I got the St Louis Blues

... because I'd have liked to spend more time there! Last weekend, John and I trekked out to Hermann and St Louis for a mini-beercation. We hadn't been out of town overnight since October, so it was nice to get away.

We went to the Tin Mill in Hermann and sampled all of their beers. Their Pilsner and Maibock were our favorites, so we bought 12 bottles of each. All of their beer is good (though the doppelbock had much more of a roasted flavor than I'd expect for the style) and they're worth a detour if you're driving through the area. Hermann's only 15 miles south of I-70 and about 90 miles from downtown St Louis.

We spent Saturday in St Louis, but we hopped over the state line to Illinois before starting our day in the city. We went to Corral Liquors in Granite City to pick up some brews we can't get in KS or MO. We ended up with two cases of various bottles from Lagunitas, Dogfish Head, Rogue, Green Flash, Victory, Three Floyds, and a host of others. I highly recommend taking a detour any time you're in St Louis and picking up some beer not distributed to this side of Illinois. The staff was friendly and the store had a great selection.

After loading up the car with beer, we headed back into STL to the Schlafly Tap Room for some lunch. Their food selection is intriguing, and I couldn't pass up a tilapia reuben! Much to my surprise, the tilapia was battered and fried. I loved it, and if you can handle a giant grease bomb, I highly recommend it! We enjoyed a handful of pints, all of which were very good - but the APA on cask was my favorite. This goes without saying, but I'll say it anyway - the tap room is a must-visit for any beer lover in St Louis.

While we chatted over lunch and our beers, I perused one of the free weekly mags (River Front Times) and saw an ad for a beer bar named The Stable. Brewhouse, distillery, and pizzeria? I'm there!

The bar's great - well-stocked with a large variety of beer including stuff from Bells, Southern Tier, New Belgium (Lips of Faith Dunkelweiss), Rogue (Brutal Bitter), Charleville, Duchesse du Bourgogne, Sammiclaus (Helles), Ommegang.... They had about 30 beers on tap and great variety. They said they rotate taps quite frequently, and I believe it. The place was busy. They are not, however, brewing yet - but that didn't matter; their beer selection is fantastic.

We had a great time and I'm looking forward to returning to St Louis for a longer visit. Schlafly has a packed event calendar that I'm going to keep my eye on. You should too.