Top 10 New (to me) Breweries Visited in 2023

Now that my 2023 recap in photos is out of the way I thought it’d be interesting to recap the top 10 breweries I visited for the very first time in 2023.

Is this list subjective? Of course! Some of these picks may even be based on the overall experience I was having that day or the people I met while visiting the brewery or other factors not related directly to the breweries listed. Doesn’t that play a role in all of our positive or negative experiences though?

What I can say is that aside from 1 or 2 visits (DM me for dirty details), all of these brewery visits were great in their own way. The 10 I’m listing below are just that ones that stood out a little bit more for one reason or another. Maybe it was the beer, maybe it was the food, maybe it was the atmosphere or maybe it was something else.

With that said, here’s my top 10 list in order of when I visited throughout 2023….

Great Notion Brewing (Ballard) – Seattle, WA

The Ballard neighborhood of Seattle has a crazy amount of breweries in a fairly condensed area. I’ve visited 3 or 4 of them and that barely scratches the surface. Great Notion has done a fantastic job building a tasting room with great art, lots of natural light, good food options and, as always, great beer.

Holy Mountain Brewing (Interbay) – Seattle, WA

Almost the complete opposite from the Ballard area, the Holy Mountain Interbay location is in an industrial area beside the train tracks. The interior is not representative of the exterior though. It’s a beautiful tasting room with tons of open space. To be honest though, the beer at Holy Mountain is so damn good they could serve it from a rickshaw in a seedy alley and I’d still visit.

Structures (Old Town) – Bellingham, WA

I was a little bummed to hear Chuckanut was closing their Bellingham tasting room, they make some fantastic lagers, but when I heard Structures took it over and completely revitalized it, I breathed a sigh of relief. And when I saw they were open 11:30-9:00, 7 days a week I jumped with joy. Not only is it a beautiful tasting room with more convenient hours than their State St. location, they also have a food menu with a delicious fried chicken sandwich.

People Like Us – Copenhagen, Denmark

Tucked away in an old brick building on the corner of the street, People Like Us Beer Bar could be easy to miss except for the bright pink signage on their windows. It’s a tiny tasting room with some additional sidewalk picnic tables located about 4km (or a 10 minute bike ride) from the main train station of Copenhagen. Their beer is delicious, the people are friendly and when you see how inclusive their hiring process is, it makes you want to support them even more!

Ølsnedkeren – Copenhagen, Denmark

Ølsnedkeren is one of the spots I mentioned in my intro paragraph where my choice to add them to my top 10 list is subjective in the sense that it was just another great stop on what was already a great day. The beer was good, the tasting room was cool but it was the conversation with the bartender about her upcoming trip to Toronto that made the experience even better. That and the fact that I was having a fantastic day riding a bike all around the city taking photos. Sometimes those are the things that turn a good experience in to a great one.

Hofbräuhaus München – Munich, Germany

Loud, crowded, touristy…. these aren’t typically words you associate with a good experience but this is exactly what made me love my visit to the legendary Hofbräuhaus in Munich. Sipping back a giant stein full of dark lager while pondering what it was like to do the same thing hundreds of years ago in the exact same spot was a bucket list beer experience checked off my list. .

7 Seas Brewery and Taproom – Tacoma, WA

I can’t speak to their beer on a large sample size but the 2022 Bourbon Barrel Aged Stout I had was fantastic! It was the tasting room that really won me over though. Big enough to be considered a beer hall; they had comfy leather couches, arcade games, a full food menu from the Canteen and a historical timeline with artifacts honoring Heidelberg Brewery where 7 Seas now calls home in Tacoma.

Fort George Brewery – Astoria, OR

Fort George has been on my list of breweries to visit for quite a while. I’ve passed through Astoria on road trips a couple times previous to 2023 but never had time to stop. This time I made it a point to sojourn in Astoria and I’m glad I did. The beer is fantastic, as always, and the whole tasting room was very cool and in a nice location. A perfect spot to eat and re-energize after climbing all those damn stairs in the Astoria Column.

de Garde Brewing – Tillamook, OR

My first visit to de Garde! How could this not be on the list?? I’ve wanted to visit de Garde for a long time but, let’s be honest, Tillamook, Oregon probably isn’t on most people’s bucket list travel destinations. Well, unless you’re a big cheese fan. My only regret from visiting de Garde was that I didn’t have more time. I tried 2 beer and bought 3 bottles to go but I could’ve stayed and hung out there all day. It’s a great little tasting room with friendly staff and, obviously, fantastic beer.

Reverence Brewing – Denver, CO

An unassuming spot just a couple blocks away from VooDoo Donuts (score!), Reverence is newer to the Denver beer scene. In 2021 they took over a location that hasn’t had great fortunes for craft breweries with the previous two only lasting 2-3 years. Reverence is doing something different though, they seem to have a loyal local following but also some great reviews from visitors (5 stars on Google, 4.8 stars on Yelp and 3.9 stars from the haters on Untappd). It’s a skinny but deep, cozy spot with a fireplace, a few tables with mis-matched chairs and a long bar. Nate, the co-owner, and I had a good convo about beer and I found out he even worked in BC in the beer industry for a short period. I enjoyed a flight and pint and loved all 5 beer I tried with the “Sanguine”, “Madeline” & “Hop Julius” being the stand outs.

Well, there you have it. The top 10 new, to me, breweries I visited in 2023. I’m not sure what’s in the cards for 2024 brewery visits but if it was anything like last year, it’ll be delicious!

For anyone interested, here’s a list of all the breweries I visited for the first time in 2023. For a full list of all the breweries I’ve visited, check out my Beer Map.