The days are shorter, the weather is colder, and now legendary Maine news anchor Cindy Williams has announced that—after more than three decades—she’s retiring from 6 Alive!, excuse us, NEWS CENTER Maine. Some of us at Beer This Week are having a very hard time processing this information. Emotionally, not literally. We understand how retirement works, thank you very much. This week, let’s all raise a glass to Cindy. She is truly a Maine icon. Cheers, Cindy!
Here’s this week’s guide to upcoming brewery events, the latest beer releases, and a roundup of Maine beer news.
Sponsored by: Tigpro Stainless Fabrication
Wow, a lot of breweries that begin with a “B” are releasing new brews today. Did we get a sponsorship with Sesame Street and the letter B or something? Be on the lookout for beers from Banded, Bigelow, Bissell, and Blaze. Hey, Barreled Souls, wanna move up your release of Bombs Over Barley?
Upcoming Releases & Events
We try not to play favorites here at Beer This Week, but we feel like we need to give a long-overdue shoutout to the bomb-ass photo styling over at Definitive Brewing. Their images leave us drooling week after week, and this time they’ve really outdone themselves with the pic for one of their latest concoctions, Confectionary Wizards. We can almost taste the chocolate, coconut, and almonds while gazing upon this epic beer portrait. Keep reading to learn more about this, and other upcoming releases that will no doubt leave your mouth watering in anticpation.
Thursday, November 18
Banded Brewing Co.
32 Main St., Ste. 102, Biddeford and 82 Hanover St., Ste. 6, Portland
Aglow, Stout w/ Cocoa + Peppermint. (7.6%)
Inspired by the magic of the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens’ Gardens Aglow, Aglow is an ode to the crisp sparkle of the season. Jet black and full bodied, Aglow offers inviting notes of roasted malts, peppermint, and chocolate on the nose and first sips. It then opens up and gets exciting with spicy and herbaceous botanical notes reminiscent of amaro and is balanced by semi-sweet layers of maple, coconut, and vanilla. Proceeds from sales of Aglow will go to support the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens.
Bigelow Brewing Company
473 Bigelow Hill Rd,, Skowhegan
Little Bigelow, IPA (5.3%)
Little Bigelow is aggressively hopped after the boil, and is packed with intense notes of mango, pear, and pineapple. Drinks with a smooth mouthfeel and a slight ending bitterness, making this a refreshing, easy-to-drink beer.
Bissell Brothers Brewing
38 Resurgam Place, Portland & 157 Elm St., Milo
Swish, Double IPA (8%) & Oi!, Nitro Pub Ale (4.5%)
Instant-classic Swish has a Golden Promise malt base smothered with Citra, Mosaic, and Simcoe hops.
Oi! marks the first use of nitrogen in cans for Bissell Brothers. Its simple and pure flavors of malt, hops, yeast, and water are threaded together through a mouthfeel that is reminiscent of walking into a pub in the UK and ordering a fresh pint.
Blaze Brewing Company
28 Pearl St., Biddeford
Cuban Linx, Lager (4.5%)
Cuban Linx is a collaboration with Raekwon and Vintage Hustle. It’s a Caribbean-style lager perfect for crushing before, during, and after the show next weekend. The beer is simple and the perfect pairing for The Chef’s music.
Liquid Riot Bottling Company
250 Commercial St., Portland
Easy Like Sunday Morning, Imperial Oatmeal Stout (8.5%)
Easy Like Sunday Morning is made with Maine maple syrup and Guatemalan coffee from Speckled Ax.
Friday, November 19
Definitive Brewing Company
35 Industrial Way, Portland and 318 US Route 1, Kittery
Poetic Chemistry, Double Dry Hopped IPA (7.2%)
Dry hopped with a blend of Simcoe, Citra, and El Dorado Lupomax, Poetic Chemistry tastes like stone fruit, prickly pear, and bright tropical fruit.
Footbridge Brewing
25 Granary Way, Boothbay Harbor
All Lit Up, New England Style IPA
All Lit Up captures the essence of coastal Maine. With notes of apricot, tangerines, and pine wrapped in a warm smooth blanket of bitterness., this is the perfect beer for lighting up the long nights of winter.
Maine Beer Company
525 US Route 1, Freeport
Dinner, Double IPA (8.2%)
It’s Dinner time again! This beloved Double IPA boats aromas of mango, passionfruit, and pineapple, with undertones of garlic, onion, and pine and sweet aromatics of malt and caramel.
Saturday, November 20
Barreled Souls Brewing Company
743 Portland Rd., Saco
Bombs Over Barley, Barley Wine (14.2%) & ABC’s 2.0, Brown Ale
Bombs Over Barley is an English-style barley wine aged for just over a year in Parker Heritage Bourbon barrels.
ABC’s returns as ABC’s 2.0. This year’s version is amped up and extremely limited. The grain bill for 2021 is slightly larger and richer than in the past. ABC’s 2.0 was aged in a blend of bourbon before being finished on apples and cinnamon and is perfect for the holidays.
Wednesday, November 24
Orono Brewing Company
61 Margin St., Orono and 26 State St., Bangor
Bake Shop, Chocolate Donut Imperial Stout (9.8%)
A little birdie told us that Bake Shop has been in the tank for a couple weeks and it’s already tasting amazing! Cases will be released at OBC Orono today, with a draft release party at Woodman’s Brew Pub the same day. This is a Frank’s Bakery & Custom Catering collab so expect some delicious free donuts on release day!
Coming Soon
Island Dog Brewing
125 John Roberts Road Unit 15, South Portland
Winter Red, Spiced Red Ale (7%) & Toasted Dawg – Chocolate Pretzel, Imperial Stout (10.8%)
Winter Red is brewed with maple syrup, mulling spices, dried apples, and cranberries. It’s malty with notes of winter spice.
Toasted Dawg is malty and rich, with chocolate, pretzel, and coffee flavors, and a hint of salt.
New Releases
We have reached peak cozy season in terms of beer. In addition to several IPAs and DIPAs, we’ve got a couple of Kölschs, an amber ale, a dark saison, and a pair of stouts. And don’t forget, Thanksgiving is just one week away, so the time to stock up is NOW.
Bangor Beer Co.
330 Bangor Mall Blvd., Bangor
Snowblind, West Coast IPA (7.2%)
Brewed for the glorious winter season in Maine, Snowblind has a Pilsner base that gives way to piney, dank, and resinous hops. Perfect for enjoying after a long day on the slopes or… anywhere, really!
Black Pug Brewery
30 Bath Rd., Brunswick
Flat Face Kölsch (5%)
Flat Face Kölsch is back! Brewed with locally sourced malts from Blue Ox Malthouse, this warm fermented German ale is crisp and refreshing after a short lagering period. Flat Face Kölsch is clean and dry, with notes of pear and apple.
Corner Point Brewing Company
1 Rochester St., Berwick
Bloodshot Ryeball, IPA (7.1%)
Bloodshot Ryeball is a throwback West Coast style IPA. A nice citrus nose leads off this intriguing IPA. It is generously hopped (Chinook, Cascade, Columbus, and Simcoe) and is balanced with a malty base, finishing with a spicy rye backbone.
Cushnoc Brewing Co.
40 Front St. and 243 Water St., Augusta
Farmer’s Jam, Sour (7.3%)
Farmer’s Jam is a barrel-aged dark sour brewed with blueberry juice. Mahogany in color, it has subtle jammy fruit flavor and a very tart, dry finish reminiscent of an Oud Bruin.
Foulmouthed Brewing
15 Ocean St., South Portland
The Foulmouthed team has been busy canning this week. Here’s what you can find on your next visit.
Brave Noise is a New England pale ale (5.2%) brewed in collaboration with Brave Noise, an organization dedicated to creating a safe and discrimination-free beer industry. Proceeds will be donated to Heart of Hospitality.
Fraktur, a classic German-style Kölsch (4.8%), is brewed to be bright and crisp, yet have a soft and well-rounded European hop profile that makes it a perfect pairing for nearly any cuisine or mood.
Blue Balls is a Belgian dark saison (12%) brewed with Maine blueberries. It’s dark, malty, fruity, and perfect to share with a friend (their words, not ours).
56k Lager (5.1%) is crisp, clean, balanced and delicious. It was brewed with premium malts, Czech hops, and Bavarian lager yeast.
Pigment of Your Imagination is a New England-style IPA (6.5%) brewed with Azacca and Pacific Sunrise hops.
Foundation Brewing Company
1 Industrial Way #5, Portland
Casco Gold, Helles Lager (5.8%)
Casco Gold is named for its beautiful gold color and Portland’s beloved Casco Bay. A bill of top-notch Pilsner and Munich malts deliver rich, sweet cereal grains that are balanced by traditional Hallertau Mittelfrueh German hops, making for a beer that’s worth its weight in gold.
Geary Brewing Co.
38 Evergreen Drive, Portland
Epic Trip, Double IPA (7.9%)
Epic Trip embodies the spirit of unforgettable adventures, invigorating expeditions, and the bold souls who dare to blaze their own trails. Bright tropical aromas of pineapple and passionfruit blend with candied citrus undertones, giving each sip complex juiciness. At a 7.9% ABV, Epic Trip is robust and bright, leading the drinker on a journey of lush tropical notes, malty richness, and hoppy complexity. Just one sip and you’ll be inspired to wander, explore, and discover something truly epic!
Lone Pine Brewing Company
219 Anderson St., Portland and 48 Sanford Dr., Gorham
Glitterbeard, Double IPA (8%)
Less bitter. More glitter. Brewed with healthy doses of Ella, Stata, and loads of high-protein grains, Glitterbeard hits the soft spot within even the toughest of customers. It pours a subdued hazy gold, with a head that dissipates quickly but rings the glass. It has light aromas of mango, tropical candy, and watermelon citrus, and an excessively soft bitterness hides behind elevated amounts of oats and wheat. Notes of cantaloupe and white grapes peek through the downy soft mouthfeel to complete this deceptively smooth Double IPA.
Maine Mead Works
51 Washington Ave., Portland
HoneyMaker Apple Cyser (12.5%)
HoneyMaker Apple Cyser is like a full-bodied, non-carbonated, higher-alcohol hard cider. The fresh, crisp, and tart Maine apples are well-balanced by the floral notes of the wildflower honey. A perfect accompaniment to a fall cookout, football game, and of course, apple picking.
Mast Landing Brewing Company
920 Main St., Westbrook and 200 Lower Main St., Freeport
Coffee Gunner’s Daughter, Stout (5.5%)
Fresh on the heels of the Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Gunner’s Daughter release, Mast Landing is gracing us with a fresh batch of Coffee Gunner’s Daughter, featuring a phenomenal roast of coffee beans from Rwanda Bean Coffee.
Nonesuch River Brewing Company
201 Gorham Road, Scarborough
My Beer to Be, New England IPA (6.1%)
My Beer to Be is a hazy New England IPA with a bright citrus aroma of Galaxy, golden raspberry, and lemon meringue elegantly bestowed upon an oatmeal cookie. This beer was originally brewed for a couple who got married at Nonesuch. Everyone loved it so much that Nonesuch brewed a larger batch to share with those of us not lucky enough to be on the wedding guest list. RSVP with your taste buds today!
Norway Brewing Company
237 Main St., Norway
Maine Mountain Haze, New England-style IPA (6%)
Maine Mountain Haze is a New England-style IPA brewed with all Maine-grown grains. With super dank notes of pineapple and tropical fruit, this haze bomb is light, bright, and zippy, with a dry, uber-hoppy finish.
Rising Tide Brewing Company
103 Fox St., Portland
Fireside, Amber Ale (7%)
Fireside is perfect to enjoy around the fireplace with family and friends this holiday season. It has a delicate balance of sweet malt and hop bitterness with notes of candied orange, caramel, fresh pine, juniper, toast, and sweet bread.
Sebago Brewing
Multiple locations
Dark By 4, Nitro Stout (5.3%)
We are feeling this seasonal release BIG TIME. I mean, did the sun even come out today??? Dark by 4 is Sebago’s take on an English stout. Its roasted character is tempered with rich crystal malt and balanced hopping—all of which is enhanced by the nitro pour. Available at all Sebago Brewing locations (except Gorham Brewpub).
York Beach Beer Co.
33 Railroad Ave., York
Long Weekend, Pale Ale (5.5%)
Best enjoyed at sunset overlooking the water on a long weekend, Long Weekend is a touch hoppier than a traditional pale ale and brewed with pineapple to give you a hint of fruity sweetness that brings it all together.
Maine Beer in the News
Find out how Maine Beer Company is doing what’s right by helping the Maine Coast Heritage Trust preserve an island.
Tap Lines: Get lost in the flavors of Little Whaleboat IPA and help preserve its namesake island
Maine Beer Company is raising money to help Maine Coast Heritage Trust purchase the land in Casco Bay.
We hope you enjoyed this edition of Maine Beer This Week! If you own a brewery or other beer business and would like to be featured in upcoming issues, please email or call us to learn more at [email protected] (207) 209-2094
