“Pitchers and catchers.”
Those three words are likely to send any baseball fan into hysterics. While much of the country endures the usual blistering winter cold, the sunny skies of Arizona and Florida will greet millions of baseball fans this February and March for spring training.
Even if you plan spring training like some strenuous road trip, you can’t watch baseball for 24 hours. Thankfully the Grand Canyon and Sunshine states have burgeoning and adventurous craft beer scenes. And their warmer climates mean you’ll be thirsty more often … right? So, if you’re heading to spring training, seek a brewery near your team’s practice site. Here’s a primer – a couple warm-up tosses, if you will.
Step up to the plate, err, pint.
Arizona: Cactus League
The 15 teams in the Cactus League play in 10 stadiums within a 25-mile radius of downtown Phoenix, so you could enjoy a veritable pub crawl. Also, since some teams share practice sites, you could stay overnight in one city, catch four teams, and pay multiple brewery visits. A couple of brewery options:
Four Peaks Brewing, Tempe
Arguably the most beloved Arizona brewing operation, Four Peaks resides in a Mission Revival-style former ice factory in Tempe, home to Angels spring training (and close to the Cubs and Athletics over in Mesa). Producing its first batches in 1996, Four Peaks was at the forefront of the craft beer movement and continues strong today, even though it was acquired by Anheuser Busch last year.
Its ol’ dependable is Kilt Lifter, a Scottish ale with five Great American Beer Festival medals to its tartan. Four Peaks also nods to its desert locale with its sessionable Peach Ale and the White Ale, which incorporates local oranges and wheat. Being around for more than 20 years (and with multiple locations, including in nearby Scottsdale), Four Peaks has a little bit of everything, a good primer of Cactus beer culture.
Wren House Brewing, Phoenix
If in Phoenix for Brewers spring training (they play in the city’s Maryvale neighborhood), Wren House is a must. Operating in a circa 1922 house with hardwood floors and subway-tile backsplash, the former Westward Brewery is devoted to stretching the boundaries of experimentation by scouring the globe for recipes. Ethiopian coffee beans fuel its Jomax oatmeal stout, while Celtic sea salt freshens up its Lady Banks gose. There’s also a beer brewed with desert honey, cardamom, ginger, cinnamon, and chocolate wheat (Chai Jolly), plenty of west- and east-coast IPAs and big imperials, and an active barrel program. Tons of variety.
McFate Brewing, Scottsdale
With two locations nine miles apart and close to the Rockies’, Diamondbacks’ and Giants’ practice sites, McFate Brewing offers two distinct locations for enjoying their suds. The intimate McFate’s Tap and Barrel in North Scottsdale is more of a pub with pizzas and Sunday brunch, while the McFate Brewing Company in South Scottsdale has a larger menu, beer garden, and barrel room.
But what about the beer? McFate loves small-batch and staggering variety, serving everything from a gingerbread stout and an orange-chocolate brown ale to a “kimchi” session IPA and grapefruit Berliner weisse. Taps change all the time at both locations.
Peoria Artisan Brewery, Peoria
Compared to the Tempe and Scottsdale areas, the western end of the Cactus League is lighter on craft beer. But that also means there’s a wild-west vibe to the area, which is home to a bunch of teams (Rangers, Royals, Padres, Mariners, White Sox, Dodgers, Indians and Reds).
Near the Sox and Dodgers in Peoria is Peoria Artisan Brewery, a tale of a homebrewer done good with inventive takes on relatively popular styles. Co-owner Matt Frosch and brewer friend Neal Farrell started in a garage in 2011; fast forward to today, and Frosch and his team produce drinks like the hop-heavy Savannah Marie IPA, a popular peanut butter porter, and its Honeysuckle Street Ale, a light amber designed for generous refills. Peoria Artisan also has two locations: its brewery and gastropub in Peoria, and its small-batch and light-bite taproom in Litchfield Park, closer to Goodyear where the Indians and Reds play.
