The Buffalo-Niagara beer scene has grown so much over the years that, pretty much wherever you live in our area, chances are you’re not too far away from a fine purveyor of craft beer, whether it be a brewery, gastropub, neighborhood beer bar or bottle shop. But if you’re not within walking distance of any one particular venue, you’re in luck, because Western New York is home to a number of ridesharing options, including Lyft, Uber and Ride Local (Liberty Yellow Cab).

After downloading your app of choice and booking your ride, you can be enjoying a fine local beer in no time. So where to? There are plenty of areas in WNY that you can grab a ride to and then walk to a few different places.

Take the Larkin neighborhood for instance. Start out by grabbing a ride to Flying Bison Brewing, then walk over to Hydraulic Hearth, which, as you should know, is home to a Community Beer Works satellite brewery, before heading down to Buffalo Brewing Company for an 1842 Vienna Lager or 1910 Czech Pilsner. And bonus points for hitting Larkin on a Friday as you can stop at Flying Bison for their weekly cask beer tapping at 3pm, before heading over to Buffalo Brewing, which opens at 4pm. Belt Line Brewery & Kitchen is conveniently across the street from Buffalo Brewing, so stop in there and try one of their delicious IPAs or fruited sours. Five minutes up the road from there is Big Ditch Brewing Company, where I recommend a pint of Hayburner IPA and a Breuben sandwich and fries. Drink through their draft board while you’re in too – you’ll be better off for it.

You can also head down to Elmwood. Start out down at Mr. Goodbar, then head next door to Cole’s, both of which have great tap lists and killer wings any day of the week, before making the trek up Elmwood to Thin Man Brewery. Sure, it’s a little over a mile down the road, but the trip will be worth it in the end. Grab one of Thin Man’s house made brews and a bite to eat, and, before you depart, head across the street to Village Beer Merchant to do some shopping and take some beer home.

The Pearl Street / Canalside area is also a nice starting point. After getting dropped off, you’ll find your fair share of places to imbibe at will. Starting up on Pearl, you can hit Pearl Street Brewery, then walk a little ways down to SATO Brewpub for a Belgian-inspired beer or two (both venues have good food as well). Lafayette Brewing Company is also only a half mile away, which is more than worth the walk, or you can head to Canalside, which is two-tenths of a mile away. Make your way to Pizza Plant Canalside and (716) Food and Sport to continue your drinking exploits. The Labatt Brewhouse and Draft Room are also right around the corner, which feature a nice local beer selection on draft in addition to their in-house small batch brews. It’s not just Blue Heavy and Blue Light anymore. And, as if that isn’t enough, Lockhouse Distillery and Bar is only a half mile away from there.

The Old First Ward is worthy of a trip as well. Start out at Gene McCarthy’s / Old First Ward Brewing for a beer or three, then walk across the street to the Barrel Factory and check out Pressure Drop Brewing and Lakeward Spirits. Don’t miss Bar Cultivar, a cider bar that serves some of the best ciders from around the world, which is located in the same building. If you need to walk it off a bit, Buffalo Riverworks, home of Riverworks Brewing, is less than a mile away (the world’s only brewery inside a grain silo), as is Resurgence Brewing’s new location at 55 Chicago Street, a massive new 25,000 square foot facility with a full kitchen and multiple fully stocked bars.

Elsewhere in the city, Froth Brewing, who are making some of the most killer pastry stouts and fruited sours around, is up on Military Road, Resurgence Brewing’s home location sits on Niagara Street, directly up the road from Community Beer Works’ beautiful new brewery on Seventh Street. In the Black Rock neighborhood, you can find Thin Man Brewery’s state-of-the-art brewery on Chandler Street. Directly across from sits the Buffalo Cider Hall, which pretty much is what it says it is. Grab a game bocce out back if you have time.

Up in East Aurora, head over to Aurora Brews Works for a pint as you shop for some take home beer, then take a walk up the road through the scenic town to Pine Street, where you’ll find 42 North Brewing Company. A quick stop off at the Craftsman Lounge at the historic Roycroft Inn while on your way sounds like a good idea. Don’t forget about the Griffon Pub for dinner if you’re hungry. And a little further up the road, in Strykersville, sits Windy Brew, a lovely little brewery where you can actually brew your own beer and take it home.

Continuing across Western New York, Clarence is quickly becoming a drinking destination with West Shore Brewing Company and Lilly Belle Meads, New York Beer Project has an opulent brewery / restaurant in Lockport, In The Mix is a unique brewery / creamery hybrid in Barker, where Blackbird Cider Works also calls home, Woodcock Brothers Brewing has two locations in Wilson and North Tonawanda and Pizza Plant and Buffalo Brewpub, New York State’s oldest operating brewpub, reside on Transit Road in Williamsville, as does Thin Man’s newest taproom inside Brennan’s Bowery Bar. Also in Tonawanda is Prosper Brewing. Further north in Lewiston, Brickyard Brewing Company are making some of the best beers available no one is talking about, and while you’re there, stop into Brewed & Bottled and grab some beer to take home while you sip on a proper pint.

Are you flying into town? Make sure you make 12 Gates Brewing a priority stop as it is located right around the corner from the Buffalo Niagara International Airport on Wehrle Drive.

Take one ride to the Walden Galleria Mall in Cheektowaga, then kill two birds with one stone and hit up both World of Beer and Gordon Biersch. A few miles south of there is Rusty Nickel Brewing, which sits in West Seneca. You could even venture down to Ellicottville for a quick little brewery tour as Ellicottville Brewing Company and Steelbound Brewery & Distillery are only a mile away from each other. And while you’re down in the Southern Tier, make a day of it at Southern Tier Brewing Company (Lakewood), brewery/winery/distillery hybrid Five & 20 Spirits and Brewing (Westfield), Big Inlet Brewing (Mayville), Four Mile Brewing (Olean) and Jamestown Brewing (Jamestown).

The Western New York beer scene is growing at a rapid pace with no signs in sight of slowing down, and exploring it all is as easy as clicking a button. The ability to safely and responsibly consume any number of craft beverages literally rests right at your fingertips. All you have to do is let someone else drive.

Brian Campbell is a co-founder/Brand Manager of the BNBA’s enthusiast arm, Buffalo Beer League, and writes the weekly Buffalo Beer Buzz column for Step Out Buffalo. If you have beer news that should be included in the Beer Buzz, Brian can be reached at buffalobeerleague@aol.com, on Twitter (@buffbeerleague), Instagram (@buffalobeerleague) and Facebook (@thebuffalobeerleague).

The post The Shelton Chronicles: Exploring the WNY Beer Scene Through Ridesharing appeared first on Buffalo Beer League.

Shelton Brothers Importers have revealed the final list of participating breweries for The Festival 2019, which will take place at the historic Central Terminal on Friday and Saturday, October 4-5. The Buffalo Central Terminal is located at 495 Paderewski Drive. Complete lists of all American and International breweries that will be pouring can be found below. The list includes two Buffalo breweries, Thin Man Brewery and Rusty Nickel Brewing.

As expected, the list is a who’s who of brewers from across the world’s stage, including heralded International beer producers such as Cantillon, De Ranke, Drie Fonteinen, Freigeist, Haandbryggeriet, Nøgne Ø and Põhjala, notable Canadian brewers like Bellwoods and Dieu Du Ciel and American outlets like De Garde, Jester King, Santa Adairius, Other Half, The Veil, Trillium and Tired Hands.

The annual festival, which features the world’s best beer and best breweries, has anchored in such major markets as Denver, Atlanta and Louisville in recent years. The Festival 2019 attracts beer lovers from all corners of the globe.

The Buffalo Central Terminal was an active railroad station from 1929 to 1979, designed by architects Fellheimer & Wagner for the New York Central Railroad. It’s now owned by preservation group Central Terminal Restoration Corporation, which is working to restore and re-purpose the complex to its former glory.

International participants:

– 8 Wired – New Zealand
– Au Baron – France
– Baird – Japan
– Bellwoods – Canada
– Blaugies – Belgium
– Boundary – Northern Ireland
– Brasserie Dunham – Canada
– Brew By Numbers – England
– Brewski – Sweden
– Buxton – England
– Cantillon – Belgium
– Carakale – Jordan
– Casa Bruja – Panama
– Cloudwater – England
– Cold Hand – Denmark
– Collective Arts – Canada
– De La Senne – Belgium
– De Ranke – Belgium
– Dieu Du Ciel – Canada
– Drie Fonteinen – Belgium
– Frederiksdal – Denmark
– Freigeist – Germany
– Fyne Ales – Scotland
– Godspeed – Canada
– Haandbryggeriet – Norway
– Hercules – Mexico
– Hopfenstark – Canada
– Jing A – China
– La Calavera – Spain
– La Débauche – France
– La Sirene – Australia
– Magic Rock – England
– Mean Sardine – Portugal
– Montseny – Spain
– Naparbier – Spain
– Nøgne Ø – Norway
– Page 24 – France
– Pasteur Street – Vietnam
– Põhjala – Estonia
– Ribela – Spain
– Ridgeway – England
– Sahtipaja – Sweden
– Schneeeule – Germany
– Thiriez – France
– To Øl – Denmark
– Toccalmatto – Italy
– Trois Dames – Switzerland
– Trois Mousquetaires – Canada
– Two Metre Tall – Tasmania
– Wildflower – Australia

American Participants:

– 18th Street – Indiana
– 3 Sons – Florida
– Arizona Wilderness – Arizona
– Artisan Beverage Coop — Massachusetts
– Beachwood – California
– Birds Fly South – South Carolina
– Blackberry Farm – Tennessee
– Bluejacket – Washington DC
– Brouwerij West – California
– Dark Matter Coffee – Illinois
– De Garde – Oregon
– E9 – Washington
– Fonta Flora – North Carolina
– Frecon – Pennsylvania
– Garden Path – Washington
– Good Word – Georgia
– Green Bench – Florida
– Green Bench Cider & Mead — Florida
– Grimm Artisanal Ales – New York
– Honest Weight – Massachusetts
– Jackie O’s – Ohio
– Jester King – Texas
– Kent Falls – Connecticut
– Long Beach Beer Lab – California
– Other Half – New York
– Perennial – Missouri
– Rusty Nickel – New York
– Sante Adairius – California
– Scratch – Illinois
– Strange Roots – Pennsylvania
– The Veil – Virginia
– Thin Man – New York
– Three Magnets – Washington
– Tired Hands – Pennsylvania
– Trillium – Massachusetts
– Two Roads – Connecticut
– Urban Roots – California
– West County – Massachusetts
– Wolves And People – Oregon
– Wooden Robot – North Carolina
– Yazoo – Tennessee

For more information on The Festival, visit https://www.sheltonbrothers.com. The Festival 2019 is presented by Shelton Brothers and Rhizome Productions Inc.

Brian Campbell is a co-founder/Brand Manager of the BNBA’s enthusiast arm, Buffalo Beer League, and writes the weekly Buffalo Beer Buzz column. If you have beer news that should be included in the Beer Buzz, Brian can be reached at buffalobeerleague@aol.com, on Twitter (@buffbeerleague), Instagram (@buffalobeerleague), Facebook (@thebuffalobeerleague) and www.buffalobeerleague.com.

The post Shelton Brothers Announce Participating Breweries for The Festival 2019 appeared first on Buffalo Beer League.

Shelton Brothers Importers have announced that The Festival 2019 will take place at the historic Central Terminal in Buffalo this fall. Festival organizers were in town recently to scout locations and decided that the former railroad station was exactly what they were looking for. The Festival 2019 will take place on Friday and Saturday, October 4-5. The Buffalo Central Terminal is located at 495 Paderewski Drive.

While both Friday and Saturday VIP sessions sold out online in just a few minutes, Early Bird General Admission tickets still remain for both days. GA Friday 5-9pm ($60), GA Saturday 3-7pm ($70), DD Friday & Saturday ($10) and All-Weekend Passes ($110) remain for sale. You can purchase tickets here.

The annual festival, which features the world’s best beer and best breweries, has anchored in such major markets as Denver, Atlanta and Louisville in recent years. The Festival 2019 is expected to attract beer lovers from all corners of the globe.

The list of participating breweries is pending, but keep checking back for more information as it becomes available, but expect the very best local, domestic, and international producers of the craft. The Festival regularly features the best of the best in craft beer, including world famous breweries like Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen, Cantillon, Brouwerij Brasserie De Ranke, Freigeist/Monarchy, Haandbryggeriet and Brasserie Dieu du Ciel, as well as notable stateside purveyors such as The Veil, DeGarde, Hill Farmstead, J. Wakefield, Jester King, Monkish and Other Half.

The Buffalo Central Terminal was an active railroad station from 1929 to 1979, designed by architects Fellheimer & Wagner for the New York Central Railroad. It’s now owned by preservation group Central Terminal Restoration Corporation, which is working to restore and re-purpose the complex to its former glory.

For more information on The Festival, visit https://www.sheltonbrothers.com. The Festival 2019 is presented by Shelton Brothers and Rhizome Productions Inc.

Brian Campbell is a co-founder/Brand Manager of the BNBA’s enthusiast arm, Buffalo Beer League, and writes the weekly Buffalo Beer Buzz column. If you have beer news that should be included in the Beer Buzz, Brian can be reached at buffalobeerleague@aol.com, on Twitter (@buffbeerleague), Instagram (@buffalobeerleague), Facebook (@thebuffalobeerleague) and www.buffalobeerleague.com.

The post Shelton Brothers Announce Location, Tickets for The Festival 2019 appeared first on Buffalo Beer League.

Western New York Brewers to Unite and Bowl for Charity

Nearly two dozen WNY breweries are set to hit the lanes and strike the pins in the name of charity at the inaugural WNY Brewers’ Charity Bowling Tournament at Tonawanda Bowling Center on March 29 (7pm). 24 teams, including 12 Gates, Big Ditch, Stoneyard Brewing, One-Eyed Cat, Woodcock, New York Beer Project, Resurgence, Community Beer Works and Brickyard Brewing will form teams and play for the charity of the winning brewery. The event is open to the public. For a $10 donation (100% goes to charity), you can enjoy $5 pints all night and free pizza during the awards ceremony.

Shelton Brothers’ The Festival to Bring World’s Best Beer to Buffalo

It’s a beer geeks dream come true: The Festival 2019, one of the world’s most iconic beer festivals hosted annually by Shelton Brothers Importers, is coming to the Queen City. No, that is not a misprint – the same world-renowned festival that has anchored in such major markets as Denver, Los Angeles and Louisville in recent years has set its sights on Buffalo this fall, Friday and Saturday, October 4-5. A location has yet to be finalized. The list of participating breweries is pending, but keep checking back for more information as it becomes available, but expect the world’s very best.

Be One of the First to Sample Beer from One-Eyed Cat Brewing

One-Eyed Brewing are holding a special Pop-Up Tasting this Saturday at Resurgence Brewing (2-4pm). Be one of the first people to sample their beer as they will have two beers, BIPA, a blueberry infused West Coast IPA and XXX triple chocolate oatmeal milk stout. They will hold their second pop-up tasting on April 13 (2-4pm) at a yet-to-be-announced location. For this tasting, they will have two different beers, Hazy Jake, a refreshingly fruity New England IPA, and Ugly Brown Rye, a hoppy, rye-infused brown ale. The brewery plans to hold more of these pop-up tastings, so stay tuned for details.

Deadline Approaches for Erie County Fair, Flying Bison Home Brew Competition

Have your beer brewed at Flying Bison Brewing, distributed by Try-It Distributing and served at the 2019 Erie Country Fair – all you have to do is win the 2019 Home Brew Competition. The deadline is quickly approaching to enter. Take your beer entry to Flying Bison by 8pm on April 5. Bring an empty growler and have it filled for $5. Entries can also be dropped off to the Erie County Fair Main Office by 5pm on April 5. Past winners include an American Pale Ale (John Crossett & Brian Milleville), Hefe-Rye-zen (Mark Zambron), and Imperial Porter (Sean Wall).

Brian Campbell is a co-founder/Brand Manager of the BNBA’s enthusiast arm, Buffalo Beer League, and writes the weekly Buffalo Beer Buzz column. If you have beer news that should be included in the Beer Buzz, Brian can be reached at buffalobeerleague@aol.com, on Twitter (@buffbeerleague), Instagram (@buffalobeerleague), Facebook (@thebuffalobeerleague) and www.buffalobeerleague.com.

The post Buffalo Beer Buzz: Shelton Brothers’ The Festival, WNY Brewers Bowling Tourney, One-Eyed Cat Pop-Ups, EC Fair Homebrew Comp appeared first on Buffalo Beer League.