Nebraska Makes Delicious Beer: Lincoln Area Breweries

Local craft brewing is still experiencing astronomical growth in the state of Nebraska. As mentioned here, our conversation with Colby Coash of the Nebraska Craft Brewers’ Guild there are over 50 breweries either operational or scheduled to be operational by the end of the year in the state. That’s a lot, and it’s a great boon for local economies.

That being said, it also makes it difficult to give fair coverage to every brewery in the state. Of course Omaha and Lincoln are continuing to grow, but even Taylor, Ohiowa, and Atkinson have breweries open or on the way.

We’ll start our series on the changes to the Nebraska brewery scene in the state capital, Lincoln and surrounding. The breweries we’ve covered continue to grow their footprint and business while new breweries have opened in the last year, or will be open by the end of the year.

Starting with Breweries that we’ve covered in the past, they’ve added locations and have expanded their distribution range.

• Zipline Brewing has added two new locations in the last year, south Lincoln and in downtown Omaha. They’ve also expanded where they distribute.
• Blue Blood Brewing has added to their location at Robber’s Cave. There are now regular concerts in The Yard and they have yard games available as well. Blue Blood has also pushed into more states.
• Empyrean Brewing/Lazlo’s is also expanding their distribution.
• Boiler Brewing has new beer all the time and continues to brew unique, small-batch flavors.
• Bottle Rocket Brewing in Seward has expanded the area in their building to accommodate more people and larger events while adding to their beer selection

There are a couple of breweries in the Lincoln area that are established, but we’ve not covered

• SchillingBridge is a winery and brewery in Pawnee City. You can get their creations either there are at their Cork and Tap House in the FallBrook area of Lincoln.
• Spilker Ales is best known for their Hopluia IPA. As of this printing, the website listed was not working as Hopluia was changing hands. The brewery was originally based in Cortland.
• Modern Monks has had some of the beers distributed, but their beers are mostly available at Misty’s Steakhouse locations. They brew at the Misty’s location downtown.

What about new breweries in Lincoln?

• White Elm opened late in 2016 and is located just west of 9th Street on Van Dorn. They have a great selection of beer and are quickly establishing a great reputation in Lincoln.
• Backswing Brewing is in Blue Blood’s old location on W. South Street near Highway 77 and Van Dorn. They have a small selection, but it is growing quickly and has a wide appeal.
• Code Beer Company is expected to open later this year in Lincoln, just east of downtown.

There is also a brewery called Get Lost Brewing that is mentioned online, but does not have a website, nor can is there an expected opening date listed.

Check back to the websites and social media accounts of all of these breweries to stay up-to-date with their distribution and events. You can find most of these breweries on tap around Lincoln and throughout the state of Nebraska.

If you’re new to the site, or just want to catch up with what we’ve covered so far, they’re chronicled here.

Let us know in the comments if you’ve had these beers or where you’ve seen them.

Find Ty on Twitter and let him know what beer you’re enjoying or send him questions about beer and beer recommendations.

Please partake in these local creations responsibly.