Skip to content

Top Navigation

Food & Wine Food & Wine
  • Recipes & Cooking
  • Drinks
  • Travel
  • Holidays + Events
  • News
  • F&W Classic
  • Video
  • Lifestyle
  • F&W Pro
  • About Us

Profile Menu

Your Profile

Your Profile

  • Join Now
  • Newsletters
  • F&W Classic Insiders this link opens in a new tab
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Wine Club
  • Podcast
  • Food & Wine Books this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout
Login
Subscribe Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Food & Wine

Food & Wine Food & Wine
  • Explore

    Explore

    • F&W Cooks

      F&W Cooks

      Food and Wine presents a new network of food pros delivering the most cookable recipes and delicious ideas online. Read More
    • Our 22 Best Crock Pot and Slow-Cooker Recipes

      Our 22 Best Crock Pot and Slow-Cooker Recipes

      Looking to amp up your beef stew but unsure where to start? A slow cooker can can take your comfort food to the next level. Read More
    • 50 Affordable Wines You Can Always Trust

      50 Affordable Wines You Can Always Trust

      We’ve assembled a list of 50 of the world’s most reliable, inexpensive wines – bottles that offer amazing quality for their price year in and year out. Read More
  • Recipes & Cooking

    Recipes & Cooking

    See All Recipes & Cooking
    • Chicken
    • Comfort Food
    • Breakfast + Brunch
    • Salads
    • Desserts
    • Vegetables
    • Pasta + Noodles
    • Chefs
    • Meat + Poultry
    • Soup
    • Appetizers
    • Side Dishes
    • Fruits
    • Seafood
    • Special Diets
    • Cooking Techniques
    • Steal This Trick
  • Drinks

    Drinks

    See All Drinks
    • Wine
    • Cocktails + Spirits
    • Coffee
    • Juices
    • Beer
    • Champagne + Sparkling Wine
    • Tea
  • Travel

    Travel

    See All Travel
    • Wine Regions
    • Restaurants
  • Holidays + Events

    Holidays + Events

    See All Holidays + Events
    • Valentine's Day
    • Halloween
    • Passover
    • Hanukkah
    • Christmas
    • Gifts
    • Super Bowl
    • Easter
    • Thanksgiving
    • New Year's Eve
    • Holiday Entertaining
  • News
  • F&W Classic

    F&W Classic

    See All F&W Classic
    • F&W Classic Insider
    • Food & Wine Classic in Aspen
  • Video
  • Lifestyle
  • F&W Pro
  • About Us

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Profile

Your Profile

  • Join Now
  • Newsletters
  • F&W Classic Insiders this link opens in a new tab
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Give a Gift Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Wine Club
  • Podcast
  • Food & Wine Books this link opens in a new tab
  • Logout
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Home
  2. Beer
  3. Craft Beer
  4. The 30 Best Craft Breweries to Visit in Pennsylvania

The 30 Best Craft Breweries to Visit in Pennsylvania

By Food & Wine Updated August 22, 2018
Skip gallery slides
FB Tweet
Yuengling (Pottsville, PA)
Credit: Bloomberg via Getty Images

Pennsylvania is one of the preeminent brewing states in the nation, boasting at least 250 breweries—and the number is growing. The older ones began appearing in the late-1980s and early-1990s, started or inspired by German immigrants that had once settled there. Some newer breweries are producing fantastic examples of America's hottest craft beer styles.Here are the 30 Pennsylvania breweries you should make an effort to visit, from the Pittsburgh area to Philadelphia, with additional notables—mainly in the Lehigh Valley—in between.— Aaron Goldfarb

Start Slideshow

1 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

The 30 Best Craft Breweries to Visit in Pennsylvania

Here are the Pennsylvania breweries you should make an effort to visit.

1 of 31

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

2SP Brewing Co. (Aston, PA)

2SP Brewing Co. (Aston, PA)
Credit: Kylie Flett / PUNCH Media

The 2SP Brewing Company, a Delaware County brewery, was founded by Bob Barrar, a 19-time Great American Beer Festival (GABF) winner, during his days brewing at Iron Hill Brewery. Combining forces with the team behind the popular Two Stones Pub gastropub chain (thus, "2SP"), the troika opened in their brewery in 2015. Barrar's beers mostly focus on the sessionable, whether that's Cold Cock, an English IPA, or Weiss Wit, a tart witbier. Head cellarman Andrew "Ruby" Rubenstein manages 2SP's wild and barrel-aged program.

2 of 31

3 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Al's of Hampden/Pizza Boy Brewing Co. (Enola, PA)

Al’s of Hampden/Pizza Boy Brewing Co. (Enola, PA)
Credit: Michelle Whitehead Photography

One of the more unlikely success stories in Pennsylvania brewing, Al's of Hampden started in 2002 as the eponymous Al Kominski's family pizzeria—which initially didn't even serve beer. Five years in, he added a few tap lines and then eventually began brewing his own. These brews weren't just the kind of ice-cold lagers you typically associate as being served at pizzerias—instead Pizza Boy dealt in barrel-aged wild ales, stouts and barleywines. The restaurant now has 102 taps, a good quarter usually devoted to in-house offerings like Eternal Sunshine, a sour ale, and Sunny Side Up, an oatmeal coffee stout.

3 of 31

Advertisement

4 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Bonn Place Brewing (Bethlehem, PA)

Bonn Place Brewing (Bethlehem, PA)
Credit: Jim Trocchio

A relatively new entry on the Pennsylvania scene, Bonn Place Brewing, a less-than-one-year-old brewery, is the brainchild of Sam Masotto and his wife Gina. Longtime actors (Tony n' Tina's Wedding) and bartenders (The Pony Bar) in the New York City area, the Masottos opted for Pennsylvania real estate when opening their nano-brewery in the tri-state area proved too pricy. Their small, Lehigh Valley tasting room offers a wide variety of beers such as Tarte Priya Chai, a sour ale, and The Delusionist, a Cascadian dark ale.

4 of 31

5 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Brew Gentlemen (Braddock, PA)

Brew Gentlemen (Braddock, PA)
Credit: Courtesy of Brew Gentlemen

One of the hottest breweries in the state formed its foundation while its owners were just in college. Envisioned as early as 2010 by two Carnegie Mellon students who were homebrewing on campus, Brew Gentlemen finally became official in 2014, just a couple of years after Asa Foster and Matt Katase graduated. Located in a former electrical supply store, Brew Gentlemen mostly makes hop-forward, juicy beers like General Braddock's India Pale Ale and Mammoth, a DIPA. While their Mise en Rose Collection is devoted to oak barrel-aged farmhouse ales (despite being quite removed from the farm) in offerings like Table Beer and the Exploration & Discovery series.

5 of 31

6 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Bullfrog Brewery(Williamsport, PA)

Bullfrog Brewery
Credit: Courtesy of Bullfrog Brewery

Having been around for over two decades, you might not expect this family-friendly brewpub to still be on the cutting-edge. That couldn't be further from the truth as Bullfrog could very well be making the best wild ales in all of Pennsylvania. The brewery is a multi-time GABF winner in the competitive Wood- and Barrel-Aged Sour Beer category, and offerings like Le Roar Grrrz, a gueuze, also excite beer geeks. Bullfrog was one of only four Pennsylvania breweries to make RateBeer's recent top 100 Best Brewers In The World list.

6 of 31

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Church Brew Works (Pittsburgh, PA)

Church Brew Works (Pittsburgh, PA)
Credit: Nate Boguszewski

A brewery perhaps more famous for its locale than libations, Church is still worth visiting, even if it ain't Sunday. It's set in the restored confines of St. John the Baptist, a 1902-built Roman Catholic church that had services until 1993. Three years after closing—and after being officially deconsecrated—guests were allowed back into Church to deconsecrate it themselves by crushing beers like Pious Monk Dunkel and Pipe Organ Pale Ale. Today the building is a historic landmark, surely one of the few at which you can order pulled pork nachos.

7 of 31

8 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Crime + Punishment Brewery (Philadelphia, PA)

Crime + Punishment Brewery (Philadelphia, PA)
Credit: Colleen Dimenna

With a name intentionally meant to evoke, if not downright celebrate, the great Russian literature of the past, Crime + Punishment's beers hew a little more modern American. Set in the neighborhood of Brewerytown—that's seriously what it's called, due to the many that were located here in the 1800s—they currently produce beers like the Citra and Mosaic-hopped pale ale Tremendous Upside Potential and Space Race, a juicy IPA. The two-year-old brewpub has food that might be more appealing to Dostoyevsky: pierogies, ajika (a Georgian vegetable dip), and, of course, kielbasa.

8 of 31

9 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

East End Brewing Co. (Pittsburgh, PA)

East End Brewing Co. (Pittsburgh, PA)
Credit: Courtesy of East End Brewing

Now well into its second decade, East End has long been the Steel City's premiere brewery. With two locations (the original in the East End, a new taproom in the Strip District), the brewery continues to excel at a variety of styles, from their Big Hop IPA to Black Strap Stout and Monkey Boy, a banana-y hefeweizen. Their bottled barleywine Gratitude has been a beer geek sensation for years—of late, a bourbon barrel-aged version has appeared in cans.

9 of 31

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Earth Bread + Brewery(Philadelphia, PA)

Earth Bread + Brewery (Philadelphia, PA)
Credit: Alix Passage

There's a reason that "bread" is in the name of this "earth-friendly" brewery. Earth Bread + Brewery owners (and spouses) Tom Baker and Peggy Zwerver's frequently-changing beers include such offerings as Community, a hoppy pale ale, and Spelt Incorectly, a Belgian-style single made with that grain. They even brew their own kombucha. The food is flatbread heavy, with options like Black and Blue (made with a black cherry sauce and bleu cheese) and Vietnam Veggie, with a spicy peanut sauce covered with cellophane noodles. As as you'd expect from its name, Earth takes great pride in composting, recycling, sustainability and using strictly local ingredients.

10 of 31

11 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Fegley's Brew Works (Bethlehem/Allentown, PA)

Fegley’s Brew Works (Bethlehem/Allentown, PA)
Credit: Courtesy of Fegley's Brew Works

Founded in a dying steel town on the brink of ruin, Fegley's might be the business responsible for turning around Bethlehem's fortunes. With an ethos built on the city's working class values, Peg and Dick Fegley's brewpub, which opened in 1998, quickly became a Lehigh Valley destination. A "Steelgaarden" lounge was soon added to the Bethlehem location, and then a second location built in Allentown in 2007. While campaigning for office in 2008, Barack Obama even visited. The brewery is still run by the Fegleys and their two adult sons.

11 of 31

12 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Forest & Main Brewing Co. (Ambler, PA)

Forest & Main Brewing Co. (Ambler, PA)
Credit: SSM Photography

Set in a 19th century house-turned-brewery is decorated with rustic tables, Forest & Main Brewing Co. is a five-year-old brewery that's made a name for itself in both the English ale and farmhouse realms. The former category includes offerings like Your Analog Brain, a bitter, and Omphalos, an English barleywine served via traditional hand pump. The From the Cellar line showcases "terroir-driven" beers aged in oak barrels.

12 of 31

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

13 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Free Will Brewing Co. (Perkasie, PA)

Free Will Brewing Co. (Perkasie, PA)
Credit: Courtesy of Free Will Brewing Co.

When longtime friends John Stemler and Dominic Capece opened Free Will in 2012, their focus was drinkability. But they soon began pumping out the kind of beers that make the geeks go gaga. Free Will currently makes of-the-moment double IPAs like Chasing the Dragon, while also offering more ambitious options like Mojito Sour, a key lime lambic-style beer aged in rum barrels with mint. A second taproom opened in the fall of last year in nearby Peddler's Village, in a ritzy shopping district space that also features Hewn Spirits.

13 of 31

14 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Funk Brewing Co.(Emmaus/Elizabethtown, PA)

Funk Brewing Co. (Emmaus/Elizabethtown, PA)
Credit: Keith Plunkett

"Funk" has become a de rigeur term to describe a beer's flavors—but Funk Brewing is actually named after its proprietor, Kyle Funk. Going against the script, Funk makes beers that mostly lack any funk, instead focusing on clean lagers like Built to Pils, juicy IPAs like Silent Disco and even an occasional rauchbier like Lil' Smokey. And, OK, he does have a funky farmhouse ale or two. His brewery was opened in 2014 in the Lehigh Valley town of Emmaus, just west of Allentown. A second taproom has opened in a hotel in downtown Elizabethtown, about an hour-and-a-half away, where live music plays nightly.

14 of 31

15 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Helltown Brewing (Mt. Pleasant, PA)

Helltown Brewing (Mt. Pleasant, PA)
Credit: Jeff Zoet

On a quiet residential street in peaceful-sounding Mount Pleasant sits Helltown, whose beers include Extra Sinful Bitter, Perverse Stout and the highly-acclaimed Idle Hands Double IPA. Their burgeoning sour beer program so far include their take on the classic Belgian cherry Kriek, as well as a tropical saison, Spiteful. The Mt. Pleasant location currently only has a tiny tasting area, but a more robust taproom is set to open in Pittsburgh this summer.

15 of 31

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

16 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Hidden River Brewing(Douglassville, PA)

Hidden River Brewing (Douglassville, PA)
Credit: Hidden River Brewing Company

Located in the historic Brinton Lodge—an offbeat, 18th century farmhouse structure set on land once owned by William Penn, that many say is haunted— Hidden River Brewing is a small-batch brewery produces beers using most local ingredients. Opened in the summer of 2015, Kevin Margitich and Doug Reeser brew in a teeny tiny space in a corner of the lodge. They never repeat a recipe, and, of the 200 or so beers they've produced so far, the focus mainly been IPAs and saisons. The pub room also features a food selection, meats, cheese, and the like, all sourced from farms within 15 miles, as well as an outdoor patio bar.

16 of 31

17 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant (various)

Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant (various)
Credit: Sophia DiPersio

While it might seem silly to include an aging chain brewpub (originally started in Jersey) on a list of top Pennsylvania breweries, Iron Hill should not be ignored. Nine of the chain's thirteen locations are currently in Pennsylvania, with a crown jewel spot set to open in Philadelphia shortly. The brewpubs each have their own equipment and brewmasters who brew on-site—and they've won GABF medals for twenty straight years, the current record.

17 of 31

18 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Levante Brewing Co.  (West Chester, PA)

Levante Brewing Co. (West Chester, PA)
Credit: Amy Gillard Photography

Meaning "to rise up" in Italian—referring to the sun rise— Levante comes from brewers with a Mediterranean heritage themselves. Founders Eric Santostefano and Tim Floros currently brew on a fifteen-barrel system—small, even by craft brewery standards. Inspired by the old world of brewing, Levante has a Belgian Trappist-inspired series, a German kölsch called Kolibri, and Bohemian-style pilsners like Birra Di Levante. They also make more modern, Americanized beers like Cloudy and Cumbersome, an IPA, and Going Guava!, a milkshake-style hop bomb. Their taproom is open Thursday through Sunday, with a different food truck on site each night.

18 of 31

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

19 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Neshaminy Creek Brewing Co. (Croydon, PA)

Neshaminy Creek Brewing Co. (Croydon, PA)
Credit: Anthony Stull-Walsh

All the water used in Neshaminy Creek beer comes from its namesake creek—from their Dank Hill double IPA to their popular pumpkin seasonal Punkless Dunkel. Opened in 2012 as the first production brewery in Bucks County, within a year Neshaminy Creek had won a gold medal at GABF (for their Churchville Lager). Recently, they signed a lease on a satellite taproom space in Philadelphia and also have plans to take over the former Guild Hall Brewing Co. space in next-door Montgomery County.

19 of 31

20 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Saint Benjamin Brewing Co. (Philadelphia, PA)

Saint Benjamin Brewing Co. (Philadelphia, PA)
Credit: Courtesy of Saint Benjamin Brewing Company

Located in the carriage house and stables of the former Theo Finkenauer Brewery, the Saint Benjamin Brewing Co. puts modern spins on classic styles (all with Ben Franklin's face staring back atcha'). Founder Tim Patton's year-round beers include such creations as Inca, a so-called "India-style cream ale," while seasonal offerings feature Bayside, a sea salted saison, and BNC Barleywine, a pale take on the traditional malty beer meant to act like beer's equivalent of white wine. The gorgeous taproom/restaurant next door offers traditional pub fare like a ploughman's lunch, as well as more modern bites like pork pibil tacos.

20 of 31

21 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Selin's Grove Brewing (Selinsgrove, PA)

Selin’s Grove Brewing (Selinsgrove, PA)
Credit: Wes Meekel

Set in an early-19th century building once owned by three-term governor Simon Snyder and now on the National Historic Register, Selin's Grove is becoming part of history itself—now in it's twenty-first year. Husband and wife team Steven and Heather Leason got their start at Colorado's New Belgium in the early 1990s. Their brewpub was opened in 1996 and, amazingly, the Leasons still do all the brewing themselves, producing beers like their India Pale Ale and a bevy of popular fruited ales like Phoenix Kriek and Saison De Peche.

21 of 31

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

22 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Sly Fox Brewing Co. (Phoenixville/Pottstown, PA)

Sly Fox Brewing Co. (Phoenixville/Pottstown, PA)
Credit: Courtesy of Sly Fox Brewing Company

A brewpub founded in late 1995 by Pete Giannopoulos, today Sly Fox has grown into one of the state's most potent beer brands. Initially offering updated takes on classic European styles, beers like Pikeland Pils and Royal Weisse were early hits. By 2002 popularity was big enough that Sly Fox offerings could be sold outside of the brewpub—they were even one of the first craft breweries to can beer, starting in 2006. By 2012 they needed a whole new production brewery in Pottstown. Today, the focus on classic European styles has shifted, somewhat, to keeping up with the American state-of-the-art, like with their new Hop Project beers offered in hip 16-ounce cans.

22 of 31

23 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

SØLE Artisan Ales (Pittston, PA)

SØLE Artisan Ales (Pittston, PA)
Credit: Laura Fay

It would be tough to speak about the cutting edge of Pennsylvania beer without mentioning SØLE, the rare gypsy brewery on this list. Helmed by self-proclaimed "food nut" Joe Percoco, who previously held countless jobs within the food industry, he eventually found his life's work in producing the artisan, farmhouse-style beers of Europe. After brief stints at Funk, Weyerbacher, and even Cantillon in Belgium, Percoco founded SØLE in 2015 (he's still in his mid-twenties by the way). Mostly brewing out of Susquehanna Brewing Company, Percoco's beers like Turbo Nerd Xtra IPA have become a sensation amongst beer geeks, who line up on weekends hoping to snag cans. You'll finally be able to visit this gypsy soon; Sole Bar + Bottle is slated to open in Easton soon.

23 of 31

24 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Stoudts Brewing Co. (Adamstown, PA)

Stoudts Brewing Co. (Adamstown, PA)
Credit: Jenny Foster

An old dog on the PA scene, Stoudts has been around since 1987. Founded by Carol Stoudt, supposedly the first female brewmaster since Prohibition, the brewery has managed to keep up with the times. While still producing the lagers that made them famous, like Gold Lager and Pils, today's portfolio includes plenty of double IPAs and even a rum barrel-aged imperial stout, Fat Dog. The pub's dinner menu is European in style, with soft pretzels, tripel-steamed mussels and German sausage sandwiches.

24 of 31

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

25 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Tired Hands Brewing Co. (Ardmore, PA)

Tired Hands Brewing Co. (Ardmore, PA)
Credit: Ryan Collerd

Tired Hands is the brainchild of Jean Broillet IV, who had long been inspired by the farmhouse ales of Belgium and France and would perfect his craft at Weyerbacher and Iron Hill. Inspired by the latter's brewpub model (and after a few business classes at Wharton), Broillet opened his Tired Hands Brew Cafe in the quiet suburbs of Ardmore in 2012. With beers like HopHands and SaisonHands (and bread baked in-house), it was an immediate smash hit for both locals and those from afar. Accolades, like a James Beard nomination, would soon follow. In 2015, a second brewpub, Fermentaria, was opened just down the block, serving tacos and the lactose-laden "milkshake" IPA that Broillet has become famous for.

25 of 31

26 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Tröegs Independent Brewing (Hershey, PA)

Tröegs Independent Brewing (Hershey, PA)
Credit: Courtesy of Troegs.com

Brothers John and Chris Trogner founded Tröegs in 1996, and today it's still independent and still family-run. Early successes were mainly in the European high-ABV realm, with beers like Troegenator Double Bock and Mad Elf, a cherry-flavored Belgian strong ale. Today, though, Tröegs is better known for their hoppy amber ale, Nugget Nectar, as well as their recent forays into barrel- and foeder-aged beers.

26 of 31

27 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Victory Brewing Co. (Downingtown, PA)

Victory Brewing Co. (Downingtown, PA)
Credit: Courtesy of Victory Brewing Company

Also founded in 1996, Ron Barchet and Bill Covaleski's brewery is perhaps the state's most famous these days. Opened in what had once been a Pepperidge Farm factory, today the brewery and the adjoining restaurant has seating for 300—though most brewing is now done off-site in Parkesburg. There's also a Kennett Square location with a small, 7-barrel brewhouse that focuses on more unique, brewpub-only offerings, some which come from the location's open fermentation system. While early on Victory's beer often paid tribute to the area's German heritage (see: Prima Pils), today they release bourbon barrel-aged coffee stouts like Java Cask, fruited sours like Kirsch Gose, and even a state-of-the-art Dry-Hopped Brett Pils.

27 of 31

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

28 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Voodoo Brewery (Meadville/Homestead/Erie, PA)

Voodoo Brewery (Meadville/Homestead/Erie, PA)
Credit: Courtesy of Voodoo Brewery

Employee owned, in the last couple of years the Meadville brewery has added pub locations in both Homestead and Erie. Voodoo's massive success and ability to expand doesn't just ride on its geeky beers (their honey and maple bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout, ManBearPig, is one of the more acclaimed beers in recent memory), but its standard sippers too, like Moar Tropic, a wheat ale, and White Magick of the Sun, a witbier. Each tasting room setup is unique: The Homestead location is a raucous, European-style beer hall, complete with an art gallery next door that you can browse while boozing.

28 of 31

29 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Weyerbacher Brewing(Easton, PA)

Weyerbacher Brewing (Easton, PA)
Credit: Courtesy of Weyerbacher Brewing

Founded in 1995 in a horse stable, Weyerbacher today is one of the major forces in Pennsylvania beer. Founder Dan Weirback's brewery has mainly made its mark over the years by producing big, aggressive beers like Insanity, an English barleywine, and Sunday Morning Stout, a bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout which is currently BeerAdvocate's highest-rated Pennsylvania beer. The tap room, called The Jester's Court, offers weekend craft fairs and yoga classes, but you can also just pig out on dips, cheese and jerky.

29 of 31

30 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Yards Brewing Co.(Philadelphia, PA)

Yards Brewing Co. (Philadelphia, PA)
Credit: Courtesy of Yards Brewing Co.

Yet another classic Pennsylvania brewery, Yards, a Philly institution, dates back to 1994. Once apprentices at Maryland's British Brewing Company, friends Tom Kehoe and Jon Bovit decided to open their own spot after finding success selling their homebrews at Grateful Dead shows. Early beers, like ESA and Entire Porter (a blend of English mild and stout), were inspired by their English brewing knowledge. By 2001 they were able to expand in capacity by purchasing further buildings in the Kensington neighborhood; by 2010 they finally had a tasting room.

30 of 31

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

31 of 31

FB Tweet
Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print

Yuengling (Pottsville, PA)

Yuengling (Pottsville, PA)
Credit: Bloomberg via Getty Images

Is this regionally-distributed giant a craft brewery... or are they not? Does it even matter? Yuengling's Pennsylvania heritage is undeniable. In most parts of the state, you can order their flagship beer by simply asking the bartender for a "lager." America's oldest brewery has been around since 1829 (making it 23 years older than Anheuser-Busch) and still remains family-owned. Of course, that occasionally means you get non-corporate-like behavior: To great controversy, current owner Dick Yuengling supported Trump in the 2016 presidential election.

31 of 31

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

By Food & Wine

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Trending Videos
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 31 The 30 Best Craft Breweries to Visit in Pennsylvania
    2 of 31 2SP Brewing Co. (Aston, PA)
    3 of 31 Al's of Hampden/Pizza Boy Brewing Co. (Enola, PA)
    4 of 31 Bonn Place Brewing (Bethlehem, PA)
    5 of 31 Brew Gentlemen (Braddock, PA)
    6 of 31 Bullfrog Brewery(Williamsport, PA)
    7 of 31 Church Brew Works (Pittsburgh, PA)
    8 of 31 Crime + Punishment Brewery (Philadelphia, PA)
    9 of 31 East End Brewing Co. (Pittsburgh, PA)
    10 of 31 Earth Bread + Brewery(Philadelphia, PA)
    11 of 31 Fegley's Brew Works (Bethlehem/Allentown, PA)
    12 of 31 Forest & Main Brewing Co. (Ambler, PA)
    13 of 31 Free Will Brewing Co. (Perkasie, PA)
    14 of 31 Funk Brewing Co.(Emmaus/Elizabethtown, PA)
    15 of 31 Helltown Brewing (Mt. Pleasant, PA)
    16 of 31 Hidden River Brewing(Douglassville, PA)
    17 of 31 Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant (various)
    18 of 31 Levante Brewing Co.  (West Chester, PA)
    19 of 31 Neshaminy Creek Brewing Co. (Croydon, PA)
    20 of 31 Saint Benjamin Brewing Co. (Philadelphia, PA)
    21 of 31 Selin's Grove Brewing (Selinsgrove, PA)
    22 of 31 Sly Fox Brewing Co. (Phoenixville/Pottstown, PA)
    23 of 31 SØLE Artisan Ales (Pittston, PA)
    24 of 31 Stoudts Brewing Co. (Adamstown, PA)
    25 of 31 Tired Hands Brewing Co. (Ardmore, PA)
    26 of 31 Tröegs Independent Brewing (Hershey, PA)
    27 of 31 Victory Brewing Co. (Downingtown, PA)
    28 of 31 Voodoo Brewery (Meadville/Homestead/Erie, PA)
    29 of 31 Weyerbacher Brewing(Easton, PA)
    30 of 31 Yards Brewing Co.(Philadelphia, PA)
    31 of 31 Yuengling (Pottsville, PA)

    Share & More

    Pinterest Email Send Text Message Print
    Food & Wine

    Magazines & More

    Learn More

    • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
    • Books from Food & Wine
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Content Licensing
    • Accolades this link opens in a new tab

    Connect

    Subscribe to Our Newsletter
    Sign Up
    MeredithFood & Wine is part of the Meredith Corporation Allrecipes Food Group. © Copyright 2022 Meredith Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
    © Copyright Food & Wine. All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.foodandwine.com

    Sign in

    View image

    The 30 Best Craft Breweries to Visit in Pennsylvania
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.