They don’t brew in Santa Clara, but you can find nearly all their beers here and enjoy them in a taproom that offers plenty of beer hall seating, as well as comfy sofas, a pool table and a bank of old-school video games and pinball machines. Patrons are welcome to bring any food up from the market, too.ĭetails: Opens at noon daily next to the Whole Foods at 777 The Alameda in San Jose Barebottle Brewing, Santa Claraįounded by three homebrewing friends - Lester Koga, Mike Seitz and Benjamin Sterling - in San Francisco in 2016, the trio opened a spacious taproom in Santa Clara in 2020. But Cameron’s IPA game is solid, too, with Riwaka Juice, an imperial hazy IPA with pineapple, grapefruit and other tropical notes, and Textured Shapes, a triple hazy IPA with wonderfully complex aromas and flavors.įloodcraft keeps eight to 10 house-brewed beers on at any given time, along with a dozen guest beers and ciders. Another lighter standout was Born to Raise Helles, a sweet, easy-drinking lager. He brews a nice range of beers, all very well made, but I was especially taken with his Destination Nectaron, a pilsner using a distinctive New Zealand hop variety that imparts intense tropical flavors. The brewery is tucked in back, behind a central bar, and the place feels open and airy.īrewmaster Guy Cameron spent eight years at Russian River Brewing, before taking the reins at Floodcraft. The upstairs digs include a balcony of tables with lovely views of The Alameda. With the help of locals, the market was rebuilt and reopened in less than a month, and the Floodcraft name honors that spirit of community. The name stems from an incident early in the grocery chain’s history, when a historic flood in 1980 leveled much of Austin, Texas. You’ll find it upstairs in a building adjacent to the market. The brewery is a hidden gem - quite literally. Yes, there’s a Floodcraft Taproom at the Santa Clara Whole Foods, but you’ll want to head for the original brewery on The Alameda for the real deal. Monday-Thursday and noon Friday-Sunday at 1171 Homestead Road in Santa Clara. But people clamor for his Johnny Mac wRye Red and Sid’s Serrano Ale, a smoked-pepper pale ale.ĭetails: Taplands opens at 3 p.m. It’s hard to keep with demand on a 1-bbl nanobrewery setup and run the bar. As for the beer, he chuckles and says his own beers are only on “irregularly” and usually sell out fast. Hartenstein reckons 75 to 80 percent of his customers are regulars that he knows by name. The bar, which offers indoor and outdoor seating and tasty fare such as deviled eggs, panini and charcuterie boards, has become a neighborhood destination. Founded in 2016 by homebrewer Matt Hartenstein, Santa Clara’s Taplands is a taproom, bottle shop and nanobrewery. That’s probably why in 2020, Taplands was named the best beer bar in California by a Brewers Association poll. The idea, he tells me, is to have brews that are “good for people who both know good beer and don’t know what they want.” Education is a big component here, and the bar’s vibe aims to welcome beer geeks like him as well as newbies eager to learn. Hartenstein likes to keep a diverse portfolio of styles. The focus is clearly on the taproom, with a nicely curated, rotating lineup of 25 beers plus a cask engine. Hartenstein is a longtime homebrewer and self-avowed “old-time beer nerd” who wanted to have a craft beer bar, but didn’t want to give up his hobby - so he figured out a way to do both. Taplands, Santa Claraįounded in by Matt Hartenstein in 2016, this taproom is also a bottle shop and occasional brewery. This month, Silicon Valley beckoned with breweries ranging from Floodcraft to Taplands and more. You can see the nationwide list from Yelp.My Bay Area brewery tours have taken me to taprooms across the region, from the Tri-Valley’s Inc 82 and Danville Brewing to Pacifica’s Pedro Point. The company expanded its search for great beer outside California, and identified a top craft brewer in every state. Yelp’s ranking is based on its database of reviews.
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