Christian K.
Yelp
Craft Beer at Its Finest!
In 2011, Saint Louis saw a huge burst in the craft beer scene. Breweries were popping up all over The Lou. One of these breweries was Perennial Artisan Ales.
Honestly, I was not a big fan of Perennial at first. During my first visit, my favorite beer was a guest tap, which was a 2nd Shift ale. However, we will save that for another review. Like many of the best breweries, they had some growing pains, but when they found their niche, they hit the ground running.
People come from all over the country for Perennial's big barrel-aged beers, particularly Abraxas: an imperial stout brewed with ancho chili peppers, cacao nibs, vanilla beans, and cinnamon sticks. This black gold has given them many accolades in the craft beer community. Other popular imperial stouts include the minty 17 and the coffee-laddended Sump. However, not everything on the draft wall is dark. Perennial also dabbles in Belgian-style ales, saisons, barleywine, and the occasional IPA.
In addition, they have a pretty decent food menu, which changes periodically. You can snack on meats, cheeses, pretzels, or even a handful of sandwich options. Everything that I've had has been pretty good.
Perennial also has one of the best staffs in the local scene. Some breweries can get pretty pretentious and make little effort to connect with patrons. This is not the case at Perennial. The bartenders are incredibly courteous and friendly. They even occasionally "go to camp" with the patrons. During camp, the entire bar chugs a beer of the bartender's choice.
My only problem deals with hours. Perennial is only open five days a week. The tasting room is available Wednesday through Saturday in the evening, and they close at five on Sunday. Perhaps that's a small issue, but I would like it if they expanded those hours.
Perennial Artisan Ales is no secret in the craft beer community, but if you haven't been there yet, definitely check it out.