Nora McGunnigle

Author: Nora McGunnigle

  • Updated list of Louisiana breweries

    Updated list of Louisiana breweries

    This is the down and dirty, if you just need a verified list of brewery names in Louisiana, list.

    Please comment or drop me a note if you have any new info – my ear is not as close to the ground to all the openings and closings as it used to be, so I’m happy to have help.

    Last Updated: 10/15/21, to add Kingfish Cider, Fighting Hand Brewing Company, and The Seventh Tao

      1. Abita Abita Springs, opened in 1986
      2. Crescent City Brewhouse (brewpub) New Orleans, opened in 1991
      3. Gordon Biersch (brewpub) (chain) New Orleans, opened in 2004
      4. NOLA Brewing New Orleans, opened in 2009
      5. Bayou Teche Arnaudville, opened in March 2010
      6. Parish Brewing Broussard, opened in July 2010
      7. Tin Roof Baton Rouge, opened in November 2010
      8. Chafunkta Mandeville, opened in March 2013
      9. Old Rail Brewing Company (brewpub) Mandeville, opened July 2013
      10. Red River Shreveport, opened September 2013
      11. Great Raft Shreveport, opened October 2013
      12. Gnarly Barley Hammond, opened May 2014
      13. Courtyard Brewery New Orleans, opened October 2014
      14. Mudbug Thibodaux, opened December 2014 (not exactly sure what’s going on here – they invested in a huge upgrade but looks like they aren’t producing any of their own beer now.)
      15. Broken Wheel, Marksville (Central LA), opened January 2015
      16. Flying Heart Bossier, opened April 2015
      17. Second Line New Orleans, opened August 2015
      18. Urban South Brewing, New Orleans, opened March 2016
      19. Crying Eagle Brewing Co., Lake Charles, opened May 2016
      20. Flying Tiger Brewery, Monroe, opened October 2016
      21. Spigots Brewpub, Houma, opened February 2017
      22. Brieux Carre, New Orleans, opened March 2017
      23. Low Road Brewing, Hammond, opened March 2017
      24. Parleaux Beer Lab, New Orleans, opened March 2017
      25. Royal Brewery, New Orleans, opened March 2017
      26. Port Orleans Brewing Co., New Orleans, opened March 2017
      27. Broad Street Cider & Ale, New Orleans, opened July 2017
      28. Utility Brewing, Ruston, opened November 2017
      29. Twenty 8 West Brewing, Alexandria, opened February 2018
      30. Huckleberry Brewing Company, Alexandria, opened June 2018
      31. Miel Brewery and Taproom, New Orleans, opened October 2018
      32. Cane River Brewing, Natchitoches, opened November 2018
      33. Zony Mash Beer Project, New Orleans, opened September 2019
      34. Gilla Brewing Company, Gonzales, opened October 2019
      35. Faubourg Brewing Co., New Orleans, (re-)opened November 2019 (formerly Dixie Brewing)
      36. Rally Cap Brewing Co., Baton Rouge, opened in December 2019
      37. Oak St. Brewery, New Orleans, opened in August 2020
      38. Cypress Coast Brewing, Baton Rouge, opened in September 2020
      39. Istrouma Brewing, Saint Gabriel, opened in October 2020
      40. Le Chien Brewing Company, Denham Springs, opened in October 2020
      41. Bywater Brew Pub, New Orleans, opened November 2020
      42. Kingfish Cider, Jefferson, opened May 2021
      43. Fighting Hand Brewing Company, Pineville, opened May 2021
      44. The Seventh Tap, Shreveport, opened June 2021

     

    Closed breweries:

    1. CottonPort Brewing, Sterlington (NE LA) opened February 2016 (closed May 2016)
    2. 40 Arpent Arabi, opened March 2014 (closed September 2017)
    3. Chappapeela Farms Brewery, Amite, opened December 2015 (sort of faded away in 2016 not too long after opening, really)
    4. Cajun Brewing Lafayette, opened September 2015 (Closed August 2018)
    5. Wayward Owl Brewing, New Orleans, opened October 2016 (Closed November 2018.)
    6. Covington Brewhouse Covington, opened in 2005 (as Heiner Brau) (Closed December 2018)
    7. Cajunboyz Brewery, Reserve, opened August 2018 (Closed March 2019)
    8. Ouachita Brewing Company, West Monroe, opened December 2015 (Closed May (?) 2019)
    9. Louisiana Purchase Brewing Company, Pontchatoula, opened April 2017 (Closed September 2019)
    10. Pidgin Town Brewing at Ale on Oak, New Orleans, opened January 2019 (Closed December 2019)
    11. All Relation Beer, New Orleans, opened November 2019 (closed in July 2020 due to Covid but may reopen??)
    12. Southern Craft Brewing Co., Baton Rouge, opened April 2016 (closed January 2021)
  • Travel Musings I: Paris (the good)

    Travel Musings I: Paris (the good)

    In the fall of 2018 and then in the summer of 2019 I had the opportunity to participate in two different French guided trips – a culinary tour of Provence and one in the waterways of the Bordeaux region. 

    Sitting in my house staring at the same walls every day in this time of sheltering in place and quarantine, I’m so happy that I took the opportunity to go on both of these very different experiences. RIght at this moment, I’m looking forward to revisiting both adventures in my mind.

    My Provence trip was organized by Charlie Vollmar’s Epicurean Exchange. I flew into Paris and stayed a couple of days there before flying to Nice. I stayed in an Airbnb in the Ménilmontant neighborhood in the 20ème arrondissement on the right bank. While I’m not a big Airbnb fan in general, this particular listing was quite obviously someone’s regular home who travels a lot. It was very bohemian and tiny and funky, and it was hidden deep within a courtyard complex that was tucked away from the chaos of the city. 

    One thing that I love about Paris is the cafe culture. I love kicking back at almost any time of the day or night with wine, coffee, some sort of food. That first night I found a cafe with a huge amount of outdoor seating right off of Place Gambetta and ordered the cheese and charcuterie plate and a couple of carafes of white wine. It had been a long day of traveling and while it’s always humbling to try to order en Francais and have the server respond immediately in English, I luxuriated in the night air eating and drinking on the streets of Paris. Ah, a quintessential Paris moment. 

    The following day I went to lunch at La Table d’Eugène, a Michelin-starred restaurant with a steal of a lunch menu. Of course I upgraded on everything so I paid about 3 times what I thought I would, but it was well worth it. I didn’t photograph anything inside because it was a tiny restaurant and I was already the focus of Parisian scrutiny because I was a solo American diner. I remember it being a multi-course meal with wine pairings and the dishes were unusual and playful but beautifully executed. I wish I could remember more of it, but that’s what makes special occasion meals ephemeral and special. According to my only Instagram post regarding that lunch (of the exterior), the dessert involved morels, which tracks with my overall recollection of the food there.

     

    The other outstanding meal I had in Paris was when I was passing through on the way home from my trip, at La Fine Mousse, a beer-focused restaurant with a separate beer bar across the way. I had a 7-course meal with beer pairings, which included a cheese course and two dessert courses. I love the way this country eats. 

    Stay tuned for my next entry: Paris (the terrible.) It covers my experience after my (awesome) barge trip last summer.

  • Sauternes: Sweet Golden Sunshine

    Sauternes: Sweet Golden Sunshine

    The world where the sweetness of Sauternes wine resides is hidden to most. Time has stood still in most of these tiny vineyards; it’s time to shine a light on the traditions and weird science of this golden nectar.

  • The Best Cocktail Bars in New Orleans

    The Best Cocktail Bars in New Orleans

    New Orleans is blessed with an internationally recognized bar scene that offers everything from excellent classic cocktails to exciting Tiki spots and modern bars that mix up spirits in innovative, new ways.

  • Best Vegetarian/Vegan Restaurants in New Orleans

    Best Vegetarian/Vegan Restaurants in New Orleans

    Even in New Orleans, the city that fried seafood, pork fat, and roast-beef-debris gravy built, there are some seriously tasty and inventive vegetarian options — which seem to be increasing by the day.

  • The Best Bars in New Orleans Right Now

    The Best Bars in New Orleans Right Now

    If there’s anything New Orleans has a lot of, it’s bars. From the birthplaces of historic cocktails and tacky Bourbon Street walk-ups to expansive brewpubs and cozy dives, we take our drinking establishments seriously.

  • The Stage is Set at Zony Mash

    The Stage is Set at Zony Mash

    At New Orleans’s historic Gem Theater, live entertainment is brewing once again

  • Field Trips: Domaine de Lapeyrade Armagnac

    Field Trips: Domaine de Lapeyrade Armagnac

    Tasting vintage brandy at the source, and a few to try elsewhere

  • Field Trips: Blue Moon Brewery

    Field Trips: Blue Moon Brewery

    From the Sandlot to making wine-beer hybrids, barrel aging and iced coffee brew in the River North District, Blue Moon’s journey is to go… smaller?

  • A Mile Deeper

    A Mile Deeper

    Courtyard Brewery Entrenches in Spite of Louisiana Beer Laws