Jaunted

First-time visitors should know that even though the Brewery is in Brooklyn, it's not difficult to find at all. Just hop on the L train to the first stop in Brooklyn - Bedford Avenue - and walk four blocks north to N. 11th Street, where you take a left and follow the obvious beer drinkers. The Tap Room is only open on Friday nights from 6:00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m., and the earlier you arrive, the better chance you'll have to get a picnic table. Once you get inside, immediately purchase your wooden beer tokens from the booth on your left.

Prices have crept up in recent years, but it's still a bargain at six beer tokens for twenty bucks. Armed with your Brooklyn Beer Money and a couple of singles for tipping, head on up to the taps and order one of the Brewery's fine pilsners, lagers, or ales, or be bold and try their seasonal offerings, which are brewed on-site. Toast your weekend with your chums and check out the rotating art exhibits on the walls, or else tuck into your table or - more likely - find a spot to stand near the front. So many people come through the place that you can witness a parade of New York beer society pass before you.

Underscoring the authenticity of this endorsement, the above photo captures three travel writers enjoying the Brewery's beer and atmosphere this past Friday. On the left is John Rambow, executive editor of Budget Travel's website and my pal from our Gridskipper days. At center is Stephen Keeling, author of several guidebooks, including the recently-released Rough Guide to Puerto Rico. (He'll be doing a BT Trip Coach thing on the subject this Tuesday, November 11.) I know Steve from when we both worked for a newspaper in Riga, Latvia called The Baltic Observer. And at right, that's me, Victor Ozols, your humble Jaunted weekend editor, working hard to research this story.

So as I was saying, it feels different to drink in a brewery, because you're standing next to giant brewing equipment, which looks like this:

And if you don't get a table, you'll have to stand around an old beer barrel like this:

But that's really not a problem, because when you're standing up it's easier to make friends with all the people around you, and isn't setting your beer on a barrel what America is all about anyway? Once you've made it this far, I think you're ready to fly solo, so go forth and enjoy the suds. And here's the best part: the brewery closes at 11:00 p.m., preventing you from getting into too much trouble. (If you head to a bar afterward, you deserve what you get.) Of course it's still possible to have one more than you really ought to, but the only downside of that is the occasional attempt to take artful photos that turn out like this:

So that's one perfectly fun and inexpensive way to spend Friday night in New York. Have a good time and let us know how the beer treated you in the comments.

[Photo: Victor Ozols]

Related Stories:
· Brooklyn Brewery [Official Site]
· Brewery Coverage [Jaunted]