I’ve been thinking a lot about how I evaluate breweries recently. I think some of it comes with the pandemic and the struggles that breweries are facing right now. I am trying to support my favorite local places as much as I can, which means I need to think about which places belong on that […]
Category: Opinion
Dear Brewers, It’s Your Fault if Your Beer Explodes
I made an explosive beer once. I was homebrewing a dry-hopped saison at my old apartment in Watertown. I pitched the yeast, got a nice strong fermentation, transferred to the secondary for the dry-hopping when it slowed to a crawl, then bottled it a week later. After waiting the nominal 2 weeks for the bottling […]
I Don’t Have a Ton to Say About Beer Right Now, and That’s OK
Warning: This column touches on the things going on in the country and the world right now, many of which have little or nothing to do with craft beer. I know that reading about beer is an escape for some people and they don’t want to hear about politics on their beer blogs, but this […]
Sipping a Beer in Quarantine
Almost 6 weeks into staying at home and I have a lot of thoughts I would like to share. This might be a bit rambling, and parts will have nothing to do with beer, but there have been a lot of things on my mind recently and I feel like sharing them here. If it’s […]
It feels weird to write about beer right now
I have been pretty steady with my Hoppy Boston posts over the last couple years, I usually drop a new post twice a week, typically on Monday and Thursday nights. Last week I did my typical Monday post, and had a headstart on a beer review for Thursday, but I never finished it. The COVID-19 […]
Flagship Beers Are More Important Than Ever
There has never been a better time to be a beer lover. With over 7000 breweries in operation in the US, with each cranking out rotating selections of beer, we have nearly limitless options across a wide range of styles and flavor profiles. Some beer drinkers are taking full advantage of their freedom of choice, […]
The Hard Seltzer Threat to Craft Beer is Overblown (but Big Beer Should Be Worried)
This Fall I was up at my alma mater for a big college rugby team reunion, which featured some extended social time featuring the current team and over 75 alumni from across decades of rugby. It was a great time with old friends and new ones. Being back on campus I noticed a few things […]
Brewery Closures Are Going To Keep Happening
The Mass Brew Brothers recently posted two articles summarizing the changes in Massachusettes beer in 2019. The first covered the new additions to the beer scene, including the 28 new breweries, 9 new taprooms and 3 expansions that launched in the state this year. The second article covered the bad news, 12 breweries closed this […]
Hoppy Boston wraps up 2019 and looks ahead to 2020!
Happy New Year! I like to start each year by recapping some of the highlights of the previous year on Hoppy Boston and setting some goals for the coming year. As always thanks again for reading the site and following Hoppy Boston on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. I am looking forward to another exciting year […]
Local Beers to Drink Instead of Beers from Founders
I haven’t purchased or consumed a beer from Founder’s Brewing since I first read articles detailing the suit filed by a former employee alleging racial discrimination and recounting numerous negative experiences he had while working for the brewery. This belief has been reinforced repeatedly over the past year, Founders actions and responses to criticism have […]