Top 5 Brewery Visits of 2020

2020 is over. For most of us, it was a year that will live in infamy; a year marked by mask wearing, social distancing, online schooling, and cancelled vacations. It was a year of political unrest as different organizations protested government actions and took to the streets. It was a year marked by economic troubles, unemployment, stimulus checks, and overall uncertainty as people around the world slowed down and were forced to take everything one day at a time.

Travel is a major part of life at Great Beer Now but the disease- causing infectious agent known as Coronavirus, or COVID-19, made travel to breweries extremely difficult, if not impossible. Multiple beer tours I had planned for different cities had to be cancelled. Large beer festivals like the Oregon Brewers Festival, the Great American Beer Festival, and others like them were postponed or scrapped completely. 2020 was a year that forced many craft breweries to rethink their business model as they fought for survival amidst a pandemic that threatened to shut down what they had worked so hard to establish.

Despite the difficulties, I did manage to visit some breweries in 2020. A quick check of my records shows that 25 new breweries were added to my travel log this past year and they were all centered in two areas of the country: Houston, Texas and East Tennessee/Western North Carolina. By chance, I happened to take a vacation to the Gatlinburg, Tennessee area just before the pandemic struck and was able to visit a bunch of memorable breweries. Other than that, my travels were limited to my local area.

With only 25 breweries visited, cracking my Top 5 was a little easier than usual, at least mathematically. A brewery has precisely 5:1 odds to make my Top 5 list in 2020, but I still held to my high standards of what I look for in a top brewery, and that means it had to have something to offer that goes beyond delicious beer. Like with past years, my definition of what constitutes a great brewery is a combination of factors that includes atmosphere, comfort, great conversation, and more.

So, which breweries made the cut in 2020? Here are my Top 5 Brewery visits during this profoundly restrictive year:

5. Hound Song Brewing

Columbus, Texas is likely a city you haven’t heard of before. Fewer than 4,000 residents call this south Texas city their home and even the folks in nearby Houston (about 75 miles away) know little about Columbus and what it offers. I can’t speak for the rest of the town, but I can tell you that they have one excellent brewery, Hound Song Brewing. It is located in the downtown area and the large building is difficult to miss. Walk inside and you are greeted by the brewhouse on the left, seating on the right, a bar in the back/center, and friendly faces as far as the eye can see. They have an outdoor patio if you prefer to sit outside and the beer is top- notch, with German and Czech varieties among the offerings. It’s cool to visit a brewery that isn’t obsessed with IPA and it’s cool that the small town of Columbus, Texas has a gem of a brewery to call its own. Add everything up and Hound Song Brewing has enough of what I like to earn it a spot in my Top 5.

4. The Oak Room/Abridged Beer

A sister location to Abridged Beer in west Knoxville, the Oak Room is a smaller brewpub located near downtown Knoxville, TN. Any curiosities about its choice of names will quickly vanish when you walk inside and see the multitude of oak barrels present, each filled with aging nectar, growing more delicious with each passing day. The seating tables are lined up next to the barrels, so you feel like you’re part of the action and can almost hear the aging taking place all around you. The staff at the Oak Room is extremely well- versed on food, beer, and pairings and they can answer any question and make any recommendation without hesitation. The Oak Room brews several memorable sours and the commitment to quality is on full display in every aspect of the operation. It’s the perfect place to sit back and enjoy great conversation with a friend or even a total stranger while you sip on the delicious brew paired with a snack or sandwich. The enthusiasm of the staff and the high standards are enough to earn the Oak Room a place in my Top 5.

3. Urban South Brewery

If you like a brewery that is bright and cheerful, it would be difficult to find a place that better represents these adjectives than Urban South Brewery in Houston. This is a newer location for Urban South, a brewing operation founded in New Orleans, LA and it has quickly caught on with residents of Houston who love it for its charm and creativity. Urban South Brewery has a large interior space with bright colors everywhere and ample glass to let the natural light shine through, adding even more to its bright, happy atmosphere. The beer brewed and served at Urban South includes some of the usual styles common to all breweries such as IPA, Hazy IPA, and so on, but the specialties are fruited sours with several unique and memorable flavors and style variations. When was the last time you tried a beer with a name like Peanut Butter & Very Berry Jelly sour? Or how about Guava Slush Sour?  The creative, colorful, fruit- enhanced beers add even more to the sunny, gleeful vibe at Urban South Brewery and make it a cinch for inclusion in my Top 5 Brewery visits of 2020.

2. Schulz Brau Brewing

Getting back to basics is a common battle cry and in the world of beer, a return to basics usually points to the nation of Germany. After all, much of the world’s brewing roots can be traced to this central European nation so it makes sense that we turn to Germany when we want to recapture the spirit of beer and brewing at its core. Knoxville, Tennessee has a brewery that recognizes this importance, and it happens to be named Schulz Brau Brewing. This brewery specializes in German beer styles like dunkel, pilsner, hefeweizen, Schwarzbier, and other German styles you don’t often see in the typical American craft brewery. The brewery also functions as a restaurant and it offers more space than the typical brewery or restaurant, with a large interior and memorable outdoor biergarten that, not surprisingly, is a huge hit with locals. I love my American west coast IPA as much as the next craft beer fan, but I also love a delicious glass of Munich dunkel served alongside a tasty bratwurst or schnitzel. Schulz Brau Brewing has all the German bases covered and its commitment to old world beer and food, combined with the spacious interior and comfortable beer garden, earn this Knoxville, Tennessee brewery a spot in my Top 5.

1. Pretentious Beer Co.

For my top brewery visit of 2020, we return once again to Knoxville, Tennessee and a brewery known as Pretentious Beer. We all know that breweries and the craft beer industry in general are notorious for going out of their way to NOT be pretentious, so discovering a brewery with a name like this took me aback. Was the choice of names intended to be tongue- in- cheek? Possibly, but whatever the reason, Pretentious Brewing is a must- visit brewery not just for the beer, but for the fact that, in addition to brewing, this establishment is also a fully- functioning glass factory! Yep, you can not only enjoy a tasty glass of brew, you can even design the glassware and watch as a professional glass blower creates the perfect drinking receptacle, designed to your standards. I know that COVID-19 has gotten in the way of things, but Pretentious Brewing even offers workshops on glass making and will assist you as you learn the ropes and create your own glassware and related knick- knacks. Add to this the delicious beer like Better than Birthday Sex Coffee Stout and Fairy Floss Sour and you have all the makings of an outstanding brewery that is certainly entitled to brag and that earns this year’s coveted position as my Top Brewery visit of 2020.

While 2020 was a limited year, I was still fortunate to have visited as many new breweries as I did and in many ways, this was due to the somewhat more relaxed laws here in Texas, the state that, along with Tennessee, supplied the bulk of my brewery excursions. There were other places deserving of mention besides the five listed above and I admit, I had a tougher time this year deciding which to include. Here are my five runners up for 2020:

• Balter Beerworks, Knoxville TN
• Oyster House Brewing, Asheville NC
• 6 Wards Brewing, Dickinson TX
• Senate Avenue Brewing, Jersey Village TX
• Local Group Brewing, Houston TX

Each of the above breweries has its own merits and reasons to consider it for a top rating. From the fine hospitality on display at Balter Beerworks to the passionate and dedicated staff at Local Group Brewing, these five runners- up are all worthy of a visit or two, with tasty brews and so much more.

2020 is behind us now. It was a frustrating year for everyone and a difficult year for craft beer. The industry was forced to act quickly, and individual craft breweries were forced to look for ways to drive revenues. Beer and food to go, canned and bottled beer, outdoor seating- these and other changes had to be made, and made fast, if local breweries hoped to survive.

Here at Great Beer Now, we are ever- grateful for the efforts made by craft breweries to keep the beer flowing during this highly tumultuous year. We hope to resume our beer travels in 2021 and make it the best year yet for craft beer travels. In the meantime, stay safe and remember to support local as we press forward into the new year.

Cheers to all!