have a car? You may be better off going to a bar with a lot of local taps unless you want to visit a local brewery.
Staying in Tempe and I will have a car. I know that Four Peaks is in Tempe. Just weighing the options.
In Tempe Four Peaks is certainly a good choice-however they do not have air conditioning at the Tempe location, only swamp coolers and misters so this time of year it has to take a notch down. Huss Brewing is also in Tempe and makes some great beers and has about a dozen or so guest taps but somewhat limited hours. For taphouses Tops in Tempe is decent or Papago Brewing in South Scottsdale would be good choices.
Quick trip up the 101 to Fate would be my recc. I generally enjoy Four Peaks stuff, plus they typically have a cask offering, so you can't go wrong there. Taste of Tops/Papago are solid reccs for drinking holes (plus you can get bottles to go @ Papago).
I hit all the breweries last time I was in Phoenix. I'll be hitting Arizona Wilderness and Fate again on my next visit in August. Papago is great for pizza, guest taps and bottles to go. Their own beer wasn't anything I'd care to have again
I would reccomend Arizona Wilderness brewing, which would be a quick drive from Tempe on the U.S. 60. Thats only if youre going to one place, they have some really great and unique stuff, its not just ipa, stout, and pilsner. They get funky with local flavors and have great sessionable sours. reasonable prices and food.
And they just opened up an additional tasting room next to the brew pub for their BA/sour/wild/experimental stuff. They have quickly become my favorite brewery around town here and I even put them over a lot of places back home in Colorado.
I've visited AZ Wilderness before and really enjoyed it. Excited to hear about the new tap room, but can't find much info online. I'm visiting later this month, what can I expect?
if it only has to be one.. wilderness. but if you have the evening.. hit the whole gilbert/chandler area. wilderness, santan, the perch. the hungry monk can have some good taps as well.
Open a week today and IMO they came out swinging with their RIS (insanely tasty and balanced), several red wine BA offerings (an English BW and a Braggot) and a very unique Sweet Potato Saison aged in Tequila barrels. They just made a new FB page for it: http://m.facebook.com/wildernesstastingroom
I was at the taproom Friday at azwilderness and they had a great selection, BA Granola stout is amazing. Their new saison collab is great too.
How often are you here @StrongRepublican, we traded before and I live really close to azwilderness so next time you're here we should grab a beer!
I was there Friday night for the new Saison and also tried the regular and BA Granola - the BA was incredible, need moar. My girlfriend lives here and I am spending the summer with her so I'll be in town for another 5 weeks and staying ten minutes down the road from AZW so hell yeah man let's do it.
