Bison Brewing Co

Although this location is no longer open, Bison is still pumping out delicious, 100% USDA organic beers. How cool is that?!
At a dinner party, I was able to sample three of their brews: the Hop Cuvée, Red Reuben, and (my favorite!) the Chocolate Stout. Not only are their beers exceptionally simple (the stout only contains water, organic malt, organic hops, yeast, and organic cocoa), but they are wonderfully smooth and delicious. They list all of their ingredients right on the label, which is all sorts of amazing.
Daniel del Grande is their dedicated brewmaster, and he is a wonderful representative, very knowledgeable and passionate about crafting the best possible beers for your tasting pleasure.
I cannot recommend this brand enough. Check out their website and figure out a way to get your hands on these precious bottles of liquid gold.
Their company is also a supporter of the «Meatless Monday» campaign, as you should be too! A little birdie told me that they are planning some cool veg events in the East Bay. I highly recommend checking them out.

Why is it that their beers don’t taste like what they’re named after? Honey Basil is sweet, so I get the honey part, but I taste no basil. Not even a little. Gingerbread tastes spiced, but I would never say it tastes like gingerbread. If I buy a beer called Gingerbread, that’s what I want it to taste like. It shouldn’t be overpowering, but I should be able to close my eyes when I’m drinking the beer and at least be reminded of what the beer says it tastes like. I don’t think this is an absurd thing to expect.
I’ve tried two beers from this brewery, and neither of them tasted remotely like what they’re labeled as. This type of thing annoys me. This is like when you buy pumpkin beer and it tastes spiced but with no pumpkin. Am I supposed to be using my imagination when I drink shit like this, or are these things only for snobs and people with extraordinarily sensitive palettes? Or are they just drawing things out of a hat when they name this stuff? Beers from this brewery have earned a place on my «they’re full of shit, it doesn’t taste like that» list.

Mmmmmmm Chocolate Stout!!!

Dee-​li-​cious + local + organic = awesome. Love the Chocolate Stout & IPA.

I had very high expectations for this organic brewery near Berkeley that gets lots of props from others. I am all for the local brew. Organic brew… okay, even better. But that alone doesn’t get you quality.
Organic IPA ~ (⁶⁄₁₀): if its possible to melt copper metal flakes into a brew then I would argue Bison has a patent on it. I love an IPA, a west coast IPA even better. This one reminds me of the underperforming Midwest IPAs that lack hops and have a distinct copper taste that leaves an undesired aftertaste.
Chocolate Stout ~ (⁹⁄₁₀): Oh my! Now we are talking! This definitely makes up for the sins of the IPA. Quality ingredients. I am nowhere near a stout fan, but this is a great one by all accounts. Just the right balance, smooth.
Overall I would say pick up the stout even if you are not a fan of the style. I appreciate quality, and the Stout is in a rare class, but this doesn’t seem to spread to the other brews here.

Bison chocolate stout — local AND delicious — how could you ask for anything more? It’s a delicious beer. I hate hoppy beer and Bison suits my palate just fine. Bottoms up!

All the good reviews are mind-​boggling. I understand that some people really care about their beer bring organic, but there are PLENTY of organic beers out there that don’t suck like these ones. (As an aside, I recommend Hopworks Urban Brewery’s fine selection of organic ales, as well as the easier-​to-​get Deschutes Green Lakes Organic Ale).
Their IPA: Tastes like a blonde ale — we’re talking zero hop presence. This wouldn’t be hoppy enough to be called an American pale ale, let alone an IPA. And it is usually super-​expensive. Crap.
Their Chocolate Stout: Pretty good, but not exactly awesome, this is a slightly better-​than-​average chocolate stout and the only Bison beer worth buying.
Their Belgian Ale: Tastes like bad homebrew. This beer just plain sucks.
Their Red Ale: Not terrible, but lacking any pronounced malt or hop flavor. I would call this one ok if it was $ 7.99 for a six-​pack, but it is usually more than $ 6 for a 22oz bottle, so it is easily one of the worst ripoffs in the supermarket.
Bison used to be a great brewpub in years gone by, or so I have heard. Then there was some kind of licensing crackdown or something and now there’s a bad Indian restaurant in the space that used to be the Bison pub. I imagine their beers then were probably a lot better then, too. Now Bison seems like it is basically a gimmick to sell to Berkeleyans and the too-​stupid-​to-​know-​better middle-​aged ex-​hippy who will buy anything labeled «organic.»

Excellent beer. Their IPA is one of my favorites. It is a balanced West coast style IPA with just the right amount of malt and hops. The Chocolate stout is great too. It is rich and full bodied but not too alcoholic. The pub has been closed for years, but I heard rumors that they might open a tap room again in the near future.

I wish this was a place you could go with friends, have a pitcher or two of beer, and eat pub grub but unfortunately it is not. What it is, is the some of the best damn beer almost anywhere.
Get it locally on tap for the best experience but the bottle will do in a pinch.

Soooooooooooooooo good. I bought a few cases and split them with friends. I finished a whole case in less than a week and I wasn’t even trying. Their beer is super fresh and tasty and I just can’t take it! I must have more. Now!

Yes, the beer is good, but Bison Brewery is not a «pub.» It is a brewery where beer is brewed and then distributed to places like Berkeley Bowl, Andronico’s, and Nomad Café.
I’m adding this review because the brewery was listed in the «pub» category. I submitted a request to change the category to Unilocal,so hopefully that will be reflected soon. I also suggested a new category called «brewery.»
So don’t go to the brewery’s address on Telegraph and Parker in Berkeley and expect to sit down and have a beer. It’s a functioning brewery and not a pub.

This beer RAWKS. Organic beer just tastes cleaner… just like organic vegetables/​fruit. And their brewer knows what he’s doing, because the IPA and their other ale (stone’s ale I think? something like that) were both well balanced with lingering finishes. I’m gonna have to get some more of this stuff FOR SURE.

Granted, I have a small world view, but this is some of the best beer, ever. They have four flavors: the IPA (in 6 packs), the chocolate stout (in 6 packs as well as 22oz), the red ale (only in 22oz), and the belgian ale (only in 22oz).
The IPA has the most character out of any IPA’s I have ever had: it has a pronounced caramel, hoppy taste. The chocolate stout is, well, chocolatey, and very tasty. The belgian ale has coriander in it, and is an extremely refreshing, innovative ale. The red ale is the least remarkable/​vanilla out of all of them, but is still very quite good.
Berkeley Bowl sporadically has the IPA, Belgian, Chocolate Stout and Red Ale (usually they only have the IPA and Chocolate Stout in six packs). Bevmo only has the chocolate stout. The Andronicos on Derby has the IPA and the Chocolate Stout in 6 packs, and the Red Ale and Belgian Ale in 22oz. I spotted the blonde ale at nomad café.

Now we’re talking. This is good beer. The brewery is in Berkeley but they sell the beer all over. The Belgium ale is my favorite of all time. Seriously. And it’s all organic! I rave about the Chocolate Stout and the best part is that Dan, the owner, is just a very swell guy. You should love Bison Brewery. Plus their logo is a Bison! How cool is that???