What’s the best place to drink a cold beer in the depths of a cold winter? That’s a tough call, because America’s snowier states are churning out great craft beer.
The Snow Report
The latest snow, ski, and winter sports stories from ϳԹ.For extreme cold—as low as -50 degrees Fahrenheit if you time it right—start at Silver Gulch Brewing and Bottling. Just outside Fairbanks, Alaska, above the 64th parallel, it’s North America’s northernmost brewery. Further south, in Anchorage, Midnight Sun Brewing is quirky and innovative—warm up with a Panty Peeler Tripel, flavored with orange peel and coriander. Juneau’s Alaskan Brewing is the king of 49th-state beer, and obviously a winter visit to the brewery calls for a Winter Ale.
Colorado is America’s craft beer heartland. New Belgium, in Fort Collins, is an old standby. Meanwhile, every ski town in the state seems to have its own brewery: Try Aspen Brewing, Breckenridge Brewery, or Durango’s Steamworks Brewing.
Further east, I’ve always been a fan of Vermont’s Magic Hat Brewing Company. New Glarus Brewing, in Wisconsin, is famous for its Raspberry Tart ale. And in Kalamazoo, Michigan, Bell’s Brewery has a whole menu of seasonal stouts—the unofficial beer of winter.