Log Off and Go Outside
NYC’s newest brewery and city spots for fresh beer outdoors
I’ve given a little ink to the news of New York City’s newest brewery, but want to open the newsletter this week to remind you that Forever Brewing is now open in the former Strong Rope Brewery space on President Street off Fourth Avenue in Gowanus, Brooklyn. The brewery/homebrew shop combo had its grand opening three weeks ago and they’re ramping up operation in the space. They took delivery of a 5-barrel brewhouse in May and it should be up and running at the end of this month. They’ve been sporadically releasing small batches of their own beers in the meantime — their flagship Pale Ale called Murphy’s Law was on when I visited last weekend — while having a stellar lineup of guest taps from the likes of Other Half, Drowned Lands, and Hudson Valley, to name a few.
Founders Matt Land and Rob Jenkins are often hanging around the taproom and love to chat beer, so you can get to know the people behind the beer. Not much changed in the taproom itself from its previous iteration as Strong Rope, apart from some fresh signage, furnishings, a projection screen where they’ve been showing the World Cup, and a section full of homebrewing supplies for those who like to give brewing a go on their own. Drop in and give them a try!
Brewery Outposts for Outdoor Drinking This Summer
Every summer, I’m reminded of a terrible, terrible trend that took this city by storm back in the early 2010s: the use of the term “beer garden” to refer to any outdoor space that happened to serve beer. Got a tiny backyard with four deck chairs and two little tables? Beer garden! Some sidewalk seating with a couple potted plants? Beer garden! A single picnic table in an alley way lined with astroturf? Beer garden! A partially-covered, open-air rooftop bar? Beer garden!
It was out of hand. I wrote too many admonishments of local media using the term, particularly when they started to use the term “indoor beer garden.” (That’s not a thing. Ever.) One year, Time Out New York even featured me in their print edition to explain what a beer garden is. I wasn’t the only one who felt this passionately about the abuse of “beer garden” — the Instagram account notabiergarten has been chronicling misuses of the term since 2017.
Anyway, none of the below are beer gardens by any definition, but here are just a few brewery-affiliated spots to enjoy a good beer outdoors in New York City this summer…
Ideal for Sunset Views
Strong Rope Brewery
The outdoor space at Strong Rope’s waterfront taproom in Red Hook is probably one of the best places to watch the sun set in the entire city — and there happens to be a brewery there, too. Overlooking New York Harbor makes it a great spot any time of day, but facing west means it’s even better for watching the sun dip behind Lady Liberty and the ports of New Jersey with a beer in your hand.
Ideal for a Weekend Outing
Threes Brewing Governor’s Island
On Saturdays and Sundays, Threes rolls up the window on their shipping container on Governor’s Island. The sprawling, tree-lined space in front of the container on Liggett Terrace offers a nice escape from the busier areas of the island, and it’s probably the closest vibe you’ll get to drinking fresh beer in a public park in Munich or Berlin. Just don’t call it a beer garden.
Ideal for Rain or Shine
Evil Twin Brewing NYC
Evil Twin’s Ridgewood, Queens taproom has a spacious patio that’s perfect for lazing around on a nice day. But its indoor space, a glassy greenhouse-like structure, is so bright and airy that if you’re forced to take the party indoors, you’ll still feel like you’re outside when you’re sipping on their beers with names containing 20+ words.
Ideal for Rooftop Vibes
Randolph Beer
This DUMBO brewpub offers two distinct vibes: a sprawling downstairs space with tons of games, including the city’s only feather bowling, and a more serene rooftop space with incredible views of the downtown Brooklyn and Manhattan skylines. The tap list is more limited on the roof, but it’s a small price to pay to drink from a 12th floor perch overlooking New York City.
Ideal for Families
Focal Point Beer Co.
Focal Point’s spacious Long Island City taproom opened three years ago, but more significantly, its space faces onto the colorful 12th Street Plaza, where you’ll often find picnic tables covered with beers, accompanied by strollers, and with children climbing on the ancient glacial rock in the plaza (this sounds more dangerous than it is, I promise — the thing is barely two feet high).
Upcoming Beer Events of Note
Manhattan: Curds & Hops Cheese & Beer Tasting at Murray’s Cheese, Friday 6/19 from 6:30-8pm, tickets $110
Brooklyn: Green City at Other Half Brewing Gowanus, Saturday 6/20 from noon-4pm, tickets start at $85
Brooklyn: Wills Weekend at Torst, Thursday 6/25 to Sunday 6/28, free entry
Staten Island: Kills Boro Pizza Party at Snug Harbor Cultural Center and Botanical Garden, Saturday 7/25 from noon-4pm, tickets start at $72
Brewery Tracker
Total brewery count: 4,004
Total breweries visited in 2026: 81
Total breweries visited in Colorado: 254
Brewery Visit of the Week
Brewery #2772, Telluride Brewing Company, Telluride, CO (Visited 19-Aug-2022)
I don’t often play favorites with beer, but I can confidently say that Telluride’s Face Down Brown is my all-time favorite brown ale. It’s not even close. It’s ranked as my favorite for many years, and every time I go back to it, my opinion is reinforced. So when a slight change in a Colorado road trip itinerary put my friend and I mere yards from Telluride’s production brewery, it was a must-visit. The cozy taproom is in the same building as their larger production facility on the outskirts of this ski resort town, and it was full at three in the afternoon on a summer Friday, with local regulars and tourists passing through town sitting side-by-side at the bar. The cooler was well-stocked with cans of nearly every beer on tap, which made it easy to take home some of the stuff we couldn’t drink on account of driving and time constraints. The staff was friendly and knowledgeable and down-to-earth, which was a relief for me, as I was worried about a hoity-toity attitude considering the wealth of this town. I wish the weather had been more cooperative so I could’ve taken in the sight of the San Juan Mountains surrounding the town, but a raw, rainy day made every sip of that Face Down Brown taste so much better.
The Doom and Gloom Tracker
At least 3 breweries I’ve visited closed or announced their closure in the past week:
Brewery #1520, Zipline Brewing Company, Lincoln, Nebraska [Visited 20-Apr-2019]
Brewery #1751, Akademia Brewing Company, Athens, Georgia [Visited 2-Nov-2019
Brewery #1942, Naked Dove Brewing Company, Canandaigua, New York [Visited 19-Jul-2020]
The Weekly Reader
Prospect Park West gem The Double Windsor among Best Bars in America [Brian Braiker, Esquire]
Craft beer’s wild ride in St. Louis [Joel Bittle, Sauce]
Last year was not kind to large brewers [Jeff Alworth, Beervana]
A profile of the elusive owner of San Francisco beer landmark Toronado [Jessica Yadegaran, SF Gate]
One Last Thing
I was reminded of this Vinepair list of each state’s oldest brewery (sadly, a couple of these have closed, so it may need some updating since it was published in 2021). But what are the oldest breweries here in New York City? Brooklyn Brewery is the obvious answer, having been established in 1988 and brewing beer in its namesake borough since 1996. Next would be Sixpoint Brewery, which opened in 2004 in Red Hook, Brooklyn. And the third oldest: Rockaway Brewing in Long Island City, Queens, which is a mere teenager, having opened in 2012. Strange that even Rockaway still feels new to me. Time flies.
Cheers,
Chris