Did you survive Thanksgiving with your family? While we’re big fans of holidays that revolve around eating and drinking, sometimes all that family time can be…a lot. Hard to believe we’re now already in December and the last sprint towards Christmas. If all the stories about the broken supply chain and empty store shelves have you down, we have the perfect solution. No, it’s not shopping strategies. Or maybe it technically is? Anyway, as you’ve probably guessed by now, it’s beer!
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
Brewers from Bangor and Brewer are both making their way down to our fair city for special events, Liquid Riot is letting us sample their Stash, Blaze is ready to go off a Cliff, and things are looking real Peach-y at Norway Brewing.
Thursday, December 2
Meet and Greet Tasting At Portland Beer Hub, 5-6:30 p.m.
320 Fore St., Portland
Come check out the gang from Bangor Beer Co. at Portland Beer Hub for a meet & greet and tasting!
Blaze Brewing Company
28 Pearl St., Biddeford
Caribbean-style Lager, Red Cliff, Amber Ale (5.3%)
First up in rotation is their Cuban Linx, Caribbean-style Lager. An Ode to The Chef, this lager’s simplicity is perfect for crushing before, during, and after the show.
Named after the cliff’s red appearance in Acadia, this beer is your perfect companion to an afternoon outside by the water. Wrap yourself in a flannel blanket and open a Red Cliff to truly enjoy this beer as the folks at Blaze intended. Red Cliff smells and tastes like brown bread, drippy pine, and molasses.
Liquid Riot Bottling Company
250 Commercial St., Portland
Powder Stash IPA (7%)
Powder Stash is a double dry hopped special winter edition of Liquid Riot’s popular Head Stash.
The Thirsty Pig
37 Exchange St., Portland
Topaz Hipster Apocalypse Release Party
The Thirsty Pig is hosting the release party for Mason’s Brewing Company’s Topaz Hipster Apocalypse, a hazy 5.7% IPA dry hopped with Idaho and Topaz hops.
Friday, December 3
Definitive Brewing Company
35 Industrial Way, Portland and 318 US Route 1, Kittery
Concert Mode, IPA (6.9%) & Cellar Echoes, Double IPA (8.2%)
Concert Mode is making its return, equipped with the perfect tune to balance this chilly weather with plenty of good vibes. This double dry hopped IPA brewed with Mosaic, Idaho 7, and Topaz hops is discreetly yet powerfully hoppy on the palette, with flavors of lemon tart, fresh lychee, and guava tea leaves.
Cellar Echoes is brewed with Mosaic, Simcoe, Mosaic Cryo, and Simcoe Cryo hop varieties. This saturated hop bill lends intense flavors of ripe melon and sticky mango—with a soft mouthfeel that brings everything into balance. Both beers will be available Friday in Portland, Saturday in Kittery.
Island Dog Brewing
125 John Roberts Road Unit 15, South Portland
St. Hubbins Cranberry Gose, Gose Fruited Sour Ale (4.2%)
This wheat ale was brewed with cranberries, natch. St. Hubbins Cranberry Gose is a mild sour with salty notes and a crispy smooth finish.
Mason’s Brewing Company
15 Hardy St., Brewer
Another Hazy Session, Session IPA (4.4%)
Another Hazy Session is double dry hopped with Galaxy, Ekuanot, Vic Secret, Topaz and Columbus. This is a brewery-only release.
Saturday, December 4
Norway Brewing Company
237 Main St., Norway
Life’s a Peach, Farmhouse Ale (5.9%)
The brewing team at Norway used about 100 pounds of yellow peaches and 100 pounds of white peaches from Pietree Orchard for this oak-fermented farmhouse ale. After they filled the sauvignon blanc barrels that will age and become next year’s batch, they had a little bit left over, so added some habanero peppers and Maine sea salt and a new beer was born, Peach It Real Good. Be sure to stop by and try this spicy peach gose as well as this year’s vintage of Life’s A Peach.
Wednesday, December 8
Maine Beer Company
525 US Route 1, Freeport
Second Dinner, Double IPA (8%)
Second Dinner is only the second DIPA ever brewed at Maine Beer Company. It has notes of bright citrus, pineapple, and a strong fruit aroma. Second Dinner utilizes Amarillo, Citra, HBC 522, and Idaho 7 hops.
New Releases
Folks at Fogtown are pulling a Double Shift, Foundation has themselves a new Chalice, Mast Landing is going the Distance, and Bath Brewing is channeling one of our favorite characters in the Marvel-verse in their latest beer, I am FROOT.
Bath Brewing Company
141 Front St., Bath
I am FROOT, Sour (5.6%)
I am FROOT is a hazy, tart, fruited sour made with mango and peach. It’s only 5.6% ABV—perfect for something tropical and light. Bath Brewing tells us they had a little fun at their photo shoot…can you tell? Word to the wise, the Fruit Loop Groot pictured, AKA FROOT, is just a mascot, the sour is NOT made with actual Fruit Loops! Maybe someday, (in our dreams)…
Bissell Brothers Brewing
38 Resurgam Place, Portland & 157 Elm St., Milo
Sigil XI, Imperial Stout (10.6%)
Sigil XI delivers nuanced notes of Riesen candy, charred molasses, and mocha espresso from its blend of three different beers: a wheat stout aged in bourbon barrels, a rye old ale, and an oat stout aged in rum barrels.
Corner Point Brewing
1 Sullivan St., Berwick
Zozobra, Milk Stout (4%)
This silky stout comes in at a low 4%, but packs a ton of flavor. Red and green chile from New Mexico make for unique flavor up front, which is then followed by the sweetness of Mexican chocolate and a touch of heat to finish everything off.
Fogtown Brewing Company
25 Pine St., Ellsworth and 33 Cottage St., Bar Harbor
Night Nurse Double Shift, Imperial Milk Stout (9.4%)
This imperial milk stout features a custom blend of organic and fair trade coffee beans from Precipice Coffee in Ellsworth.
Foundation Brewing Company
1 Industrial Way #5, Portland
Chalice, IPA (7%) & Jam Packed Plumberry, Imperial Sour (8%)
Chalice is a West Coast-style IPA hopped with Simcoe Cryo, Azacca Cryo, and El Dorado. Chalice pours a crystal clear gold, lighting up its glass from within. Dried apricot on the nose leads into notes of grapefruit juice and white grape on the palate. The smooth bitterness, the signature of the West Coast IPA, balances these flavors on the back of the tongue, making Chalice supremely satisfying and drinkable.
Jam Packed Plumberry is an imperial sour brewed with milk sugar and fermented with oodles of plums, raspberries, and vanilla beans. The fruit is rounded out by silky sweet vanilla, coming together in a harmony of bright, juicy raspberry and candied plum. Inspired by the dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy, we think you’ll find this sour absolutely magical!
Mast Landing Brewing Company
920 Main St., Westbrook and 200 Lower Main St., Freeport
Long Distance Runner, IPA (6.8%)
A West Coast-inspired IPA, Long Distance Runner was the first in Mast Landing’s Grateful Dead-inspired series
Side By Each Brewing
1110 Minot Ave., Auburn
Piper Down, Barrel-Aged Scottish Ale Wild Ale (10%)
This malty, full-bodied Scottish Wee Heavy ale took the summer off (and frankly, we’re a little jealous), resting in a bourbon barrel (sounds cozy) that the brewers then added wild yeasts and bacteria to (OK, this is where we exit). Now, it’s here to bring sourness and funk along with that maltiness.
Maine Beer in the News
Learn how local breweries are prepping to keep customers warm (while outside) all winter long, which beer is the perfect pairing with Indian food, and which beer summit is making a comeback.
Tap Lines: These Maine breweries are all set up for winter
Fire pits, outdoor activities and, of course, the beer make these destination drinking establishments.
Maine brothers create a craft beer that pairs perfectly with Indian cuisine
For spicy foods like Indian and Thai, lagers and pilsners are the way to go.
Maine’s first nonalcoholic brewery is about to ship its first batch
Surveys have shown that Americans roughly double their alcohol consumption between Thanksgiving and New Year’s.
The conference for brewers, brewery owners and others in the craft beer industry is planning a return next year.
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
