The Best Breweries Across the 50 States

If you find yourself in Birmingham, Alabama with a need to quench your thirst, look no further than TrimTab Brewing Co., a brewery that has garnered the respect of the locals throughout the years and has earned itself some prime authority in Birmingham's craft beer scene. Their flagship beer is their TrimTab IPA, a truly Southern IPA that demands your full attention with every glass. 

Nestled in the scenic landscapes and mountains of Interior Alaska is HooDoo Brewing Co., a craft brewery that has successfully put Fairbanks, AK on the map nationally and statewide as a destination point for three events in particular: Alaska Beer Week, American Craft Beer Week, and their specialty, Oktoberfest. Given their German roots, HooDoo is known for their all-out Oktoberfest celebration, lasting all 16 days like it does in Munich, Germany, and also for their specialty beer, the German Kolsch. 

The well crafted artisanal beers from Arizona Wilderness Brewing Co. are a tribute to the sprawling and diverse landscapes of the very state it calls home. With a focus on the culture of brewing and their popular Refuge IPA, this Arizona brewery is a desert gem.  Located just thirty minutes east of Pheonix, it's well worth a visit to their taproom for their seasonal offerings and great pub menu. 

Since it was founded in 2000, Diamond Bear Brewing Co. in North Little Rock, AR has won numerous awards for its outstanding beer selections. The brewery gets its name from two of the earliest nicknames for Arkansas, the Bear State and the Diamond State. Combining the two together has resulted in a brewery that boasts some truly incredible beer, like the founder's favorite and the brew that started it all, their famous pale ale. 

Based in the sunny city of San Diego, the Green Flash Brewing Co. has truly developed a loyal following of craft beer lovers. Their year-round brews such as their Soul Style IPA as well as experimental seasonal favorites have garnered the award-winning attention of beer enthusiasts along the west coast and beyond. 

As Colorado's first craft brewery, the Boulder Beer Company started in 1979 and hasn't slowed down since. With a focus on great beer, running an eco-friendly brewery, and connecting with their customers, this brewery shines with great beers like their flagship Mojo IPA and Buffalo Gold. 

In life, there are always at least two roads that can be taken, and the folks over at Two Roads Brewing Co. strongly believe in taking the road less traveled, both in life and with their beer!  Located in a renovated historical manufacturing building in Stratford, CT, the brewery is home to their tasting room, their very own Beer Bus, and some great beers like their  Espressway Cold-Brew Coffee Stout, which merges the flavors of organic coffee beans with a rich oatmeal stout. Each glass has an aroma of freshly ground coffee, a light touch of brown sugar, and the distinctive flavor of roasted English malts. Cheers to that! 

The Dogfish Head Brewing Co. in Delaware is perhaps one of the best known breweries on the east coast. Since 1995, the brewery has been home to some fantastic beer selections, food, and entertainment. This year, look out for their seasonal spring offering, Romantic Chemistry, a fresh and fruity IPA that you may just fall in love with. 

Founded in 2008 in Gainsville, Florida, the folks at Swamp Head Brewery pride themselves on some amazing craft beer with an effortless Florida flair. Besides their great beer, this brewery strives for sustainability, zero-waste, and domestic sourcing. Cheers to that! 

Atlanta, Georgia is home to some big things, like Coca Cola for example.  It stands to reason that their beer scene would be anything but little. The SweetWater Brewing Co. opened up shop in 1997 and hasn't stopped providing the heart of the South with great beer since then. What started as an interest between two college buddies who "had more of a hankering for beer than for books," soon became a dream venture in craft beer. 

The Kona Brewing Co. got its start on the big island of Hawaii in 1995 with their Big Wave Golden Ale. Since then, they've expanded their selection to some amazing brews such as their Longboard Island Lager and have continued to spread their contagious island spirit, often referencing their beers with the nickname "Liquid Aloha." 

Located in Boise, Idaho, the Payette Brewing Co. keeps busy by coming up with great craft beers and extending their love of beer to their community. With a style that could compliment any outdoorsman (or woman!) brews such as their Rustler or Payette Pale Ale are great picks. 

Goose Island is an actual island located in the middle of the Chicago River. The brewery that shares its name, Goose Island Beer Co, was founded in 1988 in the nearby Lincoln Park district with influences from European craft brewery styles. While the brewery itself has never resided on the island, it's still as much of an integral part of the Chicago beer culture as the island is to the city's river. With beers such as their Four Star Pils, Goose IPA, and their Sofie Belgian Style Farmhouse Ale, it's easy to see how Goose Island has earned its place as an authority in the Chicago beer scene. 

Located in a sturdy and historical prohibition era bottling house on the east side of Indianapolis, the Indiana City Brewing Co. has released more than thirty unique beers since opening their doors in 2013. Their taproom is treated as an oasis for craft beer lovers in the city, and on top of their limited release beers, their great year-round selections include a pale ale, oatmeal stout, and wheat ale. 

The folks at Backpocket Brewing Co. are all about the beer. With a taproom that provides a relaxed and open atmosphere, this brewery is well worth the visit. With German influences, the beer selections at Backpocket are top notch, like their Slingshot German Dark Lager. The brewery also offers movie nights both in the summer and the winter out in their beer garden.  

Hopping Gnome Brewing Compnay prides themselves on brewing a variety of craft beers with local, high quality ingredients to make the finest hand crafted ales; ranging from citrusy, bold to silky, black and everywhere in between. Blood Orange Pale is a crowd favorite craft brew. With a fruity and crisp note, this tall glass is ale that and then some. Join the gnome in the Wichita Craft Beer Revolution!

Lexington is a bustling Kentucky town known as "The Horse Capital of the World" and is also home to the University of Kentucky. It's only natural then, that a great brewery would spring up, and West Sixth Brewing did, with a purpose to provide great craft beer to everyone. Find them at their new taproom called The West Sixth Green Room in downtown Lexington. 

Gnarly Barley is a Hammond-based brewery run by husband-wife duo Cari and Zac. Originally set up in a garage, after positive responses to their brews at beer festivals the two decided to open up an actual brewing facility.

Catahoula Common is ironically touted as an uncommon beer that has all the refreshing lightness of a lager with a good bite that's reminiscent of an ale. The fruitiness and medium body come from the unique Louisiana weather that affects the fermentation.

Founded in Portland, Maine in 1995, Allagash Brewing Company is dedicated to crafting the best Belgian-inspired brews in the world. Best known for their flagship ale, Allagash White, a traditional Belgian wheat with subtle flavorings of coriander and Curaçao orange peel that makes for a crisp, fruity finish. Fun fact: This New England brewery is considered a pioneer of spontaneously fermented beers in the U.S. with the use of a traditional Belgian Coolship method.
 

Jailbreak Brewing is a rag-tag group of professionals from various industries who got together to fulfill their desire to make something different, which turned out to be Kosher Certified artfully crafted beer. Feed the Monkey is a German style hefeweizen that balances the strong flavors of banana and cloves to create a complex yet subtle brew.

A trio of friends who found joy in Europe's beer scene while on a trip were disappointed by their choices after returning to the States. To fix this little problem, the trio started brewing their own beer and Harpoon Brewery was created. Now employee owned, Harpoon continues to brew craft beer with the same passion as 30 years ago.

Their desire for unique beer if evident in the limited release Thunder Foam, which is a porter that embodies the strange (yet delicious) blend of cacao nibs, malt, fresh poblano, and ancho chile peppers. 

As Michigan's only lager-focued microbrewery, the guys at Wolverine State Brewing Co. sure know what they're doing. Their flagship brew, the Wolverine Premium Lager, was born out of a realization that up until its creation, a true Michigan beer didn't yet exist. The guys behind this great brewery have a fanatic love for what they do, and it definitely shows. 

Schell's was started in 1860 by August Schell, a German immigrant who was frustrated with a lack of German-style beer in Minnesota. Surviving through the Prohibition, Schell's has now been passed down through six generations of beer brewers.

Following the lead of Germany's neighbors this Vienna-style amber lager has subtle hints of malt and hops. Firebrick, named after the bricks that line the original Schell broiler, is a mild and easy-to-drink beer.

Lucky Town Brewery was created by a group of people wanting to make up for the lack of craft breweries in Mississippi. Keeping the focus solely on their home state has helped them to build a large local following. One can understand the local love when trying the Ballistic Blonde, a belgian-style ale that has a full body with notes of fruit and spices.

The Columbia, Missouri based Logboat Brewing Co., boasts something that not every brewery can claim, that their brewing equipment is made in the U.S.A. That's the kind of attitude that spills over into their homegrown, flagship beer selections like their American Pale Ale. Although if you're feeling adventurous, take a sip of their rich Mocha Stout.  

At Bayern Brewery you will find the most authentic German beer outside of the country itself. Owner, Jürgen Knöller is a German born in Bavaria (Bayern in German) who has studied beer since 1978.

Their line of beers reflect both a love for his home country and Montana. None reflects this better than the Montana Helles Lager, which is modeled after staple Bavarian lager beer and has a full body while being smooth.

Their brewing process started originally while being the state's first brewpub, and through growth (and demand) Empyren Brewing Co. was created. Their beer is described as "the taste of dreams come true" and that is apparent in their popular Chaco Canyon Gold, which is a golden ale sweetened with local Nebraska honey.

The aptly named Sin City Beer is located in Las Vegas, which is an almost oversaturated craft beer hub. Sin City stands apart though by adhering to Reinheitsgebot, a German beer purity law from 1516. 

In the same German vein is their Weisse is Nice brew, which is a straw-colored wheat beer that doesn't have pronounced hops, but rather has cloves and citrus as the main flavors.

Tucked in Hooksett New Hampshire, White Birch Brewing is a small craft brewery that still produces all of their brews by hand. They're the hosts of the Southern New Hampshire Brewers Festival each year and make a point to help fundraise for community causes.

Double IPA, one of their flagship beers, was originally only available in growlers but demand soon caused it to be bottled as well. With a smooth flavor and a hoppy bite, it's easy to see why so many people are a fan.

Born out of a garage, Beach Haus now has their own brewery in seaside Belmar. Sea, sand, and sun are what inspire the brewing of their unique beers. Toast, a black IPA, is a hybrid that pairs the smoothness of dark ales with the flavors of blackcurrant, pine, and cedar wood.

Marble Brewery was created to both satisfy the discriminating tastes of locals, and represent the free-spirited nature of New Mexico. Doing both, their Wildflower Wheat is an ale that is accented with the New Mexico wildflower honey and their Oatmeal Stout has a rich and creamy texture with hints of chocolate and espresso. 

In the heart of New York's Finger Lakes region is Ithaca Beer Co. With a focus on local sourcing, the company emphasizes making products that reflect the surrounding area. 

Flower Power, a flagship IPA, is their most popular year-round beer. With hints of pineapple and grapfruit in the brew, plus the psychedelic labeling, Flower Power is a fun addition to any pale ale enthusiast's fridge.

Since 2004, Foothills Brewing Co. has taken the beer scene in Winston-Salem, North Carolina to the next level. They aim to be a place for people to gather and enjoy "great beer, great food, and a great atmosphere." Looking at their great lineup of of IPA's, porters, and seasonal offerings, we'd say they have definitely accomplished that goal.

A distinctly viking theme is apparent in Drekker Brewing's business. Even going as far to have a dedication to an "unpillaging" project to help clean up the community while making a better name for infamous vikings. The beers are driven by a similar uniqueness, as apparent by Drive By Glitter Bomb. It's a hazy yellow saison that levels out sourness with flavors of citrus and bananas. 

Rhinegeist (meaning "Ghost of the Rhine") occupies an old bottling plant in Cincinnati's Over-the-Rhine Brewery District. Breathing life back into the defunct 1895 building, Rhinegeist is now a dream team who does everything from picking beer flavors to delivering their end products. 

With a feeling of balance, Zen is a pale ale that is bright with no bitterness, accented with flavors of lemongrass and orange.

On the cusp of their third anniversary, Roughtail Brewing Co. is run by beer lovers for beer lovers. This is highlighted by the clever names of many brews, including our personal favorite, Hoptometrist. This double IPA is the perfect balance between malt and hops for a lovely bitterness that doesn't overwhelm. 

Caldera Brewing Co. is a small yet revolutionary brewery. In 2005 they became the very first brewery on the West Coast to both brew and can their own beers. They have a little something for everyone, from those who love to stick with traditional and familiar brews to those who want to branch out and try unusual flavors like smoke or red roses. 

Their Belgian-Style Wit Bier is a white ale with a mild hoppiness that is sure to refresh those drinking it.

Voodoo Brewing Co. is a brewery you can tell has fun thinking of beer names and label designs. Their magic-centric brews, which are reminiscent of something you'd find in NOLA itself, have loads of personality behind them. Big Black Voodoo Daddy is a robust seasonal ale that highlights notes of chocolate, vanilla, coffee, and dark fruits. Be careful, it might just cast a spell on you.

Most of us have seen Narragansett Beer without ever realizing it. The 125 year old institution has a spot in pop culture due to being a former 30 year sponsor of the Boston Red Sox and their flagship Lager being the beer that Captain Quint famously crushed in the movie JAWS.

Nowadays their focus is on their Rhode Island heritage and they brew limited edition/seasonsal series that highlight things like famous local authors (H.P. Lovecraft) or regional ties (Big Mamie, a WWII battleship). We personally recommend not fixing something if it's not broken, so our favorite is their classic Lager.

A dream for a free lifetime supply of beer is what inspired the birth of RJ Rockers Brewing. Originally a brewpub, it has now evolved into a full-scale brewery that supplies their brews to most of the Southeast.

Son of a Peach, their best selling beer, is a wheat ale brewed with actual South Carolina peaches. 

Hydra Beer Company has one goal: to satisfy all the vast flavors demanded by beer lovers. Relatively new, they already have three year-round beers available. One of those, Immortal, is a seven barley English-style ale that is an ode to the seven headed Hydra Serpent. It is a deep dark color (similar to the Abyss) and has an easy finish.

Tucked into the bustling hustle of The Music City, Yazoo Brewing Co. is a gem in the Nashville craft brewery scene. Since opening their doors in 2003, this brewery has earned the status of creating some true Southern original beer. If you find yourself in Nashville, visit their taproom to kick back, relax and taste for yourself some of their flagship brews and seasonal offerings. 

Adelbert's Brewery is a microbrewery in Austin that mashes up science and art by using a multi-temperature decoction mash to achieve more complex flavors. The brewery, which began in honor of the founder's late brother Del, has the unique practice of attaching a story about him to each beer.

Our favorite is the Tripel B (also known as the Bad Boy Brew) which was inspired by Del's crazy college party days during the 1970's. This straw-colored ale pairs spice and fruity flavors for a pleasant balanced profile.

Squatters is a brewery vastly aware of their carbon footprint. They have a focus on their philosophy of "People Planet Profit" by supporting Utah community health organizations, procuring environmentally-friendly ingredients, and using wind-energy. 

Their Bumper Crop is a brew that will make you think of summer due to the gentle flavors of lavender and honey. 

"Who needs another pale ale?" is a question that helped Switchback Brewing Co. make their mark through brewing beers that didn't take heed of trends and were uniquely their own flavor. Breaking the style mold is their Switchback Ale that relies on traditional ingredients to make a hoppy and fruity brew that is a real palate pleaser.

Steampunk fans will delight in the design aspects of Flying Mouse Brewery's beers. With their adventurous mouse mascot, Bartleby Hopsworth, at the helm, the brewery works hard to make their beers iconic and memorable, both visually and taste-wise.

With each beer being ranked by an easy number guide, fans of darker beer will appreciate Flying Mouse Eight, a full-flavored ale with a chocolate malt taste without any of the heaviness commonly associated with dark beers.

The folks over at Naked City Brewing Co. have a saying that, "Every Beer Tells a Story." With a focus on community engagement and providing the best beers, hard ciders, and wines to their biggest fans, their customers, it's easy to see why this Seattle based brewery has attracted plenty of great attention since it opened its doors in 2009. 

Greenbrier Valley Brewing is a brewery that takes true pride in their roots, shown by their tendency to name beers after local legends or mythical figures. One of these figures is the notorious Mothman (often blamed for the collapse of the 1967 Silver Bridge collapse in Point Pleasant) who is said to be a giant moth-like create flying about in the night.

Staying true to the legend, Greenbrier Valley's Mothman Black IPA is a dark beer that contains a balance of bitter citrus and touches of toffee and chocolate.

Created amidst a mid-life crisis, Lake Louie Brewing is how engineer Tom Porter invested his 401k. Originally three barrel brewery located inside a metal shed, their beers' popularity grew until it became a 4,000 barrel brewery. One of these brews is the seasonal Milk Stout, which is a sweet stout made lactose from local Meister Cheese in Muscoda. 

Black Tooth Brewing is a brewery with a mission: to bring good craft beer to their state. Wyoming is vastly behind other states in craft beer production, but Black Tooth hopes to introduce enough satisfying beer to win over its citizens. Their Barrel Aged "1314" is a special brew due its one year of aging in a Wyoming Whisky barrel which imparts a complex and taste and aroma.