A bevy of beverages along Fitzhugh Road

Ten years ago, the homeowners and ranch owners along Fitzhugh Road in southwest Travis County probably never thought their sleepy little two-lane would end up being home to a whole slew of companies making beer, wine, cider and spirits. 

While Fitzhugh Road isn't technically in Dripping Springs, it's pretty darn close and whenever we have visitors in town, the easiest and funnest trips we do is a trip down Fitzhugh Road and then a stop at the Salt Lick for bbq. It's the perfect day trip! 

Jester King Brewery kind of started the booze trend on this stretch of road when they officially opened in early 2011. I remember seeing fliers at Austin Homebrew in 2010 for investment opportunities into Jester King and fast forward five years and they're one of the hottest breweries in town and the crowds line up early for their special releases. Why didn't I invest?!? 

After JK opened and started doing well, a lot of companies followed suit out to the winding road. Permitting/zoning seems to be easier since it's not in the City of Austin. 

If you're looking for something to do on a Saturday afternoon, I suggest you mosey on down to Fitzhugh. Here are a few of the places that you should visit:

Last Stand Brewing

This brewery is in a commercial park that seems like it was made just for drinking (Argus Cidery and Revolution Spirits are in the same complex). 

Last Stand recently expanded their facility (they took over a 2nd warehouse) and now they have a fully functioning taproom that has a/c! You know that a/c is needed when it's 100 degrees during peak summer. 

For a fairly new brewery, they brew some of the most solid selections of beer in town. We always enjoy the various belgian beers they have on tap. The only real problem? They tend to brew beers that have a higher alcohol content, so I would stick with the tasting trays if you're hitting up several places! 

The new and improved tap room has plenty of seating and the all important a/c. They still have an outdoor space that you can enjoy on a nice day.

Take it slow and get a flight. We have several more places to hit up.

Revolution Spirits

Right next door to Last Stand is Revolution Spirits, which specializes in gin. While I'm not a fan of gin, it's still a great place to visit to try the gin (samples are free) and even get a cocktail made with their gin. If you're a fan of super-spiced gin, you might like Revolution's. They put a good amount of juniper in it!

The company is also making a new coffee liqeur that is delicious! Pro Tip: Spec's sells it for cheaper than they do at the distillery. 

Argus Cidery

After you're finished getting your gin and tonic on at Revolution, walk down to Argus Cidery. They're in a green building as well, but the shop is at the entrance -- it's on the immediate left when you turn into the commercial space. It's kind of unfortunate the shop isn't as visible as Last Stand and Revolution.

The ciders they make here are dry and delicious. If Austin Eastciders has the hipster can cider going on, Argus Cidery is the fancier sister. They only sell their stuff in 750ml bottles, which I think is nice but for them to be more accessible, they might have to start canning to compete with Eastciders.

Argus Cidery actually introduced me and Micah to Tepache awhile back and we've been fans ever since. Micah now brews his own Tepache (pineapple wine) and it's great!

Argus is small but there's decent seating along with some outdoor space. The interior space is nicely decorated though! P.S. there's no a/c here.

Argus also teams up with Treaty Oak (which I will get into next) to barrel-age their ciders in the whiskey barrels.

Treaty Oak Brewing & Distilling

Treaty Oak has technically been distilling for 10 years but only recently opened their new and inviting space on Fitzhugh this fall. The space that they've created is very similar to Jester King's. There's a barnyard and no air conditioning here either.

While they're known for their spirits, the company just officially launched their three year-round brews. When we were there for their grand opening party in October the "test" beers they had on tap were not very tasty, so hopefully they fine-tuned their brews for the market. Treaty Oak follows what Ranger Creek did in San Antonio but in reverse. Ranger Creek was always going to make whiskey, but since that takes a few years to get out of the barrel, Ranger Creek started making and selling beer first as the whiskey was in the queue.

But enough about their business model. When you get to their space, there's a shop towards the front where you can buy bottles and other gear. Towards the middle is the main space with drinks on tap and a small menu. Their cocktails are priced well and I was thoroughly impressed with their Old Fashioned.

There is plenty of seating and if you really must watch TV, they have that here too.

Jester King Brewery

Last but not least, the biggest kid on the block is JK. If it's a pretty day, you should expect to see a large crowd here with their dogs and children in tow. However, the lines can get long depending on what beers they have on hand that week so be prepared! The brewery has one main taproom (teeny tiny) but they supplement that by having a couple of mobile tents that have servers as well, just be mindful that the outside tents usually have a smaller selection.

If you don't know about JK beers, I don't know where you've been. They're known for their farmhouse Belgian-style beers. If you come on a day where there's a special release going on, someone might approach you about buying a bottle for them (since JK usually limits special releases to 2 per person). These people then turn around and trade/sell their beer with other beer folks across the country. If you don't like funky beers, JK also has a full list of wines and other breweries beers on hand, so you'll find something!

If you're hungry, there's a pizza joint down the hill along with another bar space operated by another entity.

For the longest time, my biggest pet peeve with JK was the lack of real bathrooms. They always had one bathroom in the main taproom and several port a potties, but that was it. After five years, they finally put in some REAL bathrooms!

Hallelujah!

Drinking on the edge of the Hill Country on Fitzhugh Road at dusk is the perfect way to end a great day!

While I didn't include it in this post, here are some other spots along Fitzhugh Road you should visit:

• Solaro Estate Winery: Not my favorite wine in the area but the space is pretty and has plenty of seating. The wines are a bit pricey for the quality.
• Bell Springs Winery: Not technically on Fitzhugh, but right off of it! Solid winery but smaller than Solaro.
• Texas Hill Country Olive Company: Like olive oil and bread dipped in olive oil? This place is for you. 

Austin's Craft Beer Scene Goes from Boom, to Bust, to Boom!

In the past few years, Austin's craft beer scene has grown tremendously, but it hasn't always been that way.

Currently, there are nearly 20 breweries/brewpubs in the Austin-area with more coming online every year.

 {there was a time when Craft Pride's business model wouldn't have worked. But now a bar serving nothing but Texas beers can actually make it!}

In a new documentary, Brewed In Austin, The Zymergence Of Craft Beer In Central Texas, created by Chris Erlon and Larry McIntosh, the filmmakers look at Austin's burgeoning craft beer scene and how it got to where it is now.

The story is told through brewers ranging from Christine Celis of Celis Brewery, Chip McElroy of Live Oak Brewing and Davis Tucker, owner of NxNW Brewery. 

On Sunday, Micah and I went to a showing of the film at Flix Brewhouse. While it wasn't a packed showing, there were definitely a lot of beer nerds in the crowd. 

I really enjoyed the insight on the breweries that started in the late 80s: Waterloo Brewing, Copper Tank and the Bitter End, to name a few. None of those breweries exist today. 

I thought the film was interesting and provided good information on the ebb and flow of breweries and the whole legislative battle Texas brewers have been fighting for decades. I know it wasn't a fancy movie, but I thought the interviews could've been shot and framed a little better. 

If you get a chance to see it, do so! 



After the showing, there was a Q&A with most of the brewers featured in the film. 

Here are some nuggets that might be new to you!

• Celis said she hopes to start brewing her dad's famous Belgian White by the beginning of  next year. It sounds like Celis will pull a Mikeller and brew at various host facilities. 
• Jeff Young, Black Star Co-Op's head brewer (but not for long), said beer lovers in South Austin won't have to drive all the way up to their North location to get their drink on. Not sure what the timeline is for their south location.
• Live Oak's new location along the Colorado River in East Austin is still in the works as well. I can't wait to have a brewery right on the water! That'll be nice! McElroy mentioned they had an issue with the Texas bill that passed this summer that made it illegal for breweries to sell their distribution rights. Since Live Oak has been self-distributing for more than 15 years, they've built up a sizable distribution network. During the Q&A McElroy said he's been offered upwards to $3 million for those rights, but now with the new laws, he won't be able to sell those rights. That lost of potential capital is playing into their timeline on the new brewery. 
• Jester King Brewery started carrying a couple of La Cruz de Comal wines on tap. This wasn't mentioned during the Q&A but I thought I'd mention it since a moviegoer asked whether or not breweries were working with wineries. Micah and I visited La Cruz de Comal a few weeks ago and it is absolutely wonderful. If you like Jester King, you'll definitely like Comal.
• NxNW is opening a Circle C location. Impact News had a full write-up on here.   
• While the beer bills passed this summer allowed breweries to sell their beers for consumption on-site, most breweries in Austin still can't do that due to zoning laws. I wrote about that a few weeks ago, here.

Some folks ask if Austin is already saturated with craft breweries, but most people don't believe that's the case. If you compare us to Portland, Denver, or San Diego, Austin still has room for growth. If it's good beer that's being made, we all benefit! 

Cheers to that!

Micah at Independence Brewing while wearing Funkwerks Brewery shirt. Beer overload.

Drink local! But it's ok if you like other beers too. 

Nicer tap rooms are in order!

While I was sitting at Odell Brewing in Ft. Collins, CO last December, I had an epiphany when it came to tap rooms: Texas breweries don't have nice tap rooms because they can't sell beer on-site.

I don't know why it took me so long to realize that our tap rooms are 10x lamer than other states! I mean, yes, there are nice ones like St. Arnold's in Houston, but that's few and far between folks.

Most young breweries have a warehouse, a couple of taps in the wall and a bar table to serve it from. It's functional, but it sure isn't pretty.

BUT! With the slate of beer bills close to becoming reality, nicer tap rooms might be in our future! I think if breweries are allowed to charge for samples, pints, etc. they'll put more money into a useable space! I can't wait to see what the breweries come up with!

On Friday afternoon, the Texas House used voice votes to approve the bills. A final House vote on Monday will push the bills to Gov. Rick Perry's desk. There's currently no real opposition, so this is fo'realz people!

I've been keeping up with these bills for awhile, you can read past articles
here
here 
here
and here.

Here are my favorite tap rooms (places that actually have rooms, not just an open warehouse) in Texas right now (in no particular order):

1. Hops and Grain: It's a small room but it is a good space. The room has a/c, seating and a view of the brewery. My favorite thing about this place? Plenty of toilets! Because it's in a shared warehouse, there's a communal bathroom that is HUGE.

2. St. Arnold Brewing Co.: It's a grand beer hall. I remember when they used to have that warehouse on Hwy 290... the good ol' days. The new location has a huge beer hall with plenty of taps. There's usually a line to get in but it's a good deal! Even though there are at least a dozen picnic tables, you might have to sit on the floor if it's really busy, which is only a minor inconvenience.

3. Deep Ellum Brewing Co.: The open-air space below the pergola is lovely! You get your beer inside the warehouse, but there's a nice seating area in the front of the business. There are several picnic tables and wine barrels turned into tables. Bring a lawn chair just in case!

4. Jester King Brewery: Fairly large ranch-style tap room. No seating area inside the room but plenty of space outside!

5. Tie between Ranger Creek Brewing & Distilling and Branchline Brewery:
Not much seating in either place but it's a good spot to hang out if it's 100 degrees outside. I might give RC an extra point because they have cool artwork on the walls.