Artwork galleries, high-end boutique buying, historic buildings, elevated eating, and a creekside path fill The Hill Country Mile, the downtown space of Boerne, Texas. However maybe the primary points of interest of this charming city, settled in 1849 by German immigrants, are its top-tier microbreweries. Hey, a German city has to have nice beer, proper?
In the present day, Boerne (pronounced “Bernie”) has a inhabitants of about 18,000 and is well-liked with these touring by means of the rolling hills of Central Texas, searching for a quintessential small-town really feel and glorious craft brews. Amongst its six microbreweries, 4 are inside strolling distance of one another downtown.
Get to know Boerne’s brewing scene on a strolling tour, then seize a bottle or two of your favorites and take a stroll alongside the Cibolo Trail, which follows close by Cibolo Creek, earlier than sundown.
Texas Tidbit: In Boerne, it’s completely acceptable to get a drink to-go and stroll across the Hill Nation Mile with an open container.
Tusculum Brewing Firm
The house owners of Tusculum Brewing Company, who’re all family and friends, got here from backgrounds in geology, engineering, and geography, however determined to make their ardour for craft beer a actuality. The brewery, housed within the historic H.O. Adler Constructing on Important Road within the coronary heart of Boerne, cranks out a wide selection of types, together with German classics akin to a kolsch, a pilsner, and a berliner.
For simple sipping, attempt the Again Porch Berliner – a tart and barely bitter Berliner weisse beer. And for one thing a bit brighter and extra hoppy, attempt the Hazed and Confuzzled New England IPA, which has notes of mango and pineapple with a crispy end.
Texas Tidbit: Tusculum Brewing has a rotating barrel-aged beer menu. Ask your bartender in regards to the newest creation.
Free Roam Brewing Firm
Take a 1-minute stroll down Important Road from Tusculum Brewing Firm, and also you’ll discover Free Roam Brewing Company, Boerne’s latest downtown brewery specializing in ales and lagers. Established in 2021 by three pals together with Jeremy Affeldt, a three-time world championship pitcher for the San Francisco Giants, Free Roam Brewing Firm can be recognized for its dedication to the group.
Meals vehicles present the grub right here, whereas brews akin to That Could Be a Balk bock and the I-10 West IPA are simply a few hits from an ever-evolving beer listing. Free Roam additionally hosts trivia nights, dwell music, and even yoga periods.
Cibolo Creek Brewing Firm
Additionally on Important Road, Cibolo Creek Brewing Company has a steady of mainstay beers that it retains on faucet year-round, such because the Boerne Blonde, an easy-to-drink, balanced beer, and Creekside IPA, a hoppy draft with citrus and pine notes.
Seasonal beers rotate all year long, together with Postman’s Pale Ale, which is a light-weight beer, and 48’ers Porter, a darker and stronger beer for colder months. The brewery additionally creates small-batch brews, together with imperial stouts, saisons, sours, and double IPAs, which rotate each few weeks.
Make sure you seize a chew to eat right here as nicely – Cibolo Creek Brewing makes use of sustainable proteins, dairy merchandise, and produce from native farms.
Dodging Duck Brewhaus
Dodging Duck Brewhaus on River Street has been serving craft beer in Boerne since 2002. Overlooking Cibolo Creek, “The Duck” gives indoor seating in a renovated turn-of-the-century dwelling, and outdoors seating on a patio and heated decks.
The beer is brewed in a 10-barrel system, and as much as 20 totally different beers a 12 months rotate by means of the menu. The Pico de Pato Mexican Lager has a slight trace of lime, because of using dried limes within the boil kettle, and Duck and the Large Peach is a full of life wheat ale full of peach taste.
An eclectic meals menu accompanies the beer right here. Don’t miss the Hill Nation Poutine (French fries topped with beer cheese and beer chili), the Philly cheesesteak, or the bratwurst served with sauerkraut and a jumbo pretzel.
Texas Tidbit: “Ducky Hour” is Monday by means of Friday from 3pm – 6pm, and consists of discounted beers, wines, and appetizers.
Barrelman Brewing Firm
About 2.5 miles west of downtown, Barrelman Brewing is known as after a preferred memento from the Philippines depicting a picket figurine of a male lined by a barrel. Barrelmen have a outstanding position in Filipino tradition, and house owners Fred and Andrea Locke needed to honor their roots within the Philippines.
Barrelman Brewing focuses on small batches of craft beer and a family-friendly ambiance, served with quite a lot of meals gadgets akin to Hawaiian musubi, lumpia (Filipino-style spring rolls), and smashburgers, made by smashing the burger down on a super-hot grill. Seize a Boxers Blessing, a crimson ale with a nutty taste, or the Chasing Waterfalls IPA, and sit down within the faucet room for a calming night – you would possibly even catch some dwell music on Saturdays.
Kinematic Brewing Firm
Fifteen minutes northwest of city, Kinematic Brewing Company is a nano-brewery plus tasting room and bottle store the place patrons are inspired to seize a brew, chill out, and benefit from the ambiance. The brewery’s outside space seems out throughout the oh-so-Texas fields, with adirondack chairs and rockers good for lounging. Plus, native meals vehicles (together with excellent Texas barbecue) and dwell musical acts are common points of interest.
Beers rotate usually, so examine the web site for up-to-date brews. Some favorites are the Lagniappe, a beignet and cafe au lait stout, and Galileo’s Revenge, a darkish ale barrel-aged in bourbon barrels.
Extra to see, and the place to remain
Along with its microbreweries, Boerne is filled with different points of interest. The Old Jail Museum on the Hill Nation Mile is open on Saturdays and consists of historic county artifacts plus 4 operable, unique jail cells. There’s additionally a free historic walking tour that features info and websites from Boerne’s most storied locations. To study extra about Boerne’s German heritage, go to the Kuhlmann-King Historical Complex, which is open each second and fourth Saturday for excursions. Or cease in on the Visitors Center for assist planning your good Boerne tour.
On the Hill Nation Mile, The Kendall and The William are each spectacular boutique lodges that place you proper within the coronary heart of Boerne. The Kendall opened in 1859 and is a superb spot to anchor for downtown celebrations. The William overlooks downtown Boerne as nicely, placing you steps away from all of the motion. For one thing a bit extra non-public, the city has an assortment of rental cottages inside strolling distance to downtown, in addition to traditional hotels in shut proximity to the Hill Nation Mile.
