Austin

[TheHairyHop]

I will be traveling to Austin this Saturday November, 5 for a business trip. I should be there for around two weeks. In the member bio thread, I saw recommendations for Austin Beer Garden Brewing as well as Live Oak. I will be sure to post some impressions after I get a chance to try some of their beers. Does anyone have any other recommendations as far as Austin breweries or specific beers go?

[dilluh98]

As far as lager goes, the two mentioned are pretty much the best in town. ABGB being on-site only and Live Oak you can find at many bars in town as well as in can (as mentioned, I'd be wary of taking impressions from the canned product). Another good lager is oddly ONLY available in the can: Lazy Day Lager from Uncle Billy's Brewery. Many bottle shops and grocery stores will carry that.

Beyond lager, obviously Jester King is a destination brewery if you are into wild/sour. I enjoy their stuff a lot although pricey. I'm not a huge hop-head so I'm really not much help on that end of things. Pretty much everyone's saison is not very good, IMO, and like anywhere else you just won't find much in the way of English-style ales unless it's a one-off seasonal "ESB" which never actually has any English yeast character to it and is way over hopped.

There are some incredibly popular breweries here but I don't think they're making great (or even sometimes good) beer. Again, this could be due to me not being an enormous fan of IPA. A few of these places have pilsners that you will just laugh at.

[dilluh98]

I'll give you a run down of what I perceive to be the most popular breweries in town. Like I said, I think most of these make good beers but few great beers (Jester King excluded -they make great beer).

Jester King
Austin Beerworks
Hops & Grains
Real Ale

If you are really into American IPA, I'd suggest Pinthouse Pizza. My wife is a hophead and loves their stuff - good space, decent pizza and they have a ton of variety between their own stuff and other locals on tap, too.

[TheHairyHop]

thank you very much for the tips. I'll be sure to visit as many as possible. I am a fan of hops, but then again, I am a fan of every style. between the BBQ and beer, I should be well satisfied

[mchrispen]

Looks like Dilluh98 and I have the same taste profiles...

I would add that the beer on tap at the new Oscar Blues is pretty good. And - if you have time, hit Meridian Hive meadery. You can find a lot of their draft meads around town. Very well made.

As for BBQ, skip the lines downtown and head out to Lockhart. Blacks and Kreutz's are the real deal. There is a Black's in Austin, but I haven't tried it there yet. South of town, the Salk Lick is pretty good as well (Bring Your Own Beer). If you know someone here - get them to smoke a brisket for you - best BBQ I have had is homemade around here.

Real Ale is a trip out to Blanco - absolutely worth the ride out. Lots of the brewer's hang out at the new tap room - always a fun time.

Sadly, Fredericksburg has good food and mediocre beer, but the Pacific Theater WWII museum is stunning. The rest of the town - cowboy chic crap.

[TheHairyHop]

I got to experience some of Austin previously on a weekend trip. I ate at John Mueller's and La BBQ. Both were great. I lived in CO for 5 years, so I may skip Oskar Blues, but they certainly do make some good beers and burgers. That mead sounds great. There's a meadery in Boulder that cans and barrel ages some great stuff

[TheHairyHop]