When Blue Jay Brewing Co. opened in Midtown in December 2023, it joined one of the more established craft beer scenes in the country. Long-standing STL brewers, many of whom Blue Jay co-owner Jay Thompson had worked with, had made definitive statements on barrel-aged stouts, pale ales, IPAs, browns and even German-style lagers. Thompson built his bird house on a foundation of traditional styles done extremely well. And in so doing, he brewed up Okay! Bavarian-style hefeweizen — which I consider to be the city’s best hefeweizen. It has the creamy, banana-bread flavor you look for in the style, while adding slightly sweeter and hoppier notes — a perfect refresher as the weather heats up.
2710 Locust St., St. Louis, bluejaybrewing.com
This article appears in March 2025.