Notch Brewing (2018)

Looking like Jan of next year. We are deep into the licensing approval process, but NH is a unique state to get approval.

 

It sure is! Sounds great though, will keep an eye and ear out.

 

I stopped in to the brewery on Saturday and had a great experience. Vincent (dark mild) and the Zwickel were both excellent and criminally under-represented styles. Served with full pours even. I took home a crowler of each. I really wish Notch was one of my locals.
Not a knock on the brewery but getting into and out of Salem in October is atrocious.

 

Except in October, heading there on a Saturday shouldn't be too difficult. There's always traffic around the area, but it's not too shabby on a regular Saturday.

You should head there in November, should be easier...also, NERAX will be there in November...which I know you're a fan of.

I've had the Zwickel on tap outside of the brewery, it was fantastic. I hope it's on when I visit in November.

 

I love Notch's location. Right on the water, surrounded by good restaurants, a 10 minute walk to the train station and the ferry to Boston is even closer than that.

 

Thanks for the info on how close the tap room is to the Ferry Landing in Salem- I now have no excuse not to go and can probably convince the wife and child by saying we can "go for a boat ride".

And as far as mix packs go - I just buy a 6pack each of Saison, Pils, Infinite Jest, and LOTD, Bingo, mixed case! (swapping out the Saison for Cerne when available).

 

Just wanted to bump this thread to say that Notch is absolutely killing their hoppy ales right now (and perhaps have been for some time, but this is my first visit in a while). Their canned session IPA is a good beer, but it does feel to me like a "session IPA" per se, which is not my favorite style.

The ones they have on tap now are more like Whirpool or Eureka. They seem to be offering a rotation of the same beer with different hops, and I had the citra and el dorado versions. If someone gave it to you blind I can't imagine you'd ever guess it was a 4% abv beer.

Even if you're not a german beer enthusiast it's absolutely worth a trip. Although if you're one of those people who are not enamored with dogs and kids you should probably stay away from the back patio because it was basically a petting zoo with beer

 

Notch has long been one of my favorite breweries in MA (Happy 7th!) and many of their beers are staples in my fridge. Lately though, they are just exploding with great new beers (just had Teenage Riot on draft, excellent!) I know they resisted the IPA craze a bit at the beginning, but it's yet another style that they just nail. I never think of any of these beers as "session" but it's an added bonus. Stopped into Cambridge1 yesterday afternoon and the Left of the Dial kicked at my order and was treated to a fresh keg......just delicious.

 

Does anyone know if they date their cans or more importantly the box they come in?
I was going to grab some, but couldn't find a date and didn't know how long they'd been sitting there. Thanks in advance.

 

Assuming nothing's changed recently, IIRC there's typically a small bottling date stamped along one of the longer edges of the box (as well as stamps on the bottoms of the cans themselves).

 

I hear they recently launched in NH with events in Portsmouth and Dover. Anyone see them in stores yet?

 

Huh, I didn't even know they weren't in NH. My buddy lives in Dover, I could ask him if he's seen distribution yet.

 

Hey -

We did just launch NH this week w/ Bayside Dist. We're focusing on the Seacoast before going with the whole state. We're starting with Pils, Left of the Dial, and Infinite Jest in both draft and 4/6, 2/12 packaging. Right now you should be able to find draft at both Thirsty Moose locations as well as Row 34 and the Brick House and Black Trumpet. Next week you should hopefully see us at the Rusty Hammer, Portsmouth Brewery, Franklin Oyster, Fed Cigar, and others. Far as packies go, Garys, The City, Prost, Market Basket (probably in a week or so) and a bunch more as we get things moving and spend more time working the market.

We have another round of events next Thursday in Portsmouth starting at Earth Eagle from 5-7 followed by Fat Bellys from 7-9.

If there are other spots you think we might be a good fit let me know!

 

also forgot, Greg & Janes in Epping.

 

Thinking about a trip out to Salem from Boston this weekend with Notch being the main attraction but wanted to ask about recommendations for other breweries/bars/restaurants etc. in the area. Thanks!

 

Gentile brewing in Beverly is great.
Gulu Gulu Cafe has a great taplist.
I can't keep up with all the new restaurants in Salem but there are many great spots to eat. Pizza, Asian, etc.

 

1st time up at their actual brewery on a cloudy overcast day with beers and pretzels.
The smoked wheat (Grodziskie, only on tap) is just fantastic!

 

Just came across a fairly ho-hum article at Boston.com titled "6 Massachusetts beers to drink right now":

https://www.boston.com/culture/beer/2017/08/22/6-massachusetts-beers-to-drink-right-now

But it had one very interesting tidbit buried within: 16 ounce cans of Notch's zwickle coming this fall! I shall be all over that.

 

Hell yes.
Coincidentally, I just came across this recent podcast interview with Chris Lorhing - it's a good listen. Chris is one of the few brewers I enjoy reading/listening to interviews of.
http://goodbeerhunting.com/gbh-podcast/2017/8/2/ep-134-chris-lohring-of-notch-brewing-co

 

Visited a few weeks ago & Chris graciously gave my buddy & I a quick tour of the brew house. Very knowledgeable about the NE brewing scene - passionate & skilled brewer as well. A pils off the Czech-style tap was almost worth the visit itself.

Disappointed that Saison didn't make an appearance this summer, but Chris said it didn't sell well (biz decision which I can respect) - but will be @ the taproom soon.

Strong suggestion to visit if you haven't already.