The Great American Beer Festival was held was held from October 10th-12th in Denver Co., around 600 craft brewers from all over the country congregated to share their work, taste great beers and submit their favorites for judging and awards. Judges awarded gold, silver and bronze medals to beers in 84 different styles based on […]
Author: ryanbrawn
Clown Shoes Swagger Hoppy Red Lager
Some breweries prefer to make beer that is restrained and balanced, named after the traditional beer style that inspired the brew. Clown Shoes Brewing in Ipswich, MA prefers to smack you right in the face with big, bold flavors, occasionally crazy ingredients, and typically high ABV. They also have eye-catching labels and names that include […]
Wachusett Green Monsta IPA
I’ll admit that I have a soft spot for Wachusett Brewing company in Westminster, MA. My lovely wife and I got married in that area of the state and Wachusett beers were on draft all weekend. Having good craft beer of draft was a must for my wedding and Wachusett came through big time. While […]
Craft Beer Cellar Belmont
One question I often get when I bring up a great local beer that I’ve tried is ‘where can I find that’? The increased popularity of craft beer has led to a better selection of local and seasonal beers in most liquor stores in the Boston area, but if you want the best combination of […]
Pretty Things Meadowlark IPA
There are a lot of things to like about the Pretty Things Beer and Ale Project, unique and well balanced beers in a wide variety of styles, cool labels featuring original artwork, and non-traditional seasonal beers to name a few. One thing I’ve always enjoyed is that many of the beers come with stories, some […]
Mystic Table Beer
Many American craft brewers have been inspired by the diverse and storied ales from Belgium. One of the keys to great Belgian ales is the yeast, which gives the beer funky and fruity notes that nicely complement the hop and malt flavors in the beer. Mystic brewery in Chelsea MA focuses on brewing Belgian-style ales […]
Jack’s Abby Wet Hop Lager
One new-ish trend in craft brewing is hyper-local brewing, making beer entirely from locally sourced ingredients. This fits nicely into the craft brewing ethos, namely the idea that fresh ingredients thoughtfully prepared in smaller batches are always going to give superior products over something that is mass produced at the lowest possible cost. This can […]
Great Divide Rumble IPA
Great Divide has been brewing tasty beer in Denver, Co since 1994, and now distributes their products across the country. One of the features of many of Great Divide’s beers is barrel aging, where the beer is moved to wooden barrels after initial fermentation and before bottling/kegging. This technique has been used for years for […]
Maine Beer Company Peeper Ale
I have a soft-spot for the state of Maine, and pretty much everything from Maine, it is where I was born, raised and went to college. Maine has had a small but strong stable of craft breweries for years now, and the explosion of interest in craft beer has definitely reached the state, leading to […]
Slumbrew Sittin on Hop of the World
Slumbrew, AKA the Somerville Brewing Company makes a variety of artisanal ales in their brewery in Somerville, MA. The “slumbrew” moniker is derived from the old “Slummerville” nickname for Somerville, which is funny now that the town has undergone a major revitalization, with the Davis, Porter and Union Square now go-to locations for nights out. […]
Hoppy Boston 