6

CONTENTS
Introduction...........................................................9
Craft Brewers......................................................11
Eat & Drink.........................................................147
Buy...........................................................................211
Extras....................................................................263
on tap soon...................................................265
beer events..................................................267
tours + trails...........................................269
homebrewing supplies...........................271
local hops + grains.............................273
resources......................................................275
tasting notes.............................................276
8
I remember my frst sipit was a Catamount Amber Ale from Vermonts frst craft brewery, and
one of the frst microbreweries anywhere in the United States. It was the mid-1980s and craft beer
was a fringe thingit was a missionary-like movement brought to be by a few renegades who had
traveled abroad and discovered that beer could be different, very different, from what wed all
grown up with. It was a revelation.
Vermont has its share of craft beer pioneers, notably the late Greg Noonan, who followed
Catamounts example. These early breweries were often cobbled together with used dairy
equipment. No surprise in a state famous for its creameries, not to mention ice cream. Also not
surprising was the desire to repurpose what was already at hand in typical hardscrabble Yankee
fashion. Waste not.
From there things moved forward in classic northern New England stylemeasured, purposeful, but
in no particular hurry. A return to the land of sorts, applied to brewing. These were not breweries
born of grand business plans but driven by passion and a sense of place. Some grew in spite of
themselves, with brewing good beer their only real goal. A few expanded, perhaps grudgingly,
while others stayed small by design. Fame and fortune were not motivators; good beer was.
As time went by and craft beer grew to become a household word, Vermont soldiered on and
quietly added to its diverse collection of craft breweries. Today, Vermont is home to some of the most
sought-after craft beers in the country, many of which seem to unknowingly break new ground. So
good . . . if you can get them! A few are deliciously
rare and hard to fnd (literally take the dirt road
to the right and then turn left at the tractor), only
adding to their mystique.
Craft beer continues to grow and has now made
inroads into the American mainstreamin part due
to the localvore movement as well as a growing
appreciation of whats old is new again. To which
Vermonters can only respond, New? Hasnt it
always been this way?
Today, Vermont
is home to some
of the most
sought-after
craft beers...
9
INTRODUCTION
PHIL MARKOWSKI
Brewmaster, Two Roads Brewing Co.
10
CRAFT
BREWERS
SO MUCH GOOD BEER . . . so little time
17
21
25
29
33
37
41
109
49
53
57
61
65
69
73
77
81
85
89
93
97
139
105
45
115
119
123
127
131
135
101
143