Ahead of the Great American Beer Festival in Denver, we asked beer writers from across the country to offer lists of can’t-miss breweries in each region showcased at the festival. This is our final preview.
Irina Plakas is a writer and assistant editor at Craft Beer Austin, a beer blog in Texas. In addition to her love for meeting other beer nerds, she has a passion for photography and travel (and the natural pairing of beer and barbecue — she is, after all, a Texan). Plakas is on Twitter @IrinaATX.
Here are her highlights from the Southwest Region:
(512) Brewing, Austin, Texas, Booth V16: This brewery’s beers reflect Old World English and Belgian styles with an emphasis on domestic ingredients. Its Wild Bear sour received a gold medal in the Brett Beer category at the 2015 GABF. Wild Bear was the brewery’s first experience with wild fermentation, and they’ve extends to their fall seasonal, Bruin. (512) is also known for their Austin staple Pecan Porter (which thankfully can be found in just about every bar in Austin) as well as other fantastic beers like their Wit and IPA.
Community Beer Company, Dallas, Booth D25: At GABF 2014, Community Beer took home their second consecutive gold medal for their Public Ale, an extra special bitter. The Dallas brewery is known for their year-round offerings like Mosaic IPA, Witbier, Legion and specialty beers like their Barrel-aged Legion Russian Imperial Stout and Ascension coffee porter.
Hops & Grain Brewing, Austin, Texas, Booth E3: Hops & Grain says it “loves to make beer and they love the beer they make.” The brewery has a strong focuses on its environmental impact: it uses sustainable brewing practices, gives one percent of its annual revenue to local environmental nonprofits and supports local community growers and producers. Hops & Grain is known for their awesome dispensary series IPAs. The One They Call Zoe is a very popular, and this easy drinking pale lager is “meant to be paired with life,” says the brewery’s site.
Jester King Brewery, Austin, Texas, Booth X20: Jester King is known as a farmhouse brewery that focuses on wild ales and spontaneously fermented beers that “reflect the unique character of their location in the beautiful Texas Hill Country.” It uses water from their well, locally grown and malted grains and native wild yeast to give the beer a “sense of place.” Jester King blends beer in different barrels uses and locally grown fruit for fruit refermentation. Its use of mixed-culture fermentation in oak barrels takes time and produces very limited bottle releases often only available at the brewery. Atrial Rubicite, an oak aged re-fermented raspberry sour, is one of their most sought-after and highest-rated beers. This unique brewery is not to be missed during GABF!
Real Ale Brewing Company, Blanco, Texas, Booth D17: Real Ale has been brewing in the Texas Hill Country since 1996 and produces handcrafted beers only available in Texas. At last year’s GABF, the brewery was a bronze medal winner for Real Heavy, a Scotch ale, and in 2014, it won a gold medal for Benedictum, a Belgian-style lambic. It’s hard to find a bar in Texas that doesn’t have Firemans #4, an easy drinking blonde ale and 2012 GABF silver winner. Try their classic, small-batch sour and barrel-aged beers.
Saint Arnold Brewing Company, Houston, Booth Y11: Saint Arnold is Texas’ oldest craft brewery, dating to 1994. Recent GABF awards include a 2015 gold for Weedwacker, a German-style wheat ale that won bronze in 2014. The same year, the brewery won a silver for Summer Pils, a Munich-style helles. They have many amazing year-round beers, plus a root beer brewed with their own secret recipe. Also look for the brewery’s Divine Reserve series of single-batch beers and the Bishop’s Barrel series of barrel-aged and limited-release beers.
