It’s summertime in Boston again, which means it’s time for another American Craft Beer Fest. This year was a lot of fun. Team Beeriety got to try a lot of new beers and chat with a bunch of different beers lovers. We saw some familiar faces, but also made many new friends and tried many new beers. Here are five of our favorites.

Boulevard Brewing

None of us had ever heard of this Kansas City based brewery before the fest, but it’s safe to say we’re now all fans. All of their beers we tried were amazing. In particular we enjoyed their Tank 7 Farmhouse Ale. This delicious Saison, dry-hopped with Amarillo, completely blew us away. Unfortunately Boulevard doesn’t distribute out to our homebase of Boston, but if you can get you’re hand on some, you’re sure to enjoy it.

White Birch Brewing

White Birch is a relatively young brewery from Hookset, NH that has recently caught our attention. We were really impressed by their Wrīgian beer. This Belgian strong ale made with Rye was another really surprising find of the day – a lovely marriage of the spicy complexity of rye and the full, sweet flavor traditional to so many Belgians.

Goose Island

This sizable brewery out of Chicago made quite an impression with fest goers. The line to try their Bourbon County Brand Vanilla Stout was of the longest we’ve ever seen at any beer festival. The beer did not disappoint, with big bold flavors that were nicely balanced by vanilla.

Brooklyn Brewery

Brooklyn never fails to disappoint with their beer and this year was no different. The brew that stood out for most of us was The Concoction, an unusual beer brewed with smoked malt, minced ginger, lemon juice and wildflower honey. It was tasty, but unlike any other beer I’ve had in awhile.

Duck Rabbit

A North Carolina Brewery that specializes in dark beers, this place has steadily been growing its reputation over the last few years. Their End of Reason was one of the best baltic porters I’ve had in many, many years. If you’re lucky enough to have access to this brewery, you’re in for a treat.

Did you attend the ACBF? If so let us know what you’re favorite beers were in the comments!

On Tuesday the Beeriety team joined some great folks for a lovely evening at The Haven, Boston’s premiere Scottish Pub. It was a fun evening with great beer and great conversation and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. The highlight of the night was the Haven’s own Special 70 session ale brewed by Notch brewery, which debuted just last week. It’s another great brew by the folks over at Notch, who’ve yet to produce a beer I haven’t enjoyed. The Special 70 was featured in a flight of four ales that folks were able to buy during the event-

Fraoch Heather Ale from Williams Brothers 5.0% ABV – Herbal ale made with heather & sweet gale

Innis & Gunn Rum Cask 7.4% ABV – Rum Cask aged pale ale Edinburgh

The Haven Special 70 4.1% ABV – Scottish Session Ale with subtle hints of caramel

Belhaven Stout 7% ABV – Classic Scottish ale from the town of Dunbar

As a way of saying thank you to all our fans who came out to see us we also had several raffle prizes to hand out, including beer and glasses from both Innis & Gunn and Williams Brothers. Thanks to everyone who came out. If you weren’t able to make it, don’t worry; we’ll be doing more events in the future.

Last week Team Beeriety joined Girls Pint Out and 40 of our closest friends for  a meetup at Boston’s best Scottish pub, The Haven, for a fun night of drinks, food and conversation. The night was a huge success; everyone seemed to have a great time  and lots of delicious Scottish beers were enjoyed while chatting with friends both new and old.

As part of the event we, along with Haven owner Jason put together three different flights of beer to give people the opportunity to try a number of different Scottish beers. The first flight was dubbed “A Tour of Scotland” it’s a beginner’s tour of Scotland – the beers on the list take you right up the East coast of Scotland from Dunbar to the remote Orkney Islands. It’s a great introduction to the beers of Scotland.

• Belhaven 5.2% ABV [Scottish ale from the town of Dunbar]
• Williams Session 3.9% ABV [Golden ale from Alloa]
• 5am Saint 5% ABV [Red ale from Fraserburgh]
• Skullsplitter 8.5% ABV [Wee Heavy Scotch ale from Orkney]

The second flight featured a number of higher alcohol brews which celebrate the tradition of rowdy Sunday afternoon rides down the river on a steamboat, so we called it the “The Steamer Paddle.”

• Belhaven Dark 7% ABV [Stout from Dunbar]
• Joker IPA 5% ABV [Pale ale from Alloa]
• Dogma 7.8% ABV [Ale brewed with honey, kola nut, poppy seed and guarana from Fraserburgh]
• Innis & Gunn 6.6% ABV [Oak aged pale ale Edinburgh]

Finally the third flight was “the Heritage Tour.” This flight features four beers from Williams Brothers, one of Scotland’s best breweries. Three of these brews are re-creations of historical ales, and while they may feature unusual ingredients, they’re all delicious.

• Midnight Sun (Porter brewed with ginger) 5.6% ABV
• Alba Scots Pine 7.5% ABV
• Fraoch Heather Ale 5% ABV
• Kelpie Seaweed Ale 4.4% ABV

All and all it was a really fun evening. We gotta hand it to everyone at the Haven for helping us run a really smooth night. Thanks to everyone who came out, we’re already planning another event in March, so watch out for details on that.

Beeriety and Girls’ Pint Out are teaming up for a educational early morning field trip Saturday, January 29th. Get your permission slips ready, because we’re going to the Sam Adam’s brewery!

The first part of our morning will consist of a private tour of the Boston brewing facilities in Jamaica Plain. Get a chance to look at the raw materials and equipment used to produce some of your favorite beverages, ask questions you’ve always wondered about from trained beer-professionals, AND as the final  part of the tour, taste some of Sam Adam’s signature brews.

After the tour, we’ll be heading from Sam Adam’s over to Doyle’s Cafe for brunch, conversation, and (most likely) some more beer. Feel free to come for one of the other; and for those of you doing both, don’t forget to claim your free Sam Adam’s glass by presenting your tour ticket at Doyle’s.

Folks attending the tour should plan on arriving at the brewery no later than 9:30 with valid ID in hand for those wishing to drink. Parking is readily available in and around the brewery complex, and the nearest T-station (Stony Brook/Orange line) is only a few blocks away. After the tour, we’ll head over to Doyle’s as a group.

Folks only attending the brunch at Doyle’s should meet us there at 11:00. If possible, we’ll put up a sign; otherwise ask the host for the Beeriety/GPO table.

This event is fun for Girls AND Boys, so spread the word to your favorite beer-lover!

Don’t forget to RSVP – tour spaces will be limited! Send us an email if you have any questions.

On Saturday, October 16th @EatBoston hosted a lobster and beer fest dubbed the Boston Lobster Party at The Historic SoWa Power Station. 15 craft breweries set up shop and brought a plethora of kegs and bottles. In addition to all the craft goodness one can drink, there were 9 of Boston’s restaurants showcasing a number of lobster dishes.

If you are unfamiliar with @EatBoston and live in New England, you are missing out. Sure this isn’t your American Craft Beer Festival, but it’s a damn good time. Back in April they hosted the Boston Bacon & Beer Festival. See a trend forming here? The best food mixed with the best beer!

The Attending Breweries:

• Blue Hills Brewery (Canton, MA)
• Boston Beer Company (Sam Adams) (Boston, MA)
• Brooklyn Brewery (Brooklyn, NY)
• Cisco Brewers (Nantucket, MA)
• Clown Shoes Brewing (Ipswich, MA)
• Harpoon Brewery (Boston, MA)
• High and Mighty Beer Company (Holyoke, MA)
• Ipswich Ale Brewery (Ipswich, MA)
• Magic Hat Brewing Company (South Burlington, VT)
• Mayflower Brewing Company (Plymouth, MA)
• Narragansett Beer (Providence, RI)
• New Century Brewing Co (Boston, MA)
• Notch Session (Portland, ME)
• Peak Organic Brewing Company (Portland, ME)
• Pretty Things Beer & Ale Project (Cambridge, MA)

The Attending Restaurants:

• Garden at the Cellar (Cambridge, MA)
• Petit Robert Bistro (Multiple Locations in Boston)
• South End Buttery (Boston, MA)
• Turner Fisheries (Back Bay, Boston, MA)
• Union (South End, Boston, MA)
• Gaslight (South End, Boston, MA)
• Wicked Kickn’ Cheesecake (Boston, MA)
• Trina’s Starlight Lounge (Somerville, MA)

On to the event:

Upon entry we were each given a fork, plate, tasting cup, and a few tickets for entrees and appetizers.

Ipswich Ale Brewery:

Ipswich rolled up in style with their signature beer truck.

Boston Beer Company (Sam Adams):

Along with their seasonal Octoberfest, Sam Adams brought with them their Latitude 48 IPA.

Brooklyn Brewery:

Brooklyn Brewery had their station equipped with recommendations for pairings with appetizers, entrees, and a dessert substitute. For their dessert substitute they hosted their delicious Black Chocolate Stout.

Harpoon Brewery:

Harpoon’s Glacier Harvest Wet Hop Ale paired well with the savory Lobster cupcakes we grabbed from one of the restaurants.

Pretty Things Beer & Ale Project:

One of Beeriety’s favorite local breweries Pretty Things brought three of their brews: American Darling, Field Mouse’s Farewell, and Jack D’or.



Peak Organic Brewing Company:

Their Espresso Amber Ale is definitely worth a try.

High & Mighty Beer Company:

These guys never let me down. I felt like I kept swinging by their booth to get my cup topped off.

Lobster Goodness:

(Susie of We are not Martha pictured on the top row.)

All great things eventually come to an end:

Enjoying some High and Mighty Two-Headed Beast with Adam.

(From left to right: Adam and Chris)

Cheers!

American Craft Beer Fest

On Saturday, Team Beeriety and some friends including Susie from We Are Not Martha headed down to the American Craft Beer Festival on Boston’s waterfront. It was an amazing array of 75 American brewers with over 300 different craft beers to sample. There was a lot of unusual beers and beer lovers at the festival and we did our best to check out as many of them as we could.

Pretty Things Beer & Ale Project

The beer was fantastic and while we all had our individual favorites, there was a general consensus that Pretty Things Beer & Ale Project was the break away star. Considering this small brewery run by a husband and wife team has only been around for about a year their beers show an astounding amount of sophistication and deliciousness. Their labels also live up to their name as some of the prettiest I’ve seen in awhile. They are surely a brewer to keep an eye on.

Brooklyn Brewery

Another favorite was Brooklyn Brewery’s Intensified Coffee Stout. Brooklyn has long been one of the most prominent craft brewers in America and this new brew showcases why. I’ve known and loved many coffee stouts, but never have I tried anything that so thoroughly captured the taste and mouthful of French press coffee and stout.

For a more detailed look at what beers grabbed our attentions take a look at our individual favorite lists:

Carleton:

• Brooklyn Brewery – Intensified Coffee Stout
• Pretty Things Beer & Ale Project – Baby Tree
• Ithaca Beer Co. – Cascazilla
• Cambridge Brewing Co. – Imperial Skisbsøl
• Dogfish Head Brewery – Sah’ Tea

Chris:

• Brooklyn Brewery – Intensified Coffee Stout
• Southern Tier Brewing Co. – Jah-va
• Watch City Brewing Co. – HellHammer Oatmeal Stout
• Pretty Things Beer & Ale Project – Cofounded Mister Sisyphus
• Terrapin Beer Co. – India Style Brown Ale

Erin:

• Ithaca Beer Co. – Flower Power IPA
• Southern Tier Brewing Co. – Imperial IPA.
• Victory Brewing Co. – Wild Devil
• Pretty Things Beer & Ale Project – Jack D’or
• Terrapin Beer Co. – Sunray

Ryan:

• Brooklyn Brewery – Intensified Coffee Stout
• Pretty Things Beer & Ale Project – Baby Tree
• Brewery Ommegang – Three Philosophers
• Left Hand Brewing Co. – Oak Aged Imperial Stout
• Southern Tier Brewing Co. – Cherry Saison

Susie (from We Are not Martha):

• Pretty Things Beer & Ale Project – Baby Tree
• Terrapin Beer Co. – Side Project 90 Shelling
• Brooklyn Brewery – Intensified Coffee Stout
• Dogfish Head Craft Brewery – Midas Touch
• Left Hand Brewing C0. – JuJu Ginger

Woody Chandler, Beer Monk

There was also plenty of interesting people in attendance, like Woody Chandler, the ‘beer monk’.

Pretzel Necklaces were all the rage

Several people also had curiously placed a necklace of pretzels around their necks, which I’d never seen before but seems like a great way to snack while keeping two hands free for beer. We’ll have more on the beer fest and exclusive interviews from the floor with brewers and attendees alike once we have a chance to sort through it all.

Until then check out the rest of the photos from the fest on the Beeriety Flickr account and let us know if you attended and what you were drinking in the comments!