Zoo Brew

Zoo Brew is such a great bargain and a great time! For $ 45 you get a day at the zoo, parking, live music, and unlimited beer tastings. I also scored a couple freebies (stickers, keychains, etc) from different breweries. It was nice getting to try different beers that I’ve never heard of that I wouldn’t want to buy before trying. Bathrooms were a little bit of a ways away from the tent and by the end of the night they were out of soap. Gross. I was worried it would be very hot and crowded in the tent but that wasn’t the case at all. Great time I hope to be back next year.

Another great year of zoo brewin’ in the books! It was again held under a large tent, breweries were in alphabetical order which helped me make sense of things, breweries were abundant, workers were friendly, and the bathroom sitch was a lot less complicated this year. Same as last year–
Pros of this fest:
$ 45 included unlimited samples, parking, and you could be at the zoo all day if you wanted!
The band– The Breakfast Club played such fun music from the 80s and 90s!
It was sold out– looked daunting and crowded at first, but at the most I had to wait 2 minutes to get a sample.
Offered a map of each site and what kinds of beer they had.
Plastic cups– at first I thought this was a con, but then I realized this was an important safety feature to protect little kids who would be running around at the zoo!
Indoor bathrooms!
With the bathroom situation a little more direct this year (you did have to walk a smidgen to get there, but there was an outside entrance and it was a nice bathroom too!), I had no complaints about this fest. I would happily return again next year!

I attended the ZooBrew again this year, and I have to say, I just wasn’t as impressed as I was in 2012.
They moved the event from the Pavillions to one large tent in the East Mall. There wasn’t a lot of airflow in the tent so it got pretty warm. They also had the band, Hot Sauce Committee, playing under the tent which made it unbelievably loud. Also, I was not a fan of the band at all so being forced to hear them only made me more grumpy. Last year the band was sort of off to the side between pavilions so you could hear them but it wasn’t in your face.
The beer selection was decent, but we skipped probably ¹⁄₃ of the vendors because they were national brands. I won’t fault them for this because all the beers were clearly listed up front, but I wish there would have been more local or at least craft beer selections. There are so many Chicago-​area breweries, it would have been cool to see more fo them represented.
Still, at the end of the day, it’s a great event to support the zoo. I imagine we’ll still be back next year. The $ 45 ticket prices is still a pretty good deal considering you get parking and a full day’s admission to the zoo in addition to your beer samplings. They also offer zoo members a $ 10 discount.

Animals + Craft Beer = Happy Sarah
I love animals ever so much, from tiny little fish to huge walruses and lions. The zoo is one of my absolute favorite places so I was beyond stoked for this event. Tickets were $ 50 but that included the usual parking fee + zoo admission fee.
The band, Modern Day Romeos, was awesome. I didn’t know what to expect but they were a fabulous cover band and seemed to bring some groupies with them.
About 15 minutes into the event, it started raining quite hard and a hour & a half in, a torrential downpour started. Umbrellas were of no use and we were all soaked from head to toe.
The beers & breweries were all listed on the event page so although the selection was not vast, I wouldn’t criticize on that fact when it was all laid out prior. Lines got super long because of the crazy rain so I’m hoping it won’t be quite that bad next year.
I will absolutely go again next year. I was super sad to see how upset the lion was by the bass from the band though. He was so visibly agitated by the noise, he was pacing back and forth in the 2 foot glass area of his outdoor habitat. The lion’s den was the closest to where the band was playing of all the animals… Poor big kitty! :(
Pro Tips for next year:
Go earlier~! Brookfield Zoo is huge and I need to make the most of my free admission. I went at 230 this year so only had an hour and a half before the event to look around. It was not nearly enough time! I wasn’t sure what to expect with this event, but you’re in a roped off type of party area. You don’t have full zoo access near the beers.
They need more seating! Or covered seating. There were some picnic tables that were not covered so were completely being rained on.
Bring cash for the silent auction! They had some pretty cool items!

I love to support the zoo, and I love beer tastings. Zoo Brew was a great concept and fairly well done with one major issue; there were very few interesting beers.
The price ($ 45) covered admission, parking, a plastic tasting glass, a bag of pretzels, and 20 beer tickets. The lines for the beer tables were not defined which made it really hard with all the people crowded under the pavilions (due to rain.) Since the lines were very long we found it best to grab a taste and get in the next line. We typically finished a beer just as we got to the front. The restroom situation was fine for the first hour or so, but eventually the ladies room had quite a line.
We ended up leaving after about 14 tastes. By then we had tried everything that we’d never had and a few that we’d not had in a while. This was more of an event for people who want to get drunk while supporting the zoo than an event for trying new and interesting beers. If they do it next year, I might go, but I hope to see more variety.