One of the finest breweries in the Greater Houston area is B-52 Brewery up in Conroe. Whether you’re a fan of IPAs, pilsners, stouts, or something a little more unique, they’ve got it. I think that’s why I’m such a fan. While I’ve been a fan from afar, I wanted to see the source since I had heard about some of the small batch specialties that can only be found at the brewery.
First off, I have to mention that the outdoor beer garden has the look and feel of a piney woods park. Picnic tables everywhere, games to play, a fire pit (that thankfully wasn’t being used in the heat), and a covered tapwall made me long for camping and sitting around with friends. The tall, mature pines throughout the property provide much needed shade since everything is outdoors. It cooled us down a little bit and I could see how wonderful a fall or winter day at the brewery could be. Unfortunately, the nearly 100 degree heat was beating down, even despite the shade.
We weren’t going to let a little sweat ruin the day, especially with what was on tap. We’re talking a mix of their staple beers (Wingman Wheat IPA, Payload Pilsner, Breakfast Stout), some special brews (Saison Hop series, Liberator, DIPL, Oktoberfest), and some straight-up funky brews (Cherry Pie, Berliner, Blonde Barleywine). With a special deal of 3 beers and a pint glass and pint koozie for $15, who was I to turn down the deal?
For beer #1, I went with the Saison Hop series using galaxy hops. The ultra smooth saison was the perfect beer to cool me down since I started sweating like a pig the moment we sat down. The clean citrus flavor provided to the beer was much better than the cascade version I had tried once before.
However, since it’s that time of year, I had to try their version of Oktoberfest, Festbier 2016. This beer is undoubtedly one of the single best Oktoberfest beers being made in the Houston area right now. An unbelievably underrated marzen, I was impressed by the maltiness that was balanced out nicely with some sweetness in the flavor.
The third beer of the day was the Blonde Barleywine. At 10.4% ABV, this beer was a monster, so it didn’t hurt my feelings that they did a half-pour in my pint glass. With a nice booziness typical of a barleywine, I got a nice vanilla taste instead of the typical fruit flavors associated with barleywines. An absolute gem of a beer in the barrel-aged series, I wanted to take home a bottle, until I saw something else that I’ll mention in a bit.
My final beer was a little more on the funky side. The Cherry Pie sour saison was bursting with tart cherry flavor that was my favorite of the day. Considering the completely bare Untappd profile for this beer, it was obvious that this is a small batch sour that I feel very fortunate to have tried. I hope they do some bombers of this because I would make a special trip to the brewery to snatch some up.
Finally, I couldn’t go home empty-handed. When I was considering what bottle to purchase, I noticed the Bourbon Breakfast Stout and it was calling my name. If you’re a fan of Founders’ Breakfast Stout, stick to the local version that I find even more appealing. B-52’s Breakfast Stout is outstanding and when I saw they had a bourbon barrel-aged bottle on the menu, I was sold (sorry not sorry, barleywine).
If I had this brewery in my backyard, or even within reasonable driving distance from my home, I would be going all of the time. Instead, absence will make the heart grow fonder and I will return to this place I love when it cools down a bit outside.
Great articular.
Thank you very much! My wife and I loved the brewery. We had friends that joined us that were impressed by the beer – their favorite was the Festbier 2016. Mine was the Cherry Pie sour saison. Dynamite offerings!