Craft beer in America is more popular than ever.
Today’s drinkers become more educated by the day, and the breadth of choices available to them has never been so extensive. This is great for beer lovers (and beneficial on the supply side as well), as a high-quality product created by friendly, local brewers gets consumers to open their wallets a little wider.
It’s no longer uncommon for enthusiasts to plan a brewery visit into their vacation. In fact, the opposite is trending: Plenty of people I know actually plan their vacations around a great beer destination.
Remote, highly respected breweries such as Russian River (Santa Rosa, CA) and Hill Farmstead (Greensboro, VT) are regularly hit up by this crowd.
Keep scrolling for 20 recommended cities to visit on your beer-based travels (listed in no particular order).
SEE ALSO: 22 American craft breweries every beer lover should know
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San Diego, California
AleSmith's consistently excellent IPAs, stouts, porters, and barleywines impress critics year in and year out.
Right down the road from AleSmith is one of SoCal's better-known craft breweries: Ballast Point, with 27 taps and specialty drafts.
Green Flash Brewing is also in the neighborhood, and bring your appetite: these guys love their food trucks.
A short drive east down I-8 leads to the Alpine Beer Company, home of some of the world's best IPAs. I'm not sure why the best IPAs seem to come from rural breweries (Hill Farmstead, Kern River, Alpine), but I don't particularly care. Each is worth the drive.
2008 saw San Francisco's acclaimed Toronado open a sister location in San Diego. This craft beer bar has 56 draft lines and an impressive bottle list. Plus, they often unleash top-notch limited brews for their special events.
Austin, Texas
(512) Brewing sends kegs all over Austin and South Texas. I enjoy their Pecan Porter.
Jester King began brewing farmhouse-style ales in 2009 and quickly developed a loyal following. Although state law prohibits them from selling beer directly to customers, the brewery tour is a fun way to spend an afternoon in the Texas Hill Country.
Live Oak Brewing's focus on a just handful of beer styles pays off: Their hefeweizen is among the best anywhere.
Drive about hour south on I-35 to Freetail Brewing in San Antonio, where you’ll find an enjoyable mix of traditional American ales with barrel-aged stouts and wild ales. In my opinion, it's the best brewery in Texas.
Grand Rapids / Kalamazoo, Michigan
Founders Brewing has mastered the art of producing exceptionally high-quality beer on a macro scale. Their Grand Rapids brewpub is a popular destination.
In Kalamazoo, Bell's Brewery bottles and kegs an impressively diverse range of beers for all tastes. Some of their best work is only found at the brewpub, however, so stop by to see for yourself.
Since famously declining an invitation to appear in a Nickelback video, Dark Horse Brewing's fanbase has grown rapidly.
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