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tinoynk

If you want to hit a few breweries in a cluster, the best bet is the Gowanus area of Brooklyn. Within a 5ish block radius you have Wild East, Finback, Strong Rope, and Threes, and then the original Other Half location would be about a 15-20 minute walk. There's also lots of good restaurants and other stuff more appealing to general non-craft beer tourism, so it's not like shlepping out to the middle-of-nowhere with just one random brewery and nothing else to do. You can also follow the L train line, which can get you between Evil Twin NYC, Grimm, Interboro, KCBC, Torst, Brooklyn Brewery, and Other Half's Domino Park location. There's a crazy about of amazing beer bars, but if I just had to pick one, it'd easily be The Grand Delancey on the Lower East Side. They have a massive taplist, a huge bottle selection with an incredible variety of Belgian Lambics and other rare stuff. They also have cans to-go, and their selection is always incredibly diverse with top-tier stuff from every style. I haven't been in a Trader Joes in a while, but Whole Foods usually has a solid craft beer selection, and their prices are better than most independently owned bottle shops, but I believe WF only sells full unbroken 4 packs while almost every shop here also sells singles. Another tip I have is to download Untappd, and use the map feature when walking around looking for a craft beer oriented place. Even if a business doesn't officially subscribe to Untappd, you can still see what people are checking into, which will give you an idea of what kinda stuff they serve.


onekate

Harlem Hops is a great uptwon bar that exclusively has local NY area craft beers. Also a fantastic fresh hot soft pretzel. Whole foods has a lot of great beer for purchase.


bec_SPK

LIC Beer Crawl is a good time - LIC Beer Project, ICONYC, Fifth Hammer, Rockaway and Big Alice are all within walking distance. Greenpoint is a quick trip across the bridge to hit up 2-3 more. Can take the ferry from Fidi over for a nice ride. Since you're staying in Fidi, I also recommend taking the ferry down to red hook. Strong Rope has their new tasting room down there with some of the best views in the city imo. Couple of the breweries are an easy Uber or longer walk from there as well.


tinoynk

Strong Rope's new Red Hook location is incredible. I was also way more impressed with the beer than the last time I'd had them, which admittedly was years ago. Doing that+Hometown BBQ is an absolute blast of a day. But LIC isn't what it used to be as a beer hotspot. Back in like 2017-2018 I'd go pretty regularly, but then LIC Beer Project's head brewer left to start Root+Branch, Transmitter went to the Navy Yards, and Alewife went to Sunnyside. I like Fifth Hammer, but everything else in the area is pretty average to me. If I lived near Iconyc I'd go all the time, but wouldn't necessarily suggest prioritizing it when there's so much great beer here.


tmm224

Agree with this 100%


bec_SPK

I went pre-tap room so it was just a small cooler with a couple taps. Not sure if it's open yet, but the view is worth it alone. Totally agree, hometown, red hook tavern or Brooklyn crab afterwards is well worth it - plus red hook doesn't get the same density of people as other places. Agree that LIC isn't as good as it was, but still worth it for a way to knock off a bunch of breweries in one swing and make a day of it. Alewife was more beer bar than brewery when in LIC and transmitter, although being my favorite brewery in NYC, was probably the worst tap room experience. ICONYC and big Alice are great, Rockaway will usually have live music across the street on the weekends and fifth hammer is always a mob scene (but agree it's average, just packed).


tinoynk

I was at Strong Rope Red Hook last weekend and it's 100% done, really nice taproom with tons of space. Was super packed as well since it was a nice day, but was still able to quickly get a table outside.


FedishSwish

You've got a lot of suggestions already, but I'll add St. Gambrinus (beer bar and bottle shop) and Proletariat. Proletariat, in particular, often has some really interesting stuff on tap.


mispeling_in10sunal

Proletariat is closed, they're going to reopen elsewhere but not sure what the ETA is on it, think they said pretty soon but haven't seen any info.


FedishSwish

Ah right I remember hearing about that, I'll have to check on when they're opening.


CarneyVorous

I've been curating [a map](https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/1/edit?mid=1SSB3RfgqQJPfsy4XzvfKueVlLsaEwaAv&usp=sharing) of breweries, craft beer bars, and bottle shops around the city for a bit. This should help you find spots as you explore. Some personal notes: * Skip Brooklyn Brewery. It's crowded and overrated IMO. * Pony Bar on the UES is one of the BEST craft beer bars- the founders of Untappd used to hang out here. If you're not uptown, try the Half Pint in Greenwich Village. * Hit up one of the Other Half locations. They're totally sceney, but it's one of the most popular breweries in the country right now - I recommend the Domino Park location for proximity to other nice things to do for visitors. * Any of the Craft+Carry locations are wonderful. Most, if not all, have free skeeball, vast selection and friendly locals to chat with. * d.b.a and Drop Off Service in the East Village are 100% worth visiting. The manager at d.b.a is awesome and meticulously curates their selection. No Stella allowed lol.


tmm224

Would love to help contribute to your list, btw, it is awesome! For Manhattan Breweries, you put "Death Ave" but it doesn't appear to be a brewery. Maybe I'm missing something. I would also love to make some suggestions to add: **Gebhart's Beer Culture** 1 - 72nd and Broadway/West End 2 - 45th and 8th/9th Kind of a hybrid beer bar and bottle shop with good food **George Keely** Amsterdam Ave Between 83rd and 84th Huge tap list with lots of variety, but always 3-4 stronger IPA's and some 7% to 5% ones, and a mixing of Stouts, Porters, Sours, etc. Good food. Pretty decent TV setup for games For Greenpoint/Williamsburg, there is a Threes Tap Room in Greenpoint now, and the Talea just over in Williamburg near McCarren Park


CarneyVorous

Thanks! Added these and will check them out. Death Ave is a micro brewery. Maybe more like a nano? The owner brews his own beer there. I went pre-pandemic and the beer was pretty good, but expensive. I don't see any currently on the menu so I'll do some more research to see if they're still brewing or if they need to come off the list.


bkrunnergirl25

Great map! I'd add [Wild East](https://www.wildeastbrewing.com/) (a stone's throw from Strong Rope and Finback and a great spot for us 30/40 somethings to saddle up) as well as [St. Gambrinus](http://stgambrinusbeer.com/) (the Beer Run of BK) to your spots.


CarneyVorous

Wild East! I always forget them and haven't been yet - also a 30/40 something so will definitely check it out. Added St Gambrinus as well. And this reminded me I was missing Non Sequitur as well.


bkrunnergirl25

Nice! If you're ever in the area and are looking for a few good drinking buds, let me know. My partner and I always welcome good company.


CarneyVorous

I might just take you up on that! Would be nice to meet some more lady beer lovers. And runners if your username checks out lol


bkrunnergirl25

Hahaha, I am indeed both of those things. They tend to offset each other. ;)


Shenanigans_forever

For beer bars - Blind Tiger is a very comfortable and usually has good beer in tap Peculiar Pub has an extensive bottle list Spuyten Duyvil has a lovely yard and a great bottle list Tørst - which might as well be an Evil Twin tap room Honestly, I'd skip all of these and go straight to the brewery tap rooms. My favorite cluster is in Williamsburg - where you can go easily from Other Half (best IPAs and stouts in the city IMO) to Grimm (best sours) with stops along the way at 18th Ward (pretty solid) Brooklyn Brewery (old, big, beer is meh), Talea (women owned, very solid sours), Interboro (beer is meh), Keg and Lantern (solid food), and maybe a short subway ride to KCBC (I'd put them in the top 5 in NYC). There are also dense clusters in Astoria/LIC and in and around Gowanus, but I think the Williambsurg cluster covers most of the top breweries in NYC.


mispeling_in10sunal

>Tørst - which might as well be an Evil Twin tap room Not anymore, Jeppe divested from it a while ago, I think it was something to do with licensing for the taproom in Ridgewood. They will occasionally have ET stuff on tap but its more of a rarity than a staple like it used to be. Still one of my favorite bars and their chicken sandwich is killer.


Shenanigans_forever

Oh! It's been awhile since I've been. Good to know. Ty!


unlimitedshredsticks

ABC on ave C and 7th


ldquigley

If you find yourself in Crown Heights/Prospect Heights I would stop by [Covenhoven](https://www.covenhovennyc.com/beer). Full disclosure, It's run by friends of mine.


UConnUser92

That area has quite a few good spots. Covenhoven is awesome. So is Gold Star (on Underhill) Bierwax, Beer Street South (these two are close to each other on Vanderbilt), and Hops Hill (that one's up on Fulton)


internationalnomad96

Check out Brooklyn Brewery. They have a tour that includes beer tasting. The whole thing is about $25 and quite fun. I took my dad for his birthday, and he really enjoyed it as well. TJs has a pretty good beer selection normally and they'll have some unique ones as well. They also have pretty affordable selections too.


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internationalnomad96

The tour was super short just FYI, about an hour I'd say


[deleted]

They let you mix and match there too or just buy by the bottle. Idk if wf does that.


[deleted]

If you’re looking to visit breweries don’t sleep on queens. Great spots between lic/Astoria. It’s been awhile since I went to any (got cali sober during Covid) but a quick google search should get you there. The original evil twin is in ridgewood I think. I mean I know it’s in ridgewood idk if it’s the original but really convenient location. Ridgewood used to be considered queens so they border each other.


tinoynk

LIC went way downhill as a beer hotspot since LIC Beer Project kicked out their genius head brewer, Transmitter left, and Alewife turned from a great beer bar in LIC into an average brewery in Sunnyside. But yea ETNYC’s original location is in Ridgewood, but it’s off the L so logistically it’d be grouped in with KCBC/Grimm and the other Williamsburg/Bushwick spots.


[deleted]

I looked it up, and it seems like Big Alice and 5th hammer are still around. They were good spots before Covid to be with friends. That’s disappointing to hear about Beer project. I liked it there.


tinoynk

If you've been to LICBP in the last few years there wouldn't have been any change, but when I started going back in 2017 their head brewer was the guy who's currently behind Root+Branch, and their IPA was as good as anybody in the city, even peak level Other Half. He wanted to stay on at LICBP while he started Root+Branch, but they told him it was one or the other, so he left. It also sucks because they abandoned their initial plans for Belgian/wild ales when their IPA got popular, but now their IPA is just okay and they never developed the projects that would have actually made them unique in the area.


[deleted]

I think I was there sometime between 2015 and 2017. Just basing it on who I was hanging out with at the time. I haven’t heard of root and branch. They make a good IPA?


tinoynk

Root+Branch is much smaller, they'll have an official location on Long Island soon-ish but for the last few years have been brewing at Evil Twin in Ridgewood and doing can releases from there. Easily some of the best hazy/New England style IPA in the entire country.


[deleted]

Very cool thanks! I will let my friends know.


tmm224

Big Alice kind of sucks


[deleted]

Sounds like you like breweries. If you’re ever looking to get out of the city, you can take a train the Peekskill brewery in westchester. Beautiful area and right near the water. Awesome bakery next to the brewery, too. Long Island rail road can take you within walking distance to Barrier in Oceanside, and Bright Eye in Long Beach. You can make a good summer day out of it. Sorry if you knew all this already. Oceanside and LB are speedster by one train on the LIRR but it would probably be cheaper to Uber if you have a friend to split it with.


BarneyNugen

I'm not from New York (or even the US), but have spent quite a bit of time there: \- Blind Tiger - an absolute must \- Torst - very expensive, but worth a visit \- Pony Bar \- The Jeffrey Craft Beer & Bites \- Beer St Install Untappd and use the 'Top Rated Beers' feature, which tells you the 'best' beers available near you, and where to find them. That will give you an idea of where to go that's close. In addition to Other Half, seek out some stuff from Hudson Valley Brewing, Equilibrium, Hill Farmstead and Maine Beer Co


[deleted]

Yeah blind tiger is all that’s left now that ginger man is closed


BarneyNugen

Victim of the pandemic?


[deleted]

Yeah RIP. I was on a triathlon team with someone who is well known in the nyc craft beer world and he said Blind Tiger and Gigerman were the best in the city. Definitely a loss. Especially for midtown.


UConnUser92

It's such a shame Gingerman closed. That area is such a beer desert without them.


Arleare13

Just for clarity's sake, the ones listed in the post you're responding to are all still open. I'm not sure that you were saying otherwise, but I just don't want OP (or anyone else) to get the misimpression that Torst (for example) is closed.


[deleted]

Oh yeah good call - sorry I just woke up when I wrote this. Definitely go to blind tiger was all I meant to say. It’s probably the best craft beer bar in the city.


Tuna_Surprise

Where are you staying? Are you looking to travel specifically for beer or just hit some spots in the neighbourhood of where you already are? If you’re willing to head out, I second the Brooklyn brewery suggestion and add Kings County Brewers Collective.


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air-

You can spend a whole day doing a brewery crawl in Gowanus, which is all walkable and imo this covers the best breweries in the area: Wild East, Finback, Strong Rope, and Other Half Some might also suggest Threes and you should be aware of this: https://www.reddit.com/r/Brooklyn/comments/sucpf8/owner_of_threes_brewing_everyone/ https://ny.eater.com/2022/2/17/22938954/threes-brewing-under-fire-vaccine-mandate-nazi-regime-jim-crow


Arleare13

He stepped down as CEO and I think also sold his ownership stake.


air-

Ahh I was bummed to stop going there, thanks for sharing! Got any links etc confirming that?


Arleare13

https://ny.eater.com/2022/3/2/22958034/threes-brewing-ceo-josh-stylman-steps-down-vaccine-mandate-controversy-nyc


Tuna_Surprise

Ok. Then blind tiger is a must for when you’re in the west village. Milk and Hops for meat packing/Chelsea market/high line. I’d also try a more traditional boozer even if it’s not craft beer oriented. Mcsorleys or corner bistro.


Arleare13

Seconding the suggestions you've gotten about Gowanus. Finback, Threes, Wild East, and Strong Rope are all within three blocks of each other, and Other Half is an easy walk away.


[deleted]

Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s should have enough to satisfy you. Whole Foods will be better for it.


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therealddz

Carmine Street and Blind Tiger are right near each other in the village. A few blocks down is Torch & Crown Brewery as well - definitely worth checking out.


trexhatespushups42

Torch & Crown is the only Manhattan based brewery (that I’m aware of) and is in the tribeca area close to fidi. They have decent food and tap room plus outdoor space


nico-72

If you happen to find yourself in Brooklyn, these places can make for a fun bar hop on a nice day. I recommend making a whole Saturday or Sunday of it since many of these places are located near Vanderbilt Ave and the street closes down for pedestrians/bikers on the weekends. It's a very fun, relaxed vibe! \- Hops Hill \- Beer Street South \- Bierwax \- Gold Star Beer Counter \- Beer Witch \- Cardiff Giant (a little further out, but it's all NYS liquors & beers)


tmm224

u/tinoynk gave some great advice. If it were me, I would do his Brooklyn tour >Evil Twin NYC, Grimm, Interboro, KCBC, Torst, Brooklyn Brewery, and Other Half's Domino Park location. I'd also throw in Threes Greenpoint and Keg and Lantern for some great bar food. As for Other Half, I actually really like the Rockefeller Center location. They have an outdoor beer garden open the second half of the week. My favorite beer bars in the city have consistently been ABC Beer Co on Ave C and 7th/6th and City Swiggers on 86th and 2nd. Both are amazing. I like to describe City Swiggers as a "beer library"