The Rise of Las Vegas Breweries

January 10, 2019

Downtown Las Vegas has become a fast growing brewery and restaurant mecca over the last few years. Everywhere you turn, you’re sure to find a new place to eat or grab a speciality-crafted brew. With so many different options, it might be difficult to decide where to go. But rest assured, you can find everything from homey places to relax to festive holiday-inspired beers. Either way, here are some of our favorite Las Vegas breweries to check out next time you’re out and about!

Five Las Vegas Craft Beer Breweries  

1. Banger Brewing Company

Conveniently, Banger Brewing is located just down the street from The Ogden and is one of the best Las Vegas breweries. They have a delicious list of year-round beers such as Perfect Ten (a pale ale), El Heffe (a jalapeno hefeweizen), and Morning Joe (a coffee kolsch), among many others. They also have a number of periodic releases, such as:

• Vegas “Session” IPA (8.5%) – Vegas Session is “a crescendo of citra, El Dorado, and mosaic hops.” You never know when this delicious, crisp beer will be on rotation at Banger.
• Infinite Patience (5.8% ABV) – This cappuccino stout is named after the famous saying from Sanny Davis, Jr: “alcohol gives you infinite patience for stupidity”
• Fremont Bitter (6.2% BV) – If you like both bitter tastes and sweet notes, Fremont Bitter is for you. It’s refreshingly drinkable but still has the malty sweetness and tastefully bitter finish that makes it such a favorite.

Check before you head out to see what Banger has on tap this season.

2. Chicago Brewing Company

At Chicago Brewing Company, on the westside of Downtown inside the Four Queens, you’ll find award-winning beer and a pub style atmosphere. They have a range of Vegas craft beers, including six house drafts, four seasonal beers, and ten handcrafted beers on tap. Whatever mood you’re in, Chicago Brewing has a beer for you. Check out some of their seasonal beers below:

• Brews Brothers (4.5% ABV) – This brew has the refreshing, lingering taste of green tea and blueberries. Its golden color and fruity aroma will transport you back to the warmer months of summer during the winter season.
• Sh-Wheat Dreams (6% ABV) –  This special wheat beer has a golden color and is layered with pineapple, grapefruit and strawberry. It’s the fruitiest beer of the season and is a nice change from the strong, dark and rich beers.
• Bitter Jitters (6.5% ABV) – This amber ale packs the punch of a fresh cup of morning coffee. Roasted cold brew coffee flavors and hops come together to give you a morning wake up call any time of day.
• Quad Damn IT! Bourbon Barrel Aged Belgian Quad (12% ABV) – The Great American Beer Festival awarded the 2013 Silver Medal Award to this beer, which is aged in Breckenridge Bourbon Barrels at the Las Vegas brewery. It’s a dark brown beer layered with sweet malts and dark fruits.

3. Hop Nuts Brewing

This unique microbrewery is hidden away in the Downtown Las Vegas Arts District. Inside, they serve eleven premium craft beers, five seasonal picks, and six yearly brews full of plenty of hops and robust flavors. Their seasonal beers include:

• In Love with the Cacao (6% ABV) –  This one is a rich black stout, brewed with oatmeal cacao, dark chocolate malt and oats.
• Razz Belgian Pale Ale (6.95% ABV) – You have to try this light, crisp Belgian Pale Ale infused with raspberries and banana flavors.
• Bourbon Barrel Aged Omniscient Imperial Stout (10% ABV) –  This is a deep black beer aged in a Woodford Reserve Bourbon Barrel for a year. It contains hints of roasted barley and chocolate, layered with notes of coffee, and finished with an earthy, herbal North American hops flavor.
• Resilience Butte County Proud IPA – Sierra Nevada, based in Chico, CA, did something historic to support the victims of Camp Fire. They brewed Resilience, a delicious IPA, and asked breweries to carry it for free and donate 100% of the sales to the Camp Fire Relief Fund. Hops Nuts was more than happy to jump on board and support their California neighbors.

4. Tenaya Creek

Tenaya Creek is family owned with at least seventeen craft beers on tap from Nevada, Arizona, Southern California and Canada. Among those, six of them are year round and six of them are seasonal. The seasonal picks this year are:

• The God Of Thunder (9% ABV) – This beer is dark and malty and has a light body and crisp finish.
• Imperial Stout (9.3% ABV) – Try this black beer with caramel and roasted chocolate malts. It’ll leave your mouth with a malty sweet finish and strong hoppy flavor.
• Monsoon IPA (8.5% ABV) – Monsoon IPA contains Tim Etter’s homegrown Mt. Hood and Cascade hops.
• Dutch Trippel Ale (9% ABV) – This brew is medium-colored with a “large bite.” It also has soft floral notes mixed with a sharp spice.
• Old Jackalope Barleywine Style Ale (10.4% ABV) – Old Jackalope contains the ultimate mix of malt and hops. This brewery considers it their “ultimate beer.”
• Tandem Double India Pale Ale (9% ABV) – This double IPA is a delicious citrus and grapefruit ale.
• Resilience Butte County Proud IPA – Like Hop Nuts, Tenaya Creek was more than happy to get on board with Resilience, Sierra Nevada’s brew that helps victims of Camp Fire and their family. 100% of the proceeds from this beer will go toward the Camp Fire Relief Fund.

5. Triple-7 Microbrewery

This Downtown Las Vegas brewery is located inside the Main Street Station Casino and has six craft beers all year long and at least three brewmaster specials that rotate each season. This holiday season, their special brew is:

• Pumpkin Spice Coffee Ale (5.5% ABV) – This ale is a limited edition pumpkin pie spice coffee mixed with Royal Red Ale and is cold brewed right there at the brewery. Wake up with a warm holiday feeling with this delicious blend.

Next time you’re Downtown and looking for the perfect place to quench your thirst, check out one of these breweries. Each is sure to give you the perfect blend of flavor and a one-of-a-kind atmosphere.