Let's keep the Hubby happy at Disney! Where is the Craft Beer?!

[Zipadeelady]

I really enjoy Food and Wine BUT... as a big craft beer fan I often go to craft beer festivals that are usually about $50 for entry which INCLUDES all the samples you can drink. And they have far more variety and selection than F&W. A one-day ticket to Epcot will cost you $105.44 each and that doesn't include any food or beer. (The food, wine and beer are Disney priced - much higher than you'd pay at your neighborhood bar.)

If you plan your trip around F&W that's one thing but I just don't think you can justify that cost just to drink some craft beer. Just my opinion.

J also drags me to those festivals. Ok not literally but I'm the DD so it's like being drug. I think I would rather hit up a few places around the property. I can't believe that is what I want to do... I mean this is my chance to get into Epcot, but I'm just not feeling it right now.

 

[pax_65]

One other thing... the quality of the craft beers F&W has for various parts of the "world" deserves some criticism. I've had some respectable German beers there, and the local beer selection was decent, but the beers in the Belgian tent were embarrassing. Last year they had Hoegaarden, Leffe Blond, and Stella. First of all, these beers are widely available anywhere in the United States so these aren't exciting to find. Second, while Hoegaarden is still a quality wit (AKA Belgian White), Leffe and Stella are the Belgian equivalent of "macro" beers and are not considered great quality. When you consider all the great Belgian beers they could have chosen for this tent, having Leffe and Stella there at $4 a cup is really just sad. But they are popular (especially Stella) so I guess that's why they chose them.

By the way, as picky as I am about beer I enjoyed Big River on the boardwalk. The beers aren't "world class" but the flights are fun, food is decent, service was good. Good luck!

 

[Zipadeelady]

One other thing... the quality of the craft beers F&W has for various parts of the "world" deserves some criticism. I've had some respectable German beers there, and the local beer selection was decent, but the beers in the Belgian tent were embarrassing. Last year they had Hoegaarden, Leffe Blond, and Stella. First of all, these beers are widely available anywhere in the United States so these aren't exciting to find. Second, while Hoegaarden is still a quality wit (AKA Belgian White), Leffe and Stella are the Belgian equivalent of "macro" beers and are not considered great quality. When you consider all the great Belgian beers they could have chosen for this tent, having Leffe and Stella there at $4 a cup is really just sad. But they are popular (especially Stella) so I guess that's why they chose them.

By the way, as picky as I am about beer I enjoyed Big River on the boardwalk. The beers aren't "world class" but the flights are fun, food is decent, service was good. Good luck!

. I'm just going to let J read this post. He would understand everything your saying.

 

[Phonedave]

. I'm just going to let J read this post. He would understand everything your saying.

What he is saying (and I agree) is that having Stella at F&W is the equivalent of having something like Sam Adams as a representitive of an American beer at some festival in an other country.

 

[Hockey89]

What he is saying (and I agree) is that having Stella at F&W is the equivalent of having something like Sam Adams as a representitive of an American beer at some festival in an other country.

It's no Founders Centennial IPA

 

[Zipadeelady]

What he is saying (and I agree) is that having Stella at F&W is the equivalent of having something like Sam Adams as a representitive of an American beer at some festival in an other country.

I understood what he was saying but I do appreciate you trying to help me by explaining. I wanted J to read it since I put all the pressure on him if we do F&W. From what @pax_65 said and a few others we will be skipping F&W this year.

 

[BigRedDad]

Outside of the parks, you are going to be fairly limited. I can personally vouch for the beers at Big River on the Boardwalk. The food for us was actually excellent and more fairly priced. They brew there and are quite good. After that, AKL may have some. Don't forget Disney Springs. There are plenty of places there that may have craft brew.

 

[danheaton]

Animal Kingdom Lodge has Safari Amber and the Tusker Lager, and there may be a few more. I'd also suggest Raglan Road, which has a pretty extensive beer selection. It's also a cool place for dinner.

 

[Mark P.]

Animal Kingdom Lodge has Safari Amber and the Tusker Lager, and there may be a few more. I'd also suggest Raglan Road, which has a pretty extensive beer selection. It's also a cool place for dinner.

Completely forgot about Raglan Road (probably because my last time there was at the beginning of my own attempt at touring the best beer spots WDW has to offer ) but now that you mention it, they're one of the few on property anywhere that offer beer flights.

 

[Zipadeelady]

Outside of the parks, you are going to be fairly limited. I can personally vouch for the beers at Big River on the Boardwalk. The food for us was actually excellent and more fairly priced. They brew there and are quite good. After that, AKL may have some. Don't forget Disney Springs. There are plenty of places there that may have craft brew.

Animal Kingdom Lodge has Safari Amber and the Tusker Lager, and there may be a few more. I'd also suggest Raglan Road, which has a pretty extensive beer selection. It's also a cool place for dinner.

We are actually staying at AKL. Didn't even cross my mind that they may have a good selection!. Thanks! Raglan Road is definitely on our list of stops at DS.

 

[xdan0920]

We are actually staying at AKL. Didn't even cross my mind that they may have a good selection!. Thanks! Raglan Road is definitely on our list of stops at DS.

I'll be at AKL in a month. I'll check it out for you.

 

[pax_65]

The cool thing about Safari Amber is that Anheiser Busch/In-Bev brews the beer exclusively for WDW, so you can't get it anywhere else. The bad thing is it tastes a lot like beers you CAN get almost anywhere else (Yuengling Lager and Killians Red come to mind). But beer snobbery aside, it tastes pretty good in the Florida sun.

One thing Disney is doing a little (and I wish they were doing a LOT more) is having specific craft beer in specific resorts to help add to the theme. I've had Saratoga Lager at Saratoga Springs, Kona beers at the Polynesian, and Key West Sunset Ale at Old Key West. These are nice touches and help you feel more "at home" versus drinking Blue Moon everywhere you go.

Show your hubby this site - I just stumbled upon it. There are more beers here than I realized, and I've been looking a long time!

http://beersandears.net/wdw-beer-list/

 

[danheaton]

I actually didn't realize that AB made Safari Amber. This disappoints me a little, though it is cool that it's only at the AKL. We're going to AKL for six nights in March, and I'm going to be on the lookout there and elsewhere for different beers. I'll also have the Beers and Ears app downloaded on my phone!

 

[RyanH]

It has been said on here many times, but Big River Grille down on the boardwalk has good beers. I think the food is a bit better than people are giving it credit for. It is certainly not a show stopper and I don’t know anyone who says it is their favorite place to eat, but it is better than average “sports bar food.” If you sit on the bar side it is also a good spot to catch a portion of a game on TV if you want to get away from Disney for a while or if you have a particular interest in a game.

If you are going during the food and wine festival there are countless microbrew options around the back of epcot (Germany has a great portable booth set up with some extra standing bar tables). One place often overlooked for beer at the festival is in the old “Odyssey” restaurant on the way back to world showcase. It has been closed as a restaurant for years, but during the festival they have set up a bunch of tall bar tables as an informal lounge. They have 4-6 microbrews that are good in there too.

Not sure what kind of beers you like, but away from the food and wine festival the cart in Canada often has La Fin Du Monde which is good.

My favorite place to grab a pint is at the Rose N Crown in Epcot. Fairly standard European beer selection, but fun atmosphere.

As an Englishman, the Bass beer in R&C was pretty awful. The local brews I tried were far nicer.

 

[lostpro9het]

I'll be at AKL in a month. I'll check it out for you.

I actually didn't realize that AB made Safari Amber. This disappoints me a little, though it is cool that it's only at the AKL. We're going to AKL for six nights in March, and I'm going to be on the lookout there and elsewhere for different beers. I'll also have the Beers and Ears app downloaded on my phone!

Maji pool bar is your friend at AKL...

 

[RyPat]

I'm surprised at the love for Big River, i thought the beers were average and the food even less so, but then again i've only been once so maybe it was a fluke.

As for the local beers i found the Cigar City Jai Alai to be quite tasty!