Here’s What Should Be in Your 4th of July Growler, According to a King of Beers

Okay, fine, so you’ve chosen to ignore our 4th of July guide and you’re just going to head over to your friend’s BBQ to watch the fireworks on the roof. At least do us the favor of not drinking your friend’s crappy beer. Grab a growler and fill it up with one of Joshua M. Bernstein’s preferred pours. This guy knows a thing or two or three about beer: he’s the author of Brewed Awakening and the forthcoming The Complete Beer Course, and editor-in-chief of the Craft Beer New York app. Here’s what he recommends ordering at some favorite spots in his home borough of Brooklyn.

Breukelen Bier Merchants
182 Grand St at Bedford Ave., Williamsburg
Nebraska Brewing Company EOS Hefeweizen: A German styled beer that offers a refreshing taste with a banana and clove aroma.
Other growlers available: Aecht Schlenkerla Fastenbier, Allagash Yakuza, Crossroads Brick Road Row Red, Dogfish Head 60 Minute, Greenport Harbor Canard Noir

One Stop Beer Shop
134 Kingsland Ave at Beadel St., Greenpoint
Founders All Day IPA: Brewed in Michigan, this IPA has hoppy aromatics and a low alcohol content of 4.7%. It’s “crisp” and “flavorful,” meaning “you can go back for more,” says Bernstein.
Narragansett Lager: The official beer of Rhode Island, this affordable brew has “full body” and “crisp flavor, unlike Budweiser or Coors.”
Also available: Abita Purple Haze, Allagash White, Andean Kuka Blonde, Beyond Kombucha Blueberry, Brooklyn Sorachi Ace, Captain Lawrence Captain’s Reserve Imperial IPA, Dogfish Head Noble Rot, Left Hand Milk Stout, Lion Stout, North Coast Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout, Piraat, Rodenbach Flemish Sour, Sierra Nevada Ruthless Rye IPA, Strongbow Dry Cider, Troegs Nugget Nectar, Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier

The Sampler
234 Starr St., nr. Wyckoff Ave., Bushwick
Peekskill Simple Sour: Based in New York. Simple Sour is a “lightly tart, really refreshing” beer with a tiny bit of brettanomyces.
Also available: Kelso Carrollgaarden Wit, Mad River Jamaica Sunset IPA, SingleCut Jan Olympic White Lagrrr

Beer Street
413 Graham Ave bet. Withers & Jackson, Williamsburg
Westbrook Gose: A classic German beer that’s made with a measure of salt to sharpen the flavor. It’s been “making a comeback over the past couple years,” says Bernstein.
Smuttynose Summer Weizen Ale: Based in New Hampshire. It has a “tangy” taste with chamomile flowers.
Also available: Southern Tier Live, Goose Island 25th Anniversary Ale, Great Divide Hoss Rye Lager, Keegan Ales Mothers Milk Stout, Perennial Aria, Shiner Bock, Sierra Nevada Southern Hemisphere Harvest

 

Eastern District
1053 Manhattan Ave bet. Eagle & Freeman Sts., Greenpoint
Ballast Point Fathom India Pale Lager: A “crisper and more refreshing” twist on the IPA. “It’s never actually bottled so a growler is the one chance to get the beer,” says Bernstein.
Also available: Ommegang Fleur de Houblon, Schlafly Export IPA, Singlecut John Michael Dark, Southern Tier Live

Beer Boutique
497 Union Ave, at Meeker St., Williamsburg
Allagash White: One of Bernstein’s favorites in the northeast, this classic interpretation of a Belgian wheat beer is “citric, refreshing and elegant.”
Also available: Ballast Point Tongue Buckler Imperial Red Ale, Barrier Dunegrass Double IPA, Doc’s Pear Cider, Great Divide Oak-Aged Rumble IPA, Mission Dark Seas Imperial Stout, Southern Tier Imperial Compass, The Bruery Mischief

 

Duane Reade
250 Bedford Ave., at N 3rd St., Williamsburg
Brooklyn Summer Ale: The “lovely, light-bodied English-style ales pairs a lightly bready profile with a touch of floral aromatics,” says Bernstein.
Captain Lawrence Sunblock Wheat Ale: Hailing from Westchester County, Sunblock is a “hoppy, refreshing ode to summertime imbibing.”
Also available: Brooklyn Blast, Kelso IPA, Samuel Adams Grumpy Monk, Bear Republic Racer 5 IPA, Peak Organic IPA, 6 Point, Centennial Founders IPA

Editor’s Note: This guide originally recommended a Barrier Beech Ale at Eastern District and a Kelso Pilsner at Breukelen Bier Merchants. Since those beers have now been swapped out, they’ve been removed from this piece along with a few others that are no longer on tap.