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Stout, which is characterized by a huge roasted malt profile, a higher than usual alcohol content, and malt-given flavors of caramel, cocoa powder, and coffee. Their 6% ABV Zonker Stout has won scads of awards over the years, helping make Wyoming’s first brewpub something of a legend in craft beer circles, having won more than two-hundred prestigious medals. But it’s Le Serpent and Le Serpent Cerise that have bitten hardest into the regional, and indeed, the entire national beer landscape. A pair of limited release, Flemish-style sour ales aged in French oak barrels up to eighteen months, these two beers made surprise appearances in the top ranks of the American and international craft brewing awards circuit in 2010. The Cerise version is aged in the barrel with whole Washington cherries; both burst with earthy, tart flavors of wood and fruit.

TEXAS and the

SOUTHWEST

W ith its piñon-dotted highlands, sun-baked mesas, and labyrinthine canyon lands, the American Southwest is mesmerizing from 30,000 feet, the distance from which most travelers view it as they whiz by from LA or SF to the East Coast or back again. But the best way for a beer lover to experience its incredible bounty is to spend some time on the ground in the cities and small towns. The soulless casinos, strip malls, and tacky strip joints are just side effects, like jet lag, because a vanguard of hard-working beer lovers has suddenly propelled the Southwest’s craft beer scene from tumbleweed to tornado, from Austin to Albuquerque, Reno, and even Sin City—Las Vegas. It used to be the kind of place where beer meant only a frosty can of Tecate with lime, the follow-up to a good tequila (which, to be honest, is still not a bad way to go). But beyond the old standbys there’s now a new wealth of great American craft beer breweries and internationally savvy beer bars springing up like Christmas cactus in a dried-up arroyo, even along the iconic Route 66 amid the old adobe of New Mexico. In the end, there’s nothing better than a brewery-fresh beer and a high desert sunset, but roadside tacos and Texas barbecue aren’t far behind. Time to hit the road. Just don’t forget the sunscreen.

Texas

THANKS IN LARGE PART TO WAVES OF GERMAN IMMIGRANTS WHO made Texas home, the Lone Star State has long been synonymous with beer, especially a couple of inexpensive, mass-produced lagers, Shiner Bock (from San Antonio’s Gambrinus Corporation) and Pabst’s Lone Star. No disrespect to those ubiquitous brews, but there’s much, much more to discover in the new world of Texas craft breweries and beer bars today, especially in Austin, which has embraced pathbreaking brewing styles with the force of a Texas twister. These bold, natural beers go especially well with Texas Hill Country cuisine and languid afternoons with friends and great music.

Austin

THE GINGER MAN

301 Lavaca St. • Austin, TX 78701 • (512) 473-8801 aus.gingermanpub.com • Established: 1994

SCENE & STORY

Moved recently to its present location under pressure from real estate developers, this large, dimly lit bar consists of a long stone bar, couches, dark wood paneling and tables, a tasteful collection of beer trays on the walls, and a busy outdoor seating and stage area, well retaining the charm that made the original (close by and now called the Ghost Bar) one of Austin’s most beloved spots. There are eighty taps and more than a hundred bottles to choose from, with a strong selection of American craft beers and choice international marks.

PHILOSOPHY

Founder Bob Precious took his inspiration for the Ginger Man family of bars from J. P. Donleavy’s novel of the same name, in which the character of Sebastian Dangerfield is a young American abroad at Trinity College, a bon vivant Time magazine predicted readers would love for his “killer instinct, flamboyant charm, wit—and above all for his wild, fierce two-handed grab for every precious second of life.” But thankfully, the maudlin shtick doesn’t get the better of this loose-knit family of bars. Of the original Ginger Man, in Houston, Michael Jackson