Trip to Portland Maine HELP

I wrote this up awhile ago for another beer-cationer' -- this list is by no means complete. As far as buying brews retail your best bets are Bier Cellar, RSVP, Tully's, 7-Eleven in Kittery, and Maine Beer & Beverage Co.

Breweries [Allagash is a given]

• Oxbow - My favorite brewery in the state, currently ~1.25hrs outside of Portland. All the great places around Portland-proper will at least have their flagship FPA on tap. Their Freestyle series and Oxtoberfest may be on tap around the time you come into town. They're also opening a tap/barrel room @ 75 Washington Street in Portland that will hopefully be open by then.
• Foundation - Located in the same industrial park as Allagash alongside Austin Street and Bissell Brothers. Make your rounds to everyone on this street and you'll have an awesome afternoon/evening.
• Bissell Brothers - Their Substance IPA is amazing, on par with some of the best IPAs in the nation. Their second canned beer, a hoppy blonde ale called Baby Genius, actually releases today. Cans only available at the brewery Thurs-Sat and distributed to very few accounts [Bier Cellar, RSVP, Maine Beer and Wine, Old Port Spirits and Cigars, maybe Craft Beer Cellar?]
• Rising Tide - Located in the burgeoning area of Portland lovingly referred to as "Yeast Bayside" alongside Bunker Brewing, Urban Farm Fermentory and my personal favorite coffee roasters Tandem. They put on a great tour.
• Bunker Brewing- See above.
• Gneiss - New kids on the block, great stuff coming from these guys. They have a new Dunkelweizen, Gabbro, and Weizenbock, Tweiss, that are both really awesome. Their berliner weisse's seem to be the only thing you can get on tap around town.
• In'Finiti - Worth the visit for the architectural design of their restaurant, brewery and distillery. Gorgeous space and great drinks.
• Banded Horn - Relative newcomers in Biddeford that I fully expect to explode anytime soon. Owner is the former headbrewer from Sixpoint.
• Marshall Wharf - Awesome brewpub on the coast in Belfast, worth the trip if you have the time. You may find their 16oz cans in the better bottle shops around Portland, currently you'll only find their brown ale, Phil Brown, on the shelves. If they're around at the time check out their Can't Dog DIPA, Illegal Ale-ian Agave Kolsch or Sexy Chaos their Imperial Stout aged with vanilla beans and oak -- all in cans.

Restaurants and bars

• Pai Men Miyake - Ramen bar with great beer and sake selection. My go to for a dinner of appetizers and beers with out-of-towners. They should have a few Oxbow bottles on hand if you don't want to wander up to Newcastle, ME and their tasting room isn't open yet.
• Outliers - Awesome rrestaurant tucked away on the west end of Portland. Great looking space with awesome tap list.
• Eventide - Oyster Bar with a twist. Pricier side and usually pretty packed, but on many national lists for best restaurant. May be easier to get into in October.
• Duckfat - Mob scene with tourists and locals alike. Small tap list but curated quite well. Fries fried in duck fat. Yes! May be easier to get into in October.
• Ebeneezers + Ebeneezers BrewPub - The original pub in middle of nowhere, Lovell, ME is 2.5hrs outside of Portland but routinely makes the 'Best Beer Bar in the World' lists year after year. Plead for a tour of their cellar and piss your pants at what they have. Recently tapped brewpub in Brunswick is much easier to get to and well worth the slight detour off 295 if you're headed north.
• Novare Res Bier Cafe - Other places in Portland have more taps (Great Lost Bear, Three Dollar Deweys, Jimmy the Greeks) but none come close on quality. Great deck and awesome bottle selection [e.g. Cantillon!]
• When Pigs Fly Pizza - If you're driving you should definitely hit this place up if you're driving into the state around lunch/dinner time. Great tap list right across the border from NH.

BYOB - Yes you heard that right

• Schulte and Herr - Awesome tiny little german restaurant, amazing brunch. Last I knew they were BYOB but you may want to call and double check.
• The Well @ Jordan's Farm - BYOB, Pay what you want, higher end grub that consists of a bunch of picnic tables and gazebos in the middle of a picturesque flower garden on a farm in Cape Elizabeth. May still be open in October, call/email ahead of time to confirm. Picnic tables are first-come-first serve but if you have a party of 6 or more you can reserve a Gazebo.
• Fishermen's Grill - Block or so from one of the larger beer stores, RSVP, so you can grab a some goodies and eat some of the freshest fried seafood around and it's much more affordable than the the higher-end fare you'll find on the rest of the Portland peninsula.

 

Great write-up! If you're listing a couple kittery locations (7-11, and Flying Pigs) I would absolutely include my personal favorite in the area - The Black Birch: http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/27726/. Best draft selection between Boston and Portland (to me). Food is fabulous.

Also, you can normally find good bottles at Carl's Meat Market, just North of 7-11: http://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/16544/?view=ratings

 

Good catch! Big fan of The Black Birch!

 

@dantonbrown list is awesome. I'll add Nosh as a suggestion for a bar/gastropub, our group had a great experience there on my last trip to Portland.

 

@WeymouthMike, Within the past few months the people behind Nosh have opened Slab with the original baker/pizza maker from Micucci. Thick Sicilian slabs of pizza and a great beer garden. Awesome selection [they hosted the best of the GI Migration Week tap-takeovers] Definitely another beer destination worth trying!

 

@dantonbrown - great post. Should be in a permanent archive somewhere!

As a tourist rather than a Maine resident - I don't like driving the slab all the way to Portland. It's just boring to me and tiring, so we get off 95 onto Rt. 1 at Portsmouth/Kittery and take our time. Obviously depending on your route, Portsmouth/Kittery provides a good break. You could hit SmuttyNose in Portsmouth, NH and Beach Plum for what I personally think are the best lobster rolls anywhere. Be prepared for sticker shock, but those babies are JAMMED with lobster, totally delicious. We'll drive the two hours on a Saturday and bring a cooler - just sayin'... Smutty's new location is tremendous (they are optimistic that the restaurant will open this month(ish), but it looked nowhere near completed). The brewery is beautiful and the tour/tasting are top shelf. Interesting comparison/contrast to Allagash - we did both about a week ago. Equally impressive, but quite different approaches to brewing.

When Pigs Fly - totally worth the detour IMHO just for the damned pizza...or the house-made charcuterie...and the tap list is definitely great. Just north of the Kittery Trading Post/mall outlets mess on Rt. 1 is where we stop.

Ogunquit could also be a cool diversion if you want to get away from the beer scene for a bit (but Tully's is just a little north of Ogunquit). If you just go Rt.1, you go through town and would say WTF... Shore Road loops through the beach/coastal area. About 45-ish minutes out of Portland by the back roads or the slab. My wife and I love it there - pretty cool vibe (I guess you could even say <gasp> sort of "romantic"), pretty beach, cool shops, and the Marginal Way is a beautiful walk. Parking can be a challenge, but things should be winding down from summer season. Oddly quiet for a tourist area. We were there Labor Day week and it was crowded but somehow not obnoxious. Cornerstone is probably the best beer option and they too have great pizza. Couple appetizers (the Manchego meatballs rock) and a pie, small but pretty strong beer list. Caveat - I don't know if they are year 'round since they are kinda open air. A little pricey depending on food choice.

I forget how far Maine Beer Co. is from Portland driving time - we wanted to go there, so it didn't matter and the part of my brain that pays attention to details like that was shut down. Tour - maybe not worth it if you've seen an Allagash or Smutty, but tasting options are righteous. There's plenty in Portland to enjoy, though.

Get your Maine Brewery passport thingey - good way to keep track if nothing else.

 

The list by @dantonbrown is about as perfect as it gets. I would only add Hunt & Alpine is a must if you like handmade cocktails. Also, Portland does brunch right, so be sure to go somewhere at least one day. Popular places include Hot Suppa, Local 188, Central Provisions (also great for dinner) and many more. You can't go wrong.

As for planning, I suggest going over to Allagash mid-day on Saturday. You can get a free tasting there and across the way are Bissell, Foundation and Austin Street. You can get small pours there for real cheap and make a good day out of it. From there, head back into town with a stop at Bier Cellar to fill your beer-buying needs, park your car and get a bit at In'finiti while trying some of their various beers.

A warning on Slab from someone who grew up in the NYC area, the pizza is good but it just doesn't stand up to the stuff you can get every day in the region. If you like crispy pizza that you can fold in half, Slab might not be your bag. If you like doughy pizza, then it is worth a stop. A better option, in my opinion, is Flatbread where you can eat along the water and eat some brick oven pizza.

Finally, check Beer This Week before you head up. It is a new newsletter with a collection of the beer related events happening in the city and what is being poured at the breweries.

 

/Agreed

Brunch wise I would add Piccolo and Bintliff's. Pizza wise you can't go wrong with Otto's either

 

A group of Portland friends and I are doing a Kittery Krawl this weekend - I'll report back with our findings!

 

Niice... excited to make it down there one weekend to finally check out Tributary Brewing

 

I had brunch at Hot Suppa last time I was in Portland (a few months ago) and loved it.

 

Definitely need to add Salvage BBQ in Portland (amazing BBQ and tap list), and Anjou in Kittery (chef from Black Birch started his own ramen bar/ PORK BUNS!!! Only 2 taps but its Oxbow and Bissell)

 

The write up above is top shelf. I just got back from Portland myself. I would definately take a walk down to Rising Tide/Urban Farm/Bunker; they're all within a 5 minute walk from each other. Next to Rising Tide is also Maine Craft Distillery which is worth checking out.

Old Port area has tons of places in walking distance form each other so you'll be fine.

 

All good suggestions so far. Definitely hit up Maine Beer Company in Freeport, which is about a 15min drive north on 295. Best hoppy American ales in the state. I would also add Sebago Brewing Co. to the list. I think they are putting out some great beer lately, especially Hop Swap-- get this beer while you can, it's one of the best Maine-brewed IPAs. It puts the Substance to shame. Sebago's food is nothing to write home about, and I would probably eat elsewhere, but the beer is quite solid and fairly priced.

Oh, and Crowbar on Munjoy Hill if you want some local flavor. This beer-only, cash-only, hole-in-the-wall saloon always has six fresh taps, and often limited Allagash stuff. They do a great $4 happy hour every day from 4-6pm. One of my favorite all-time bars.

 

I notice that no one has mentioned the King's Head Pub (254 Commercial St., Portland), which was opened this year by the former owner of the Blackback Pub (Waterbury, VT). I haven't been there yet, but it's getting very solid reviews on BA. Tap list looks solid.

 

Great info here! Out of curiosity, how much do bottles of Cantillon run at Novare Res Bier Cafe?

 

It varies, not sure what they have in stock at the moment. I've shared a bottle of Fou Foune there for $60, but that was awhile ago. I'm heading there tomorrow for a MBC tap takeover, if I remember I'll take a picture of the menu and post it.

 

Thanks!