Maine Beer Company

 

One of the cleanest breweries I've seen.

One of the more visually impressive breweries I have ever visited. The lobby and the merchandise store areas were gorgeous, like walking into a Vegas hotel. Copious amounts of indoor and outdoor seating. Great woodfired pizza. Plenty of bottles to go. A good pit-stop if driving around New England on vacation.

 

Visited the brewery on 06/28/23 après-outlets. Midday, midweek, no reservation made or needed. This was my first visit to the new building so my last visit must have been, what? maybe 7 or 8 years ago. Another overwrought example of a brewery that made more money than they knew what to do with. Clean, comfortable, antiseptic. It was a relatively abbreviated taplist, mostly IPA’s, of course, but a couple of stouts, a pilsner and a grisette, as well. Roughly the same options available for takeaway in the iconic 500ml overpriced bottles - including both Dinner and Second Dinner, just sitting there in the fridge, waiting for me. Beer quality was excellent, food was pretty much OK - principally pizza and salad-type options. There were approximately as many children as legal-age drinkers, mostly unsupervised and some possibly having been abandoned by their parents on a prior day.

Nice modern space. Great service. Good food. Wish they had more of their offerings available, but that's my own personal preference. They recommend making a reservation, so I did. I learned the hard way when I was turned away at the Alchemist without a reservation. This sums up today's craft beer scene.

Beautiful space — high ceilings, a water feature, huge glass wall overlooking brewery, plus outdoor seating. Attentive, friendly staff.

You order at the bar and they bring food to your table. The food was excellent, pretty much wood-fired pizza, salads and some apps.

The beer offerings were high quality, although fairly limited. Eight beers, six of which were IPAs, DIPAs or APAs, plus one Irish Red Ale and one flavored Porter on nitro.

We made a reservation for an off-season weekday, which wasn’t really needed. There were (short) lines to order beer regardless. Other times, I expect it would be packed.

 

Finally made it here in September 2022 yet didn’t review the visit. Wish I made it back when they were still growing but this new facility is a masterpiece. Large, modern, clean, and perfect for Freeport. Pizza is phenomenal as are the pretzels. Beer offerings are obviously stellar. All quality on tap with a wide range of styles and some pilot beers. Stunning selection of to-go bottles and swag. Hard not to leave this place without a triple digit bill. Incredible!

 

 

No-expense-spared, big, high-tech brewery with to go, food, gift shop, the whole nine yards. Fairly easy to get to and excellent beers as I expected from previous experience. Well worth a visit. At this point it is basically perfect as it is exactly what the brewer wanted it to be and it is exactly what I want as a consumer. Service was great.

 

 

 

The complex is massive from what I thought it would be. The operation is well organized and efficient. All of the most popular beers were on tap along with some one-offs from the black barn program.

While I didn't have any food (pizza), it smelled great.

The place was friendly and busy but it never seemed crowded (except for the long wait to be in the food section). Plenty of people to help when getting beers to go or other merchandise.

Come off the highway and head away from LL bean and downtown Freeport. Maine Ber Company is about 1/2 mile down the road on the left. Pull into the parking lot, enter the black barn and head down the stairs. Store is on your right, to go beers on your left in the coolers and food and draft beer in the far back and a little to the right. I Didn't have food or beer, need to save that review for another time. Quick and easy to go, good looking place, do what’s right.

 

Wow... this place is incredible. Vast open interior space ... everything is wood or white... 30ft (I'm guessing) ceiling. Bars on two levels and huge tented patio on the left side. There is much I'm sure I missed. Friendly, professional servers. Streamlined operation. Only 5 beers on tap, but then they are Maine beers... I had the Thank You 2021 which was excellent. I did not sample the food, next time I'll bring more than just my thirst. And looking forward to the bottles of Dinner to go.

 

Amazing vibe, clean and beautiful place to enjoy great beer!

Pre ‘Love and Pils’ play day Friday. Witz & I shot up to the Bean store early so I could shop for a fleece vest I reasonably wouldn’t (and didn’t) find in July. Heading south on 1 through Freeport, I wax poetic about the barley coated chicken sandwich at Gritty’s (they call it the chicken stacker these days), Jameson Tavern (where Maine was liberated from the tyranny of Massachusetts’ rule), the strange civil war store that used to be over there (me, pointing), and other musings from our annual visits up since the 90’s. Now back down at the south end of (outlet) town, we seek the beer we know is near…

Annnnnnnnnnd Fuck! Someone’s mad expanded, like, a whole lot. This was a little place, right? Well it’s not anymore. Entered down there through the side all disoriented. If I’m correct and I am, we’re where the brewery used to be. It’s a large open space with a vaulted arced ceiling with skylight action, exposed ductwork, and drop tear drop lamps in rows across the room and over the bar. White walls with their (excellent) ‘Do what’s right’ mission statement printed and squared framed windows up atop the big wall. Rectangular tiled floors. Large potted & small hanging plants, wall mounted lamps, & some colorful nature prints.

Long straight marble topped bar with a blue tiled base, and no seating (Get your beer, then stand clear). 10 white logo knob handled tap towers (a row of 9 and a nitro sitting higher) on both ends of the bar. Draft list printed on wood slat pieces on the barback (beer, style, & ABV) with pricing atop (5oz for $2.50, 10oz for $5, 16oz for $8, and a flight of 4 beers for $10), and glassware shelved below.

So, 10 beers up (Peeper, Pale Ale, 5.5%; A Tiny Beautiful Thing, Pale Ale, 5.5%; Mo, Pale Ale, 6%; Another One, IPA, 7%; Lunch, IPA, 7%; Dinner, DIPA, 8.2%; Mean Old Tom, Stout, 6.5%; Zoe, Amber Ale, 7.2%; Black Barn Program #4 - Hoppy Pils, 5.1%; Black Barn Program #5 - Session IPA, 4.7%). I caught 4 on a sampler (Another One, Lunch, Zoe, Black Barn Program #5 - Session IPA), and then took in a few 10oz pours (Dinner, Black Barn Program #4 - Hoppy Pils). Mad fresh Lunch at the source was delightful, and likewise Dinner, too. But the star of the show was Black Barn Program #4, just a perfectly done Pilsner.

Bar counter table and 3 raised roundies off the bar, 2 rows of picnic tables end to end past there in the center of the room shared, and another 5 picnic tables to the rear fronting a giant brewery behind a wall of glass. Between the bar and brewery sits a giant fountain; stone base, slab top, & tile inners, with (like) a large metal tree sculpture in the rain. We called it “The weeping metal tree”. “Maybe a copper beech”, said Becky (she’s earthy and knows things).

7 cooler doors on the other end with bottles & cases for the taking and making of mixeds. I suppose I could slum it with 10 day old bottles of Lunch (and thank you for the friends and family hook, yo). And a swag corner nearby (why didn’t I get that winter hat 2 years back that I now don’t see for sale in July?)

Blue tile fronted pizza oven just into a kind of side space off the big room; I’m looking into its mouth and I see fire! Another row of tables picnic and some more raised roundies there, and through to an outside space with picnics under a strung lit awning.

Their food menu consists of a house salad that we were careful not to make direct eye contact with and 5 pizzas (Cheese, Pepperoni, Margherita, Sausage & onion, and Tartufo). We took in 4 of them for the eat and did forgo the fifth, being the cheese pizza. I was super psyched that everyone ate the pepperoni and hardly touched the stupidface Tartufo mushroom and that’s all that was left because I really like that, yeah, that’s my favorite (ISO: new friends). The pizzas were good, nothing crazy, but they fixed my head.

Additional seating and games upstairs. Good views over the room from up here. 2 tiered seating, with a step up picnic table zone over the bar below, and the lower section, 9 rectangular tables across from a half dozen little roundys on a shared bench. The games are 2 dartboards, and the messing with you they did to get you to go upstairs to look for gaming. From here I spy what used to be the tasting room proper; looks like it’s now a private event space.

Dude (can I call you ‘Dude’?), it’s Maine beer. Their beer is excellent and you knows it. You’re going there.

Part of 2020 summer road trip. This is one of the coolest taprooms I've been to. Very modern and clean. Solar panels everywhere.

 

 

Vibe was sterile indoor ordering area with some picnic benches for family style seating. Patio area was full with little kids, dogs, and good beer appreciating people. Ample retail area with large coolers full of beer anywhere from 1 day old to 1 month old. Capacity for maybe 150?

Quality of the beers are solid. Had Dinner on tap today which was awesome. Bottled versions of Woods and Water, Zoe, and Black Barn 6 were very good as was Lunch.

Service was well go get your own. However the folks pulling the beers were enthusiastic and knowledgeable. Tips go to their charitable cause which is awesome!

Selection on tap was around 9 beers and bottle wise there were around 9 available.

Food - Pizza was serviceable but nothing special.

Overall there are some solid albeit overpriced beers here but i am not going to be picky having traveled from the desert southwest. It was a good experience and i would come here again if ever in the are in the future!

I hadn’t been there since the expansion and was just overwhelmed by how intimate and friendly it feels. I didn’t feel like I was stuffed into a sardine can. Expansive area to mingle. AND I happened upon a release of Dinner and a brew I didn’t even know they brewed, Second Dinner. I had heard about Dinner and how hard it is/was? to get in the past. Seems like they will have it the first week of each month now. Wonderful. Oh what a feeling. Well done Maine BC.

 

 

Great space in Freeport Maine close to the Highway. They have brick oven pizza and picnic tables inside and outside with lots of games to play. Great spot to visit.

 

 

 

Extraordinary facility, very clean and refined, with solid selections and delicious pizza and massive pretzels with mustard. The beer is the star, of course, and I was lucky enough to come when both Dinner and Second Dinner were available and on tap. The reality is that Maine Beer Co. beer is pretty reasonably priced for what you get, and I came away quite pleased with the experience.

 

Beautiful facility with whitewashed barn interior, a fountain, and a full pizza oven. Honestly, the place was far cleaner and sterile than I expected any craft brewery to ever be. The only thing which sort of pissed me off was the price of Dinner: $8 for about a pint bottle (16.9 fl oz). Dinner and Heady Topper are super comparable, but when you drive all the way out to Stowe, at least The Alchemist only charges your $4 per pint can versus when you drive out to Freeport, Maine Beer charges you 2x for their beer. I understand that they're running a business, but for a brewery that likes to advertise how well they pay employees and how much they contribute to environmental causes, they don't seem to be that sympathetic to the everyday guy trying to stock up on a fantastic beer he can't get anywhere else. Alchemist is a B-corp and manages to be environmentally and socially friendly while not overpricing their product.

Other than that, the brewery experience was a good time. They have a shuffleboard set and a couple dartboards that were fun. I could easily see bringing family here and having a beer and meal. Will definitely go again, but I hope as they grow, they manage to experience economies of scale and can reduce the cost of their best beer a bit, or at least distribute it as they do most of their other beers.