Independence Beer Guide: Your Independence guide to beer, beer bars, breweries and brewpubs

Latest reviews from Independence

64 /100
Happy Hour (Beer Store)
19341 E HIGHWAY 40
“Terrible service. Got a really skunky make-your-own six pack and tried to exchange it. They were really rude. Good selection though. They get their Boulevard orders on Thursdays too******“
kcdrew 4504 days ago
78 /100
Happy Hour (Beer Store)
19341 E HIGHWAY 40
“A decent selection of beers, mostly domestic. The imported section is dominated by lagers, but the domestic section is more varied. The build your own 6 pack is the big draw, with almost all beers broken into singles, and if you don’t see it there, they will break it down for you. Prices are slightly higher than some other places, but the variety more than makes up for it. Each week brings a few new beers, so even repeat visits will yield new discoveries. A good place to try a variety of beers for a decent price, plus free tastings every Friday.“
fiercepanda 4638 days ago
80 /100
Happy Hour (Beer Store)
19341 E HIGHWAY 40
“A great beer store with lots of wine and cigars too! Good service, great selection. Build your own 6-pack is a nice way to try different beers. I live about 80 miles from this store and visit occasionally--worth the trip!“
Tomfoolery 4777 days ago
54 /100
Happy Hour (Beer Store)
19341 E HIGHWAY 40
“This is the closest decent beer store near me, but I only frequent for quick pick me ups, or on occassion their build your own six, which is quite ample. They have some decent selections in their US craft selection, and base offerings from Founder’s and Bell’s, which is nice. They only have one door of bombers which is kind of dissapointing, although to be fair, there mix six is so large I can overlook that. Sadly, the big downfall is the lack of any customer service in the store. Being passionate about beer, I like to frequent a place where others feel the same, and in this vein, Happy Hour is truly poor. Not a bad place to stop in for the basics, but don’t expect a friendly atmosphere or staff.“
htlp12 5151 days ago
64 /100
Happy Hour (Beer Store)
19341 E HIGHWAY 40
“As mentioned by others, the big draw of this place is location and single selection. Location - located very close to I-70, good location for folks driving through KC. Not real convenient for downtown or Johnson County, but if you are driving through, this is a nice stop. Single selection - they single out almost every beer they have, and do not mark up on the six pack price. That’s a nice feature, and the only place in KC area that does this. In terms on the store itself, it is new, clean, open and features a nice layout. Selection here is OK, they have all of the local micros, but did not have any of the rare or special release stuff. I didn’t see Southern Tier, Brew Dog, or any of the other new breweries to the area.
UPDATE - Olive or Twist in Platte City (North of the airport) now does a single selection that is larger, and more varied than Happy Hour.


64 = ★★ (Just ok)

I only use the total score, not the component parts.“
theisti 5726 days ago
74 /100
Happy Hour (Beer Store)
19341 E HIGHWAY 40
“If you are passing through the area, you owe it to yourself to stop through this easy to find place from right off of I-70. Great selection of statewide local and regional micros, O’Fallon, Boulevard, Pony Express, Schlafly, and if you are coming through town on a Friday like I was you can treat yourself to a free tasting, which is great when you are on the road from St. Louis and are highlyin need of a drink. They do have other beers, but it is mostly a stop for regional micros. Good stuff, not the most helpful staff in the world, but other than that a great stop.“
BlackDonald 5794 days ago
76 /100
Happy Hour (Beer Store)
19341 E HIGHWAY 40
“If you live or travel through the Independence area, this is definitely a store worth checking out. The beer selection focuses primarily on American micro selections with a smattering of German, Belgian, British and other imports thrown into the mix. Most of the sought-after Belgians are noticeably absent, but there are other places to acquire those in KC. So why do I give it such a relatively high score? One reason: it is the only place in town (that I know of) which neatly organizes and sells nearly every beer it carries as a single, and without a price markup over its sixer/4-pack pricing. This gives you the perfect opportunity to construct a custom sixer of all those beers that you’ve put off trying because you were wary of dropping $13 or more on a sixer of something you might hate. I did just that, and for $11, I walked away with 6 new brews that I’d have been forced to pay about $75 to try elsewhere. That alone makes this a go-to shop for picking up all of those procrastination brews.“
Gregis 5862 days ago
56 /100
Happy Hour (Beer Store)
19341 E HIGHWAY 40
“One of my favorites in the KC area. The staff is friendly and they have a pretty good selection.“
jmwhite1204 6166 days ago
98 /100
Happy Hour (Beer Store)
19341 E HIGHWAY 40
“if they don’t have it they will get it. very helpful staff and great assortment of everything. they have a walkin humidor and tastings every other day (M,W,F). this is my new go to liquor store.“
ErictheRed18 6967 days ago
78 /100
E. C. Kraus (Homebrew Shop)
P. O. BOX 7850
“Very fast service for most anything in the wine and beer brewing hobby. Free shipping for orders over $25.“
Homebrewerguy 7018 days ago
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