Moving from Jersey City to Brooklyn was not without its sacrifices. While in general Jersey sucks, between Super Buy Rite and a few smaller stores my beer needs were met. There's definitely no shortage of beer stores in Brooklyn, but they aren't necessarily convenient to me or even passable in some cases. After shopping around a bit, I think I've found what I need in Covenhoven. Right off the shuttle train, this place is like Brooklyn's version of Good Beer in the East Village, in terms of the hybrid bar/beer store setup as well as the level of quality.
Covenhoven's space is long and narrow but they make the most of it. The front is a long line of tables for people to sit and chill at. There's a garage door in front that I imagine they'll open up over the summer in addition to a backyard in back that I didn't get to check out. (it was raining when I visited). I also saw people who brought food from the outside, so apparently that's allowed even though they have a limited food menu. In back of the tables is a small bar area along with the beer coolers. Tap list is about 15 beers long with a wide variety of different styles, including classics (Sierra Nevada Hoptimum, Full Sail Session Black Lager) and more unique offerings (Newburgh Doppio, Grimm Double Negative). This is definitely not a new-to-craft beer kind of place, although the bartenders seemed competent to guide someone around if need be. Regardless of what you get, I found the prices to be quite reasonable--much lower than beer bars in Manhattan. This extends to a lesser extent to the big refrigerators of beer across from the bar. Their selection seems a bit unorganized, but I'd compare it to mixing in chocolate eggs in an Easter basket rather than just throwing them on top. Trying to find what you're looking for is part of the fun! It's not a massive amount of different options, but it's more than it looks like and the quality is certainly there (check out them on BeerMenus.com).
On my first time visiting, I got the Newburgh Doppio on tap, and picked up Prairie/Evil Twin Bible Belt, Prairie Puncheon, Off Color Apex Predator, and some Westbrook Gose. The damage was a little over $40, which is a little below or on par with what I'm used to paying. Between that, some good music, good bartenders, and overall a cool vibe, I'm going to be back sooner rather than later. Covenhoven may not have been around forever but they definitely seem to know what they're doing. read more