PHOENIX - The Valley is a dream for craft beer lovers! And now through May 20th American Craft Beer Week is being celebrated.
12 News stopped by a couple Phoenix breweries where brewers are raising a glass to keep the party going. Local craft beers, like the King George Amber Ale from Phoenix Ale Brewery, are sure to make your taste buds dance.
“We cook in almost a quarter of our recipes with it,” said Justin Madsen, General Manager of Phoenix Ale Brewery Central Kitchen along 7th Street near Bethany Home Road. “That’s how versatile it is.”
The Biltmore Blonde, is a light drinking ale. “Nice crisp, sharp beer, good for the ballpark,” said Madsen. “We have the Camelback Ale, which is also on our logo.”
They also have “Buy a Buddy a Brew” going on right now, where customers can buy their friend a beer by filling out a form at the bar or online where it will then automatically send your buddy an email or a text.
“It’s just a nice way to be involved in the community and to buy someone else a beer,” Madsen said.
We also stopped by North Mountain Brewing off of 7th Street and Dunlap Avenue, another locally owned and operated business.
“This is our Soiled Dove Dirty Blonde Ale with watermelon, cucumber and mint,” said Rob Berkner, the owner of North Mountain Brewing, where they have 20 taps on right now.
“We have a big barrel project,” he said. “The end suite is full of about 30-35 barrels right now.”
Berkner said most the food at North Mountain is cooked with their beer.
“In this case, it’s beer-battered fish… the braise in the gravy has beer for the poutine in the middle.”
The owner of North Mountain Brewing says when they opened five years ago, there were about 30 breweries in Arizona. Now there are more than 100.
If you don’t get in on beer week, Arizona Restaurant Week starts Friday. Places like Central Kitchen are offering some delicious 3-course meals.