We’d like to believe we’re so psychically in tune with beer that we can sense its presence, but that’s just not the case. That’s why NearBeer exists, to show us how close we are to cheap booze at all times.

Wherever you are in the U.S., you can punch up the app and it will point you in the direction of the closest, cheapest beer. Since the pricing relies on crowd-sourcing, businesses that don’t even serve alcohol can take advantage of it by telling you that they’re just around the corner. In-N-Out Burger, it’s great to know you’re 0.7 miles away, but get back to us when you’re willing to “Irish up” your milkshakes.

There’s no way to know whether the app will truly lead you to the best beer deals, but it’s definitely effective at leading you to out-of-the-way dive bars and low-profile liquor stores only the hard-core alcoholics know about. You can either allow GPS to do the work for you or type in a specific address and zip code.

Attempting to make itself into something like a FourSquare of beer hunting, the app pats you on the back, allowing you to become Brew Master if you hang out in a certain spot long enough. You can also use the app to hop onto a social network and let your gang know where the place to get wasted tonight is.

The app doesn’t have much of a use around your normal haunting grounds, but is well worth a download if you’re traveling and want to grab a brew before you catch your bearings.

RATING: 7/10

NearBeer ($1.99), available on iOS platforms, was published by AboveGround Applications. We tried the app out on an iPod Touch at several locations as we went about our day.



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