Best Western's Travel Blog - You Must Be Trippin'

Brew Tours

October 21 2009 by Mark Deyer

Fall is a great time of year for serious beer lovers. The crisper, lighter beers depart store shelves and fridges in favor of darker, heavier, and more complex seasonal brews. Fall is also one of my favorite times of year to travel. Green leaves and warm weather depart, bringing an abundance of fall foliage and crisp weathers. Lately one of my favorite travel activities has been to stay away from main thoroughfares and heavily trafficked tourist spots of my favorite cities, so that I can focus on my newest travel passion: The brewery tour.

Touring breweries is not only a memorable way to take in the essence of a locale, but a very affordable and cost effective activity. Since most tours are free to the public and offer a tasting at the end, it can be a great, cheap way to spend a fall afternoon.

Here are some "must hit" breweries for your next trip:

Samuel Adams Brewery, Boston Massachusetts

Cost: Free, although a $2 charitable donation is encouraged.

Reservations: No, but can get busy on weekends.

The Sam Adam's brewery is nestled into a very unassuming location in the Jamaica Plain neighborhood, just outside of the heart of the city. The brewery itself was the original location of the Sam Adams brewery. While this location isn't producing much 'production' beer, it is used as a research and development facility for the company. The tour itself is very informative and brief. The Sam Adams tour, much like other tours, mostly focuses on the quality ingredients and basic process for making beer. What sets the Sam Adams tours apart from others is the tasting. While most breweries offer production style beers, Sam Adams offers guests a unique chance to taste unsold 'test' beers, beers with limited release, and whatever else they happen to be brewing at the time. No set beers are offered for the tasting, other than the traditional Boston Lager, so each tour is somewhat unique from the next.

Yuengling Brewery, Pottsville Pennsylvania

Cost: Free.

Reservations: No, but can get busy on weekends.

An east-coast mainstay, Yuengling is home to the oldest brewery in America. About a 90 minute drive from Philadelphia, the Yuengling Brewery tour is not short on history. After 180 years in business, they are still a family owned company. The tour spends a lot of time walking guests through the unique history of the company and if you're lucky, your guide will take the group on a detour to see the beer caves where Yuengling used to store their beer before refrigeration. The tour is quite a bit longer than most and if you choose to spend some time afterwards, you can spend up to a few hours here. The tasting is brief and limited, but is free and gives you chance to familiarize yourself with their signature brew. The tour does take place in a working facility, so flip-flops are prohibited and those that choose to ignore the warnings are forced to wear brewery-supplied closed toed shoes. Take my word for it and bring your own.

Anchor Steam Brewery, San Francisco California

Cost: Free.

Reservations: Required. The tour fills up fast, so book several weeks in advance.

It's hard not to feel a bit like Charlie from 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' when you step foot inside the Anchor Steam Brewery. The historically charming copper vats and shiny piping give this brewery an authentic feel, which is only reinforced through the tour which gives guest a unique perspective into the day to day operations at Anchor Steam. The tour has many standard elements, but what sets the Anchor Steam tours apart from most is the emphasis on trivia and anecdotal stories that have given them such a storied history. They keep the tour very structured and informative, perfect for beer geeks and novices alike. The best part of the Anchor Steam tour, however, is the "tasting". I put tasting in quotations because Anchor Steam tasting room has a tendency to turn into a full blown bar on occasion. Portions are very generous and guests are encouraged sample responsible the 5-6 beers they have on tap at any given time. The Anchor Steam brewery is truly a west coast brewery gem.

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