Save the Champagne for midnight, there's only kind of bubbles I want on New Year's Eve. With beer, you can spend the whole day closing out the year, cruising through the College Football Playoffs in the afternoon and evening, good to go for the countdown to midnight and maybe even have enough fuel to party a couple hours into 2024.
So consider my year-end beer round-up a guide to where you can pick up some of the best beer in Missouri and southern Illinois on your way to wherever you plan to celebrate. (They're also worth a little day trip there and back if you just want to watch the ball drop from home.)
KC Bier Co. Schwarzbier — By now you've no doubt seen these uniform red boxes of old-school glass bottles from Kansas City throughout the STL metro (they're now available all over Missouri and Kansas). But don't let the understated packaging fool you: KC Bier Co. has grown into a nationally recognized master of German-style lagers. This naturally carbonated, cold-lagered beauty is a roasty and warm treat.
Broadway Brewing Blubber Chubber — This subterranean CoMo brewery has emerged on the main drag in recent years as one of the state's most reliable brands outside the major metros. That goes double when it comes to its hazy IPAs. The Blubber Chubber, dry-hopped with Citra, Sabro and Riwaka hops, is particularly refreshing.
Last Flight Pineapple Habanero IPA — Jefferson City has long been wanting for a craft-beer destination, and finally Last Flight has answered the call. In just under three years, the brewery has spread its wings to offer solid-to-exceptional versions of just about every style. When I was looking for a little sweet heat last summer, this habanero IPA hit the spot, but the brewery pours everything from a Dubbel-style Sturmbier to the Key Lime Pie in the Sky Berliner Weisse to the Splash Hog dill pickle sour.
Ebb & Flow Fermentations Blastbeets — One doesn't automatically associate Cape Girardeau with art and adventure. But the folks at Ebb & Flow are doing their best to change that, at least as far as beer is concerned. You rarely find the same beer twice here, as wild fermentation with housemade yeast blends produces all sorts of wondrous flavors. Case in point: This tart and earthy blonde ale aged on beets. Trust me, it's delicious.
Banter Brewing Tryptich Series Base Dunkelweizen — One of the secrets of southside Springfield, Missouri, Banter is gradually building a name for its rotating (and fast-selling) Tryptich series. The word comes from the Romans' concept of a tablet with three waxed leaves bound together, and likewise the brewery produces three variants of a beer or style that are meant to be enjoyed together. For instance, this wheat series came with oak-smoked walnut and Belgian candy sugar variants, but the malty, true-to-style base was good enough on its own.
Stubborn German Bourbon Barrel-Aged Black Forest Cake Stout — Known for hoisting steins of authentic malt-forward German-style lagers, Stubborn German brewery of Waterloo, Illinois, also has a sweet tooth. From orange-chocolate to coconut-cinnamon to German chocolate cake, you can find holiday desserts in its cans. This one is a sinfully delightful imperial stout aged in Stumpy's bourbon barrels with dark cherries, cocoa and vanilla that will put Aunt Flora's fruit cake to shame.
Engrained Brewing Lokal Hop — Honestly, this beer was a little too grainy for me, but I'm in love with the concept. This Springfield, Illinois, brewpub makes this American IPA with 100 percent Illinois-grown Cascade hops. Which is pretty amazing, since most of the world's hops are grown in the Pacific Northwest. Can't say I've ever mistaken Southern Illinois for the verdant and mountainous Yakima Valley. But it's a hell of a lot closer.
Burnt Barrel Meadery Barrel-Aged Basement — For something a little closer to wine, or to impress history-minded relatives, try mead, the ancient art of fermenting honey water. Lake St. Louis' Burnt Barrel aged this black currant and pomegranate mead with vanilla in rum barrels. The result is a layered experience of dark fruit, sweet honey and just a touch of char from the wood. And if the 14.5 percent alcohol is too much for you, check out the meadery's new line of much lighter session meads.
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