Great news for East Valley beer folks!!!

As many of you know, I live in Gilbert, AZ, a suburb of Phoenix. When you hear the term "east valley" in Phoenix, you are talking about cities such as Mesa, and Tempe, as well as Chandler, and Gilbert, and a few others. Until recent years, Tempe dominated the east valley (and I would argue, the entire valleys) beer scene. Tempe hosts the states largest brewer, Four Peaks, and, well, with the exception of Papago Brewery  (just a mile north of downtown Tempe, in S Scottsdale, and btw, check out their new website!!) that was pretty much it. We slowly started getting a few "chain" brewers in the east valley, i.e. BJ's in Chandler, and Rock Bottom in Ahwatukee (S Phoenix). Then, the opening of San Tan in Chandler, and Whole Foods introduction of "The Watering Hole", and well, Chandler was in the running for the Beer Capital of the East Valley. The opening of a few more brewery's, and World of Beer in Tempe probably keeps Tempe as the capital, but Chandler is becoming a destination for beer folks in the east valley.

Inside Trophy's

Gilbert has always been a little lack luster in the beer dept. For a while, there was really no where to go get a "good" beer. No brewery's at all, and few places that offered more then the ubiquitous "mega brews" you can get at any Applebee's. Well, things are looking up in Gilbert I must say. For a while, Throphys Steakhouse was THE place for craft beer in Gilbert (Trophy's in technically in Queen Creek, but about 10 feet from the Gilbert line, so I'll include it, plus, its a VERY cool place, so check it out!).

Then, Arizona Wilderness Brewing announced it was moving to Gilbert! Gilbert's first brewery. They've had some issues with permitting, and their opening, originally planned for the last part of 2012, has now been pushed to March of 2013. Worth the wait I am sure. (I am working on setting up a meeting with the owner of AWB to go over his plans, and check out his operation, stay tuned for more details)

Well, now Sleepy Dog of Tempe just announced it is taking over the recently vacated Warren's Jazz Bistro on Val Vista and Williams Field Rd!. They will have a FULL kitchen, and are looking to move their brewery operations to Gilbert as well, once the restaurant is up and running. They will continue to operate their Tempe location for another 18 months. From what I hear, they plan on having live entertainment, and just a ton of events. They plan on opening Feb 15th!!!!

.....but wait, there's more! According to Mouth by Southwest, World of Beer plans on opening its second Arizona location at Gilbert's San Tan Village Market place (literally 2 miles from my house!!!! walking distance!) I haven't been able to confirm this with any other source, but MXSW hasn't steered me wrong yet, so I can't imagine they will start now.


So beer fans of the east valley. In the up coming 4 months, we here in Gilbert will go from having a couple of options for fine beer here in our fair city, to a pretty impressive collection of beer joints! What a difference a few months can make!

So, in a few short months, make your way to Gilbert, AZ, and have a glass or two with the Beer Czar!
Until next my friends,
Bottoms up!
The Beer Czar