Bent River Brewing Company | Moline, IL
Beer Trip: Bent River Brewing Company in Moline, Illinois
While Moline is most known for John Deere, they also have a surprisingly robust craft beer scene as well. We were only in town for one evening, so time was limited - but one name that kept coming up during research of the area was Bent River Brewing Co. After walking in the door, it was easy to see why.
The Brewery
Bent River has a bit of an English pub type of feel walking through the door and it seemed to prove that even more so with the number of locals that came in and were called by name. The place is very narrow with a huge, 20+ person copper top bar that spans the length of the building. Behind the bar sits large copper brewing kettles and stainless fermentation tanks, which were so tight to the bar that it seemed it would be tough to brew in (we were informed that they rarely utilize these anymore after opening their Rock River location).
Neat copper bar top
The narrow area felt almost like a hallway!
With the place only sitting a few blocks from the Mississippi River, they encompass many nautical displays on the walls including murals that stretch the entire length of the building. While the indoor space is rather snug, behind the building there is a great outdoor patio with lots of seating and a couple of nice trees providing afternoon shade.
Spacious patio was full on a summer afternoon!
The Beer
Bent River neatly displays its menu on differing chalkboards throughout the brewery and maintains 12 - 14 brews at any given time. They maintain an above-average number of flagship beers, comprising almost half of the menu. One thing we appreciated about this place was their beer styles - they’re all over the board, with no style occupying more than two taps. During our visit, they had multiple IPAs, pale ales, lagers, stouts, and wheats, along with singles of a blonde, sour, and even a chile beer.
With so many different styles, our taste buds were constantly on edge when sampling the selections. Up first was their Uncommon Stout. We’re not sure where the name came from, but the flavor with this one was uncommonly delicious with the perfect smooth coffee flavor. It was our top-rated stout in all of 2023 on Untappd! The other brew that really stood out was their chile - the Jalapeno Pepper Ale. Oftentimes pepper beers are too spicy for our liking, but this one was very subtle and a must-try for something unique.
Jalapeno Pepper Ale
Uncommon Stout
Food, Merch, & More
The beer is what brought us in the door, but Bent River also has a full and robust food menu featuring nachos, wings, burgers, and sandwiches. No matter what you order, you must try the spicy ketchup made by one of the bartenders (he has his own company, Ground Pounder Hot Sauces)! Bent River doesn’t have much space to display its merchandise, so they hang it up off of the ceiling above the bar. They offer several shirt choices in both long and short sleeves, as well as a bar sign. This is in addition to a full lineup of to-go beer, which we took advantage of to share with others back in Kansas.
A wrap and tots were the move
Spicy ketchup courtesy of one of the bartenders!
Bent River was a really neat place and certainly doesn’t have a “cookie cutter” brewery vibe to it. With good food and even better beer, we will need to come back again!
Cheers!
