There aren\u2019t many reasons for a craft brewery taproom to open early on a Monday morning. But this year, a once-in-a-century astronomical event has brewers in the 70-mile-wide stretch of area in which a total solar eclipse will turn day into virtual night will offer plenty of great drinks to consume while safely — get your solar filter glasses ready — watching.<\/p>\n
It has been nearly 100 years since a total solar eclipse has crossed the United States from coast to coast, so brewers within the path of totality on Aug. 21 have been planning parties since NASA announced the path of the eclipse across 12 states. The blackout begins at 10:15 a.m. local time on the Oregon coastline — where some brewers are opening for breakfast — and ends about 2:45 p.m. EDT as the eclipse passes through Charleston, off the South Carolina coast and over the Atlantic Ocean.<\/p>\n
If you haven\u2019t already booked a room in the cities that will be in the dark, you\u2019re unlikely to find one at this point, but if you are already planning to be in the path of totality, here are 10 great options for where to drink, watch the heavens and party like it\u2019s the end times. Depending on where you are, you\u2019ll have roughly 2 minutes of standing in the moon\u2019s shadow.<\/p>\n
(BEER TRAVEL: Plan Your Next Beercation<\/a><\/strong>)<\/p>\n While Portland may have bragging rights on the number of craft breweries, Salem is hands-down the winner in the battle of the solar eclipse. While it may seem that Portland\u2019s 99.3 percent coverage isn\u2019t a deal-breaker, for this month\u2019s eclipse it\u2019s all about totality, and Gilgamesh Brewing<\/a> in Salem is launching its all-day party with breakfast starting at 8 a.m. Included in the $25 ticket is a buffet breakfast, a 22-ounce bottle of its commemorative Eclipse Beer and lawn access for some of the best viewing in all of Oregon. Come early and stay for the after-party.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re looking to view the totality from the upper West, your best option is probably Idaho Falls, home to Idaho Brewing Co.<\/a> where you can witness a nearly two minutes of total darkness before noon. Self-proclaimed \u201cHead Minion\u201d Wolf Wolfram has created a special porter for the eclipse. From 8 a.m. on, you can order from a food trailer and drink Where the Sun Don\u2019t Shine Total Eclipse Porter from the brewery\u2019s parking lot. \u201cRoberto (a \u2018Lesser Minion\u2019) will probably be making breakfast tacos,\u201d Wolfram says, and he plans to rope off the parking area and invite people to bring in their telescopes and other viewing devices.<\/p>\n As a bonus, Idaho Falls is about a two-hour drive to Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks, if you fancy a hike after your eclipse and porter brunch.<\/p>\n (VISIT: Find a U.S. Brewery<\/a><\/strong>)<\/p>\n The Midwest isn\u2019t typically a \u201cmust see\u201d destination, and small towns across the path of totality are making the most of their moment. Prairie Pride Brewing Co.<\/a> is one of several breweries that is hosting a weekend-long party for locals and visitors alike. Co-owner and brewer Alex Briner is teaming up with Broken Bow, Nebraska\u2019s Kinkaider Brewing Co.<\/a>\u2019s taproom for three days of drinking, live music, games, food and \u2014 of course \u2014 eclipse watching.<\/p>\n \u201cOur town only has a population of 50,000, and they\u2019re expecting 30,000 people to come to Grand Island for that weekend,\u201d Briner says. \u201cWe\u2019re hosting a viewing area in the parking lot with a (ticketed) VIP party on the roof. Our rooftop only holds a maximum of 50 people, so it\u2019s first come, first serve.\u201d<\/p>\n The brewery, which normally opens at 4 p.m. on Mondays, will get things started at 11 a.m. They\u2019ve brewed a saison for the solar event. Keep in mind that Nebraska is one of three states \u2014 along Tennessee and Kentucky \u2014 that bridges two time zones. Prairie Pride is in the Central time zone.<\/p>\n (READ: What Makes a Sour Beer Taste Sour?<\/a><\/strong>)<\/p>\n The first of two Columbias on this list, Columbia, Missouri, beats out St. Louis, which falls outside the area of totality. It also has one of the longest durations of totality in the state, a fact that Logboat Brewing Co.<\/a> is exploiting. Normally closed on Mondays, the brewery will be opening its doors at 10 a.m. \u201cWe’re having a beer release, Moon Speck, which is a black ale being released in cans that afternoon,\u201d says co-owner Andrew Sharp. The brewery is bringing in live bands to stretch the after-party to midnight.<\/p>\n You can also catch the totality from Kansas City (for 27 seconds if you\u2019re downtown at 1:08 p.m.) or Jefferson City (a better bet with 2 minutes, 29 seconds of darkness beginning at 1:13 p.m.).<\/p>\n (READ: 7 Offbeat Places to Drink Craft Beer<\/a><\/strong>)<\/p>\n Back in May, the horse Always Dreaming won the Kentucky Derby with a time just shy of 2 minutes, 4 seconds. The fastest horse in America ain\u2019t got nothing on the solar eclipse, however, as it reaches its point of \u201cgreatest eclipse\u201d — where the width of the moon’s shadow is widest, the altitude of the sun in the sky is near its highest and the duration of totality is nearly the longest — just over Hopkinsville, Kentucky. It\u2019s where the Hopkinsville Brewing Co.<\/a> plans on a special opening along with a limited beer release. Like several other brewers on this list, this brewery is playing with the themes of light and dark. Owner and head brewer Kate Irving has brewed two beers, a pale ale (dubbed Annularity) and a stout (Nightrider). Currently the brewery plans to be open from noon until 3 p.m.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re in Nashville, stay put. The totality there will last just less than two minutes starting at 1:27 p.m. But if you want a bit of nature with your, well, nature, check out the newly launched Tennessee Valley Brewing Co.<\/a> in Clarksville, Tennessee, where husband-and-wife owners Eric (also the brewmaster) and Wendy Brannstrom have been working around the clock on both the brewery\u2019s build-out — they opened July 1 — and the solar eclipse\u2019s build-up.<\/p>\n \u201cWe obviously read about (the eclipse) early on, but it\u2019s been an interesting development trying to finish the build-out and having less than a month to plan,\u201d Eric Brannstrom says. Part of that plan is serving up an as-yet-unnamed chocolate mint porter that they will be pouring for the eclipse. \u201cThere are some really good names flying around \u2014 some are really humorous \u2014 and we\u2019re trying to come together on a really good name.\u201d<\/p>\n A former assistant brewer with Hereford and Hops in Escanaba, Michigan, Brannstrom has been making mostly session beers in the few weeks the brewery has been open. Both he and his wife have a background in business, so a focus on customer service means they\u2019ll have plenty of viewing spectacles for their guests when the mid-day moon arrives on Aug. 21.<\/p>\n (READ: Tennessee Brewery Releases Special Eclipse Beer Glass<\/a><\/strong>)<\/p>\n Much like Oregon, the beating heart of craft beer in North Carolina — Asheville — is not prime viewing for the solar eclipse, although, with 99.2 percent coverage, it\u2019s not a bad place to hunker down for the day if more beer trumps more moon shadow. But if it\u2019s the totality you seek, head up to Franklin, where Currahee Brewing Co.<\/a> is located along the Little Tennessee River in the heart of Cherokee country, complete with a nearby reservation and casino.<\/p>\n Brewmaster Taylor Yates is pairing his brewery\u2019s first anniversary with the arrival of the eclipse. Planning for the solar eclipse \u201cwas one of those things we had to prepare for as we got started. The (Town Economic Development team) came to us and said, \u2018We\u2019re already fully booked,\u2019 so they wanted us to be involved,\u201d Yates says.<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of the breweries here are making American hop-forward beers, but we are focusing more on European-style beers,\u201d Yates says, explaining that the house lager \u201cWayah\u201d (the Cherokee word for \u201cwolf\u201d) is made with Weihenstephan yeast and New Zealand hops.<\/p>\n For the combined first anniversary party\/solar eclipse watching, Currahee will be bringing out some unique casks and creating a black and tan with the Wayah and Kawi (\u201ccoffee\u201d) stout, which is its winter seasonal revived for the eclipse celebration. The brewery will open at noon.<\/p>\n (RELEASE: Mother Earth Brew and Payette Create Eclipse Beer<\/a><\/strong>)<\/p>\n While many cities across the path of totality have been planning for the eclipse, South Carolina\u2019s capital was one of the first to realize the import on tourism, which \u2014 in addition to the respectable hour for imbibing \u2014 makes the home of the women\u2019s NCAA 2017 basketball champs the perfect place for brewery hopping.<\/p>\n Columbia\u2019s second-oldest craft brewery, River Rat Brewery<\/a> jumped on the eclipse party boat early on. \u201cAs soon as we found out about the eclipse, we knew we were going to be open,\u201d says taproom manager Lauren Sanberg. \u201cBecause we have a huge open lawn area, nothing is really inhibiting the eclipse. We\u2019ll have a kegerator outside for our beer-loving friends to enjoy this historic event.\u201d<\/p>\n The brewery is whipping up a brand new beer, the Moonraker IPL, which will be on its menu through the fall. Its in-house chef will be curating a menu that will include a Dark Side of the Moonpie, among other cleverly named dishes. They\u2019ve even come up with their own eclipse meme: \u201cGet Mooned at River Rat Brewery.\u201d<\/p>\n And lest you doubt Columbia\u2019s seriousness about the numbers flocking to the city, the University of South Carolina pushed back its move-in weekend a full week because of a lack of hotels for returning students and their families.<\/p>\n (RECIPES: Cook with Beer<\/a><\/strong>)<\/p>\nGilgamesh Brewing | Salem, OR | Time of totality: 10:17 a.m. for 1 minute, 54 seconds<\/h2>\n
Idaho Brewing Co.| Idaho Falls, ID | Time of totality: 11:32 a.m. for about 1 minute, 41 seconds<\/h2>\n
Prairie Pride Brewing Co. with Kinkaider Brewing Co. | Grand Island, NE | Time of totality: 12:58 p.m. for 2 minutes, 34 seconds<\/h2>\n
Logboat Brewing Co. | Columbia, MO | Time of totality: 1:12 p.m. for 2 minutes, 37 seconds<\/h2>\n
Hopkinsville Brewing Co. | Hopkinsville, KY | Time of totality: 1:24 p.m. for 2 minutes, 40 seconds<\/h2>\n
Tennessee Valley Brewing Co. | Clarksville, TN | Time of totality: 1:25 p.m. for 2 minutes, 18 seconds<\/h2>\n
Currahee Brewing Co. | Franklin, N.C. | Time of totality: 2:35 p.m. for 2 minutes, 30 seconds<\/h2>\n
River Rat Brewery | Columbia, S.C. | Time of totality: 2:41 p.m. for 2 minutes, 30 seconds<\/h2>\n
Swamp Cabbage Brewing Co. | Columbia, SC | Time of totality: 2:41 p.m. for 2 minutes, 30 seconds<\/h2>\n