The Craft Beer Revolution: Best Breweries to Visit

Ten years ago, I would have told you that beer was beer. Then I walked into a small brewery in Portland, Oregon, and ordered an IPA that smelled like pine trees and tasted like grapefruit, and I realized I had been drinking the wrong thing my entire adult life. The craft beer revolution has transformed the way the world drinks, and the best way to understand it is not by reading about it but by visiting the breweries where the magic happens.

"Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy." — Benjamin Franklin

Portland, Oregon: The Craft Beer Capital of America

Portland has more breweries per capita than any other city in the world, with over 80 within the city limits and more than 150 in the greater metro area. The scene here is not about polished taprooms and marketing budgets; it is about brewers experimenting with recipes in converted warehouses and garage spaces, pushing the boundaries of what beer can be. Deschutes Brewery, with its flagship pub on NW 11th Avenue, is one of the most visitor-friendly; the pub serves flights of ten beers for $14 and offers free tours of the brewing facility on weekends. Their Black Butte Porter, a smooth, chocolatey ale that has been brewed since 1988, is the beer that put Oregon craft beer on the map.

For something more adventurous, head to Hair of the Dog Brewing Company in the industrial district east of the river. This tiny brewery, founded in 1993, specializes in strong ales aged in oak barrels, including the legendary Doggie Claws, a barleywine that clocks in at 11% ABV and tastes like liquid caramel. Tastings are $2 to $3 per four-ounce pour. Across town, Cascade Brewing Barrel House focuses on sour beers aged in wine and spirit barrels; their Northwest Sour Ale series uses local fruit like marionberries and Bing cherries, and the tasting room in the Pearl District is one of the most distinctive drinking spaces in the city.

Getting around Portland's brewery scene is easy because the city is compact and public transit is excellent. The MAX Light Rail connects downtown with many neighborhoods, and a day pass costs $5. The Eastside IPA Trail, a self-guided route connecting a dozen breweries in Southeast Portland, can be walked in an afternoon if you pace yourself. Most breweries open between noon and 2 PM and close between 9 PM and midnight. Food trucks park outside many of the larger breweries, so you do not have to choose between drinking and eating.

Belgium: The Old World Masters

Belgium has been brewing beer for over a thousand years, and the country's brewing traditions are so deep and varied that UNESCO added Belgian beer culture to its Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2016. The Trappist breweries, operated by monks within working monasteries, are the most famous. There are only twelve Trappist breweries in the world, and six of them are in Belgium. Westvleteren, widely considered the best beer in the world, is produced by monks at the Sint-Sixtus Abbey and can only be purchased at the abbey itself or at a single cafe across the road. You must call ahead to reserve; the phone line is open from 9 AM to 11 AM and from 1:30 PM to 4 PM Belgian time, and the wait can be weeks.

Bruges, a medieval city about an hour from Brussels by train, is an excellent base for a Belgian beer trip. The De Halve Maan brewery, founded in 1856, is the last family-owned brewery operating in the city center and offers tours that end with a blonde ale called Straffe Hendrik. The tour costs 12 euros and takes about 45 minutes. After the tour, walk to the Brugs Beertje, a bar with over 300 Belgian beers on the menu. The staff will guide you through the options; try the St. Bernardus Abt 12, a quadrupel that is rich, dark, and deceptively strong at 10.5% ABV.

Train travel between Belgian cities is fast and affordable. A ticket from Brussels to Bruges costs about 15 euros one way and takes roughly one hour. From Brussels, you can reach Antwerp in 35 minutes for 8 euros. In Antwerp, visit the De Koninck brewery, where the Bolleke, a slightly sweet amber ale, has been brewed since 1833. The brewery tour costs 16 euros and includes tastings. Budget about 40 to 60 euros per day for beer tastings in Belgium; a half-pint (25 cl) at a bar typically costs 3 to 5 euros, and most places serve smaller pours than American breweries, which is a good thing given the strength of many Belgian beers.

Denver and Colorado: High Altitude, High Standards

Colorado has the second-highest number of craft breweries of any US state, and Denver serves as the hub of a scene that stretches from Fort Collins in the north to Colorado Springs in the south. The Great American Beer Festival, held in Denver every October, is the largest commercial beer competition in the world, drawing over 800 breweries and 60,000 attendees. Tickets cost around $85 to $110 for a general admission session and sell out within hours of going on sale, usually in late July.

In Denver itself, the RiNo (River North) Art District has become the center of the craft beer scene. Bierstadt Lagerhaus, housed in a converted warehouse, focuses exclusively on lagers and serves what many consider the best pilsner in America. A pint costs $6. Across the street, Cerebral Brewing rotates through an impressive selection of IPAs, stouts, and barrel-aged beers. For a more intimate experience, visit Our Mutual Friend Brewing in the Five Points neighborhood, where the taproom feels like a friend's living room and the beers rotate weekly. A flight of four four-ounce pours costs $8 to $10 at most Denver breweries.

Fort Collins, about an hour north of Denver, is home to two of Colorado's most celebrated breweries. New Belgium Brewing, founded in 1991, offers free 90-minute tours of its facility that include tastings of Fat Tire, its flagship amber ale, and seasonal specialties. Reservations are recommended and can be made online. Odell Brewing, a five-minute walk from New Belgium, charges $5 for a tour and tasting. Between the two, you can easily spend a full afternoon. The Fort Collins brewery district also includes Equinox Brewing and CooperSmith's Pub and Brewing, both within walking distance.

Tokyo: Craft Beer Finds Its Footing in Japan

Japan's craft beer scene is younger than those in the US or Europe, but it has grown rapidly since the government relaxed brewing regulations in 1994. Hitachino Nest, brewed by Kiuchi Brewery in Ibaraki Prefecture about two hours from Tokyo, was one of the first Japanese craft beers to gain international recognition. Their White Ale, a witbier flavored with coriander, orange peel, and nutmeg, is widely available in Tokyo bars and costs about 600 to 800 yen ($4 to $5.50 USD) per glass.

The Nakameguro and Koenji neighborhoods in Tokyo have the highest concentration of craft beer bars. Spring Valley Brewery, operated by Kirin in a converted warehouse in Daikanyama, offers a rotating selection of craft beers brewed on-site alongside a food menu that pairs well with the beer. A pint costs about 900 yen ($6 USD). Baird Taproom in Nakameguro, run by the Baird Brewing Company from Numazu, serves excellent Japanese IPAs and seasonal beers. For bottled beer to take home, visit the Liquor Mountain store in Shinjuku, which stocks hundreds of Japanese craft beers.

The annual Great Japan Beer Festival, held in Tokyo in June and Osaka in August, Display over 120 Japanese craft breweries. Tickets cost about 4,500 yen ($30 USD) in advance and include a tasting glass and five tokens; additional tokens cost 700 yen each. For a more focused experience, the Yokohama Beer Festival in October draws about 50 breweries and has a more relaxed atmosphere than the Tokyo event. If you are visiting Japan in autumn, the Hokkaido Autumn Fest in Sapporo in September combines craft beer with local food from Japan's northernmost island.

Melbourne and Australia: The Southern Hemisphere Scene

Australia's craft beer industry has exploded in the past decade, and Melbourne is at the center of it. The city has over 200 craft breweries and bars, and the culture around beer here is as passionate as anywhere I have visited. The Inner North neighborhood, including suburbs like Brunswick and Collingwood, is the best area to explore on foot. Thunder Road Brewing in Brunswick produces a range of beers from a crisp pilsner to a rich imperial stout, and the taproom is open Wednesday through Sunday. A tasting paddle of six beers costs about $20 AUD.

In Collingwood, the Craft Beer Co. bar has 32 taps and a menu that changes weekly. It is the kind of place where you can walk in knowing nothing about Australian craft beer and walk out with a list of breweries to visit. The bar does not serve food, but the surrounding streets are full of excellent restaurants that welcome you bringing in beer from next door. For brewery tours, the Mornington Peninsula, about an hour south of Melbourne, is home to several excellent breweries including Mornington Peninsula Brewery and Red Hill Brewery, both of which offer tastings with views of vineyards and coastline.

Australians take their beer seriously but not pretentiously. The standard beer size is a schooner (425 ml) or a pot (285 ml), and most craft beer bars serve tasting paddles of four to six beers for $16 to $24 AUD. The best time to visit for beer events is March, when Good Beer Week takes over Melbourne with over 200 events across the city, including tastings, brewery tours, and beer-pairing dinners. Many events are free or cost less than $30 AUD.

Planning a Brewery Trip: Practical Advice

Designing a trip around breweries requires a different approach than most travel planning. The first rule is to pace yourself. Visiting four or five breweries in a day sounds fun, but after the third one, your palate stops distinguishing between beers and your notes become illegible. Two to three breweries per day is a more realistic target, and it leaves room for meals, rest, and actually remembering what you drank. Most breweries offer tasting flights of four to six beers in small pours, which is the best way to sample a range without overdoing it.

Transportation is a serious consideration. Even if you are spacing out your tastings, the cumulative alcohol content adds up. In cities with good public transit, like Portland, Denver, and Melbourne, use trains and buses. In more spread-out areas, designate a Guide, use rideshare services, or book a brewery tour through operators like Denver Beer Trail or Portland Brew Bus, which charge $60 to $100 per person for a half-day tour with transportation and tastings included. Never drink and travel, no matter how good the beer is.

Budget about $30 to $50 per person per day for brewery visits in the US, $25 to $40 in Australia, and 20 to 40 euros in Belgium. This covers tastings at two to three breweries plus tips. Many breweries do not charge for tours but require reservations, especially on weekends. Check brewery websites before you go; hours vary widely, and some smaller breweries are only open Thursday through Sunday. Bring a notebook or use your phone to record which beers you liked and where you found them. Your future self will thank you.