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The Ultimate Guide to Local Craft Beer - and Your Ultimate Destination for It

 

Creekside Beer prides itself on having the very best local craft beer that is available in the Pittsburgh area, and having it all in one place for the convenience of our customers.  Customers can browse our shelves in person at our location at 2175 Big Sewickley Creek Road in Sewickley, can check out the latest additions and rankings on Untappd, can keep up with the latest news, specials, and contests on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and can even browse our Virtual Store and search our inventory for your favorite brewery, type of beer, or a specific product, then add directly to your shopping cart for curbside pickup, or even home delivery.

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We carefully evaluate all new releases from local breweries in Pittsburgh and the surrounding area, generate tasting notes for use by our customers in selecting their brews, and then socialize much of this via social media.  In doing so, we have compiled what we consider the Ultimate Pittsburgh Craft Beer Guide for products distributed outside of the brewpubs themselves.  Keep checking back, as we are constantly updating this page with new breweries!

 

  • 11th Hour Brewing Co – Located in the Lawrenceville neighborhood of Pittsburgh in a building that dates back to 1872, when it started out as a school for German immigrants, 11th Hour Brewing was opened in 2017 by owners Keana and Matt McMahon.  Matt, born on 11/11 at 11:11 pm, wanted to incorporate his lucky number into his business name. He decided not wait until the "eleventh hour" of his life to start his dream business and hence, the brewery found its identity.  Their goal was to provide Pittsburghers with quality beer in an abundance of styles, and they pride themselves in their diverse tap list with excellence in IPA's, sours, stouts, as well as traditional lagers and ales. Towards that end, 11th Hour Brewing excels at exposing their customer base to their favorite styles of beer and even introducing them to new options as well, all the while promoting local craft beer experience and education.  Some of their flagship products include 11th Hour Cole Bear IPA, 11th Hour RoboJack IPA, their Dream Cannon Sour Series, and their Hour IPA series, which began in January of 2020 with an all Citra IPA, and which has since grown to add Mosaic, Kohatu, Simcoe, Denali, Ekuanot, Centennial, Mandarina, Barbe Rouge, and El Dorado hops to the mix.  Several of their top-rated craft beers as reviewed on Untappd include 11th Hour Land Beast: Luau Barrel Aged Stout (at 4.43/5 as of this posting); 11th Hour Land Beast: Noches Barrel Aged Stout (at 4.41/5 on Untappd as of this posting); and 11th Hour Burn Your Suit 2020: 18 Month Barrel Aged Stout (at 4.40/5 on Untappd as of this posting).  For a more intimate look at the brewers of 11th Hour Brewing, see “Meet the Brewers in PA”.  And, if you’re visiting, make sure to check out 11th Hour Archer – both the traditional German Kolsch, and the brewery mascot.

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  • Abjuration Brewing – Opened in 2017 by owners Dave Hallam and Tom Glover, Abjuration Brewing makes its home inside the Parkway Theater in McKees Rocks, and is very intertwined with the theater itself.   On any given day at the brewery, you can watch a classic film on the projector screen or find yourself playing movie trivia.  And even if you have never been to Abjuration, you’ve likely seen their trademark glassware on Untappd before – they lean into their association with science and experimenting with their beers by pouring them into beaker glasses (available here).  Abjuration never makes the same beer twice, hence the version numbers in the names of each beer, but they do consistently keep a version of their IPA on tap.  Their top-rated  beers on Untappd include Mounds Dessert Stout (4.52/5 on Untappd), The Antisocial Sour, a Fresh Fest Collaboration (4.44/5 on Untappd), and Candied Sour v1.4 (4.43/5 on Untappd).

 

 

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  • Auroch’s Brewing – Auroch’s Brewing is located along the Ohio River in Emsworth, and is renowned for producing naturally gluten-free beers that taste like. . . . real beer!  Owners Ryan Bove and Doug Foster, who share a love for craft beer, and also share gluten-intolerance, opened this gem of a brewery in 2012, with a tap room that followed shortly thereafter.  They follow strict protocols when brewing, and protocols just as strict when distributing their products to bars and taverns to ensure that their gluten-free products remain gluten-free and have no contact with any other substance that might introduce gluten.  With such a focus on their product, it’s no wonder that their Auroch’s Hazy IPA won the Gold Medal in the Gluten-Free category at the Great American Beer Festival in October of 2020.  Their flagship products include Auroch’s Session IPA, Auroch’s Blonde Ale, and Auroch’s Amber Ale, along with their other top-rated products like Auroch’s Pumpkin Ale (3.98/5 on Untappd), Auroch’s Hazy IPA (3.92/5 on Untapped), and Auroch’s Strawberry Blonde Ale (3.9/5 on Untappd).

 

  • Brew Gentlemen – Owner’s Matt Katase and Asa Foster long dreamed of an East Coast answer to the West Coast’s aggressively bitter IPAs but with tremendous balance, and brought this stellar product to life in 2014, paying homage to the western Pennsylvania steel town of Braddock at the same time. As their blog so eloquently says, their flagship product, General Braddock, was named for General Edward Braddock, a British general best known for his catastrophic defeat at the Battle of the Monongahela in 1755 while leading an expedition to capture Fort Duquesne from the French – and little else.  They sought to make the name General Braddock more well-known, and crafted a product that was named by Draft Magazine  as #25 in the 50 best IPAs in America by in 2017, and by Paste Magazine as one of the 25 best beers of the decade in 2019.  Today, their flagship product, Brew Gentlemen’s General Braddock’s IPA, is unique in the industry for its sleek, 12 ounce satin-finish can, and claims to #1 spot as the top-selling locally brewed product at Creekside Beer, with over 250 cases sold in the first six months of distribution there.  Other flagship products by Brew Gentlemen include Brew Gentlemen’s Mexican Coffee Stout and Brew Gentlemen’s Mammoth DIPA.  Some other top-rated products include Brew Gentlemen’s Brukfast (Bronze) Imperial Stout (with a whopping 4.69/5 on Untappd), Brew Gentlemen’s Double Weapons DIPA (4.46/5 on Untappd), and Brew Gentlemen’s Lou (Ales For ALS) DIPA (4.45/5 on Untappd).  These, and other fine craft brews can be found at their brewery and taproom, housed in a completely renovated electrical supply store in the heart of Braddock.  Their products are so highly thought of that Brew Gentlemen claims the #7 spot on “The Top 10 Breweries in Pennsylvania of 2020 according to Untappd.”  And as 2020 winds to a close, keep an eye out for Brew Gentlemen’s uniquely curated year-end album list. 

 

 

 

 

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  • Couch Brewery – Couch Brewery, opened in 2017 in the Highland Park section of Pittsburgh, is what City Brew Tours has christened “Pittsburgh’s Largest Living Room”.  Why, you ask?  Because as co-owner and CEO Darren Gailey says, “There’s no better place to drink a beer than on your couch.” In addition to creating some top-notch brews, their other priority is to create a comfortable place where visitors can kick back and enjoy a beer with friends and neighbors (post-COVID, of course).  Located in a warehouse-turned-motorcycle shop-turned-gym, the Couch Brewery and Brewpub ooze a casual and retro vide, with vintage overstuffed seating (and couches), board games, classic rock on the stereo, and a sweet vintage bar from the 1940s, where it made its debut at Sallade’s, an old Italian bar in Tarentum that’s now a soup kitchen.  Flagship products from Couch Brewery include Couch Atomic Clock Amber Ale, Couch Ottoman Empire DIPA, and Couch Recliner Oatmeal Stout. These join their top-rated beers on Untappd, which include Couch Four Horsemen Brown Ale (4.27/5 on Untappd), Couch Sofa Quemando Mexican Stout (4.0/5 on Untappd), and Couch  Espionage Orca White Stout (3.99/5 on Untappd).  Keep an eye out for their annual event, Black Aht, where all 10 of the taps at the brewery are occupied by special release for all of the dark beer lovers out there.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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“Back in the days of vinyl records, bands started to place hidden tracks, messages, and stamping on what is known as the "inner groove" or "run off groove" on a vinyl record. The Beatles popularized the use of the inner groove to excite loyal fans when they inserted a brief audio track on side two of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. A perfect fit for Inner Groove Brewing to re-create this idea into a brewery concept to provide an experience of hidden talents, tastes, and turntable tunes.”

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Their unique brewery features very unique vinyl and pop culture-themed activities, several turntables behind the bar, a “Games” nook set up for children and their parents, and a dog-friendly environment for their customers, along with food trucks (weather-permitting).Their flagship products include First Born Unicorn Pale Ale, My Verona Golden Ale, and Celebrity Hot Tub Brown Ale, with the currently top-rated beers of Kissin’ and Squeezin’ Stout (4.21/5 on Untappd), Brambling Man Sour (4.20/5 on Untapped), and Bouncin’ Around Sour (4.14/5 on Untappd).

 

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  • North Country Brewing Company – Somewhat of a drive north of the city of Pittsburgh, North Country Brewing Company was launched by owners Bob and Jodi McCafferty in the town of Slippery Rock, PA in 2005.  North Country Brewing is currently housed in a more than 200-year-old building that dates back to 1805, and in its younger days, functioned as an inn, followed by a combination furniture store and mortuary.  When the mortuary business died off, the building continued as a furniture store until its demise, when it was purchased by the McCafferty’s and completely renovated and turned into a brewpub and brewery. Their brewery made such a name for itself locally that they then launched North Country Canning Company, in order to package all of their great products for customers anxious to take them home with them.  This was followed by the purchase in 2013 of the Harmony Inn, located in the National Historic District of Harmony, PA, to be used as a second brewpub.  This location dates back to 1856, and has a very storied past, including reports by multiple sources of hauntings.  In spite of that, you’ll find a wide variety of spirits at their newest brewpub, such as North Country’s flagship products, North Country Station 33 Firehouse Red Ale, North Country Paleo IPA, and North Country Buck Snort Stout. 

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  • Old Thunder Brewing Company – Although Old Thunder Brewing Company, located in the former Post Office Building in the Blawnox neighborhood of Pittsburgh, is only a recent addition to the local Pittsburgh brewing scene with its December 2020 launch, the talent behind the brewery is far from new.  Owners Rob Dillman and Zach Gordon were formerly part of the team at Brew Gentlemen, where they met the third member of the ownership team, Josh Taylor, and honed their skills for creating delicious hoppy beers, as well as more diverse and unique styles.  And in a break from the norm for local breweries, Old Thunder focused on putting beer into cans from the very beginning. While most local breweries focus on draft beer and drawing consumers to their taproom, Old Thunder’s launch during the COVID pandemic made that problematic.  Instead, they opted to use their on-site canning line to get the vast majority of their liquid packaged for to-go sales, with extremely limited distribution in the Pittsburgh area outside of the brewery.  Creekside Beer is delighted to be one of the few locations to be able to carry these exceptional products.  And Old Thunder certainly has both the talent and the capacity to turn out exceptional products, with a steam-fired fifteen -barrel two-vessel brewhouse, four fifteen-barrel fermentors, and a fifteen-barrel Brite tank. Their flagship products currently include Old Thunder False Kingdom IPA, Old Thunder Impossible Object Pale Ale, and Old Thunder Building Blox Wheat Ale.  Top-rated beers include Old Thunder Fantasy Future DIPA (4.3/5 on Untappd); Old Thunder A Glimmer in the Dark Imperial Stout (4.28/5 on Untappd); and Old Thunder Rain Nor Shine IPA (4.18/5 on Untappd). For more information on Old Thunder Brewing, be sure to check out their blog.

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  • Trace Brewing – Founder and owner Dave Kushner, formerly of the renowned John Harvard’s Brewhouse in Cambridge MA, Harpoon Brewery of Boston, and Lord Hobo Brewing of Woburn MA, and owner of Remnant Brewing in Boston opened Trace Brewing in the Bloomfield section of Pittsburgh on December 17, 2020.  Their head brewer, Zach Colton, also brings a wealth of experience to Trace, with stints at Trillium Brewing in Boston, MA, along with Dancing Gnome, Four Points Brewing, and Strange Roots Experimental Ales locally.  Trace Brewing is located in a more than 5,000 square foot facility that was built in 1900 that served as brass and bronze foundry, a paint manufacturing facility, a photography location, and most recently an underground punk music venue. The dog- and kid-friendly facility boasts cathedral ceilings, exposed brick and large, glass block windows that bathe the area in natural light, and a public, legal graffiti wall where Trace has collaborated with the Pittsburgh Artists Autonomy Coalition.  One of Trace’s efforts to give back to the community is their vocational program, a paid six-month brewing program focused on bringing people into the beer industry that may not otherwise have access. This program is aimed at women, people of color, and the LGBTQ+ community, and will provide participants all of the skills needed to become a professional brewer.  Top rated beers by Trace include Brass & Bronze IPA, Guavagool Sour, and Waveside New England IPA, along with Sun Shadows Pale Lager.

 

 

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