Philadelphia Region's Beer Scene

Philadelphia’s Beer History:

• Philadelphia’s beer scene flourished from the 17th century through the American Revolution.
• Philadelphia once brewed more beer than any other place in the Western Hemisphere.
• By 1920, the city had more than 90 working breweries—with 100 more outside city limits.
• To this day, one Philly neighborhood still refers to itself as “Brewerytown.”

Recent Beer History:

• 1985: Philadelphian Rosemary Certo became one of the very first female brewery owners post-Prohibition when she opened Dock Street Brewery in Old City. In 2007, Centro re-opened Dock Street as a brewpub and cannery in West Philadelphia.
• 1996: Former college buddies and homebrewers Tom Kehoe and Bill Barton opened Yards Brewing Co. as the city’s first production brewery in decades. (Since parting ways in 2007, Barton has kept the Kensington brewery and renamed it Philadelphia Brewing, while Kehoe has moved Yards into a 70,000-square-foot space in Northern Liberties.)
• 1996: Childhood friends Bill Covaleski and Ron Barchet opened Victory Brewing in Downingtown. They now own three locations in the region. Victory is Philadelphia’s biggest beer export, selling to approximately 34 states and nine countries.
• 2007:The Philadelphia region hosts the first Philly Beer Week, a 10-day festival spanning more than 100 breweries, pubs and attractions. The event grows into one of the country’s largest such events and into a year-round celebration and exploration of local beer operating under parent organization, Philly Loves Beer.
• 2012: Tired Hands Brewing Company sets up shop in Ardmore, Montgomery County and quickly develops a cult following for its limited-edition can releases inspiring 800-person queues at the door and subversively delicious Milkshake IPAs. (In 2015, Tired Hands adds a Fermenteria that doubles their capacity; in 2018, they open a seasonal Tired Hands Biergarten in Kensington.)
• 2019: The five-county region is home to 82-and-counting breweries (22 alone in Philadelphia proper) with more than 110 locations.

Beer Accolades:

• “Philly might be the best beer city in the northeastern U.S.,” The Growler, 2019
• “7th Best Beer Scene” USA Today 10Best, 2019
• “10 of the Best Beer Cities in America,” ApartmentGuide.com, 2018
• “America’s 20 Best Cities for Beer Lovers,” Travel + Leisure, 2017
• “The 5 Best U.S. Cities for Biking and Beer,” VinePair, 2017
• “The 16 Best Beer Cities in America,” Thrillist, 2015

Great Breweries:

• 2SP Brewing: Bob Barrar, one of the nation’s most award-winning brewers, is behind this Delaware County-proud brewery. 120 Concord Road, Aston, (484) 483-7860, 2spbrewing.com
• Crime & Punishment Brewing Co.: Inspired by Russian literature, this brewery deliciously reps Brewerytown. 2711 W. Girard Avenue, (215) 235-2739, crimeandpunishmentbrewingco.com
• Dock Street Brewery: Rosemarie Certo became one of the first women to enter the craft beer scene in the 1980s with Dock Street—and powers the operation with wind. 701 S. 50th Street, (215) 726-2337, dockstreetbeer.com
• Evil Genius Beer: Quirky beer names and a popular beer garden draw constant crowds to this Fishtown brewpub. 1727 N. Front Street, (215) 425-6820, evilgeniusbeer.com
• Forest & Main Brewing Co.: In an art-filled 19^th-century Victorian house and modern pub next door, devoted patrons quaff Belgian saisons and oak-fermented IPAs. 55 & 61 N. Main Street, Ambler, (215) 542-1776, forestandmain.com
• Free Will Brewing: Hannah Gohde brews delicious sours at this early East Coast adopter of the trend. 410 E. Walnut Street, Perkasie, (267) 354-0813; Peddler’s Village, Route 263 & Street Road, Lahaska, (267) 544-0760; freewillbrewing.com
• Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant: Since 1996, Iron Hill has won more Great American Beer Fest awards than anywhere else east of Mississippi. Nine regional locations, ironhillbrewery.com
• La Cabra Brewing: This seven-barrel brewhouse on the Main Line is known for its American IPAs with names such as Hipster Catnip, and a Latin-American menu. 642 Lancaster Avenue, Berwyn, (610) 240-7908, lacabrabrewing.com
• Levante Brewing Company: This Chester County brewery embraces the seasons and its brewers’ whims with all manner of brews available to-go or poured in a TV-free taproom. 208 Carter Drive, West Chester, (484) 999-8761, levantebrewing.com
• Love City Beer: A former longtime Iron Hill head brewer and his wife run this Eraserhood hotspot. 1023 Hamilton Street, (215) 398-1900, lovecitybrewing.com
• Neshaminy Creek Brewing: Hard-rocking musicians Jeremy Myers, Rob Jahn and Steve Capelli pump out everything from award-winning lager to esoteric barleybeer. 909 Ray Avenue, Croydon, (215) 458-7081, neshaminycreekbrewing.com; Borough Brewhouse, 208 York Road, Jenkintown, (267) 636 5858, boroughbrewhouse.com
• Philadelphia Brewing Company: This pioneer in brewing in the Kensington neighborhood (and Philadelphia itself) is cherished for its cozy tasting room and neighborhood engagement. 2440 Frankford Avenue, (215) 427-2739, philadelphiabrewing.com
• Tired Hands Brewing Company: This Main Line standout has an international following for its limited release IPAs and saisons. 16 Ardmore Avenue, Ardmore, (610) 896-7621; Tired Hands Fermentaria, 35 Cricket Terrace Ardmore, (484) 413-2983; Fishtown Biergarten, 2213 Frankford Avenue; coming soon: St. Oner’s, 2218 Frankford Avenue, tiredhands.com
• Urban Village Brewing Company: This Northern Liberties spot draws beer nerds and brunching families with a rotating list of beers, brick-oven pizzas and a spacious outdoor lounge with fire pits. 1001 N. 2nd Street, (267) 687-1961, urbanvillagebrewing.com
• Victory Brewing Company: The region’s largest brewery distributes to the majority of states and nearly 10 countries. 420 Acorn Lane, Downingtown, (610) 873-0881; 3127 Lower Valley Road, Parkesburg, (484) 718-5080; 650 W. Cypress Street, Kennett Square, (484) 730-1870, victorybeer.com
• Yards Brewing Co.: The first regional brewery to emerge in the modern craft-brew era is famous for its Pale Ale and Brawler and 280-capacity venue. 500 Spring Garden Street, (215) 525-0175, yardsbrewing.com

Great Beer Bars:

• Bottle Bar East: Patrons come for the sandwiches—and leave with some of the country’s best bottles. 1308 Frankford Avenue, (267) 909-8867, bottlebareast.com
• Fountain Porter: Three words: burgers and beer. 1601 S. 10th Street, (267) 324-3910, fountainporter.com
• Grey Lodge Pub: Mike “Scoats” Scotese was one of Philadelphia’s craft-beer pioneers; his beloved Northeast Philly gastropub serves up proof. 6235 Frankford Avenue, (215) 856-3591, greylodge.com
• Memphis Taproom: One of the city’s first craft beer bars has a beer garden that hosts top-level events and brewers from around the world. 2331 E. Cumberland Street, (215) 425-4460, memphistaproom.com
• Monk’s Café: Tom Peters and Fergus Carey’s Center City destination is the reason Philly is America’s first stop for Belgian beers. 264 S. 16th Street, (215) 545-7005, monkscafe.com
• Strangelove’s: This Midtown Village spot has two floors of some of the city’s best beers. 216 S. 11th Street, (215) 873-0404, strangelovesbeerbar.com
• Standard Tap: Northern Liberties’ all-local beer taproom invented the term gastropub. 2nd & Poplar Streets, (215) 238-0630, standardtap.com
• TJ’s Restaurant and Drinkery: Put simply: TJ’s serves some of the best beers on the Main Line. 35 Paoli Plaza, Paoli, (610) 725-0100, tjsbeer.com
• Teresa’s Next Door: Teresa’s put the suburbs on the beer map with its extensive selection of Belgians and others. 126 N. Wayne Avenue, Wayne, (610) 293-9909, teresas-nextdoor.com
• Tria Taproom: This Rittenhouse Square bar prides itself on an educated staff who puts some of the world’s rarest beers into exactingly correct glassware. 2005 Walnut Street, (215) 557-8277, triaphilly.com
• Seasonal beer gardens, including roving park pop-ups, Parks on Tap, aren’t to be missed. There’s a full list at visitphilly.com.

Great Beer Events:

• Big Philly Beerfest: Every February, this fest features 125-plus local and national craft brewers at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. bigphillybeerfest.com
• Bierfest: A late February event pays homage to German beer at the German Society. germansociety.org
• Philly Craft Beer Festival: Forbes Traveler called this March event in South Philly’s Navy Yard, “One of the Top 10 Beer Festivals in America.” phillycraftbeerfest.com
• Yards Real Ale Invitational: The region’s top brewers and beer personalities gather each April at Yards to offer samples of globally made English-style cask-conditioned ales. yardsbrewing.com
• Sly Fox Bock Fest and Goat Race: Real goats race each May in Pottstown to determine who will lend their name to that year’s Maibock beer. slyfoxbeer.com
• Bold Women & Beer: May brings Pennsylvania’s first beer fest to showcase women in the industry. boldwomenandbeer.com
• Washington Crossing Brewfest: Bucks County’s historic Thompson-Neely House features 130 beers from 60 regional and national breweries each May and October. washingtoncrossingbrewfest.com
• Philly Beer Week: Thousands of beer-related events take place in the region for 10 days, from May into June. phillylovesbeer.org
• Fishtown FestivAle: Beer, live music, food trucks, kids’ activities and a flea market take place on one day in June in a fast-changing neighborhood. fishtownfestivale.com
• Pour the Core Philly: An October festival celebrates ciders and other fermented fruit beverages at The Navy Yard in South Philadelphia. pourthecore.com
• Valley Forge Beer & Cider Festival: Every December, 150 breweries and cideries from around the world come together for one giant sampling event. valleyforgebeerfest.com

Beer Guides & Resources:

• Visitphilly.com publishes an online guide to The Craft Beer Trail of Greater Philadelphia.
• Philly Loves Beer, the organization behind Philly Beer Week, posts beer event information.
• Philly Tap Finder lets users search by beer, brewery and bar to find their favorite beers in town.

VISIT PHILADELPHIA® is our name and our mission. As the region’s official tourism marketing agency, we build Greater Philadelphia’s image, drive visitation and boost the economy.

On Greater Philadelphia’s official visitor website and blog, visitphilly.com and uwishunu.com, visitors can explore things to do, upcoming events, themed itineraries and hotel packages. Compelling photography and videos, interactive maps and detailed visitor information make the sites effective trip-planning tools. Along with Visit Philly social media channels, the online platforms communicate directly with consumers. Travelers can also call and stop into the Independence Visitor Center for additional information and tickets.