Drinking Beer At Half Acre, Solemn Oath And Revolution Brewery Taprooms | Chicago

Drinking advice from Michael Kiser of Good Beer Hunting: three Chicago taprooms to try

Michael Kiser knows beer.

The author of Good Beer Hunting travels the world, drinking and documenting as he goes.

So when he says that the most interesting beer bars in Chicago are brewery taprooms, as he did in a recent conversation, we listen.

And then we go drink. Visit his three newest favorites to taste some of the city's best beers mere steps from where they're made.

Solemn Oath's taps (Photo: Michael Kiser)

Solemn Oath: Kiser says this Naperville brewery's taproom is the prettiest around. "Raw concrete walls, beautiful wood slabs–it won over the community when they saw that beer could be part of an environment like that. It's elegant and cool."

Half Acre: "They do a lot of bottle releases on-site and sometimes make small batches that they don't even distribute outside of the taproom," says Kiser of this Ravenswood brewery. Dark Matter coffee and small-batch sodas are always on hand, and food can be brought in from neighboring restaurants.

Revolution Brewing: Kiser deems Revolution's Logan Square brewpub one of the best in town. But he especially loves the taproom at its Avondale brewing headquarters, which he calls "a cathedral to beer." "They have a slide hockey table, tons of seating and loads of beer. It's one of the best bars in the city–and no one knows about it."