You have your favorite Brooklyn bars, no doubt, but which borough-brewed beers are your go-to picks when you see their name on the tap? Support local beer when you’re out drinking, or shake up your roster and visit these taprooms directly, where you can try the brewery flagship, sample the latest releases and learn more about how the malt gets made. Here are 15 Brooklyn breweries to know.
Sixpoint Brewery, Red Hook
In 2004, Sixpoint Brewery quietly began operations out of a draft-only taproom on the Red Hook waterfront, but it wasn’t until 2010 that the brewery began canning their beers; today, skinny cans of their Crisp Ale are a staple in beach coolers and refrigerators across the city. The Sweet Action, a deliciously drinkable hybrid of blonde, pale ale and wheat beer, holds residence on tap at most bars in Brooklyn.
Grimm Artisanal Ales, East Williamsburg
This husband-and-wife owned operation started in 2013 as a nomadic brewery before putting down roots in an East Williamsburg taproom and brewery in 2018. Grimm doesn’t have a flagship ale, but focuses on Belgian-style ales and adds a new pour weekly, plus frequent limited can releases. Visit the taproom and try the latest concoction, paired with Middle Eastern bites by Samesa.
Other Half Brewing Company, Carroll Gardens
If you’re in search of a New England-style, hazy, juicy IPA, but in Brooklyn, look no further than Other Half Brewing Company. Visit their Carroll Gardens taproom, a stone’s throw from the BQE, where lines form down the block to cop their limited can releases, or order their flagship Other Half IPA on draft around town when you can find it.
Circa Brewing Co, Downtown Brooklyn
Bread loves bread at this downtown Brooklyn brewery that doubles as a Neapolitan-style pizza joint. You’re encouraged to pair pies and pours accordingly. Try the salumi with the Double Axis IPA.
Brooklyn Brewery, Williamsburg
The most high-profile beer brand out of Brooklyn has been churning out malt since 1988 and holds tap at bars all over the world. But perhaps the best testament to their staying power is the fact that locals still drink the Brooklyn Ale, a solid amber lager (and the Brooklyn Summer is a go-to seasonal pick). The Williamsburg taproom and brewery tours remain a popular tourist destination on weekend afternoons.
Threes Brewing, Gowanus
When you need a break from hoppy IPAs, try a clean, slightly bitter pilsner (Vliet, pronounced like “fleet,” is their flagship) from Threes Brewing. The Gowanus tap room, event space and brewery opened in 2014, with a focus on drinkable brews and farmhouse ales. Visit their sister bar and event space in Greenpoint and summertime outpost on Governor’s Island.
Randolph Beer, Dumbo
Swipe your card and pour your own draft beers at this brewpub with 24 “beer ATMS” along the wall, which draws a big brunch and happy hour crowd. With additional locations in Williamsburg and Nolita in Manhattan, the Dumbo shop, which opened in 2017, is Randolph’s largest and the only locale where they brew the beer, too. Pair a Saison with a game of pinball on one of their vintage machines.
Five Boroughs Brewing Co., Sunset Park
Brooklyn’s industrial hub also features these beermakers, who in 2017 opened a taproom and brewery in a 12,500 square foot warehouse/former steel manufacturing plant on 47th St. Bring the dog and a pal, and play board games as you sample one of the six core year-round beers—like the City Light, an unfiltered, slightly hoppy lager brewed with New York water—or the new limited releases on tap that week.
Kings County Brewers Collective, Bushwick
This 5,000-square-foot warehouse brewery off the Jefferson L stop wants to revive Bushwick’s heyday as “Brewer’s Row.” The taproom fills up nights and weekends with a thirsty neighborhood crowd; go for it with the Light the Lightning, a 9 percent ABV stout combined with beans from Spectrum Coffee.
Coney Island Brewery, Coney Island
The Mermaid Pilsner, with its blue-eyed, tattooed mermaid on the label, is as much a Coney Island icon as the Wonder Wheel or Steeplechase Park’s Funny Face. Stop in for a beer at the brewery and outdoor beer garden, adjacent to MCU Park, pre or post Cyclones game—or really any time of year you find yourself down in Brooklyn’s beach and carnival town and in need of a refreshment.
Interboro Spirits and Ales, East Williamsburg
A distillery, brewery and taproom in one, this Grand Street operation, which opened in 2016, makes their own gin and brandy—and a canned G&T— alongside a robust offering of drafts, cans, bottles and growlers to go. Try the Premiere, a double dry-hopped IPA.
Keg & Lantern Brewing Company, Greenpoint
This staple of Greenpoint’s neighborhood sports bars—with a solid pub menu of mac and cheese, wings, burgers and the like—added a small-scale brewery in their basement in 2014, focusing on German and Belgian ales and lagers, plus sours and IPAs. Order the Bitter NY Winter lager, a true match for your insides.
Strong Rope Brewery, Gowanus
The husband-and-wife run taproom and brewery, established in 2015, sources all their ingredients from New York state farms and producers (and they also serve NY-made ciders, wine and spirits). Order the Trophy Cat Blonde Ale on tap and keep an eye on their events calendar, which offers jam nights, tours and food partnerships. In the summer, visit their seasonal outpost, Potters Taproom, at Blue Mountain Lake in the Adirondacks.
