Every State Ranked by its Beer

[tlongII]

http://www.thrillist.com/drink/natio...f=facebook-869



1. Oregon

California and Washington might have more brewers, but dammit, they’ve also got more people. More importantly, they don’t have the density of Oregon’s offerings. Or the quality. Oregon’s long been at the forefront of the craft industry, with brewers like Widmer Brothers, Rogue, Full Sail, and Deschutes leading the national charge as gateway beers for people who want something more out of their pints. But they’re just the OGs of what might be the epicenter of the craft beer movement.

Much ballyhoo has been made of the sheer number of breweries in the Portland metro area, which tops out at more than 70 and counting... but this isn’t a case of quan y over quality. It’s a case of quan y meeting quality head on. Portland houses an insurmountable number of great breweries -- not good, pretty good, or wonderful, but effin’ great breweries -- that are changing the landscape of modern brewing. Hair of the Dog, Breakside, Cascade, Upright, Ecliptic, the Commons, Burnside, Lompoc... it just keeps going. Even the “crappy” breweries by Portland standards would bury most of their peers based on pure deliciousness.

But that’s just one city in a state full of amazing brewers dotting the state, from the coastal Pelican to the high dessert’s 10 Barrel, mid-state’s Ninkasi, Southern Oregon’s uncleverly named Southern Oregon Brewing, Mt. Hood’s Double Mountain... basically, if you enter a city or town in Oregon without a solid brewery, you’ve probably crossed into Washington or Idaho. Or maybe the capital of Salem... which sucks. But you’ll still find a great brewpub serving some of the best beer in America, made in Oregon, with Oregon hops, by a bearded Oregonian who’s probably in a band that sucks... that’s the Oregon way. Oregon beer, more than any, has helped introduce the masses to the potential of drinking great brews, and, with new breweries seemingly opening on a weekly basis, it’s the best damn place to be a beer lover in the US.

[baseline bum]

California and Oregon have to be top 2. I'm fine with either being #1.

[baseline bum]

Wyoming at #40 is insane! Snake River Zonker alone should put it in the top 15. Next time you're in Jackson Hole or the Yellowstone area try a Snake River Zonker stout, tlong. Amazing beer.

[Fpoonsie]

No problem with the top 2 or 3. I'll maintain that Texas should be rated higher, though.

( Lone Star for calling itself our "national beer.")

[leemajors]

No problem with the top 2 or 3. I'll maintain that Texas should be rated higher, though.

( Lone Star for calling itself our "national beer.")

Yeah listing Lone Star and Shiner just made me shudder

[Spurminator]

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