Kentucky's Craft Beer Scene

The craft beer movement is really heating up in Kentucky. Louisville has had a well established brewpub culture for quite some time, and now Lexington is joining in the fray with no fewer than four craft beer producers. There are also two new brewpubs in the small college town of Danville about thirty mile south of Lexington. Great beer to go along with great bourbon is definitely a win-win situation for Kentucky and the beer enthusiasts that visit the Bluegrass State.

It stands to reason that a quality brewpub is a great asset for any community. Patrons tend to be more interested in quality over quantity, and the public house forum, that's been part of British culture for so long, translates well when it crosses the pond.

For the craft beer enthusiast, there's never been a better time to visit Kentucky. Just think of it as the next big thing in a craft beer destination.

501 West Sixth Street - Lexington, KY

This relatively new kid on the block has been nothing but full speed ahead since the introduction of its instantly popular IPA. They have a great location on West Sixth street in Lexington's north side that's starting to revitalize around the new beer culture vibe. They keep the buzz going by introducing new beers at a fairly fast clip. They've just released a new limited edition sour ale called Washington County that's the first of a series of releases named after Kentucky counties.

Smithtown Seafood is in an adjacent room in what was once a busy bread factory. Ironically, the fish place is actually better known for its fantastic hamburger made from Kentucky sourced beef. If you like beer and burgers, this is definitely your kind of place.

610 West Third Street - Lexington

Just a few blocks south of West Sixth, Blue Stallion is another part of north Lexington's revitalization. They specialize in Bavarian style beers to differentiate themselves from the hop heavy ales many breweries put out. They do have a pale ale and an American style lager, but the German and Austrian influenced ales are the main calling cards.

Some of the beers regularly on tap at Blue Stallion include,

Hefeweizen, Munich Dunkel, Helles Lager, Barrel Aged Dopplebock, Scottish 70 Schilling Scottish Ale, Schwarzbier, Smoked Lager, Radler and German Pilsner.

436 Chair Avenue - Lexington

The guys at Country Boy are all about experimenting to find that next great beer. That's not to say they don't have some well established favorites they keep on tap, they just like to mix it up a little when it comes to trying new things. New things translates into different brewing methods and ingredients like jalapeño peppers that deviate from the norm in the world of beer.

If you stop by, be sure to sample the Cougar Bait Blonde Ale, the Cliff Jumper India Pale Ale, the Stamping Ground Nitro Stout, the Brown Chicken Classic Brown Ale and the exceptional Lazy Rye Pale Ale.

BBC's American Pale Ale is an almost perfect combination of hops and malt that makes beer drinking the experience about as good as it gets. They also make the hop heavy Sheltowee Hop-A-Lot IPA exclusively for the exceptional Liquor Barn chain based in Kentucky.

Irishman Pearce Lyons first made his mark in Kentucky in Nicholasville by producing high end livestock and racehorse feed at his company named Alltech. It only follows that he added brewing and distilling to his impressive portfolio of businesses.

Lyons also pioneered the combination of brewery and distillery on the same property in Lexington. Look for this combo to be replicated in the near future.

An IPA and Kolsch style beer have recently been added to the flagship Kentucky Ale and Bourbon Barrel Ale to widen the appeal of the already popular brewery. The Town Branch bourbon, produced at the distillery, has become very popular too.

107 Larrimore Lane - Danville

Tucked away just off downtown Danville's Main Street, Beer Engine is a great place to hangout and enjoy some exceptional beer.

Be sure and try the IPA, Freedom Ranger, Najaar, Grain Sap and the Dark Horse One Oatmeal Stout.