[galapagos jim]

Every year in April the office is sends me to Las Vegas for the big convention. This year, instead of flying, a buddy and I are going to road-trip it between Seattle and LV and back. This means I'll get to bring back some growlers!

I'm kinda familiar with the Vegas beer scene from previous years. I plan to hit up Big Dog's because I liked them in the past, and Tenaya Creek because I've never been there. What else?

We'll try to hit breweries on the road, too, but we're likely going to stay off the main highways. No set route and recommendations welcomed.

[Stevie]

Some total wine and whole foods locations offer fills. I'm sure there are other "growler bars"

[BrewArk]

Our timeshare is walking distance from Ellis Island.  The beer there is cheap (I think is was $8 a growler).  We have one of their growlers every night.  During football games they discount the beer even more.  It was like $2 a pint then.

Not the best craft beer in the world, but they brew it on the premises.

[galapagos jim]

Our timeshare is walking distance from Ellis Island.  The beer there is cheap (I think is was $8 a growler).  We have one of their growlers every night.  During football games they discount the beer even more.  It was like $2 a pint then.

Not the best craft beer in the world, but they brew it on the premises.

Thanks. I hit up Ellis on a past trip, and I recall the beer being OK, and the wheat specifically being passable. It was by far the best of the in-casino breweries.

Any suggestions for off-strip?

[reverseapachemaster]

I like Sin City's hefeweizen but I'm not sure how that survives in a growler driving across the country or whether you can find it somewhere that fills growlers. I'd skip anything else they have to offer.

[Jimmy K]

When I was at Sin City you could get two pitchers for $15. They asked if we wanted cups - because people were just walking around drinking from pitchers. I have no idea if they'd fill a growler though.

[galapagos jim]

Got back from this trip a couple of weeks ago. Here's a recap:

First brewery stop was Ruby Mountain Brewing, south of Wells, Nevada. Can't say enough good things about this place, which is almost literally in the middle of nowhere. Had a great time chatting with owner Steve over samples of his amber, pale, and porter. I liked the amber, which is unusual for me, but this one is dry and hoppy and not sweet. More like a hoppy brown with a little extra oomph in the caramel. If you're in the area (NE Nevada), I highly recommend giving Steve a call. Mind that the brewery doesn't have a tap room or regular hours, and it's on his personal property, Angel Creek Ranch on Hwy 232 (not where Google Maps thinks it is). Drive past the house and park next to the brewery.

During the next week in Las Vegas I didn't have time to get out to breweries, but was happy to see that the craft beer invasion was in full bloom there. The Burger Bar at Mandalay Bay had a good tap selection and a phenomenal bottle list. At the new Linq mall next to the Flamingo there is a Tap House Grill, though we ended up at Brooklyn Bowl instead, sipping Brooklyn Brewery suds. On our last day in Vegas we did get out to a couple of breweries.

Banger Brewing is the new kid in town. Located on the Fremont Street pedestrian mall, downtown. They're small but have a comfortable tap room. Their beer was good, with some flaws but lots of potential. I had a good chat with an enthusiastic guy behind the bar (owner/brewer?), who took me over to the glass-walled brewery when I started asking questions about their water filtration and other processes. Really nice folks there and I'm looking forward to visiting them again next year.

Then we drove out to Tenaya Creek. I wish I could give a better report, but I was very disappointed. The beer was mediocre, nothing inspiring or interesting. The seasonal Baltic porter was... meh. The tap room is an uninspiring tavern, with noisy video poker in the bar and cigarette smoke hanging in the air. We got some relief on an outdoor patio, though it's next to a busy street so a bit noisy. Overall it's not a place that I'm going to hurry back to.

After all that I never did get any growlers filled in Nevada. But on the way back we stopped at Sierra Nevada, Ninkasi, and the Lucky Lab in North Portland, so I got my fills.