Beer

Name it and they will come: Emory grad students, Agnes Scott faculty, and other scholarly types claim this dim, scruffy bar on the east edge of downtown Decatur as their watering hole.

Beer lovers devoted to the Brick Store’s reverent approach often mention Athens’s Trappeze in the same breath.

In 2006, after ten years in business, this family-friendly pub and pool hall added a microbrewery to its operations.

Before the craft beer craze ignited, the original Prado location of 5 Seasons Brewing (which opened in 2001) reigned as leader of the local cult of hops.

Last year longtime home brewer Bob Sandage and his wife, Kristine, bought and restored the dilapidated, century-old mansion on Moreland Avenue near Little Five Points that previously housed the Wrecking Bar architectural antiques store.

These two 5 Seasons locations have a different brewmaster: co-owner Crawford Moran, who previously ran Atlanta’s defunct Dogwood Brewing Co. He runs with his adventurous streak, successfully experimenting with beers aged in wine and whiskey barrels and regularly offering gluten-free pale ale.

This small store dedicates its meticulously stocked and organized shelves solely to craft beer. The ardent staff members talk with aficionados or newbies without being condescending or overly agog.

The Decatur Square treasure opened in 1997 and built a loyal following, but when Georgia’s alcohol-limit laws changed for beer in 2004 (the owners were vocal advocates), it expanded and became a beacon for the obsessed: Beer Advocate magazine currently ranks Brick Store as the second-best beer bar in the world.