2024: The Year in Review
I don’t understand why everyone puts out their best of lists before the end of the year. You’re missing at least a week or so of exploration and if you’re not going hard right until year end, you’re not doing it right. So let’s dive into some best ofs and some stats for the year.
Best Beers
5. Other Half Mylar Bags - This list is actually similar in several ways to last year’s - Other Half, Jester King, and Hill Farmstead are all in the same spots, albeit with different beers. No Other Half visits this year, even with the new Chicago location and a visit to Philadelphia, but I did have a couple cans at home and this one barely beat out All Citra Everything.
4. Jester King All-Texas SPON 2024 - Sadly I didn’t make it three years in a row to Jester King, but I did get to have a bottle of this SPON riff at home.
3. Forest & Main Extra Summer Mild - I had to drink this cask mild far too quickly in order to make our tour at Independence Hall. That’s a shame because I could have sipped on pint after pint the rest of the afternoon.
2. Primitive Beer Effectively Seasoned - Primitive carved its niche with bag-in-a-box wild ales but this 6-year blend of lambic came in a bottle and blew me away.
1. Hill Farmstead Edward - Last year I was on a full-blown mission to drink Hill Farmstead beers. This year I had no expectations. And then we walked into Monk’s Cafe and found three on tap and I was as giddy as a school girl. I’ll give the nod to Edward over Everett and the sip of Anna I got to revisit after convincing someone else in the party it was a must get.
Best Hikes
5. Hall of Mosses and Spruce Nature Trail at Olympic National Park - We waited close to an hour to get into the parking lot, one last hike on a full day that involved six hours of driving along the perimeter of Olympic. Hall of Mosses might be touristy but it’s completely worth putting up with the crowds. Hardly anyone tosses on the Spruce Nature Trail, which made that section calm and peaceful as we imagined we were traipsing through the jungle in Jurassic Park.
4. Little Grand Canyon at Shawnee National Forest - The Garden of the Gods area in southern Illinois has some amazing hikes. We had enough time for one on our way down to Hot Springs and the climb down into the canyon was well worth the stop. I’m just really glad there was just enough room to fit the truck and trailer in the parking lot.
3. Hidden Falls via Jenny Lake Trail at Grand Teton National Park - Five miles, some decent elevation gain, and the decision to hit the road a day early to break up the drive to Omaha left me feeling like I’d need to find something shorter in Grand Teton. But with just one hike that day, the promise of a picnic on the lake, potential wildlife sightings, and a promise to carry Ava as much as she wanted, I was able to get everyone on board. We spotted a moose calf and mother almost immediately, sat on rocks to eat as the waves lapped our feet, and then made it to the waterfall, before heading back and shaking our heads at everyone missing all the fun by opting for the easy way over on the boat.
2. Hole-In-The-Wall from Rialto Beach at Olympic National Park - From the moment we stepped foot on Rialto Beach we felt like we were in The Goonies. Chelsea and I strolled along the sand, gawking at the gigantic downed trees worn white by the tides, hopping from rock to rock around the tidal pools. We found starfish and anemones and I spotted a dolphin. We took the requisite photos in the Hole-In-The-Wall. And then we walked back in the rain as a storm blew in, soaked to the bone and chilly, slightly envious of the beach campers and their fires, but wanting to be nowhere else in that moment.
1. Skyline Loop at Mount Rainier National Park - We had no crampons, no snowshoes, no trekking poles. We knew we were underprepared with all the snow, but that’s the compromise of flying with only a personal item to skip all the baggage fees. Chelsea and I figured we’d just go as far as we felt comfortable and if that meant we didn’t complete the whole loop, so be it. We made our way up to Panorama Point, the consensus turn back point for anyone not properly equipped. On our way back down, we watched another couple butt slide down a slope, determined it looked like a lot of fun and safe enough, and so took our shot at it. Oh, to feel like kids again!
Most Memorable Beers
Maybe these weren’t the best beers I had all year (though they’re all right up there), but they’re the ones I remember the most.
5. Waypost Belgian Quadrupel - RIP to a brewery gone too soon. One of my last memories of drinking there will be sitting at the bar, drinking this quad, noting that it seemed thinner than most, and then deducing from the description, which mentioned foudre-aging, that they had made the unconventional choice to use Brett. I loved it even more.
4. Upright Cascadian Mild Ale - We had just enough time to make one more quick stop in our short tour of Portland before flying out. I choose Upright because it was near the airport and we missed out on Away Days because I wasn’t paying attention to when it was closing. I opted to pair this with an Underberg, a choice that drew rave reviews from the bartender as he hadn’t thought of pairing them before. The cheeky name, the style riff, the fact it was an Away Days collab, it all worked together for a memorable final beer.
3. Natty Boh - I look forward to my yearly Old Style in Wrigley. This year I got to drink a Natty Boh at Camden while watching the Orioles pulls off an epic comeback against the Yankees.
2. Gold Dot Helles Lager - Amazing beer? Yes. Amazing location? Yes. Amazing time? Yes. I woke up at first light our first day in Yellowstone, knew I wouldn’t be falling back asleep, and knew I had at least an hour to kill before anyone else got moving around. I made the best of it and grabbed a beer and walked down to the shores of Yellowstone Lake to watch the sunrise.
1. Anything from Scratch - Wild Grapevine Saison, Dead Leaves, Beet Weiss, Fig Leaf and Sweet Clover Stout, Baby Basil. I had them all when we visited and its unlikely I’ll ever forget that experience anytime soon.
Best Trail Beers
5. Grand Teton Old Faithful Ale/Grand Prismatic Spring and Black Sand Pool, Yellowstone National Park - Judging by a theme common to several of the following, you’d think I would have had this at Old Faithful (that was actually Lewis & Clark Yellowstone Golden Ale, which also features the geyser on the label).
4. Fonta Flora Specks of Sand/Dune Ridge Trail, Muskegon State Park - The Dune Ridge Trail was hot and exposed before plunging into the cool forest. This roggenbier was a welcome companion.
3. Snake River Jenny Lake Lager/Hidden Falls via Jenny Lake Trail, Grand Teton National Park - I went meta here, drinking this Vienna lager perched on a boulder as the waves of Jenny Lake lapped at my feet during a lunch break.
2. Rueben’s Brew’s Hazealicious/Rialto Beach to Hole-In-The-Wall, Olympic National Park - I grabbed a six pack of this citra, strata and mosaic-hopped IPA in Tacoma before we ventured out to the Olympic Peninsula. Rialto Beach wasn’t the only trail I enjoyed one on, but it’s the one that stands out.
1. Rainier/Skyline Loop, Mount Rainier National Park - I mean there’s no way I could have skipped this opportunity. We were rushing to beat the clock to make our timed entry on time after leaving early from Portland, so I didn’t get a chance to pick up a can for the actual trail. But when we got to the bottom, we popped into the cafeteria and grabbed an overpriced can to sip on in the parking lot. Worth it.
Favorite Brewery Visits
5. Meetinghouse, Philadelphia, PA - Pale, dark, or hoppy. Those are the three choices at Meetinghouse. Stripped down and sparse, it’s addition by subtraction. The liquor and wine selections are the same. In a world of endless choice, Meetinghouse gets back to the basics, executes them well, and puts drinks in a complementary position to the real reason we get together at breweries: socialization.
4. Greenhouse Aleworks, Rogers, AR - I didn’t expect to find a favorite brewery in Arkansas, but Greenhouse Aleworks delivered. I love a cohesive brand and the gardening theme runs through everything - the beers are all named after plants, the flights arrive in planters, plants adorn the taproom. The beer is fantastic, the headlining IPAs and fruited sours giving the freedom to produce wonderfully executed lagers and stouts.
3. Grand Fir Brewing, Portland, OR - Grand Fir leapt onto my list of must-visits in Portland after several rave reviews from trusted sources. That it made the cut in a city with a wealth of fantastic breweries is a testament to its brilliance. Chelsea and I also enjoyed one of our best meals of the year, an added bonus.
2. Human Robot, Philadelphia, PA - I love a spot with ritual built in and Human Robot has it in spades. It’s the home of the milk tube, stanges filled with a foamy mliko pour that resembles a glass of milk, and offers Underberg. Our group indulged in both during our visit, cheerfully downing a round of milk tubes. Underberg remains an acquired taste for everyone else.
1. Scratch Brewing, Ava, IL - I’ve been trying to get to Scratch for years but it’s always sat just too far out of the way for a day trip or a side trip on the way to somewhere else. 2024 was the year I finally made it, camping nearby on our way to Hot Springs. It lived up to all the hype and it was amazing to drink beers surrounded by the woods where many of the ingredients came from.
2024 By the Numbers
Here’s a handful of numbers that help tell the story of my beer consumption this past year. In many ways they’re reflective of the overall industry. I’ve been tracking my beers in a variety of categories since 2019 for no other reason than I find it interesting to look at how my consumption habits change from year-to-year. I threw in a few hiking stats for good measure.
Miles Hiked: 71 (up from 43ish) (I was better about starting and stopping the tracking on time this year.)
National Parks Visited: 6 (down from 7)
States Hiked In: 6 (down from 10, but I also hiked in 2 countries - the United States and Costa Rica)
Bison That Walked Within 5 Feet of My Tent: 0, no wildlife encounters this year
Modes of Transportation Used to Visit a Brewery: 6 (Car, Bus, Walking, Subway, Running, Mini-Bus)
No rideshare this year but I did swap it out for a public mini-bus on Grand Cayman (and technically I had to take a cruise ship to even get there). The only time I found myself without a car this year was in Guatemala, where I got around to the breweries on runs and by walking.
Cans vs. Bottles vs. Draft: 43%, 11%, 46% (Last Year: 49%, 10%, 41%)
Draft overtook cans this year thanks to a little less drinking at home and a little more at breweries and bars. Bottles are hanging right around where they’ve been the past three years. 12 oz. cans took back the crown from 16 oz. cans.
Local Beer Percentage: 59% (Last Year: 59%)
I define this as beers I drank or purchased in the immediate area where there are made (this includes beers brought back from trips). When defining local as the beer is made in the same state, it increases to 66% (72% last year). Another heavy travel year kept the numbers similar to the last.
If we strip out taproom beers, the numbers change to 24% and 37%, respectively (27% and 51% last year). So while most of the beer I enjoy could be considered “local,” I really made a shift towards less “local” beers at home or even when I grabbed beer from the store or at a bar while traveling.
On-Premise vs. Off-Premise: 56.8% - 43.2% (Last Year: 50.5%-49.5%)
The shift that came last year only got larger this year. I think this speaks to just how uninteresting the off-premise options have become at my local stores. We’ve sacrificed quality for locality and hype.
Domestic vs. Import: 90.9%-9.1% (Last Year: 98.2%-1.8%)
There was a huge swing here thanks to three different international trips. I’m expecting this to revert back last year’s numbers, although we are heading to Mexico next week, so it might not go all the way back to 98%. Guatemala (2.8%) lead the way with Costa Rica (2.4%) extremely close behind.
Single vs. Multipack: 42.9%-57.1% (Last Year: 38.3%-61.7%)
This number surprised me as it felt like I was buying more multipacks, especially while traveling.
States I Drank a Beer From: 45 (Last Year: 47)
I missed out on Alabama, Hawaii, Iowa, Rhode Island, and West Virginia this year. Partly I just didn’t really try for it this year. For instance I held off on Iowa knowing that I’d be driving through to Yellowstone and then right across the border in Omaha, but when I didn’t have one at that point and I knew I wasn’t hitting all 50 anyways, I didn’t make an effort to pick up any easily-accessible Toppling Goliath. I’ll probably still give it a shot this year, but I’m not holding out a ton of hope.
Favorite Beer-Related Photos of the Past Year
