Birrifico Lambrate, via Adelchi 5.  Mon-Fri 12:00-15:00 & 18:00-02:00, Sat opens evenings only.  ()

Out in the east by Lambrate rail station, tram 33 (Sire Raul) to Porpora/Teodosio for a five-minute walk; carry on along the road following the tramlines and you'll see Via Adelchi on your right shortly with the pub on your right and brewery in the next building along.

Like a British pub, only better!  Noisy and bustling dark pub with great veggie Aperitivo (basically a free buffet which you can dive into once you've bought a drink; it can be simple stuff like olives and cheese but can, in the case of Lambrate, be a sprawling affair of various stuzzichini (morsels) such as rice, pasta, vegetables and just about anything else) at the end of the bar and even a handpump dispensing their American Pale Ale Ligera!  The barman gave me samples of all beers first and they were all pretty interesting, especially the Ghisa smoked stout and Montestella.  Well worth a visit, but it may be better at quieter times as it’s not very large inside!  The free aperitivo is available from 18:00 each day (including Saturdays) and is highly recommended!

Giardino della Birra, Via Ortica 10.  Mon-Fri 12:00-15:00 & 19:00-02:00, Sat-Sun 19:00-02:00.  ()

Take tram 5 (Ortica) to it’s eastern terminus.  Continue along the main road (Via G.A. Amadeo) under the railway arch (in the direction the tram was going before it turned off), go through the subway, continue for about 250 metres and the pub is on the right.

Makes more of it’s food than it’s beer but it’s still good to see the room of conditioning tanks and gleaming copper inside.  The food is decent and features steaks in a variety of forms whilst the beers are above average if not as interesting as Lambrate’s.  A fair trek out in the east, but the brewer is sociable and will probably give you a tour of the plant if you appear interested enough.  Apparently they also have beer from Rurale on sale in bottle and, maybe, on tap plus a new branch has opened in the north of the city, see entry here.

Zythum, via Rutilia 16.  Open from 20:00 daily.  ()

Tram 24 (Vigentino) to Ripamonte/Serio.  Carry on in the same direction, cross a little river then turn right into Via Rutilia.  The brewpub is about 50 metres on your right.

Billed as a “Ristorante Brasiliano”, this brewpub produces three permanent and a seasonal beer from it's surprisingly large brewplant although none were particularly interesting on our visit and the whole place is more geared up to eating than just drinking.

Tram 3 (Bausan) or Trolleybus 92 (Viale Isonzo) to Imbriani/Ugoni and the bar is a short walk along Via Camilio Ugoni.

This place bills itself as a brewpub but, in fact, is nothing of the sort!  It sells beers from local micro BABB (Birrificio Artigianale Bassa Bresciana) and the house beer, Regina Nera (Black Queen), is brewed there also but by the owners - or so they told me!  A large place with art on the walls and a laid-back, comfortable vibe and friendly staff, it's worth the trip out and you can call in at Isolla Della Birra easily on the way back to the centre; the two are only six stops away on the No.3 tram.

Enoteca Decanter, Via Lodovico Castelvetro 20.  Open 12:00-15:00, 19:00-0100 Mon-Sat, Sun 18:00-02:00  ()

Only a short walk from Enoteca Birreria and BQ.

Cosy, sociable little restaurant run by Paolo Polli which specialises in good food and artisanal beer, plus some wine. We only passed through and didn't eat but it looked very nice indeed.  More of a place for food than beer.

Hop, Via Regina Margherita 4.  Open 12.00-15.00 and 18.30- 02.00 daily.   ()

Take any tram around the "ring" (9, 29 or 30) to Monte Nero/Spartaco.  The pub is on the inside of the ring opposite the huge and strange walls of the Rotundo della Besana which looks just like a loco roundhouse but is, in fact, a cemetary for the nearby hospital!

Probably the second-best beer range in Milan after BQ, this small and cosy pub - with the biggest mirror I've ever seen covering one whole wall - has ten Italian draught beers on tap, mainly from Lambrate, but can include such whoppers as Bi-Du and Troll; see the blackboard for the current list as it's dark in there and reading the clips can be difficult without a davy lamp.  Sociable service, decent food and good coffee too plus delicious aperitivo bruschettas and cheaper pints (the 50cl medias) during evening happy hour.  Lambrate's superb Ligera APA is usually on tap as it's the landlady's favourite beer! (with good reason, I say).

Il Giardino Della Birra 2, Via Gerolamo Rovetta 17.  Open weekdays 12:00-15:00 and Mon-Sat 19:00-01:00, closed Sunday.

Take the red metro to Turro (direction Sesto 1 Maggio), walk down Via Matteo Maria Boiardo to the end and the bar is there on the corner.

Second non-brewing (presumably) branch of the Ortica brewpub; we didn't visit but will try to next time, reports please!

Isola della Birra, Via Medardo Rosso 15.   Open Mon-Fri 12:00-15:00 and 20:00-02:00, Sat evenings only.  Closed Sun unless it's the first or last of the month, then open 20:00-02:00.  ()

Tram 3 (Bausan) or 4 (Niguarda, Parco Nord) to Farini/Alserio, then walk back and veer left-ish into Via Medardo Rosso and the pub is on your right almost at the other end, a few minutes walk away.

Cracking little bar with six beers on tap, mainly Lambrate, and an increasing range of Italian micros in bottle too.  It's only 6 stops on the tram from Fermento and so is well worth working into your return to the city centre.  The landlord has apparently started his own "cuckoo" brewery called Joker so if you see any of those on the bar they are from BABB at present.

La Belle Alliance, Via Evangelista Torricelli 1.

Take tram 3 to Meda/Torricelli and the bar is in front of you in the middle of the junction behind the big tree.

Bar with lots of Belgian beer plus a guest tap which features some Italian micros, plus cask ales generally from Hop Back.  We didn't have time to visit but it sounds like one to have a peek at if you're in the area.

La Ratera, Via Ratti 22.  Open 19:30 to 01:30 daily.

Out in the Northwestern suburb of Trenno, a good six KM or so from the centre, this bar is reachable via bus 80 (Trivulzio De Angeli) from Metro station Bonola (on the Red line) to, I think, the Gorlini/Scolari stop.

Foody pub that, apparently, does a good plate and also six Italian beers on tap including Italiano, Baladin and suchlike.  Maybe not worth the trip scoop-wise, but it sounds like a decent place to visit if you have a spare evening in the city.

Mulligans Irish Pub, Via Giuseppe Govone 28.  Open 19:00-02:00 Mon-Sat, closed Sun.

Take trams 12 (Roserio) or 14 (Cimitorio Maggiore) to Cenisio Diocleziano from where the pub is a short walk up Via Gran Sant Bernardo then left and it's on your right after a few metres.

Not your everyday tacky "Oirish" pub this one, it has some decent Italian micro beers on sale and also, usually, a cask ale from the UK although it's doubtful if that's what you will be after there! Close to the stunning BQ, the best scooping pub for many miles!  We didn't bother to visit owing to the call of BQ...

Pazzeria, Piazza Giovanni Dalle Bande Nere 2.  Open daily 18.00 to 02.00.  ()

Ride the red metro to Bande Nere (direction Bisceglie) then take the Viale Pisa exit which brings you out in dense foliage just across from the bar itself which isn't signed that well but the beer paraphenalia in the windows should see you right!

New beer bar with a large range of beer on tap plus a couple of fridges of (fairly expensive) bottles.  Many of the taps vary so it's pot luck what you'll find (we were treated to a Belhaven range - cheers then!) but, looking at the beer list, there are generally some top Italian micros and much Belgian stuff available, although the menu isn't that user-friendly and it's difficult to work out what's on tap and what's in bottle...  A regular outlet for local Geco beers.

Q Beer, Via Mecenate 76.  Mon 12:00-15:00, Tue-Fri 12:00-15:00 & 18:30-02:00, Sat 19:00-02:00.  ()

Tram 27 (Ungheria) to Mecenate/Zante or the next one (they're very close).  Follow the lines until you see an advert for Q Beer on your right next to a narrow road alongside a bakery; the pub is down this road on the right after 30 metres or so.

Three beers are produced; pils, red and wheat, although I have read that the brewery itself - out of town in the suburbs, not here - has closed... any gen?  We tried the beers and thought they tasted craft-brewed so maybe it's still open...

Woodstock, Via Pestalozzi 1. 

Take tram 2 (Negrelli) to Lodovico il Moro/Ponti (just under the ringroad bridge)‎ and the bar is a short distance further along on your left (the tram stop back to the centre is a little further on out of town), or alternately trolleybus 90/91 (Lotto) to P.te Milizie/Ripa Ticinese then descend the steps to the canalside and walk along out of town for a short distance.

Large bar with an impressive line of fridges along one wall full of bottles.  Sounds good, but when you start to examine the contents you realise that the selection isn't anything to excite the hardcore ticker with very few Italian micros but many industrial bottles and commoner Belgians.  OK, so it's a decent enough list and we could have chosen something with a little work, but it seems as if this pub is resting on it's laurels and needs to have a long, hard look at what the new kids on the block are doing and up it's game accordingly.  Don't bother looking at the taps, they're all rubbish.  If this weren't enough, the place is also - apparently - expensive... any reports from those who actually had a beer in there would be welcome!

Beer Shops. 

A Tutta Birra, Via Lazzaro Palazzi 15.   Mon 16:00-19:30, Tue-Fri 09.30-13.00 and 16.00-19.30, Sat 15:30-19.30, Sun closed.  ()

Trams 1 (Greco), 5 (Niguarda, Parco Nord) or 33 (Sire Raul) to Lazzaretto/Tunisia‎ then follow a map!  As a bonus, these routes are all solid 1930's ventotto beasts!

Superb beer shop with 300+ beers including some decent Italian micro brews, this place is like an Aladdin’s cave of delights!  Only five minutes from a tramstop and with a friendly owner, it’s highly recommended to visit and pick up some huge scoops whilst in Milan.  It's also not that far from Stazione Centrale.

Birreria Decanter, via Piero della Francesca 19.  Open 10:30-12:30, 15:30-19:30 Mon-Sat.  ()

See the info for Baüscia, it's very close.

Stocks Bauscia beers (when available) plus many other rare Italian micros plus beers from Belgium and elsewhere; a lot of beers for such a tiny place!  Another branch of Paolo Polli's superb beer empire, this one run by his sister!

COIN food court, Piazza Cinque Giornate 1/A.  Open 10:00-20:00 daily, Sat until 20:30.  ()

Department store on the corner of this attractive square, easy to reach via any tram on the ring (30 or 9) plus 12 and 27 too.  Look out for the huge Tokyo-esque TV screen on the exterior, you can't miss it... even I didn't!

We went in here on the off-chance and found a real goldmine!  In the basement is a deli area with a cracking range of Italian craft beer including some we'd not seen elsewhere! There is also a selection of foreign beers (Brewdog and Sierra Nevada being two) and some delicious-looking food too, well worth a look and reasonably cheap too.

La Cascina in Citta, Via Privata Nicolò Alunno 8.  Open 08.30 - 12.30. – 16.00 - 20.00.

Take the red metro to Bande Nere (direction Bisceglie) from where it's a short walk in the opposite direction from Pazzeria.

Seems to be an organic shop which sells Greco beer from just outside the city although we didn't have time to visit.  Close to the new Pazzeria beer bar.

Rinascente Piazza Duomo, Via Santa Radegonda 1.  Open daily 10:00-00:00. 

Opposite the huge spiky beige cathedral on the North of the Piazza del Duomo.

Posh department store which has a food hall upstairs where a small range of Italian bottles are on sale alongside lots of dross.  I can't really recommend this place and, it seems, neither can the local beer lovers who withdrew their support!

Roybeer, Via Plinio 63.  Open Tues-Sat 10:00-13:00, 15:30-19:00.  ()

Trams 23 (Rin. Lambrate) or 33 (Sire Raul) to Pascoli/Erba from where it's a short walk up Via Plinio on your right.

Homebrew and bottle shop with a superb selection of beers including many surprisingly rare American and Scandinavian brews. The Italian range isn't huge but, overall, it's an essential visit and very close to the tramstop!

Baüscia, Via Piero della Francesca 38.  ()

Situated Northwest of the city centre in the Bullona district, take tram 19 (Roserio) or 1 (Castelli) to Domodossola/Sempione‎; both these trams run through the centre (19 starts at Duomo) and both are real 1930's ventotto cars!  Line 7 also stops there but goes nowhere near the centre and, in any case, is solid plastic.

Opened in 2006. this micro-brewery makes a wide range of beers both in bottle and in keg and is owned by local beer hero Paolo Polli.  Your best chance of finding the beers is on tap at BQ although we also saw bottles at A Tutta Birra and Decanter.

We stayed at the cosy and friendly Hotel Brianza at Via Panfilo Castaldi 16 for a number of reasons, mainly the decent rate we got (Milan's hotels are very expensive!), it's proximity to the Tutta Birra beer shop and also it's ease of access by public transport with five tram routes passing by - two right past the front door - with most being operated by "proper" 1930's ventotto trams.  The breakfast was a bit poor but everything else was fine and I'd recommend Brianza to anyone looking for an easily reachable hotel from where you can access the city's beery delights.  There's an Ibis almost opposite which will save you a few quid.

Another choice, if you want to stop close to BQ, is the Nasco at Corso Sempione 69, 5 minutes walk from the best bar in town.  We stayed in March 2010 and it's a decent place with good breakfast buffet and trams 1 and 19 (plus a plastic) stop almost outside!