St. Louis’ beer scene is a major deal. For the past two years, USA Today readers have voted St. Louis the “Best Beer Scene”. Don’t believe them. You can visit some of these breweries from within a 15 minute cab ride from downtown. Here are just a few. You can find more options at the STL Beer website, such as Alpha Brewing, Tower Grove South, Ferguson Brewing and Narrow Gauge, Old Bakery Beer and Hopskeller Brewing, in Metro East, O’Fallon Brewing and Six Mile Bridge, in West County, Two Plumbers and Friendship Brewing, and many other notable area breweries.
2nd Schift Brewing
2nd Shift is located in an industrial area north of Hill, offering standout beers such as Art of Neurosis, Hibiscus Wit, and Cat Spit Spout. It was inspired by El Gato Grande who is “the friendliest, laziest and fattest cat in the brewery “. 1601 Sublette.
4 Hands Brewing Company
4 Hands, located just south of downtown, is near Soulard. This brewery is one of the most unique around. They often collaborate with other St. Louis businesses and artists to create memorable brews. Ripple, Single Speed, and City-Wide are some of the most popular year-round brews. But don’t forget to look out for seasonals. You should also visit the upstairs area where you can find arcade games and Skeeball for free. 1220 S. 8th Street.
Anheuser-Busch Brewery
It is worth taking a tour of the historic brick brewery in Soulard. You can enjoy a free beer tasting while you stand in the Clydesdales stable. You can also take more involved tours like the Beermaster Tour and Horses and Heritage Tour. You can also try the Where You Brew experience. 12th & Lynch.
Bluewood Brewing
Bluewood, which opened recently in the former Lemp Brewery stables, is well-known for its high-ABV beers as well as barrel-aged stouts like Leviathan. Bluewood’s highest ABV beer was Testify which was brewed in 2015 and had an ABV of 24 percent. 1821 Cherokee.
Civil Life Brewing Company
After making a name at 33 Wine Bar in Lafayette Square in his first stint, Jake Hafner moved to Civil Life in Tower Grove South. In 2018, he expanded the brewery by offering canned American Brown. You can visit the brewery and see the rules on the website. These are ways to keep things civil such as an aversion towards people and no buses. 3714 Holt.
Earthbound Beer
Chris Naffziger, a historian, and contributor to SLM pointed out that Earthbound was founded in the former Cherokee Brewery Stock House in 2017. The brewery can now “almost certainly claim to be brewing beer at the oldest brewery building” because the stock house’s first floor and cellars dating back to 1875. You’ll find something new every day with names like the Tax Evader and Gruit Out of Hell. 2724 Cherokee.
