Whereas the nationwide media frets a few brewer-pocalypse, San Antonio’s scene has barely been affected. Town has a long-running gentle spot for beer courting again to its early German, Austrian and Czech immigrants.
Since then, ice homes and a few very recognizable nationwide manufacturers carried the torch earlier than the trade blossomed within the final decade. Regardless of voguish shifts in ingesting collectively, the town nonetheless is aware of that knocking one again is an act of neighborhood.
The CultureMap Tastemakers Awards salute that friendship on this 12 months’s batch of Brewery of the Yr nominees. Meet all of them beneath, plan an impromptu pub crawl, then be part of us at our Tastemaker Awards ceremony and signature tasting occasion April 4 on the Briscoe Museum.
You possibly can see all the Tastemaker Award nominees right here and study extra about them in our particular editorial sequence main as much as the large occasion.
A restricted variety of Early Chook tickets are on sale now at discounted charges of $60 for basic admission and $99 for VIP (contains early entry to the occasion, valet, and a devoted bar). Costs will enhance March 1. Seize your tickets now, as a result of this social gathering will promote out — similar to it does yearly.
Alamo Beer CompanyThough not the primary beer firm to bear the title of San Antonio’s most well-known landmark, Alamo is the primary since Prohibition. It takes the spirit of its namesake severely. There’s a maverick spirit in brewing regardless of the hell they need — from golden ales to fruited sours. However its latest partnership with Viva proves it is aware of the way to spot a fellow traveler.
Breakaway Brewing CompanyChris and Jean Pal-Freeman, the homeowners of this Authorities Hill gastropub, had been reared within the beer and biking tradition of the Pacific Northwest. Seems, that pairing works simply as effectively in sunnier climes. Although Cascadia hops are well-represented in juicy pales like Maglia Rosa, San Antonio’s warmth calls for some extra crushable concoctions. After a protracted journey, the Meyer lemon, sea salt, and coriander-brewed EPO gose sips like a Gatorade.
Cactus Land Brewing CompanyDefying the up to date insistence on utilizing beer as an emblem of political division, this Adkins brewery holds expensive the facility it has to deliver folks collectively. Working below the tagline “various beer for various folks,” former homebrewers Dustin and Erica Teague present a welcoming house for everybody. The beers mirror that big selection of personalities, from conventional hefeweizens to a salted pilsner refermented with mango.
Freetail Brewing Co.Sure issues are baked into San Antonio tradition. Locals know that Huge Pink is the one acceptable pairing for barbacoa and that Kawhi Leonard is a extra unspeakable title than Lord Voldemort. And locals know an actual one after they see it. Since 2008, Freetail has been a staple of yard pachangas and River Stroll strolls, embedded within the tradition of its house. It helps that its beers like the favored Bat Out of Helles uniformly earn their place within the fridge.
Idle Beer Corridor & BreweryA newcomer to the Alamo Metropolis scene, Idle comes from Los Angeles hospitality firm Pouring With Coronary heart. However don’t name them carpetbaggers. The spot is attuned to the rhythms of its adopted hometown, attuned to each its laidback perspective and its penchant for straightforward ingesting IPAs and lagers.
Actual Ale Brewing Co.Actual Ale is technically exterior the town in Blanco, however nobody ought to blame us for claiming them. One of many forebears of the Texas craft brewing scene, it has been crushing it since 1996. Since then, the outfit has caught to its promise of utilizing as little processing as doable, making its Fireman’s #4 a family title.
Vista BrewingThis Driftwood brewery has been in River Metropolis since 2021, nevertheless it actually hit its stride in 2023. Already beloved for its barrel-aged brews and Belgian-style lambics, the corporate’s new East Facet digs gave the correct setting for a model that has at all times been entrenched within the concept of neighborhood.
Weathered Souls Brewing Co.Bucking towards the fastidiously curated branding of a few of its opponents, Weathered Souls achieved a too uncommon high quality — authenticity. Its social media feed isn’t afraid to get goofy with a meme or take a social justice stance. Promoting is eschewed in favor of word-of-mouth. The center-on-the-sleeve values demand one offers the model a attempt. The exacting brewing requirements and native sourcing preserve beer followers coming again.
