If you have been following along, you have seen that my husband and I LOVE beer! But more importantly, we love visiting craft breweries.  If we are at a loss of what to do, we always opt for visiting a local craft brewery. My husband is certainly the bigger beer nerd of the two of us, but I certainly never pass up an opportunity to visit a brewery and have some craft beer! Thankfully he has kept up on the Untappd App so we can remember all the great beer we have tried!

While on our year long travel adventure around the US, we have visited many craft breweries but with thanks from my liver, we have not visited them all! Knowing that there is so much more out there, I called upon some help from other Female Travel Bloggers for this collaborative post! Here are some of our favorite craft breweries around the country, including some favorites from my fellow female travel blogging friends in alphabetical order!

Adroit Theory – Purcellville, VA   

Stephanie from Road Unraveled

If you love a good pint of beer and an eclectic spot to drink it, you can’t miss Adroit Theory in Purcellville, Virginia (about an hour from Washington, DC). Adroit Theory typically has no fewer than 24 beers on tap, but there’s a catch: they are a self-described nano-brewery, which means they make just a couple of kegs of any given beer at a time. If you find a beer you love (and chances are you will!) don’t hesitate to enjoy a glass or take a growler to go since you never know when they will run out or brew it again.

Because the menu changes so often it’s tough to pick a favorite, but they excel in stouts and other dark beers. I love Imagination Atrophy, a milk stout aged in bourbon barrels, which has a lot of coffee notes. Similarly, B/Y/A/S (Black As Your Soul) is a stout aged in Cabernet Sauvignon barrels that really showcases the fruity, tannic qualities of the wine. Adroit Theory brews plenty of lighter beers, too, including some great IPAs.

Adroit Theory is located in an industrial park, which means the tasting experience takes place in a warehouse garage converted into a taproom. Most visits greet you with hardcore rock and punk music blasting through the speakers, but it maintains a balance between being approachable and having an edge. The best part is that guests can create a custom flight if there are a few beers on tap that sound good, which means you have full control of your tasting experience. Because there are so many unique, creative drafts available, purchasing multiple tasters is almost mandatory! Visiting Adroit Theory is always a great time, and for beer fans it’s a can’t-miss brewery!

Alchemist – Stowe, Vermont 

By April from T and A in the US of A

If you are a big craft beer fan, then certainly you have heard of Alchemist in Stowe, VT. They are most famously known for their flagship IPA, Heady Topper.  They opened their first brewery in Waterbury, VT in 2003, and in 2016, they opened their latest facility in Stowe, which is absolutely gorgeous! This is where their new, state of the art, brewery and visitor center is located. You can get free beer samples (WOO!), purchase beer and merchandise to go, and they also have live entertainment. In addition to their Heady Topper, their Focal Banger is also well known as a delicious American IPA which includes Citra and Mosaic hops. It also doesn’t hurt that it is 7% abv!

They specialize in unfiltered, delicious IPAs, but I also enjoyed their Lightweight American Blonde Ale. This is a great place to bring the whole family, as they are on a beautiful property with plenty of room for activities!

 

Allagash Brewing Company – Portland, ME

April from T and A in the US of A

Portland, ME is well known for its high concentration of breweries! One of my favorite beers, comes from Allagash, which is their Allagash White. A friend and I paid a visit to Portland one summer, and made sure we did not miss out on a visit to our favorite brewery! They had an excellent selection of different kinds of beers, including some limited edition bottles you can purchase on site. The best part? They offer free tours AND tastings! We enjoyed the ambiance, sipping our free samples outside on their picnic tables. This is a nationally, and probably internationally distributed beer, but they also sell beers you can’t get anywhere else, so come for the experience, and leave with some great beer!

 

Burial Beer Co – Asheville, North Carolina 

April from T and A in the US of A

When we visited Asheville, we had heard rumors that Asheville has the most breweries per capita in the US. I now believe it! While looking on Yelp (yes, I know, there are better ways to look up good beer), I saw that Burial had by FAR the most reviews, and a 5 star rating. After talking to several people, they all agreed, that Burial is hands down, the best brewery in Asheville! Their IPAs are deliciously unfiltered, smooth, and well balanced!

They have several beer release parties per year, and we were lucky enough to be there for the release of S-T-A-Y GOLD, because the rappers Run the Jewels were in town. They also released Final Serenade that night as well. I found some of my favorites are their Clairvoyant Metamorphosis and Gang of Blades. Be sure to also check out their mural of Tom Selleck and Sloth from The Goonies!

 

Deschutes Brewery – Portland, OR   

By Maegan from The Wanderlust Dietitian  

I love Deschutes Brewery in Portland, OR. I visited Portland over spring break this year and fell in love! My husband and I took a Brewvana Brewery tour around the Pearl District and began at Deschutes.

Deschutes was opened in 1988. The brew pubs’ 26 taps feature the classic go-to beers, seasonal delights, and experimental beers brewed on site exclusively for Portland. We sampled 8 beers ranging from nitro reds to porters. We loved the “trees of doom” Dunkel lager, “Nitro Interlace Red” and the “Black Butte Porter. The Black Butte is the best-selling craft porter in the USA! The Black Butte has hints of rich chocolate and coffee, with a creamy yet roasted finish, no wonder it’s a favorite!

BONUS: We also learned that they are building a Deschutes Brewery in Roanoke, VA! We are stoked!

 

Hill Farmstead Brewery – Greensboro, VT  

By Sarah and Justin – Travel Breathe Repeat 

About Hill Farmstead

If you’re going to Vermont, you should go to some of its (many) incredible breweries. And if possible, you should make a trip to Hill Farmstead Brewery in Greensboro, which has topped RateBeer’s list for best brewery in the world for the past three years.

Hill Farmstead is not your traditional place to get a pint. The brewery and tap house are located on a farm about 15 minutes away from any main roads. You have to take one of two rocky dirt roads to get to it. Once you get there, you see the appeal. It’s in the middle of nowhere on undisturbed, gorgeous land, and you’ll get to enjoy a glass of their delicious beer in peace, with a view.

What to expect at Hill Farmstead

Onsite, you can purchase bottles, growlers, and glasses of beer. We passed on the growlers since we were on a road trip and came woefully unprepared. If you want to buy a growler, you need to take a ticket when you enter the tap room. We read the wait can be very long – especially on weekends – but we went on a Thursday afternoon and it didn’t seem too bad. Hill Farmstead releases their limited edition bottles on Wednesdays, so that’s definitely a busy day. Lucky for us, they hadn’t run out by Thursday so we snagged ourselves one.

Alright already… so what did we drink?

After tasting much of what was on tap, we bought glasses of Shirley Mae – a porter – to enjoy on their porch. We bought four bottles to take home: Arthur, their traditional farmhouse ale; two collaborations of their farmhouse ale combined with different flavors – Nordic Saison and Convivial Suarez; and the super special limited edition Fear & Trembling (Frygt og Bæven) Smoked Baltic Porter (the name says it all).

Our favorite was the simplest: Arthur. It was definitely the best farmhouse ale or saison we’ve had, and might possibly be the best beer we’ve had… ever. And we swear, we’re not being influenced by all the buzz surrounding this place. The prominent flavor is lemon, but its sweet and sour notes were perfectly balanced. It was bursting with flavor, deep and layered, yet remained light and refreshing. We wish we had bought more than one bottle!

Hill Farmstead beer isn’t sold outside Vermont and they are very picky about their purveyors. So you might as well make a trip up to the brewery to see (and taste) for yourself.

Historic Brewing Co – Flagstaff, AZ 

April from T and A in the US of  A

If you are one to like unique combos of flavors in your beer, this is the spot to be! Flagstaff, though a small city in Arizona, has 7 great breweries in town! When we were there, they had created a collaborative beer among the 7 breweries called Flagstaff 7 which each brewery carried. Historic was pretty cool, not only because of its theme, but its wide variety of different beers. I was a bit overwhelmed, so I opted for a flight so I could sample even more. There flights are are $2 per 4 oz sample, which I thought was pretty reasonable! We enjoyed their mainstay, Deer Lord which is a German Altbier, their Opposable IPA (think t-rex), and also some of their other limited beers.

 

Mother Earth Brewing – Kinston, NC 

Julie from More Than Main Street 

What’s not to love about a brewery whose slogan is “Peace, Love, & Beer”? Mother Earth Brewing is a super modern brewery in the very southern town of Kinston, North Carolina. I visited Mother Earth on a Saturday afternoon with a girlfriend while our husbands played in a local golf tournament. We weren’t exactly sure what to order, so the incredibly awesome bartender let me sample a few of their more popular beers. I ended up loving the light and refreshing Weeping Willow Wit. My husband on the other hand would’ve gone straight for the Dark Cloud…the darker the better for him!

They have a very hip but casual vibe with indoor and outdoor seating at Mother Earth. Tours are held every hour on the weekends where you can grab a beer and join in to learn about their passion for making beer in an eco-friendly way. It’s also a perfect stop for pre or post dinner drinks at the famous Chef and the Farmer restaurant right next door!

The Eastern NC brew scene is alive and well!! Follow Julie and her family travels at www.morethanmainstreet.com or on Instagram www.instagram.com/morethanmainstreet and Twitter www.twitter.com/morethanmainst.

 

Outer Range Brewing Co. – Frisco, CO 

April from T and A in the US of A

With a visit to Colorado, we had no shortage of breweries to visit. Colorado is home to some pretty big name and craft breweries. We were pleasantly surprised to find our favorite brewery was a smaller brewery called Outer Range. We stumbled upon this place on our bike ride for a refreshing brew. It was a great spot! We had a great time sitting at the bar, chatter with the beer tenders and enjoying both Saisons and IPAs. It was surprising to see the bartenders take down the names of the beers from the list, as each one started to sell out.

Clearly this place was not so much of a secret, as the favorites were flying off the menu! I’d recommend coming here early to avoid missing out on anything! They are a smaller brewery, so therefore their inventory doesn’t last as long as one would hope for. Don’t forget to try Rustic Ways, an IPA with Simcoe and Mosaic hops, Foresty, a New England style IPA with a well balanced mix of hops, and Final Summit, which is a Saison/Farmhouse Ale with a really rich flavor.

 

Terrapin Beer Co – Athens, GA 

Danielle with Wanderlust on a Budget 

For my husband’s 30th birthday, I planned a 10-day road trip along the east coast of the US, stopping at craft breweries along the way. The highlight of the trip was his (and my!) favorite brewery: Terrapin Beer Co. Located in Athens, Georgia (a little over an hour east of Atlanta), Terrapin is a must-visit for craft beer lovers! They have limited hours and are only open from Wednesday through Sunday, so be sure to check their website first so you’re not setting yourself up for disappointment. If you visit during the week of your birthday, you’ll get a special Terrapin birthday glass to take home (you can just imagine my husband’s excitement).

Great tips!

Things have changed slightly since we visited since laws have changed in Georgia, but now they offer beers by the glass for $5 at several of the bars throughout the tap room. Each mini bar has multiple Terrapin beers on tap, so be sure to walk around, inside and out, to check what is currently flowing. They promise that flights will be available again soon. Terrapin offers FREE tours of the brewery; we were lucky enough to have a private tour because the place was fairly quiet when we visited and the other customers had already done their tour. The tour guide was fantastic and let us take lots photos. Outside the tap room is a great sitting area with another bar, tables and chairs, and yard games. It’s a super relaxing environment.

Terrapin also has a great gift shop where you can find all sorts of merch – including the coffee they use to brew their Wake-n-Bake stout! As a big fan of dark beers and peanut butter, my favorite is the Liquid Bliss porter; my husband is an IPA guy, so he loves the Hopsecutioner. Nonetheless, we have yet to find a Terrapin beer that wasn’t fantastic. Visit the brewery and bring your dog (the outdoor area is pet-friendly), you won’t regret it!

Another fun fact about Terrapin:

They partner with the creators of The Walking Dead. The beer has been featured in the background of several scenes, and brewery has produced two beers based on the show with collaboration from the show’s producers.

 

Tree House Brewing Company – Charlton, MA 

April from T and A in the US of A

After hearing all the hype on social media about the new craft brewery, Tree House opening up a new location in Charlton, MA we decided to check it out. When we arrived, we thought it would be like any other brewery, where you simply walk in, order what you want and enjoy. This was not the case, and we were not happy at first…until we learned more about this beer haven! First of all, while waiting in line, we were told the tap room was not open. WHAT?! We came here to drink! The guy behind us was a total beer aficionado, and educated us all about the brewery, their beer, and how they are probably one of the best in the country. Ok fine! We will wait in this long line to see what the hype was all about.

After about 30 minutes in line, we made our way inside. Lucky for us, they were starting to open the tap room. SWEET! We got a case of Eureka and Doppelganger and also enjoyed a pint of Haze and Julius. We later found out were some of the best beers in the US! This is the brewery that turned me onto IPAs! They have such a soft mouth feeling, versus the typical harsh bite that many IPAs have. They were deliciously juicy as well! Did I mention the facility? It is HUGE! You can see right into the brewery and canning room, which smells of delicious hops, but they also have a fabulous outdoor area with a huge cover, tons of picnic tables, Adirondack chairs, and a huge outdoor fireplace. Well worth the wait, and we even made sure we stopped back 2 more times to get the new releases and to stock up for our trip south.

 

Tröegs Independent Brewing – Hershey, PA 

Karen from Wanderlustingk 

In Pennsylvania, my favorite beer is from a brewery called Troeg’s.  Troeg’s is an independent brewery with a great seasonal selection as well as some solid year-round offering.  The perpetual IPA is a solid beer for IPA lovers although my favorite is the Dreamweaver What.  When it’s time for the holiday season, I’m obsessed with their Mad Elf, an ale made with honey and chocolate.  Perfect for those cozy winter nights.

The brewery is located in Hershey PA, however, they host Troeg’s beer nights in bars all over PA where you can sample seasonal beers that are harder to find near you.  If you’re considering visiting Hershey Park, definitely stop by the Troeg’s brewery for the best beer in Pennsylvania.

If you ever find yourself in Amsterdam, she has a great post on some Dutch craft breweries!

 

The Veil Brewing Company – Richmond, VA 

Megan from Megan Starr  

My hometown is Richmond, Virginia.  Even though I haven’t spent much time there since I was a kid, I love going back and exploring its culture and thriving food and beverage scene (which, trust me, is awesome).  I am a member of a Facebook group for Virginia craft beer lovers and many of the members rave about The Veil Brewing Company in Richmond.  I knew that when I made it home next, I had to check it out.  And I did.  

In typical Virginia fashion, there was a food truck outside serving oysters, and the inside of the Scott’s Addition taproom was a lively and open place brimming with craft beer lovers.  I felt right at home.  While I didn’t have time to enjoy more than one that day, I enjoy the “sitdwn”, an American IPA made with Galaxy and El Dorado hops.  I can’t wait to go back there and enjoy more of their beers despite taking quite a few home with me that day.  If you’re passing through Richmond and want a good beer, The Veil Brewing Company is a must-visit!

Did we skip your favorite craft breweries? Maybe you can find some more of your favorite craft beers in the USA here! Tell us all about your favorites in the comments! We’d love to visit and try it out!

 

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