In This Guide

1. The wine regions: three AVAs and what makes them distinctive
2. Wineries worth visiting
3. Craft beer: 150 breweries and the West Coast IPA story
4. Craft spirits: distilleries worth knowing
5. Fine dining: from three Michelin stars to the perfect fish taco
6. Planning your San Diego craft beverage visit

The Wine Regions: Three AVAs and What Makes Them Distinctive

San Diego County is California’s original wine region, and that is not a marketing claim. According to the San Diego County Vintners Association (2026), the first vineyards in California were planted here in 1769 at Mission San Diego de Alcala by Spanish missionaries who needed wine for religious ceremonies. Two and a half centuries later, the county has 172 active and planned wineries, two recognized American Viticultural Areas, and more distinct microclimates than any other single county in the United States. Vineyards grow at elevations from sea level to 4,200 feet, producing conditions for over 57 different grape varieties from Bordeaux reds to Rhone whites to Italian varietals that thrive in the Mediterranean-influenced climate.

What makes San Diego wine country genuinely interesting is not that it competes with Napa or Sonoma. It does not try to. San Diego’s wineries are almost entirely small, boutique, and family-owned. They produce wines that reflect specific microclimates rather than regional branding. The granite soils, the Pacific marine influence, and the significant diurnal temperature variation between warm days and cool nights create conditions for wines that preserve natural acidity while achieving full fruit ripeness.

Wineries Worth Visiting in San Diego County

San Diego wine country rewards visitors who are willing to drive 30 to 45 minutes from downtown. The wineries listed here represent the range of the county’s wine scene, from its oldest continuously operating estate to newer boutique producers earning national attention. Most are open weekends; reservations are recommended for tasting experiences.

For those who want wine without the drive, San Diego has developed a genuinely interesting urban winery scene. Carruth Cellars operates tasting rooms in Little Italy and Solana Beach, producing wines in an urban setting just blocks from the beach. Pali Wine in Little Italy offers Pinot Noir and Chardonnay flights alongside Rhone and Bordeaux blends from its Tower 15 label, with rooftop deck views over the neighborhood. These are not substitutes for the estate wineries, but they bring San Diego wine within reach of any neighborhood in the city.

Craft Beer: 150 Breweries and the West Coast IPA Story

San Diego’s claim to being the craft beer capital of America is not hyperbole. According to San Diego Beer News (January 2026), the county has over 150 craft breweries, a density that has shaped the national craft beer conversation for two decades. San Diego brewers helped pioneer the West Coast IPA style: aggressively hopped, dry, bitter, and resinous. When the craft beer world turned toward hazy New England IPAs in the late 2010s, San Diego largely held its line. The West Coast IPA is what San Diego does, and nobody does it better.

The brewery geography matters here. North Park is the easiest neighborhood for walkable brewery hopping, with multiple taprooms within a few blocks of each other combined with excellent food options that make the neighborhood one of San Diego’s most complete evening destinations. Miramar is where serious beer drinkers make pilgrimages. It is an industrial corridor north of downtown with a concentration of production breweries that draws visitors from across the country specifically to drink beer.

Craft Spirits: San Diego Distilleries Worth Knowing

San Diego’s craft spirits scene is younger than its wine and beer culture but has developed genuine character. The San Diego Distillers Guild brings together producers whose range covers whiskey, gin, rum, vodka, and tequila. The common thread is a commitment to small-batch production and local ingredients that reflects the broader San Diego craft philosophy.

Fine Dining: From Three Michelin Stars to the Perfect Fish Taco

San Diego’s food identity is built on a paradox: the city produces some of the most refined fine dining in California alongside one of the great street food cultures in the American West. The fish taco is a San Diego original with nearly 100 years of tradition. The same city that perfected the fish taco also holds the only three-star Michelin restaurant in Southern California. Both are authentic expressions of what San Diego is.

The proximity to Tijuana, 20 minutes south, gives San Diego a genuine Mexican culinary influence that distinguishes it from every other major California food city. The produce, the seafood, and the culinary traditions that cross the border in both directions have shaped San Diego’s food culture in ways that no amount of restaurant trends can replicate. San Diego’s strength, as food critic Troy Johnson noted in San Diego Magazine’s 2026 best restaurants guide, is diversity rather than a single defining cuisine. The best food is neighborhood-based, not concentrated downtown.

Planning Your San Diego Craft Beverage Visit

San Diego rewards visitors who plan by neighborhood and region rather than trying to cover the whole city in a single itinerary. The wine country, the brewery corridors, and the fine dining neighborhoods each deserve their own time.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources

• San Diego County Vintners Association, sandiegowineries.org, 2026
• San Diego Wine Country by Region, Sip San Diego Wine, May 2026
• 30 San Diego Vineyards You Must Visit, Harvest Wine Shop, May 2025
• Best Craft Breweries to Visit in San Diego, San Diego Beer News, January 2026
• Best Breweries in San Diego, Short Brews, August 2026
• Best San Diego Distilleries, San Diego Explorer, May 2026
• Best Restaurants in San Diego 2026, San Diego Magazine, 2026
• Fine Dining in San Diego, sandiego.org, 2026
• Best Restaurants 2026 Readers Choice, Ranch and Coast Magazine, June 2026

In This Guide

1. Bourbon — America’s native spirit
2. Scotch — the regional map that changes everything
3. Irish Whiskey — the smoothest door into the category
4. Japanese Whisky — precision, Mizunara, and the man who started it all
5. Canadian Whisky — the most underrated of the five
6. What to drink when — the practical guide
7. The Manhattan — the cocktail that ties it all together

Bourbon — America’s Native Spirit

Bourbon is the most precisely defined spirit in the American regulatory system. The rules exist not to intimidate but to guarantee: every bottle labeled bourbon has met the same production requirements, which means the label tells you something real about what is inside.

The mash bill must be at least 51% corn — the rest is typically rye, wheat, or malted barley, and those secondary grains are where bourbons begin to diverge in character. High-rye bourbons (Four Roses, Bulleit, Basil Hayden) are spicier, drier, and more assertive. High-wheat bourbons (Maker’s Mark, W.L. Weller) are softer, rounder, and sweeter. The corn provides the baseline sweetness; the secondary grain provides the personality.

The new charred oak barrel requirement is what gives bourbon its color and much of its flavor. Vanilla, caramel, toasted oak, and baking spice all come from the wood. A straight bourbon — aged a minimum of two years — has had enough time for the spirit to develop genuine complexity from the barrel.

Scotch — The Regional Map That Changes Everything

My father’s Dewar’s was a blended Scotch — a category that accounts for roughly 90% of all Scotch whisky sold worldwide and is, despite occasional snobbery from single malt enthusiasts, a genuinely great product. Dewar’s White Label blends grain whisky with Highland malt whiskies for a smooth, accessible pour that has introduced more people to Scotch than probably any other bottle. There is nothing wrong with starting there. There is a great deal to discover from there.

The single most useful piece of information on any bottle of Scotch is the region. Scotland’s five whisky regions each produce a recognizable style, and knowing the map is the fastest way to find what you like.

A note on Glenmorangie worth passing along: if you visit the distillery in the Scottish Highlands — and it is worth the trip — you will learn that the correct pronunciation is Glen-MORE-n-gee, with the emphasis on MORE and the final syllable rhyming with “gee.” The distillery receives early morning calls from the United States several times a week from someone in a bar trying to settle a drinker’s bet on the pronunciation. They are always happy to answer. Now you know.

Irish Whiskey — The Smoothest Door Into the Category

If you are introducing someone to whiskey for the first time, start with Irish. Triple distillation — standard practice in Ireland and unusual almost everywhere else — removes more of the harsh compounds that make spirits rough, producing a naturally gentle spirit that does not require an acquired taste to enjoy. Irish whiskey is also typically unpeated, giving it a clean grain and malt character without the smokiness that puts some drinkers off Scotch.

The Irish whiskey category is having a remarkable renaissance. In 1980 there were two operational distilleries in Ireland. Today there are over 40 — a craft distilling boom driven by global appetite for premium Irish expressions and a new generation of distillers pushing beyond the traditional pot still style.

Pure pot still Irish whiskey — made from a mash of malted and unmalted barley distilled in a copper pot still — is Ireland’s most distinctive contribution to the whiskey world. The unmalted barley gives it a spicy, creamy texture unlike anything produced anywhere else. Redbreast is the category’s benchmark expression and one of the most rewarding bottles in the entire whiskey world.

Japanese Whisky — Precision, Mizunara, and the Man Who Started It All

The story of Japanese whisky begins with one man and a set of notebooks. In 1918, a young Japanese chemist named Masataka Taketsuru enrolled at the University of Glasgow to study organic chemistry. He apprenticed at several Scottish distilleries, learned every aspect of Scotch production, married a Scottish woman named Rita Cowan, and returned to Japan in 1920 with detailed notebooks covering distillation, maturation, and blending. He first partnered with Shinjiro Torii — founder of what would become Suntory — to establish Japan’s first commercial whisky distillery at Yamazaki in 1923, near Kyoto, chosen for its exceptional water quality and humid climate. In 1934, the two men parted ways and Taketsuru founded his own distillery at Yoichi on Hokkaido, Japan’s northernmost island, where the cool damp climate resembled Scotland most closely. His company eventually became Nikka. The two companies he helped create still dominate Japanese whisky today.

What Japanese distillers did with Taketsuru’s Scottish foundation was something genuinely new. They applied Japanese manufacturing philosophy — precision, consistency, and a commitment to doing one thing exceptionally well — to a craft the Scots had built on tradition and terroir. A single Japanese distillery like Suntory’s Yamazaki produces dozens of distinct base whiskies in-house, varying still shape, wash composition, yeast strain, and cask type, then blends them to achieve remarkable consistency year over year.

The other thing that makes Japanese whisky unique is Mizunara oak — a native Japanese wood used for aging that imparts flavors found nowhere else in the whisky world: sandalwood, coconut, and a distinctive incense-like quality that the Japanese call “oriental spice.” Mizunara casks are expensive, rare, and notoriously difficult to work with, but the flavor contribution is so distinctive that it has become one of the most sought-after cask types in the global whisky market. According to Liquor Geeks (April 2026), Mizunara-influenced expressions like Hibiki Japanese Harmony and Yamazaki 12 are among the most internationally recognized bottles in the category.

A note on the legal landscape: Japanese whisky labeling has historically operated on voluntary industry standards rather than law. As of March 2026, the Japanese National Diet is actively working toward establishing legal definitions for the category — which will mean the JSLMA-compliant bottles you buy today are positioned on the right side of what is coming.

Canadian Whisky — The Most Underrated of the Five

Canadian whisky has a reputation problem it has not entirely deserved for at least two decades. The reputation — smooth, light, unremarkable, the whisky you drink when you do not really care about whisky — was earned by a generation of mass-market expressions designed for maximum accessibility. It was never the complete picture, and the best Canadian whiskies today make that clear.

The defining characteristic of Canadian production is flexibility. Canadian law allows distillers to blend aged whiskies from multiple grains, add flavoring spirits, and adjust the final blend in ways that bourbon and Scotch regulations do not permit. That flexibility produced the light, easy-drinking blends that defined the category’s reputation. It also produces the high-rye expressions that have earned Canadian whisky its current critical rehabilitation.

Canadian rye — particularly 100% rye expressions like Lot No. 40 and Alberta Premium — shares enough character with American rye and bourbon that crossing over feels natural rather than like a category change. The spice, the sweetness, the oak structure are all there. The Canadian version tends to be slightly lighter and more polished, a product of longer cold-climate maturation cycles.

American Whiskey Beyond Bourbon — Tennessee, Single Malt, and the Craft Revolution

Bourbon gets the attention, but American whiskey is a broader category than any single style. Two other traditions deserve a place in any complete guide — Tennessee whiskey, which is bourbon’s closest relative and most frequent rival, and American single malt, a craft category that has grown from almost nothing twenty years ago into one of the most exciting corners of the whiskey world.

What to Drink When — The Practical Guide

The Manhattan — The Cocktail That Ties It All Together

The Manhattan is the whiskey cocktail. It works with bourbon (richer, sweeter, more American), rye (spicier, drier, more assertive), Scotch in the Rob Roy variation, Canadian rye (lighter, more polished), and even Irish whiskey in a pinch. It is the one cocktail that travels across every whiskey tradition and produces something excellent in each one.

The recipe is simple and the ratios matter more than the brand: two parts whiskey to one part sweet vermouth to two dashes of Angostura bitters. Stir — never shake — with ice until properly cold and slightly diluted, approximately 30 seconds. Strain into a chilled coupe. Garnish with a Luxardo maraschino cherry or an expressed orange peel.

The most important variable after the whiskey is the vermouth. Vermouth is a wine-based product and it goes stale after opening. Keep it in the refrigerator and replace it every two to three weeks. A Manhattan made with fresh vermouth and one made with a bottle that has been open on a room-temperature shelf for three months are genuinely different drinks. The vermouth matters more than most people realize.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources

• Best Japanese Whiskey 2026 — Liquor Geeks, April 2026
• The 11 Best Japanese Whisky Brands to Buy Now — Robb Report, January 2026
• Japanese Whisky New Releases Spring 2026 — Sip Japan, February 2026
• 10 Best Canadian Whiskey Brands Ranked — Thirsty Bear, April 2026
• 16 Best Canadian Whiskies to Savor in 2026 — Men’s Journal, December 2025
• Canada’s Best Whisky — Canadian Whisky Awards 2026, Forbes, January 2026

1. The blue agave — what it is and why it matters
2. Highlands vs. Lowlands — tequila terroir
3. How tequila is made — traditional vs. industrial
4. The aging categories — blanco to extra añejo
5. The additive problem — what’s in your bottle
6. The NOM number — how to read a tequila label
7. What to buy — producers worth knowing
8. Tequila vs. mezcal — the key distinctions
9. Frequently asked questions

The Blue Agave — What It Is and Why It Matters

Tequila is made from a single plant: Agave tequilana, known as Blue Weber Agave after the German botanist Franz Weber who classified it in 1902. It is not a cactus — it is a succulent related to the lily family, native to Mexico and revered by the Aztecs long before it became the foundation of a global spirits industry. The Aztecs fermented agave sap into a ritual drink called pulque; Spanish colonists in the 16th century distilled it into what we now call mezcal, and the specific variety grown in Jalisco eventually became tequila.

Blue agave grows slowly. The plant takes seven to ten years to reach maturity before it can be harvested — at which point it flowers once and dies. Every bottle of tequila represents a decade of farming before a single drop is distilled. The harvesting is done manually by jimadores — skilled workers who have often inherited the craft from their fathers and grandfathers — using a long-handled tool called a coa to strip the spiked leaves and extract the piña, the dense heart of the plant that can weigh anywhere from 50 to 150 pounds. The skill is in knowing exactly when the piña is ready: harvested too early or too late, the fermentation suffers.

Highlands vs. Lowlands — Tequila Terroir

Jalisco is not a single terroir. The state divides into two dramatically different growing regions that produce tequila of genuinely distinct character — a distinction as significant as Burgundy’s Côte de Nuits versus Côte de Beaune, or Napa’s valley floor versus hillside vineyards.

Most mass-market tequilas blend Highland and Lowland agave to achieve consistency at scale — the terroir character disappears in the blending. Single-origin and estate tequilas, by contrast, make the growing region part of the product’s identity, just as a Burgundy producer would for a specific vineyard site.

How Tequila Is Made — Traditional vs. Industrial

The production method is the most important variable in tequila quality — more important than brand, price, or aging category. Two tequilas labeled “100% Blue Weber Agave” from the same region can taste dramatically different based entirely on how the agave was processed.

The Aging Categories — Blanco to Extra Añejo

The Additive Problem — What’s in Your Bottle

Under Mexican tequila regulations, producers may add up to 1% by volume of certain substances — glycerin, caramel coloring, oak extract, and sugar-based syrups — without any disclosure requirement on the label. A bottle marked “100% Blue Weber Agave” can legally contain all four without mentioning any of them. The practical effect: many mass-market tequilas taste smoother, sweeter, and more complex than their base spirit would naturally produce, because additives are doing the work that careful agave farming and production should be doing instead.

The craft tequila response to this has been the additive-free movement — producers voluntarily committing to making tequila from nothing but fermented agave, water, and yeast. Organizations like Tequila Matchmaker and the Additive Free Alliance have built verified lists of confirmed additive-free producers. Note: in 2025 the CRT (Consejo Regulador del Tequila — the regulatory body) filed lawsuits against some additive-free certification bodies, creating a contested legal landscape. The practical consumer approach: buy from producers with transparent production details and a track record in the serious tequila community, regardless of any certification body’s current legal status.

The NOM Number — How to Read a Tequila Label

Every bottle of legitimate tequila carries a NOM number — Norma Oficial Mexicana — a four-digit code assigned to each distillery by the CRT. The NOM number is the most useful piece of information on a tequila label. It tells you exactly where the tequila was made, regardless of the brand name on the front of the bottle.

This matters because many tequila brands do not own their own distilleries — they source spirit from production facilities that make tequila for dozens of different labels. Two bottles with completely different brand names and price points may share the same NOM number, meaning they came from the same distillery and may be identical or near-identical tequilas. Conversely, a brand that changes distilleries may change character significantly even if the label looks the same. The Tequila Matchmaker website (tequilamatchmaker.com) maintains a searchable database of NOM numbers cross-referenced with production details — one of the most useful consumer tools in the tequila world.

What to Buy — Producers Worth Knowing

Tequila vs. Mezcal — The Key Distinctions

All tequila is technically mezcal — tequila is a specific, regulated subset of the broader mezcal category. But in practice the two are very different spirits with different flavor profiles, production methods, and cultural identities.

Frequently Asked Questions About Tequila

The 18 Big Ten Cities

Ann Arbor, MI — Michigan  · 
Columbus, OH — Ohio State  · 
Madison, WI — Wisconsin  · 
State College, PA — Penn State  · 
Minneapolis, MN — Minnesota  · 
Lincoln, NE — Nebraska  · 
Evanston, IL — Northwestern  · 
College Park, MD — Maryland  · 
Piscataway, NJ — Rutgers  · 
Champaign, IL — Illinois  · 
Bloomington, IN — Indiana  · 
West Lafayette, IN — Purdue  · 
Eugene, OR — Oregon  · 
Seattle, WA — Washington  · 
Los Angeles, CA — USC & UCLA  · 
Iowa City, IA — Iowa  · 
East Lansing, MI — Michigan State

ANN ARBOR, MICHIGAN — Michigan Wolverines

Michigan Stadium — The Big House (107,601)  ·  Largest stadium in the Western Hemisphere

A genuine college town with a sophisticated drinking culture that punches well above its size. Beyond the campus bars, Ann Arbor has a craft beer scene anchored by serious brewpubs and a bar scene that rewards people who know where to look.

Drink: Jolly Pumpkin Café & Brewery — artisan sour and Belgian-style ales brewed on site with food to match; one of the better brewpubs in the Midwest. Homes Brewery earns raves for hazy IPAs and sours in a beautiful space with a patio. HopCat brings 100 craft beers on tap for maximum selection with solid pub food.

Eat: Zingerman’s Delicatessen on Detroit Street is a national institution — extraordinary sandwiches, artisan breads, and provisions that alumni travel back specifically to visit. Go early on game day; the lines are real.

Fun: Bill’s Beer Garden on Washington Street is the open-air gathering spot that captures Ann Arbor at its best on a fall Saturday. Walk the Main Street bar corridor — the concentration of quality within three blocks is legitimately impressive.

COLUMBUS, OHIO — Ohio State Buckeyes

Ohio Stadium — The Horseshoe (102,780)

Columbus has transformed into one of the Midwest’s most vibrant food, drink, and arts destinations. The Short North Arts District along High Street is the heart of it — walkable, dense with quality, and active from noon to midnight on a football Saturday.

Drink: Seventh Son Brewing — excellent IPAs, sours, and cocktails in a stunning space with a rooftop patio. Gemüt Biergarten, housed in a restored 1890s firehouse, brings genuine German biergarten culture with exceptional food. Short North Pint House offers 75+ rotating taps in an open-air biergarten format ideal for game day crowds.

Eat: The Short North has concentrated more quality dining per block than most American cities three times its size. The Eagle Short North for the best fried chicken sandwich in the district.

Fun: Walk the Short North — north from the Arena District, 10 blocks of galleries, bars, and restaurants. The Gallery Hop runs the first Saturday of every month; game Saturdays have the same energy.

MADISON, WISCONSIN — Wisconsin Badgers

Camp Randall Stadium (80,321)  ·  Oldest stadium in the Big Ten (1917)

Madison has more than 20 breweries in the metro area and a craft beer history as old as the state itself. The food scene has genuine James Beard recognition.

Drink: The Great Dane Pub & Brewing Company near the Capitol is the landmark brewpub. Young Blood Beer is the current critical favorite for creative small-batch brewing. Public Parking, named by Bon Appétit and Punch as one of the best new bars in the country, brings creative cocktails and tiki-inspired drinks to a 2024 opening Madison is still talking about.

Eat: Mint Mark on Washington Avenue is a 2026 James Beard semifinalist. Worth planning the trip around.

Fun: The State Capitol square on a football Saturday morning — farmers market, outdoor bars, Badger red everywhere. Stay for Jump Around. It is the tradition that most visiting fans mention first.

STATE COLLEGE, PENNSYLVANIA — Penn State Nittany Lions

Beaver Stadium (106,572)  ·  Happy Valley  ·  Voted loudest Big Ten stadium by coaches

Tucked into the Allegheny Mountains of central Pennsylvania, State College is a college town that exists almost entirely around Penn State. Game day energy here is total and completely genuine.

Drink: Happy Valley Brewing Company on Elmwood Street — a renovated 200-year-old barn with serious craft beer and an excellent restaurant. Zeno’s Tavern on Allen Street is the legendary local bar with an extraordinary beer list and an underground college-town atmosphere. Otto’s Pub & Brewery is the brewpub most Penn Staters call their favorite.

Eat: The Diner on Calder Alley has been serving Penn State students and game day visitors since 1932. A genuine institution.

Fun: Make it the White Out game. The entire stadium in white under the lights is unlike anything else in college football. Check the schedule and plan accordingly.

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA — Minnesota Golden Gophers

Huntington Bank Stadium (50,805)  ·  Newest Big Ten stadium (2009)

The Twin Cities have a craft beer scene that rivals any major metro in the country — dozens of breweries, a James Beard-recognized food scene, and a genuinely great city that makes every Big Ten road trip to Minneapolis worthwhile.

Drink: Fulton Brewing — Minnesota’s first legal taproom; Sweet Child of Vine IPA is the flagship. Indeed Brewing in Northeast Minneapolis is the arts district anchor with eclectic flagships and adventurous specialty releases. Town Hall Brewery near campus is the game-day local with 20+ house beers.

Eat: Matt’s Bar — inventor of the Jucy Lucy, the cheese-stuffed burger — is the non-negotiable Minneapolis pilgrimage. The Northeast Minneapolis Arts District has the best concentration of quality dining alongside the craft breweries.

Fun: The Northeast Minneapolis Arts District — galleries, studios, and the highest concentration of craft breweries in the city all within walking distance of each other. Minneapolis earns the extended stay.

LINCOLN, NEBRASKA — Nebraska Cornhuskers

Memorial Stadium (85,458)  ·  Sea of Red

Lincoln’s passion for football is total. The craft beer scene has grown meaningfully in recent years to match it.

Drink: Zipline Brewing — Lincoln’s most celebrated craft brewery, award-winning lagers and IPAs distributed across the Midwest. Empyrean Brewing has anchored Lincoln’s craft beer scene since 1990. Boiler Brewing Company earns consistent top marks for creative small-batch releases.

Eat: Lazlo’s Brewery & Grill combines the brewery visit with a full restaurant — the onion rings have a dedicated following.

Fun: The pregame walk toward Memorial Stadium with every surface painted red is one of the quintessential Big Ten game day experiences. Get there by 10am. The sellout streak alone makes this a pilgrimage game for any serious college football fan.

EVANSTON, ILLINOIS — Northwestern Wildcats

Ryan Field (47,130)  ·  Smallest Big Ten stadium  ·  12 miles north of Chicago

Evanston’s craft beer scene has quietly grown into something worth seeking out — and Chicago is always the evening option.

Drink: Sketchbook Brewing — a neighborhood taproom brewing on site since 2013 with live Irish music on Tuesdays. The pick for craft beer without a college bar soundtrack. Saint Errant recently opened in the former Temperance Beer Co space — hazy IPAs, imperial stouts, and fruited sours from a dog-friendly patio. The most exciting new option in Evanston.

Eat: Peckish Pig — gastropub-quality food alongside a thoughtful beer list.

Fun: Take the Purple Line into Chicago for the evening. The L drops you at the center of one of the world’s great cities in 40 minutes. Evanston is where you sleep; Chicago is where the night goes.

COLLEGE PARK, MARYLAND — Maryland Terrapins

SECU Stadium (51,802)  ·  10 miles northeast of Washington DC

The craft beer scene right around campus is growing, with the full range of DC’s excellent brewery and restaurant scene accessible in under half an hour.

Drink: Streetcar 82 Brewing Co. is College Park’s own craft brewery — consistently the top-rated local option. Denizens Brewing in nearby Silver Spring has earned national recognition for creative beers. Right Proper Brewing in DC’s Shaw neighborhood (20 minutes via Metro) is worth the trip for some of the Mid-Atlantic’s best craft beer.

Eat: Looney’s Pub is the game day institution near campus.

Fun: Washington DC is the real draw — the National Mall, Georgetown, and DC’s own excellent craft brewery scene (Bluejacket, DC Brau, Other Half DC) are all Metro-accessible from College Park without a car.

PISCATAWAY, NEW JERSEY — Rutgers Scarlet Knights

SHI Stadium (52,454)  ·  Site of the first college football game (1869)  ·  35 miles from NYC

New Jersey’s craft beer scene has grown substantially, with excellent local options in the immediate area and New York City 35 miles away.

Drink: Lions Roar Brewing is the standout local craft brewery — consistently the highest-rated option near campus. Flying Fish Brewing in Somerdale is New Jersey’s most decorated and sustainable craft brewery — a destination for serious beer drinkers.

Eat: New Brunswick’s George Street restaurant corridor has grown significantly — explore the blocks around Rutgers’ main campus for variety at every price point.

Fun: New York City is 35 miles and about an hour by train on the Northeast Corridor — Penn Station to New Brunswick runs frequently and opens the full range of NYC’s extraordinary bar and restaurant scene.

CHAMPAIGN, ILLINOIS — Illinois Fighting Illini

Memorial Stadium (60,670)  ·  Dedicated to WWI veterans

Champaign-Urbana is a classic Midwest college town. The craft beer scene has grown meaningfully in recent years.

Drink: Triptych Brewing — Champaign’s most celebrated craft brewery. Blind Pig Brewpub is the game day institution packed with Illini fans. Riggs Beer Company is the newer player earning attention for quality small-batch production.

Eat: Seven Saints on Green Street brings genuine gastropub quality to a college town setting.

Fun: The Campustown bar strip on Green Street is the game day congregation point. Not sophisticated, but completely committed to Illini football on Saturdays.

BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA — Indiana Hoosiers

Memorial Stadium (52,929)  ·  Breaking through in 2024

Bloomington is one of the Big Ten’s most underrated college towns — artistic, eclectic, with a food and drink scene that overdelivers for its size.

Drink: Upland Brewing — Indiana’s most celebrated craft brewery; the Teddy Bear Kisses sour series has a national following. Bloomington Brewing Company has been the campus anchor for decades. Big Woods Bloomington brings Indiana’s most popular craft brewery chain to a college town setting with a full food program.

Eat: Mother Bear’s Pizza on East Third — the pizza that IU students and alumni talk about for decades after graduation. Non-negotiable.

Fun: Kirkwood Avenue between campus and downtown is the pedestrian hub. The Indiana University Art Museum on campus is legitimately world-class.

WEST LAFAYETTE, INDIANA — Purdue Boilermakers

Ross-Ade Stadium (57,236)  ·  Home of the Boilermaker Special

West Lafayette and Lafayette across the Wabash River form a genuinely good craft beer destination for their size. The Purdue fan base is intensely loyal.

Drink: People’s Brewing Company in Lafayette — a neighborhood brewery earning national attention; the Boiler Gold Ale is the local signature. The Tap brings the brewpub experience with craft beers and solid food. Brokerage Brewing from a brother-sister duo who built a genuine community gathering spot.

Eat: Harry’s Chocolate Shop is the Purdue institution — a bar since 1919 that alumni return to specifically. Not for the food, for the ritual.

Fun: Arrive early and watch the Boilermaker Special locomotive circle the stadium before kickoff. One of college football’s best mascot traditions.

EUGENE, OREGON — Oregon Ducks

Autzen Stadium (54,000)  ·  Big Ten Champions 2024  ·  One of the nation’s loudest stadiums

Eugene brings Pacific Northwest craft beer culture to the Big Ten — a city where craft brewing is a way of life, anchored by nationally recognized producers and a Whiteaker neighborhood bar scene that is genuinely distinctive.

Drink: Ninkasi Brewing — Eugene’s flagship, named after the Sumerian goddess of beer. The essential Eugene brewery visit. Oakshire Brewing Public House earns the highest local marks for quality and food. ColdFire Brewing is earning consistent praise for clean, well-crafted beers in a modern space.

Eat: The Whiteaker neighborhood has the best concentration of quality food alongside the craft breweries. The Bier Stein on Willamette Street for the most serious bottle selection in the city.

Fun: Watch the Duck Walk pregame. The uniform combinations Oregon wears — the most creative in college football — have made the program nationally recognizable beyond their results. Count the combinations on game day.

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON — Washington Huskies

Husky Stadium (70,138)  ·  Best view in college football

Seattle is the Big Ten’s best city for craft beverage exploration — world-class food and drink, dozens of excellent breweries, and a wine bar culture anchored by Washington State’s extraordinary wine industry.

Drink: The Pike Brewing Company at Pike Place Market — brewing since 1989 in one of the world’s most iconic market settings. Old Stove Brewing at Pike Place is the newer entrant earning raves for quality and setting. The Pine Box in Capitol Hill brings one of Seattle’s best craft beer selections to a converted 1920s mortuary.

Eat: Pike Place Market before the game — the chowder, the fresh seafood, the first Starbucks. The Walrus and the Carpenter in Ballard for the best oysters on the West Coast.

Fun: The boat tailgate on Lake Washington. Fans arrive by private boat and anchor offshore to watch the game. It is the most uniquely Seattle experience in college football and completely worth engineering if you have any connection to a boat.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA — USC Trojans & UCLA Bruins

LA Memorial Coliseum — USC (77,500)  ·  Rose Bowl — UCLA (92,542)  ·  Pasadena

Los Angeles is the biggest market in college football. USC plays near downtown; UCLA plays at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, 10 miles northeast. Both teams share one of the world’s great cities.

Drink near USC/Downtown: Arts District Brewing Company — the anchor of LA’s brewery scene in a converted industrial space. Angel City Brewery in the Arts District brings LA craft beer culture to one of its best-designed taproom spaces.

Drink near UCLA/Pasadena: Craftsman Brewing Company in Pasadena — LA’s oldest independently operated craft brewery, serious and thoughtful beers distributed only on draft. Boneyard Bistro in Sherman Oaks for excellent barbecue alongside one of the best craft beer selections in the Valley.

Eat: Philippe The Original near the Coliseum — the French dip sandwich, invented here in 1908. Fair Oaks Pharmacy in South Pasadena for the pre-Rose Bowl milkshake tradition dating to 1915.

Fun: The Rose Bowl tailgate in Lot K is a UCLA tradition worth experiencing regardless of team allegiance. The Coliseum peristyle arches at sunset are one of the great architectural moments in American sport.

IOWA CITY, IOWA — Iowa Hawkeyes

Kinnick Stadium (69,250)  ·  Named for a Heisman winner who died in WWII  ·  Home of the Hawkeye Wave

Iowa City is a UNESCO City of Literature with a craft beer and food scene that has grown well beyond what its size would suggest.

Drink: Backpocket Brewing is Iowa City’s flagship craft brewery — consistent, well-made beers from one of Iowa’s most established producers. Big Grove Brewery has earned recognition well beyond Iowa for quality and range. FilmScene on the Ped Mall combines an independent cinema with a thoughtful craft beer and cocktail program — unique to Iowa City.

Eat: The Pedestrian Mall (Ped Mall) in downtown Iowa City has enough variety to satisfy any appetite. Iowa River Power Restaurant is the historic dining option alumni return to specifically.

Fun: Be in your seat for the Hawkeye Wave at the end of the first quarter. Do not leave early to beat traffic. The children in that hospital can see you from the 12th floor, and they are waving.

EAST LANSING, MICHIGAN — Michigan State Spartans

Spartan Stadium (75,005)  ·  Home of the Giant Killers

East Lansing and Lansing next door together form a college city with a genuine identity — the state capital adds civic energy and a more diverse food and drink scene than a pure college town provides.

Drink: Lansing Brewing Company in downtown Lansing — excellent craft beers in a beautiful historic building that anchors Lansing’s revitalized downtown. Sleepwalker Spirits brings craft distilling to the Lansing area. The Riv in East Lansing near campus is the game day bar institution — every seat filled with green and white on football Saturdays.

Eat: Crunchy’s on Michigan Avenue in East Lansing is the Spartan institution alumni return to specifically. El Azteco is the other MSU must — Mexican food that has been feeding Spartans since 1968.

Fun: The MSU campus is one of the most beautiful in the country — the Red Cedar River, the gardens, the architecture. Walk it before the game. And if Michigan State is playing Michigan, get there early — the Paul Bunyan Trophy is on the line and the atmosphere in East Lansing for that game is as intense as anything in the Big Ten.

The 16 SEC Cities

Athens, GA — Georgia  · 
Tuscaloosa, AL — Alabama  · 
Baton Rouge, LA — LSU  · 
Knoxville, TN — Tennessee  · 
Oxford, MS — Ole Miss  · 
Columbia, SC — South Carolina  · 
Gainesville, FL — Florida  · 
Nashville, TN — Vanderbilt  · 
Auburn, AL — Auburn  · 
Starkville, MS — Mississippi State  · 
Fayetteville, AR — Arkansas  · 
Lexington, KY — Kentucky  · 
Columbia, MO — Missouri  · 
Austin, TX — Texas  · 
College Station, TX — Texas A&M  · 
Norman, OK — Oklahoma

ATHENS, GEORGIA — Georgia Bulldogs

Sanford Stadium (92,746)  ·  Between the Hedges  ·  Back-to-back national champions 2021-22

Athens is one of the great American college towns — a city that punches far above its size for music, food, and craft beer. R.E.M. and the B-52s emerged from Athens; the craft brewery scene that has followed is equally distinctive.

Drink: Creature Comforts Brewing Company is the standout — nationally recognized for Tropicália IPA, one of the most awarded hazy IPAs in the South, and Bibo Pilsner. The taproom is a destination in its own right. Terrapin Beer Co. is Athens’ original craft institution, brewing since 2002 and still producing some of the Southeast’s most recognized beers including Rye Squared and RecreationAle. Trappeze Pub on College Avenue is the craft beer bar with the city’s most serious bottle and draft selection — the place serious beer drinkers go when they want range rather than a single brewery.

Eat: The Last Resort Grill on West Clayton Street is the Athens dining institution — creative Southern cuisine that has earned national recognition. Big Bad Breakfast for game day morning — James Beard-nominated chef John Currence’s ode to the Southern breakfast table.

Fun: The 40 Watt Club on Washington Street — where R.E.M. played early shows — still books live music nightly and is the heart of what makes Athens culturally distinct from every other SEC college town. Walk downtown and you’ll hear music from three directions simultaneously on a fall Saturday night.

TUSCALOOSA, ALABAMA — Alabama Crimson Tide

Bryant-Denny Stadium (100,077)  ·  Named for Bear Bryant  ·  18 national titles

Tuscaloosa’s craft beer scene has grown significantly since Alabama’s brewing law changes, with two excellent options that have become local institutions.

Drink: Druid City Brewing Company is Tuscaloosa’s flagship craft brewery — creative, well-executed beers from a taproom that has become the gathering spot for the city’s craft beer community. Loosa Brews is the craft beer bar institution — 63 taps (half Alabama-brewed, half national) alongside arcade games, pinball machines, and a coffee-shop atmosphere that draws a loyal crowd of serious beer drinkers. The root beer on tap for designated drivers is a thoughtful touch.

Eat: DePalma’s Italian Café is the Tuscaloosa dining institution that alumni specifically return to visit. The Waysider for Saturday morning breakfast — a small, cash-only diner that has been serving Tuscaloosa since 1945 and is consistently voted the best breakfast in the city.

Fun: Visit the Paul W. Bryant Museum before the game — the collection of trophies, game balls, and memorabilia is the most comprehensive document of a single program’s dominance in American sports history. Then walk to the stadium and experience what 100,000 people in crimson looks like.

BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA — LSU Tigers

Tiger Stadium (102,321)  ·  Death Valley  ·  Loudest stadium in the SEC

Baton Rouge is 80 miles from New Orleans and the food culture reflects it — this is the SEC’s most serious food city, where tailgating involves crawfish étouffée and boudin rather than brats and burgers. The craft beer scene has grown into something worth seeking out.

Drink: Parish Brewing Company is the regional standout — Ghost in the Machine Double IPA is one of the most awarded beers in Louisiana and has earned national recognition. The Baton Rouge taproom is worth the visit. Rally Cap Brewing Company brings a sports-bar energy to a craft brewery format — ideal for game day. Mid City Beer Garden earns consistent praise for atmosphere, live music on the outdoor patio, and a crowd that captures Baton Rouge at its most social.

Eat: Parrain’s Seafood Restaurant for the best crawfish étouffée in Baton Rouge. Boutin’s for the full Louisiana seafood experience — boiled crawfish, fried catfish, and boudin that visiting fans talk about for years. New Orleans is 80 miles east and worth the drive for dinner the night before a game.

Fun: Get tickets to a night game at Tiger Stadium if you can. The atmosphere under the lights in Death Valley — 102,000 purple and gold, the sound levels that shake the press box — is the most intense game day environment in the SEC and one of the most intense in all of college football.

KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE — Tennessee Volunteers

Neyland Stadium (101,915)  ·  Named for General Robert Neyland  ·  Vol Navy on the Tennessee River

Knoxville’s craft beer scene has become one of the best in the Southeast — a dense concentration of quality taprooms in the Old City and Market Square area, anchored by the Great Smoky Mountains backdrop that makes the city genuinely beautiful.

Drink: Balter Beerworks is Knoxville’s most celebrated brewery — a former service station turned brewpub known for the Firebelly IPA and a brunch program that rivals the best in the city. Yee-Haw Brewing Company is the institution, brewing in the Old City since 2014 with a complete food program and a taproom energy that captures Knoxville’s personality. Schulz Bräu Brewing Company brings authentic German brewing to Market Square — lagered beers, pretzels, and a biergarten atmosphere that fits Knoxville’s outdoors culture perfectly. Abridged Beer Company is the current critical favorite for creative small-batch production.

Eat: Stock & Barrel on Market Square — Tennessee whiskey-infused burgers and one of Knoxville’s best whiskey selections. OliBea for the game day breakfast line that locals consider worth the wait.

Fun: Watch the Vol Navy arrive on the Tennessee River before kickoff — the boats coming in from the river, orange everywhere, is one of the great pregame visuals in college football. Market Square in downtown Knoxville is the gathering point — farmers market Saturday mornings, live music, and a walkable concentration of quality that makes Knoxville one of the SEC’s most underrated road trip destinations.

OXFORD, MISSISSIPPI — Ole Miss Rebels

Vaught-Hemingway Stadium (64,038)  ·  The Grove  ·  Best tailgate in America

Oxford overdelivers for its size in every direction. The Square — the historic downtown courthouse square — is one of the great gathering places in the American South, ringed with genuinely excellent restaurants, bars, and bookstores.

Drink: Flyway Brewing is Oxford’s standout craft brewery — award-winning beers with a focus on approachable, well-crafted styles that have earned a devoted local following. The Growler on North Lamar offers 30 rotating taps heavy on Mississippi and regional breweries alongside elevated bar food including lobster rolls and loaded brisket fries — one of the best craft beer bar experiences in the SEC. Proud Larry’s on the Square combines live music with craft beer in the way that only Oxford could make work — the rare college-town venue that works equally well for students, alumni, and parents on the same night.

Eat: City Grocery on the Square is Oxford’s most celebrated restaurant — Chef John Currence’s creative Southern cuisine has earned James Beard recognition and a national reputation that draws food pilgrims from across the country. The balcony overlooking the Square is one of the best seats in the SEC. Ajax Diner for the unpretentious Southern comfort food that locals eat when they’re not entertaining out-of-town guests.

Fun: Walk The Grove before kickoff — the tailgate spectacle, with white tents, chandeliers, silver and china, and Ole Miss faithful in their finest, is unlike any other pregame experience in college football. Then walk the Walk of Champions alongside the team. Afterward, Rowan Oak — William Faulkner’s home, now a museum — is a mile from the Square and one of the most significant literary sites in American history.

COLUMBIA, SOUTH CAROLINA — South Carolina Gamecocks

Williams-Brice Stadium (80,250)  ·  2-2-2 Tradition  ·  Sandstorm

Columbia’s craft beer scene has grown significantly, anchored by several quality breweries that have made the city one of the better craft beer destinations in the Southeast.

Drink: Savage Craft Ale Works is the standout — a large brew room, excellent kitchen, a robust cocktail program alongside the craft beer, and a lively event schedule that makes it a complete destination. Hunter Gatherer Brewery in a historic building downtown brings exposed brick and timber character to one of Columbia’s most authentic brewpub experiences. Steel Hands Vista Distilling & Brewing is the dual-threat option — craft beer and craft spirits under the same roof for visitors who want both.

Eat: Motor Supply Company Bistro in the Vista neighborhood is Columbia’s most celebrated farm-to-table restaurant — a menu that changes twice daily based on what’s available locally. The War Mouth brings serious Southern food to the Five Points neighborhood.

Fun: The Five Points neighborhood near campus is the game day gathering point — bars, restaurants, and the distinctive energy of a college town that takes its football seriously even when the program’s results are uneven. The Vista arts district along the Congaree River is the more sophisticated evening option.

GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA — Florida Gators

Ben Hill Griffin Stadium (88,548)  ·  The Swamp  ·  Where great teams go to die

Gainesville is a true college town — the city exists around the University of Florida and its culture reflects that completely. The craft beer scene has developed meaningfully as Florida’s brewing laws evolved.

Drink: Blackadder Brewing Company is consistently rated Gainesville’s top craft brewery — creative, well-made beers in a welcoming taproom. Swamp Head Brewery is the Gainesville institution with the name that captures the city perfectly — local ingredients, Florida-inspired beers, and a loyal following that has made it the most recognized Gainesville craft brand. The Bull on University Avenue is the craft beer bar with the most serious selection and the deepest local roots.

Eat: Leonardo’s by the Slice — the Gainesville pizza institution that has sustained students and alumni for decades. Dragonfly Sushi & Sake for the elevated dining option that surprises visitors expecting only game day food.

Fun: Early season games at The Swamp in September are played in genuine Florida heat and humidity — hydrate aggressively and arrive early. The University Avenue bar strip is the game day corridor. The Florida Natural History Museum on campus is one of the finest in the Southeast.

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE — Vanderbilt Commodores

FirstBank Stadium (40,350)  ·  The SEC’s private university  ·  Nashville is the city

Nashville’s craft beverage scene is extraordinary — world-class distilleries, excellent craft breweries, and a music-driven bar culture that has no equal in the SEC.

Drink: Corsair Distillery on 8th Avenue is the Nashville craft spirits anchor — innovative whiskeys, gins, and absinthe from one of America’s most creative craft distilleries, with a barrel house taproom experience that is completely distinctive. Yazoo Brewing Company is Nashville’s most beloved craft brewery — the Dos Perros is the iconic Nashville craft beer. Tennessee Brew Works brings farm-to-brewery philosophy to Nashville with locally sourced ingredients in every beer. The Patterson House is the cocktail bar that launched Nashville’s craft cocktail culture — a James Beard Award-winning bar program in a speakeasy setting.

Eat: Prince’s Hot Chicken Shack — the original Nashville hot chicken, invented here in the 1930s as culinary revenge and now one of the most influential dishes in American food culture. Arrive prepared. The Pharmacy Burger Parlor & Beer Garden in East Nashville for the best burger alongside a serious craft beer selection.

Fun: Lower Broadway on a Saturday night is the most concentrated live music experience in America — every bar has a live band, the music is free, and the energy runs from noon to 2am. Nashville hot chicken at Prince’s before the strip; Corsair Distillery during the day. The game at Vanderbilt is the excuse; Nashville is the destination.

AUBURN, ALABAMA — Auburn Tigers

Jordan-Hare Stadium (87,451)  ·  Eagle flies before every game  ·  War Eagle

Auburn is a classic Southern college town with a growing craft beer scene that has taken root as Alabama’s laws evolved.

Drink: The Plains Taproom is the craft beer institution near Jordan-Hare — 40 taps covering beer, wine, cider, and cocktails alongside smash burgers and shareable food in a family-friendly atmosphere with live music and trivia. Big Time Brewery is Auburn’s own craft brewery, brewing on site with a rotating selection of experimental and flagship beers. Acre Restaurant brings craft cocktails to the fine dining end of the Auburn spectrum — inventive drinks alongside serious Southern cuisine.

Eat: Acre Restaurant on East Glenn Avenue is Auburn’s most celebrated dining destination — farm-to-table Southern cuisine in a converted 1847 Victorian cottage. The craft cocktail program matches the food quality.

Fun: Arrive early to watch the eagle fly. The pregame eagle release — the bird banking and soaring around the stadium before landing at midfield to a roar from 87,000 fans — is genuinely spectacular. Toomer’s Corner, where fans roll the oak trees with toilet paper after victories, is a tradition that has survived everything thrown at it including a poisoning of the trees in 2010.

STARKVILLE, MISSISSIPPI — Mississippi State Bulldogs

Davis Wade Stadium (61,337)  ·  Cowbells  ·  The loudest hand-held instrument in sports

Starkville is a small college town with limited craft beer options by SEC standards, but the cowbell tradition makes the game day experience completely distinctive.

Drink: Maroon Brew is Starkville’s own craft brewery, directly connecting to Mississippi State’s school color in name and spirit. The Bulldog is the local sports bar institution — draft craft beer, game day energy, and the kind of crowd that has been doing this every football Saturday for decades. LD’s Beer Run is the bottle shop and taproom that has made itself the local craft beer authority, with a rotating selection of local and national brews.

Eat: Harvey’s Restaurant is Starkville’s dining institution — a white tablecloth restaurant in a college town that has been serving prime beef and Gulf seafood since 1946. The dichotomy is very Mississippi.

Fun: Buy a cowbell before the game and ring it. There is no more participatory tradition in the SEC. The sound of Davis Wade Stadium during a Mississippi State home game, with the bells echoing off the concrete, is the most distinctive audio experience in college football.

FAYETTEVILLE, ARKANSAS — Arkansas Razorbacks

Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium (76,416)  ·  Woo Pig Sooie  ·  Dickson Street

Fayetteville’s Dickson Street is one of the SEC’s more vibrant game day corridors, and the craft beer scene has grown to match the city’s increasing national profile.

Drink: Bike Rack Brewing Company is Fayetteville’s flagship craft brewery — award-winning beers with a local-sourcing philosophy and a taproom that has become the gathering spot for the city’s craft beer community. Ozark Beer Company brings the Ozark Mountains identity to its brewing — spring water and local ingredients in beers that taste specifically of northwest Arkansas. Maxine’s Tap Room is the Dickson Street institution — a dive bar with genuine character that has been part of the Fayetteville bar scene since 1951.

Eat: Preacher’s Son in a converted 1890s church is Fayetteville’s most celebrated restaurant — creative Arkansas cuisine in a genuinely stunning architectural setting. Bordinos for the Italian option that has anchored the Dickson Street fine dining scene for decades.

Fun: Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, 30 minutes north — free admission, a collection that includes Winslow Homer, Georgia O’Keeffe, Norman Rockwell, and Kehinde Wiley, set in 120 acres of Ozark forest trails. It is one of the genuinely great American art museums and is completely unexpected in northwest Arkansas. The drive from Fayetteville is worth it.

LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY — Kentucky Wildcats

Kroger Field (61,000)  ·  Horse country  ·  Bourbon country

Lexington’s craft beer scene has grown alongside its bourbon heritage — the city that sits at the edge of bourbon country has developed both craft brewing and craft spirits identities that complement the major distillery trail nearby.

Drink: West Sixth Brewing is Lexington’s most celebrated craft brewery — a complete destination with a sprawling taproom, farm, and event space that has become the anchor of Lexington’s craft beer community. The IPA lineup is particularly strong. Country Boy Brewing brings Blue Grass character to craft beer with locally sourced ingredients and a taproom that captures Lexington’s personality. Ethereal Brewing is the creative option earning consistent critical praise for inventive small-batch production.

Eat: Dudley’s on Short is Lexington’s most celebrated fine dining destination. For game day, Drake’s brings the reliable sports bar energy the locals rely on.

Fun: The Kentucky Bourbon Trail is accessible from Lexington — Buffalo Trace in Frankfort is 25 miles west; Woodford Reserve in Versailles is 15 miles west; Wild Turkey is 30 miles southwest. A Lexington game day combined with a bourbon distillery visit the day before or after is one of the SEC’s best multi-day itineraries.

COLUMBIA, MISSOURI — Missouri Tigers

Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium (71,004)  ·  The Antlers  ·  M-I-Z, Z-O-U

Columbia is a Midwest college town that joined the SEC in 2012 — a genuine college city with a growing craft beer scene anchored by several excellent breweries.

Drink: Logboat Brewing Company is Columbia’s craft beer flagship — creative and consistently well-executed beers from a production brewery that has become the regional standard-bearer. Flat Branch Pub & Brewing has been anchoring Columbia’s brewery scene since 1994 — one of the longest-running craft brewpubs in Missouri with a complete food program. Broadway Brewery brings both Missouri craft beer and craft cider to a sustainable-focused operation near downtown.

Eat: Booches Billiard Hall — a Columbia institution since 1884, serving burgers on wax paper at pool tables in a building that has barely changed in over a century. The cheeseburger is one of Missouri’s most beloved. Barred Owl Butcher & Table for the elevated farm-to-table option.

Fun: The Tiger Walk — when Missouri players walk from the Hearnes Center to the stadium through fans who line both sides of the path — is one of the SEC’s more intimate pregame traditions given Columbia’s college-town scale. The District on 9th Street is the bar and restaurant corridor worth exploring after the game.

AUSTIN, TEXAS — Texas Longhorns

Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium (100,119)  ·  The eyes of Texas  ·  Live music capital of the world

Austin is the SEC’s most complete city for craft beverage exploration — a world-class music scene, excellent craft breweries, serious wine bars, and a food culture that has attracted national attention make every Texas game day a complete destination experience.

Drink: Austin Beer Garden Brewing Company (ABGBC) is the standout — award-winning lagers and ales in a sprawling South Lamar beer garden that captures Austin’s outdoor culture perfectly. Zilker Brewing Company brings the namesake park energy to a taproom that earns consistent critical recognition for quality and range. Jester King Brewery in the Hill Country outside Austin is the destination for serious beer drinkers — farmhouse ales, wild fermentation, and barrel-aged beers that have earned a national reputation for the Austin craft scene. Worth the 20-mile drive.

Eat: Franklin Barbecue on East 11th Street is the pilgrimage — James Beard Award-winning brisket that has made Austin a global barbecue destination. Arrive by 9am; the line is real. Torchy’s Tacos for the game day fuel that Austinites have been eating since 2006 — the Trailer Park and the Democrat are non-negotiable orders.

Fun: Sixth Street on a Saturday night is the most concentrated live music experience outside Nashville — free music in every bar, multiple genres simultaneously. The Austin City Limits Music Festival in October coincides with football season and can be combined with a Texas home game for one of the great American weekend experiences. The Texas State Capitol, six blocks from campus, is one of the most beautiful in America and worth visiting before the game.

COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS — Texas A&M Aggies

Kyle Field (102,733)  ·  The 12th Man  ·  Midnight Yell Practice

College Station is a classic Texas college town with a craft beer scene that has grown to serve one of the largest student populations in the country.

Drink: Blackwater Draw Brewing Company is College Station’s standout craft brewery — creative beers, a complete food program, and an outdoor patio that makes it a year-round destination. O’Bannon’s Tap House is the Irish pub with an outstanding draft selection that visiting fans specifically seek out for a proper Guinness alongside the local craft options. KinderHill Brew Lab is the newer entrant earning attention for adventurous small-batch production in a biergarten setting.

Eat: The Tap combines solid food with a long craft beer list in a sports bar format that has become the game day standard for Aggie fans. Freebirds World Burrito — the Texas burrito institution born in College Station in 1987 — for the pregame fuel that has sustained generations of Aggies.

Fun: Attend Midnight Yell Practice the night before the game — it starts at midnight at Kyle Field, the Yell Leaders lead the crowd through the next day’s yells, and it is one of the most genuinely unusual and genuinely moving pregame experiences in college football. Then stand the entire game with the 12th Man student section if you can get tickets in that section. The A&M game day experience is unlike any other in college football.

NORMAN, OKLAHOMA — Oklahoma Sooners

Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium (86,112)  ·  The Sooner Schooner  ·  8 national titles

Norman is 20 miles from Oklahoma City, which provides the full craft beverage range for visitors who want to extend the trip beyond the college town.

Drink: Lazy Circles Brewing is Norman’s standout craft brewery — creative, well-executed beers with a taproom that has become the local gathering spot for serious craft beer drinkers. Deli by Russ combines craft beer with one of Norman’s best sandwich programs. In Oklahoma City, 20 miles north: Stonecloud Brewing Company and Anthem Brewing Company are the OKC craft beer anchors worth the short drive.

Eat: Libby’s Neighborhood Brasserie is Norman’s most celebrated restaurant — French-influenced American cuisine that has earned a loyal following far beyond the college town context. Hideaway Pizza is the Oklahoma institution — a chain that started in Stillwater in 1957 and has become the state’s most beloved pizza brand, with a Norman location that feeds Sooners before and after games.

Fun: Watch for the Sooner Schooner after every Oklahoma score — the white wagon pulled by Boomer and Sooner circling the field is one of college football’s most beloved mascot traditions. Oklahoma City is 20 miles north and worth an evening — the Bricktown Entertainment District along the Oklahoma River has developed into one of the more vibrant urban entertainment corridors in the South, with craft breweries, live music, and the National Memorial for the 1995 bombing that is one of the most moving sites in America.

The 16 Big 12 Cities

Tucson, AZ — Arizona  · 
Tempe, AZ — Arizona State  · 
Waco, TX — Baylor  · 
Provo, UT — BYU  · 
Orlando, FL — UCF  · 
Cincinnati, OH — Cincinnati  · 
Boulder, CO — Colorado  · 
Houston, TX — Houston  · 
Ames, IA — Iowa State  · 
Lawrence, KS — Kansas  · 
Manhattan, KS — Kansas State  · 
Stillwater, OK — Oklahoma State  · 
Fort Worth, TX — TCU  · 
Lubbock, TX — Texas Tech  · 
Salt Lake City, UT — Utah  · 
Morgantown, WV — West Virginia

TUCSON, ARIZONA — Arizona Wildcats

Arizona Stadium (50,782)  ·  Bear Down  ·  Sonoran Desert craft beer

Tucson has roughly 20 craft breweries and a scene that draws on Sonoran Desert ingredients — hibiscus, tamarind, mesquite, and agave showing up in beers that couldn’t be made anywhere else.

Drink: Crooked Tooth Brewing Company on Historic Fourth Avenue is the standout — Sonoran Sour Series using jamaica (hibiscus) and tamarind, a sunny beer-garden patio, and exposed brick that gives it the authentic converted-garage character that the best taprooms have. Two 2025 World Beer Cup medals. Dragoon Brewing Company is Tucson’s most distributed craft brand — the Dragoon IPA is the flagship and the taproom is a Tucson institution. Borderlands Brewing leans into the border culture that makes Tucson distinctive — Mexican-inspired flavors in beers that reflect the city’s unique identity.

Eat: El Charro Café on Court Avenue is Tucson’s oldest Mexican restaurant, open since 1922 and the claimed birthplace of the chimichanga. A required stop for anyone visiting the city. Café Poca Cosa for the acclaimed modern Mexican cuisine that has earned national attention.

Fun: Historic Fourth Avenue — Tucson’s independent commercial district with vintage shops, restaurants, and the Crooked Tooth taproom — is the game day evening destination. The Rialto Theatre on Congress Street is Tucson’s historic live music venue. And Saguaro National Park on both sides of the city offers the most dramatic desert landscape in the American Southwest — worth a morning visit before any game.

TEMPE, ARIZONA — Arizona State Sun Devils

Mountain America Stadium (53,599)  ·  Tempe Town Lake  ·  2025 Big 12 Champions

Tempe has Arizona’s most concentrated craft beer scene outside Flagstaff, anchored by Four Peaks — one of the Southwest’s most recognized craft brands.

Drink: Four Peaks Brewing Company is the anchor — Kiltlifter Scottish-Style Ale is the flagship that has made Four Peaks Arizona’s most recognized craft beer brand. The main Tempe brewery and restaurant on 8th Street is the full experience, with multiple tasting rooms and a food program that matches the beer quality. Pedal Haus Brewery on Mill Avenue is the game day location — right in the heart of Tempe’s pedestrian strip with a patio, rotating taps, and the energy of ASU game days. Huss Brewing brings Phoenix-area craft brewing to Tempe with consistent, well-made beers across styles.

Eat: House of Tricks in Old Town Tempe is the city’s most celebrated restaurant — James Beard-nominated New American cuisine in a historic 1920s bungalow with one of the best outdoor dining patios in the Valley. Cornish Pasty Co. on Mill Avenue for the British pasties that have become a Tempe institution.

Fun: Mill Avenue on a game day is Tempe at its most vibrant — pedestrian, energetic, and completely organized around the Sun Devil football Saturday. The Tempe Town Lake waterfront adds outdoor space and sunset views. The ASU Art Museum on campus has one of the more impressive contemporary art collections of any university museum.

WACO, TEXAS — Baylor Bears

McLane Stadium (45,140)  ·  On the Brazos River  ·  Chip and Joanna Gaines country

Waco’s deep Baptist identity has historically meant a more limited bar scene, but the city has transformed and the craft beer and spirits options have grown to match its new national profile.

Drink: Balcones Distilling on South 11th Street is Waco’s most nationally significant craft beverage operation — the Texas craft whisky that put the state on the serious spirits map. The distillery tour and tasting is one of the best in Texas. Bare Arms Brewing is Waco’s most celebrated craft brewery — consistently the top-rated local option with creative, well-executed beers. Brotherwell Brewing rounds out a growing local craft scene with approachable, quality beers in a welcoming taproom.

Eat: Magnolia Table — Joanna Gaines’s restaurant on Bosque Boulevard is the Waco dining pilgrimage. Arrive early; the lines are real and the wait is worth it. George’s Restaurant on South 8th Street is the Baylor institution — open since the 1930s and the game day gathering spot that alumni return to specifically.

Fun: The Magnolia Silos — Chip and Joanna’s flagship retail and dining destination — is Waco’s most-visited attraction. The Dr Pepper Museum on South 5th Street honors the soft drink invented in Waco in 1885. Watch the boat tailgate on the Brazos River before kickoff — the McLane Stadium riverside setting makes it one of the Big 12’s most distinctive pregame experiences.

PROVO, UTAH — BYU Cougars

LaVell Edwards Stadium (63,470)  ·  1984 National Champions  ·  Unique alcohol culture

BYU is the only Power Four program in America that operates entirely alcohol-free on campus. If craft beer is your priority, plan your evening in Salt Lake City — 30 miles north, with one of the most interesting craft beer scenes in the Mountain West.

Drink (Salt Lake City, 30 miles north): Epic Brewing Company is the Salt Lake City flagship — Big Bad Baptist Imperial Stout is one of the most awarded craft beers in the Mountain West, and the downtown SLC taproom is a destination. Uinta Brewing Company is Utah’s largest craft brewery — organic brewing philosophy, widespread distribution, and a taproom that earns consistent praise. Beer Bar on Main Street is SLC’s craft beer bar with the most serious selection — 150+ beers by the bottle and can alongside 30 rotating taps.

Eat: Communal in Provo is the most celebrated restaurant in the immediate area — farm-to-table American cuisine that has earned a following well beyond the BYU community. Pizza Pie Café is the Provo pizza institution that alumni reference as the game day fuel of their college years.

Fun: BYU’s campus is one of the most beautifully maintained in the Mountain West — the view of Mount Timpanogos from the campus center is genuinely spectacular. Utah Lake State Park is steps from campus. And the drive north to Salt Lake City passes through some of the most dramatic mountain scenery in the American West — make it an evening in SLC after the game and plan for the Epic Brewing taproom.

ORLANDO, FLORIDA — UCF Knights

FBC Mortgage Stadium (45,000)  ·  Largest university in the United States by enrollment

Orlando’s craft brewery scene has grown dramatically — dozens of production breweries and taprooms across the metro, with several excellent options near campus and a full city worth exploring beyond the theme parks.

Drink: Tactical Brewing Company near UCF is the go-to campus-area craft brewery — military-themed, consistently well-rated, and a natural game day stop for Knights fans. Bowigens Beer Company in the Avalon Park area is the community brewery that has built a devoted local following. In downtown Orlando: Sideward Brewing earns consistent national attention for creative, well-crafted beers — one of the most acclaimed craft breweries in Florida. Orange County Brewers brings craft beer to the International Drive corridor for visitors combining the UCF game with Orlando tourism.

Eat: The Ravenous Pig in Winter Park is Orlando’s most celebrated restaurant — James Beard Award-nominated New American cuisine in a gastro-pub setting that has anchored the Orlando food scene for over a decade. Hunger Street Tacos in the Audubon Park neighborhood for the casual option that locals consistently recommend.

Fun: The Audubon Park Garden District near downtown Orlando has the most concentrated collection of independent restaurants, coffee shops, and bars in the city — a genuine neighborhood destination that rewards the post-game evening. Winter Park’s Park Avenue and Rollins College provide the more upscale alternative.

CINCINNATI, OHIO — Cincinnati Bearcats

Nippert Stadium (40,000)  ·  Oldest active major college football stadium (1901)  ·  Chili city

Cincinnati has one of the best urban craft beer scenes in the Midwest — anchored by a revitalized Over-the-Rhine neighborhood where 19th-century German immigrant breweries have been reborn as the city’s most vibrant entertainment district.

Drink: Rhinegeist Brewery in Over-the-Rhine is Cincinnati’s craft beer flagship — a massive converted 1895 bottling plant with rooftop ping pong, excellent beers (Truth IPA is the most recognized), and one of the best brewery atmospheres in the Midwest. MadTree Brewing is Cincinnati’s most consistent award-winner — the Happy Amber is the gateway beer and the production facility in Oakley is worth the visit. Braxton Brewing Company in Covington, Kentucky (just across the Ohio River) brings Northern Kentucky craft beer into the Cincinnati market and earns consistent praise.

Eat: Skyline Chili — Cincinnati-style chili (a meat sauce with cinnamon, chocolate, and other spices) served over spaghetti or on a hot dog, in a chain that has defined Cincinnati food culture since 1949. Every visitor must try it. Boca in Hyde Park for the fine dining option that has earned a national reputation for Cincinnati cuisine.

Fun: Over-the-Rhine — the 19th-century German immigrant neighborhood that has been restored into Cincinnati’s most vibrant entertainment district — is the evening destination. The Cincinnati Art Museum in Eden Park is free and has one of the finest collections in the Midwest. The Ohio River bridges between Cincinnati and Covington are worth walking for the view in both directions.

BOULDER, COLORADO — Colorado Buffaloes

Folsom Field (50,183)  ·  Ralphie the Buffalo  ·  Best craft beer city in the Mountain West

Boulder is one of the great American craft beer cities — the home of Avery Brewing, Upslope, Fate Brewing, and Sanitas, surrounded by the Front Range brewery corridor that runs from Fort Collins to Denver.

Drink: Avery Brewing Company on Nautilus Court is the Boulder craft institution — nationally renowned for bold, creative beers including Maharaja Imperial IPA and White Rascal Belgian white. The tap room and restaurant is one of the most complete brewery experiences in Colorado. Upslope Brewing Company brings clean, mountain-inspired craft beers to a taproom near the foothills — the Craft Lager is the everyday beer that captures Boulder’s outdoor-lifestyle identity. Sanitas Brewing Company on Broadway is the neighborhood brewpub with the best food program in Boulder’s craft scene — baked pretzels, smash burgers, and a rotating tap list that draws a loyal local crowd.

Eat: The Kitchen on Pearl Street is Boulder’s most celebrated farm-to-table restaurant — seasonal, locally sourced, James Beard-nominated. Flagstaff House for the special occasion dining with the best view of Boulder’s city lights from the Flagstaff Mountain slopes.

Fun: Watch Ralphie run before kickoff — the buffalo charging across the field, led by handlers trying to keep pace, is genuinely thrilling and unlike any other college football pregame. The Pearl Street Mall pedestrian corridor is Boulder’s gathering place. The Flatirons hiking trails are steps from campus — a morning hike before any home game is the most Boulder thing you can do.

HOUSTON, TEXAS — Houston Cougars

TDECU Stadium (40,000)  ·  Fourth largest city in America  ·  Most diverse city in the US

Houston’s craft beer scene has grown dramatically, anchored by Saint Arnold — America’s oldest craft brewery in Texas — and surrounded by a Heights neighborhood brewery cluster that rivals any in the state.

Drink: Saint Arnold Brewing Company on Lyons Avenue is Texas’s oldest craft brewery — Fancy Lawnmower is the iconic Houston craft beer, and the beer hall and garden is one of the most beloved communal spaces in the city. Eureka Heights Brew Co. in the Heights is the critical favorite — nationally recognized beers and a taproom atmosphere that captures the Heights’ neighborhood energy. 8th Wonder Brewery in EaDo (East Downtown) combines craft beer with a food program and event space in one of Houston’s most energetic emerging neighborhoods.

Eat: Xin Chào in Sugar Land is one of Houston’s most celebrated Vietnamese restaurants — James Beard Award-nominated and a reflection of the Vietnamese community that makes Houston’s food scene irreplaceable. Truth BBQ on Ella Boulevard is the Houston barbecue destination that has earned a place on national best-of lists alongside the Austin and Central Texas standards.

Fun: The Houston Museum of Fine Arts has a collection that rivals any museum in the South. The Montrose neighborhood — Houston’s most eclectic and walkable — has the most concentrated dining and bar scene in the city. The Space Center Houston, 25 miles southeast, is worth a day trip for the most complete NASA visitor experience in the country.

AMES, IOWA — Iowa State Cyclones

Jack Trice Stadium (61,500)  ·  Named for a pioneering Black athlete  ·  Cyride Country

Ames is a classic Midwest college town with a craft beer scene that has grown to serve a community that takes its Cyclone football seriously — especially in recent years as the program has risen to genuine Big 12 contention.

Drink: Wheatsheaf Brewing is Ames’s most celebrated craft brewery — award-winning beers with a taproom that has become the craft beer gathering spot for the Cyclone community. Olde Main Brewing in downtown Ames is the game day brewpub institution — solid craft beers alongside a full restaurant menu in a historic building that fills with cardinal and gold on football Saturdays. Confluence Brewing in Des Moines (30 miles south) is the regional standout for serious craft beer enthusiasts making a day of it.

Eat: Hickory Park on South Duff is Ames’s most beloved restaurant — a family-style barbecue and homestyle cooking institution that alumni return to specifically on game day visits. The wait is part of the experience.

Fun: Read Jack Trice’s note before the game — it is displayed at the stadium and is one of the most powerful documents in college football history. The Iowa State campus is one of the most beautifully landscaped in the Big 12, designed by pioneering landscape architect H.W.S. Cleveland in the 1860s.

LAWRENCE, KANSAS — Kansas Jayhawks

David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium (47,233)  ·  Mass Street  ·  Basketball school with a football revival

Lawrence has one of the Big 12’s best small college town craft beer scenes — anchored by Free State Brewing, the first legal brewery in Kansas since Prohibition.

Drink: Free State Brewing Company on Massachusetts Street is Lawrence’s most significant craft brewery — the first legal brewery in Kansas since Prohibition, opened in 1989, and still the gathering place for the Lawrence craft beer community. Adambier and Ad Astra Ale are the flagships. Lawrence Beer Co. brings a second production brewery with consistent critical praise for quality and range. Fields & Ivy Brewery is the newer standout earning raves for creative small-batch production. The Bourgeois Pig on Massachusetts Street is the Lawrence institution for cocktails and craft beer — creative drinks, a serious tap list, and a coffeehouse atmosphere that makes it equally good at any hour. One of the more charming bars in the Big 12.

Eat: 715 on Massachusetts Street is Lawrence’s most celebrated fine dining restaurant — Italian-inspired, locally sourced, and consistently the top dining recommendation from locals and visitors alike. Mass Street Fish House & Raw Bar on Massachusetts Street is the Lawrence dining destination worth going out of your way for — fresh fish and oysters delivered daily, a raw bar program that rivals anything in Kansas City, and the kind of quality that makes you stop and reconsider what you thought a landlocked college town could deliver on the plate. If you’re in Lawrence, eat here.

Fun: Massachusetts Street on a game day is the Big 12’s most walkable college town corridor — independently owned shops, bars, and restaurants for six blocks. The Spencer Museum of Art on campus has one of the most underrated university art collections in the country. And the John Brown Museum in Osawatomie, 40 miles south, is one of the most significant Civil War-era sites in Kansas.

MANHATTAN, KANSAS — Kansas State Wildcats

Bill Snyder Family Stadium (50,000)  ·  The Little Apple  ·  The greatest turnaround in college football history

Manhattan is a small college town with genuine craft beer options that have grown as Kansas’s brewing laws evolved.

Drink: Manhattan Brewing Company is the local craft anchor — consistently the top-rated option in Manhattan for craft beer enthusiasts. Tallgrass Tap House brings the regional craft brand to a downtown taproom format. Bourbon & Baker combines craft cocktails and spirits with a thoughtful food program that has elevated Manhattan’s drinking options beyond what its size would normally support.

Eat: Harry’s Restaurant on Poyntz Avenue is the Manhattan institution — a steakhouse that has been feeding K-State fans for decades and remains the game day dinner destination that alumni reference first.

Fun: Learn the Bill Snyder story before you arrive — it is genuinely one of the most inspiring narratives in American sports. The Konza Prairie Biological Station — a pristine tallgrass prairie reserve 10 miles south of Manhattan — is one of the last large remnants of the Great Plains ecosystem and genuinely beautiful on a fall afternoon before a game.

STILLWATER, OKLAHOMA — Oklahoma State Cowboys

Boone Pickens Stadium (55,509)  ·  Gallagher-Iba Arena is 500 yards away  ·  Oklahoma passion

Stillwater is a small Oklahoma college town with a craft beer scene that has grown as Oklahoma’s laws evolved — and the bar scene on The Strip near campus is one of the more lively in the Big 12’s smaller markets.

Drink: Tumbleweed Spirits is Stillwater’s craft distillery standout — Oklahoma whiskey and spirits that have earned a following among serious craft spirits drinkers. Hideaway Pizza — born in Stillwater in 1957 and the most beloved pizza chain in Oklahoma — has a bar program worth mentioning because the pizza-and-beer combination is non-negotiable on game day. Eskimo Joe’s on The Strip is the Stillwater institution — a bar and restaurant open since 1975 that alumni return to specifically on game weekends. The cheese fries are famous.

Eat: Eskimo Joe’s — the cheese fries have been described as the most important appetizer in Oklahoma football culture. Kilkenny’s Irish Pub for the full pub experience that Stillwater fans gravitate toward on game weekends.

Fun: The combination of Boone Pickens Stadium and Gallagher-Iba Arena (home of the Cowboys’ wrestling dynasty and basketball program) within 500 yards of each other makes the Oklahoma State athletic campus one of the most compact and energetic in college sports. The National Wrestling Hall of Fame in Stillwater is the only museum of its kind in the world.

FORT WORTH, TEXAS — TCU Horned Frogs

Amon G. Carter Stadium (47,000)  ·  2022 CFP Finalists  ·  Cowtown

Fort Worth has a craft beer scene that has grown significantly in recent years, with several excellent taprooms complementing a food and entertainment scene that ranges from historic stockyards to world-class museums.

Drink: Cowtown Brewing Company is Fort Worth’s flagship craft brewery — the Horse With No Name IPA and the German-style High Brau lager are the standouts, with barbecue on the outdoor deck completing the Texas craft experience. Martin House Brewing Company is the Fort Worth craft brewery earning national attention for creative, boundary-pushing beers. HopFusion Ale Works is the newest addition earning consistent top ratings for quality and range.

Eat: Lonesome Dove Western Bistro in the Stockyards — Chef Tim Love’s celebrated upscale Western cuisine, with a menu built around regional Texas ingredients and game meats. Heim Barbecue for the Fort Worth barbecue that has earned a place alongside Austin’s best.

Fun: The Fort Worth Stockyards — the historic cattle town district where longhorns are still driven down Exchange Avenue twice daily — is one of the most distinctive urban experiences in Texas. The Fort Worth Museum of Science and History and the Kimbell Art Museum (one of America’s finest mid-sized art museums) make the city’s cultural offerings genuinely competitive with Dallas.

LUBBOCK, TEXAS — Texas Tech Red Raiders

Jones AT&T Stadium (60,454)  ·  Guns Up  ·  Wreck ‘Em Tech  ·  Wine country surprise

Lubbock is a flat, spread-out West Texas city that has developed a craft beer and wine scene well beyond what its relative isolation would suggest.

Drink: Lone Star Taps & Caps is Lubbock’s craft beer anchor — a serious selection of local and regional craft beers in a comfortable taproom setting. Texas Tech Cellar Bar on 19th Street is the game day institution near campus. Mcpherson Cellars on Texas Avenue is the Lubbock wine destination — award-winning Texas wines in a downtown tasting room that makes Lubbock a legitimate wine stop for visitors who expect nothing of the kind.

Eat: Cocina de la Familia for the Tex-Mex that reflects Lubbock’s West Texas border culture. The Depot District restaurants and bars fill the converted railroad district near downtown and are the evening destination for game day visitors.

Fun: Visit Mcpherson Cellars or Llano Estacado Winery for the most surprising wine experience in Texas — the Llano Estacado terroir produces genuinely distinctive wines, particularly from Tempranillo and Viognier. The Buddy Holly Center on Crickets Avenue honors Lubbock’s most famous son, who grew up here and launched rock and roll before dying at 22 in the 1959 plane crash that also killed Ritchie Valens and The Big Bopper.

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH — Utah Utes

Rice-Eccles Stadium (51,444)  ·  PAC-12 champion 2021-22  ·  Rise and Shout

Salt Lake City has one of the most interesting craft beer scenes in the Mountain West — shaped by Utah’s distinctive alcohol laws (beer above 5% ABV sold only in state-licensed liquor stores until 2019) into something genuinely creative and resilient.

Drink: Epic Brewing Company on Broadway is SLC’s craft beer flagship — Big Bad Baptist Imperial Stout is one of the most decorated craft beers in the Mountain West. Uinta Brewing Company is Utah’s largest and most distributed craft brewery — organic, consistent, and widely respected. Avenues Proper on Second Avenue is SLC’s original neighborhood brewpub — small-batch house-brewed beer alongside a chef-driven contemporary American menu. Beer Bar on Main Street has 150+ beers by the bottle and can with 30 rotating taps — the most serious craft beer selection in the city.

Eat: Pago on South 900 East is SLC’s most celebrated farm-to-table restaurant — seasonal, locally sourced, and consistently the top dining recommendation from Utah food writers. The Red Iguana for the best Mexican food in Utah, in a city with a surprisingly strong Mexican food tradition.

Fun: Temple Square in downtown SLC — the headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, including the Salt Lake Temple and the Tabernacle Choir — is one of the most visited sites in the American West. The Natural History Museum of Utah on the University of Utah campus has one of the world’s great dinosaur fossil collections. And the Wasatch Mountains above the city — accessible by ski resorts including Alta, Snowbird, and Park City within an hour of downtown — make SLC one of the best mountain destinations in America.

MORGANTOWN, WEST VIRGINIA — West Virginia Mountaineers

Milan Puskar Stadium (60,000)  ·  Almost Heaven  ·  Country Roads

Morgantown’s craft beer scene has grown significantly, anchored by a downtown “Morgantown Mile” corridor and the broader West Virginia craft brewing movement that has produced 30-40 active craft breweries statewide.

Drink: Mountain State Brewing Company is West Virginia’s most established craft brewery — one of the state’s original microbreweries with multiple Morgantown locations and the Almost Heaven Amber Ale as the flagship that captures the state’s identity in its name. Chestnut Brew Works on Chestnut Street is the current critical favorite for Morgantown craft beer — creative, well-executed beers in a downtown taproom. Iron Horse Tavern in the Morgantown Mile specializes in West Virginia craft beer and specialty cocktails in a downtown location that is central to the game day corridor.

Eat: Pies & Pints is the Morgantown game day institution — creative flatbread pizzas alongside a serious craft beer selection in a restaurant that has expanded across West Virginia and beyond. Black Bear Burritos on High Street is the WVU institution that alumni reference as the late-night post-game destination that defines college food culture in Morgantown.

Fun: Sing Country Roads at the stadium. Know every word. Be prepared to cry. It is, without overstating it, one of the most genuinely moving stadium traditions in American sports — 60,000 people singing John Denver in the Appalachian hills of West Virginia. The PRT (Personal Rapid Transit) system — WVU’s automated people mover connecting the campus’s three sections — is one of the most unusual transit systems in American higher education and worth experiencing on game day. The New River Gorge National Park, 60 miles south, is one of America’s newest and most spectacular national parks.

The 17 ACC Programs — 14 Cities

Chapel Hill/Durham, NC — UNC & Duke  · 
Raleigh, NC — NC State  · 
Clemson, SC — Clemson  · 
Tallahassee, FL — Florida State  · 
Atlanta, GA — Georgia Tech  · 
Louisville, KY — Louisville  · 
Miami/Coral Gables, FL — Miami  · 
Pittsburgh, PA — Pittsburgh  · 
Dallas, TX — SMU  · 
Bay Area, CA — Cal & Stanford  · 
Syracuse, NY — Syracuse  · 
Charlottesville, VA — Virginia  · 
Blacksburg, VA — Virginia Tech  · 
Winston-Salem, NC — Wake Forest  · 
Boston, MA — Boston College

CHAPEL HILL & DURHAM, NORTH CAROLINA — UNC Tar Heels & Duke Blue Devils

Kenan Memorial Stadium — UNC (50,500)  ·  Wallace Wade Stadium — Duke (40,004)  ·  9 miles apart

The Research Triangle — Chapel Hill, Durham, and Raleigh — is one of the best craft beer regions in the entire country, with an extraordinary density of quality breweries anchored by nationally recognized names. Durham’s transformation from tobacco city to craft beer capital is one of American food culture’s great stories.

Drink in Chapel Hill: Top of the Hill Restaurant & Brewery on Franklin Street is the classic — a Chapel Hill institution with its own brew and one of the best views of Franklin Street from the rooftop deck. Steel String Brewery is the craft-focused option earning consistent praise. He’s Not Here on West Franklin Street is the Chapel Hill institution — famous for the Blue Cup (a 32-ounce beer) and an outdoor courtyard that has hosted generations of Tar Heels. Non-negotiable for any UNC game day visit.

Drink in Durham: Fullsteam Brewery on Rigsbee Avenue pioneered the “Southern Beer Economy” — sweet potatoes, persimmons, and North Carolina grains in beers that taste specifically of this place. The 2026 NC Brewers Cup Gold winner. Ponysaurus Brewing Co. is Durham’s critically beloved neighborhood brewery. Clouds Brewing won Raleigh’s (and Durham’s) Best Brewery for the third consecutive year in 2026 and operates a brewcade-and-kitchen in Durham alongside taprooms across the Triangle.

Eat: Crook’s Corner in Chapel Hill — James Beard Award-winning Southern cuisine that has anchored Chapel Hill’s food scene for decades. The Durham Hotel rooftop bar for the best view of downtown Durham before or after a Duke game.

Fun: Franklin Street in Chapel Hill on game day is one of the ACC’s great pedestrian corridors — bars, restaurants, and the Cameron Indoor Stadium energy spilling over from the basketball obsession that defines this town year-round. Durham’s American Tobacco Campus — the converted Lucky Strike tobacco factory that now houses restaurants, bars, and the Durham Bulls baseball stadium — is one of the most beautifully repurposed industrial spaces in the South.

RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA — NC State Wolfpack

Carter-Finley Stadium (57,583)  ·  2024 ACC Champions

Raleigh has developed one of the Southeast’s best urban craft beer and food scenes, anchored by a downtown that has come alive with quality restaurants and taprooms.

Drink: Clouds Brewing won Best Brewery in Raleigh for the third consecutive year in 2026 — the Triangle’s most decorated current craft brewery with taprooms across the market. Raleigh Brewing Company is the production brewery anchor — one of North Carolina’s most recognized craft brands with consistent award-winning beers. Trophy Brewing Company on Glenwood Avenue is Raleigh’s most beloved neighborhood brewpub — food, beer, and a crowd that captures the new Raleigh at its most comfortable.

Eat: Poole’s Diner on McDowell Street is Raleigh’s most celebrated restaurant — Chef Ashley Christensen’s James Beard Award-winning take on the Southern diner format. The mac and cheese with today’s cheese selection is the dish that built the reputation.

Fun: The Glenwood South neighborhood is Raleigh’s bar and restaurant corridor — walkable, dense, and active from early afternoon on game days. The North Carolina Museum of Art has one of the South’s best collections and beautiful outdoor park and amphitheater space adjacent to the campus.

CLEMSON, SOUTH CAROLINA — Clemson Tigers

Memorial Stadium (81,500)  ·  Death Valley  ·  Running Down the Hill  ·  2024 ACC Champions

Clemson is a classic college town that exists around the university — small, passionate, and completely organized around football Saturdays. The nearby city of Greenville, 30 miles east, is where the evening goes.

Drink: Tiger Town Tavern on College Avenue is the Clemson institution — the gathering spot that alumni return to specifically, packed with orange on game day. CBrew is Clemson’s own craft brewery, producing beers that reflect the college town energy. In Greenville (30 miles east): Thomas Creek Brewery is South Carolina’s most celebrated craft brewery — national award-winning beers in a taproom worth planning the pregame or postgame evening around. Brewery 85 in Greenville is the newer standout earning consistent critical praise.

Eat: The Esso Club is Clemson’s beloved dive bar and restaurant — simple, unpretentious, and exactly what a game day stop should be. Greenville’s Main Street restaurant scene rivals any mid-sized city in the Southeast.

Fun: Arrive early and watch the Tiger Walk — the team walking through fans from the Jervey Athletic Center to the stadium — then be in your seat for Running Down the Hill. The first roar from 81,000 when the players touch Howard’s Rock and start down the slope is one of the ACC’s defining pregame experiences.

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA — Florida State Seminoles

Doak Campbell Stadium (79,560)  ·  Chief Osceola and Renegade  ·  3 national titles

Tallahassee is Florida’s state capital and a genuine college city — the state government and two universities (FSU and FAMU) give it more civic substance than a pure college town. The craft beer scene has grown meaningfully in recent years.

Drink: Proof Brewing Company is Tallahassee’s flagship craft brewery — multiple award-winning beers and a taproom that has become the city’s craft beer anchor. Ology Brewing in the Midtown neighborhood is the critically admired newer option earning raves for quality and atmosphere. DEEP Brewing Co. rounds out a solid local craft scene with consistently well-rated beers.

Eat: Pita Land is the Tallahassee institution that alumni specifically mention — a Mediterranean restaurant near campus that has been feeding FSU students since 1983. Kool Beanz Café is the locally celebrated farm-to-table option that has earned a devoted following for creative, locally sourced cuisine.

Fun: Be in your seat before Chief Osceola rides Renegade to midfield. The flaming spear tradition is one of college football’s most theatrical pregame moments and the crowd reaction when the spear hits the turf is exactly as loud as you’d expect.

ATLANTA, GEORGIA — Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

Bobby Dodd Stadium (55,000)  ·  Oldest on-campus stadium in FBS (1913)  ·  Downtown Atlanta

Atlanta is the ACC’s best city for post-game exploration — a world-class food and drink scene, Georgia’s craft brewery boom, and neighborhoods like Midtown, Virginia-Highland, and the BeltLine that rival any urban entertainment district in the South.

Drink: SweetWater Brewing Company is Georgia’s most recognized craft brewery — the 420 Extra Pale Ale has been a Southeast staple for decades. The Midtown taproom near Georgia Tech is the convenient pre or post-game option. Reformation Brewery is the standout for serious craft beer enthusiasts — award-winning beers with a faith-inspired theme and a taproom that has become a favorite in the Atlanta craft scene. Atlantucky Brewing (a collaboration between Atlanta and Kentucky craft beer cultures) has earned strong reviews for creative beers and a fun atmosphere. Der Biergarten downtown brings authentic German biergarten culture to the shadow of the Georgia Dome corridor — a naturally perfect game day location.

Eat: The Varsity on North Avenue — America’s largest drive-in restaurant, open since 1928, serving chili dogs and frosted oranges to Georgia Tech fans for nearly a century. Non-negotiable on game day. Bacchanalia is Atlanta’s most celebrated fine dining destination — James Beard Award-winning cuisine for the evening after the game.

Fun: The Atlanta BeltLine — a converted rail corridor turned urban trail with restaurants, breweries, and art installations connecting Atlanta’s neighborhoods — is one of the great urban development projects in America and runs through some of the city’s best craft beer territory. Virginia-Highland and Inman Park are the neighborhoods that reward the post-game wander.

LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY — Louisville Cardinals

L&N Federal Credit Union Stadium (65,000)  ·  Bourbon city on the Ohio River

Louisville is a bourbon city first and a craft beer city second — and both identities are worth pursuing on a game day visit.

Drink: Against the Grain Brewery & Smokehouse is Louisville’s most celebrated craft brewery — a converted Louisville Slugger Field (the minor league baseball stadium) with exceptional beers and a smokehouse that makes the food as good as the beer. Great Flood Brewing has earned national recognition for quality and range. The Holy Grale is Louisville’s craft beer bar institution — a converted church with one of the most thoughtfully curated beer selections in Kentucky alongside excellent food.

Eat: Proof on Main in the 21c Museum Hotel — James Beard-nominated cuisine in one of Louisville’s most architecturally distinctive spaces. Hammerheads in the Germantown neighborhood for the best burger in Louisville alongside an excellent craft beer selection.

Fun: The Louisville Bourbon Trail distilleries in the city include Evan Williams Bourbon Experience, Bulleit Frontier Whiskey Experience, and several craft distilleries on the city’s Urban Bourbon Trail. Churchill Downs can be toured year-round. The NuLu (New Louisville) arts and restaurant district on East Market Street is the neighborhood that captures Louisville’s revival most vividly.

MIAMI/CORAL GABLES, FLORIDA — Miami Hurricanes

Hard Rock Stadium (64,767)  ·  The U  ·  Five national titles

Miami is the ACC’s most cosmopolitan city — a world-class food, music, and nightlife destination where the craft beer scene has grown dramatically in the Wynwood Arts District in the past decade.

Drink: Titanic Brewing Company in Coral Gables — practically on campus, open since 1995, a Miami institution with its own craft beers and a crowd that has been wearing orange and green for decades. The Triple Screw Light Ale and Captain Smith’s Dry Ale are the flagship beers. Tripping Animals Brewing in Wynwood is Miami’s most celebrated craft brewery — creative, consistently award-winning beers in the city’s most vibrant arts neighborhood. Lincoln’s Beard Brewing in South Miami adds a neighborhood brewpub dimension to Miami’s growing craft scene.

Eat: Versailles Restaurant on Southwest 8th Street (Calle Ocho) is Miami’s most iconic Cuban restaurant — a cultural institution serving ropa vieja, Cuban sandwiches, and café con leche since 1971. A required stop on any Miami visit. Joe’s Stone Crab in South Beach for the seasonal stone crab experience that has defined Miami dining since 1913.

Fun: Wynwood Walls — the outdoor street art museum in the Wynwood Arts District — combined with the craft breweries that surround it makes a Saturday afternoon in Wynwood one of Miami’s most distinctive experiences. South Beach is 20 minutes from campus; the nightlife there is the post-game destination for visiting fans who want to extend the Miami experience.

PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA — Pittsburgh Panthers

Acrisure Stadium (68,400)  ·  Shared with the NFL’s Pittsburgh Steelers  ·  Where rivers meet

Pittsburgh’s craft beer scene has been building for decades and is now one of the best in the Northeast — anchored by serious breweries in neighborhoods that reward exploration.

Drink: Dancing Gnome is Pittsburgh’s most critically acclaimed craft brewery — nationally recognized IPAs and sours that have made it one of the most talked-about craft breweries in Pennsylvania. East End Brewing Company is Pittsburgh’s most beloved community brewery — Big Hop IPA is the flagship and the production facility tours are among the best in the city. The Church Brew Works in Lawrenceville is the architectural experience as much as the beer — a 1902 Gothic church converted to a brewery, with stained glass above the brewing tanks and a menu as good as the beers. Penn Brewery in the North Side near the stadium is the historic option — nearly 170 years of brewing history in a German-tradition brewpub setting.

Eat: Primanti Brothers on 18th Street — the Pittsburgh sandwich institution, with coleslaw and french fries inside the sandwich, open since 1933 and feeding night-shift workers, truck drivers, and sports fans for nearly a century. Penn Mac — Penn Avenue’s legendary Italian specialty grocer with one of the best deli counters in the city.

Fun: The view of downtown Pittsburgh from the stadium across the Allegheny River is one of the great American stadium vistas — walk across the Roberto Clemente Bridge to get there on foot. Lawrenceville is Pittsburgh’s most vibrant neighborhood for food, craft beer, and galleries — Butler Street from 35th to 51st is the corridor worth exploring before or after the game.

DALLAS, TEXAS — SMU Mustangs

Gerald J. Ford Stadium (32,000)  ·  2024 ACC Regular Season Champions  ·  University Park

Dallas is the ACC’s most surprising craft beer city — a sprawling Texas metropolis with a craft brewery scene that has grown dramatically in the past decade, and a restaurant scene that is genuinely world-class.

Drink: Community Beer Company is Dallas’s most recognized craft brewery — Mosaic IPA is the flagship and the production facility near Love Field is one of the city’s best brewery destinations. Four Corners Brewing is the craft standout for events and community programming — consistently hosting fun events in a spacious taproom with Pacheco Taco & Burgers in-house. Peticolas Brewing Company is the Dallas craft institution earning national recognition for quality. Near SMU: Milo Butterfingers on Greenville Avenue is the SMU neighborhood bar — a Dallas institution since 1971, recently acquired by SMU alumni who restored it as a gathering spot for the SMU community.

Eat: Lucia in the Bishop Arts District is Dallas’s most acclaimed restaurant — Italian-inspired, locally sourced, James Beard Award-nominated cuisine that has made it a national dining destination. Pecan Lodge for Dallas barbecue that has earned a place on national best-of lists.

Fun: The Bishop Arts District — an independent commercial neighborhood in Oak Cliff with galleries, restaurants, and bars — is Dallas’s most walkable and most interesting neighborhood for visitors. The Dallas Museum of Art is free and has a world-class collection. The Deep Ellum neighborhood has the live music scene that makes Dallas’s evenings worth planning.

BAY AREA, CALIFORNIA — California Golden Bears & Stanford Cardinal

California Memorial Stadium — Cal (63,186)  ·  Stanford Stadium (50,424)  ·  The Big Game  ·  14 miles apart

The San Francisco Bay Area is the ACC’s best craft beer market — a region where craft brewing was pioneered by Anchor Steam in 1896 and has never stopped evolving. Berkeley, Oakland, and San Francisco all have extraordinary craft brewery scenes.

Drink near Cal/Berkeley: Fieldwork Brewing Company on San Pablo Avenue is Berkeley’s most celebrated craft brewery — hazy IPAs and barrel-aged beers that have earned a Bay Area-wide following. Rare Barrel in Berkeley is the sour beer destination — an all-sour, barrel-aged program that has made it one of the most distinctive breweries in California. Jupiter on Shattuck Avenue is the Berkeley brewpub institution — an open-air courtyard, live music, and house beers steps from campus.

Drink near Stanford/Palo Alto: Strike Brewing Co. in San Jose is the South Bay craft anchor. For the full Bay Area experience, San Francisco’s Anchor Brewing — America’s oldest craft brewery, founded in 1896, producing Anchor Steam — is 30 miles north on BART.

Eat: Chez Panisse in Berkeley — Alice Waters’s legendary restaurant where California cuisine was invented in 1971. The prix fixe dinner is one of the most influential meals in American food history. Bette’s Oceanview Diner in Berkeley for the game day breakfast that locals have been lining up for since 1982.

Fun: The view of San Francisco Bay from California Memorial Stadium’s upper deck is one of college football’s great panoramas. BART connects Berkeley to San Francisco in 25 minutes — the city is the evening’s destination. The Stanford campus walking tour (2 miles through Collegiate Gothic and Spanish Colonial architecture) is one of the most beautiful university campuses in the country.

SYRACUSE, NEW YORK — Syracuse Orange

JMA Wireless Dome (49,250)  ·  Only domed stadium in college football  ·  The Loud House

Syracuse’s craft beer scene is modest but genuinely good — a city that has developed solid local options as New York State’s craft beer explosion reached Central New York.

Drink: Talking Cursive Brewing Company is Syracuse’s most celebrated current craft brewery — consistently the top-rated local option for craft beer enthusiasts. Willow Rock Brewing Company is the newer standout earning raves for quality and atmosphere. The Hops Spot is the craft beer bar with the most serious selection in downtown Syracuse. The Finger Lakes wine region is 30 miles south — world-class Riesling and Cabernet Franc within an easy day trip of every home game.

Eat: Dinosaur Bar-B-Que on West Willow Street is the Syracuse institution — a national barbecue chain that started here in 1988 and has earned a devoted following for its ribs, pulled pork, and Texas-style brisket in a biker-bar atmosphere.

Fun: Experience the Loud House — the dome’s acoustics make every crowd noise bounce back down on the field. The Finger Lakes wine trail is the area’s most distinctive craft beverage destination and worth building a weekend trip around before or after a late-season home game.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VIRGINIA — Virginia Cavaliers

Scott Stadium (61,500)  ·  2025 ACC Champions  ·  Thomas Jefferson country

Charlottesville overdelivers for a city of its size — a thriving brewery scene on Preston Avenue, world-class wineries within 30 minutes, and the UVA campus and Jefferson’s legacy giving it cultural substance that few college towns can match.

Drink: Starr Hill Brewery is Virginia’s most recognized craft brand — the brewery that helped launch the Virginia craft beer industry in the 1990s, now producing award-winning beers with a taproom on the Crozet side and a presence throughout the state. Random Row Brewing on Preston Avenue is Charlottesville’s most beloved neighborhood craft brewery. Three Notch’d Brewing is the community-focused option with a full restaurant program. The Preston Avenue brewery cluster — multiple taprooms within walking distance of each other — is the game day evening destination.

Eat: The Ivy Inn is Charlottesville’s most celebrated fine dining destination — farm-to-table Virginia cuisine in a historic farmhouse setting. Citizen Burger Bar on the Downtown Mall for the game day casual option.

Fun: Visit Monticello — Thomas Jefferson’s home, five miles from campus — for the most historically resonant experience available near any ACC stadium. The Downtown Mall pedestrian corridor is Charlottesville’s gathering place. And the Virginia wine country within 30 minutes of campus — King Family Vineyards, Early Mountain, Barboursville — is the Saturday afternoon option for visitors who want wine with their football weekend.

BLACKSBURG, VIRGINIA — Virginia Tech Hokies

Lane Stadium (65,623)  ·  Enter Sandman  ·  One of college football’s loudest stadiums

Blacksburg is a mountain college town with a craft beer scene that has grown alongside Virginia’s broader craft brewing boom.

Drink: Bull & Bones Brewhaus & Grill on South Main Street is Blacksburg’s most complete brewpub experience — upscale dining room alongside a brewery in the First & Main shopping district. Eastern Divide Brewing is Blacksburg’s most talked-about local craft brewery, taking its name from the Eastern Continental Divide that runs through the nearby Blue Ridge Mountains. In Roanoke (40 miles north): Big Lick Brewing and Parkway Brewing Company are the regional standouts worth the drive for a full craft beer afternoon.

Eat: Top of the Stairs is Blacksburg’s most celebrated restaurant — the locals’ pick for special occasions and game day dinners. Bogen’s Restaurant is the Blacksburg institution that alumni return to specifically.

Fun: Be in your seat when Enter Sandman starts. It is not optional. Stand on the bleachers, jump with 65,000 other people, and understand exactly why this tradition has been called the most intimidating entrance in college football. The Blue Ridge Mountains surrounding Blacksburg make the drive in genuinely beautiful — the Appalachian Trail crosses nearby and the New River Trail State Park is a converted railroad trail worth adding to the itinerary.

WINSTON-SALEM, NORTH CAROLINA — Wake Forest Demon Deacons

Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium (31,500)  ·  Tobacco road’s private university

Winston-Salem’s craft beer scene has grown into one of the better options in North Carolina outside the Research Triangle — anchored by Foothills Brewing, one of the state’s most celebrated craft brands.

Drink: Foothills Brewing is Winston-Salem’s flagship craft brewery — nationally recognized for the Sexual Chocolate imperial stout (released annually in February to lines around the block) and a complete pub food menu that makes it a full destination. Wise Man Brewing is the newer standout earning strong reviews for quality and atmosphere. Small Batch Beer Co. is the craft bar with the most serious selection in Winston-Salem — rotating taps and a knowledgeable staff that makes it the place for serious beer exploration.

Eat: Mozelle’s Front Porch is Winston-Salem’s most beloved restaurant — Southern soul food in a neighborhood setting that has earned a devoted following well beyond the college crowd.

Fun: The Reynolda House Museum of American Art — the former home of R.J. Reynolds on the edge of the Wake Forest campus — has one of the South’s finest collections of American art and is free to Wake Forest students and worth visiting for any game day visitor.

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS — Boston College Eagles

Alumni Stadium (44,500)  ·  Chestnut Hill  ·  5 miles from downtown Boston

Boston has one of the great craft beer scenes in America — anchored by Samuel Adams (which helped launch the national craft beer revolution in 1984), surrounded by dozens of excellent regional breweries, and embedded in a food culture that has produced more James Beard Award winners than any city outside New York.

Drink: Samuel Adams Boston Brewery in Jamaica Plain is the required Boston craft beer pilgrimage — the brewery that Jim Koch launched in 1984 using his great-great-grandfather’s recipe and helped create the American craft beer movement. The tour ends with an extended tasting of beers not available in retail stores. Trillium Brewing Company in the Fort Point neighborhood is the current critical standard-bearer — their hazy IPAs are among the most sought-after in New England and the Fort Point taproom is one of the city’s best brewery experiences. Harpoon Brewery in the Seaport District offers a complete brewery tour experience alongside consistently excellent beers. The Publick House in Brookline near BC is the neighborhood craft beer bar with one of the best Belgian and Belgian-style selections in New England.

Eat: Neptune Oyster in the North End — the best oysters and lobster rolls in Boston, in a tiny room that requires patience and rewards it. Mike’s Pastry in the North End for the cannoli that has defined Boston Italian-American dessert culture for decades.

Fun: Take the Green Line B branch from the stadium into downtown Boston. The Freedom Trail — a 2.5-mile walking trail connecting 16 historic sites including Paul Revere’s house, the Old North Church, and Faneuil Hall — runs through the heart of the city. The Sam Adams Boston Brewery tour in Jamaica Plain is 20 minutes by Green Line from the stadium and one of the best brewery experiences in the country. Boston’s craft beer scene, its food scene, and its 400 years of history make it the ACC’s best city for a full weekend visit.

The Independents

South Bend, IN — Notre Dame Fighting Irish  · 
East Hartford, CT — UConn Huskies

SOUTH BEND, INDIANA — Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Notre Dame Stadium (80,795)  ·  The House That Rockne Built  ·  The Golden Dome  ·  11 National Championships

South Bend’s craft beer scene has grown into something genuinely worth exploring — a city that has transformed significantly in recent years, with a downtown revival anchored by the St. Joseph River and a brewery cluster that gives visiting fans excellent options before and after the game.

Drink: Taphouse on the Edge is the closest craft beer bar to Notre Dame campus — on the literal edge of the campus property, 23 rotating craft taps and a gastropub menu that makes it the natural pregame stop for fans arriving from campus. Crooked Ewe Brewery & Ale House in downtown South Bend is the craft brewery earning the most consistent praise — award-winning beers and a taproom that has become the South Bend craft beer community’s gathering spot. Studebaker Brewing Company brings a uniquely South Bend story to the craft beer scene — named for the automobile manufacturer that built cars here from 1852 to 1963, now producing beers in the city’s revitalized downtown. Corby’s Irish Pub near campus is the ND institution — the bar where the Rudy movie cast celebrated after filming, and where several generations of Fighting Irish students, alumni, and fans have raised a glass after games. Fiddler’s Hearth on Michigan Street is the proper Irish pub — live Celtic music, a genuine Irish pub atmosphere, and the right pint of Guinness for any Irish alumnus celebrating a victory.

Eat: Café Navarre in the historic Navarre Building on Michigan Street is South Bend’s most celebrated dining destination — French-influenced American cuisine in a building that dates to 1896 and has anchored the city’s food culture through its transformation. LaSalle Grill on Michigan Street is the steakhouse that alumni use for the special occasion game day dinner. Bruno’s Pizza on Eddy Street near campus is the ND institution — the late-night pizza that has fed generations of students and the post-game stop that alumni return to specifically.

Fun: Walk the Notre Dame campus before the game. Spend time in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart — one of the most beautiful Catholic churches in America, with mosaics and artwork that make it worth 30 minutes before kickoff. Touch the Play Like a Champion Today sign at the base of the locker room stairs if you can access it. Visit Touchdown Jesus — the Word of Life mosaic on the Hesburgh Library facing the stadium, appearing to raise his hands in a touchdown signal — before the game. And after the game, regardless of result, walk Michigan Street to the downtown South Bend riverfront area — the transformation of South Bend over the past decade is one of the more remarkable Midwest urban revival stories in the country. The city’s former mayor, Pete Buttigieg, launched a national political career in part by championing that revival. South Bend deserves to be seen beyond the campus gates.

EAST HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT — UConn Huskies

Rentschler Field (40,000)  ·  The last true independent alongside Notre Dame  ·  Connecticut craft beer country

Connecticut has one of the most underrated craft beer scenes in New England — anchored by Tree House Brewing (one of the most sought-after craft breweries in the country), and supported by a network of quality producers that make the state a genuine craft beer destination.

Drink: Tree House Brewing Company in Charlton, Massachusetts (about 45 minutes from Rentschler Field) — one of the most celebrated and sought-after craft breweries in New England, known for extraordinary hazy IPAs including Julius, Green, and Doppelganger. Lines form early; the beer is worth it. If the drive is too far on game day, find Tree House cans at Connecticut bottle shops. New Park Brewing in West Hartford is Connecticut’s most critically acclaimed in-state craft brewery — nationally recognized for quality and creativity, in a brewpub setting that has made it a West Hartford institution. Back East Brewing Company in Bloomfield is the established Connecticut craft brand with wide state distribution and a taproom that draws serious beer drinkers. Thomas Hooker Brewery in Bloomfield is Connecticut’s most decorated craft brewery for awards — named for the founder of Hartford, producing consistently excellent beers across styles.

Eat: Trumbull Kitchen on Trumbull Street in downtown Hartford is one of Connecticut’s most celebrated restaurants — creative American cuisine in a vibrant downtown setting that has helped anchor Hartford’s food renaissance. Max’s Oyster Bar in West Hartford for the best New England seafood experience near the UConn game day corridor.

Fun: Hartford’s cultural offerings are genuinely excellent and often overlooked — the Wadsworth Atheneum, America’s oldest public art museum (1842), has a world-class collection of American and European art. Mark Twain’s House and Museum and Harriet Beecher Stowe’s house are both on Farmington Avenue, a five-minute drive from downtown. The Connecticut River Valley wine trail is accessible from Hartford for those who want to extend the weekend into wine country. And for serious craft beer drinkers, the drive to Tree House in Charlton is genuinely worth planning around — the Julius IPA alone justifies the trip.

The MAC Cities

Akron, OH — Akron  · 
Muncie, IN — Ball State  · 
Bowling Green, OH — Bowling Green  · 
Buffalo, NY — Buffalo  · 
Mount Pleasant, MI — Central Michigan  · 
Ypsilanti, MI — Eastern Michigan  · 
Kent, OH — Kent State  · 
Oxford, OH — Miami (Ohio)  · 
Athens, OH — Ohio  · 
Toledo, OH — Toledo  · 
Kalamazoo, MI — Western Michigan  · 
Amherst, MA — UMass  · 
Sacramento, CA — Sacramento State

AKRON, OHIO — Akron Zips

InfoCision Stadium (30,000)  ·  The Rubber City  ·  LeBron’s hometown

Akron has a genuinely good craft beer scene — the Hoppin’ Frog Brewery alone has produced beers that have won international competitions and gained a global following.

Drink: Hoppin’ Frog Brewery is Akron’s most nationally significant craft brewery — DORIS the Destroyer and B.O.R.I.S. the Crusher Imperial Stouts have both won medals at the World Beer Cup and earned a devoted following among serious stout drinkers worldwide. Akronym Brewing is the current critical favorite in Akron — award-winning Czech lager and saison in a relaxed taproom with a Sunday brunch program that has earned its own following. Lock 15 Brewing Co. brings Akron’s industrial canal history to a taproom setting in the revitalized downtown.

Eat: Swenson’s Drive-In — the Akron institution since 1934, serving galley boys (a ground beef sandwich with a proprietary sauce) from carhops who deliver to your window. LeBron James has called it one of his favorite places in Akron. Aladdin’s Eatery for the Lebanese-inspired menu that has made it an Akron chain with a devoted following.

Fun: The Akron Art Museum downtown has a free permanent collection and rotating exhibitions. The Stan Hywet Hall & Gardens — a 65-room Tudor Revival mansion built by Goodyear co-founder F.A. Seiberling in 1915 — is one of the largest historic homes in America and worth a morning visit before a game.

MUNCIE, INDIANA — Ball State Cardinals

Scheumann Stadium (22,500)  ·  David Letterman’s alma mater  ·  Indiana heartland

Muncie has a growing craft beer scene that has developed alongside Indiana’s broader craft beverage expansion.

Drink: Thr3e Wise Men Brewing Company is Muncie’s most celebrated craft brewery — award-winning beers in a downtown taproom setting that has become the gathering spot for the local craft beer community. Muñcie Brewing Company (yes, with the tilde — a nod to the city’s unusual spelling history) is the newer local option earning attention for quality small-batch production. Heorot Pub & Draught House on Walnut Street is the craft beer bar institution — an extraordinary bottle and tap selection in a medieval-themed pub that Ball State students and alumni have made a landmark.

Eat: The Caffeinery is Muncie’s most praised neighborhood restaurant — farm-to-table Indiana cuisine in a space that doubles as a coffee shop by day. Brothers Bar & Grill near campus for the game day energy that the neighborhood requires.

Fun: The David Letterman Communication and Media Building on campus is worth a look for fans of the late night legend. The Ball State Museum of Art has a surprisingly strong collection for a regional university museum.

BOWLING GREEN, OHIO — Bowling Green Falcons

Doyt Perry Stadium (24,000)  ·  MAC championship contenders  ·  Northwest Ohio

Bowling Green’s options are limited but genuine — a college town that delivers what a college town needs on game day.

Drink: Grounds for Thought is the Bowling Green institution — a bookstore, coffee shop, and beer bar combination on South Main Street that has been a community gathering place since 1985. The craft beer selection is thoughtful and the used book collection is genuinely good. Maumee Bay Brewing Company in nearby Toledo (20 miles north) is the regional craft anchor — worth the short drive for serious beer drinkers. Howard’s Club H near campus is the BGSU bar institution — the live music and craft beer combination that alumni return to specifically.

Eat: Tontogany Creek Bar & Grill — a Bowling Green staple for game day food and drink. El Zarape for the Mexican food that BGSU students consistently rate as the best in town.

Fun: The Black Swamp Arts Festival in early September draws 120,000 visitors to Bowling Green’s Main Street — if the season opener coincides, the combination of the festival and the football game is one of the MAC’s best weekends.

BUFFALO, NEW YORK — Buffalo Bulls

UB Stadium (30,000)  ·  Amherst, NY  ·  Craft beer renaissance city

Buffalo’s craft beer scene is one of the MAC’s best — a real city with real breweries, real food, and the Lake Erie waterfront as a backdrop.

Drink: Community Beer Works in downtown Buffalo is the craft anchor — The Frank Pale Ale is the flagship and the downtown taproom has become one of Buffalo’s most beloved gathering spots. Big Ditch Brewing Company is Buffalo’s most awarded craft brewery — nationally recognized IPAs and lagers named for the Erie Canal (the “big ditch”) that made Buffalo prosperous in the 19th century. Resurgence Brewing Company on Chicago Street is the largest craft brewery in Western New York, earning consistent critical praise for quality and range across styles.

Eat: Anchor Bar on Main Street — the birthplace of the Buffalo wing in 1964, when Teressa Bellissimo deep-fried chicken wings tossed in a buttery hot sauce, served with blue cheese and celery for her son’s late-night friends. Non-negotiable on any Buffalo visit. Chef’s Restaurant on Seneca Street for the Italian-American cuisine that has defined Buffalo’s food culture for generations.

Fun: The Buffalo waterfront along the Outer Harbor and Canalside has been transformed into one of the best urban waterfronts in the Northeast — concerts, food trucks, and the Erie Canal terminus. The Albright-Knox Art Gallery (now the Buffalo AKG Art Museum) has one of the finest collections of modern and contemporary art in America. Niagara Falls is 20 miles north — worth the drive for any first-time visitor to the region.

MOUNT PLEASANT, MICHIGAN — Central Michigan Chippewas

Kelly/Shorts Stadium (30,000)  ·  Mid-Michigan heartland  ·  Soaring Eagle Casino country

Mount Pleasant is a small Michigan college town. Craft beer options are limited on campus but Midland and Bay City, both within 45 minutes, add regional options.

Drink: Mountain Town Station Restaurant & Brew Pub is Mount Pleasant’s own craft brewpub — consistent, well-made beers in a restored historic train station that gives it the most distinctive setting of any taproom in central Michigan. Tapistry Brewing in Bridgeport (45 minutes east) is the regional craft standout worth the drive. Right Brain Brewery in Traverse City (2 hours north) is one of Michigan’s most celebrated craft breweries if the weekend extends to the north.

Eat: The Cabin Bar & Grill is the Mount Pleasant game day institution — the kind of mid-Michigan bar that has been serving the CMU community for decades. Steve’s Ranch for the steak and casual dining option that locals point to first.

Fun: The Ziibiwing Center of Anishinabe Culture & Lifeways on the Saginaw Chippewa reservation is a museum and cultural center that offers genuinely important context for the CMU-Saginaw Chippewa partnership. The Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort for those who want to extend the evening.

YPSILANTI, MICHIGAN — Eastern Michigan Eagles

Rynearson Stadium (30,200)  ·  Adjacent to Ann Arbor  ·  Ypsi’s own brewing scene

Ypsilanti has developed its own craft beer scene distinct from Ann Arbor — smaller, more neighborhood-focused, and increasingly worth the visit on its own terms.

Drink: Ypsi Alehouse is Ypsilanti’s own craft brewery — one of the oldest craft breweries in the Midwest, brewing since the early days of Michigan’s craft beer scene, with a loyal community following. Wurst Bar on Washington Street is the Ypsi institution — beloved burgers, a full bar, and the kind of neighborhood energy that makes Ypsilanti worth knowing beyond its Ann Arbor shadow. Jolly Pumpkin (10 minutes in Ann Arbor) is the artisan sour and Belgian-style anchor for any serious beer drinker visiting the area.

Eat: Aubree’s Pizzeria & Grill is the Ypsilanti institution — some of the best pizza in the Ann Arbor metro in a space that has been feeding EMU students and Ypsilanti residents for decades. Beezy’s Café on Michigan Avenue for the quirky café that captures Ypsilanti’s independent spirit perfectly.

Fun: Downtown Ypsilanti’s Depot Town neighborhood along the Huron River has developed into a genuinely interesting collection of independent shops, restaurants, and bars. The Ypsilanti Water Tower is worth a photograph. And Ann Arbor is 10 minutes west — all of that city’s excellent craft beer, food, and culture is accessible after the game.

KENT, OHIO — Kent State Golden Flashes

Dix Stadium (25,319)  ·  May 4, 1970  ·  The tragedy that changed America

Kent’s downtown has developed a craft beer scene anchored by breweries that have made the city worth visiting beyond the campus.

Drink: Bell Tower Brewing Company on Park Avenue is Kent’s standout craft brewery — consistently the top-rated local option and a gathering place for the Kent State community and downtown Kent visitors. North Water Brewing is the newer option earning strong reviews for quality small-batch production. Ray’s Place on Water Street is the Kent institution — a bar and restaurant that has been part of the community’s fabric for decades and is the game day gathering point that alumni return to.

Eat: The Zephyr Pub in downtown Kent for the craft beer and food combination that locals consistently recommend. Akron (12 miles north) opens up a significantly larger range of dining options for visitors who want to extend the evening.

Fun: Visit the May 4 Memorial on the Kent State campus. Walk the site where the shootings occurred. Read the names. It takes 20 minutes and it is the most important thing you can do at Kent State. The Kent State Museum in Rockwell Hall has one of the most significant fashion and textile collections of any university museum in America.

OXFORD, OHIO — Miami Redhawks

Yager Stadium (24,286)  ·  The Cradle of Coaches  ·  Not that Miami

Oxford has a classic college town bar scene and a growing craft beer presence that has improved significantly in recent years.

Drink: Gaslight Brewhouse is Oxford’s own craft brewery and kitchen — fresh-scratch cuisine alongside house-brewed craft beers in a relaxed local atmosphere that has made it the preferred option for visitors who want more than a college bar. Steinkeller on the main strip is the German beer hall option — a full lineup of German-style beers and food that stands out in a college town bar scene. Brick Street Bar is the Oxford institution for the full college bar experience — enormous, energetic, and completely given over to Miami game day culture on football Saturdays.

Eat: Mac & Joe’s is the Oxford bar food institution — the burgers and late-night menu that Miami students have been ordering for decades. Paesano’s Pasta House for the Italian option that consistently earns the best restaurant reviews in town.

Fun: High Street in Oxford on a football Saturday is one of the MAC’s most walkable and most pleasant game day corridors. The Paul Brown Museum in nearby Massillon (90 minutes north) is the most complete tribute to the Cradle of Coaches legacy. And for any Notre Dame fan visiting — Ara Parseghian spent five years coaching at Miami (Ohio) before going to Northwestern and then Notre Dame. The Cradle of Coaches is real.

ATHENS, OHIO — Ohio Bobcats

Peden Stadium (24,000)  ·  Oldest university in Ohio (1804)  ·  Halloween capital of the Midwest

Athens has one of the MAC’s best craft beer scenes — a college town with genuine food culture and two breweries that have earned attention beyond Ohio’s borders.

Drink: Jackie O’s Pub & Brewery on West Union Street is Athens’ flagship — one of Ohio’s most acclaimed craft breweries, producing award-winning beers including the Firefly Amber and a range of seasonal and barrel-aged releases that have earned national attention. The uptown taproom and the separate production brewery are both worth visiting. Little Fish Brewing Company is Athens’ wind-powered craft brewery — every kilowatt-hour used to brew their pilsners, IPAs, and barrel-aged beers is matched by renewable energy. The commitment to sustainability extends to locally sourced grain including Shagbark corn.

Eat: The Farmacy on Court Street is Athens’s most celebrated restaurant — farm-to-table cuisine sourced almost entirely from regional Appalachian Ohio farms. Casa Nueva is the Athens worker-owned cooperative restaurant that has been a community institution for decades — creative menu, local ingredients, and a genuinely distinctive business model.

Fun: Court Street in Athens is one of the MAC’s great pedestrian corridors — independent shops, excellent restaurants, and the kind of college town energy that rewards an afternoon of wandering. The Hocking Hills State Park, 30 miles west, is one of Ohio’s most spectacular natural areas — Old Man’s Cave and Cedar Falls are worth a morning hike before a late-afternoon game.

TOLEDO, OHIO — Toledo Rockets

Glass Bowl (26,248)  ·  The Glass City  ·  MAC’s most consistent program

Toledo has a craft beer scene that has grown significantly — anchored by breweries in the Hensville and downtown entertainment districts.

Drink: Maumee Bay Brewing Company is Toledo’s most established craft brewery — founded in 1995, producing consistently well-made beers that have made it a regional institution. Earnest Brew Works has three Toledo-area locations and brews over 50 unique recipes annually — the Hoppy Camper Hazy Pale and Honeybuzz Honey Double IPA are the flagships. Black Frog Brewery is consistently the top-rated Toledo craft brewery on current review platforms — “best craft beer in the state of Ohio” per a loyal Yelp reviewer, and a taproom that earns the highest marks for atmosphere and quality.

Eat: Tony Packo’s on Front Street is Toledo’s most famous restaurant — a Hungarian-style hot dog and chili destination made famous when Corporal Maxwell Klinger on M*A*S*H repeatedly referenced it as his favorite restaurant in Toledo. Jamie Farr, the actor who played Klinger, is from Toledo. The collection of signed hot dog buns from celebrities that lines the walls is genuinely worth seeing. The Attic on Adams for the craft beer bar with the most complete food program in Toledo.

Fun: The Toledo Museum of Art is free and houses the Glass Pavilion — one of the most architecturally significant glass buildings in the world, housing the most important glass art collection in America. Worth a full morning before any game. The Toledo Zoo is one of the highest-rated zoos in the Midwest and accessible from the stadium.

KALAMAZOO, MICHIGAN — Western Michigan Broncos

Waldo Stadium (30,200)  ·  Beer City USA contender  ·  Bell’s Brewery hometown

Kalamazoo is one of the great American craft beer cities. In 2012 it was named one of the nation’s 10 Best Vacation Cities for Beer Lovers. Bell’s Brewery — the flagship — produces Oberon Ale, one of the most beloved seasonal beers in Michigan, and Two Hearted Ale, one of the most consistently decorated American IPAs in history.

Drink: Bell’s Brewery — the anchor of Kalamazoo’s craft beer identity and one of the most significant craft breweries in America. Larry Bell started brewing in 1985 from a 15-gallon soup kettle; today Bell’s produces over 900,000 barrels annually and distributes across 40 states. Two Hearted Ale has been named the best beer in America by multiple national publications. The Eccentric Café in downtown Kalamazoo combines craft beer, great food, and live music in the Bell’s experience that most Kalamazoo visitors make their first stop. Kalamazoo Beer Exchange is one of Michigan’s most distinctive bar concepts — beer prices fluctuate like stock market prices based on real-time demand, creating a genuinely interactive drinking experience. Arcadia Ales produces British-inspired ales using traditional methods that have earned serious respect in the American craft beer community.

Eat: Crow’s Nest at Bell’s Brewery for the complete brewery dining experience. Food Dance on East Michigan Avenue is Kalamazoo’s most celebrated restaurant — farm-to-table cuisine that has earned national recognition and anchored the city’s food culture for years.

Fun: The Kalamazoo Institute of Arts has a strong permanent collection and is free to visit. The WMU aviation program — one of the best in the country — has a museum on campus worth a look. And the Southwest Michigan wine trail, anchored by wineries in Paw Paw and Fennville within 30 minutes of Kalamazoo, makes the area one of the most complete craft beverage destinations in the MAC.

AMHERST, MASSACHUSETTS — UMass Minutemen

Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium (17,000)  ·  Returned to MAC in 2025  ·  Pioneer Valley craft beer country

The Pioneer Valley has a craft beer scene anchored by some of New England’s most celebrated producers — Tree House is 45 minutes east in Charlton; Berkshire Mountain Distillers is 30 minutes west in Sheffield.

Drink: Amherst Brewing Company on University Drive is the local anchor — producing consistent craft beers for the Five College community since 1997. Abandoned Building Brewery in Easthampton is the Pioneer Valley craft standout earning critical attention for creative, well-executed beers. Tree House Brewing Company in Charlton (45 minutes east) is the New England craft beer destination — Julius and Green are among the most sought-after hazy IPAs in the country. Worth the drive on the day before or after the game.

Eat: Judie’s Restaurant on North Pleasant Street has been feeding the UMass and Amherst community since 1977 — creative American cuisine with a devoted local following. The Black Sheep Deli for the Amherst institution that has sustained the Five College community for decades.

Fun: The Emily Dickinson Museum in Amherst — the homestead where she was born, lived, and wrote most of her nearly 1,800 poems — is one of the most significant literary sites in America. Amherst College’s Mead Art Museum has an extraordinary collection for a small liberal arts college. And Berkshire Mountain Distillers in Sheffield (30 minutes west) — the subject of a CrushBrew profile — makes the Pioneer Valley one of the most complete craft beverage destinations in New England.

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA — Sacramento State Hornets

Hornet Stadium (21,000)  ·  Joined MAC in 2026  ·  California’s capital city

Sacramento’s craft beer and farm-to-fork food scene is one of the West Coast’s best-kept secrets — a city that benefits from being surrounded by California’s most productive agricultural valleys.

Drink: Track 7 Brewing Company is Sacramento’s most celebrated craft brewery — the Citra Ass Down IPA is the flagship that has made it a regional institution. New Glory Craft Brewery earns consistent top ratings for quality and range. Ruhstaller Brewing is the Sacramento craft brand with the strongest historical roots — named for Captain Frank Ruhstaller, who operated Sacramento’s most celebrated 19th-century brewery, revived in 2011 to make farm-to-glass lagers using California-grown ingredients.

Eat: The Kitchen on Hurley Way is Sacramento’s most celebrated fine dining destination — a theatrical prix fixe experience where the chefs cook tableside and the meal lasts four hours. Grange Restaurant & Bar in the Citizen Hotel for the farm-to-fork philosophy that Sacramento does better than any other California city outside San Francisco.

Fun: Old Sacramento Waterfront — the restored Gold Rush-era district along the Sacramento River — is the city’s most visited historic area. The California State Railroad Museum here is one of the finest transportation museums in America. The American River Parkway offers 32 miles of bike and walking trails along the river from downtown Sacramento. And the Napa Valley is 60 miles southwest — easily combined with a Sacramento game day weekend for the most complete Northern California craft beverage itinerary in the MAC.

The 14 AAC Cities

West Point, NY — Army  · 
Annapolis, MD — Navy  · 
Memphis, TN — Memphis  · 
New Orleans, LA — Tulane  · 
Tampa, FL — USF  · 
Greenville, NC — East Carolina  · 
Houston, TX — Rice  · 
Tulsa, OK — Tulsa  · 
Birmingham, AL — UAB  · 
San Antonio, TX — UTSA  · 
Denton, TX — North Texas  · 
Boca Raton, FL — FAU  · 
Philadelphia, PA — Temple  · 
Charlotte, NC — Charlotte

WEST POINT, NEW YORK — Army Black Knights

Michie Stadium (38,000)  ·  2024 AAC Champions (12-2)  ·  Hudson Valley  ·  The Corps of Cadets

West Point occupies a federal military reservation with controlled access — commercial options within the gates are limited. The Hudson Valley, however, has become one of New York’s most exciting craft brewery regions.

Drink: Benny Havens Pub & Restaurant in Highland Falls just outside the West Point gate is the institution — named for the legendary 19th-century tavern keeper who served West Point cadets illegally for five decades and inspired the Army drinking song “Benny Havens, Oh!” Industrial Arts Brewing Company in Garnerville (20 minutes south) is the Hudson Valley craft standout — Tools of the Trade IPA has earned national attention. Newburgh Brewing Company in Newburgh (15 minutes north) brews in a beautifully converted 1850s ice house on the waterfront.

Eat: Thayer Hotel on the West Point grounds — built in 1926 on the Academy campus, with Hudson River views and one of the most distinctive dining settings near any football stadium in America.

Fun: Arrive early and watch the Corps of Cadets march in. The gray uniforms, the military precision, the drums — it is completely unlike any other pregame in college football. The West Point Museum on the grounds is free and one of the most significant military history collections in America.

ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND — Navy Midshipmen

Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium (34,000)  ·  Dedicated to all who served and fell  ·  America’s Sailing Capital

Annapolis is one of the most beautiful small cities in America — the colonial capital of Maryland with more 18th-century architecture than any other American city, and a sailing and seafood destination that rewards any visit.

Drink: Fordham & Dominion Brewing Company is the Annapolis craft anchor — the Copperhead Ale has introduced most Maryland drinkers to Annapolis craft beer. Lures Bar & Grille downtown has 27 draft lines and a cellar reserve program — the most serious craft beer selection in the city. 2SPY Brewing Company is the newer local option earning strong reviews.

Eat: Carrol’s Creek Café for Maryland blue crab and oysters with Chesapeake Bay views. Joss Café & Sushi Bar on Main Street for exceptional Japanese cuisine in the colonial city.

Fun: Walk the Naval Academy grounds — the chapel with John Paul Jones’s crypt beneath it, Bancroft Hall housing all 4,000 midshipmen, and the Severn River seawall. Historic Annapolis’s Main Street and City Dock waterfront deserve an afternoon. Take a sailing charter on the Chesapeake if you can — Annapolis is America’s sailing capital for good reason.

MEMPHIS, TENNESSEE — Memphis Tigers

Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium (58,325)  ·  Home of the Blues  ·  BBQ capital of the world

Memphis is the AAC’s best food city alongside New Orleans — a place where barbecue is a religion and the craft beer scene has developed around it.

Drink: Wiseacre Brewing Company is Memphis’s most nationally recognized craft brewery — Ananda IPA and Tiny Bomb Pilsner are the flagships that have made it a regional standard-bearer. Crosstown Brewing Company is in the remarkable Crosstown Concourse — a 1.5-million square foot former Sears distribution center converted into a vertical urban village, one of America’s most ambitious adaptive reuse projects. Boscos Restaurant & Brewing Company in Overton Square is the first brewpub to open in Tennessee — the Flaming Stone, a Great American Beer Festival silver medalist, is the signature. Hampline Brewing near the Greenline bike trail is the current local favorite for creative small-batch production.

Eat: Central BBQ on Central Avenue is Memphis’s most beloved barbecue institution — dry-rubbed ribs and pulled pork that define what Memphis barbecue actually tastes like. The Rendezvous on Monroe Avenue for the dry-rib tradition that has defined Memphis barbecue since 1948.

Fun: Beale Street is the obvious starting point — live blues from every doorway, the spirit of W.C. Handy in every chord. Sun Studio on Union Avenue is the most important recording studio in American music history — the room where Elvis, Johnny Cash, and Jerry Lee Lewis recorded in the 1950s. Tour it. The National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel — where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated on April 4, 1968 — is one of the most significant museums in America and a required stop.

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA — Tulane Green Wave

Yulman Stadium (30,000)  ·  On-campus in Uptown New Orleans  ·  The greatest food and drink city in America

New Orleans is in a category by itself. The craft beer scene that has grown in the Bywater and Mid-City neighborhoods sits alongside 300 years of drinking culture in the French Quarter. This is the AAC’s marquee city and one of the great drinking destinations on earth.

Drink: Courtyard Brewery in the Bywater is consistently New Orleans’s top-rated craft brewery — a relaxed outdoor setting, rotating creative beers, and the neighborhood energy of the Bywater that makes it feel specifically New Orleans. NOLA Brewing Company is the city’s most established craft brand — the Blonde Ale is the approachable flagship and the taproom on Tchoupitoulas Street has a rooftop deck. Parleaux Beer Lab in the Bywater is the critical favorite for serious craft beer enthusiasts — outstanding mixed-fermentation and barrel-aged beers in one of the most interesting neighborhoods in the city. The Avenue Pub on St. Charles Avenue is the finest craft beer bar in Louisiana — two floors, 40+ taps, open 24 hours, and a bottle selection that reflects genuine expertise. One of the best craft beer bars in the American South.

Eat: Dooky Chase’s Restaurant on Orleans Avenue — Leah Chase’s legendary Creole restaurant where presidents, civil rights leaders, and jazz musicians have eaten for generations. Order the fried chicken. Galatoire’s on Bourbon Street — New Orleans fine dining since 1905; the Friday lunch is the most festive meal in a city that invented festive meals. Domilise’s Po-Boys on Annunciation Street for the roast beef po-boy that locals use to settle debates about what a real po-boy tastes like.

Fun: The French Quarter on a football Saturday needs no description — it is already happening whether you are there or not. The Frenchmen Street music scene in the Marigny neighborhood is the local alternative to Bourbon Street — live jazz, blues, and brass band music in bars that feel genuinely New Orleans rather than tourist-facing. Take the St. Charles Avenue streetcar from Tulane’s campus to the Garden District and walk. Eat as much as possible. Come back as soon as you can.

TAMPA, FLORIDA — USF Bulls

Raymond James Stadium (65,618)  ·  Shared with the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers  ·  Ybor City

Tampa’s craft beer scene has grown significantly, anchored by Coppertail Brewing and a Seminole Heights neighborhood corridor that has become one of Florida’s best craft brewery clusters.

Drink: Coppertail Brewing Company on 22nd Street is Tampa’s flagship craft brewery — Free Dive IPA is the flagship that has made Coppertail the most recognized craft brand in the Tampa Bay market. Brew Bus Brewing is Tampa’s community-focused craft option earning consistent praise. Ybor City Brewing brings craft beer into the historic cigar district — the natural pairing of a cigar and a craft beer on Seventh Avenue in Ybor is one of Florida’s most distinctive drinking experiences. Cigar City Brewing — Tampa’s most nationally recognized craft brewery, famous for Jai Alai IPA and the Hunahpu’s Imperial Stout release that draws thousands — has taprooms throughout the area.

Eat: Columbia Restaurant on Seventh Avenue in Ybor City — Florida’s oldest restaurant, open since 1905, serving Spanish-Cuban cuisine in the most beautifully decorated dining room in Tampa. The 1905 Salad prepared tableside is the signature. Bern’s Steak House on Howard Avenue — one of America’s most celebrated steakhouses, aging its own beef and maintaining one of the world’s great wine cellars.

Fun: Seventh Avenue in Ybor City is Tampa’s most distinctive entertainment corridor — historic cigar factories converted to bars and restaurants, the wrought-iron balconies of the original Cuban immigrant architecture, and a Saturday night energy that is unlike anything else in Florida. The Tampa Museum of Art on the Riverwalk downtown has a strong permanent collection and views of the Hillsborough River.

GREENVILLE, NORTH CAROLINA — East Carolina Pirates

Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium (50,000)  ·  The Purple & Gold  ·  ECU fans are among the AAC’s most passionate

Greenville has a compact but growing craft beer scene and an Uptown entertainment district that handles the game day crowd well.

Drink: Pitt Street Brewing Company is Greenville’s flagship craft brewery — consistently the top-rated local option with a downtown taproom that has become the ECU community’s gathering spot. Uptown Brewing Company rounds out the local craft scene with solid beers and a welcoming atmosphere. Jack Brown’s Beer & Burger Joint is the craft beer bar with the best combination of selection and food — a national craft beer bar chain with a genuinely good local execution.

Eat: The Scullery is Greenville’s most celebrated restaurant — creative Southern cuisine that has earned a following beyond the ECU community. Sup Dogs near campus for the hot dog institution that ECU students have made a Greenville landmark.

Fun: The Uptown Greenville entertainment district concentrates the best of the city’s bars and restaurants within walking distance of each other. The East Carolina campus itself is worth a walk — the Joyner Library and the A.J. Fletcher Recital Hall reflect the university’s investment in its campus environment.

HOUSTON, TEXAS — Rice Owls

Rice Stadium (47,000)  ·  President Kennedy’s Moon Speech  ·  Houston’s academic jewel

Houston is the AAC’s largest city and one of America’s great food and drink destinations — the most diverse city in the United States with a craft beer scene that has grown to match its ambitions.

Drink: Saint Arnold Brewing Company on Lyons Avenue — Texas’s oldest craft brewery, with Fancy Lawnmower the iconic Houston craft beer and a beer hall that is one of the most beloved communal spaces in the city. Eureka Heights Brew Co. in the Heights is the critical favorite — nationally recognized IPAs and lagers. Ginger Man in Rice Village — just steps from the stadium — has been serving craft beer since 1985 and is one of the oldest craft beer bars in Texas. Axelrad in Midtown brings hammocks, a 60-foot neon tree, and excellent craft beer to one of Houston’s most distinctive outdoor bar settings.

Eat: Xin Chào for James Beard-nominated Vietnamese cuisine reflecting Houston’s extraordinary Vietnamese community. Truth BBQ on Ella Boulevard for Houston barbecue that has earned national best-of recognition. The Museum District surrounding Rice has excellent dining options within walking distance of the stadium.

Fun: Stand in Rice Stadium and think about Kennedy’s words in 1962. The Houston Museum of Fine Arts, the Menil Collection, and the Rothko Chapel are all within a mile of the stadium — the most concentrated museum district in the South. Space Center Houston, 25 miles southeast, is the most complete NASA visitor experience in the country.

TULSA, OKLAHOMA — Tulsa Golden Hurricane

H.A. Chapman Stadium (30,000)  ·  Oil Capital of the World  ·  Art Deco treasure

Tulsa has developed one of the better craft beer scenes in Oklahoma — anchored by American Solera’s nationally recognized barrel-aged program and a Brady Arts District corridor worth exploring.

Drink: American Solera on East 6th Street is Tulsa’s nationally recognized craft brewery — one of the best barrel-cask programs in the country, producing outstanding sours, farmhouse ales, and dessert stouts in a spacious 14,000-square foot taproom. Marshall Brewing Company on Frankfort Avenue is the established Tulsa craft brand — Sundown Wheat is the approachable flagship. Cabin Boys Brewery in the Brady Arts District brings a neighborhood taproom feel to one of Tulsa’s most vibrant cultural neighborhoods. Valkyrie is consistently top-rated for craft beer selection and atmosphere.

Eat: Juniper in the Brookside neighborhood is Tulsa’s most celebrated restaurant — modern American cuisine that has earned James Beard attention. Lone Wolf Banh Mi for the Vietnamese sandwiches that have made it a local institution.

Fun: The Philbrook Museum of Art in a 1927 Italian Renaissance villa with 23 acres of formal gardens is one of the most unexpected museum experiences in the South. The Art Deco architecture walking tour of downtown Tulsa — the Boston Avenue Methodist Church, the Philtower, the Tulsa Union Depot — is one of the great architectural experiences in the American interior.

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA — UAB Blazers

Protective Stadium (47,100)  ·  The Magic City  ·  The program that fought back

Birmingham’s craft beer and food scene has grown into one of the best in the Deep South — the Avondale neighborhood and the surrounding area have developed a density of quality that is genuinely surprising.

Drink: Avondale Brewing Company in the Avondale neighborhood is Birmingham’s craft institution — Spring Street Saison is the flagship and the taproom in a converted 1914 firehouse with a beer garden and live music is one of the best brewery experiences in Alabama. Good People Brewing Company is Birmingham’s most distributed craft brand — the Snake Handler Double IPA has earned national recognition. TrimTab Brewing Company in Lakeview is the critical favorite for creative small-batch production earning consistent awards. Monday Night Brewing has a Birmingham taproom — the Atlanta-based award winner (Gold at GABF 2025) brings serious craft credentials to the Alabama market.

Eat: Highlands Bar and Grill on 11th Court South — Chef Frank Stitt’s James Beard Award-winning Southern cuisine that has anchored Birmingham’s fine dining scene for decades and helped launch the city’s food renaissance. Niki’s West on Finley Avenue for the legendary Birmingham meat-and-three that has been serving steam-table Southern food to downtown workers since 1957.

Fun: The Birmingham Civil Rights Institute across from 16th Street Baptist Church — where four girls were killed in a 1963 bombing — is one of the most important museums in America. The Avondale neighborhood for a post-game evening of craft beer and live music. The Birmingham Museum of Art has a strong collection and is free to visit.

SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS — UTSA Roadrunners

Alamodome (65,000)  ·  Remember the Alamo  ·  2021 AAC West Division Champions

San Antonio has a growing craft beer scene anchored by Ranger Creek and a Pearl District brewery cluster that has made the city a legitimate craft beer destination.

Drink: Ranger Creek Brewing & Distilling is San Antonio’s standout dual-threat operation — craft beer and craft whiskey under the same roof, with the Mesquite Smoked Porter and the .36 Texas Bourbon among the most distinctive products in the Texas craft market. Künstler Brewing in the Pearl District earns consistent top ratings for quality and atmosphere. Roadmap Brewing is the newer standout winning awards for creative production. The Hoppy Monk on Broadway has 250 international beers on tap — one of the most extensive selections in Texas.

Eat: The Pearl District — the converted 1883 Pearl Brewery complex along the San Antonio River — houses the best concentration of restaurants in the city, anchored by Saturday farmers markets and year-round food events. Mi Tierra Café & Bakery on Commerce Street in Market Square — open 24 hours since 1941, serving Tex-Mex to everyone from migrant workers to presidents.

Fun: Visit the Alamo. Walk the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park — four Spanish colonial missions stretching along the San Antonio River, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the most complete example of Spanish colonial mission architecture in the United States. The River Walk at night is the most pleasant urban stroll in Texas.

DENTON, TEXAS — North Texas Mean Green

Apogee Stadium (30,850)  ·  First solar-powered stadium in NCAA history  ·  Live music capital of North Texas

Denton’s Fry Street and the Denton Square are the city’s gathering places — a college town that has developed genuine character beyond its proximity to Dallas.

Drink: Armadillo Ale Works is Denton’s most celebrated craft brewery — the Quakertown Stout and Brunch Money IPA are the flagships of a taproom that has made it the gathering point for the North Texas craft beer community. Eastside Denton is the lively craft beer bar near campus with a strong selection and game day energy. Dan’s Silverleaf on Industrial Street is the legendary Denton music and craft beer venue — live music seven nights a week in a building that has been central to Denton’s music culture for over two decades.

Eat: Harvest House on West Hickory Street is Denton’s farm-to-table standout — locally sourced seasonal menu that has earned a following beyond the UNT community. Recycled Books, Records & CDs is technically a bookstore, not a restaurant, but no visit to Denton is complete without browsing its three floors of books and records on the Square.

Fun: The Denton Square on a football Saturday has the energy of a genuine college town — music from multiple venues, independent shops, and the craft beer culture that has made Denton something other than a suburb of Dallas. The Denton Arts and Jazz Festival in April is one of the largest free music festivals in Texas. The solar-powered Apogee Stadium is worth seeing specifically for its environmental design.

BOCA RATON, FLORIDA — Florida Atlantic Owls

FAU Stadium (30,000)  ·  Between Miami and Palm Beach  ·  Lane Kiffin built something here

Boca Raton’s local craft beer options are limited but Fort Lauderdale and Miami are 30-45 minutes south and provide the full South Florida range of options.

Drink: Due South Brewing Co. in Boynton Beach (15 minutes north) is Palm Beach County’s most celebrated craft brewery — award-winning beers in a taproom that draws serious craft beer enthusiasts from across South Florida. Barrel of Monks Brewing in Boca Raton is the local option — Belgian-inspired beers in a taproom designed around the monastic brewing tradition. J. Wakefield Brewing in Miami’s Wynwood (45 minutes south) is the South Florida craft destination for serious beer drinkers.

Eat: Funky Buddha Lounge & Brewery on West Palmetto Park Road — a Boca institution for craft beer and food. Josephine’s Italian Ristorante for the fine dining option that locals point to first.

Fun: The Boca Raton beaches are among Florida’s cleanest and least crowded — Red Reef Park and Spanish River Park offer Atlantic swimming and snorkeling within 10 minutes of the stadium. The Boca Raton Museum of Art in Mizner Park has a strong collection and rotating exhibitions. Fort Lauderdale’s Las Olas Boulevard (30 minutes south) is the evening destination for visitors who want more than Boca’s suburban dining options.

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA — Temple Owls

Lincoln Financial Field (69,596)  ·  Shared with the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles  ·  The City of Brotherly Love

Philadelphia is the AAC’s best craft beer city alongside New Orleans — a city with deep brewing roots, a passionate sports culture, and food that is more interesting than its cheesesteak reputation suggests.

Drink: Yards Brewing Company on Delaware Avenue is Philadelphia’s flagship craft brewery — Thomas Jefferson’s Tavern Ale (brewed from a Jefferson recipe) and George Washington’s Tavern Porter (from a Washington recipe) are the historically significant flagships that make Yards uniquely Philadelphia. Dock Street Brewing Company on Sansom Street is the other Philadelphia craft institution — the first craft brewery to open in Philadelphia after Prohibition, in 1985. Monk’s Café on South 16th Street is Philadelphia’s most celebrated craft beer bar — ranked among the best in the country, with a Belgian focus and a bottle list that draws serious beer drinkers from across the region. Evil Genius Beer Company in Fishtown brings humor and quality to the city’s most vibrant craft neighborhood.

Eat: Reading Terminal Market on 12th Street — the 1893 farmers and food market that is one of America’s great urban market experiences. DiNic’s roast pork Italian sandwich here is the most argued-about sandwich in Philadelphia. Zahav on Poca Hontas Street — Michael Solomonov’s James Beard Award-winning Israeli restaurant, one of the most celebrated restaurants in America.

Fun: The Philadelphia Museum of Art — run up the Rocky steps, then go inside. The collection is world-class and the building is one of America’s great Beaux-Arts landmarks. Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell are walkable from City Hall. South Street and Fishtown for the evening bar and music scene that captures Philadelphia’s character best.

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA — Charlotte 49ers

Jerry Richardson Stadium (15,314)  ·  Queen City  ·  The AAC’s newest major market

Charlotte’s craft beer scene is one of the best in the Southeast — NoDa Brewing’s Hop Drop ‘n Roll IPA alone has won more Great American Beer Festival gold medals than any other beer in history.

Drink: NoDa Brewing Company is Charlotte’s flagship craft brewery — Hop Drop ‘n Roll IPA has won the GABF gold medal in the American IPA category more times than any other beer in competition history. A national benchmark for the style. Olde Mecklenburg Brewery brings authentic German lager brewing to Charlotte — the Copper and Mecktoberfest are the flagships of one of the Southeast’s most distinctive craft programs. Wooden Robot Brewery in South End is the critical favorite for creative small-batch production. Sugar Creek Brewing Company rounds out South End’s brewery cluster with consistent, approachable beers.

Eat: Kindred in Davidson (20 minutes north) is one of the most celebrated restaurants in the Carolinas — James Beard Award-winning New American cuisine in a small-town setting. Price’s Chicken Coop on Camden Road in South End — the legendary Charlotte fried chicken counter, cash only, no seating, operating since 1962. The line on game day is part of the experience.

Fun: The NoDa (North Davidson) neighborhood — Charlotte’s arts and music district — has the most concentrated collection of craft breweries, galleries, and live music venues in the city. The South End light rail corridor connects the stadium area to South End’s brewery cluster efficiently. The Mint Museum Uptown has one of the South’s best art collections and is worth the visit before an evening game.

The 8 Ivy League Cities

Cambridge, MA — Harvard  · 
New Haven, CT — Yale  · 
Princeton, NJ — Princeton  · 
Philadelphia, PA — Penn  · 
New York City, NY — Columbia  · 
Ithaca, NY — Cornell  · 
Hanover, NH — Dartmouth  · 
Providence/Pawtucket, RI — Brown

CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS — Harvard Crimson

Harvard Stadium (30,323)  ·  Oldest college football stadium in America (1903)  ·  Three-time defending Ivy champions  ·  The Game at Fenway Park in 2026

Cambridge and Boston together form the Ivy League’s best craft beer market — a combination of world-class production breweries, historic institutions, and the most innovative food scene in New England.

Drink: Cambridge Brewing Company on Kendall Square is the Cambridge institution — over 30 years of brewing in the MIT and Harvard corridor, with Charles River Porter and Hefeweizen as the flagships. Lamplighter Brewing Co. on First Street is Cambridge’s current critical favorite — award-winning hazy IPAs and seasonal releases in a beautifully designed taproom near Kendall Square. Trillium Brewing Company in Boston’s Fort Point (15 minutes by Red Line) is the New England craft beer destination — Julius IPA is among the most sought-after beers in the country. Samuel Adams Boston Brewery in Jamaica Plain for the brewery tour that launched American craft beer.

Eat: Harvest on Brattle Street in Harvard Square is Cambridge’s most celebrated restaurant — New American cuisine in a landmark space that has been a gathering point for Harvard faculty, students, and alumni for decades. Mr. Bartley’s Burger Cottage on Massachusetts Avenue — the Harvard Square burger institution since 1960, with burgers named for celebrities and politicians that capture the irreverence of the neighborhood.

Fun: Harvard Square is one of the great urban gathering places in America — bookstores, cafés, street musicians, and the kind of conversation that happens when you put 20,000 of the world’s most intellectually ambitious people in a few square blocks. The Harvard Art Museums have one of the finest university art collections in the world. If The Game is at Fenway Park in 2026, do not miss it — watching Harvard-Yale at Fenway is one of the most storied experiences in American collegiate sports.

NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT — Yale Bulldogs

Yale Bowl (61,446)  ·  Largest Ivy League stadium  ·  The birthplace of the pizza New Haven thinks it invented

New Haven’s craft beer scene has grown alongside its food reputation, anchored by Ordinary in downtown New Haven and supported by the Connecticut craft beer boom that has made the state one of New England’s most interesting craft markets.

Drink: Ordinary on Crown Street is New Haven’s most celebrated craft bar — an award-winning cocktail and craft beer program in a beautifully designed downtown space that has become the city’s gathering point for serious drinkers. Stony Creek Brewery in Branford (15 minutes east) is the standout Connecticut craft brewery closest to New Haven — beautiful setting on Branford Harbor with award-winning beers. Two Roads Brewing Company in Stratford (30 minutes southwest) is Connecticut’s largest and most decorated craft brewery — a former factory conversion with one of the best taproom experiences in New England.

Eat: Frank Pepe Pizzeria Napoletana on Wooster Street — the originator of New Haven apizza, open since 1925. The white clam pizza is the dish that made New Haven famous in food circles. Sally’s Apizza on Wooster Street — Pepe’s rival since 1938, with a devoted following that argues it is the superior pizza. The Wooster Street debate is New Haven’s most passionately held food argument and there is no wrong answer.

Fun: The Yale campus is one of America’s most architecturally magnificent — the Gothic Revival buildings of Old Campus and the Sterling Memorial Library are worth a walking tour. The Yale University Art Gallery and the Yale Center for British Art (both free) constitute one of the finest museum complexes of any university in the world. And if you’re visiting for a game and haven’t had New Haven apizza — go to Wooster Street and make a decision about Pepe’s vs Sally’s. It is the most delicious argument in college football.

PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY — Princeton Tigers

Powers Field at Princeton Stadium (27,800)  ·  Where football was born  ·  Albert Einstein’s home

Princeton Borough is a beautiful, walkable small city with a Main Street that rewards exploration and a craft beer scene that has grown alongside New Jersey’s brewing renaissance.

Drink: Triumph Brewing Company on Broad Street is Princeton’s brewpub institution — house-brewed craft beers, a full restaurant, and a location steps from the university that has made it the gathering place for Princeton alumni on game day. Carton Brewing Company in Atlantic Highlands (45 minutes east) is New Jersey’s most nationally decorated craft brewery — Boat Beer and 077XX Double IPA are the flagships that have earned serious craft beer recognition. Kane Brewing Company in Ocean (40 minutes east) rivals Carton for New Jersey craft beer supremacy — Head High IPA and Morning Bell are the standout releases.

Eat: Agricola on Nassau Street is Princeton’s farm-to-table standout — locally sourced, seasonally driven cuisine that has earned a national reputation. Mistral on Witherspoon Street for the French-influenced cuisine in a romantic setting that makes it Princeton’s special occasion restaurant.

Fun: Walk Nassau Street and the campus. The Princeton University Art Museum has one of the finest university art collections in America — and admission is free. Visit 112 Mercer Street — Einstein’s home — from the outside; it is a private residence but a required walk for anyone interested in the history of science. New York City is 55 minutes by NJ Transit train from Princeton Junction.

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA — Penn Quakers

Franklin Field (52,958)  ·  Oldest stadium in continuous use in college football (1895)  ·  West Philadelphia

Philadelphia’s craft beer scene is one of the East Coast’s best — Yards, Dock Street, Monk’s Café, and a Fishtown neighborhood brewery cluster that continues to grow. (See the Temple entry in the AAC Guide for the full Philadelphia craft beer and dining guide — both programs share the city.)

Drink: Yards Brewing Company on Delaware Avenue — Philadelphia’s flagship craft brewery. Dock Street Brewing Company — the first craft brewery in Philadelphia after Prohibition, in 1985. Monk’s Café — one of the best craft beer bars in the country, with a Belgian focus. Tired Hands Brewing Company in Ardmore (15 minutes west on SEPTA) for the critically acclaimed farmhouse ales that have made it a national destination.

Eat: Vetri Cucina on Spruce Street — Marc Vetri’s James Beard Award-winning Italian restaurant, one of the finest in America. Reading Terminal Market for the pre-game fuel that no Philadelphia visit should skip. DiNic’s roast pork Italian is non-negotiable.

Fun: The Penn Museum (University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology) is one of the great archaeology museums in the world — Egyptian mummies, Near Eastern artifacts, and Greek and Roman collections in a Beaux-Arts building steps from Franklin Field. The Philadelphia Museum of Art, Independence Hall, and the Liberty Bell are accessible by subway from the stadium in 20 minutes.

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK — Columbia Lions

Robert K. Kraft Field at Lawrence A. Wien Stadium (17,000)  ·  Inwood Hill, Manhattan  ·  The greatest city in the world

New York City has the most extraordinary craft beer and beverage scene in the United States. The Ivy League’s most urban setting gives visitors access to everything that implies.

Drink: Harlem Brewing Company on 133rd Street — the closest craft brewery to Columbia’s uptown campus, in a neighborhood whose cultural history is as significant as any in America. Other Half Brewing in Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn — one of the most sought-after craft breweries in the city, known for Green Diamonds double IPA and a rotating selection that draws lines on release days. Flagship Brewing Company on Staten Island — the only craft brewery on Staten Island and a destination for the Ferry ride alone. Chelsea Craft Brewing in Manhattan for the game day option nearest to mid-Manhattan. The list of excellent New York City craft breweries is essentially endless — explore by neighborhood.

Eat: The list of James Beard Award-winning and Michelin-starred restaurants within five miles of Columbia is too long to summarize. Dinosaur Bar-B-Que on 131st Street near the Columbia campus for the excellent barbecue that has anchored the Harlem side of the Columbia experience. Levain Bakery on Amsterdam Avenue for the chocolate walnut cookie that has become one of New York City’s most replicated food items.

Fun: Inwood Hill Park — where Columbia’s stadium sits — contains the last remaining natural forest in Manhattan and the cave where Peter Minuit allegedly purchased Manhattan from the Lenape people for 60 guilders in 1626. The Cloisters Museum at the north tip of Fort Tryon Park, 10 minutes from the stadium, houses the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s medieval collection in a rebuilt medieval European monastery with views of the Hudson River and the Palisades. It is one of the great museum experiences in America and virtually unknown to tourists.

ITHACA, NEW YORK — Cornell Big Red

Schoellkopf Field (25,597)  ·  Gorges country  ·  Most beautiful college town setting in the Ivy League

Ithaca has one of the most interesting craft beer and food scenes of any small city in the Northeast — anchored by Ithaca Beer Company and surrounded by the Finger Lakes wine region that produces some of America’s finest Riesling.

Drink: Ithaca Beer Company on Elmira Road is the flagship — Flower Power IPA is one of the most recognized East Coast IPAs, a hop-forward beer with tropical fruit and citrus character that has defined what Ithaca does best for over 25 years. The taproom and restaurant is the natural game day destination. Liquid State Brewing Company on West State Street is the current critical favorite — small-batch, creative beers in a downtown taproom that has become a gathering spot for the Ithaca craft community. Bandwagon Brew Pub has built a loyal local following for consistent, approachable house beers alongside a full food program.

Eat: Moosewood Restaurant on North Meadow Street — one of the most influential vegetarian restaurants in American food history, open since 1973 and a founding institution of the vegetarian and natural food movement. The Moosewood cookbooks have sold millions of copies. Agava Restaurant on West State Street for the Mexican-inspired cuisine that consistently earns the best food reviews in Ithaca.

Fun: The gorges. Cascadilla Gorge Trail runs from downtown Ithaca to the Cornell campus — a 35-minute walk through a limestone gorge with waterfalls that is one of the great urban natural experiences in America. Taughannock Falls State Park (10 miles north on Cayuga Lake) has a waterfall higher than Niagara Falls. And the Finger Lakes wine trail — Dr. Frank’s Vinifera Wine Cellars, Ravines Wine Cellars, Standing Stone Vineyards — is the most serious wine region in the Northeast and worth building a full day around before or after any Cornell game.

HANOVER, NEW HAMPSHIRE — Dartmouth Big Green

Memorial Field (13,000)  ·  The most remote Ivy League campus  ·  Upper Connecticut River Valley

Hanover has limited craft beer options for its size but the Upper Connecticut River Valley has excellent options in the area, and the surrounding landscape rewards as much attention as the game.

Drink: Woodstock Inn Station & Brewery in North Woodstock (45 minutes south) is the region’s standout craft brewery — award-winning beers in a destination inn setting in the White Mountains. Harpoon Brewery in Windsor, Vermont (30 minutes north across the Connecticut River) has a taproom in the former Cornish-Windsor covered bridge area — beautiful Vermont setting, consistently good beers. Salt Hill Pub in Lebanon, NH (10 minutes south) is the best craft beer bar nearest to campus — a genuine Irish pub with a thoughtful tap list that rewards serious beer drinkers in an otherwise limited market.

Eat: Molly’s Restaurant & Bar on South Main Street in Hanover is the Dartmouth institution — the bar and restaurant that has served the Dartmouth community for decades and fills with green on football Saturdays. Lou’s Restaurant & Bakery on South Main Street for the game day breakfast that has been a Hanover ritual since 1947.

Fun: The Hood Museum of Art on the Dartmouth Green has one of the finest university art collections in New England — free admission, extraordinary holdings in American art and Native American material culture. The Appalachian Trail crosses the Dartmouth campus — a walk to the summit of Gile Mountain or along the Connecticut River before a fall game is the most Dartmouth thing you can do. Quechee Gorge in Vermont (25 minutes north) is one of New England’s most dramatic natural sites.

PROVIDENCE/PAWTUCKET, RHODE ISLAND — Brown Bears

Centreville Bank Stadium (20,000)  ·  Pawtucket, RI  ·  Providence food scene is one of New England’s best

Providence’s craft beer scene has grown to complement one of the best food cities in New England. The College Hill neighborhood around Brown and Federal Hill — Providence’s Italian neighborhood — are the two areas that reward the most exploration.

Drink: Proclamation Ale Company in Warwick (20 minutes south) is Rhode Island’s most nationally recognized craft brewery — Peaks of Comfort IPA and Tender Feelings Double IPA have earned followers across New England. Foolproof Brewing Company in Pawtucket (right near the stadium) is the convenient game day option — well-made, approachable beers in a taproom that has become the Pawtucket craft anchor. Nage on Washington Street for a craft cocktail program that has become one of Providence’s most celebrated. The Malted Barley in Providence for the craft beer bar with the most serious selection in the city.

Eat: Al Forno on South Main Street — the Providence restaurant where grilled pizza was invented in the 1980s, a James Beard Award winner, and one of the most influential restaurants in American food history. Federal Hill — Providence’s Italian neighborhood on Atwells Avenue — has the most concentrated collection of Italian restaurants, markets, and bakeries in New England. The DePasquale Piazza is the gathering point.

Fun: Federal Hill on a Saturday afternoon before or after a game is one of the great Italian-American neighborhood experiences in New England — the arched gateway, the pineapple fountain, the pastry shops. The Providence Athenaeum on Benefit Street — one of America’s oldest libraries, where Edgar Allan Poe courted Sarah Helen Whitman — is a 10-minute walk from Brown’s campus and open for visits. The RISD Museum (Rhode Island School of Design) is one of the finest art museums in New England with a collection that includes works from ancient Egypt to contemporary design.

The 10 Mountain West Cities

Colorado Springs, CO — Air Force  · 
Honolulu, HI — Hawaii  · 
Reno, NV — Nevada  · 
Albuquerque, NM — New Mexico  · 
DeKalb, IL — Northern Illinois  · 
Fargo, ND — North Dakota State  · 
San Jose, CA — San José State  · 
Las Vegas, NV — UNLV  · 
El Paso, TX — UTEP  · 
Laramie, WY — Wyoming

COLORADO SPRINGS, COLORADO — Air Force Falcons

Falcon Stadium (46,692)  ·  United States Air Force Academy  ·  6,006 feet elevation

Colorado Springs has developed a genuine craft beer scene in recent years, anchored by Goat Patch and a downtown corridor that has grown significantly alongside the city’s population boom.

Drink: Goat Patch Brewing Company is consistently Colorado Springs’s top-rated craft brewery — outstanding beers and a taproom that locals point to first. Bristol Brewing Company is Colorado Springs’s most established craft brewery, brewing since 1994 with Laughing Lab Scottish Ale as its most decorated flagship — a Great American Beer Festival gold medalist. Trinity Brewing Company is the creative standout — a certified organic and sustainability-focused brewery earning national attention for boundary-pushing beers including a renowned saison program. Red Leg Brewing Company honors the military heritage of Colorado Springs with veteran-owned craft beer and a mission of supporting transitioning veterans.

Eat: The Rabbit Hole on Tejon Street is Colorado Springs’s most celebrated restaurant — a subterranean dining destination with creative American cuisine and one of the best cocktail programs in the city. Shuga’s on North Tejon Street for the eclectic, LGBTQ-welcoming café that has been a Colorado Springs institution for years.

Fun: The Air Force Academy Visitor Center is open to the public — the Cadet Chapel alone is worth the drive. Pikes Peak (14,115 feet) is accessible by highway or cog railway from Colorado Springs. Garden of the Gods Park — dramatic red sandstone formations at the foot of the Rockies — is free and one of the most photographed natural landscapes in Colorado.

HONOLULU, HAWAII — Hawaii Warriors

Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex (9,000)  ·  On-campus at Manoa  ·  The furthest away game in college football

Honolulu’s craft beer scene has grown significantly — and the combination of a game day in Hawaii with the island’s food, beaches, and culture makes it the most compelling road trip destination in the Mountain West.

Drink: Hana Koa Brewing Company near the Kaka’ako arts district is Honolulu’s most critically acclaimed craft brewery — innovative beers inspired by Hawaiian ingredients and culture, including a Passion Fruit Sour and a Kiawe-smoked Porter that capture the islands in a glass. Waikiki Brewing Company in Waikiki and Kaimuki is the most accessible option for game day visitors — approachable, Hawaiian-inspired beers steps from the beach. Maui Brewing Company’s Waikiki location brings the award-winning beers from Maui to Honolulu — Bikini Blonde Lager and Big Swell IPA are the flagships. Aloha Beer Company in the Kaka’ako neighborhood is the craft bar staple with a rotating lineup of house beers and a lively atmosphere.

Eat: The Pig and the Lady in Chinatown is Honolulu’s most celebrated restaurant — Vietnamese-inspired, locally sourced, and one of the most genuinely creative kitchens in the Pacific. Marukame Udon on Kalakaua Avenue for the freshly made udon that has lines around the block at lunch and remains one of the best food values in Hawaii.

Fun: If you are making the trip to Honolulu for a game — and you should — give yourself at least four days. Waikiki Beach, Diamond Head crater hike, the Pearl Harbor National Memorial, the North Shore surf scene, and the Polynesian Cultural Center are all within reach. The road to Manoa Valley from the university campus is one of the most beautiful short drives in Hawaii. A Hawaii road trip is not just the best Mountain West away game — it is one of the great American sports travel experiences.

RENO, NEVADA — Nevada Wolf Pack

Mackay Stadium (30,000)  ·  The Biggest Little City in the World  ·  Truckee River corridor

Reno has a growing craft beer scene anchored by Imbib Custom Brews and a downtown corridor that has significantly improved over the past decade.

Drink: Imbib Custom Brews is Reno’s most celebrated craft brewery — creative beers with a rotating selection that has earned consistent critical praise and a loyal following in the Truckee Meadows craft community. Brasserie Saint James is Reno’s acclaimed Belgian-inspired brewpub — outstanding house-brewed Belgian ales and a full restaurant menu that makes it a destination for serious beer drinkers. Revision Brewing Company earns consistent top ratings for hop-forward IPAs and is one of the fastest-growing craft brands in Northern Nevada. Sierra Tap House for the craft beer bar with the most serious selection in the city.

Eat: Campo Reno on North Sierra Street is Reno’s farm-to-table anchor — locally sourced, seasonally driven cuisine that has helped define the new Reno food identity. The Depot Craft Brewery Distillery for craft beer and spirits under one roof in a converted 1910 Southern Pacific Railroad depot — one of Reno’s most distinctive dining and drinking experiences.

Fun: The Nevada Museum of Art in downtown Reno has the strongest art collection in the Great Basin. Lake Tahoe is 45 minutes southwest — one of the most beautiful alpine lakes in the world. The Truckee River walk through downtown Reno is the city’s most pleasant outdoor corridor and connects the best restaurants and bars.

ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO — New Mexico Lobos

University Stadium (39,224)  ·  The Duke City  ·  Breaking Bad country

Albuquerque has one of the Mountain West’s best craft beer scenes — La Cumbre Brewing has earned national recognition, and the city’s 60+ breweries reflect a community that takes craft beer seriously.

Drink: La Cumbre Brewing Company is Albuquerque’s flagship — Project Dank IPA and Elevated IPA have earned national recognition and made La Cumbre one of the Southwest’s most respected craft brands. Bow & Arrow Brewing is one of the most distinctive craft breweries in America — founded by Shyla Shepperd and Missy Begay, it is the only brewery in the Mountain West owned and operated by Native American women, and its beers reflect indigenous ingredients and cultural identity in a way that makes every pint genuinely meaningful. Tractor Brewing Company has multiple Albuquerque locations and an outdoor patio culture that captures the New Mexico lifestyle. Marble Brewery is the downtown institution — one of the oldest craft breweries in the city with a rooftop patio in the Nob Hill neighborhood.

Eat: El Pinto Restaurant in the North Valley is New Mexico’s most famous restaurant — green chile cuisine in a sprawling hacienda setting that has served U.S. presidents and is considered by many the definitive New Mexico dining experience. Casa de Benavidez for the New Mexican cuisine and margaritas that locals point to first.

Fun: The Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta in October — 500+ hot air balloons launching at dawn from Balloon Fiesta Park — is one of the great visual spectacles in American outdoor culture and worth planning a trip around if the calendar aligns. The Sandia Peak Tramway (the longest aerial tramway in North America) ascends 10,378 feet with views across the Rio Grande Valley. Old Town Albuquerque preserves 300 years of Spanish colonial history in 10 square blocks.

DeKALB, ILLINOIS — Northern Illinois Huskies

Huskie Stadium (23,468)  ·  From the MAC to the Mountain West  ·  65 miles west of Chicago

DeKalb has a modest craft beer scene for its size, but Chicago is 65 miles east and completely accessible for a pre-or post-game evening.

Drink: Brickstone Restaurant & Brewery in nearby Bourbonnais (60 miles south) is one of Illinois’s most consistently awarded craft breweries — worth knowing for the broader region. In DeKalb itself: House Cafe on Locust Street is the local live music and craft beer venue that has been central to NIU’s community for years. The House Ale Works is the local craft option earning community support. And for serious craft beer — Chicago’s extraordinary brewery scene (Goose Island, Half Acre, Dovetail, Maplewood, Revolution) is 65 miles east on I-88 and worth the drive for any visitor making a weekend of it.

Eat: Fatty’s Pub & Grille is DeKalb’s most beloved game day institution — the bar that NIU students and alumni have been returning to for years. Rosita’s Mexican Restaurant for the Northern Illinois institution that locals recommend for the authentic Mexican food that reflects the area’s demographics.

Fun: Chicago is the evening destination — 65 miles on I-88, accessible in under 90 minutes. The Art Institute of Chicago, Millennium Park, the Magnificent Mile, and one of the world’s greatest restaurant cities are all accessible for any NIU game day visitor with a car and an evening to spend. DeKalb’s own Glidden House — a historic mansion on the NIU campus — is connected to barbed wire inventor Joseph Glidden, who lived here in the 1870s.

FARGO, NORTH DAKOTA — North Dakota State Bison

Gate City Bank Field at the Fargodome (18,700 on-field seating)  ·  FCS dynasty joins FBS  ·  Fargo-Moorhead metro

Fargo has one of the most genuinely excellent craft beer scenes in the Northern Plains — anchored by Drekker Brewing, which has earned national attention for some of the most creative beers produced between Minneapolis and the Rockies.

Drink: Drekker Brewing Company on Broadway is Fargo’s crown jewel — consistently rated among the best craft breweries in the upper Midwest, with creative, boundary-pushing beers including outstanding hazy IPAs, pastry stouts, and sour ales that have earned followers from well outside North Dakota. The taproom is genuinely excellent. Junkyard Brewing Company is the other Fargo standout — bold, creative beers in a taproom that captures Fargo’s no-nonsense character. Brockopp Brewing rounds out a Fargo craft scene that is consistently stronger than visitors expect from a city of 130,000 people in the Northern Plains.

Eat: Würst Bier Hall on Broadway brings German bierhall culture to Fargo with house-brewed beers and a food program built around sausages, pretzels, and schnitzels. Spicy Pie is Fargo’s most beloved pizza chain — locals will argue about whether it or its competitors make the best pie, which is the most Fargo conversation possible.

Fun: The Roger Maris Museum in the West Acres Shopping Center is the most complete tribute to the Yankees’ 1961 home run king — Maris was born in Hibbing, Minnesota but grew up in Fargo and is the city’s most famous sports figure alongside Carson Wentz. The Fargo-Moorhead metro straddles the North Dakota-Minnesota border and the Red River — Moorhead, Minnesota is literally across the river. The Coen Brothers’ film Fargo was set here (though mostly filmed in Minnesota) and the FX television series has kept the city in the national cultural conversation.

SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA — San José State Spartans

CEFCU Stadium (30,000)  ·  Silicon Valley  ·  2020 Mountain West Champions

San Jose’s craft beer scene is genuinely excellent — Hapa’s Brewing is the community anchor, and the South Bay craft corridor connects to the broader Bay Area scene within easy reach.

Drink: Hapa’s Brewing Company is San Jose’s most beloved craft brewery — consistently the top community pick, with a welcoming taproom atmosphere that makes it the natural gathering spot for Spartans fans and local craft beer enthusiasts. Camino Brewing Co. and Beer Garden earns consistent critical praise for quality and range alongside a beautiful outdoor beer garden. Strike Brewing Co. with its Warehouse Taproom is one of the South Bay’s most popular craft destinations. Fox Tale Fermentation Project is the creative wild ale and natural wine program that has attracted the attention of serious drinkers across the Bay Area.

Eat: Adega in the Little Portugal neighborhood is San Jose’s only Michelin-starred restaurant — Portuguese tasting menu cuisine that has made it a national dining destination. Original Joe’s on West St. John Street is the San Jose institution open since 1956 — the Italian-American comfort food that generations of Spartans fans have ordered after games.

Fun: The Tech Museum of Innovation on West San Carlos Street is one of the best science and technology museums in the country — genuinely fascinating for anyone curious about how Silicon Valley actually works. The San Jose Museum of Art has a strong permanent collection. San Francisco is 50 miles north by Caltrain — the full Bay Area is accessible for any extended visit.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA — UNLV Rebels

Allegiant Stadium (65,000)  ·  Shared with the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders  ·  The Entertainment Capital of the World

Las Vegas’s craft beer scene has grown dramatically in the Arts District and downtown neighborhoods — a revelation to anyone who associates the city only with casino bars and frozen cocktails on the Strip.

Drink: Able Baker Brewing in the Arts District is Las Vegas’s most celebrated craft brewery — 32 taps, all but two of which are house brews, with standouts including the Atomic Duck American IPA and a barrel-aged program that creates beers for local restaurants. Named for the first two atomic bombs detonated at the Nevada Test Site. Nevada Brew Works in the Arts District brings a large outdoor patio, 16 rotating house brews, and over 80 whiskeys to a craft destination that is the complete package. Atomic Liquors on Fremont Street is the oldest freestanding bar in Las Vegas — opened in 1952, where the Rat Pack drank, where locals watched atomic test blasts from the rooftop in the 1950s. Historic, atmospheric, and a rotating craft draft list alongside its storied legacy. Bad Beat Brewing earns consistent top ratings for quality and is named for the poker term that defines Las Vegas.

Eat: Esther’s Kitchen in the Arts District — James Beard-nominated Italian cuisine that has made it the most celebrated non-casino restaurant in Las Vegas. Herbs & Rye on West Sahara Avenue for the cocktail bar and steakhouse that serious Las Vegas drinkers consider the city’s best.

Fun: The Las Vegas Arts District on Charleston Boulevard is the city the Strip tourists never find — independently owned galleries, restaurants, craft breweries, and bars in a walkable neighborhood that captures what Las Vegas is becoming beyond the casino corridor. Allegiant Stadium is worth visiting just for the architecture. And if you have never been to Las Vegas for a football game, the city’s complete commitment to entertainment makes the pregame and postgame as memorable as the game itself.

EL PASO, TEXAS — UTEP Miners

Sun Bowl Stadium (51,500)  ·  The Borderland  ·  Where Texas meets New Mexico meets Mexico

El Paso’s craft beer scene has grown along with the city’s broader culinary renaissance — a border city with food and drink influences from Texas, New Mexico, and Mexico simultaneously.

Drink: Deadbeach Brewery is El Paso’s flagship craft brewery — the most nationally recognized El Paso craft brand, with beers that reflect the borderland culture and an irreverent attitude that fits the city. Hoppy Monk on Montana Avenue is El Paso’s most comprehensive craft beer bar — a massive tap list covering Texas, New Mexico, and national craft selections in a welcoming space. WM. Tequila Bar & Lounge for the craft spirits and cocktails option that leans into El Paso’s border culture — the agave spirit connection to Mexico makes tequila and mezcal as important as craft beer in this market.

Eat: L&J Cafe on Old Mesilla Road is El Paso’s most legendary restaurant — Tex-Mex dining since 1927, with enchiladas that are considered by many the finest in Texas. Cattleman’s Steakhouse at Indian Cliffs Ranch (30 miles east) for the most spectacular ranch-setting steakhouse experience in the Chihuahuan Desert.

Fun: The view from Sun Bowl Stadium across the Rio Grande to Ciudad Juárez is unlike anything else in college football — two countries in one sightline. The Wyler Aerial Tramway takes you to the top of the Franklin Mountains for views of three states and two countries. Mission Trail El Paso — four 17th-century Spanish missions and a presidio chapel along 9 miles of the Rio Grande — is one of the most significant historic sites in the American Southwest.

LARAMIE, WYOMING — Wyoming Cowboys

War Memorial Stadium (29,181)  ·  7,220 feet elevation  ·  Wind City USA

Laramie has a craft beer scene that has grown alongside Wyoming’s broader brewing renaissance — 40+ active craft breweries statewide in a state with 580,000 people, which is a remarkable per-capita ratio.

Drink: Altitude Chophouse & Brewery is Laramie’s most decorated craft brewery — Tumblewheat beer won a silver medal at the Great American Beer Festival and the chophouse restaurant makes it the complete game day dining and drinking destination. Coal Creek Tap on South Second Street is the Laramie craft bar institution — a great selection and the local atmosphere that makes it the gathering spot for Cowboys fans on football Saturdays. Library Sports Grille-Brewery near campus brews its own beer and draws the game day crowd in a sports bar format that works for Wyoming football.

Eat: The Alibi Bar & Grill on South Third Street is Laramie’s game day institution — reliable food, cold beer, and the kind of Wyoming hospitality that makes small-town college football genuinely special. Jeffrey’s Bistro on Grand Avenue for the fine dining option that surprises visitors who don’t expect quality cuisine in a town of 33,000 people in the high plains.

Fun: The elevation is the experience — arrive a day early to acclimatize, and notice during the game how the visiting team’s conditioning differs in the fourth quarter at 7,220 feet. The Wyoming Territorial Prison State Historic Site in Laramie is where Butch Cassidy was imprisoned in 1894 — one of the more unusual historic sites adjacent to a college football stadium. Vedauwoo rock formations (20 miles east) offer some of Wyoming’s most striking landscape and excellent climbing. And if the wind is blowing at game time — which it usually is — embrace it. This is Wyoming.

The 14 Sun Belt Cities — East & West Divisions

East Division:
Boone, NC — App State  · 
Conway, SC — Coastal Carolina  · 
Statesboro, GA — Georgia Southern  · 
Atlanta, GA — Georgia State  · 
Harrisonburg, VA — James Madison  · 
Huntington, WV — Marshall  · 
Norfolk, VA — Old Dominion
West Division:
Jonesboro, AR — Arkansas State  · 
Lafayette, LA — Louisiana  · 
Ruston, LA — Louisiana Tech  · 
Mobile, AL — South Alabama  · 
San Marcos, TX — Texas State  · 
Troy, AL — Troy

BOONE, NORTH CAROLINA — Appalachian State Mountaineers

Kidd Brewer Stadium (30,000)  ·  3,333 feet elevation  ·  The upset that changed college football

Boone’s craft beer scene is one of the Sun Belt’s best — a mountain college town with a thriving brewery culture anchored by Appalachian Mountain Brewery and a natural backdrop that makes every pint taste better.

Drink: Appalachian Mountain Brewery is Boone’s flagship — craft beers that reflect the mountain culture and a taproom that has become the gathering place for the App State community. Booneshine Brewing Company is the standout for food and outdoor beer garden culture — a family-friendly atmosphere with well-made beers and a patio that captures Boone’s outdoor lifestyle. Lost Province Brewing earns consistent praise for quality and range in a welcoming downtown setting.

Eat: Dan’l Boone Inn on Hardin Street is the Boone institution — family-style Southern cooking in a historic 1923 building that has been serving Appalachian food to visitors for decades. The fried chicken family style is non-negotiable. The Gamekeeper Restaurant & Bar for the fine dining option in a mountain setting that surprises visitors expecting only casual fare.

Fun: The Blue Ridge Parkway is accessible from multiple points around Boone — the most scenic highway in the eastern United States winds through mountain terrain that peaks in fall color in October, often coinciding with football season. The App State campus at 3,333 feet gives every home game a cool mountain air quality that visiting fans notice immediately.

CONWAY, SOUTH CAROLINA — Coastal Carolina Chanticleers

Brooks Stadium (21,000)  ·  Myrtle Beach country  ·  2016 Sun Belt Champions

Conway and Myrtle Beach together give visitors both a charming small-city historic downtown and the full range of a major resort city within 12 miles.

Drink: New South Brewing in Myrtle Beach (12 miles east) is the Strand’s most established craft brewery — producing beers that have made it a regional institution for 25+ years. Salty Brooks Brewing is Conway’s own craft option, bringing the coastal character to beer with sessionable, beach-friendly styles. Crooked Hammock Brewery in North Myrtle Beach brings a full outdoor beach brewery experience — horseshoe pits, live music, and craft beer that captures the Myrtle Beach lifestyle perfectly.

Eat: The Rivertown Bistro in Conway is the local dining gem — an independent restaurant on the Waccamaw River that consistently earns the best food reviews in the Conway area. Sea Captain’s House in Myrtle Beach for the classic coastal seafood experience that has been a Strand institution since 1954.

Fun: Myrtle Beach’s oceanfront is 12 miles from campus — game day plus a beach morning or evening is the natural Coastal Carolina itinerary. Brookgreen Gardens (30 minutes south) is one of the most beautiful sculpture gardens in America, set in a former rice plantation with 9,000 acres of Low Country landscape.

STATESBORO, GEORGIA — Georgia Southern Eagles

Paulson Stadium (25,000)  ·  6 FCS national championships  ·  Option football royalty

Statesboro has developed a craft beer scene anchored by Eagle Creek Brewing and a downtown that has grown with the university’s expansion.

Drink: Eagle Creek Brewing Company is Statesboro’s flagship craft brewery — the natural gathering spot for Georgia Southern fans with a tap list that includes beers named for Eagles football traditions. West Broad Taproom is the craft beer bar with the most serious selection in Statesboro. Savannah (60 miles southeast) offers the full range of a historic Georgia coastal city’s food and drink scene for visitors who want to extend the weekend.

Eat: Vandy’s Barbeque on Northside Drive is the Statesboro institution — South Georgia pit barbecue that locals have been arguing is the best in the region for decades. Sharky’s Boiling Seafood for the low country boil experience that captures South Georgia coastal food culture.

Fun: Savannah is 60 miles southeast — one of America’s most beautiful and historically rich cities, with a craft beer scene (Service Brewing, Moon River Brewing) and a food culture that rewards an overnight visit. The Georgia Southern University Museum on campus has significant natural history and cultural collections.

ATLANTA, GEORGIA — Georgia State Panthers

Center Parc Credit Union Stadium (24,000)  ·  Downtown Atlanta  ·  Former Turner Field

Atlanta is the Sun Belt’s best city for craft beer exploration. See the Georgia Tech/Atlanta entry in the ACC guide for the full Atlanta craft beer and dining recommendations — SweetWater, Reformation, Der Biergarten, The Varsity, and the BeltLine all apply equally here.

Drink: SweetWater Brewing Company near campus — Georgia’s most recognized craft brand. Monday Night Brewing in the West End for the most decorated neighborhood brewery in the city. Elsewhere Brewing in the Beacon complex near campus for the craft beer option closest to the stadium.

Eat: The Beacon Atlanta — the food hall complex adjacent to the stadium that has become the most convenient pregame destination. Ticonderoga Club in Krog Street Market for the cocktail bar and small plates that have made it one of Atlanta’s most celebrated.

Fun: The Atlanta BeltLine trail connects the stadium area to the city’s best neighborhoods. The Martin Luther King Jr. National Historical Park is walking distance from the stadium — the birth home, Ebenezer Baptist Church, and the memorial are among the most significant civil rights sites in America.

HARRISONBURG, VIRGINIA — James Madison Dukes

Bridgeforth Stadium (25,000)  ·  2025 Sun Belt Champions & CFP participants  ·  Shenandoah Valley

Harrisonburg has a genuine and growing craft beer scene — Feel the Rain Brothers Brew Co and Pale Fire Brewing anchor a corridor that has made the city one of Virginia’s more interesting craft beer destinations.

Drink: Pale Fire Brewing is Harrisonburg’s most celebrated craft brewery — named for the Vladimir Nabokov novel, with beers that reflect the university town’s literary self-awareness. Feel the Rain Brothers Brew Co is the family-owned brewery that has built a loyal community following since 2012 with 14 rotating taps. Three Notch’d Valley Collab House is Virginia’s most collaborative craft concept — rotating beers brewed in partnership with other Virginia producers. Jack Brown’s Beer & Burger Joint for the craft beer bar with the best selection and the best burger in Harrisonburg.

Eat: Rocktown Kitchen is Harrisonburg’s farm-to-table standout — elevated American cuisine sourced from Shenandoah Valley farms. Bella Luna in the historic Livery Building for wood-fired pizza and handmade pasta in one of downtown’s most distinctive spaces.

Fun: Skyline Drive and Shenandoah National Park begin just east of Harrisonburg — the most scenic mountain drive in Virginia, accessible for a morning before any home game. The Virginia Beer Museum in downtown Harrisonburg tells the story of Virginia craft beer history in a tasting room format. And the Shenandoah Valley wine trail — with wineries producing Viognier and Cabernet Franc — is within 30 minutes of campus.

HUNTINGTON, WEST VIRGINIA — Marshall Thundering Herd

Joan C. Edwards Stadium (38,019)  ·  2024 Sun Belt Champions  ·  We Are Marshall

Huntington has developed a genuine craft beer scene — Summit Beer Station is West Virginia’s most decorated craft beer bar, and the city’s downtown has grown alongside Marshall’s football success.

Drink: Summit Beer Station on Fourth Avenue is West Virginia’s most celebrated craft beer bar — voted Best Beer Bar in West Virginia with 2 nitros, multiple saisons, IPAs, and over 30 beers on tap alongside an exceptional bourbon selection. Huntington Ale House is the local craft pub that rounds out Huntington’s bar scene. Taps at Heritage Station brings craft beer to the renovated Heritage Station event complex near downtown.

Eat: Black Sheep Burritos & Brews on Fourth Avenue combines craft beer with creative burritos in a Huntington institution. Bahnhof WVrsthaus for German-style sausages and beer that has earned a devoted local following.

Fun: Visit the Memorial Fountain outside Joan C. Edwards Stadium before the game. Read the names. The 1970 crash is the most significant event in Marshall’s history and understanding it is essential to understanding the program. The Museum of Art at Marshall University has a strong permanent collection. The New River Gorge National Park is 45 minutes east — one of America’s newest and most spectacular national parks.

NORFOLK, VIRGINIA — Old Dominion Monarchs

S.B. Ballard Stadium (22,000)  ·  Hampton Roads  ·  Tidewater craft beer scene

Norfolk and the Hampton Roads area have a vibrant craft beer scene — O’Connor Brewing and Bold Mariner are the anchors of a Tidewater craft community that has grown alongside the region’s military and tech economy.

Drink: O’Connor Brewing Company is Norfolk’s most nationally recognized craft brewery — El Guapo IPA is the flagship that has made it a Virginia craft standard-bearer. Bold Mariner Brewing Company honors Norfolk’s naval heritage with beers named for military history and a veteran-friendly taproom. Wasserhund Brewing Company in Virginia Beach (20 minutes east) and Back Bay Brewing round out one of Virginia’s most complete coastal craft beer markets. The Grain on the Hilton Norfolk Main Hotel rooftop for the best craft beer view in the city.

Eat: The Dirty Buffalo is Norfolk’s beloved wing institution — creative wing flavors and craft beer in a venue that has become an ODU game day tradition. Cure in the Ghent neighborhood for the charcuterie-focused restaurant that has become Norfolk’s most celebrated food destination.

Fun: The Battleship Wisconsin at Nauticus on the Norfolk waterfront — a decommissioned Iowa-class battleship you can walk on — is one of the most impressive naval history experiences available to the public. Virginia Beach is 20 minutes east for oceanfront access. The MacArthur Memorial museum in downtown Norfolk honors General Douglas MacArthur, who was born in Norfolk and chose it for his burial site.

JONESBORO, ARKANSAS — Arkansas State Red Wolves

Centennial Bank Stadium (30,406)  ·  Cradle of coaches connection  ·  Mississippi Delta proximity

Jonesboro’s craft beer scene is growing — Saddlebock Brewery and Brick House have developed a local community for craft beer enthusiasts.

Drink: Saddlebock Brewery is the Arkansas standout within reach of Jonesboro — consistently one of the best craft breweries in the state. Flying Saucer Draught Emporium in Memphis (70 miles northeast) is the Ghost Beer program institution with 245 beers on tap — the regional craft destination for serious beer drinkers. Dead End Brewing Company is Jonesboro’s own craft option with a rotating local tap list.

Eat: Gina’s Italian Kitchen is Jonesboro’s most consistently praised restaurant. Colton’s Steak House & Grill for the Arkansas steakhouse tradition that game day visitors rely on.

Fun: The Bradbury Art Museum on the Arkansas State campus has a strong permanent collection that reflects the university’s commitment to the arts. Memphis is 70 miles northeast — Sun Studio, Beale Street, the National Civil Rights Museum, and Franklin Barbecue’s regional equivalent make it worth a pre-or post-game evening. The Arkansas Delta’s blues heritage — Helena, where Robert Johnson reportedly made his deal at the crossroads — is 90 miles south.

LAFAYETTE, LOUISIANA — Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns

Cajun Field (41,426)  ·  The Cajun Capital of the World  ·  Best food city in the Sun Belt

Lafayette’s craft beer scene reflects the city’s Cajun culture — Parish Brewing and Bayou Teche are the anchors of a scene that is genuinely distinctive from anything else in the Sun Belt.

Drink: Parish Brewing Company in Broussard (just south of Lafayette) is Louisiana’s most nationally recognized craft brewery outside New Orleans — Ghost in the Machine Double IPA has won national awards and the taproom is one of the best in the state. Bayou Teche Brewery is the Louisiana craft brand most deeply connected to Cajun culture — beers named for local legends and brewed with Louisiana ingredients including cane syrup and satsuma oranges. Adopted Dog Brewing is Lafayette’s neighborhood craft brewery earning consistently strong reviews. Crying Eagle Brewing Company in Lake Charles (60 miles west) is the regional standout for those extending the trip.

Eat: Prejean’s Restaurant on North Interstate 49 is Lafayette’s Cajun cuisine institution — crawfish étouffée, blackened fish, and boudin in the most complete expression of what Lafayette cooking actually is. Bon Temps Grill for the Cajun food that locals eat on regular occasions rather than special ones. The boudin from any gas station in Acadiana — not a joke; the gas station boudin in South Louisiana is genuinely excellent and is the single best food experience available for less than five dollars anywhere in college football.

Fun: The gas station boudin. We cannot stress this enough — stop at any Cajun gas station, order the boudin links, and understand that you are eating one of the great regional sausages in the world in its native habitat. The Vermilionville Living History Museum preserves 19th-century Cajun and Creole culture on the banks of Vermilion Bayou. Breaux Bridge (15 miles east) — the Crawfish Capital of the World — is worth the short drive for the most authentic small Cajun town experience in Acadiana.

RUSTON, LOUISIANA — Louisiana Tech Bulldogs

Joe Aillet Stadium (28,500)  ·  Joined Sun Belt in 2026  ·  North Louisiana piney woods

Ruston is a small college town with limited but genuine craft options. Shreveport, 70 miles west, provides the regional craft beer and dining range for visitors who want to extend the trip.

Drink: Great Raft Brewing in Shreveport (70 miles west) is one of Louisiana’s most nationally recognized craft breweries — consistently winning U.S. Open Beer Championship gold medals and producing beers that reflect North Louisiana’s identity. Flying Heart Brewing & Pub in Bossier City near Shreveport rounds out the regional craft option. In Ruston itself: Old Rail Brewing is the local craft option that has grown alongside Louisiana Tech’s football profile.

Eat: The Chop House at Cabin Hill is Ruston’s most celebrated dining destination — steakhouse quality in a North Louisiana setting. Sundown Bar-B-Que for the North Louisiana barbecue that reflects a very different style from South Louisiana’s Cajun cooking.

Fun: The Louisiana Tech campus is one of the most beautifully landscaped in the Sun Belt — the lake at the center and the pine tree canopy make it one of the more serene college environments in the South. The Terry Bradshaw football connection is worth knowing — the Hall of Fame quarterback who won four Super Bowls grew up in Shreveport and played his college ball here in Ruston.

MOBILE, ALABAMA — South Alabama Jaguars

Hancock Whitney Stadium (45,602)  ·  Gulf Coast  ·  Mardi Gras city

Mobile’s craft beer scene has grown alongside the city’s culinary renaissance, anchored by Braided River and a downtown scene that has improved significantly.

Drink: Braided River Brewing Company is Mobile’s most celebrated craft brewery — creative, well-executed beers in a taproom that has become the city’s craft beer community anchor. Serda’s Coffee is the Mobile institution that doubles as a craft beer and cocktail spot for evening visits. Callaghan’s Irish Social Club on Dauphin Street is Mobile’s beloved live music bar and craft beer institution — one of the oldest independent music venues in Alabama and a gathering spot for locals that has been part of Mobile’s cultural fabric for decades.

Eat: The Dumbwaiter on Dauphin Street is Mobile’s most celebrated restaurant — creative Southern cuisine that has earned national attention. Wintzell’s Oyster House on Dauphin Street for the Gulf oysters that have defined Mobile seafood dining since 1938.

Fun: The USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park — a decommissioned WWII battleship open for tours on Mobile Bay — is one of the most complete military history experiences in the South. Dauphin Street is Mobile’s entertainment corridor, with Callaghan’s live music scene at the center. The Mobile Carnival Museum tells the story of America’s original Mardi Gras in a city that takes its claim very seriously.

SAN MARCOS, TEXAS — Texas State Bobcats

Bobcat Stadium (30,000)  ·  Between Austin and San Antonio  ·  San Marcos River tubing capital

San Marcos has a genuine craft beer scene anchored by Middleton Brewing and Signature Brew Pub — and Austin’s extraordinary brewery scene is 30 miles north for any visitor wanting more.

Drink: Middleton Brewing on South LBJ Drive is San Marcos’s standout craft brewery — beers named for local Texas culture in a taproom that has become the Bobcat community’s gathering spot. Signature Brew Pub on North LBJ is the second local craft option adding variety to San Marcos’s growing scene. Austin is 30 miles north — ABGBC, Zilker Brewing, Jester King, and the full Austin craft beer scene are accessible for any extended visit.

Eat: Palmer’s Restaurant Bar & Courtyard is San Marcos’s most celebrated restaurant — creative cuisine in a historic courtyard setting that has been a San Marcos institution for years. The Tap Room on the Riverwalk for the Texas Hill Country bar and food experience directly on the San Marcos River.

Fun: Tube the San Marcos River — the 68°F spring-fed water makes it ideal year-round, and it is genuinely one of the great Texas outdoor experiences. The LBJ Museum at Texas State — focusing on Lyndon Johnson’s life and legacy — is one of the most significant presidential history resources in the state. And Austin is 30 minutes north: combine a Texas State game with an evening in Austin for the most complete Central Texas weekend available.

TROY, ALABAMA — Troy Trojans

Veterans Memorial Stadium (30,000)  ·  2025 Sun Belt Championship runners-up  ·  Alabama Black Belt

Troy is a small Alabama college town. Montgomery (50 miles north) provides the regional craft beer and dining options for visitors who want to extend beyond the game.

Drink: True Story Brewing is Troy’s own craft brewery — a local operation that has become the game day gathering point for Trojans fans who want craft over mainstream. Cahaba Brewing Company in Birmingham (100 miles north) is Alabama’s most acclaimed craft brewery for serious beer drinkers making a longer trip. Back Forty Beer Company in Gadsden, and Good People Brewing in Birmingham represent the Alabama craft tier accessible for extended visits.

Eat: Mossy Creek Farmhouse Restaurant near Troy for the South Alabama comfort food that reflects the Black Belt’s agricultural heritage. Vickers Bar-B-Que is the Troy institution — Alabama-style barbecue that locals consider among the best in the region.

Fun: Montgomery is 50 miles north — the Equal Justice Initiative’s National Memorial for Peace and Justice (the lynching memorial) and the Legacy Museum are among the most important and most emotionally powerful cultural sites in the United States. The Civil Rights Memorial, the Dexter Avenue King Memorial Baptist Church, and the Rosa Parks Museum make Montgomery one of the essential civil rights history destinations in America. Plan time here before or after the Troy game — it is not to be rushed.

The 10 Conference USA Cities

Newark, DE — Delaware  · 
Miami, FL — FIU  · 
Jacksonville, AL — Jacksonville State  · 
Kennesaw, GA — Kennesaw State  · 
Lynchburg, VA — Liberty  · 
Murfreesboro, TN — Middle Tennessee  · 
Springfield, MO — Missouri State  · 
Las Cruces, NM — New Mexico State  · 
Huntsville, TX — Sam Houston  · 
Bowling Green, KY — WKU

NEWARK, DELAWARE — Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens

Delaware Stadium (23,500)  ·  FCS to FBS in 2025  ·  Philadelphia 30 miles north

Newark’s craft beer scene has grown since Iron Hill — which opened its original location in Newark in 1996 — closed all locations in September 2025. Several newer options have filled the gap.

Drink: Brick Works Brewing & Eats is Newark’s most celebrated current craft option — locally sourced ingredients in both the beers and the food, in a welcoming community taproom setting. Grain Craft Bar + Kitchen on Main Street is the craft beer bar that has become the University of Delaware game day destination — a strong rotating draft list and a food program worth eating at. In Wilmington (20 minutes north): Stitch House Brewery and Dogfish Head Alehouse give visitors the full Delaware craft beer range. And Philadelphia is 30 miles north — the complete Yards, Dock Street, Monk’s Café, and Trillium experience is accessible for any extended visit.

Eat: Klondike Kate’s on Main Street is the Newark institution — the bar and restaurant that University of Delaware students and alumni have been returning to for decades. Caffe Gelato for the Italian cuisine that consistently earns Newark’s best restaurant reviews.

Fun: The University of Delaware campus is one of the most beautiful in the Mid-Atlantic — the Georgian Colonial architecture and the green of The Greens make it genuinely worth a walk before the game. Philadelphia is 30 miles north: the Reading Terminal Market, Independence Hall, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art are all accessible for a pre-game or post-game day trip.

MIAMI, FLORIDA — FIU Panthers

FIU Stadium (20,000)  ·  University Park campus  ·  The most urban CUSA campus

Miami’s craft beer scene has grown dramatically in the Wynwood Arts District and the Brickell area — world-class options within 20 minutes of the FIU campus.

Drink: Tripping Animals Brewing in Wynwood is Miami’s most nationally acclaimed craft brewery — award-winning IPAs and creative seasonals in the city’s most vibrant arts neighborhood. Beat Culture Brewery in Brickell is the FIU-proximate craft option earning strong reviews. Lincoln’s Beard Brewing in South Miami is the neighborhood craft anchor nearest to the FIU campus. Boxelder Craft Beer Bar in the Design District for the most serious craft beer selection in Miami — constantly rotating taps from Florida and national producers.

Eat: Versailles Restaurant on Calle Ocho (SW 8th Street) — Miami’s iconic Cuban restaurant, a cultural institution serving ropa vieja and café con leche since 1971. A required stop on any Miami visit. Kyu Miami in Wynwood for the Asian-influenced wood-fired cuisine that has made it one of Miami’s most celebrated restaurants.

Fun: Wynwood Walls — the outdoor street art museum that put Wynwood on the global cultural map — combined with the craft breweries that surround it makes a Saturday afternoon in Wynwood one of Miami’s most distinctive experiences. Little Havana’s Calle Ocho is 10 minutes from campus and worth a full afternoon of food, music, and Cuban coffee.

JACKSONVILLE, ALABAMA — Jacksonville State Gamecocks

AmFirst Stadium (24,000)  ·  2024 CUSA Champions  ·  Anniston/Gadsden area  ·  Talladega nearby

Jacksonville AL has limited craft beer options given its size, but Anniston and Gadsden nearby provide regional options and Birmingham (60 miles southwest) is the full Alabama craft beer destination.

Drink: Aardwolf Brewing Company — while technically in Jacksonville FL not AL, Jacksonville State fans who travel up from Florida know this is one of the Southeast’s great craft breweries; worth noting for visiting fans. For the Alabama market: Gadsden Brewing Company (30 miles north) is the regional craft option for Jacksonville State game day visitors. Good People Brewing in Birmingham (60 miles southwest) is Alabama’s most celebrated craft brewery — the Snake Handler Double IPA is the flagship that has earned national recognition.

Eat: Pete’s Famous Hot Dogs in Anniston is the Northeast Alabama institution — a hot dog stand that has been serving the area since 1940 and is considered a regional food landmark. The Anniston Museum of Natural History is worth the short drive for its outstanding dinosaur fossil collection.

Fun: Talladega Superspeedway (30 miles southwest) hosts NASCAR races in spring and fall — the tri-oval’s 143,000-seat capacity and the banking angles that produce some of NASCAR’s most dramatic racing make it worth a visit if the schedule aligns. The Cheaha State Park (15 miles southeast) — the highest point in Alabama at 2,407 feet — offers the most dramatic mountain scenery in the state.

KENNESAW, GEORGIA — Kennesaw State Owls

Fifth Third Bank Stadium (10,200)  ·  2025 CUSA Champions  ·  25 miles north of Atlanta  ·  Fastest growing CUSA program

Kennesaw itself has a growing craft beer scene, but Atlanta (25 miles south) is the real craft beer destination for any Kennesaw State game day visitor.

Drink: Kennesaw Brewing Company is Kennesaw’s own craft brewery — the natural game day gathering spot for Owls fans who want local craft beer. Cherokee Brewing & Pizza Company in nearby Canton is the regional craft standout for visitors in the north Atlanta suburbs. In Atlanta (25 miles south): SweetWater Brewing, Monday Night Brewing, and Reformation Brewery are all accessible via I-75 for a pre-game or post-game craft beer evening.

Eat: The Big Chicken — the 56-foot tall mechanical chicken on US-41 in Marietta (5 miles south) is one of the most recognizable landmarks in Georgia and the unofficial landmark of the north Atlanta suburbs. Marietta Square restaurants for the most complete dining options nearest to the stadium.

Fun: Kennesaw Mountain National Battlefield Park — the site of a significant 1864 Civil War battle in the Atlanta Campaign — is directly adjacent to the KSU campus. The 2,900-acre park has hiking trails to the summit with panoramic views of metro Atlanta. Atlanta’s complete entertainment and culture scene is 25 miles south on I-75.

LYNCHBURG, VIRGINIA — Liberty Flames

Williams Stadium (25,000)  ·  2023 CUSA Champions  ·  Founded by Jerry Falwell Sr.  ·  Unique alcohol policy

Lynchburg’s craft beer scene has grown significantly in the downtown River Ridge area — entirely independent of and separate from the Liberty University campus.

Drink: Apocalypse Ale Works on Jefferson Street is Lynchburg’s most celebrated craft brewery — award-winning beers in a taproom that has become the center of Lynchburg’s craft community. The name is, in context, not without irony. Bootleggers Brewing Company on Commerce Street is the second craft option rounding out Lynchburg’s downtown beer scene. Soul Mountain Restaurant & Tap House on Main Street brings the craft beer bar experience with a strong food program to downtown Lynchburg.

Eat: Depot Grille in the historic 1910 Norfolk & Western Railway depot is Lynchburg’s most celebrated restaurant — American cuisine in a beautifully preserved train station setting. Market at Main for the local food hall that captures Lynchburg’s growing food culture.

Fun: The Blue Ridge Parkway is accessible from Lynchburg — the most scenic drive in the eastern United States is less than 30 minutes from downtown. Natural Bridge State Park (30 minutes south) preserves one of Virginia’s most dramatic geological features — a 215-foot natural limestone arch that Thomas Jefferson purchased in 1774. The James River runs through Lynchburg and the river corridor has been developed into one of the city’s most pleasant recreational and dining areas.

MURFREESBORO, TENNESSEE — Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders

Floyd Stadium (31,800)  ·  30 miles from Nashville  ·  Stones River Battlefield

Murfreesboro has a growing craft beer scene and Nashville is 30 miles northwest — all of that city’s extraordinary craft beer, spirits, and food scene is accessible for any extended visit.

Drink: Hop Springs Beer Park in Murfreesboro is the standout — an outdoor craft beer park with a full food program and event space that has become the game day destination for Blue Raider fans who want craft over mainstream. Black Abbey Brewing Company is one of the more distinctive Tennessee craft breweries — a monastery-themed brewery in Nashville (30 miles northwest) producing Belgian-inspired ales with genuine craft credentials. Corsair Distillery in Nashville for the craft spirits option that has made Nashville a national destination for innovative whiskey and gin.

Eat: Five Senses Restaurant is Murfreesboro’s most acclaimed dining destination — farm-to-table cuisine in a city that consistently surprises visitors with its food quality. Nashville is 30 miles northwest: Prince’s Hot Chicken, The Pharmacy Burger Parlor, and the full Nashville food scene are all within easy reach.

Fun: Stones River National Battlefield is adjacent to the campus — walk the battlefield and visit the national cemetery before or after the game. It is one of the most historically significant Civil War sites in Tennessee and a sobering reminder of what this ground witnessed in December 1862. Nashville is the evening destination — Lower Broadway, Corsair Distillery, and the country music capital of the world are 30 minutes northwest.

SPRINGFIELD, MISSOURI — Missouri State Bears

Plaster Stadium (16,000)  ·  FCS to FBS in 2025  ·  Ozark Mountains gateway  ·  Bass Pro country

Springfield’s craft beer scene has grown into something genuinely worth exploring — Mother’s Brewing Company is one of the most respected craft brands in the Midwest.

Drink: Mother’s Brewing Company on Commercial Street is Springfield’s flagship — the Three Blind Mice IPA and Towhead American Blonde are the flagships of a brewery that has earned distribution across multiple states and a national reputation for quality. Tie & Timber Beer Co. is the Springfield craft standout earning the best current reviews — a beautifully designed taproom with creative, well-executed beers. Grad Student Brewing Company is the newer entrant capturing the Missouri State community with approachable, quality beers and a university-adjacent taproom that fits the college town character.

Eat: Flame Steakhouse on East Cherry Street is Springfield’s most celebrated fine dining — a steakhouse that regularly earns the best restaurant reviews in the city. Gailey’s Breakfast Café for the game day morning institution that locals have been lining up for since 1942.

Fun: The Bass Pro Shops flagship store on Sunshine Street is genuinely worth a visit — 500,000 square feet of sporting goods retail including an indoor waterfall, aquarium, and museum-quality wildlife displays that make it one of the most visited tourist attractions in Missouri. The Ozark Mountains begin south of Springfield and the Big Piney River float trips and trails of the Mark Twain National Forest make the region one of the Midwest’s best outdoor destinations.

LAS CRUCES, NEW MEXICO — New Mexico State Aggies

Aggie Memorial Stadium (30,343)  ·  Border country  ·  Chile capital of the world

Las Cruces has a growing craft beer scene that reflects the border city’s unique cultural identity — several excellent taprooms have established the city as a genuine craft destination.

Drink: Spotted Dog Brewery is Las Cruces’s flagship craft brewery — consistently the highest-rated local option with a rotating selection that draws serious craft beer drinkers from the El Paso-Las Cruces corridor. Icebox Brewing has two Las Cruces taprooms and earns consistent praise for quality and atmosphere. Little Toad Creek Brewery & Distillery is the dual-threat option — craft beer and craft spirits under one roof in a taproom that has become a Las Cruces institution. Picacho Peak Brewing Company rounds out a craft scene that is strong by any small-city standard.

Eat: La Posta de Mesilla in Old Mesilla (5 minutes from campus) is the Las Cruces dining institution — New Mexican cuisine in a historic hacienda that has been serving green chile since 1939. Chope’s Bar & Café in La Mesa (15 miles south) is the legendary roadside bar and restaurant that has been serving the most authentic New Mexican food in the Mesilla Valley for decades.

Fun: White Sands National Park (60 miles northeast) — 275 square miles of white gypsum sand dunes that look like snow in the desert — is one of the most visually stunning natural landscapes in America. Old Mesilla village (5 minutes from campus) preserves 19th-century adobe architecture and is where Billy the Kid was convicted and sentenced to hang in 1881. The Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks National Monument directly east of Las Cruces offers dramatic hiking in the most dramatic mountain landscape in southern New Mexico.

HUNTSVILLE, TEXAS — Sam Houston Bearkats

Bowers Stadium (14,000)  ·  Named for the Hero of San Jacinto  ·  Piney Woods of East Texas  ·  70 miles from Houston

Huntsville TX is a small city with limited craft options, but Houston is 70 miles south and provides the full range of Texas’s most diverse city’s craft beer and food scene.

Drink: Lone Star Brewing Company in Huntsville is the local craft option for game day visitors who want to stay close to campus. Huntsville Craft Beer and Brewing Supply is the local homebrew-and-tasting option. In Houston (70 miles south): Saint Arnold Brewing Company — Texas’s oldest craft brewery, with Fancy Lawnmower as the iconic Houston craft beer — and Eureka Heights Brew Co. are the craft destinations worth the drive for any extended visit.

Eat: The Junction is Huntsville’s most reliable local restaurant for game day dining. New Zion Missionary Baptist Church Barbeque on FM 247 — a legendary Texas barbecue spot that operates out of a church in Huntsville and has been called some of the finest smoked meat in East Texas by national food writers.

Fun: The Sam Houston Memorial Museum on campus — including the Steamboat House where Houston died in 1863 and exhibits on the Republic of Texas — is the most historically significant site adjacent to any CUSA stadium. The Texas Prison Museum in Huntsville (yes, Huntsville is the home of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice) includes “Old Sparky,” Texas’s original electric chair, and is one of the more unusual museum experiences in Texas. Houston is 70 miles south — the full Houston experience is accessible for any extended visit.

BOWLING GREEN, KENTUCKY — Western Kentucky Hilltoppers

L.T. Smith Stadium (22,113)  ·  2015-16 CUSA back-to-back Champions  ·  The Hill  ·  National Corvette Museum

Bowling Green has a growing craft beer scene anchored by Railyard Brewing and Novo Dolce — a city that has developed quality craft options alongside its growing regional identity.

Drink: Railyard Brewing Company is Bowling Green’s standout craft brewery — the taproom in a converted railroad building captures both the city’s industrial history and its craft beer present. Novo Dolce is the Bowling Green wine and craft beer bar earning the most consistent local praise — an excellent selection with a knowledgeable staff. Blackhorse Pub & Brewery rounds out a Bowling Green craft scene that is stronger than the city’s size would suggest. Nashville (60 miles south) opens the full range of Tennessee craft brewing and spirits for any extended visit.

Eat: Mariah’s Restaurant on State Street is Bowling Green’s most celebrated restaurant — an eclectic, multi-room dining experience in a Victorian building that has been the city’s special occasion destination for decades. 440 Main for the downtown Bowling Green gathering spot that combines good food with craft beer and cocktails.

Fun: The National Corvette Museum and the adjacent assembly plant tour are Bowling Green’s most distinctive cultural experiences — see a Corvette being assembled on the factory floor and view the legendary collection including the eight cars reclaimed from the 2014 sinkhole. Lost River Cave (just outside town) is a boat tour through an underground river system — one of Kentucky’s more unusual natural attractions. Nashville is 60 miles south for the evening.

In This Guide

1. How we found Barons Creek — the happy accident
2. What is Barons Creek Vineyards?
3. The Club Tasting experience in Durango
4. What are the wines like?
5. Where to stay: Blue Lake Ranch
6. Planning your visit

How Did We Find Barons Creek in Durango?

The honest answer is that we were walking. That is how most good things happen in Durango — you put one foot in front of the other on Main Avenue and let the town come to you. We had been staying at Blue Lake Ranch outside of town and had driven in for the afternoon, Penny riding in the back seat with the enthusiasm she brings to every car trip that might end somewhere interesting.

We spotted the Barons Creek sign at the corner of 9th and Main and made the decision that requires no deliberation: walk in and see what happens. What happened was Sarah Yanes, VP of Regional Operations, who greeted the three of us — Deb, me, and one very interested goldendoodle — and made us feel immediately at home. She sat with us, gave us a quick overview of the winery and its Texas roots, and set us up for the Club Tasting. The afternoon took a pleasant turn that we had not planned and could not have improved upon.

What Is Barons Creek Vineyards and Where Does It Come From?

Barons Creek Vineyards is a family-owned Texas winery founded in 2015 by brothers Marc and Chris Chase in Fredericksburg — the heart of the Texas Hill Country wine trail along Highway 290. The flagship Fredericksburg property is an Italian-style estate with luxury villas, an outdoor pavilion, and a third-floor tower experience with 360-degree Hill Country views that has made it one of the most photographed wineries in Texas.

The winemaker is Russell Smith, who came to Barons Creek from Becker Vineyards — one of the most respected names in Texas wine. Smith sources grapes from specialty growers across Texas, Washington State, California, and Spain, fermenting as close to the vineyards as possible to preserve the character of each source. The result is a lineup that reflects both the Hill Country identity and a broader vision of what American winemaking can be without the constraint of a single appellation.

The expansion beyond Texas reflects a deliberate strategy. Barons Creek announced it was sharing award-winning wines beyond Texas with new tasting rooms in Colorado and Florida, with the Durango location representing the first move into the Mountain West. According to Durango Magazine, the corner of 9th and Main has already become a favorite stop for both locals and visitors since opening in late 2024.

What Is the Club Tasting Experience Like?

The Club Tasting is Barons Creek’s structured tasting format — a guided flight through multiple wines with the kind of personal attention that makes you feel like a guest rather than a customer. Sarah Yanes handled ours with the ease of someone who genuinely loves what she is talking about. She was informative without being instructional, enthusiastic without overselling, and managed to make a tasting room experience feel like a conversation at a friend’s kitchen table.

Deb and I have been doing wine tastings for years — in California, in Europe, across Texas Hill Country. The hospitality at Barons Creek Durango compared favorably with the best of them, and that comparison is not about the scale of the operation. It is about the quality of attention. Sarah set us up, sat with us, answered questions honestly, and made no effort to upsell us on anything we had not already decided we wanted. That is rarer than it should be.

Penny was settled at our feet by the second wine and asleep by the fourth. High praise from a goldendoodle.

The tasting room has a way of bringing people together. Also at the table that afternoon were Amy and Randy, a married couple who had made the Barons Creek tasting room their after-work meeting spot. We got to talking — as you do when a goldendoodle is involved — and discovered they had made a move that many Scottsdale residents dream about and few actually execute: they relocated from Scottsdale to Durango, left the tech industry behind, and built something new. Randy opened Brim and Boot on Main Avenue, about a block from Barons Creek, carrying upscale Western wear that reflects the authentic character of the mountain West rather than the tourist version of it. We stopped in the next day. One pair of boots is probably enough for an East Coaster — but we did find a perfect collar for Penny, which she accepted with the dignity the occasion deserved. Tell them Penny sent you.

What Are the Barons Creek Wines Actually Like?

Approachable is the word. These are wines built to be enjoyed rather than analyzed — which is not a criticism but a description of a deliberate philosophy. The pricing is honest, the quality is consistent, and nothing in the lineup requires a wine education to appreciate. A Tempranillo sourced partly from Spanish vineyards owned by winemaker Russell Smith brings a structural character that elevates it above what the price would suggest. The red blends reflect the Texas winemaking tradition of using the best available fruit regardless of origin and letting the blending decisions carry the identity.

For CrushBrew readers who approach wine with the same anti-pretentious philosophy we do, Barons Creek is a natural fit. The wines are genuinely good. They are not trying to be Napa Cabernet or Burgundy Pinot Noir. They are trying to be exactly what they are: well-made, fairly priced American wines from a family-owned operation that takes hospitality as seriously as winemaking. In the context of a Durango afternoon with good company and a sleeping goldendoodle, they were perfect.

Where Should You Stay? Blue Lake Ranch Is the Answer.

Southwest Colorado’s first bed and breakfast, established in 1981, Blue Lake Ranch sits on 200 secluded acres at approximately 6,500 feet elevation in the La Plata Mountain foothills — 15 minutes from downtown Durango and 30 minutes from Mesa Verde National Park. Sixteen individually decorated accommodations ranging from cabins to private casitas, a spring-fed trout lake, meadows, lush gardens, and a gourmet Southwest-inspired breakfast buffet every morning.

The property was built by David Alford starting from an abandoned homestead, and the generations of care that have gone into it are visible everywhere — in the gardens, in the quality of the rooms, in the way the staff takes an interest in making sure every guest actually rests. It is the kind of place that reminds you what a vacation is supposed to feel like.

The night skies are worth a separate mention. At 6,500 feet, away from the light pollution of any significant city, the Milky Way is not an occasional sighting but a nightly presence. We spent more than one evening on the deck doing nothing but looking up. After enough time in Scottsdale, that kind of darkness feels like a gift.

How Do You Plan a Visit to Barons Creek in Durango?

The Durango tasting room is at 901 Main Avenue, walkable from every hotel and restaurant in historic downtown. Hours as of 2026: Wednesday and Thursday 2pm to 8pm; Friday and Saturday noon to 9pm; Sunday noon to 6pm; closed Monday and Tuesday. Reservations are recommended on weekends — the corner of 9th and Main gets busy and the tasting room fills quickly on Friday and Saturday evenings.

The Club Tasting is the experience to book for a first visit. It provides the most complete introduction to the Barons Creek lineup and the personal attention that makes the experience worth remembering. Walk-ins are welcome subject to availability. Food — charcuterie, bruschetta, hummus, and pizza — is available alongside the wines.

If Durango is the destination, give yourself at least two nights at Blue Lake Ranch. One night is not enough to decompress. The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, Mesa Verde National Park, the Animas River trail, and the mountain bike trails above town all reward a longer stay. The Barons Creek tasting is a natural evening activity after a day outdoors — Main Avenue is alive in the early evening, and the combination of mountain air and good wine is difficult to improve upon.

While you are on Main Avenue, stop into Brim and Boot — one block from Barons Creek at 945 Main Avenue. Randy and Amy, former Scottsdale tech industry veterans who made the move to Durango and never looked back, carry upscale Western wear that is as far from souvenir shop territory as you can get. One pair of boots is probably sufficient for most visitors. Penny found a collar. Tell them she sent you.

Frequently Asked Questions

Sources

• Barons Creek Vineyards — Durango location page (baronscreekvineyards.com, 2026)
• Barons Creek Vineyards on Main — Durango Magazine, May 2025
• Popular Hill Country winery opens Dallas tasting room — CultureMap Austin, September 2023
• Blue Lake Ranch — official website (bluelakeranch.com, 2026)

The Wine — Who’s Actually Making It

Costco began its private label wine program in 2003. Twenty years later it sells more wine by volume than any other single retailer in America. The program works because Costco brings something most retailers cannot: guaranteed volume purchases, cash payment, and a member base that will actually drink the wine rather than keep it for status. For a producer who needs to move product, that is enormously attractive.

What has surprised wine journalists who have investigated the sourcing is not that Costco uses established producers — it is how good those producers are. The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau’s public registry, label approvals, and the occasional producer who simply volunteers the information have revealed a roster that reads like a who’s who of quality-focused winemaking.

The Bourbon — Barton 1792 and the Glut That Created the Opportunity

The bourbon on Costco’s shelves is the most straightforward story in the Kirkland program: it says right on the label who made it. The Kirkland Signature Bottled-in-Bond, Small Batch, and Single Barrel bourbons are produced at Barton 1792 Distillery in Bardstown, Kentucky — the oldest continuously operating distillery in Bardstown, operating since 1879 and owned by the Sazerac Company (which also owns Buffalo Trace).

The Kirkland Single Barrel has become a cult product. At 120 proof and approximately $30, it competes with bourbons retailing at $60 or more. Bourbon enthusiasts have documented consistent quality across multiple barrel selections, and the value proposition is genuine — not a budget product dressed up in warehouse packaging, but a well-made Kentucky straight bourbon at a price that reflects Costco’s buying power rather than the product’s actual quality tier.

The context that makes the bourbon story especially interesting in 2026 is the state of the broader industry. American distilleries — particularly in Kentucky — expanded production aggressively between 2018 and 2022, building new rickhouses and filling barrels in anticipation of continued demand growth. That demand growth has not materialized. Of the nine American whiskey brands selling more than one million cases per year, only Bulleit showed growth in 2025, with the remaining either level or in decline. Jack Daniel’s, the largest American whiskey brand, lost more than a million cases in a single year. Barrel inventories across Kentucky distilleries are at historically high levels as production decisions made between 2018 and 2022 meet a very different consumer environment.

That oversupply creates a buyer’s market for private label partners. Costco is most likely the largest retailer of whiskey in North America, and of the 50 spirit expressions the retailer offers, 20 are private label. For a distillery managing excess inventory, a Costco purchase order — large volume, reliable payment, no marketing cost — is a meaningful outlet. The bourbon glut does not mean the bourbon is lower quality; it means the market conditions that produced Barton 1792’s relationship with Costco are likely to deepen as distilleries seek volume buyers.

The Scotch — Alexander Murray and the Independent Bottler Model

Costco’s Kirkland Signature Scotch bottles openly credit the company behind them: Alexander Murray & Company, which has worked with Kirkland since 2007. Alexander Murray is an independent bottler — a category with a long history in Scotch whisky, where companies purchase aged whisky from distilleries, blend or select single casks, and bottle under their own or their clients’ labels.

In addition to Costco, Alexander Murray is also responsible for Trader Joe’s high-quality, yet affordably priced, Highland Scotch — making it the behind-the-scenes producer of two of the best-value Scotch programs in American retail simultaneously. Each bottle of Kirkland Scotch includes descriptors for region (Speyside, Islay, Highland), barrel type, aging duration, and ABV. The Islay Single Malt in particular earns strong reviews from Scotch enthusiasts who compare it favorably to single malts costing significantly more.

The independent bottler model works because Scottish distilleries produce more whisky than they can sell under their own labels, and the excess goes to blenders and independent bottlers who purchase it in casks and sell it through alternate channels. Costco, via Alexander Murray, is one of the most direct examples of how this system delivers quality Scotch to consumers at prices that the distillery’s own retail operations would not support.

The Rest of the Lineup — Vodka, Gin, Irish Whiskey, and Tequila

The Kirkland Spirits Scorecard

Vodka — The standout of the lineup. Kirkland Signature French Vodka has been repeatedly compared to Grey Goose in blind tastings — and Grey Goose is exactly what it is, produced at the same distillery in the Cognac region of France at approximately one-third the price. The American vodka version is made by Fairmont Ltd, a subsidiary of the LeVecke Beverage Group. The French version is the one that has earned the cult following.

Scotch — Excellent value, openly sourced. Alexander Murray’s Kirkland Scotch lineup — Blended, Speyside, Highland, and Islay Single Malt — earns consistent praise. The Islay Single Malt in particular draws favorable comparisons to much more expensive bottles.

Bourbon — Single Barrel is the buy. Barton 1792’s Kirkland Single Barrel at 120 proof and approximately $30 is the value play that bourbon enthusiasts specifically seek out. The Small Batch is solid. The Bottled-in-Bond earns the guarantee of its designation.

Irish Whiskey — Decent and improving. The sourcing has shifted between suppliers over the years. Current versions are linked to MISA Imports and the Terra Spirits & Liquors operation. Solid everyday Irish whiskey at warehouse pricing.

Gin — Functional but not the headline. The Kirkland London Dry Gin is serviceable for cocktails. It does not generate the enthusiasm of the vodka or Scotch. For gin specifically, the branded options at Costco’s institutional pricing (Hendrick’s, Tanqueray, Bombay Sapphire) may be a better use of the budget.

Tequila — The weak spot. Seattle Times taste testers described the Kirkland Silver as “unnaturally sweet” and “odd.” The Añejo fared worse. For tequila, Costco’s selection of premium branded tequilas (Don Julio, Patrón) at institutional pricing significantly outperforms the Kirkland house expression. Skip the Kirkland tequila and spend the difference on a branded bottle.

The CrushBrew Verdict — What to Buy and Why It Matters

The Kirkland Signature alcohol program is not a collection of budget products in premium packaging. At its best — and it is often at its best — it is a direct pipeline from legitimate producers to Costco members at prices that reflect buying power rather than marketing costs. The wine program in particular delivers genuine quality from genuine producers: Provence rosé from an 18th-century Sumeire chateau, Premier Cru Chablis from Jean-Marc Brocard’s winemaker, Châteauneuf-du-Pape from one of the Southern Rhône’s most respected hands.

The connection to larger industry trends is real. The bourbon glut has made distilleries more receptive to private label volume agreements. The European wine market softening has made smaller producers more willing to accept Costco’s terms in exchange for guaranteed cash flow. The bulk wine and spirits market in 2026 is a buyer’s market, and Costco is one of the most powerful buyers in the world.

The Kirkland label is not magic. It is a negotiating position — the leverage that comes from being the largest wine and whiskey retailer in North America, purchasing in quantities that most retailers cannot approach, and passing the resulting savings directly to members. Understanding who is actually making the wine and spirits inside those bottles does not diminish the value. It enhances it. You are not drinking a generic product. You are drinking Provence rosé from a producer whose chateau has been making wine since the 1700s, or Kentucky straight bourbon from the oldest continuously operating distillery in Bardstown, at a price that the producer’s own label cannot compete with. That is a good deal by any measure.

1. Draft beer — the best and the worst
2. Can vs bottle — the science settles it
3. Why you should pour it into a glass
4. Which glass for which beer
5. When the can wins — context matters
6. The practical guide — what to do at home

Draft Beer — The Best and the Worst

Draft beer has the best reputation in the beer world — and it has earned it, with an asterisk the size of a dirty tap line.

When draft beer is good, it is genuinely better than the same beer in a can or bottle. The reasons are straightforward. Beer poured from a keg is typically fresher — served within weeks of production rather than sitting in a warehouse or on a store shelf for months. It is kept at a consistent, controlled temperature in the keg. It is pressurized with carbon dioxide and sometimes nitrogen, producing a natural pour with proper carbonation and a foam head. And it is pushed through a system that, when maintained correctly, delivers the beer to the glass exactly as the brewer intended.

The foam head is not decoration. When beer comes out of a tap with a proper head, the carbonation is releasing into the air rather than into your stomach. The head also concentrates volatile aromatic compounds — the hop oils and malt esters that create flavor — at the surface of the beer, where your nose can access them before and during every sip. A beer with a proper head tastes better than the same beer without one, and a properly poured draft produces the best head of any delivery format.

The asterisk: dirty tap lines are the most common flavor problem in beer, and they are entirely avoidable. Draft lines need to be cleaned every two weeks at a minimum. Mold, yeast, bacteria, and mineral deposits build up in lines that are not properly maintained, and all of them get into your glass. A brewing professor cited in the craft beer literature advises that at bars with 100+ taps, you should always order from a bottle — because the lines serving the slower-moving beers on a large tap wall may not have seen a cleaning cycle in weeks. At a well-run brewery taproom drinking from a line that connects directly to the tank on the other side of the wall, draft is unambiguously the best format. At a sports bar with 50 taps and no cleaning schedule, the bottled option may be safer.

Can vs Bottle — The Science Settles It

The bottle has historically been considered the premium format — heavier, more elegant, associated with craft and quality. The can has historically been associated with cheap domestic lager and tailgate coolers. The craft beer revolution has largely reversed this perception, and the science was always on the can’s side.

Light is beer’s enemy. Ultraviolet and visible light break down the iso-alpha acids in hops — the compounds responsible for bitterness — through a photochemical reaction that produces a compound called 3-methyl-2-butene-1-thiol. This is the “skunky” flavor you have tasted in beer that has been exposed to light. Green bottles provide minimal protection; clear bottles provide almost none. Brown bottles block most UV light but allow some light through. Cans block 100% of light, completely. A well-made craft beer in a can is better protected from light damage than the same beer in any glass bottle.

Oxygen is beer’s other enemy. Oxidation degrades hop character, produces cardboard and paper flavors, and accelerates staling. Cans seal hermetically — nothing in, nothing out — providing a better oxygen barrier than bottles, whose crown caps allow trace oxygen transmission over time. Modern canning technology allows brewers to minimize dissolved oxygen during the canning process to levels below 25 parts per billion, which is negligible for flavor impact.

The “metallic taste” myth. The most common objection to canned beer is a perceived metallic flavor. Brian Kulbacki, owner and head brewer of Departed Soles Brewing Company in New Jersey, is direct: the liquid going into a can is the same liquid that goes into a keg or bottle, often from the same tank on the same day. Any perceived metallic taste is almost always from drinking straight from the can — your lips touching the metal, your nose pressed against the opening — rather than from the liquid itself. Pour the same canned beer into a glass and the metallic perception largely disappears. The can is not the problem; drinking straight from the can is.

Why You Should Pour It Into a Glass

Seventy to ninety percent of what we experience as taste is actually smell. The flavor of a beer is not only what your tongue detects — it is what your nose receives at the same time, via a process called retronasal olfaction. When your nose cannot access the aromatic compounds in a beer, you are missing most of what the brewer put there.

Drinking from a can or bottle restricts aroma access. Your nose is pressed against an opening so small that the volatile aromatic compounds — the hop oils, the yeast esters, the malt character — cannot reach it effectively. You taste the beer with your tongue but not fully with your nose, and you miss most of what makes a well-crafted beer interesting.

Pouring into a glass changes this completely. The pour agitates the beer, releasing CO2 and volatile aromatics into the air above the glass. The head — if you achieve one — traps and concentrates those aromatic compounds at the surface. When you bring the glass to your lips, your nose is over the open surface of the beer, accessing the aromatics with every sip. You are now tasting the beer as the brewer intended.

The pour also does physical work that benefits the beer. It releases excess CO2, so the beer carbonation is correct rather than over-pressurized from the sealed container. It creates a head, which carries flavor compounds to the surface. It gives you a visual read on the beer — color, clarity, carbonation, head retention — that tells you something about what you are about to drink.

Which Glass for Which Beer

Glass shape is not arbitrary. Each form was developed — some over centuries, some in the modern craft era — to optimize a specific aspect of a specific beer style’s sensory experience. The shape affects foam behavior, aroma concentration, carbonation retention, temperature control, and the way the beer contacts your palate. You do not need a glass for every style. Three glasses cover most situations; start there and expand based on what you actually drink.

When the Can Wins — Context Matters

Everything above is true in a controlled environment where you are trying to get the maximum experience from a well-crafted beer. None of it applies at a campsite in the mountains, on a sailboat, at a baseball game, or at a backyard cookout on a July afternoon.

Context is not a footnote to how beer tastes — it is a variable that changes what “tastes best” actually means. The beer that tastes best at 2pm at a cookout is cold, immediately accessible, and in a format that doesn’t require a glass, a pour, or any management whatsoever. That is the can. It is lighter than glass, shatterproof, portable, recyclable, and keeps the beer colder longer than a bottle because the aluminum conducts cold more efficiently.

The camping trip argument for cans is equally strong. Cans pack flat in a cooler. They are lighter than glass bottles. They are shatterproof on rocky trails. They leave no glass to break at the campsite. And when you open a cold can of a well-made craft lager at 4pm after a full day of hiking with the mountains in front of you, you are experiencing one of beer’s great moments — regardless of what the sensory science says about glass shape.

The beer that tastes best is often the beer that fits the moment perfectly. A cold can is the right answer for a great many moments. Understanding the formal hierarchy — draft at its best, then glass, then poured-from-can, then straight from the bottle or can — gives you the framework to make good decisions in every context, including the decision that right now, a cold can straight from the cooler is exactly right.

The Practical Guide — What to Do at Home

1. How we got here — the boom, the glut, and the correction
2. Tariffs, exports, and the demand collapse
3. Where the opportunity is — and where it isn’t
4. What to buy in 2026
5. The secondary market — what happened and what it means
6. Frequently asked questions

How We Got Here — The Boom, the Glut, and the Correction

The bourbon boom of the 2010s was real and remarkable. American whiskey consumption grew steadily for over a decade, driven by cocktail culture, the craft spirits movement, and a global appetite for American products that reached markets in Europe, Japan, and Australia that had previously been dominated by Scotch. Distilleries — large and small — responded by dramatically increasing production. Kentucky alone barreled 2.7 million barrels of bourbon in 2022, an unprecedented volume designed to meet projected demand that assumed the growth trajectory would continue indefinitely.

It didn’t. Demand stabilized and then declined. The reasons are multiple and interconnected: a broader societal shift away from alcohol consumption, particularly among younger drinkers; economic uncertainty that made discretionary premium purchases more cautious; and the tariff-driven export collapse that removed major international markets almost overnight. The industry that had been racing to produce more suddenly found itself with warehouses full of aging whiskey and fewer buyers than the production ramp-up had assumed.

The correction is significant but not catastrophic — and for consumers it is unambiguously positive. The same economic forces that are causing distillery layoffs and production pauses are making good bourbon more accessible and more affordable than it has been in years.

Tariffs, Exports, and the Demand Collapse

The single largest acute shock to the bourbon market in 2025 was the collapse of export demand following retaliatory tariffs on American goods. Bourbon — like Champagne, Scotch, and other regionally specific products — had become a geopolitical tool. When the Trump administration imposed tariffs on goods from Canada and the EU, those markets responded with retaliatory tariffs on American exports including whiskey. The results were swift and severe.

Brown-Forman, the producer of Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey, Woodford Reserve, and Old Forester, reportedly lost 61% in organic sales to Canada in 2025 and cut 12% of its workforce. Jack Daniel’s, the largest American whiskey brand in the world, lost more than a million cases in a year to 2025. Wild Turkey sales fell more than 8%. Bulleit fell more than 7%. Jim Beam, the world’s best-selling bourbon, paused production at its flagship Kentucky distillery for the year — a decision driven by the combination of surplus inventory and reduced demand that made continued production financially unsustainable.

The tariff situation is subject to negotiation and could change — some analysts expect gradual normalization of export markets in 2026 and 2027. But the inventory built up during the boom years will take years to work through regardless of what happens with tariffs, which means the consumer-favorable supply dynamics are likely to persist for the medium term.

Where the Opportunity Is — and Where It Isn’t

The bourbon market in 2026 has split into two distinct segments that are behaving very differently, and understanding the split is the key to knowing where the opportunity lies.

What to Buy in 2026

The following is a practical guide to the current market — bottles that represent genuine value in the current environment and that will reward drinking rather than speculation.

The Secondary Market — What Happened and What It Means

The bourbon secondary market — the network of auction sites, Facebook groups, and informal networks where sought-after bottles traded at multiples of retail — was one of the stranger economic phenomena of the early 2020s. Bottles of Blanton’s that retailed for $65 were selling for $200. Eagle Rare was changing hands at $150. The Pappy Van Winkle 15 Year had a five-figure secondary market price at its peak. Bourbon had become, functionally, a speculative asset.

That era has ended. The secondary market peaked in 2021-2022 and has been declining since. Mid-tier allocated releases — the bottles that drove the secondary market’s volume — have normalized toward retail pricing as availability has improved and the speculative frenzy has cooled. The result for the drinker is exactly what should have been true all along: good whiskey at prices reflecting its quality rather than its scarcity as a collectible.

The truly rare bottles remain genuinely rare. A bottle of Pappy Van Winkle 23 Year is not going to appear on your local store shelf just because Jim Beam paused production. The market correction is real but targeted: it affects the allocated-but-not-truly-scarce tier most dramatically, and it leaves the genuinely exceptional bottles at the top of the market largely unchanged. What it has done is restore sanity to the price conversation — and for anyone who simply wants to drink great American whiskey, sanity is exactly what 2026 is offering.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. The blue agave — what it is and why it matters
2. Highlands vs. Lowlands — tequila terroir
3. How tequila is made — traditional vs. industrial
4. The aging categories — blanco to extra añejo
5. The additive problem — what’s in your bottle
6. The NOM number — how to read a tequila label
7. What to buy — producers worth knowing
8. Tequila vs. mezcal — the key distinctions
9. Frequently asked questions

The Blue Agave — What It Is and Why It Matters

Tequila is made from a single plant: Agave tequilana, known as Blue Weber Agave after the German botanist Franz Weber who classified it in 1902. It is not a cactus — it is a succulent related to the lily family, native to Mexico and revered by the Aztecs long before it became the foundation of a global spirits industry. The Aztecs fermented agave sap into a ritual drink called pulque; Spanish colonists in the 16th century distilled it into what we now call mezcal, and the specific variety grown in Jalisco eventually became tequila.

Blue agave grows slowly. The plant takes seven to ten years to reach maturity before it can be harvested — at which point it flowers once and dies. Every bottle of tequila represents a decade of farming before a single drop is distilled. The harvesting is done manually by jimadores — skilled workers who have often inherited the craft from their fathers and grandfathers — using a long-handled tool called a coa to strip the spiked leaves and extract the piña, the dense heart of the plant that can weigh anywhere from 50 to 150 pounds. The skill is in knowing exactly when the piña is ready: harvested too early or too late, the fermentation suffers.

Highlands vs. Lowlands — Tequila Terroir

Jalisco is not a single terroir. The state divides into two dramatically different growing regions that produce tequila of genuinely distinct character — a distinction as significant as Burgundy’s Côte de Nuits versus Côte de Beaune, or Napa’s valley floor versus hillside vineyards.

Most mass-market tequilas blend Highland and Lowland agave to achieve consistency at scale — the terroir character disappears in the blending. Single-origin and estate tequilas, by contrast, make the growing region part of the product’s identity, just as a Burgundy producer would for a specific vineyard site.

How Tequila Is Made — Traditional vs. Industrial

The production method is the most important variable in tequila quality — more important than brand, price, or aging category. Two tequilas labeled “100% Blue Weber Agave” from the same region can taste dramatically different based entirely on how the agave was processed.

The Aging Categories — Blanco to Extra Añejo

The Additive Problem — What’s in Your Bottle

Under Mexican tequila regulations, producers may add up to 1% by volume of certain substances — glycerin, caramel coloring, oak extract, and sugar-based syrups — without any disclosure requirement on the label. A bottle marked “100% Blue Weber Agave” can legally contain all four without mentioning any of them. The practical effect: many mass-market tequilas taste smoother, sweeter, and more complex than their base spirit would naturally produce, because additives are doing the work that careful agave farming and production should be doing instead.

The craft tequila response to this has been the additive-free movement — producers voluntarily committing to making tequila from nothing but fermented agave, water, and yeast. Organizations like Tequila Matchmaker and the Additive Free Alliance have built verified lists of confirmed additive-free producers. Note: in 2025 the CRT (Consejo Regulador del Tequila — the regulatory body) filed lawsuits against some additive-free certification bodies, creating a contested legal landscape. The practical consumer approach: buy from producers with transparent production details and a track record in the serious tequila community, regardless of any certification body’s current legal status.

The NOM Number — How to Read a Tequila Label

Every bottle of legitimate tequila carries a NOM number — Norma Oficial Mexicana — a four-digit code assigned to each distillery by the CRT. The NOM number is the most useful piece of information on a tequila label. It tells you exactly where the tequila was made, regardless of the brand name on the front of the bottle.

This matters because many tequila brands do not own their own distilleries — they source spirit from production facilities that make tequila for dozens of different labels. Two bottles with completely different brand names and price points may share the same NOM number, meaning they came from the same distillery and may be identical or near-identical tequilas. Conversely, a brand that changes distilleries may change character significantly even if the label looks the same. The Tequila Matchmaker website (tequilamatchmaker.com) maintains a searchable database of NOM numbers cross-referenced with production details — one of the most useful consumer tools in the tequila world.

What to Buy — Producers Worth Knowing

Tequila vs. Mezcal — The Key Distinctions

All tequila is technically mezcal — tequila is a specific, regulated subset of the broader mezcal category. But in practice the two are very different spirits with different flavor profiles, production methods, and cultural identities.

Frequently Asked Questions About Tequila

1. After Helene — the recovery story worth knowing
2. South Slope — the brewery district
3. Beyond South Slope — RAD, West Asheville, and the mountains
4. Breweries worth making the trip for
5. Planning your visit

After Helene — The Recovery Story Worth Knowing

Hurricane Helene made landfall on September 26, 2024 and sent catastrophic flooding through western North Carolina. Asheville’s French Broad River rose to historic levels, inundating the River Arts District and the South Slope brewery corridor with floodwaters that destroyed equipment, inventory, and months of work. Breweries lost water — the primary ingredient in every beer they make — for 54 days. Many gave their remaining clean water reserves to the community in the immediate aftermath.

The recovery has been as remarkable as the damage was devastating. Zillicoah Beer Company, which suffered extensive damage from flood waters, welcomed back customers in August 2025 — nearly 11 months after the storm. Hi-Wire Brewing, which took on about 15 feet of water and lost millions of cans and tens of thousands of filled cases, reopened its River Arts District location in May 2025. South Slope has bounced back, humming with energy, craft beer, and creative spirit.

South Slope — The Brewery District

South Slope is to Asheville what the Left Bank is to Paris — a geographically specific neighborhood that has come to define a culture. Located on the southern edge of downtown, walkable from the city center, South Slope contains the densest concentration of craft breweries in a single neighborhood in the American Southeast. A dozen breweries within a three-to-five block radius, most with taprooms, food programs, and outdoor seating that makes an afternoon of exploration genuinely enjoyable rather than a logistical challenge.

Beyond South Slope — RAD, West Asheville, and the Mountains

Breweries Worth Making the Trip For

Planning Your Visit