JimN
Member
It's that road trip time of year, so if you're traveling, here are a few recommendations:
Tulsa, Oklamoma
American Solera
This place is a 2023 James Beard Outstanding Bar Award Semifinalist. Super cool atmosphere and great service. Their Solero "Crispy Boi" Golden Pilsner is one of the best beers I've tried in a long time. I'm talking beers overall, not just lagers. They also had some killer offerings in the BBA Imperial Stout and English Barleywine styles.
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Prairie Artisan Ales
I think that any beer afficionado is familiar with Prairie. I know that they started in Krebs, but near as I can tell, they have moved the whole production and taproom to Oklahoma City. It's pretty amazing that they can produce all of their wacky beers in this single newish location. Honestly, it seems impossible. Perhaps they're contracting some of it out to other facilities and not being transparent about it. Regardless, their beers are still fantastic. It's an odd place, as it's an indoor open concept space that shares the same roof with other businesses. Can't remember what all was in there, but there was definitely a coffee bar on the upper level. Don't think there were a lot of restaurant options, which seems like a miss, but they let you carry in whatever food you want. They also have an indoor Prairie-branded pickleball court that you can reserve time on. My wife and I went on what turned out to be their trivia night, so it was a bit noisier in there than I imagine it is most of the time. It's a weird mix between drinking beer in a cool hip space and a shopping mall food court. Tap list covered all the categories of their offerings. Service was super friendly and efficient.
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Bow & Arrow Brewing Company
This place is a 2024 James Beard Outstanding Bar Award Semifinalist. Much like American Solera in Tulsa, it has a super cool atmosphere and great service. They had a nice mix of lagers, IPAs, and sours/wild ales. They didn't seem to have any focus on BBA stuff or strong ales, at least not this time of year. Definitely worth a visit. Picked up four-packs of their Check Out Chaco Czech-style lager and Dance In and Out of the Beams of a Neon Moon New England-style IPA.
Something new to me on this trip was taprooms that offer can and/or bottle pours for things that are available but not on-tap. They don't charge any more than a standard tap pour of whatever quantity you ordered, it just gets poured out of a can or bottle. I really like this concept, particularly for the big BBA stouts and stuff.
Tulsa, Oklamoma
American Solera
This place is a 2023 James Beard Outstanding Bar Award Semifinalist. Super cool atmosphere and great service. Their Solero "Crispy Boi" Golden Pilsner is one of the best beers I've tried in a long time. I'm talking beers overall, not just lagers. They also had some killer offerings in the BBA Imperial Stout and English Barleywine styles.
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Prairie Artisan Ales
I think that any beer afficionado is familiar with Prairie. I know that they started in Krebs, but near as I can tell, they have moved the whole production and taproom to Oklahoma City. It's pretty amazing that they can produce all of their wacky beers in this single newish location. Honestly, it seems impossible. Perhaps they're contracting some of it out to other facilities and not being transparent about it. Regardless, their beers are still fantastic. It's an odd place, as it's an indoor open concept space that shares the same roof with other businesses. Can't remember what all was in there, but there was definitely a coffee bar on the upper level. Don't think there were a lot of restaurant options, which seems like a miss, but they let you carry in whatever food you want. They also have an indoor Prairie-branded pickleball court that you can reserve time on. My wife and I went on what turned out to be their trivia night, so it was a bit noisier in there than I imagine it is most of the time. It's a weird mix between drinking beer in a cool hip space and a shopping mall food court. Tap list covered all the categories of their offerings. Service was super friendly and efficient.
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Bow & Arrow Brewing Company
This place is a 2024 James Beard Outstanding Bar Award Semifinalist. Much like American Solera in Tulsa, it has a super cool atmosphere and great service. They had a nice mix of lagers, IPAs, and sours/wild ales. They didn't seem to have any focus on BBA stuff or strong ales, at least not this time of year. Definitely worth a visit. Picked up four-packs of their Check Out Chaco Czech-style lager and Dance In and Out of the Beams of a Neon Moon New England-style IPA.
Something new to me on this trip was taprooms that offer can and/or bottle pours for things that are available but not on-tap. They don't charge any more than a standard tap pour of whatever quantity you ordered, it just gets poured out of a can or bottle. I really like this concept, particularly for the big BBA stouts and stuff.
