So much beer, so little time. With 19 ever-growing brewery locations now operating in Bellingham and Whatcom County, it can be tricky to keep track of them all. There are also many variables to consider when choosing your watering hole: Which ones offer food? Can you bring the kids? What about pets? Do they offer happy hour? Who’s new and who has been around awhile?
To address these burning questions, here is a directory of breweries in Whatcom County, with quick facts for reference. Cheers!
• Established: 2014
• What’s Unique: All beer brewed at Aslan Brewing Company is USDA Certified Organic. Aslan opened their adults-only second location Aslan Depot in 2018.
• Food: Full menu
• Family Friendly
• Outdoor Seating: Open and enclosed patio spaces.
• Established: 2016
• What's Unique: Belgian-inspired farmhouse ales utilizing local and seasonal ingredients from the family farm in Blaine.
• Note: They do not operate a tasting room. Find Atwood beer in bottles and on tap around Whatcom County using their Beer Finder.
• Established: 1995
• What’s Unique: Bellingham’s oldest brewery, Boundary Bay is a long-established community gathering place offering a wide variety of brews.
• Food: Full Menu
• Family Friendly
• Outdoor Seating: Large beer garden and deck
4. Coming Soon Darach Brewing Co.
• Established: Summer of 2022
• What's Unique: This will be located in a space that formerly housed local music venues - The Green Frog, which later became The Firefly.
5. Coming Soon El Sueñito Brewing
• Established: Coming Soon (May 2022)
• What’s Unique: The newest addition to Bellingham's beer scene, El Sueñito Brewing will bring more than beer to Bellingham! They will also have real, authentic tamales like those made at Frelard Tamales in Seattle. The brewery and taproom is underway in the Sunnyland neighborhood.
• Established: 2019
• What's Unique: The city of Ferndale welcomed its first commercial brewery when FrinGe Brewing opened in the summer of 2019.
• Food: Rotating food trucks including Back East BBQ and StrEAT.
• Family Friendly
• Outdoor Seating: Patio
• Established: 2016
• What's Unique: With 16 taps, Gruff regularly releases experimental, small-batch beers.
• Food: Delivery available from Horseshoe Cafe and rotating food trucks.
• 21+ Only
• Outdoor Seating: Large beer garden
8. Kulshan Brewing (James Street)
• Established: 2012
• What's Unique: A true neighborhood brewery, Kulshan offers an expansive lineup of Northwest style ales and lagers.
• Food: Rotating food trucks
• Family Friendly
• Outdoor Seating: Large patio/beer garden
• Established: 2015
• What's Unique: One of the fastest-growing breweries in Bellingham, Kulshan opened their second location — a 30-barrel brewhouse known as K2 — in 2015.
• Food: Rotating food trucks
• 21+ Only
• Outdoor Seating: Patio
10. Kulshan Brewing (Trackside)
• Established: 2021
• What’s Unique: This seasonal beer garden is located on the site of a former paper mill right in Downtown Bellingham’s waterfront redevelopment project.
• Food: Rotating food trucks
• Family Friendly
• Outdoor Seating: Large Beer Garden
11. Menace Brewing
• Established: 2017
• What's Unique: Sister business to a restaurant called The Local, Menace is the Fountain District’s neighborhood brewery.
• Food: Rotating food trucks
• Family Friendly
• Outdoor Seating: Patio
• Established: 1997
• What’s Unique: What’s not unique about the North Fork? A “beer shrine”, wedding chapel, and pizzeria, this brewery is a mandatory stop for anyone driving Mount Baker Highway.
• Food: Full Menu
• Family Friendly
• Outdoor Seating: Small patio/beer garden
• Established: 2019
• What's Unique: Stemma offers weekly events for the beer community including weekly trivia night and comedy hour.
• Food: Food Truck on Site
• Family Friendly
• Established: 2016
• What’s Unique: Stones Throw’s outdoor fire pit seating area is hands down the most attractive in Bellingham, and the brewery is made from shipping containers.
• Food: Snacks available; Food trucks on weekends
• Family Friendly
• Outdoor Seating: Three unique outdoor seating areas
• Established: 2015
• What’s Unique: Offering mixed fermentations, Structures focuses on fresh, small-batch brews including saisons, NE IPAs and barrel-aged varieties.
• Food: Bring your own; Rotating food trucks
• 21+ Only
• Outdoor Seating: Several large group tables
16. Twin Sisters Brewing and Bellingham Beer Garden
• Established: 2018
• What’s Unique: Twin Sisters features a full-service restaurant and bar with an expansive beer garden.
• Food: Full Menu
• Family Friendly
• Outdoor Seating: Bellingham’s largest brewery beer garden
17. Wander Brewing
• Established: 2014
• What's Unique: Wander serves traditional styles while experimenting with mixed fermentations through the Wander Barrel Project. Winner of 2018 Washington Large Brewery of the Year at the Washington Beer Awards.
• Food: Rotating Food Trucks
• Family Friendly
• Outdoor Seating: Patio
18. Otherlands Beer
• Established: 2020
• What's Unique: Offers "rustic lagers and farmhouse ales alongside European inspired street foods in a cozy guesthouse tavern."
• Food: Cafe with indoor seating.
• Outdoor Seating: Garage door opens to additional outdoor seating.
• Established: 2020
• What’s Unique: The first brewery in Birch Bay with six taps featuring all Beach Cat originals.
• Food: You can bring your own food or order from The Beach next door.
• Family Friendly
• Outdoor Seating: Patio
Which Bellingham breweries allow kids?
Most of our breweries are all ages, with a few exceptions. K2 (Kentucky Street), Structures Brewing, and Gruff Brewing are 21+ establishments.
Which Bellingham breweries allow dogs?
For more information, check out this list of dog friendly breweries.
Where are the breweries located? Can you walk between them?
Many of Bellingham’s breweries are located within a couple miles of each other in the downtown core. Some are very close together (Boundary Bay and Gruff are right across the street from each other). Others — like Kulshan, K2, Menace, and Stone’s Throw — are a bit far to walk from downtown, but easily accessible by bike, bus, or car.
The best way to plot your route between breweries is to pick up a Tap Trail map and passport. This handy guide — available at each brewery around town — features suggested routes between Bellingham’s breweries and taprooms. You can even earn prizes by collecting stamps at each Tap Trail location.
Don't just trust us, check out Bellingham for yourself! We're giving away a chance to win a 2-night stay at Hotel Bellwether, a whale watching tour from San Juan Cruises and a flight for two on Southwest Airlines from LAS to BLI. Click HERE to enter!