Hello Gents, I am planning a spring/summer beer trip for the fellas and myself and i was wondering if i can get suggestions on lesser known/ newer breweries that i have to hit between STL and KC. We will start in one or the other and drive to the one we don't start in. Any breweries in these cities or around these cities or between these cities are greatly appreciated. Obviously we know the big boys SP, 4 hands and others but i want smaller neighborhood ones or out of the way ones. Any help is greatly appreciated.
KC is great for lots of other things and I'd definitely recommend it, but in my opinion there isn't much, beer-wise, in KC so I'd just stay in STL if beer is your main purpose. Maybe this goes without saying at this point, but while in STL you need to add Narrow Guage to your list...killer IPAs.
I have to agree. I love KC and will always consider it home, but it doesn't really scream beercation...yet. If you do visit though, BKS Artisan is an up and comer, but they're really small and only open on Saturday currently. Torn Label and Crane are both good ones to visit in KC. Not much in between if you're taking I70 other than **** shops and creepy billboards. There's a few breweries in and around Columbia, MO, but I'm not familiar enough with any of them to recommend. In STL, Narrow Gauge and 2nd Shift would be good additions if not already on your list.
Logboat & Broadway Brewery in Columbia. Both have solid beers and Logboat is just a really cool place. If you have time maybe hit Flat Branch as well, not as good as the others but still decent. Square One in STL is a smaller one that is good. Narrow Gauge & Perennial for sure in STL.
KC has some great beer spots, just not the whale factories we have in StL. As far as Columbia goes, I really like Flatbranch and Logboat. Great food at Flatbranch In StL, you can get the most brewery/beer experience for your time by sticking to the Chouteau/Manchester corridor. East to west: 4 Hands, Square 1, Charleville, Gezellig (bar/shop), Urban Chestnut, Modern, 2nd Shift, Nicks Pub, Heavy Riff, Schlafly Bottleworks, and Side Project Brewery/Cellar. Coming soon will be Rockwell (kinda by Gezellig) Off Manchester a bit but great: Perennial, Civil Life, Narrow Gauge, Schlafly Taproom, many more. A little further out: Main & Mill, Scratch (IL), and White Rooster (IL) I'm sure I missed something somewhere
If you can only hit one in Columbia, it should be Logboat. Closer to St. Louis you can hit Third Wheel in St. Peter's.
Nothing along the I70 corridor between Columbia and KC. KC has a few good breweries, but StL is cranking out some great brews right now. If you all want to visit KC, I'd start here and then hit St. Louis. You could easily check our 4-5 breweries all within walking distance at either the Crossroads or North Kansas City. Crossroads: - Brewery Emperial - Border Brewing - Double Shift - Torn Label BONUS: Kick ass pizza and some hot-hot-hot wings at Grinder's North Kansas City: - Cinderblock - Big Rip - Colony - Calibration Crossroads is more easily walkable. You'd walk less than half a mile to hit the first 3 on that list plus the pizza place. Quantity doesn't necessarily mean quality though. Double Shift is really stepping up their IPA game. I'm excited to see what they do during the warmer months. Off the beaten path: - BKS (only open on Saturdays, but best NEIPAs in town, and some killer low abv stouts) - KC Bier - Crane (most visit for sour lovers) - Martin City - Fringe Beerworks (Lee's Summit) - Smoke Brewery (Lee's Summit) - Stockyards Brewery New and I haven't been to and is a little bit outside of KC. - Red Crow Brewing Company There are several breweries in the process of opening their doors, some closer than others. I believe all of these should be open by the time you visit in summer. Well, except Three Trails. Haven't heard much about them. - Strange Days (Rivermarket area) - Callsign Brewery (North Kansas City) - Three Trails (Independence, MO) If you wanted to visit KC, my suggestion would be to hang out around the Crossroads area and visit the breweries there. It'll put you right on I70 to make a drive across the state in the morning too. Definitely try and visit Crane and/or BKS if you're in town as well. Hope this helps.
