Best Beer Bar In CT: 'Willibrew' Named Top Joint In State

CONNECTICUT — The Willimantic Brewing Company was recently ranked as the best bar in Connecticut and one of the best pubs in the entire country for grabbing a beer.

CraftBeer.com, a website published by the Brewers Association, revealed its annual list of the Great American Beer Bars winners across all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico.

The Willimantic Brewing Company, known to locals as Willibrew, is a "living landmark" in Willimantic, located in a 1909 U.S. Post Office. Abandoned in 1967 by the Federal Government, the building lay vacant for nearly 30 years before the brewery took it over.

Now it pours out 40 taps, with canned and bottled beer to boot. Thirteen of the elixirs are Willibrew's own, and include IPAs like "Jewel in the Sky," a stout called "S.W.A.K." and a number of wheats and ales. The beer menu goes heavy on Connecticut brews, but suds aficionados can find something new to love from Maine, Massachusetts and Louisiana as well.

If you want some food to wash down all that beer, The Willimantic Brewing Company offers classic pub fare but with quite a few surprises, including a build-your-own-burger menu and a large selection of Cajun and Cajun-tinged specialties.

Maybe most importantly, Willibrew believes in giving back, and are committed to their community, offering fundraising brews and events like the Thread City Hop Fest, which raises money for a variety of local organizations and initiatives.

According to the beer-based website, readers were asked to nominate their favorite bar in the state, and nominations were tallied by editors on a state-by-state basis to create the rankings.

"An impressive craft beer menu, a stellar atmosphere, and servers who their stuff are all the making of a great beer bar," authors of the Great American Beer Bars list wrote. "With more than 8,000 small and independent breweries in the United States, great beer bars play an important role in the growth of local breweries."

To read through all the bars included on the list, visit CraftBeer.com.