10 Awesome American Craft Breweries You Should Visit

Beer me, please.

1. Allagash Brewing Company, Portland, Maine

Maine's Allagash Brewing Company specializes in delicious Belgian-style beers that range from the company's most well known brew, Allagash White (a wheat beer), to the highly complex barrel-aged Allagash Curieux ale.

Beyond Allagash, Portland has a great beer scene that includes the Shipyard Brewing Company, D.L. Geary Brewing Company and the relatively new Rising Tide Brewing Company.

Via dispatchmag.com

Allagash White

2. Brewery Ommegang, Cooperstown, New York

Another Belgian-style brewer, Brewery Ommegang is located on an old hops farm in Upstate New York -- just south of Cooperstown. With so many great brews available, including the sublime Rare Vos amber ale and trappist-inspired Abbey Ale, you will be in beer heaven. Fans of Game of Thrones flock to the brewery to pick up a bottle (or six) of the brewery's limited-edition series of beers inspired by the HBO show.

Ommegang also has a great cafe, where you can pick up a marvelous lunch after a visit to the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Via Flickr: phillydesign

Ommegang Game of Thrones Iron Throne Blonde Ale

3. Drakes Brewing Company, San Leandro, California

The San Francisco Bay Area has many great craft brewers from the Anchor Brewing Company in San Francisco to the Lagunitas Brewing Company in Petaluma.

Drake's, located in the East Bay city of San Leandro, is a bit off the beaten beer trail, but worth the diversion on your next Bay Area trip. The Denogginizer imperial IPA is a wonderful beverage... be sure to designate a driver though.

Via kupkosmindbottled.blogspot.com

Drake's Denogginizer

4. Kona Brewing Company, Kona, Hawai'i

In case you needed an excuse to visit Hawai'i, make it beer (as well as awesome weather, beaches, volcanoes and surfing). Based in the Big Island city of Kona, the Kona Brewing Company is the most well known brewery on the island chain. While you may be able to pick up a six pack at your local beer store, Kona has several beers that are only available on the islands including the Castaway IPA and the Hula Hefeweizen.

If your Hawai'ian vacation brings you to Oahu, you can get your beer fix at the company's Koko Marina pub.

Via beerwifery.com

Castaway IPA

5. New Belgium Brewing Company, Fort Collins, Colorado

One of the larger craft breweries in the United States, Colorado's New Belgium Brewing Company is best known for its signature Fat Tire amber ale. The brewery is also one of the most environmentally conscious in the world, so you can drink some nice beers and learn about sustainable brewing at the same time on your visit.

Via sarasotaday.com

Fat Tire Amber Ale

6. Ninkasi Brewing Company, Eugene, Oregon

There are so many great breweries in the state of Oregon that it's hard to pick one, but the Ninkasi Brewing Company in Eugene is one of the all-around best. How could you say no to a beer called Tricerahops?

If you go to one place in the United States to drink beer, make it Oregon.

Via pacificlectic.com

Tricerahops Double IPA

7. Pennsylvania Brewing Company, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

For some classic German and Czech-style beers, head to Pittsburgh's Penn Brewery where you can sample beers that include the legendary Penn Pilsner and the seasonal St. Nikolaus Bock.

And, while you're at it, enjoy some delicious German foods in the Brewery's restaurant to compliment your beer.

Via plus.google.com

Penn Pilsner

8. Red Lodge Ales Brewing Company, Red Lodge, Montana

Located at the northern terminus of one of the most beautiful and treacherous roads in the United States, the Beartooth Highway, Red Lodge Ales brews a variety of styles of beers in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains. The Bent Nail IPA is one of the nation's best.

Via gt-rider.com!/page4

Bent Nail IPA

9. Wicked Weed Brewing, Asheville, North Carolina

Asheville is another burgeoning brewers mecca with several great options available to locals and tourists alike. Wicked Weed is a recent addition to the North Carolina beer scene, and the variety of creative interpretations of fermented classics including the Wicked Tea Party, an amber ale that includes black tea as an ingredient.

Via beerandnow.blogspot.com

Wicked Weed Fest Beer and Uncle Rick's Pilsner

10. 75th Street Brewery, Kansas City, Missouri

Kansas City may be know for barbecue, but it should also be known for the wonderful 75th Street Brewery. While primarily a brewpub restaurant, the beers here are among the best small-batch brews in the United States. The Muddy Mo' Stout is just about perfect.

If you are looking for something with a bit more volume in Kansas City, head to Boulevard Brewing Company.

Via gibbysfrenchfryreport.blogspot.com

75th Street Brewery