I get lots of lovely emails. Many are about people wanting me to talk about their beer related products. Some are from people who want to place ads. But once in a while I get an email from someone who wants to know where they can get a good beer like Sergio from Brescia, Italy who wrote:
We are going to travel in the following states: Colorado, Utah, California, Arkansas, Texas for most of the time, but also Idaho, Wyoming, New Mexico, Arizona, Illinois and Nevada. I write to you because I'm searching for a Beer Guide for our trip, but I'm in trouble trying to choose one of the dozens of USA beer giudes. In fact, and quite obviously, most of the guides are of a specifical state or a specifical area, but I'm going to spend my trip between campings and a van and so I would prefere not to deal with many books. I saw you had reviewed Steve Thomas' Good Beer Guide Germany. Well, this one is my perfect book: I'm not searching for beer reviews, lots of pictures ecc; I'm searching for an analytic book, like the one of Steve Thomas is.
Turns out Sergio just graduated in philosophy at the University of Milan with a master degree in Logic (Set Theory). He's 26 and a rock climber whose travels in Europe have found a way to combining grappeling with boulders and good German beers. I asked him to tell me more about himself and his relationship with beer and received a great reply including this passage:
I have been a beer lover since the first time I tasted my first beer, but before I tasted my first Franconian beer it has been just a research for the true love. Now I have found it! Being a beer lover in Italy is frustrating: everything rings around wine and the only options if you like beer are: going to one of the many Irish pubs...but every pub serve the same beers (Guiness, Kilkenny, Harp...bla bla bla); going to a so-called German beer-house...but here beers come from giant breweries such as Kulmbacher, Paulaner, Augustiner ecc, and are usually tapped in 10 seconds and super cold...mmmm; buy the usual Belgian beers at your local drink shop or order them on the web. Follow the new Italian microbreweries scene, but I'm very disappointed about it: it is very hyped, prices are crazy and the beers are absolutely not my style...speaking about beer I'm conservative and it seems that italian brewers are interested in making the strongest/strangest/xyz-est beers instead of good and drinkable beers, which are not so easy to make...but it's just my opinion. I have passed all these stages untill my first visit to Franconia The first time I went there was two two years ago for a two weeks bouldering trip (Franconia or Frankenjura is also one of the world's finest climbing destinations). And since that visit I have been to Franconia for other 4 times...I have been there for two weeks this March and I'm writing you while drinking a bottled Meister Vollbier, from Unterzaunsbach's Meister Bräu.
A guy who likes good quality non-flash beer? That's my kind of beer fan. My first reaction is that I am not particularly well acquainted with the states he mentions. The easiest area for me to make recommendations would be Illinois as I bet there is plenty of web information about the Chicago area. He is heading too far east to make use of CAMRA's Good Beer Guide West Coast USA although that does certainly have California and Nevada covered. But what else does Sergio need to help him through his travels? Any ideas? Not just in terms of books but destinations? Keep in mind his plans are not urban: "I'm not a city-person so I'm going to visit remote places and parks like Rocky Mountains National Park, Joe's Valley, Moe's Valley, Ibex (Utah), California's parks, Idaoh, Wyoming, Ozarks (Arkansas), Chattanooga's woods, Texas again, Flagstaff (Arizona) and lots more." That is a bit of an interesting puzzle. Can we help Sergio out?
Comments
Bill Night - April 10, 2010 4:44 PM
Easy. beermapping.com. Specifically the Mountain and South Central USA maps.
By the way, although I haven't been to this place myself, he may be very interested in visiting the small town of Krebs, Oklahoma to check out Choc Beer, which started as an Italian immigrant's Native American-style homebrew served at his restaurant 100 years ago. He might be able to swing that way while he's getting to or from Texas. Small town, lighter beers, Italian roots -- it seems like that's right up his alley.
Knut - April 10, 2010 7:30 PM
This is the gold standard of blog readers. We'll do anything for the Sergios!
bazin! - April 11, 2010 3:21 PM
Given that he'll be in so many states I don't know of a book that will provide him within enough good info. I agree to start with beermapping.com and recommend supplementing that info with brewery/bar reviews on ratebeer.com and beeradvocate.com. His english seems quite good and I would think he can navigate those sites and reviews easily enough.
After that, in Colorado there are many worthwhile stops in Fort Collins, Boulder, and Denver - it all just depends on his route.
Ron - April 12, 2010 9:58 AM
Most of the Texas info I have is word of mouth while living here. You'd think we could come up with a good list for him. The most famous would be the Shiner brewery in Shiner, TX. But I will list out my favorites other than the famous one.
Freetail Microbrewery in San Antonio
Dodging Duck Microbrewery in Boerne(outside of SA)
Real Ale Brewery in Blanco
St Arnold's in Houston
Rhar in Ft Worth
The first three are close together geographically and allow easy access to the Hill Country area which would probably be what he is after here. Great outdoor activities and scenery.
Alan - April 12, 2010 10:15 AM
Thanks, guys. Good ideas. Keep it coming if you have any hints.
Sergio - April 12, 2010 11:05 AM
Many thanks for this post Alan! And many thanks to you for the nice advises.
I didn't know beermapping.com and this is a great site.I'm looking at it while searching for reviews on beeradvocade.com and ratebeer.com.
The problem is that writing out all the breweries, addresses, opening hours is an inhuman work. Moreover, even if I already know where we'll stay and what places we'll visit, I don't know yet exactly our road plan, so it's hard to prearrange a breweries-map. So I need a beer-guide book or two.
As you could read I'll be in the USA for a six months' bouldering trip and bouldering entails lots of rest days...days that we'll spend hiking and searching for good beers.
For the first month I'll stay in Colorado, mostly around Boulder. For this area I have found this guide http://www.beerdrinkersguidetocolorado.com/Beer_Map/beermaporder.html that is perfect for me: light and essential. Is it a good one?
For the second month I'll stay in Utah, first in Moab (http://www.themoabbrewery.com/) and then in Joe's Valley, south of Salt Lake City. For this area I can write out the addresses (that are not so many).
The same for Idaho, Wyoming (I'll stay here for only ten days).
For California is different: I'll stay in the North for three weeks in October and for other three weeks in January and this state is filled with brewpubs. Is the Good Beer Guide West Coast (it also covers Nevada) a good choice? I would prefer a simple list with addresses of all California's brewpubs/breweries instead of a "chosen brewpub" book. Is there something like this?
After looking on the net it seems I'll have to write out also the addresses of the brewpubs in South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois (I'll spend only 20 days in these states), Tennessee, Arkansas (a few brewpubs), Texas, near El Paso (a few), Arizona (Tucson and Flagstaff) and south New Mexico (http://www.highdesertbrewing.20megsfree.com/): I cannot go around with 14 books!
Now, speaking about beers and brewpubs I have a couple of questions. As Alan reported on his post I'm a fan of old fashioned Franconian country-breweries lagers and so, I'm really disoriented looking at brand new brewpubs brewing mostly ales. In Franconia most of the countryside breweries are very old and produce one or maximum two types of beer.
The new USA scene is different: brewpubs produce many types of beer (some of them are brewed using spices, fruit, vegetables etc...) they are often restaurant+brewery, grill+brewery, pizzeria+brewery etc. Very different from what I love and I'm used to.
This said, I know in the USA there's a different approach and that a huge range of beers doesn't mean low quality...I'm just asking you if there are some "rules" to choose the "right" american brewpub.
Many thanks to all of you!
Sergio.
Pok - April 12, 2010 11:20 PM
I recommend you ignore all recommendations and talk to as many people as you can while on the road and see what you can discover about beer or otherwise.
Go all Hemingway on it!
Yochanan Levin - April 19, 2010 4:32 PM
Sergio, come taste the best beer brewed in Israel from Lone Tree Brewery! Try Lone Tree Oatmeal Stout, Lone Tree Northern English Brown Ale, Lone Tree American Brown Ale (a cousin of the Northern English Brow Ale), Lone Tree California Steam Ale, and Lone Tree Piraat IPA. Sergio, you will not be disappointed . Also check out Lone Tree Brewery's Facebook page! We look forward to welcoming you to Israel and to Lone Tree Brewery!
Bob - April 25, 2010 11:36 AM
Hey Sergio,
I recently visited a lot of the same places you're about to. I'm sure some more stuff will come to mind, but you mentioned Flagstaff - there are 2 great bars downtown (Uptown Billiards and Mia's Lounge) both with upwards of 30 taps and a lot more bottles. Over-crowded on weekends, but otherwise good places to relax and chat with locals or whatever. The latter even has an attached convenience store with a great range of beers to go. I mostly found the Southwest a bit of a wasteland as far as beer variety goes, but maybe I didn't look hard enough.
You're quite possibly planning on it anyway, but you should definitely take a drive out to Sedona via Oak Creek Canyon. Spectacular country. Enjoy!
sergio - April 26, 2010 9:49 AM
Many thanks Bob!
Yes, I'm going to stay around Flagstaff for a week or so and yes, I have already planned to visit Oak Creek Canyon: it seems a very good place (filled with boulders too...).
<I recently visited a lot of the same places you're about to> for climbing?
As for beers I'll surely check out these two places...In fact I'm not really fascinated by beer-bars as, at least here in Europe, I'm in love with small brewpubs. But, reading on the web, I've found out that beer-bars are a basic part of American beer culture and so I'm planning to visit some of them too. So, your suggestions are perfect.
Again, many thanks.
<talk to as many people as you can while on the road and see what you can discover about beer or otherwise.
Go all Hemingway on it!> For sure Pok!