40 Arpent Brewery - Arabi

Great little brewery. We had two free tickets (2 free beers each! we received from the West Bank Beer Fest, so we thought we might as well check it out. It's tucked away in a nice spot right across from the levee in Arabi in St. Bernard Parish, just bordering the Ninth Ward. This place has a great outdoor space and an even better indoor space. It's so clean and looks brand new. They have board games and a shuffle board, and of course an awesome selection of beer. The Duckweed and the Orange Blossom O-Possom are two of their best beers, but I heard the stout is incredible. We had a chance to meet the brewer, Charles, who showed us around and gave us the lowdown on their brewing process. Turns out they have brewing equipment from a East End Brewery in Pittsburgh (where I'm from! The staff is friendly, the place is chill, and they schedule food pop ups weekly. There's always something going on here, pay them a visit!

Good people and great beer. Have been stopping by on Friday evenings for the brewery tour. Good selection of their beers on tap along with a food truck incase you get hungry. They have a great view of the river and the Nola skyline at sunset. I suggest you do yourself a favor and drop in for some great beers and sit by the levee and watch the sunset. Can't wait for them to complete their taproom!

We were in the area checking out the Chalmette Battlefield. After sating my history nerd tendencies, we caught a ride over here to see if we could find some good beer and a comfy hangout for a bit. We found it, perfectly. The location is a little tucked away, but good ol' GPS saved the day. Pulled in, walked right on in. The taproom is nice! Bar is well-made, assorted games inside for tipsy and drunken shenanigans, and a good amount of seating. We decided to sit outdoors. Grabbed a couple different beers: Red Ale was nice, Orange Blossom was tasty! Staff was great: there seemed to be just one person working, and several hanging out, but all were doing random things. Cleaning, picking up trash, tying down some stuff on a pallet. It was great. Beer was real good, prices were spot on. Staff was great. Location was great. For a mountain dude worried about dying in the humidity of the Lower Mississippi, the breeze and comfy chairs made me want a nap. Also the beers, they did that too. Wish we had nabbed a pint glass or souvenir, but we had to run quickly to make a dinner reservation. Bummer! Best brewery in the area.

I've got a fever, and the only prescription is more local breweries. I met Michael a year ago at a beer tasting event where he was showing off his Red Beans and Rice Ale. I was impressed; not because it has red beans and rice, many beers are made with adjuncts like that, but because it was so full bodied and tasty. We talked for a while about the trials and tribulations of starting a new brewery and I told him I was looking forward to seeing more from him. Then he showed up at one of my homebrew meetings and asked to host one of our meetings at his brewery. That meeting finally happened and I was happy to see his initial set up. He has a really nice system that's capable of pumping out 10 barrels at a time. The brewery is located in Arabi right on the levee. It was awesome to stand outside drinking one of his excellent ales watching the ships go by. He shares the warehouse with a practice space for several bands, so there was sort of live music to accompany the drinking. Currently, he has two beers, a milk stout and a Belgian ale. Milk stouts are really not my thing, but if it's a style you enjoy then this is a beer you need to try. It's smooth with a perfect mouth feel. The Belgian ale was more my speed and had an absolutely beautiful color and a fruity aroma with a well balanced taste and texture. I could see my self drinking a lot of it. Wait. I did. In addition to the red beans and rice ale, he has a wheat and a Berliner weisse scheduled. I'm really excited for the Berliner because to the best of my knowledge, no New Orleans brewery has made one yet and that's a style that just begging for some satsumas or local strawberries. His current beers have just started rolling out. You should be able to find them at places like The Avenue Pub, The Rusty Nail and The Bulldog. I'm really looking forward to seeing a lot more from Michael and 40 Arpent Brewing.

40 Arpent is a fantastic little brewery quickly adding to the landscape of the Louisiana beer scene. Set in Arabi, this family owned brewery has really taken off in the last few months. It's still a small operation, compared to other breweries, but I can see them going places. I think my two favorite beers from 40 Arpent are the Creole Red Bean and Rice Ale, which tastes a lot better than it sounds and the Copasaw Wheat which is packs a lot of flavor. I'm really excited to see what 40 Arpent does next.