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Hoppy’s next visit was at Saugatuck Brewing, which is actually located in Douglas, MI. They opened in June 2005 as a small, intimate, start-up brewery, just across the street from our current location, utilizing only a small 3.5-barrel Brew System which is now used for their “Brew On Premise” program. They moved into their current location in 2008, and they currently operate on a 45-barrel Brew System with 960 barrels of fermentation space and the ability to age over 400 wood barrels at one time. They expanded to Kalamazoo, MI in 2019, and acquired Creston Brewery in Grand Rapids, MI in 2021. They now distribute in thirteen states which includes Indiana.

During his visit Hoppy imbibed a Rainbow Rodeo American IPA. It is described as an easy drinking ale supporting Michigan Habitat Restoration with citrus, piney and tropical notes. 7% ABV.

Pictures from his visit follow:

Hoppy attended Peach Week at Creatures of Habit Brewing (COH) yesterday evening. It’s the fifth year for the annual event. The taproom features three COH peach brews as well as a Caramel Pecan Porter. They are also serving peach wine slushies and two guest taps of peach ciders, as well as non-alcoholic peach slushies for the kids! As a brunch offering, they will have Peach Bellini Mimosas.

While there Hoppy enjoyed sampling the following peach-centric brews from COH:

Cloudburst: Peach New England IPA described as bursting with peach. 5.3% ABV.

Orchard Oasis: Peach Sour – Described as a sour base conditioned on peach and vanilla soft serve ice cream. (lactose free) 5.2% ABV.

He also imbibed a couple pints of their Peach Seltzer (gluten free) 5% ABV.

The COH taproom current draft list, provided by Untappd, can be found here.

If you love peaches, you won’t want to miss this event! It continues through Sunday, July 13th. Check the beerblogIN calendar for hours.

Pictures follow:

Yesterday Hoppy attended the Upland Brewing Brew Lab Tapping Party at their brewery/taproom in the Fountain Square area. While there he enjoyed the brews, his burger, and the music provided by Cole Scott.

He sampled the following Brew Lab Brews:

Pilot Batch #001: Italian Pilsner – Described as a crisp, clen pilsner dry-hopped with German Hallertau hops lending a delicate, floral/herbal, noble hop character to the nose, backed subtly with a touch of citrus. 4.7% ABV.

Pilot Batch #002: Pineapple Prickly Pear Wheat – Described as having a pretty pop of pink, pineapple and strawberry-like aromas from the prickly pear, this fruited wheat is easy-drinking with a tart and refreshing finish. 5.9% ABV.

Pilot Batch #003: 1318 Hazy IPA – Described as citrus dominating the nose with backing sweetfruit and hints of mixed berry. Lightly bitter with a crisp finish, inviting another sip. 6.8% ABV.

Pilot Batch 004: Superbloom Hazy IPA – Described as having an explosive medley of tropical fruits and floral aromas with a backing of dankness. Soft bitterness that gives way to a sweet, fruity finish. 6.6% ABV.

Hoppy also imbibed a Hopsynth – Described as a lighter, hoppier sour ale, having a distinct flavor profile of fresh hops melded with tartness. Hugh wafts of piney, tropical and citrus hop aromas come from the glass. Polite lactic acid tartness compliments the grassy and grapefruit hop flavors. It finishes dry with lingering hop flavors. 5.7% ABV, 10 IBU.

Pictures from the visit follow:

There are three Indiana craft brewery locations not far from the track. These would be Daredevil Brewing (.6 mile), Big Woods Speedway – Home of Quaff On! Brewing (.8 mile), and Guggman Haus Brewing (3.1 miles). Each of these locations also serve food, so you can graze will you sip. Guggman Haus may be of special interest to race fans because of its location at the historic Boyle Racing Headquarters.

Hoppy visited each of these locations yesterday and enjoyed the following ales:

Daredevil Lift Off IPA – Described as containing a bounty of American hops which deliver the signature clean and crisp finish of a perfectly balanced West Coast IPA. 7.2% ABV, 72 IBU.

Quaff On! Quaff IPA – Described as featuring a complex malt bill that creates a semi-dry finish that balances malty sweetness with a hops selection that creates intense citrus aroma and flavor with notes of melon, berry, lime, passion fruit and papaya. 6.5% ABV, 58 IBU.

Guggman Haus The Riverside New England IPA – Made with a variety of eight hops and described as a hazy, juicy beer that provides a major punch of citrus flavor. Bronze medal winner at the World Beer Cup 2025. 6.9% ABV, 41 IBU.

Should you wish to visit other Indianapolis breweries while in town, below is a list of all breweries within their approximate area, including their Indianapolis address.  All mileage information listed in this post reflects the distance to the location from the Indiana Convention Center.

Downtown:

Taxman Brewing – 310 S. Delaware St. – .7 mile

The Tap Beer Company – 306 N. Delaware St. – .8 mile (They have 50 taps of guest beers.)

Brew Link Brewing – 714 N. Capitol Ave. – 1.1 mile

Sun King Brewing – 135 N. College Ave. – 1.2 miles

Metazoa Brewing – 140 S. College Ave. – 1.3 miles

St. Joseph Brewery – 540 N. College Ave. – 1.5 miles

Pax Verum Brewery at Natural State Provisions – 414 Dorman St. – 1.7 miles

Quaff On! Brewing at Hard Truth Garage Food Hall – 906 Carrollton Ave. #400 – 1.9 miles

Guggman Haus Brewing – 1701 Gent St. – 2.2 miles

Centerpoint Brewing – 1125 East Brookside Ave. – 2.3 miles

Mashcraft Brewing – 2205 N. Delaware St. – 2.6 miles

Kismetic Beer Co. – 201 S. Rural St., Ste. 110 – 2.9 miles

Narrow Gauge Brewing at Abandoned Station – 2457 N. Delaware St. – 3 miles

Fletcher Place/Fountain Square Area:

Chilly Water Brewing – 719 Virginia Ave. #105 – 1.2 miles

Fountain Square Brewing – 1301 Barth Ave. – 2.2 miles

Upland Brewing – 1201 Prospect St. – 2.2 miles

Garfield Brewery – 2310 Shelby St. – 3.1 miles

Broad Ripple/SoBro Area:

Chilly Water Brewing – 4155 Boulevard Place – 4.9 miles

Guggman Haus Brewing – 4601 College Ave., Unit C – 5.7 miles

Upland Brewing – 4842 N. College Ave. – 6 miles

Black Circle Brewing – 2201 E. 46^th St. – 6.2 miles

Liter House – 5301 Winthrop Ave., Suite B – 6.6 miles

Twenty Below at Twenty Tap – 5406-5408 N. College Ave. – 7 miles (They have 38 taps; mostly guest beers)

Centerpoint Brewing/Bad Dad Brewing/Chilly Water Brewing at 317 BBQ – 6320 Guilford Ave. – 7.8 miles

Broad Ripple Brewpub – 842 E 65th St. – 8 miles

Speedway/West:

Quaff On! at Big Woods – 1002 Main St. – 5.1 miles

Daredevil Brewing – 1151 N. Main St. – 5.2 miles

Herrmann Brewthers Bierwerks – 7811 W. Morris St. – 11 miles

Binford Area:

Blind Owl Brewery – 5014 E. 62^nd St. – 9.1 miles

Bier Brewery – 5133 E. 56^th St. – 9.8 miles

Nora/Castleton Area:

Daredevil Brewing – 2721 E. 86^th St. – 11 miles

Quaff On! at Big Woods in Fashion Mall – 8702 Keystone Crossing – 12miles

Big Lug Brewing – 1435 E. 86^th St. – 12 miles

Upland Brewing – 4939 E. 82^nd St. – 12 miles

Books & Brews – 9402 Uptown Dr. #1400 – 21 miles

Northwest:

Traders Brewing – 8587 Zionsville Rd. – 15 miles

Deviate Brewing – 4004 W. 96^th St. – 18 miles

More information regarding each of these breweries can be found by placing the brewery’s name in the search bar on this website. If you plan on visiting several breweries you should download the Indy Craft Pass.

Many breweries are also located in nearby suburbs, which you can find here.

Other Things to Do:

You’ll definitely want to visit the newly updated and recently opened Indianapolis Motor Speedway Museum, which is located at the track.

Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) events can be found here. 500 Festival events, including the parade, can be found here. The World’s Largest Racing Memorabilia & Trading Card Show can be found here.

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Indianapolis has a vibrant sports scene that includes the Indiana Pacers, who are currently playing the New York Knicks in the NBA Eastern Conference Finals. They will be playing in Indianapolis at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on Sunday night, following the race, in the third game of this series.

Indy is also home to an acclaimed symphony, and many excellent museums including the world’s largest and best Children’s Museum. The Indianapolis Art Museum at Newfields houses the first, and largest iconic Love Sculpture ever made. By the way, their beautiful grounds also include a Beer Garden!

You can also visit a zoo that is ranked in the top ten in the nation. More information can be found here.

Indy enjoys a thriving restaurant scene that includes one of the ten classic restaurants in the world, according to Forbes – St. Elmo’s Steakhouse, and a top ten rated food court in the nation by USA Today readers – The Garage Food Hall.

Did I forget to mention that Indianapolis is consistently ranked as one of the top beer cities in the country by the readers of USA Today?

A good source for finding other events, while in the area, would be to check the Do317 website.

Heading Home:

It can be worth it to check out the beer aisle at Costco, where I have often found cases of Three Floyd’s Zombie Dust for sale. (I have been known to place six 6-packs in a well-labeled and sealed box for transport in airplane baggage, with no issues.)

If you are flying home, you may wish to arrive at IND early so that you can indulge in some Indy beers and some non-airplane food prior to your departure. Circle City Beer Garden is located in the Civic Plaza section of the airport and is open to the public daily from 11:00am-10:00pm. Sun King and The Tap have locations in Concourse B which is only available to ticketed passengers. They are both open daily from 7:00am-9:00pm. You’ll find Sun King near gate B-13, and The Tap near gate B-17.

Pictures from Hoppy’s visits, yesterday, follow:

Photos at Guggman Haus:

Photos at Big Woods:

Photos at Daredevil