The 8 Best Places to Buy Good Beer on Vacation
You’ve been there: sitting on the porch of that cabin you rented in Cote, WY, parched after a day of hiking or swinging in a hammock. Then the harsh reality hits: We didn’t pick up beer. If that cabin were located in Portland or San Francisco, both established craft beervanas, that wouldn't be a problem. But what to do if you've ventured farther afield? If the beer stops are few and far between? Worry not. We found the best beer runs in vacation spots from Maine straight on over to Alaska’s Inside Passage.
Bonus: Some of these beer runs could also do double duty as souvenir stops. Imagine how jealous your beer-snob friends will be when you return home from Alabama with a Fairhope Brewing Co. growler in tow? Isn’t that why you’re going away in the first place? (Kidding. Sort of.) Cheers!
1/8Mount Desert Island, Maine
Though it's one of Maine’s most charming specialties, Bar Harbor’s crowds can seriously harsh on the blissed-out vibe a Mount Desert cottage stay brings. Two of the town’s breweries are worth the upset. Bar Harbor Brewing sells nine kinds of beers in six-packs and seasonal brews in 22-ounce bottles. (We like the True Blue blueberry wheat ale.) Just outside the downtown area, Atlantic Brewing Co. sells a good range of beers throughout the summer: go dark with the Coal Porter or spicy with the Island Ginger. If you prefer to stay completely out of the fray, Sawyer’s Market, a family-owned grocery in the far-calmer town of Southwest Harbor, stocks many of Maine’s local microbrews. You may never have to leave your cottage again.
(Credit: Courtesy Atlantic Brewing Co.)
2/8The Jersey Shore
Uncurl that sneer from your face. There’s a whole lot more to the Jersey shore than Bud and Slurpee-sized piña coladas. Court Liquors in Long Branch stocks 600–800 kinds of beer, both domestic and imported. (Watch for local Kane Brewing’s small batch releases, says general manager Nick Pizzonia.) Down at the tip of Joisey, Cape May’s Collier’s Liquor Store will keep sells brews from Garden State breweries such as Flying Fish Brewing Co. and River Horse.
(Credit: Courtesy Collier's Liquor)
3/8Alabama Gulf Coast
Alabama has seen an uptick in craft breweries over the last several years, and finally the Gulf Coast has one of its own: Fairhope Brewing (pictured) opened in January. The bad news? Though you can buy bottles of vino at the state’s wineries (yes, they exist!), you can’t take beer to go at 'bama breweries. The good news? The breweries have tasting rooms, ripe for the sampling. A good starting point, says Jim Foley, one of Fairhope's managing partners, is the Painted Black IPA, with roasted flavors to balance out the hops, or the Fairhope 51, a “crisp, hoppy American pale ale.” Then head a half-mile away to Vintage Wine & Liquor, one of Alabama’s top craft beer stores, for a few six-packs.
(Credit: Flickr user Russel C.)
4/8Wisconsin's Great River Road
You're going to need something to wash down all that great cheese. This is Wisconsin, after all. Whether you stay put in one of the towns along the Great River Road, a National Scenic Byway which hugs the Mississippi River for 250 miles from Kieler up to Prescott, or trip out on several of them over a week, there’s beer nearby. Down south, Potosi Brewery, first opened in 1852, reopened in 2008. The beers range from the Good Old Potosi, an old-school golden ale, to specialty releases like Potosi Tangerine IPA. There’s even a beer museum on site! Vacation score! Up north in LaCrosse, modern craft brewer Pearl Street Brewery sells six-packs and growlers in its light-filled tap room in the old La Crosse Footwear building. Brews include Java Lava Coffee Stout and Evil Doppleganger Blond Dopplebock.
(Credit: Jenna Schnuer)
5/8North Dakota
Don’t let the fracking news keep you away; North Dakota is home to Theodore Roosevelt National Park. And though it’s 134 miles away, your beer run is to Bismarck’s Laughing Sun Brewing Co. Listen to some live music in the pub, buy a growler full of flagship brew Feast Like a Sultan IPA, and then head back to your tent. (There is a convenience store that sells beer in Medora, the gateway town into the National Park, but the brewery is your go-to. Once you get to North Dakota, it feels right to drive 134 miles to pick up beer. You’ll see. But do go into the convenience store for block ice and fresh bison jerky.)
(Credit: Courtesy Laughing Sun Brewing Co.)
6/8Glacier National Park, Montana
Montana is a fine craft beer state. But the store at Glacier National Park’s Apgar Village doesn’t do it justice. Hit the road—Going-to-the-Sun Road, that is—and head to Kalispell, 35 miles away, where you'll find Brix Bottleshop. Take advantage of the shop’s six-pack mix-and-match to load up on all Montana has to offer and, once back at your cabin on McDonald Creek, drink your way around the state.
(Credit: Courtesy Brix Bottleshop)
7/8Southern Utah, near Zion Canyon & Bryce Canyon
Utah eased up on its liquor laws in 2009—before that, bars had to charge a membership fee before they could serve you a beer—but it’s still difficult to run out and grab a six of something really good. Supermarkets can sell beer, but there's nothing stronger than 4 percent alcohol by volume. Want something stronger? Off to one of the state liquor stores in Brian Head or Panguitch you go. The good news: they stock a decent selection. The bad news: state monopolies are annoying as hell. That alone is a good reason to skip out on the porch beers and stage a post-hike drink-in on the patio of Zion Canyon Brewing Company.
(Credit: Courtesy Zion Canyon Brewing Company)
8/8Alaska’s Inside Passage Cruises
While plenty of cruise ships stock Juneau-based Alaskan Brewing’s amber and, at times, white, there’s a lot more to the Inside Passage’s craft-beer supply than that duo. Some breweries that sell items to go (and double as excellent cruise excursions): 1. Alaska beer lovers speak of Sitka-based Baranof Island Brewing’s beers with great reverence. Open since 2010, the once-tiny brewery just recently ramped up enough to sell its beers to local stores and restaurants. It even offers a van service from downtown to shuttle visitors out to the brewery. 2. The big mamba jamba of the state’s beer scene, Alaskan Brewing’s offerings go far beyond those at your cruise ship’s bar. Get a few 22-oz. bottles of the award-winning Smoked Porter. 3. When you dock in Skagway, get off the cruise ship and walk straight down Broadway. Don’t stop until you get to Skagway Brewing Company. Sit at the bar. Order a Spruce Tip Blonde—brewed with Sitka Spruce tree tips. Drink it. Order a growler of the Blue Top Porter. Walk back to your ship. Beer and a hike. A perfect day. (Bonus Tip: Book an outside cabin with a deck and store your beers out there—even midsummer, the overnight temps will keep your beer plenty cold.)
(Credit: Courtesy Skagway Brewing Company)
