I have been to several events here, food truck nights & Oktoberfest. The location is beautiful, food is always great, beers are awesome. I wish they would bring the Clydesdales back though. read more

Such a fun trip! Monique was a fabulous, personable and friendly tour guide! It was informative to learn about the brewing process from start to finish and the tour through the brewery to see where that process is done is awesome. There's nothing like the taste of Bud Lite straight from the tank! So cold and clear and crisp! Thinking about going back for the car show before leaving town for home. They have nice activities in their schedule. If we lived locally, this is a great place to relax and have fun. read more

Budweiser Brewery Experience - Our guide Monique! She knows what she's talking about. I believe she's been with the company for 38 years - Beer Tours Near Me - Merrimack, New Hampshire

On the way up to the White Mountains I dropped in here because it's right over the Mass state line in New Hampshire. The Anheuser-Busch Brewery was opened here in the 70s. I have been here before when I was younger but it's a nice few hours of going on the tour of the factory and at the end of the tour you end up in a large tasting room and the bar has many choices of their beer to try. On the other end of the property is where the Clydesdales are housed plus a large area to exercise them. It isn't always open so I guess you have to get lucky. The Clydesdales are huge! read more

See all

Great tour with very knowledgeable and kind people. They truly treat their employees well and make great beer! Everyone that comes through Boston or closer should take a tour. worth your money and time! read more

Best tour ever The tour guide was wonderful. The few employees we ran into were enthusiastic about the brewery and the beer.

These tours are back on after they took some time off. We had Monique for a tour guide and she did not disappoint. She has 37 years of experience and a wealth of knowledge about the plant operations. She is friendly, welcoming and very knowledgeable. If you book a tour you will not be disappointed. Fascinating plant operations if your into mass-production engineering. read more

I HIGHLY recommend the Beermaster tour! It is worth the money! It was far more than I had expected, to be honest! If you take this tour, be sure to read all of the information beforehand about how to dress or else you won't be able to go in. We were equipped with safety vests, safety glasses, a ball cap, ear plugs & an ear piece for some of the areas where it was loud (so that we could hear our tour guide). Our tour guide was Ally & she was so friendly & knowledgeable! My boyfriend & I had booked this tour as part of our anniversary celebration trip & one of the things that we are trying to do is visit as many breweries in the region as we can. So far, this one has been the BEST experience. Our group was a total of 6 people & I liked that it wasn't a massive group. There was so much to see & learn! We even got to sample Bud Light fresh out of the vat before it went through its last filtration. IT WAS SO CRISP! At the end we got to spend some time in a lounge (where the tour started) & sample a couple of brews! I truly felt like I was a VIP getting to experience so much more of the tour than the free tours they offer. We were so close to everything! Seriously, the best experience yet. I want to go back! read more

See all

We attended the Bentleys Famous BBQ pig roast - the food was AMAZING! Best pulled pork I've ever had and all the sides were amazing as well! Normally I'm a take it or leave it for potato salad but theirs was sooo good. The brewery staff is always amazing - we love when they open their doors to the public for different events. Thank you!! read more

There is no better way to experience the Budweiser world from "seed to sip". They have a variety of tours you can't miss. Good for all ages, the complimentary tours @ the perfect price point, takes you behind the scenes of the brewing process & includes a complimentary beer. The Clydesdales experience and beermaster tours are charged between $10-$25. When we were done, we realized we had spent over 4hrs or so, that's how much we enjoyed it. I highly recommend visiting. The property is impeccable, so well maintained but the Clydesdales take the crown. You can get up close these gentle giants at their well kept stables,super clean...they are their priced possessions after all. We always make it a point to come see the Clydesdales when ever we are in the area and have the opportunity to do so. Oh! One more thing, they have a special program if you are turning 21...now ain't that a perfect celebration!ya read more

the tour guide was fantastic . She knows her job and it was a pleasure meeting her . They have future activities scheduled that we are interested in and we will be back ! read more

The word FREE is pretty much an extinct adjective these days unless you plan your day hitting the sample isles at Wholefoods and Trader Joe's. Unless ... You want to visit Merrimack, NH (about 10 minutes from Concord, NH). You get a great 2-4 hour experience, two free beers, unlimited soft drinks and pretzels and you don't pay a cent. No catch, unless you feel the need to buy a Budweiser can cozi, polo shirt, visor, backscratcher, etc. at the gift shop. In the spirit of getting something for nothing, set your GPS to 'avoid tolls' about 20 minutes before you arrive and you'll save the annoying $1 toll on the toll highway which almost runs parallel to the free highway. (Live free or die, my ass) You'll save $1 and only add 2-3 minutes to your route. Not a big deal but its fun to have a 'free day'. You check in at the desk and usually tours GI out every 30 minutes or so. No reservations are required and the tour is free. There is a Brewmaster Tour which costs $25/person although I am pretty sure you have to call in advance for that one. The difference is that you will have access to a few of the areas behind glass during the free tour and you will get to sample pasteurized beer right from the 'vat' before it is canned. The Brewmaster Tour also gives you a swag bag full of things like a hat, etc. If you go VIP for $25, it probably isn't a bad thing. Still inexpensive for a personalized tour and they do walk you past the free tours as if to say, 'Don't make eye contact honey. They may ask us to borrow money'. The free tour is plenty good. In case you have little heathens ... Eh, kids ... In tow, there is plenty for them to look at and while the guide's speech about how beer is made goes over their heads but they will be fascinated not only by the giant machines, tanks and equipment but the strange smells of Hops and Yeast in the air. (A smell they will later in life associate with their fraternity of choice.) Kids also love horses and the Clydesdale barn is open so they can see the giant beautiful horses close up. Adults will like the tour because it is not incredibly long winded and the 45 minutes goes by fast. The part everyone likes best is at the end where you are allowed to sample two beers or hard ciders from a fairly extensive and diverse list. I think they also may give you a free photo in a cardboard frame of your family standing in front of a replica Clydesdale. Something that would probably require a 12 month payment plan at Disneyworld. One thing to know ... Tours can vary from 60 people to 2 people. However, if you want a small group, the best time to go is during a Patriots game. On the Sunday I went the bottling conveyor belt was not working as they do maintence on Sundays. So much for dreaming of Lavergne and Shirley putting a glove on a bottle and waving it goodbye if you go on a Sunday. The tour guide we had couldn't have been better. She was very personable and friendly. And she knew a lot of interesting facts beyond the mundane. The public areas are cozy with wood paneling and ceiling beams and stone fireplaces and the whole place is decorated for Christmas. It feels like being in a small German village. Very cozy. Fun, free and informative for kids or adults. read more

See all

I took the beermaster tour. I went on a Wednesday morning, I and my girlfriend were the only 2 people in the tour. There was a Groupon available for this tour. The tour was 2 hour long. You meet your guide in the store. Your first stop is their lounge. You will be given a beer. Different ingredients of beer will be shown to you. Hop was the ingredient I was not aware of. It comes from a plant, and gives the beer hoppy flavor. Hop has a nice flavor to it. Safety instruction and gears will be handed over to you here. From there, you visit the control room. This is the place where the whole beer making is controlled from multiple computers. Then you will start going through the different stages of beer making. First the mixing stage, where yeast and other ingredients are mixed, then fermentation, then the carbonization and finally the tanks before packing. All these things are done in different areas and all the tanks are huge. On the last tank before bottling, you will be given a chance to enjoy fresh beer right before bottling. I felt the fresh beer tasted slightly different from the bottled beer. From there you will be taken to the bottling area, where you can see how the beer is getting bottled and packaged. From here you return to the lounge. The amount of time left for 2 hours (for me it was 20 minutes), you can enjoy any beer available. At the time of leaving You will be given a budweiser cap and a glass. You can pick some coaster and bottle caps if you like. You will learn the history of anheuser busch and the process involved in making beer. You can go and see the budweiser clydesdale for free after that. Those are huge draft horses. Those horses are majestic. definitely go and see them. If you are hungry there is a food court. Food prices are reasonable. You can buy t shirts or other memorabilia from the store. Overall it is a worthwhile place to visit. read more

See all

Do not waste your time driving here for the tour. The tours are permanently closed and no longer being offered. The horses are no longer at this location either. Nothing on google has been updated to state this. The website redirects you to the Missouri location. read more

Excellent beer master tour. Informative and fun. The phone line will say there are no tours, but there are! We didn't give up and found the website where you can sign up. read more

Tour guide was awesome she made the experience one of a kind. so fun

I'm not a big fan of beer, but I did want to visit the Clydesdale horses. First, we entered the gift store and signed up for a free tour of the brewery. We had to wait around for quite a while until it was time for our 3:15 tour, probably because it was the day after Thanksgiving. But they also have other tour options that cost and a dining area (The Biergarten) to hang out in. The gift shop has a lot of fun items from T-shirts to stuffed Clydesdales. After checking that out, we headed for the stables. There were groups of horses in the fields and then another group inside the Bavarian style barn. Each gorgeous horse has his own little stall with a name label posted above: King, Buddy, etc. Finally it was time for our tour. At the start they snap a picture of each group in front of a life-sized Clydesdale. Our guide did a nice job. She spoke clearly into a microphone that she easily plugged in at various stopping points. Inside the factory we wore plastic goggles for protection. Many were impressed by the massive quantities of beer produced at this one location. At the last stop we found out the actual production line wasn't running right then but it was easy enough to picture from a short video. I wouldn't recommend this tour for children under 5 or 6. There were two toddlers in our group and their parents spent much of the time shushing them or trying to keep the adult-sized goggles from sliding off their little faces. Everyone could order two free drinks (various beers or soda) at the end of the tour and enjoy them in a big room decorated for the holidays. There, we had the option to buy our group photo package for $20 (5x7, 3x4, 2x3, with magnetic frames). Since the picture came out well and we'd received everything else free, it seemed a very worthwhile purchase. As we left the property we enjoyed seeing all the Christmas lights and fire pits for s'mores. A pretty location! read more

Budweiser Brewery Experience - Budweiser Clydesdale in Merrimack, NH - Beer Tours Near Me - Merrimack, New Hampshire

The Anheuser-Busch horses have a way nicer house than anyone I know! When I was a kid my dad would take us to see the Merrick, NH team of Anheuser-Busch clydesdales every time they came close to us, so my visit to the brewery was more to see the horses than to enjoy the beer. Despite that it was well worth the stop. It's crazy to see a huge brewery in a time when micro breweries abound and small breweries struggle to buy kettles big enough to meet the demand. Anheuser- Busch is a huge factory and it was cool to see what it takes to make America's most popular beer. This is a huge factory and it makes a ton of the beer that we drink in New England, including some of the beers that used to be independent including Goose Island and Blue Point. The tour ends in the tasting room that looks like an American Legion hall and the free tour includes two six ounce tastings. This is worth a visit, even if you hate Bud, and forgot when you were young and drank a crap load of Natural Ice you'll be interested to see both the process and the spectacle that is AB. read more

See all

I used to LOVE this tour but it is awful now. It was a bad spend of $10. Seems like it's all about cost cutting. Our guide (Eric) had no business giving tours. He rushed through and mumbled. Before the guides were all passionate and tried so hard. Thought this was competitive to be a guide. A few weeks ago they move the Clydesdales to St Louis and according to Eric they won't be returning except for visits. The samples are smaller and now you have to pay. Sad to see and hopefully Carlos Brito will recognize the impact to the Bud brand - they look cheap. read more

There were 3 different types of tours. I took the complimentary one, which is FREE. The other 2 cost $10 - $15 bucks. This brewery location is one out of 3 that bred/ trained the Clydesdale horses. In total, there are 12 breweries. To see the stables where the horses are kept was free! You could even take a picture with one of them! The complimentary tour lasts about an hour and one starts every 40 mins. I would recommend getting a pass to a tour then going to see the horses. Its a brief 5 min walk and i know some people drive there, but it's really not necessary. The pathway is clean and wide and very peaceful. Our tour guide was pretty awesome. She was very knowledgeable and was accomodating. Please wear walking shoes! The tour is a walking tour and you do climb at least 3 flights of stairs! Theyre metal stairs too! The tour finishes with a tasting test... you can taste 2 different types of beer that are all brewed at that location. There's about 10 - 12 different ones to choose from. Overall, it was an awesome free tour. The gift shop has many different things! Not many that say Merrimack though. I would definitely recommend this tour for adults only, but kids are welcome too. Adults will appreciate the history and the taste test. read more

See all

The brewery is around an hour drive from Boston, but definitely worth going at least once. I highly recommend the complimentary tour. The tour is around 20-25 minutes and they offer you two samples of beer at the end. As for the food in their restaurant onsite, everything was quite delicious and inexpensive. My family also walked over to see the beautiful horses. All the tour guides and employees were very knowledgable about their company and its products. I will definitely be back again! read more

See all

It's one of those things you should do once every 10 or 20 years. This is the 3rd time I've been here. And I'm thinking of how things have changed over time. We did the free tour There isn't much to the tour. You go see the grain silos- but just where the rail cars go in. Then you see the Ale fermenting tanks. Then you see the lager fermenting tanks. Then you see the bottling line. The whole time you listen to the tour guide wax poetic about how great A-B is. Blah blah blah. Overall not much to see and not much real info. Lots of propaganda. After the tour you go into the bar and you get 2 6 oz glasses of beer - your choice. You have 15 minutes to drink your beer and then you get escorted out of the facility. After the tour you have the option to go see the Clydesdales. Which are kept in a beautiful facility on the far end of the parking lot. Keep in mind that the fermenting rooms are kept at 55 degrees, so the tour is a great thing to do on a hot summer day! My parents brought me when I was a kid still in the single digits. Back then the tour walked you through the whole plant and lots of people were working on the factory floor and they gave you beechwood chips and you got unlimited beer afterwards. I remember my parents and their friends getting completely sloshed - the only choices were Bud or Michelob. I went for a second time in my early twenties. You still walked through the factory. But there was a lot more automation and less people. And when you got to the bar, you got 2 beers. A beer of the day. Then you turned in your empty glass for the beer of your choice. If I go in another 10 or 20 years, I wonder if I will get my beer in a shot glass and watch the tour as a video on an iPad. read more

Stopped here while visiting New Hampshire. The brewery here is so damn huge I couldn't believe it and the tour guide mentioned that it was one of the smaller breweries they had! The waiting area before the tour starts is very nice! Nice round tables with cushioned chairs, couches, and a fireplace. The tour itself is just like every other beer tour. They just tell you how they make their beers and why they are the best blah blah blah. After the tour, the tasting comes. You get to choose 2 of their beers (a full glass btw), whether on tap or bottled. This could include Stella, Shocktop, Budweiser, and many others. Also, the sampling area is really nice with plenty of seating and a fireplace. Best of all, its free. Free pretzels too! read more

You will pay extra for the Brewmaster Tour, which this is a review for, but it's well worth it. This was the most thorough and behind-the-scenes brewery tour I've ever been on. We got a Groupon for the Brewmaster Tour which was a great bargain. I believe the regular tour just goes through the basics and will show you the Clydesdales. The Beermaster Tour includes a visit to the Hop Garden, Brew House, Hop Room, Primary Fermentation Cellar, Lager Cellar, Bottling and Canning Line, Packaging Facility, Quality Assurance, and Finishing Cellar, including sampling directly from a Finishing Tank. You are also given an honorary brewmaster certificate and a goodie bag to bring home. Getting to see the computer room at the Brew House was awesome, the brewers explained what each screen meant and how they monitor each brew. The Quality Assurance lab was cool too, we got to see all of the spiffy equipment used to test their beers. And having a fresh, full glass of beer from the Finishing Tank was awesome. The size of this brewery is massive. Very impressive! I've been to the Anheuser-Busch brewery in St. Louis which was also immense. It's incredible to see how all different sized breweries operate, this one was no exception. The scale of their production is pretty mindblowing. read more

See all

If you like Budweiser, this is definitely a stop for you! Anheuser grounds, complete with Clydesdale, a Biergarten, a gift store, and the factory! There are different tours you can do. There is a free tour with a sample flight of beers at the end, of there's a $10 slightly more in depth tour where you get to drink beer right out the factory line that was just made a couple hours ago, and you get the sample flight of beers at the end and souvenir glass. There is another tour that is also more expensive and I am not quite sure what was in that tour. We opted for the $10 tour! The tour was very interesting, and the beer that came straight out the factory was ice cold and super refreshing! The sample flight of beers at the end, you could choose out of many options. There was one that tasted like cherry coke--super awesome! This was my first time ever seeing Clydesdales and I actually did not know what they were until this day, when my husband kept telling me we would see Clydesdale, and I said "What's that?" husband: "You know... the Bud commercials with the horses?" Me: "Nope... never seen it." Husband: "Look it up on google." Me: *Looks it up on phone* "Ooooo.... They have funny feet!!!..... Nope, for sure never saw these commercials." read more

Well, I'm an honorary brewmaster now. Thanks Anheuser-Busch! The Brewmaster Tour costs money, but you can see far, far more of the massive brewing operation than on the regular plebeian tour. And you get to do it in high style, with ear-pieces, safety goggles and pulls of beer fresh out of the lager tanks. Like Busch beer or hate it, you will learn an obscene amount about "industrial scale brewing" by taking this tour. The sheer size of the facility and the sheer volume of product they put out under such rigid brewing standards is truly something to see. From the immense aging warehouse to the bottling line that stretches to the horizon, you will get a real sense of what it takes to supply people with the most popular beer in America. Absolutely positively worth a trip if you love beer. read more

have you ever been experienced? well i have. ok folks, lets set the record straight, i am not much of a drinker, but when i do, i dont drink bud lololol. i know there are loyalist out there, driving your car brand, drinking your brand, being what they expect you to be. i bet your pappi drank this stuff and you use to steal them out of the fridge in the car port, thats sociologically how these macro brews stay in business, no worries, i respect your drinking allegiance. What i do know every other person on the tour was a big AH fan, but here we were, mocking this place the whole time, why? cause it was easy! ok, so me being a jerk aside, i did like the culture of the tour and the free beer is nice, had bud light straight from the nip, still tasted like bud light, so you can keep it. no where to dump out my sample, almost used a plant they had lying around, but i didnt. also, saw a horse, took some photos like it was a cruise (booze cruise) and then almost bought a dilly dilly sticker, but alas they didnt have them. funny enough, im going to look back at this yelp in 4 years and wonder, wtf was dilly dilly about?? waaazzzzuuuuuppppp (exactly, just dont get this EITHER as a tattoo) read more

I come here every Memorial Day. It's a great place to spend a good portion of the day they teach you how the beer is made, where the products come from and even let you sample some at the end of the tour. They also offer a Beer Masters Tour which I have yet to try but have heard only good things. My favorite part is the onsite clydesdale horses, they're so beautiful. I suggest this tour to any one even if they aren't Bud fans. read more

Went on the free tour at the Anhueser-Busch Brewery with some friends. The tour guide did a great job of explaining the history of the company and the brewing process. We viewed the tanks where the first part of the brewing process was done (it was warm here) as well as the tanks where the fermentation took place (it was cool here). Beechwood used from the brewing process was available to touch and even take home as a souvenir if you want. Guests were required to wear safety glasses while touring these rooms. It did not seem like the glasses were cleaned between tours. We passed by the labs on the way up to the area where we could view the bottling room from above. The corridors here smelled like chlorine bleach, so I suppose they just cleaned. The viewing area was lengthy and did provide a great view of the machinery. The last part of the tour was the tasting in the hospitality room. Adults got two 6oz glasses of their choice of alcoholic beverages. Besides Budweiser, beer from Blue Point, Goose Island and Spider Bite were available as well (all companies owned by InBev, the parent company of Anhueser-Busch). New spiked seltzer was there too, but from the bottle and not the tap. Soda was available for kids and those who did not want to drink. Everyone was allowed 15 minutes to finish their drinks. The grounds of the brewery were beautiful with well placed flowers and large lawns. Cornhole and can-jam games were there to pass time. On Saturdays from 1-3pm you can get your picture taken next to one of the Clydesdales. The other Clydesdales can be visited at the stables down the path from the brewery. Carts that were used for transporting beer are also at the stables. read more

Budweiser Brewery Experience - Picture day with the Clydesdale - Beer Tours Near Me - Merrimack, New Hampshire

We have always loved having the Budweiser brewery/beergarden/annual events here in the local community. It's a positive image for Budweiser/InBev and events like the Christmas lights go a long way to make them seem like a good business to have in the area. We were stunned last night when we went to the annual Christmas light display and were charged $10 for parking. For a company like Budweiser, this is an absolutely terrible PR move... the Christmas lights cost relatively little and I'm sure the cost is covered by the extra beer/gifts/food they sell during the season. Charging $10 for parking is just a cheap move by the company and short sighted. read more

Great snacks, good lunch options and seriously the freshest beer eva!!@ Great sandwiches and the NH cheese appetizer is more than enough for two. I would highly recommend this for couples and families. read more

This place is a must visit for any beer fan, regardless of what beer you like. It's located on expansive grounds that you can freely walk to check out the Clydesdales in the barn or sit around outside and picnic. In the winter they have a massive Christmas light display and smore roasting outside by fire pits. The two buildings outside the plant house an enormous gift shop in one and a pub style restaurant in the other where you can get sandwiches, wraps, salads and basic pub fare. It also features live music. The tour itself is also fun, learning the process of how the Budweiser is made and sampling takes place at the end. I don't even drink beer and still enjoyed it in the nerdy style of wanting to know how things work and are made. With only six plants like this in the country, it's a unique experience most won't get to have so take advantage. read more

"This Bud's for you" And so is this brewery. The complementary tour is worth it... you learn about what makes Budweiser unique (such as the uses of rice&beechwood), its history, their Clydesdale horses, and there's a beer garden onsite for a hearty lunch afterwards. The Merrimack facility is special because not only is it the training facility for their horses (with their epic stables), but it's a bald eagle refuge. It's in the wilderness of southern New Hampshire. The horses are in a place that looks like a little Bavarian village. The tour is informative&fun, complete with samples. The gift shop is enormous. The beer garden has fun, hearty food for sharing like nachos, warm soft pretzels with mustards, and enormous bratwursts. If you like delicious beer&big German sausages, this is the place to go, especially on a cold winter's day. read more

We had so much fun! Excellent tour guide and really good beer. I'm not a huge Budweiser fan but the beer that They have on tap was amazing and the whole family went and it was a tour that we will never forget! read more

See all

We went to lunch today inThe Biergarten. They have about 15 beers on tap and various sandwiches, nachos, and a daily special. There was plenty of room in the beautiful building. They also have live music some evenings. The food was good, as was the beer. I posted a picture of the menu in the photo section because I was looking for one myself, and couldn't find one.. read more

Budweiser Brewery Experience - Menu at The Biergarten at Anheuser Busch Merrimack NH. - Beer Tours Near Me - Merrimack, New Hampshire

The have THE horses There are always some of them there - even if the travel team is away. Seeing the horses is free. The gift shop has nice stuff at a very reasonable price The beer is really good - I have been there with beer snobs and even they have to admit brewery fresh and perfectly served Budweiser is pretty good beer. We like to stop by in the summer when running errands on a Saturday. If they have the grill going outside go for the very reasonably priced and very good burger and beer in the garden. Other than that the food is kind of blah. But they have horses (and the stable is an appropriate distance from the beer garden) Never been on the tour, seems ok just not our thing. read more

If you haven't tried the un-pasteurized beer straight from the cold finishing tanks at the Anheuser-Busch Merrimack Brewery then you really haven't tried beer at its best. With the Anheuser-Busch Beer Master Tour you get to do that and much more. When you arrive at the brewery welcome center for your tour expect to spend some quality time with your tour guide and be prepared to drink some beer. Your Anheuser-Busch tour guide will start by sharing some interesting company history while you sample your first beer. We tried the Shocktop Pumpkin Wheat. Your tour guide will then show you the magic in a step by step tour from the raw ingredients to the cold frosty end result. You start the walking tour in the perfectly manicured grounds looking at the hop garden. There the guide will explain that hops are cone-shaped blossoms and is the spice of beer. You learn that hops contribute the bitterness that balances the malts sweetness. Before entering the building they walk you by the grain handling area and you begin to appreciate the true scale of the operation in Merrimack. The train cars filled with grain dwarf humans and automobiles alike. When you enter the building you are immediately looking at the bottom of the huge mash tanks. After a quick elevator ride you find yourself learning the intricate process of beer making in their master control room. Here you get to ask questions to the guys making sure that every step of the process is going exactly as they planned. The room has a wall of monitors you would expect to see at NASA. Each screen represents a different step in the process and with the click of the mouse they can control and makes changes on the fly when required. Next you venture out into the tank room controlled by those guys. The first set of tanks are where the mashing process takes place. The mash tanks are where they combine ground barley malt and water. Next to it is the cooker where they mix milled rice and water. Eventually, boiled rice is mixed with the malt in the mash tank. This is where step one in the magical process occurs. When combined the natural enzymes the malt breaks down the grains starch into fermentable sugars. This malty liquid is called wort. Next, the converted mash goes into the Lauter Tuns where the mash is strained and the wort is slowly drawn off. This process takes over an hour to complete and once complete the wort is moved to the Brew Kettle where the secret blend of hops is added. Here the wort and hops are vigorously boiled and the liquid is again strained and cooled in sterile conditions. Once cooled the wort is moved to the fermentation tanks. In the fermentation tanks yeast is added. Here yeast metabolizes the sugar in the wort into ethyl alcohol and CO2 with the help of beechwood chips; they aren't kidding when they say "Beechwood Aged". The Beechwood chips enhance the fermentation process and are said to create a more crisp and naturally carbonated beer. It is then moved to the finishing tanks where it takes 30-45 days to age to perfection. This is also where the beer is filtered if desired. This was my favorite stop as we again got to sample beer. We got to sample Bud Light which, I am not usually a fan, but I found that it was really tasty right from the finishing tank. If only you could swing by the brewery for fresh beer. Of course all products have to go through QA which was our next stop. Here we got to see science at work as they tested the beer to ensure consistency and perfection. We also learned that the Beer Master samples the beer regularly. To do this he has a finely tuned pallet which prohibits him from smoking, drinking anything alcohol based, or engaging in any other activities that might alter those taste buds. After passing the QA testing the beer is packaged for distribution. It is also pasteurized by heating and cooling the beer which kills the bacteria that causes the yeast to grow. This is done to increase the shelf life of beer from 60 days to about 120 days. The bottles and cans are washed, filled, capped, sealed, pasteurized, labeled and boxed in a nearly automated system of conveyors, lifts, flippers and all kinds of crazy things. Once completed the tour ends in the tasting room. Here you get 4 samplers to try which was picked by the tour guide. We tried Alexander Keith's Nova Scotia Style Lager, Stella Artois, Redbridge, Shock Top Raspberry Wheat & Rolling Rock. We got one extra because I asked to sample the gluten free Redbridge. Then you get one more full size sample. I choose the Shock Top Raspberry since I prefer unfiltered beer. Let's just say by this point everyone in the group should at least be feeling good. Before leaving the brewery to see the horses we got a surprise care package which included our honorary Beer Master Certificate and a 12oz Anheuser-Busch glass to take home in addition to the hat we received at the beginning of the tour. read more

Beer. Alongside fast cars, guns, and blowing stuff up, it's what makes a man a man. Most of us have a simple understanding of what beer is, and a few of us luckier souls have dared to touch the face of God and brew this magical elixir at home. But to truly understand the magic that is barley, rice, hops, yeast, and water from Rocky Mountain streams, one must take a brewery tour. And that is just what I did during a side trip to New Hampshire, when I visited the Anheuser-Busch brewery. Approaching the brewery, there was no mistaking what they made; the heady aroma of yeast and freshly-brewed beer can be smelled from miles away in that crisp New England air. Stepping inside the visitor center, you're greeted by a nice lady at the front desk. Simply tell her you're there for a tour, and she rewards you with a single, glossy ticket, granting you entrance to the wonders of the factory beyond the cozy visitor center. For a moment, you'll feel that same giddiness that Charlie felt when he got a golden one. While waiting for the tour to begin, relax in the plush visitor center. Kick back on one of the plush sofas in front of the roaring fireplace. Or perhaps take a walk around the room, perusing the numerous beer artifacts and history displays scattered about. Did you know Anheuser-Busch owns its own railroad? I already did (and now you do, too), but they have displays there informing you of that fact. Once the tour begins, your guide begins with a bit of history of the company, its founders, etc., etc. (yeah, yeah, get to the free samples part). But of course, good things come to those who wait; taking our group outside, he shows us the overall layout of the facility, then walks us over to receiving, where huge railcars full of rice and barley are unloaded in the first step of the beer making process. Yet another reason to love railroads. Moving on, he shows us the boilers where the grain mixture is cooked, then on to huge stainless-steel tanks where the brewing process continues. He showed us a large bin of beechwood chips, that are actually added during the brewing process; they aren't kidding when they say "Beechwood Aged". We move deeper and deeper into the bowels of the plant, following a maze of pipes and tanks, until finally we arrive at the Nirvana otherwise known as the bottling room. A football-field sized area of conveyors and machinery, with row upon row of those amber-colored bottles moving from here to there, it really helps put into perspective just how big the entire operation is. Finally, we get to the best part. Sampling. Ending the tour in a plush bar-lounge, your tour guide turns into your bartender. Show him your I.D., and you get two free(!) tap beers of your choice, only a few feet and hours removed from the production line. It doesn't get any fresher than that. I opted for a regular Budweiser, and a seasonal brew, Winter's Bourbon Cask Ale. The regular Bud was much, much better than usual; freshness does make a difference. The Winter's Bourbon Ale was surprisingly good; very smooth, with a hint of vanilla. It was like someone skillfully merged cream soda with a light ale, and went great with the free pretzels they so thoughtfully provide. If you're not drinking, or are the designated driver, not to worry, they have a soda fountain of various soft drinks at your disposal. So what else can I say? Anheuser-Busch has a top-notch facility here, with very friendly employees. Our tour guide was friendly and very knowledgeable, answering every question we threw at him, not to mention doing a great pour when he went into bartender mode. If you're in the area, definitely take a tour. It's free, fun, informative, and only takes a half-hour or so. And the best part of all? The beer! read more

See all

I'm a brewery tour veteran. I've done Harpoon and Sam Adams several times. This tour is a totally different league. We had a fairly large group on our tour, maybe about 20 people, but it felt cozy and intimate. Our tour guide could not get this microphone to work, but luckily his voice carried and we could all hear him well. I felt bad because no one asked him any questions, but I think we were all just impressed with the sheer size of this brewery! They focused less on the ingredients and process, but told us a lot about what Anheuser-Busch uses to stay an environmentally conscious company. I found that fascinating. At the end of the tour, we had beer, pretzels, and there were soft drinks for people who don't drink. They gave us about 20 minutes to taste beers and hang out. This is a really cool tour. I wish they advertised more...it was an awesome place! I can't believe I'd never heard of it. read more

This review is about the Clydesdales. It was a fun and intimate family experience. And it is free. Go on a weekday. I felt like it was there for just us. "Bud" the Dalmatian just walked out to us as we entered the courtyard, the horses were being washed right in front of us, and we walked right up to the wagons. Bud laid down with my kids in the courtyard and they sat there with him petting him. Take the very nice stroll from the main building and gift shop to the stables. Bring a picnic lunch as there are picnic tables. No food is served. We didn't do the brewery tour because we had our young children (youngest is 2), but we will definitely go back for both the horses and the tour. read more

Budweiser Brewery Experience - "Bud" just lying there letting my kids pet him. - Beer Tours Near Me - Merrimack, New Hampshire

Great beer, great food, and a great place to take the kids. We went for the festival of lights.