Other than Rahr & Sons and Shiner, what else is there?

St. Arnold's in Houston.

I bet Real Ale in Blanco does a tour...

Saint Arnolds

I haven't been to St. Arnold since they moved into their new building. When I went in the old building I was a bit disappointed. It wasn't really a tour. Well over one hundred folks stood in a big room while a lady told us how beer is made. Then we waited in fifteen minute lines to get our four 8oz tastings. Like I said, I haven't been since they moved to the new building.

We went to Real Ale in Blanco a couple of months ago. They five beers on tap with unlimited tastings. When we were there, they had three "experimental" beers they were playing with. The were using local yeast and there were asking everyone for feed back on those beers.

When it was time for the tour, the owner/founder of the brewery gave the tour. We walked through the whole brewery. He answered every question, whether they came from beer nuts with very technical questions or from my mom with very silly questions which I'm sure she asked just to embarrass me.

Franconia in McKinney has a great tour. $5 for the tour and 3 pints. They usually have at least 3 different beers on tap. Tours are led by the brewer/owner who is Bavarian. He is very interested in educating people about brewing and hangs out after the tour to have a pint and talk beer.

Buckhorn Saloon at the old Lone Star Brewery in SA.

One of a kind and gone for too many year.s

The St. A tour is about 7 bucks I think and you get four beers. They give you a tasting glass but if you have a St. A pislner or pint glass they will fill that up. I think most of the people that go to St. A don't actually go on the tour but instead just come to eat, drink, and hang out. Its a lot of fun but not so much for the tour portion if thats what you are most interested in.

The Shiner tour sucks. You go in 2 rooms and don't get to see much.

Most of the tours aren't all that because everything happens within tanks and once you've seen one you've pretty much seen them all.

The tours are mainly about the tastings and I'm perfectly fine with that.

I thouroughly enjoyed myself yesterday at the shiner brewery. Same as I do when I go to rahr's. I enjoy seeing where it's made and drinking their beer

When can I get St Arnolds Christmas Ale?

Whole family went to saint arnolds last Friday before stros game. If I lived in Houston I would go once a month at least. For 7 bucks it's a great deal. The original guy did our tour. The best part is to go with family who don't drink beer so you get there tokens. I would imagine Saturday's would be crowded but on Friday it wasn't bad

512 here in Austin does tours as well. I was supposed to go a few weeks ago but got tied up with work. Heard good things about the staff on the tour and I'm a fan of most of their beers.

Southern star in conroe. Not much of a tour, but buy or bring a pint glass and you get 4 tastings. There are grilled burgers and brats available for sale. Bring chairs.

+1 for Franconia in McKinney, the owner is more interested in making sure you enjoy your visit and learn something about the brewing process than he is about staying on schedule. Very relaxed.

I've been to many brew tours, and St. Arnold's is definately one of the best.

End of thread.

Live fast. Bleed slow.

it is too damn loud at st arnolds

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Franconia in McKinney

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I must do this. Didn't even realize there was a brewery on this side of the metromess.

Not Texas but I took the Smuttynose tour in Portsmouth NH today. Their brewery is basically an old warehouse stuffed to the gills with brewing equipment. They have way overgrown their current location and have plans to be in a purpose built brewery in 2012. That being said it was the best tour I have ever been on. It was definitely up close and personal. We spent an hour tripping over hoses and climbing wet stairs. We were bumping into the brewery staff as they did their work. I peered into the tun as grain was mashing and spent a few seconds over an open boil kettle drinking in the luscious aromas. I stood beside a brewers as he filled a five gallon bucket with cascade pellets then watched him dump it into the kettle. We got unlimited tastes before and after the tour plus a coupon for a pint at the Portsmouth Brewery, a brewpub owned by the same people about ten min away. I definitely recommend the tour as well as their beers for anyone traveling through the area.

I'm not sure why there are so many Shiner haters lately, but we took the Shiner tour and the blue bell tour the same day and myself and the kids Both enjoyed the Shiner tour more. Plus there is the stories and the history you get there that you cant get from these yuppie micros that havent been around 5-10 years. Yes I do like Shiner beer. No I have not liked everthing they put out. IE - smokehouse ... wow that was bad!

Its like anything else.

Something that gets a little too popular becomes bad all of a sudden. People seem to relate popular with generic. That just isn't the case.

Shiner beers are very good and they are one of the coolest products this state has to offer (along with Blue Bell).

I really enjoyed my time at the Shiner Brewery.

I think beer guys dislike them because they don't make aggressive ales.

+1 on Southern Star in Conroe, with caveats.

The brewery is a glorified shed, and they will point and say, "Well, those are the fermentation tanks, that's where we boil the wort, and this is Sam. Sam puts the beer into cans. Would you like some samples?"

BUT, if you go on one of their anniversary days, it is a real party. When I went in March a few years back, they had a bug boil, a live band, and no end to the samples if you had one of their glasses. It was a wonderland of jollity.

Last time I was there, and I think it's the same today, they were filling the cans by hand, two at a time. Also, if you still haven't tried Southern Star's PA or Stout, you are wrong. So very, very wrong.

+1 Real Ale tour in Blanco - Friday afternoons