Beercation to Richmond VA

My wife and I are traveling to Richmond, Virginia next week for a few days, and I understand they have a pretty good beer scene there. Of course, on the Internet all the breweries/brewpubs look wonderful, so I was wondering if any one from that area, or who has been to the area, could give me a heads-up on what I should definitely check out and what I can afford to, or should, miss.

We’re very excited and looking forward to this short beercation and would like to make the most of it, so anything you could tell us would be appreciated. Thanks!

I live in RVA and yes, the craft beer scene is huge.

My favorite is Isley Brewery, they have an amazing peanut butter oatmeal porter. They don’t typically get super crowded and it is a friendly atmosphere.

Strangeways is a great one, they always have a huge selection of unique brews.

Hardywood was originally my favorite. However their huge success with their gingerbread stout has made them a destination for everyone in RVA and they are always very crowded, I would suggest going there on a Sunday.

Legends brewery had been in RVA for ages and had a great atmosphere with great beer.

Ardent is a newer one that I would try to hit. They have a good atmosphere and great beers.

Triple crossing is another local brewery I’ve heard is decent, however I have never been.

Every bar/restaurant has several taps and a long bottle list of craft beer. If you want to visit a restaurant that has the largest selection of many great beers I would go to Capital Ale House. But like I said, every restaurant has tons of beer. Check out the website trinkin.com before you make a selection, they have updated tap/beer lists for almost every place in RVA.

Also if you want to drive about 30ish minutes north, Center Of The Universe brewery is great.

And a 30 minute drive west will get you to Lickinghole Creek which is one of my favorites as well.

Thanks, guys! Awesome stuff. I’m going to print out this list and go to the website.

Funny you mention Lickinghole Creek, when we were looking as stuff online, my wife was a little put off by the name. I do have to admit it’s fun to say.

The best beer selection on tap is Mekong. CAH has several locations and large numbers of drafts, but I prefer Mekong.
http://www.craftbeer.com/news/craftbeer-com-news/craftbeer-coms-2014-great-american-beer-bars-results

Hardywood is certainly worth a visit.

Thanks, man. I’ll check it out.

Capital Ale House is definitely a good stop. Check their website out from time to time, they have a few area locations and sometimes they have a special tapping or a steal the pint night featuring a local brewery.

Strangeways does some interesting brews. Some nice sours and fruit beers.

Always a fan of Legend’s Oyster Stout - I have only seen it bottled though.

Speaking of oysters, if you’re a seafood fan, about 45 minutes east in Williamsburg Captain George’s Seafood is some great eating. And you can always hit up Alewerks Brewing while you’re in town as well. Love their Washington Porter and the Coffeehouse Stout.

Good Stuff. Capital Ale House has come up on a couple of posts here and Strangeways sounds like my kind of place. Thanks, Matt.

CAH is good, but their selection never seems to get me excited. The best thing on the menu is Mussels. Depending upon which location you frequent will determine the vibe of the place.

If someone gave me the choice of going to only one and the options were CAH or Mekong I would go to Mekong every single time…YMMV.

This is a photo I found on the web from almost a year ago which if you zoom in should demonstrate just how good their draft list is and why they have won best beer bar multiple times. Put it another way, their rating on BA is 100% with over 100 ratings.

Yeah, those taps look good, not to mention the dude in the picture looks like he is really enjoying himself. Is that you?

Thanks, Mekong is on the list.

Not me, just a photo I could find. Often he will have a stellar sour draft list. The Pho is great too, but if Vietnamese isn’t your cuisine, there is always beer. :wink:

Yeah, from what I can make out from the picture, the tap list looks great. And the wife and I love Vietnamese cuisine. It looks like a definite stop on the itinerary. Thanks.

I went to a conference there 5-6 years ago, and there was a great British pub.  Had several killer Brit beers on tap, including Chiswick bitter.

Sounds good! Thanks, Chumley.

I’m leaving first thing tomorrow morning. I’ll report back when I get home.

Just got back from Richmond, and it was fantastic!

First, thank you to everyone who chimed in on this thread. Your help and guidance was invaluable and really made this trip easy and excellent. I already felt when we got there that I was an expert on the scene. I went to at least one of the places that you all had recommended, and we found one to add the list ourselves.

From the airport, we went directly to the Capital Ale House for lunch. It was quiet, nice and comfortable. I struck out on my first order as they were out of Bells Two Hearted Ale. I had never had it; they don’t sell it in MA. So, I had a Green Flash Symposium, which was awesome. My wife had a couple of Kolsches, one from Blue Mountain, which she was dissapointed with, and a Killer Kolsch from Champion Brewery, which she liked. She said that neither of them were as good as mine. God love her!

Dinner at Mekong. Really got a kick out of this place. Vietnamese restaurant with a killer tap list; not to be prejudiced in any way, but the two things just don’t seem to go together, except that they do. My wife had the Lindeman’s Peach Lambic, which she liked, and I had a pair of saisons, one from Goose Island and one from Firestone. Oh, and the food was terrific.

Next day we went to Charlottesville to see Monticello, and we stumbled across an excellent brewpub which no one had mentioned, probably because we asked about Richmond and Monticello is an hour away. South St. is an awesome brewpub with beer that was among the best of the trip and food that is better than anyplace we ate. I had the mac and cheese and the wife had a black bean burger. I started with a Red Belgian Tripel that was heavenly, and brought the meal to a close with an Imperial Red IPA on nitrogen, hop bomb with the latest American hops and a creamy mouthfeel that you can only get with nitro. The wife had her third kolsch of the trip, and, according to her, the best, though not as good as mine; this is why I married her. This place was a real find, excellent!

That night we stopped at a little place called The Cask. Good tap list, nice relaxed atmosphere, but not a real stand out other than that. I had a pint of SN Hop Hunter, which was good.

For dinner we went to Penny Lane Pub. I think this was the one you were talking about, Chumley. Totally British, all Beatles, and had the cuisine to match. I had a Fuller’s London Pride along with the Cottage pie. Very British, tut, tut, and cheerio, and very nice. Some great obscure pictures of the fab four. I’d recommend this place, too.

Third day we found ourselves opening Strangeways Brewing’s taproom at noon. This place had some exceptional, slightly off kilter beers that took some solid beer styles and raised the bar on them. I started off with their Woodbooger, which is a Belgian Brown that was malty and funky, tasted Belgian and a little bretty, nice. Next, I waded in to one of their more off-beat offerings, Coffee in Bed, a Pecan Dubbel. The pecan was a bit overwhelming in the aroma, but blended nicely in the flavor, a real treat. The wife had a Raspberry Albino, which is a Belgian Wit with Raspberry. She liked it a lot. She followed it up with a Still Life with Peaches which was a saison, with brett and peaches. I don’t know which one surprised me, my wife who liked it or the beer which must have been so good as to make her like something which seemed to me to be kind of out of her league.

Later that afternoon, we took a drive out to the Center of the Universe. They have a nice atmosphere, a comfortable little tap room with a variety of seats and reading material and games as well as chips and dips. I had the ScotchTown Scotch ale, and the wife had her fourth kolsch of the trip, still searching for one to beat mine. Well, according to her, COTU’s Killer Kolsch wasn’t it. So, It seems that I’m still on top of the battle of the kolsches.

Last stop on the trip was for a late dinner at Legends Brewery. The place was packed and the waitstaff was hopping. The live band was playing the Dead, the Beatles, The Band, and the like. The beer menu is very generic: Pale ale, Pilsner, Lager, etc. I had a Hopfest, which was a solid IPA, and the wife had the lager, which she enjoyed. The food was good: I warmed up with a chili and followed it with a gyro. The wife had another burger. The atmosphere here was the best. Everyone, and there were lots of people there, was having a good time. This was a nice place to end the trip.

So, overall, the beercation was a huge success, largely due to the input from you, my fellow AHA bloggers. Probably the biggest surprise for me was how huge the beer scene is in Richmond. I had always thought of Asheville, NC as the beer city, but now I think that Richmond is bigger and better. The selection is certainly more diverse and eclectic, and the quality is top notch. Thanks everyone!

Yeah the legends menu is super generic, they don’t list their new stuff, you have to ask for it

I’ve been to both too many times to count, but there really is no comparison between Ashvegas and Richmond. Asheville hands down. Before you got there, ask for some suggestions :wink:

It’s been a few years since I ventured to Asheville. It was before SN built their brewery nearby. I enjoyed it very much, but I felt that most of the breweries were playing it safe. With the exception of Wicked Weed, which was awesome, and maybe the Green Man, everyone was brewing pretty much the same English inspired beers. I love English inspired pale ales, porters, and IPAs, but there weren’t any alternatives to that, except the Weed. Brewing with rye was all the rage when I was there, and it seemed like the only off-kilter thing. No Belgians (again, except the Weed), no lagers. The Highlands were brewing some great Scottish brews, but they were closed for a private party the night I tried to go there.

So, because I respect your beer sense, I guess I have to go back.  :wink: At least that’s what I’ll tell the wife.

I think you just didn’t go to the right places. Pisgah has always had a lineup of Belgians, Wedge has some as well, it’s all knowing where to go.

You are correct you will be SOL if looking for most lagers in Asheville.

New Belgium will probably be up and running next year. Oskar Blues has been going for awhile and Sierra Nevada will have construction completed very soon. Bold Rock is building a cidery near SN and White Labs will have a place soon.

My wife likes Richmond, but she loves Asheville. :wink:

Well, I guess you have to go to Asheville, then. Case closed.  :wink: