March 2024

beer inside

fried chicken sandwich at brass burger inside of urban chestnut brewing co. in midtown

Chris Keating

Meera Nagarajan

Iain Shaw

Lauren Healey

Michelle Volansky

Meera Nagarajan

Lauren Healey

Lauren Healey, Izaiah Johnson, Zachary Linhares, Christina Musgrave, Michelle Volansky

Alexa Beattie

Alexa Beattie, Lauren Healey, Bill Moran, Meera Nagarajan, Michael Renner, Iain Shaw, Michelle Volansky

Heather Hughes-Huff

Kelli Jones

Elizabeth Rowland

Amy Hyde

Sauce was founded by Allyson Mace in 1999.

To place advertisements in Sauce Magazine, contact the advertising department at 314.772.8004 or sales@saucemagazine.com.

The entire contents of Sauce Magazine are copyright 2024 by Big Lou Holdings, LLC. No portion may be reproduced in whole or in part by any means, including electronic retrieval systems, without the expressed written permission of the Publisher, Sauce Magazine, PO Box 430033, St. Louis, MO, 63143. Please call the Sauce office for back-issue information, 314-772-8004. The Sauce name and logo are both registered to the publisher, Big Lou Holdings, LLC. While

the information has been compiled carefully to ensure maximum accuracy at the time of publication, it is provided for general guidance only and is subject to change. The publisher cannot guarantee the accuracy of all information or be responsible for omissions or errors.

EDITORIAL POLICIES The Sauce Magazine mission is to provide St. Louis-area residents and visitors with unbiased, complete information on the area’s restaurant, bar and entertainment industry. Our editorial content is not influenced by who advertises with Sauce Magazine or saucemagazine.com.

Our reviewers are never provided with complimentary food or drinks from the restaurants in exchange for favorable reviews, nor are their identities as reviewers made known during their visits.

Sauce is available free of charge.

Additional copies of the current issue may be purchased for $1.00 plus postage, payable in advance to the Sauce Magazine office at 1826 Chouteau Ave., St. Louis MO 63103. Sauce may be distributed only by Sauce authorized distributors. No person may, without prior written permission of Sauce, take more than one copy of Sauce's monthly issue.

GET SAUCE MAGAZINE E-MAILED DIRECTLY TO YOUR INBOX EVERY MONTH

Rather than searching for a copy on stands around town, you can now receive the issue straight to your inbox every month. Scan the QR code or visit saucemagazine.com/digitalissue/join to subscribe to the magazine online, and keep an eye on our website and social media for more foodie content. Print magazine subscriptions are available for $40/year.

46

New

12

last bite

50

WHAT

E D I T O R S' PICKS

Eat This

212 N. Kingshighway Blvd., St. Louis, 314.633.3036, theprestonstl.com

A soft pretzel with bronzed exterior and chewy texture is a delight. A perfect croissant is a work of art, with hypnotic, tissue-thin layers of laminated dough. Put these two together and voila, you’ve got the wunderkind pretzel croissant at The Preston inside the Chase Park Plaza. These beauties are made daily by the restaurant’s pastry team. The dough is mixed, laminated, shaped, dipped in lye and sprinkled with pretzel salt before it is proofed and finally baked. The lye gives the pretzel croissant’s exterior its iconic color and a bit of tangy acidity. On the inside, the dough, which is made with French Buerremont butter, has a mild sweetness and feather-light layers. Dip them in the housemade cheese sauce or seasonal jam they are served with, or just eat them plain. Whatever you decide, it’s the right choice.

PHOTO BY CHRISTINA MUSGRAVE

hit list 3 new places to try this month

PHOTOS

opposite page: stews food & liquor; this page, clockwise, from top: edamame "hummus," nate burrows and cocktails at stews food & liquor

STEWS FOOD & LIQUOR

The laid-back, friendly vibe at Stews is immediately contagious, thanks to co-owner and bartender Nate Burrows’ bright personality and knack for hospitality. The small space is cozy with alternating forest green walls and classic Soulard brick, glowy candles and intimate seating. From cheap lagers to craft brews, well-made classics to fresh new cocktails, the concise drink menu has something for everyone. The Fat Man in a Yellow Suit (named after one of the quirky paintings adorning the space) is Stews’ take on a tiki drink. The cocktail combines rum, rhum agricole, orange juice, pineapple and a touch of allspice, all poured over a tall mound of shaved ice in an elegant stemmed glass. Come with an appetite, because the eclectic Asian fusion food menu is not to be missed. An order of edamame “hummus” for the table is mandatory: The irresistibly creamy soy bean-based dip comes with unmistakable flavors of miso and sesame, a sprinkle of togarashi, a drizzle of chile-garlic oil and a generous pile of wonton chips. There’s also a respectable roster of hearty mains; noodle dishes, savory grilled skewers, a decadent pork burger with sweet chile and Kewpie mayo, and popcorn chicken with an assortment of sauces to choose from. Pro tip: Order the “Stews Way” upgrade on the popcorn chicken, which gets you Buffalo-gochujang chicken luxuriating in a pool of mozzarella fondue and topped with crispy puffed rice.

opposite page: stews food & liquor; this page, from top: the dining room at amaizing arepa bar; arepas with a creamy cilantro-garlic sauce

AMAIZING AREPA BAR

Venezuelan cuisine is still in short supply in St. Louis, so we were thrilled when Tower Grove Farmers’ Market vendor Amaizing Cakes Latin Food opened Amaizing Arepa Bar in downtown St. Louis in February. We enjoyed the namesake arepas , of course, and the empanadas , but the cheese-laden cachapas are the star of the show. Massive sweet corn pancakes envelop chewy, toothsome mozzarella, and they’re topped with salty feta (a stand-in for Venezuela’s queso llanero) and a generous drizzle of nata (Venezuelan-style milk cream) plus your choice of meat. We favor pork with the cachapas, but the chicken, beef and pork belly are all worthy options; vegetarians can opt for plantains instead of meat. Pay an extra $1.50 to upgrade your filling from mozzarella to the queso de mano, a soft white cheese typical of Venezuelan cuisine. For variety, order the sample platter , which comes with two mini stuffed arepas, two cheese-filled tequenos and sweet plantains . The menu items are fully customizable, allowing you to choose your own adventure – just be sure to order extra sides of the verdant cilantro-garlic sauce

500 N. 14th St., St. Louis, 314.925.8423, amaizingcakeslatinfood.com

URBAN KITCHEN

The sister restaurant to Olivette-based Share Sweet builds on its forerunner’s boba tea-and-dessert formula with a lengthy menu that includes shareable hot pot-style soups for the center of the table, Cantonese dim sum, the occasional Chinese American takeout favorite like crab Rangoon, and more. The shredded pork with bao is Urban Kitchen’s take on “fish fragrance” pork (don’t be misled – the dish doesn’t actually contain fish), a classic Chinese dish that offers an addictive blend of sweet, gently spicy and sour notes. It’s equally enjoyable with rice or stuffed into the pillowy bao buns that are served on the side. Also, don’t miss the wontons with red chile sauce: pork dumplings bathed in a sharp, spicy and slightly smoky chile oil and topped with chopped cilantro and green onion.

17409C Chesterfield Airport Road, Chesterfield, 636.778.0178, urbankitchenstl.com

PHOTOS BY LAUREN HEALEY

IN THE KNOW THE SPILT MILK CAFE

Mobile coffee bar The Spilt Milk Cafe’s menu, including cafe de olla, horchata and pastries in addition to espresso drinks, is partly an expression of owner Phoebe Cuevas’ heritage, influenced both by her Mexican father and the formative years she spent in Mexico’s Puebla state. Cuevas traces her love of coffee back to her youthful curiosity about the coffee trees in her family’s yard in Coxcatlan. “I do have a journal entry from when I was 8 years old saying that I was so excited to turn 10 so that I could finally be allowed to drink coffee, because it would bring me one step closer to owning a coffee shop one day,” she said.

Cuevas quit a career in graphic design to work in a series of cafes, gaining her barista certification from the American Coffee Association and entering a few barista competitions along the way. “I really threw myself into it, and it’s just become a complete passion of mine,” Cuevas said.

In addition to Spilt Milk’s staple drinks, the cafe will offer rotating coffee and tea specials celebrating seasonal ingredients and flavors. Cuevas also makes her own syrups, with a spring lineup including lavender, brown sugar, cinnamon and chocolate. And there’s much more to come. “I have a peanut butter and jelly syrup that was pretty popular last summer that I made for a cafe I was working at,” she said.

Cuevas hopes to eventually find a brick-andmortar location for The Spilt Milk Cafe, but for now she’s using her mobile coffee bar to get the business rolling. Starting this month, The Spilt Milk Cafe will be appearing at farmers markets, and the coffee cart is also available for hire for private events.

Instagram: @thespiltmilkcafe

DRINK THIS

The expression of hops in hazy IPAs are what give this category of beer its juicy quality. At Millpond Brewing in Millstadt, Illinois, you can taste the range that hazies have to offer. On the lighter end of the spectrum is the Marginal Visual, a double dry-hopped beer with both Chinook and Citra hops. The Citra hops introduce classic notes of tangerine, grapefruit, lime and even peach and melon. Meanwhile, the Chinook hops bring a taste of the tropics. “We have found that when we dry-hop Chinook it produces an overripe crushed pineapple flavor,” said Millpond owner and head brewer Bryan Schubert. These aromatics carry through to the palate, making this a refreshing, light and crushable beer. The Estuary is the other side of the hazy coin. It’s brewed with St. Louis-based Omega Yeast’s British Ale IV yeast, which gives the beer a residual honey-like sweetness. The hops here are also double dry-hopped using Motueka and Strata, which give notes of tropical fruit, strawberry and lime, in addition to dank notes that inject balance and nuance. It’s a fuller beer with a longer finish that lingers until your next sip. You may prefer one of these beers over the other, but they’re both winners in our book.

308 E. Washington St., Millstadt, Illinois, 618.476.9933, millpondbrewing.com

PHOTO

MILLPOND BREWING

Operating out of an old 1940s service station, now in its fifth year of operation, Millpond Brewing excels in producing an exceptional range of different lager styles, hazy IPA, and has found early success with their only 2-year-old barrel-aged program. Only 24 minutes from downtown, and with food trucks on the weekends February through November – plus a Maifest every year the weekend before Memorial Day weekend – it is no surprise more and more people from St. Louis are making frequent trips to their favorite gathering place, especially once they discover crossing the bridge doesn’t add 30 minutes.

308 E. Washington St., Millstadt, Illinois, 618.476.9933 millpondbrewing.com

BREWERY SPOTLIGHT

HUBERTUS BIERE

Hubertus Biere is your onestop destination for all things beer-related. Specializing in crafting custom beer towers, their expert team ensures your taps pour perfection. They offer comprehensive services, from meticulously cleaning beer lines to expertly repairing and maintaining draft systems. With a dedication to excellence, they also design and build breweries tailored to your vision. Whether you're a bar, restaurant or brewery owner, trust Hubertus Biere for unmatched craftsmanship and top-notch service. The Missouri certified draft program starts at only $300 per month. Cheers to quality, innovation and the perfect pour. Elevate your beer experience with them todav. Call or email HubertusBiere@email.com for more information.

2091 Exchange Drive, St. Charles, 314.330.5733, hubertusbiere.com

✱ PRODUCT SPOTLIGHT

HUBERTUS BIERE SCHAUM MEISTER

Hubertus Biere’s premium nitro tower was meticulously crafted in the U.S. with uncompromising quality and innovation. Engineered with sleek stainless-steel components, this tower epitomizes durability and elegance, but what sets it apart is the integrated nitro infuser, enhancing your brews with the creamy texture and smoothness of nitrogeninfused pours. Elevate your draft experience to new heights with this state-of-the-art tower, where every pour is a symphony of flavor and luxury. Made for connoisseurs who appreciate excellence, it's the epitome of American craftsmanship and ingenuity. The tower comes with a lifetime warranty and features stainless steel construction and shakes, integral infuser, built-in air chill block, a universal mounting system, custom-designed faucets and easy installation.

hubertusbiere.com

FOAM PARTY

When it’s done right, a frothy pint is something to be savored

BY MICHAEL RENNER // PHOTOS BY CHRISTINA MUSGRAVE

It may seem like every beer advertisement in history exalts the alluring, even sensual, appeal of a thick and creamy layer of foam sloshing over a mug of beer. But for generations, from corner bars to college keggers, foam has been under-appreciated, maligned even. Some view a foamy head as a rip-off, occupying valuable real estate that could be better filled with more beer. Gotta get your money’s worth, right? Not so fast. The American way of pouring and drinking beer is changing as fast as your local brewpub changes their kegs on a Saturday night. Driven by craft breweries, beer nerds and an influx of bars celebrating European approaches to pouring, beer foam is now desirable.

It makes sense. Beer and foam are inseparable; you can’t have one without the other. Foam is often our first impression of the beer. Paraphrasing an old saying, Jonathan Moxey, head brewer at Rockwell Beer Co., said we drink with our eyes. “If it’s got a beautiful head of foam on it, that’s very inviting. It’s mind-blowing,” he said. Without that head, Moxey added, “It’s like a glass of iced tea with no ice in it … it’s weak sauce.”

“Aesthetically, it’s how you want your beer to look,” said Manny Negron, owner of Little Lager. “Foam makes the beer seem alive.” Negron’s postage stamp-sized bar pours a large rotation of lagers from seven Czech-made Lukr side-pull taps specifically designed to blend carbon dioxide with the beer to produce a tighter, creamier wet foam that’s as drinkable as the beer itself – without the burpiness.

American beer culture has historically valued quantity over quality. “Beer foam is definitely something you learn to appreciate the more you

know about beer,” said Danielle Snowden, head brewer at Earthbound Beer. Snowden recalls pouring a beer with a good head on it, “Only to have some older gentleman tell me to fill it up all the way, and that he didn’t want any foam.” A teachable moment, perhaps, “But in the end I would always just fill it up and tell them they were missing out on the aromatics,” she said.

American beer culture has historically valued quantity over quality. “Beer foam is definitely something you learn to appreciate the more you know about beer.”

– Danielle Snowden, head brewer at Earthbound Beer

Jeff Hardesty, head brewer at Narrow Gauge Brewing Co., said that attitude is changing. “A lot of the foam comes from the pour,” he said. “You can have a beer that is foam-positive, but if it’s poured like a lot of bartenders do [pouring] Bud Light to the rim, that’s where a lot of the old mentality of ‘no foam’ comes from.” The new appreciation for a foamy pint is a good thing, Hardesty said, because a good head of foam is one of the crucial attributes of beer. “It helps aid in pushing some of the aroma out of the beer into

lukr side-pull taps enable the perfect foam cap at little lager

the drinker’s nose … and helps with mouthfeel, adding more creaminess and bringing out more flavor profiles,” he said.

Beer aromatics and head retention are dictated by the chemistry of many components: grain, malt, hops, the percentage and type of carbonation, and even the glassware used to serve the final product. According to Snowden at Earthbound, “So many things can affect head retention, but the main one starts with your grain bill.” She brews every beer with foam-enhancing crystal malts because of their higher protein level, which she said contributes to better foam. “This adds so much to the beer while also adding so little – it’s very interesting,” she said.

Since Little Lager serves lagers from all over, Negron relies on the Lukr side-pull taps to achieve the perfect foam cap. “The typical American faucet is like an on-off switch,” he explained. “Trying to restrict the flow will produce a blast of airy foam, but it will dissipate quickly.” Foam is so integral to the Czech beer drinking experience that Little Lager serves a “milk pour,” or mliko (Czech for “milk”). This is a beverage in itself: a full glass of wet, dense foam designed to be enjoyed quickly before it settles into beer. Depending on the style of beer at hand, a milk pour can contain so much aroma and flavor in the foam that Negron said, “It can taste almost like a smoothie.”

The other variable in maintaining head retention is glassware and cleanliness. “Beer glasses are just like wine glasses in that they offer something different depending on the variety,” Snowden said. “Having a dirty glass [whether from smudges, oils or detergent] or a glass that hasn’t been cleaned properly can absolutely kill head retention.”

Jonathan Moxey at Rockwell agrees. “We can do everything right on our end to produce quality beer, but if it’s served through a dirty line or in a dirty glass it’s not going to taste great, it’s not going to look great, it’s not going to smell great,” he said. Moxey wants to see that foam atop his beer. “If you have a beer with no head on it and one that’s poured into a properly clean glass with a nice head of foam on it, you will have two different experiences drinking the exact same beer, because the foam acts as a cap on top of the beer.”

Still not convinced? Dylan Mosley, head brewer at Civil Life Brewing Co., waxes poetic on the experience of being served a perfectly presented beer with nice fat cap of foam: “It’s that bit of magic where you step off the plane and you’re on vacation and the temperature is exactly right and the air smells like an ocean breeze and your luggage comes right on the carousel and everything is perfect.”

milk shot at little lager

brewer tour

WITH JONATHAN MOXEY

From his time brewing at Perennial Artisan Ales to his current role as head brewer at Rockwell Beer Co., Jonathan Moxey is known for creating well-balanced beers that make you want to order a second round. Whether he’s brewing modern classics like Rockwell’s Passing Clouds, a peppery Belgian witbier that never disappoints, or creative beers like How Sweet of Me (a collaboration with Chicago brewery Cruz Blanca), a recent Belgian-style tripel that’s brewed with piloncillo sugar and Indian green coriander, Moxey’s beers consistently pique your curiosity. Whatever you’re drinking (or eating) at Rockwell, it tends to be a good time – and that’s the kind of mood Moxey seeks when he goes out. When he does go out, he drinks … you guessed it, beer. “I’ve been in love with beer for a long time, but for me it’s just as much about the individuals, and whenever I go out for beer, I get it at a brewery because it’s best at the source,” he said. Here’s a roundup of his favorite spots to grab a cold one. – Meera Nagarajan

Side Project Brewing

“I love Side Project, [both] The Brewery and The Cellar. They take great care with their own beer, but at The Cellar they have European imports that you cannot find anywhere else, and they spend a lot of time and energy seeking them out and making sure they serve it properly. On Thursday nights, [co-owner] Cory [King] is usually hanging out there and they’re pulling out stuff from their personal cellar and sharing it with folks. That’s really cool because I’m not going to a bottle share like I did in my mid-20s – so it’s good to find a small group of like-minded people to geek out with on beer. Going to The Brewery, I love drinking their lagers and saisons. I think Drew Durish is making incredible lagers there.”

Side Project Brewing (The Brewery) 7458 Manchester Road, Maplewood; Side Project Brewing (The

Cellar) 7373 Marietta Ave., Maplewood, sideprojectbrewing.com

Perennial on Lockwood

“I feel the same way about Perennial on Lockwood, Chris Kinast there has a dialed-in approach on easydrinking beer. He’s a big soccer fan and he’s making sessionables and pairing it with the food there. He’s taking his own spin on the traditional English and American pale ales, and I wouldn’t say he’s strict about style guidelines, he’s putting his own spin on it: ‘What if we have a low-ABV English pale ale, but put some American hops in there to give it a citrusy twist?’ He makes excellent single yeast strain saisons – bone-dry, thirst-

PHOTOS

ZACHARY LINHARES; PERENNIAL PHOTO

ADAM ROTHBARTH

from left: jonathan moxey (center) enjoys a beer at the golden hoosier; a beer at perennial on lockwood

quenching beers that are hop forward but have some peppery phenolics.”

“I love what Perennial has done in South City with Sanguchitos and the outdoor space. My kids used to run around out there and now there’s a game room and patio games, and it’s really cool to have that wide open space. It’s a good time. The brewers are doing barrelaged saisons where it’s mixed fermentation, so different yeasts and acidproducing bacteria are spending time in oak, and some are fruited or spiced. It’s a very old brewing tradition.”

“They also do mixed fermentation spontaneous beers where you do a complicated mash regimen and then you take it down to fermentation temperature by putting it in a coolship and you allow it to cool overnight. While it’s doing that, it will pick up native yeast and bacteria from the air, and then that ages for multiple years in oak barrels that they reuse and blend multiple years together and bottle them. Their spontaneous beers are called Weird Era and they are special release, larger format bottles.”

Perennial on Lockwood 216 W. Lockwood Ave. Unit B, Webster Groves, 314.682.3823, perennial.oohosp.com; Perennial Artisan Ales 8125 Michigan Ave., St. Louis, perennialbeer.com

opposite page: the bar at golden hoosier; this page, clockwise, from top: wings at golden hoosier, sanguchitos at perennial artisan ales, beers at 2nd shift brewing

2nd Shift Brewing

“2nd Shift is another place where you really get a brewery’s character and what they’re about the moment you get in the door. These lovable weirdos are over there on the Hill and it’s like walking into somebody’s garage or living room – and I

temperature, it was done like that originally because modern refrigeration wasn’t a thing and you’d see the steam rising off the shallow coolships before fermentation. It’s a caramel-amber beer, it’s not too hoppy or overly malty. It’s got a little chew to it in the middle but finishes dry.”

2nd Shift Brewing

1601 Sublette Ave., St. Louis, 314.669.9013, 2ndshiftbrewing.com

mean that as the highest possible compliment. It’s comfortable, fun and funky, and the sandwiches [from Central State Sandwiches] they’re doing there now are fantastic.”

“I always have a heart for Technical Ecstasy and Art of Neurosis, and last time I was there they had a California common-style beer called Common Law. It’s a steam beer, which is a hybrid between an ale and a lager. You’re fermenting lager yeast at a warmer ale

Local restaurants

“[Union] Loafers, with that small draft list … There’s always something interesting on it, it might be something I won’t see anywhere else and it’s cool to see a restaurant that doesn’t have to put that much thought into a carefully and thoughtfully selected beer list actually do that."

“I oftentimes think about meeting a friend somewhere in South

GOLDEN HOOSIER PHOTOS COURTESY OF EXPERIENCE FRESH; SANGUCHITOS PHOTO BY CHRISTINA MUSGRAVE; 2ND SHIFT PHOTO COURTESY OF CANDYCE FRITSCH

City and I think about Riley’s Pub and Tick Tock Tavern – both are great. You can get an inexpensive pint as well as a cheap, well-made cocktail.”

“I love a dark bar, and The Golden Hoosier is dark yet warm.

[Rockwell’s] Passing Clouds is always on draft here, so I can just head down the street to see how it’s tasting in the market. And they have draft Busch and $6 happy hour Old-Fashioneds. The onion dip and smoked tandoori wings are also awesome.”

“Iowa Buffet. Are you familiar with the TV program TrueSouth with John T. Edge and Wright Thompson? It’s on the SEC Network and they go around to towns and tell the stories of those towns through their food. It really focuses on old-school places that are [often] run by people of color, whether it’s barbecue or Vietnamese food. They came to St. Louis and told the story of St. Louis, it opened at Iowa Buffet and they have this sleeper burger that they cook on this old broiler: It’s basically like a flat top inside of a gas broiler. They have someone out back doing barbecue on a Weber grill on the weekend.”

“This is a South City beer-and-a-shot place. It’s a hell of a lot of fun.

I’m usually drinking Busch longnecks and eating a cheeseburger – if they’re cooking, that is. They’re usually cooking. It’s somewhat of a neighborhood regulars’ bar, but you can still go in there if

opposite page: the keller marzen at blue jay brewing co.; this page, from top: the biergarten at blue jay, civil life brewing co.'s american brown

you’re not a regular. It’s excellent.”

Union Loafers Cafe and Bread Bakery

1629 Tower Grove Ave., St. Louis, 314.833.6111, unionloafers.com; Riley’s Pub 3458 Arsenal St., St. Louis, 314.664.7474, Facebook: Riley’s Pub; Tick Tock Tavern 3459 Magnolia Ave., St. Louis, Instagram: @ticktockstl; The Golden Hoosier 3707 S. Kingshighway Blvd., St. Louis,

they’re doing lagers – is absolutely exceptional. But really it’s their English pale ale and porter that I gravitate toward. I might have an American brown, but thankfully that’s all over town, so when I’m there I get what I can only get there.”

Civil Life Brewing Co. 3714 Holt Ave., St. Louis, 314.999.9999, civil-life-online.square.site

Blue Jay Brewing Co.

“So I’ve gone to Blue Jay three times since they’ve opened. They have Boatright’s BBQ and they’re going to do the food there on Friday and Saturday. I had spectacular chicken wings and each time I’ve gone in they have new beers on tap as they build out their list.”

314.354.8044, thegoldenhoosier.com; Iowa Buffet 2727 Winnebago St., St. Louis, 314.776.8000

Civil Life Brewing Co.

“Going into Civil Life always feels like a warm hug. It’s remarkable the care they’ve put into it, they made a metal building feel like a pub in England with reliably delicious cask ales, bitters and browns and ales. When I go there, if the porter is on cask, I’m going to be ordering one of them. Their ESB (extra-special bitter) is rock solid, the Vienna lager – whenever

“They did a Jamaicanstyle lager with cassava starch – it’s called Little Birds and it’s just a super dry finishing, light lager. It’s got a little bit of residual sweetness in there – it was a fantastic drinking beer. That and their dunkel, which is called Monarchs: It’s a light brown lager, it’s got breadiness to it, but it’s dry and drinkable and not a big chewy beer. I’ve had great experiences there and it’s nice to see them get traction right off the bat in slow winter months. It’s a great space, they’re making fantastic beer, we played games, I look forward to having weather where I can go sit in their courtyard.”

Blue Jay Brewing Co. 2710 Locust St., St. Louis, bluejaybrewing.com

BLUE JAY PHOTOS BY MICHELLE VOLANSKY; CIVIL LIFE PHOTO COURTESY OF DYLAN MOSLEY

When visiting a brewery, it’s natural to focus on the beer selection, but a growing number of St. Louis breweries are acknowledging that not everyone is coming for the fermented malt and hops. Perhaps your standard order at your local brewpub is still a stout, saison or IPA, but your bartender will just as likely be able to fix you a great cocktail, a fine glass of wine or a refreshing nonalcoholic (NA) beverage –and that doesn’t mean a choice of water or Coca-Cola.

One important way breweries are becoming more inclusive of different tastes and preferences is by catering to customers who aren’t drinking alcohol. That might mean the designated driver, the wise friend who alternates between alcoholic and NA drinks, or somebody who’s just taking a break. Simply put, fewer people overall are drinking these days. According to one Gallup study, the percentage of American adults under 35 who drink alcohol has declined by 10% over the past two decades, from 72% in 2002 to 62% in 2023.

Fortunately, St. Louis breweries are taking care of that increasing segment of

teetotalers by expanding their NA offerings. 2nd Shift Brewing’s Busy Bees line of housemade sodas shows how breweries can get creative with NA options. Their selection includes a root beer made with cane sugar, vanilla beans and root beer flavoring, as well as a lemon and lime soda and a hop water made with Zythos and Citra hops.

If you want the flavor of beer, but not the alcohol, you’re in luck. The explosion in interest in NA beers has been one of the biggest stories in the brewing industry over the past few years and has led to a proliferation of beers ranging from 0% to 0.5% ABV (alcohol by volume). St. Louis’ own WellBeing Brewing Co. is dedicated exclusively to NA brewing and has become a pioneer in the category, with its beers like Victory Wheat and Hellraiser Dark Amber a common find on local brewery lists.

NA-only brands like Athletic Brewing Co., Gruvi (which also makes NA wines) and Big Drop Brewing Co. are also making inroads in the local market, both in breweries and in retail spaces like Saint Louis Hop Shop. “The beer is getting better and better, and it’s craft NA beer – you’re getting those IPAs,

those mocha stouts, lagers and witbiers,” said Saint Louis Hop Shop owner Justin Harris. “I think over the next couple of years we’ll start to see a little bit more competitiveness between the NA beers, the NA brands in St. Louis, and I think it’s going to be way more common for you to see in bars and not just in a grocery or retail setting.”

Now we’re seeing local heavyweights releasing NA versions of their own best-selling craft beers. First, Schlafly Beer unveiled an NA version of its pale ale, and 4 Hands Brewing Co. recently released NA versions of three of its core beers: City Wide pale ale, Incarnation IPA and Full Life lager. “We see that as a really important part of the craft landscape as we move forward,” said 4 Hands president and CEO Kevin Lemp. “This isn’t a Dry January play anymore, or Sober October. We feel this is a year-round opportunity for us to provide for the customer that does drink but is wanting to take a break, or somebody that has decided not to drink but still loves the taste of beer.”

Lemp is also one of several brewery bosses who have spread their wings into distilling. Customers at 4 Hands’

new tasting room at The District in Chesterfield and the brewery’s original LaSalle Park taproom can drink whiskeys from sister brand Withered Oak Spirits and also gin and tonic flights featuring 1220 Artisan Spirits’ range of gins. Similarly, customers at Perennial Artisan Ales can change things up from their usual order of beer to sip on a pour of Common Ritual whiskey. The brand was launched in late 2023 by a team including Perennial co-owner Phil Wymore, with the first release distilled in collaboration with Nobletons Distilling House , based out of Union, Missouri. Alpha Brewing Co.’s forthcoming Delmar Maker District location will include a distillery and tasting room, where the brewer’s beers will be complemented by Alpha’s bourbons, rye whiskeys and vodkas.

According to Lemp, having a distilling arm offers a brewery’s customers a more diverse variety of locally created products, as well as inspires creativity and innovation among the brewing team. “I think, even more importantly, it ignites new inspiration to the maker,” Lemp said. “To be so passionate about small-batch beer and then take a little bit of that mental energy and dive in and become super educated on distillation and

be able to take our vision of small-batch beer and use that in the distillation world, that’s what gets us really excited.”

Breweries don’t need to produce their own spirits to offer thoughtfully curated wine and cocktail lists. Rockwell Beer Co. head brewer Jonathan Moxey said Civil Life Brewing Co. and Side Project Brewing are two breweries whose wine selections impress – perhaps unsurprising, given that Civil Life owner Jake Hafner and Side Project co-owner Cory King both have a background in the wine business. It also pays to have a solid cocktail program: At the recently opened Mississippi Culture in Staunton, Illinois, cocktails account for almost 40% of sales. “It’s a huge thing for us,” said co-owner and head brewer Tracy Hutton. “We have regulars that come in that have never drank a beer.” Other customers might switch between beers, cocktails and wine from one visit to the next. And with a vast range of canned cocktails, wines and hard seltzers available in the local market, brewers have even more opportunity to diversify those drink lists.

Of course, beer drinkers’ tastes are constantly evolving and changing, and brewers are constantly refining their

selections to keep things interesting for customers old and new. We’re seeing more breweries offering easy-drinking but flavorful beers that fall between 2% to 4% ABV, and classic styles like radlers, witbiers, Pilsners and ESBs (extra-special bitters) are coming back into play. These styles test a brewer’s skill and allow breweries to show their range, but Moxey believes they also satisfy a craving for well-made takes on oldschool beer styles. “I think that increasingly there are people that want a beer and are looking to craft breweries for that because they are recognizing quality, where previously they might have just picked up Busch or something like that,” he said.

Moxey said recent beers like Perennial’s Gold Tooth lager (brewed in collaboration with Little Lager) exemplify this. “I love Busch just as much, if not more than, the next guy, but I think there’s a difference in terms of flavor between what craft beer is doing versus what some of the bigger macrobreweries are doing. People are attuned to quality and they’re willing to pay for it,” he said.

A single brewery can’t be expected to do it all, but in a world of short attention spans and intense competition for each customer, it makes sense to cater to broad tastes.

Brewers are spreading their wings

BY IAIN SHAW

We love a restaurant inside a brewpub. These are four of St. Louis’ best.

BY MEERA NAGARAJAN, IAIN SHAW AND MICHELLE VOLANSKY

the chop ‘za from central state sandwiches inside 2nd shift brewing

PHOTO BY CHRISTINA MUSGRAVE

Central State Sandwiches

Central State Sandwiches is a fitting food partner for 2nd Shift Brewing, with a menu as fun and surprising as their brews. Seasonal specials come and go: Their take on a Thanksgiving sandwich with roasted turkey, bright cranberry sauce and savory stuffing is still living rent-free in our minds. However, you can always depend on the reliable perfection of The Chop Cheese, their take on the New York bodega classic with grilled beef tri-blend (short rib, brisket and ground chuck), melty cheese and crunchy shredded lettuce. Our favorite is The Chop ‘Za, the Jersey Shore cousin of the OG sandwich with Italian seasoned beef, diced pepperoni, melted mozzarella, and marinara sauce on a toasted, chewy Union Loafers hoagie.

Inside 2nd Shift Brewing, 1601 Sublette Ave., St. Louis, centralstatesandwiches.com

Brass Burger

The closure of Niche Food Group’s Brasswell concept at Rockwell Beer Co. in January 2024 marked the end of an era, but across that five-year run, Brasserie by Niche’s allconquering burger made just too much sense in the company of great beer for the story to end there. Brass Burger’s “spring residency” at Urban Chestnut’s Midtown location began on March 1 and is set to run for four months. The Classic burger, as ever, comes topped with melted American cheese, dijonnaise, dill pickle and onion. Also competing for your attention is the fried chicken sandwich, topped with arugula, house pickles, hot honey and Crystal aioli. It goes without saying that your order is incomplete without Brass Burger’s much-loved shoestring fries.

Inside Urban Chestnut Brewing Co., 3229 Washington Ave., St. Louis, brassburgerstl.com

PHOTO BY IZAIAH JOHNSON

classic burger and fried chicken sandwich at brass burger inside urban chestnut brewing co.

blue crab salad sandwich at sanguchitos inside perennial artisan ales

PHOTO BY CHRISTINA MUSGRAVE

Sanguchitos

Sanguchitos, or little sandwiches, are the cutest accompaniment to a beer. The Sanguchitos concept at Perennial Artisan Ales comes from Andrew Cisneros of Jalea in St. Charles, and the menu here unsurprisingly shares the elevated quality of Cisneros’ Peruvian restaurant. Take the fresh blue crab salad sandwich with smoked trout roe and aji verde sauce as an example. It’s luscious and sweet, and pairs perfectly with Perennial’s Waska – a Peruvian-style lager brewed with heirloom quinoa. Also on the menu is a Peruvian street burger with Chihuahua cheese and fry sauce, and a vegetarian choripan made with Impossible meat and seasoned with chorizo spice. Don’t miss the Brasas chicken salad sanguchito, a nod to Cisneros’ Brasas rotisserie chicken concept which is set to open this spring in the Delmar Loop. The sandwich combines marinated and roasted chicken with crispy onions and a signature chicken sauce made with huacatay (Peruvian black mint).

Inside Perennial Artisan Ales, 8125 Michigan Ave., St. Louis, Instagram: @sanguchitos.stl

The Fattened Caf

Whatever The Fattened Caf features on their regularly rotated menu at Earthbound Beer, you can bet on it tasting good. The chicken tocino ube sliders are exemplary. The ube pandesal (from Liz’s Filipino Desserts in St. Peters) is like a distant cousin to a doughnut: It’s starchy and a little sweet, but its personality doesn’t overshadow the other ingredients. The chargrilled chicken tocino has notes of pineapple, and there’s added nuance from pickled papaya, a sunny side up egg, cucumber, crema and banana ketchup. The Fattened Caf’s signature sweet and salty longganisa is always available, and the menu usually also features some form of Filipino-style barbecue meat served with delicious garlic rice and sour pickled red cabbage.

Inside Earthbound Beer, 2724 Cherokee St., St. Louis, thefattenedcaf.com

W HAT’ S B RE W I N G

New and forthcoming breweries in the St. Louis region

BY ALEXA BEATTIE

ROCK

& HORSE BREWING CO. AT DRESSEL’S

It’s been a long time coming, but the news is good – Ben Dressel hopes Rock & Horse Brewing Co. will be fermenting beer by mid-March. His long-held plan for a brewery was stalled when the pandemic shuttered his Central West End pub, but with Dressel’s back in business, he’s taken his dream to the brink of becoming a reality. Dressel got a jump on things last year when he collaborated with Perennial Artisan Ales on Utmost Classic, the first Rock & Horse beer. Utmost Classic was brewed at Perennial’s South City facility, and Dressel poured the first glass of the hoppy pale ale in November. “Perennial really knows how to make clean, balanced beer,” he said. Rock & Horse’s beer will only be available at Dressel’s itself, but what’s wrong with that? Dressel has worked tirelessly the past three years to breathe new life into the beloved old pub his parents opened in 1980, and he’s pleased with the results. It’s still pubby, still handsome and woody, and still producing good Welshstyle fare from its kitchen. It’s a fine place to be.

419 N. Euclid Ave., St. Louis, 314.361.1060, dresselspublichouse.com

BLUE JAY BREWING CO.

Launched in December 2023, Blue Jay is former Urban Chestnut head brewer Jason Thompson’s new gig, and it’s off

to an impressive start. There’s space for around 50 guests inside the 3,600-square-foot brewery and taproom, and more seating is available on the 2,000-square-foot patio that Blue Jay shares with other JCMidtown tenants. Until recently, Blue Jay – the first solo enterprise for Thompson and wife Nicole – has been fine-tuning its predominantly German-style beers. But now it’s time to nosh, with a menu from Boatright’s BBQ served on Fridays and Saturdays. Pitmaster James Boatright (a top 10 finalist on Netflix’s The American Barbecue Showdown ) smokes his meat on the premises, dishing up chicken wings, catfish fillets, vegetarian sausages and some banging ribs. “Those slabs are the biggest seller, they go fast,” Thompson said. CityPark is just a few short blocks away, and Thompson has set his sights on making Blue Jay a locus for pre- and post-game cheer. And with three other breweries and a cidery also in the neighborhood, a visit to Blue Jay can easily become a pub crawl.

2710 Locust St., St. Louis, bluejaybrewing.com

MISSISSIPPI

CULTURE

There’s a little romance to Mississippi Culture. For one thing, it’s located in Staunton, a sleepy, stoplight-free Illinois town 45 minutes from St. Louis. For another, it flavors its beers with dreamy things like cardamom and cherries, orange peel, black pepper and rhubarb. Yes, please to that, and also to their newly released lowalcohol cranberry-thyme saison.

Father-and-son co-owners Tracy and Bruce Hutton’s focus is on mixed fermentation with “interesting bacteria” to produce funky, complex brews, and as the brewery’s name might suggest, the Illinois natives are committed to using locally sourced ingredients. The small taproom seats 35, while a 500-square-foot patio with a fire pit and fairy lights has space for around 30. Construction will begin soon on an outdoor bar.

201 S. Union St., Staunton, Illinois, mississippiculturebeer.com

NARROW GAUGE BREWING CO.

Narrow Gauge moved to an expanded brewing facility in Florissant last year, but plans for a taproom at the new location were stalled by a water supply issue that required a costly fix. “It ate up the whole budget for a tasting room,” said owner Jeff Hardesty. Construction is yet to begin on the taproom, but Hardesty said financing is now in place to move forward. Hardesty is enthusiastic about his vision for the taproom, and so are we. An initial tear-down of the ceiling in the new space revealed big, old beams that Hardesty said will perfectly complement the exposed pipes and bricks for a “rugged, industrial vibe.” There’ll be room inside for about 75 customers to drink comfortably, as well as a small outdoor patio. Hardesty said construction should begin with gusto later this year. In the meantime, Narrow Gauge’s

erstwhile home at Cugino’s will continue to serve as a placeholder taproom for the brewery, typically carrying around 20 to 30 Narrow Gauge beers on draft. Canned Narrow Gauge beers can also be purchased at the new production facility’s shop. 1545 N. Hwy. 67, Florissant, narrowgaugestl.com

MAIN & MILL CENTRAL

After more than eight years as a Festus mainstay, Main & Mill is about to open a taproom a few blocks down Main Street. Attached to Main & Mill’s production facility, the new space, which will be known as Main & Mill Central, is slated for an April opening after three years of construction. The 900-square-foot space will seat up to 52, with a garage door allowing the front of the bar to open up to the elements. In the future, a spacious area in the back of the building will allow for concerts. Main & Mill is known for its Green Chile Ale, but co-owner Denny Foster said the brewery specializes in “a little bit of everything.” Main & Mill is doubling down on that approach by rolling out a range of interesting drinks in conjunction with the taproom’s launch: meads, cold brew coffees, nitro teas, kombuchas and housemade sodas. Foster and his father (and fellow co-owner), Barry, will also be leasing out an adjacent storefront to a restaurant to serve food via a walk-up window.

10 Main St., Festus, mainandmill. com

KYLE MATTHIAS

HEAD BREWER, SANDY VALLEY BREWING CO.

“I graduated undergrad with a nutrition degree, and a doctorate seemed like the next logical step. I went into it thinking this was a path for me to potentially get into academia and research. My studies at that time were based on nutrition’s effects on stress, and I was going into the stress and mental health side of the trade. But I was also using that year as a stopgap, to figure it out while making progress toward, potentially, what I wanted to do.”

“I had explored brewing as a career option in the past, but never really thought it would amount to anything. I was always drawn to the creativity of brewing, but there was also the part of me that really liked science. When I got into the [brewing] classroom, I quickly realized how much science was involved [in brewing] and how you could manipulate that science to create something, so there was a creative outlet. There was this artistic side that I could express by using science. So both of those things which I really loved came through in the final product of beer.”

“I was back in St. Louis talking about the potential of dropping out to pursue brewing, and my mother-in-law just made a simple comment: ‘If you’re not happy doing what you’re doing, you should figure out what makes you happy and do that.’”

“I think the first thing I realized at Deschutes is how diverse our beer scene is here in St. Louis. Out there it’s so IPA heavy and, while the beer is good, it kind of felt like every brewery we went to, the lineup was pretty much the same. It’s like, you got 10 taps, here’s six IPAs, a lager, a red and a dark. I really feel like St. Louis has, in my experience, one of the most well-rounded, diverse beer scenes out there.”

you make a delicious IPA with hops that aren’t the cool or sexy Citras or Mosaics?

There’s a lot of cool hops out there that are public varietals and those are what we use in our IPA, Commons. That’s the idea, that these public varietal hops are just as cool as the expensive hops, but they don’t have the dollar sign associated with it because there’s not these huge marketing campaigns behind them.”

“Philanthropy has always been a part of my life, and I think it comes from my mom, honestly, who instilled in me at a young age that if you can put some good out into the world, you should. There’s this drive in me to do good for people and make sure that people are taken care of.”

“I think, for me, the draw to Sandy Valley was the beauty of the location. I’ve always thought about starting my own place and, in my mind, it was always a place like this. Because that just kind of vibes to me with the beers I like to produce, using foraged ingredients, locally farmed stuff. It just made a lot of sense to me.”

“We’ve used a ton of locally sourced ingredients and we source from local farms too. We’ve used local apples, grapes, maple syrup, pawpaws, black locust flowers, marigolds, clary sage, white pine. There’s a pantry right outside your door.”

Making a career-altering decision in grad school isn’t easy, but a few words of encouragement from his future mother-in-law persuaded Kyle Matthias to drop a doctoral degree in nutritional biology to focus his energy on brewing. Matthias’ early days in brewing at Morgan Street Brewery and Modern Brewery eventually led to a role as production brewer at Deschutes Brewery in Bend, Oregon, where he designed well-known beers like Fresh Haze and Squeezy Rider. His childhood taught him the importance of giving back and, in his current role as head brewer at Sandy Valley Brewing Co. in Hillsboro, Missouri, Matthias’ mission is to brew delicious and unique beers, support others – his beers have raised funds for suicide prevention, Maui wildfire relief efforts and other causes – and put some good out into the world. –

Bill Moran

“My time at Deschutes influenced how I approach things now. I was the lead R&D (research and development) and new product development brewer, I would be given a cost-of-goods ceiling and be asked to make IPAs that cost $40 or less per barrel. First and foremost, it was important to make the most impactful, delicious IPAs that I could given that cost restraint and capitalize on the trends in the market. At small breweries, like Sandy Valley, how do

“I guess I just want Sandy Valley to be a place where people can realize what’s possible as a small business or as a person, the things that can happen if you just connect with the community, with the environment. Again, put some good out into the world. With our individual efforts, I think we can make a big difference. Maybe I’m asking a lot for people who just want to come in to drink a beer, but maybe come here and just escape for a bit, learn something from one of our unique beer names, enjoy a beer with weird ingredients that you didn’t know about before you got here and leave just feeling better for it.”

Bill Moran is the creator behind the Instagram account @st.louis_taverns, where he anonymously reviews bars throughout the St. Louis area.

PHOTOS BY ZACHARY LINHARES