Austin Beer Garden Brewing racks up medals from the Great American Beer Festival like Michael Phelps at the Olympics. 2019's haul included honors for Rocket 100, a pre-prohibition style pilsner that won gold. However, don’t sleep on Hell Yes, a beautiful Helles lager with just the right amount of spice. The long beerhaus-style tables fill quickly, particularly on Saturday night when the bands take the stage, but it’s absolutely worth fighting the crowd.

Let’s head north of the city and work our way back. Austin Beerworks is the ubiquitous beer brand synonymous with the city. Try any of the seasonal releases or whatever fresh hoppy experimentation is available.

Patio Pounders! Austin can’t get enough of outside drinkin’. And since opening in the middle of a lockdown in March 2020, Hold Out Brewing has been teaching a masterclass in crushable pints. The funky quonset hut came out the gate firing on all cylinders. That is to say Hold Out has become one of the best taprooms in town with a crazy-talented team on the beer side as well as the kitchen side.

It’s about a half-hour drive southwest from Austin to Dripping Springs, where Jester King makes its home. But it’s absolutely worth every minute. Jester King is easily one of the best breweries in the country, let alone one of the best breweries in Austin. And the setting is a feather in the brewery’s cap. The bucolic setting in Texas Hill Country pairs beautifully with each beer served at the four bars on the ranch. Grab a pizza or some charcuterie for lunch, order a draft, and enjoy the view.

If you needed to pick just one brewery to visit in Austin…it should probably be Jester King. But if you could visit two, make the second one Live Oak. Live Oak Brewing Co. eschews hype for quality. Many breweries have gone the way of hazy IPA and loaded up stouts (not that there’s anything wrong with that). But, Live Oak has stuck it out with esoteric beers like Grodziskie and Rauchbier. For quality crushable beer alone, Live Oak holds a spot as one of the best breweries in Austin.

Get yourself to Pinthouse Pizza for incredible pies and pints. Such as the Banh Mi pie made with local sausage and pickled vegetables. And wash it all down with Pinthouse Pizza’s Green Battles IPA, which won gold at the 2018 Great American Beer Festival and World Beer Cup. If you’re a hophead and 'za zealot, you can’t do much better than Pinthouse Pizza.

Head from Downtown to East Austin and visit what The Austin Chronicle called the most underrated brewery in Austin. Zilker’s storefront taproom is moderately-sized, and patrons at the bar can face the glimmering steel tanks. As for the beer, the coffee milk stout is modeled after Cuban coffee, with a soft, creamy texture and sweet caramel flavor. Additionally, don’t sleep on the Parks & Rec Pale Ale, which is a well-balanced, clean-drinking standout.