Starr Hill Brewery

Love the décor’ in the bar… The beer garden could be spruced up with some better furniture, but the beer is to die for…

In one word: YES.
In a few more words: We’re ‘those people’ who plan trips around the adult beverage stops in the area we’re visiting. Charlottesville is awesome for this type of thing — I work at a winery & my boyfriend works for a brewery, so we’re professional drunks. :) My boyfriend had heard good things about Starr Hill, so we decided to check it out. The beer was excellent and very well priced. Some unique options on the menu — always a plus. Tours are free (woot) and they even allowed our dog to come on the tour with us — so cool! David did our tour and was enthusiastic, informative and super nice. We will absolutely be returning to Starr Hill!

My brother in law and father in law visited this place and had a few beers. We liked the setting and the atmosphere of the place and the beer prices were not too bad. We did enjoy the selection of beer that they had. And loved getting to try different beers in the samplers. We would definitely go back!

Love Little Red Roostar! We also had 2 samplers and a really good time!!!

The one that started it all. Lots of great beer to choose from. They have different food trucks in the lot on a regular basis. Occasional live music makes this a great weekend hang out.

Craft Brewery with tours.
We happened to go on an Anniversary date, which meant they had a food truck (Farm Fresh Fixins) there and Chiles Peach Orchard giving away free APPLE CIDER DONUTS! You’re able to see their brewing facility right in the main lobby/​drinking area/​bar, with large windows across half of the brewery, which is fantastic.
They have 2 different types of beer tastings: one of their traditional year-​round brews (they call this the Classic), and the other is more eclectic (I forgot the name, sorry) with higher IPA’s in it. $ 5 for 5 very large samples (we just couldn’t handle anymore alcohol and had to split it between 3 people). We sampled the Classic, but I wasn’t very impressed (hence the 3-​Stars), but like wine, beer is subjective and I am not a craft beer expert.
The A/​C was pumped way way low, so we opted to sit and enjoy the beautiful weather. Not many people when we were there around 2−3pm, so plenty of seating… we even saw several families bring their kids as we were leaving.
*TVs to watch games, private lot, clean establishment & restrooms.
*Service was so-​so. The young lady kind of looked un-​amused and not trying to do any type of explaining (or smiling) except to pour beer.

The beer tastings were an inexpensive way to sample Starr Hill’s great variety of beers. Between my husband and I, we shared a «Classic Setlist» (the «best of») and a «Backstage Pass» (the deeper cuts). Standouts were the Starr Pils, Northern Lights IPA, Reviver red IPA and Red Rooster coffee cream stout. Loved the décor and the location too.

My friends and I visited Starr Hill Brewery on a Sunday afternoon the day after my wedding in nearby Orange. There are a lot of vineyards in the area, but my husband is a beer enthusiast, so we planned a mini tour of a variety of local breweries in the area. Hands down we had the best time at Starr Hill, which was the first stop in our trip. We began our visit with a tour of the brewery, which was really fun and informative. It was cool to get a behind-​the-​scenes look at how beer is made, which I didn’t really know much about.
Afterwards, my group shared two orders of the tasting samplers, which was honestly a steal at only $ 6 each. After visiting some other breweries, we realized Starr Hill offered the best value, taste, and ambiance out of them all, and we all agreed we should have just stayed instead of even visiting the other disappointing places we went to. I noticed a Groupon for Starr Hill available a few months ago, but didn’t get it because I wasn’t we’d actually make the trip out to the area, but honestly even without it, the prices were very reasonable and I was still able to get a souvenir pint glass for only $ 3. The staff was super nice here too! Highly recommend this place if you are in the area.

Beautiful tasting area, friendly staff, and fantastic beer. We went on a Sunday and they had live music and a food truck. Definitely worth the trip.

Best brewery in the area. Food trucks are okay but doesn’t serve food. Great tours, and tip big, the bartenders work for tips only. Great beer! It’s where I buy my kegs!

One of my favorite breweries in the area, Starr Hill Brewery is a hip and modern brewery with an excellent selection of home-​crafted beers.
I honestly wouldn’t have made the drive to Crozet if not for an excellent Groupon (tour, sampler, and two beer glasses for $ 12). Shame on me for not coming here sooner — the atmosphere here is laid back and contemporary, with a cool looking tasting room, plenty of outdoor seating, and the occasional food truck. The tasting room looks out onto the brewing and bottling floor, which coupled with the brewery’s proximity to the train tracks gives it a real domestic industrial vibe.
But how was the beer? While none of the flavors really stood out to me as exceptional (in fact some tasted very similar to others), there’s enough diversity and great beers here to keep even the most seasoned beer taster satisfied. I was a fan of The Love (Hefeweizen), the Grateful Pale Ale, and the two Wit beers (there was also one beer that tasted exactly like coffee, which was very tasty and may be the first breakfast beer I’ve ever tried).
Overall, Starr Hill Brewery is definitely worth the short drive from Charlottesville to visit. The new facilities and variety/​quality of beer makes it a must visit for beer aficionados.

Great service. A beer selection for even the more discerning taste buds. I like IPAs so the King of Hop works for me, but I’m certain that most anyone could find something to their liking here. If you’re into Stoudt try the Little Red Rooster Vanilla Habanero. Sounds crazy but it works. We love when Gabe is battening – he’s the most awesome :)

Starr Hill is one of the more popular breweries in Charlottesville. I knew even before visiting the brewery that it was not going to be my favorite. We head over here after lunch at Crozet Pizza as our first stop on the Brew Ridge Trail. We split two samplers. They have two different ones, I can’t remember the names exactly, but I believe they were called the All-​Access and the Classic. The beers were all decent, but I didn’t love or want to purchase any of them. It is a shame that Starr Hill doesn’t produce more quality beer. If I were to take out-​of-​towners to breweries in Cville, I would probably leave Starr Hill off of the list.

Great brewery. On a trip from Blacksburg to Richmond on a Sunday afternoon, I had wanted to stop at Parkway Brewing over in Salem, but unfortunately they were closed. No matter, Starr Hill also was on the way home, and I am glad that we stopped.
The interior was modern and very welcoming. The bartenders were attentive in the tasting room, and the beers and grower fills were very very reasonable in price. As I understand it, they have a different food truck that comes to the brewery everyday, as to mix up the food offerings. And they also bring in various forms of live entertainment or music.
Overall, I was pretty impressed with everything and was mostly what I was expecting.

I felt scammed!
My wife spotted an add for a tour and tasting in a visitor guide for Charlottesville. We’ve seen their bottles in the beer aisle at the market, but have never tried any, so a tour and tasting got our attention. After a quick check of Starr Hill’s website and Unilocal reviews/​raves, we decided to swing by for a ‘mommy and daddy’ tour stop after taking the kids on a visit to local caves last Saturday. That said, we’ve been to many breweries/​tastings, so we weren’t rookies walking into Starr Hill…
We were immediately caught off guard by the «bouncer» checking IDs at the door and the extremely bar-​like appearance of the «tasting room» and store (essentially nothing more than a bar with two small shelf units near the door where they sell t-​shirts and bar glasses). She was cordial, though I would never mistake her for friendly or welcoming. As she handed the adults arm bands to purchase alcohol, we asked about the tour. She told us they run every hour, so one would be starting in a few minutes. She recommended we have a drink while we wait, letting us know that we could take our drinks with us on the tour if we weren’t finished in time. We double checked that our kids were welcome, since the place felt like a bar rather than a tasting room… she gave us a funny look, but then said «Yeah, it’s fine.» We should have trusted our intuition and left at this point, but…
We opted to wait till after the tour to sample their beer, instead finding a spot along one of the walls to hang out till tour time. As we waited, we had a chance to observe the crowd of patrons (I say crowd because I counted at least 50 people)…essentially 20-​somethings you’d expect to see in an upscale bar in anywhere USA, drinking pints, watching basketball on multiple TVs, and generally just hanging out as though they were at a regular bar instead of what was billed as a «tasting room».
After twenty minutes of waiting and no sign of a tour, I went back to ask the bouncer if she knew what was happening. She confidently told me they were running behind, but not to worry… they’ll announce the tour soon, and again encouraged us to buy drinks. My intuition was again telling me something was up, but we’d driven a half hour out of our way for this, so we opted to keep waiting.
Finally, after 10 more minutes (30 minutes of total waiting), I approached the bouncer again for an update. This time she told me the tour wouldn’t be happening; that when the bar gets busy the bartenders stop giving tours so they can focus on serving beer. And, that since it was Saturday the bar was crowded with people who came to watch the games, so no tour (of course the bar had basically the same number of patrons as when we arrived). She then encouraged us to still get drinks. …really? So she couldn’t have shared this revelation when we arrived, or at any point over the previous 30 minutes?
Before I recap, I’d like to point out that Starr Hill’s own website notes, «The Tasting Room is now open for tastings, pints, & tours! No reservations are required for parties less than 8 people, but as our capacity is limited, we operate on a „first come, first serve“ basis. Beer is also available to-​go and can be reserved for pick-​up, even on Mondays and Tuesdays.» And, the Unilocal business profile describes, «Starr Hill Brewery Tasting Room specializes in personal and informative beer tastings, growlers fills of fresh craft beer, cool craft beer merchandise, and free tours of our production facility on Saturdays and Sundays at 1, 2, 3 & 4 PM.»
So, now to recap… The advertisement in the tourist brochure, Starr Hills’ own website, and the Unilocal business profile all describe a tasting room and hourly tours. Instead we found a crowded upscale sports bar and a bouncer who strung us along with the promise of a tour for more than a half hour while repeatedly encouraging us to spend money on their products while we waited.
I know a slew of Unilocalers raved about Starr Hill and their tour. But, our experience left us feeling scammed.

Great place to have a beer, fill your growler or grab a bite. Come on the weekends and try a great food truck with local foods and ingredients. An absolute must if you’re in the area.

For my husband ( Unilocaler Michal F.) and I, the best way to spend a Saturday in the fall is with a hike, college football, and pumpkin beer. Due in large part to Starr Hill, we experienced all three last weekend.
After hiking in Shenandoah and on our way back to Cville, Michal and I were happy to see an MSU game on TV in the tasting room of Starr Hill before we even had to ask. In the recently renovated space, there were two large TVs and a projector screen playing three different ESPN stations so that there was constant influx of major college football games. With plenty of seating in a wide variety (from large communal tables to bars surrounding the perimeter), we had our pick.
The spot got busier and more crowded as the time for a free tour approached. As it was the last one of the day (4 p.m.) and half-​time for our alma mater’s game, we decided to jump in. It felt pretty standard compared to other microbrewery tours we’ve done (short in length and funny in the presentation of the process, but with not as many personal anecdotes that I typically enjoy on these tours). We did discover more restrooms while walking around! (There is more than enough to handle the large crowd.)
For our brews, we each got a different flight so that we could sample (almost) everything on tap. We both absolutely LOVED trying the Monticello Reserve, as it was a very light and smooth wheat beer (not crisp) and bought a bottle before leaving. Of course, I enjoyed my go-​to Starr Hill beer — the Love (light and slightly fruity hefe) and the Pumpkin Porter (had not tried before), as I’m a fan of the Oktoberfest flavor. As for all the IPAs (there were quite a few), I tried a few sips but had to give the rest to Michal as I really (typically) can’t stand all the bitterness. Overall, the beers were high quality with a decent variety.
My one downside was the outdoor space. Sooooooo tiny compared to the spacious Hardywood Park Brewery that resembled a tailgate (we just visited in Richmond). There was a food truck and a cornhole set, but it could hold very few picnic tables. The most comfortable and accommodating seating was inside.

This stop was entirely for the husband. Not much of a beer drinker here but he’s a very active homebrewer and beer snob. He really enjoyed it. Got to do a flight and taste some other stuff. They’d even just tapped a firkin of some new concoction they’d made. Really clean and open to the outdoors. You can see inside to the end of the operation (which wasn’t in operation at that time.) Just wished they’d do tours on weekdays.

Let me preface this by saying I’ve visited about a dozen microbreweries in the US, so it’s possible I have either developed very high standards or (more likely) have become increasingly jaded. Lord knows not many breweries can live up to Sprecher’s pairing of ten beers with ten local Wisconsin cheeses after their tour.
That said, my initial impression of Starr Hill was rather favorable. Despite being in the middle of absolute freaking nowhere, there are enough well-​placed signs to find it without the modern crutch that is Google Maps. The tap room itself is spacious if utilitarian, with a nice big bar, plenty of tables, and a large patio section which apparently draws food trucks at certain times. The refrigerators and merchandise shelves are amply stocked with a wide selection. The free tour of the brewery, given by a gregarious Scotsman with a wry wit, was one of the more enjoyable ones I’ve taken in a long time.
Above the bar is a large chalkboard clearly laying out the options for individual pours and tasting flights. Here’s where my first major complaint comes into play. They wouldn’t let me design my own tasting flight. I have rather specific tastes when it comes to beer, and although the tasting flights were quite reasonably priced at $ 5 for five pours, they only have two choices of flights and both contained at least two beers I knew I wouldn’t enjoy. Since I had to drive soon after my tasting, I didn’t want to drink multiple full-​sized pours in order to sample all of my preferences, so I had to compromise with one of the flights and buy some beer to go for later enjoyment.
My second complaint is that, quite frankly, none of the beers I tried really blew me away. Obviously this is an extremely subjective criterion, but with so many amazing craft beers flooding the US market, you have to really stand out to earn any kudos. That said, I have high hopes for the coffee stout and barleywine sitting in my fridge waiting to grace my palate.
It was definitely worth a stop, but I’m glad I didn’t make a trip solely for this visit.

Starr Hill is Firkin Awesome! So was the firkin they had specially prepared just for our group! Great beer… can’t go wrong!
Seriously they are warm and inviting and tons of fun! I got to visit here on a local brew tour I took from the Blue Toad and this brewery is just top notch! I don’t think I actually saw a tasting room in all honesty because we got taken to the back of their warehouse to help kick a keg of their seasonal and a firkin they added more vanilla too… omg… yes! We were right in the midst of everything it seemed.
The brewery is nestled right up against the train tracks and it was such a beautiful day that they had the side doors open to see outside. Trains are a thing of childhood memories but they are just as cool to watch as an adult speeding by with empty coal carts. It went on forever! The brewery itself was very clean and had an open layout, there looked to be some construction going on… but I was having too good of a time to really ask about things.
They aren’t setup like some breweries that have an actual room with a bar and seating area (maybe that was what was under construction), but they are still pretty cool to explore and easy to be around. Had a blast!