10 Great Ballparks For Craft Beer Fans

Some of my fondest memories from being a youngster in the ‘90s happened in the now-demolished Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia for Phillies games. My sweaty left hand was lodged into my Rawlings baseball glove, anxious to catch a foul ball. I was sporting my pinstriped Mike Schmidt jersey that was about three sizes too big and hung down past my knees, and I was hammering down an extra-large soda in an effort to battle the blazing afternoon sun.

Many years later, I still make the trip to Philly to see games. Only, instead of a glove, I’m sporting a beer. And not just any beer. Good beer. A few minutes prior, I stood in the beer line gazing at the display bottles the same way some women look at Nicholas Sparks’ novels. The options were impressive. On a display shelf that used to hold a couple of macro beer options, you can now find a healthy cornucopia of craft bottles. Local, national, seasonal…pick your poison. The Phillies have you covered.

Within the last few years, Major League baseball stadiums have cleverly latched on to craft beer like it’s the new hot dog. Some stadiums stock an unbelievable amount of beer, often flexing to showcase and support the local craft beer scene.

Finally, the “golden age” of craft beer has infiltrated Major League Baseball. It’s a good time to be a baseball fan. In celebration of Opening Day for the 2014 baseball season, we’ve compiled a list of 10 great MLB stadiums for local craft beer.
Cheers, baseball fans.

Let us know if we missed your favorite stadium or favorite local craft brewery in the comment section below.

1. PNC Park, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Team: Pittsburgh Pirates ??
Local Pick: Pennsylvania Brewing Company’s Penn Pils?
Style: Vienna Lager?ABV: 5%?
Side Note: PNC Park even has a Beer Passport that includes a game ticket, a 90-minute session of local craft beer sampling, and a $5 credit toward a beer. Nicely done, Pittsburgh.

2. Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Pa.

Team: Philadelphia Phillies?
Local Pick: Victory Brewing Company’s Hop Devil?
Style: American IPA?ABV: 6.7%?
Side Note: You probably should eat a cheesesteak from Geno’s Steaks. It’s kind of a thing in Philly. The crab fries are pretty good, too. Please do not mistake this comment for a beer/food pairing. I have no idea if they will jive well together. Experiment at your own risk. ?

3. Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Mo.

Team: St. Louis Cardinals
Local Pick: Urban Chestnut Brewing Company’s STLIPA?
Style: Imperial IPA?ABV: 8%?
Side Note: A second option could be Urban Chestnut Brewing Company’s Winged Nut—a tasty Chestnut Ale—weighing in at a 5.4% ABV. I honestly haven’t run into a beer by Urban Chestnut Brewing that I didn’t like.