Have you picked out your Halloween costume yet, bub? While it may be tempting to just throw on a green tracksuit or red jumpsuit à la “Squid Games” and call it a day, we challenge you to stretch your creativity. If you can concentrate, that is. We don’t know about you, but we’re still fanning ourselves after gazing upon Lee Nelson doing his best, smoldering version of blue steel on the cover of Maine Seniors. I’m sorry, what were we talking about? Anyway, let’s get to the latest beer releases you need to know about, especially if you need to, uh, cool down.
Here’s this week’s guide to the latest beer releases, upcoming brewery events, and a roundup of Maine beer news.
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Upcoming Releases & Events
It’s time for some Stories at Allagash, Blank Canvas is serving up a Shrimp Cockt-ALE, and Definitive has a beer coming out that mimics the flavor of the best candy known to both mankind and alienkind, Reese’s Pieces.
Thursday, October 14
Allagash Brewing Co.
50 Industrial Way, Portland
Stories Told, Sour
Created for the re-telling of cherished stories and the creation of new ones, Stories Told is half dark, strong sour ale aged in bourbon barrels, half Flemish-style sour brown ale. The two beers are blended and then aged on fresh, locally grown cherries and blackberries for a rich, roasty, and vibrantly fruit-forward beer. Gather round, this one is going to be good.
Ambition Brewing
295 Main St., Wilton
Chaga, Traditional English Ale (5.8%)
This Chaga TEA (Traditional English Ale) was made with Maris Otter and Caramel Malt, giving it light toasty notes. Chaga mushrooms were steeped and then added to the beer, infusing it with the “tea” qualities.
Blaze Brewing Company
28 Pearl St., Biddeford
Hunter’s Moon, Dark Lager & One Way #11, IPA
Named after the October full moon, Hunter’s Moon is brewed thoughtfully with a plethora of dark malts. Hopped modestly in the kettle, it was then lagered for many weeks until maturation. Hunter’s Moon is bright, drinkable, and refreshing, and smells and tastes like cocoa powder, black tea, and toasted barley.
One Way #11 is the newest edition of Blaze’s constantly evolving IPA series. It was dry hopped heavily and singularly with Citra. Citra is one of the brew crew’s favorite hops and this one is an absolute explosion of ripe orange flavor. One Way #11 is a juice bomb with fantastic drinkability.
46 Betton St., Brewer
Shrimp Cockt-ALE
This shrimp cocktail-inspired beer is brewed with tomato Worcestershire sauce, horseradish, and—of course—shrimp. It’s a prototype beer with a low ABV and hop character. Check it out and then report back to Beer This Week HQ with your findings, please.
Friday, October 15
Definitive Brewing Company
35 Industrial Way, Portland and 318 US Route 1, Kittery
Poetic Chemistry, Double Dry Hopped IPA (7.2%); Particles, Double Dry Hopped IPA (8.3%); & Pieces, Chocolate Peanut Butter Double Milk Stout (7.2%)
Medium-bodied and balanced on the tongue, Poetic Chemistry is dry hopped with a blend of Simcoe, Citra, and El Dorado Lupomax for a pleasant and approachable drinking experience. This beer is reminiscent of stone fruit, prickly pear, and bright tropical fruit flavors.
Brewed with Citra, Simcoe, and Topaz and rocking a similar hop profile to Definitive Ale (but with extra horsepower), Particles is a hop-saturated beer that tastes and smells like ripe fruit orchards, kiwi peels, and lemon sorbet.
Pieces is (adjusts glasses we wear to look wicked smaht) a chocolate peanut butter double milk stout?! Uhhh, yes please! We’re told this beer tastes and smells like peanut butter fudge, Choco Tacos, and chocolate PB cereal milk.
All beers are available Friday in Portland, Saturday in Kittery and we have no qualms about trampling our own mother to be first in line for Pieces. SorryNotSorry.
Fore River Brewing Co.
45 Huntress Avenue South Portland
Lygonia, New England IPA
Boasting tropical notes and aromas of pineapple with hints of mango and a subtly sweet finish, Lygonia is a lush and light hazy New England-style IPA brewed as an ode to the historical Ligonia neighborhood of South Portland that is home to Fore River.
Island Dog Brewing
125 John Roberts Rd. Unit 15, South Portland
Peanut Butter & Jelly, Amber Ale (10%)
This amber ale has biscuit and bready malt flavors, along with hints of mixed berries and peanut butter. Basically, it straight-up tastes like a PB&J.
Sebago Brewing
Multiple locations
Scary Garcia, Cherry Chocolate Vanilla Pastry Stout (6.3%)
Scary Garcia is a cherry chocolate vanilla pastry stout—a nod to the Ben & Jerry’s ice cream in name and recipe. For this pastry stout, the brewers used pastry-beer hybrid ingredients to keep it tasting more beer-flavored, rather than using whole pastry product additions like cake or donuts. Lactose sweetens the finish while balancing the bitterness from the roast malts and cacao.
Scary Garcia is available on tap and in growlers at all Sebago Brewing locations.
Saturday, October 16
Craft Brew Underground
34 Court St., Auburn
Bad Beer Bash, 12 p.m.
The worst/best beer day of your life is BACK! The staff at Craft Brew Underground have picked 10 of the worst beers they could find. And, for the price of admission, you’ll get to sample all 10, plus enjoy some special snacks. You rate them, and at the end The Best of The Worst and The Worst of The Worst will be crowned. Tickets are $15 per person and $8 for Mug Club members.
Fogtown Brewing Company
25 Pine St., Ellsworth
3rd Annual Fogtoberfest
Come join the gang at Fogtown from 11:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. for an outdoor celebration of craft brews and community in the beer garden. Tasting tickets will be available at the door and wood-fired pizza is also available for purchase. Trust us, your taste buds will thank you. There will also be live music from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., and 3:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Tuesday, October 19
Maine Beer Company
525 US-1, Freeport
Another One, IPA (7%)
Another One is brewed with Cascade, Citra, and Simcoe hops, giving it aromas of pineapple, mango, and guava.
New Releases
While the IPAs are pretty dominant in this week’s lineup, we also have a coffee stout, porter, cream ale, sour, red ale, and a beer that claims that it just MAY have the ability to raise the dead. Y’a know, just your basic, run-of-the-mill new beer releases.
Atlantic Brewing Company (Midtown)
52 Cottage St. & 15 Knox Rd., Bar Harbor
Ellen’s Coffee Stout (5.4%)
Brewed with locally roasted cold brew coffee from Crooked Porch Coffee and a touch of vanilla, Ellen’s Coffee Stout is available now at Atlantic Brewing Midtown.
Bangor Beer Co.
330 Bangor Mall Blvd., Bangor
Endeavor, Cream Ale (4.7%)
Endeavor is an easy-drinking lager, light and delicious, and perfect with a wedge of lime.
Battery Steele Brewing
1 Industrial Way, Units 12 & 14, Portland
Flume Cubed, Triple IPA (9.5%)
This special TIPA takes the OG Flume recipe and turns it waaay up. Reckless amounts of Citra Cryo, Mosaic and a huge dose of Galaxy make this beer the king of the Flume variants.
Baxter Brewing Co.
130 Mill St., Lewiston
Untitled Chocolate Stout
Some might say peanut butter is chocolate’s best friend. We’d make a strong argument that it’s really beer. And as of today that argument comes in the form of the latest stout offering from Baxter Brewing. This as-yet-to-be-named chocolate stout is made with real Maine chocolate from Wilbur’s of Maine. Rich, decadent, and smooth, this brew will have you reaching for your favorite sweater and looking for the closest fireplace. Available only at The Pub.
Bissell Brothers Brewing
38 Resurgam Place, Portland
DBL Lux, Double IPA (8%)
DBL Lux is Bissell’s original Mosaic pale ale amplified to an 8% double IPA. It’s pillowy soft and dripping with stone fruit tones, including notes of overripe peach, angel food, and Orangina.
Flight Deck Brewing
11 Atlantic Ave., Brunswick
Mahogany Spitfire, Porter & Subhunter, Imperial IPA (9.1%)
Mahogany Spitfire is a brand-new addition and only available on draft. This traditional English porter has roasty, malty flavors and will help keep you warm this fall.
Subhunter is back! Clocking in at 9.1%, this big beer kicks back dangerously smooth and can be found on draft and in cans.
Federal Jack’s
8 Western Ave., Kennebunk
Vienna ‘Fest Ale, Märzen (6%)
This medium-bodied, light copper-colored ale was brewed in the spirit of a non-traditional Octoberfest Märzen. Cooler fermentation enhances the clean, malt-forward flavors of fresh bread crust, subtle honey, and caramel sweetness while the delicate hopping with varieties of German-descent yields the herbal, spicy, and floral notes in the finish.
Funky Bow Brewery & Beer Company
21 Ledgewood Ln., Lyman
Panama Red, Red Ale (7%)
Panama Red is a hoppy red brewed using centennial hops throughout the dry hop. It’s crisp, clean, light-bodied, and delicious.
Gritty McDuff’s Brewing Company
396 Fore St., Portland; 187 Lower Main St., Freeport; and 68 Main St., Auburn
County Wet Hop (4.5%)
The team at Gritty’s picked 40 lbs. of whole Cascade hop cones right off the vine and drove them to their brewery in Freeport for brewing. These fresh local hops make for a tasty, unique ale that comes in at 4.5% ABV.
Lone Pine Brewing Company
219 Anderson St., Portland and 48 Sanford Dr., Gorham
Strata, Double Dry Hopped Oh-J, Double IPA (8.1%)
This dialed-up version of Lone Pine’s flagship New England IPA features 100% Strata hops and is dank and fruity, yet puzzlingly unique.
Mast Landing Brewing Company
920 Main St., Westbrook and 200 Lower Main St., Freeport
Shake Up Your Bones, Double IPA (8%)
Sometimes you gotta Shake things up. The luscious combination of Nelson, Simcoe, and Citra hops in this hazy double IPA is a rush. Shake Up Your Bones has big citrus notes and a balanced juiciness that could wake up a skeleton. (Note: we at Beer This Week do not condone waking up skeletons. Should you choose to rouse a skeleton from its slumber you do so at your own peril, especially since Halloween is only a few weeks away.)
Nonesuch River Brewing
201 Gorham Rd., Scarborough
Oh Bee Hazy, New England IPA (6.8%)
Oh Bee Hazy (which we’re told may only be uttered using your best Austin Powers accent) is a double dry hopped New England IPA. It’s brewed with the finest English Pale Malt and a drop of honey. Eukonot and Idaho 7 hops do the heavy lifting while Crystal hops come in to steal the show. You’ll notice aromas of tangerine and pineapple. It’s dank, bright, and dipped in honey.
Side By Each Brewing
1110 Minot Ave., Auburn
Shoot the Glass, German Pilsner (5.4%)
Shoot the Glass is crisp and clean, with herbal and grassy notes from German malt and hops. The name? It comes from Side By Each’s brewers’ favorite Christmas movie, “Die Hard.” That’s right. It’s a Christmas movie, and even John McClane himself will never convince us otherwise.
Trinken Brewing Co.
144 State Rd., West Bath
Schnapsidee, Fruited Sour (5%)
We didn’t get a lot of info on this newest entry in Trinken’s Schnapsidee fruited sour lineup other than the fact that this batch is made with 100% Maine blueberries. However, we can say with 99% certainty that it’s unlikely to awaken skeletons. We think. I mean, we haven’t heard of any cases or anything. Yet.
Maine Beer in the News
It was a light week for Maine brew news this week, other than Mast Landing scoring a magazine cover slot, not unlike a certain former news anchor.
In its quest for brewing perfection, Mast Landing Brewing Company combines a passion for quality beer, a dedication to happy staff and a culture of sustainability.
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
