Aeronaut Brewing

I think the brewery space is the highlight...worth a round just to check it out. Kind of a cool culmination of its environment. Lots of startup/tech/entreprenurial vibes...so depending on your profession you might enjoy it for that alone. The beers that I have had from them have all been decent. Dr. Nandu is good and fills a gap in the Boston IPA scene. As far as local beers I would put Trillium and Mystic as the must visits followed by Lamplighter and Nightshift. Jack's Abby is a must visit too but not near the city proper.

 

my vote - yes - they have been stepping up their NE IPA game lately w 2X Hop Hop and it's located in the hip Union Sq area. Very funky hipster crowd which makes for some mean people watching. Down the street are a bunch of good restaurants including Bronwyn -- a hip German/Eastern European place w/great tap list and some killer food.

 

It's more worth visiting for what's near it and the environment that it is for the beer. I'd second NS, Jacks Abby and Mystic as being higher priority beer-wise, and add Idle Hands as well.

 

Depending on time, I would swing by CBC instead of Aeronaut.

CBC has an outdoor patio which Aeronaut doesn't, and they do a much wider variety of styles than Aeronaut does. You'll get similar stuff at Aeronaut as you will at Lamplighter. Not a knock on either, but CBC simply has a wider portfolio.

Not to mention the Smokeshop is connected to it and has killer BBQ. There's also a Tiki bar outside in that plaza. And Lord Hobo (the bar, not the brewery) is in between Lamplighter and CBC.

 

Second CBC. Do you like very well made beer available in many styles sold at a good price in a great location with a lovely patio and good food? Then go to Cambridge Brewing.

 

I feel like Aeronaut has variety (well maybe not ATM looking at the current tap list) but i never hear about any of the new beers they have. I'm subscribed to their newsletter and follow them on twitter but all they post about are their events and new cans, which are typically IPAs. I would definitely suggest CBC over them, and they're a lot closer to lamplighter.

 

Where is the disconnect between folks' appreciation for CBC in this thread (and the site) and the unimpressive beer ratings? I often have to ignore ratings for lambics/sours as people rate them poorly who simply don't like the style rather than on a relative basis. However, the pilsner and IPA ratings for CBC are really lackluster. Lamplighter, as a neighborhood contrast, has some highly rated stuff in the IPA realm, plus has some sours in cans (which is a summer-must).

However, if Smokeshop is in the mix, that can change everything. Best pulled pork I have had in the area.

 

https://newenglandipas.com/blogs/main/could-this-be-the-future-of-beer-releases

Could This Be The Future Of Beer Releases?
August 20, 2017

This week, Aeronaut announced the second ever canning of its highly sought after DIPA, Double Hop Hop. Aeronaut, is an up and coming brewery based in Somerville, MA. We’ll cover their brewery in another post, but for now just know that they have one of the coolest spots in Massachusetts. We’ve been eager to get our hands on some cans from them for awhile now. Luckily, while prowling Instagram we saw their post about the second batch of Double Hop Hop. This release, however, would be different.

“Our second-ever batch gets canned fresh out of the fermenters tomorrow! To get your hands on it this time around we created an online reservation system…”

So, we followed the link in their bio which brought us to Eventbrite —the well known ticket app. There, they laid out the conditions of limiting each person to just 2 4-packs and pickup time starting at 3 PM Friday. We bought 1 ticket, which equaled the cost of 1 four pack ($18). Once we had our beer reserved, we were free to pick it up at any time/day after 3pm Friday. Being the impatient beer fans that we are, we strolled in on Friday. The process was fantastic. There was barely a line and when we approached the counter, the staff member scanned the QR code right off our iPhone and handed us the beer. Boom, done.

The process was so quick, seamless, and efficient, it begs the question: Is this the future of buying limited release beer? We’d personally love to see breweries adapt this process. It would eliminate the frustrating situation of arriving at a brewery, only to find a mile long line or that they were sold out entirely. We'll have to wait and see, but for now, kudos to Aeronaut for thinking outside of the box and embracing an innovative new idea.

 

I think since CBC hasn't really delved into the New England style IPA realm (except for the tongue in cheek DDH TTPA, sort of), they miss out on the excitement with which fans of that style rate beers. Lamplighter, on the other hand, has really embraced that style of IPA.

As a huge fan of CBC, that's actually fine by me as New England style IPAs are pretty ubiquitous these days and I'm having a harder and harder time distinguishing them from each other (as long as they've reached a certain threshold of quality).

The other beers that seem to get lots of love in the ratings are mouth-puckering sours and bourbon barrel-aged imperial stouts. CBC's sours and wilds tend to be less sour than others and have a funkier and more complex flavor profile. The only bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout they really do is YouEnjoyMyStout (which I do like).

When I go to CBC, I tend to order beers from a diverse array of styles (not usually IPAs) since they always nail it and finding other great local examples of those styles can be difficult. For example, last time I was there, I had a helles lager, a grisette, a dry-hopped session sour, and a wine barrel-aged barleywine.

 

I agree that in many cases, subtlety has not been rewarded, so your points make sense. I agree that there are many makers of NE-IPAs, but I would still argue that you could go into 10 stores on a Monday and not find a single acceptable NE-IPA. On another of your points, I certainly wouldn't want to bet my life (or even small $ amounts) that I can blindly identify beers among the better NEIPA producers. The other day, I was pretty sure that Nothing Gold and Alter Ego were the same beer (didn't have them together). So, on the one hand, I get the appeal of CBC 100%, on the other hand, if someone is coming to town and targeting TH and Trillium, I'm not sure the somewhat constant recommendation of CBC of a 'must visit' makes any sense. However, based on your comments, the next time I am in Kendall, I am now compelled to make a stop. I'm trying really hard to stop my cloudy beer chasing. This summer, a dry-hopped sour was at the top of my list...

 

The one at CBC is No Pulp. 4.5% abv kettle sour dry hopped with Mandarina Bavaria. Was quite refreshing and drinkable.

And yeah, sometimes I'll drop into one of my regular craft beer stores and there won't be any NE IPAs, but I feel that often they'll at least have Stoneface Full Clip, Idle Hands Four Seam, Night Shift One Hop (possibly Morph as well), an Exhibit A IPA, a Lamplighter IPA, a SingleCut IPA, a Finback IPA, etc. Failing that, if I really need to scratch that itch, I can often find Wachusett Wally. Haven't tried Ipswich 1620 yet, but looks like it's in a similar vein. And now Aeronaut Double Hop Hop is hitting shelves. And then of course, I can always go direct to breweries for NE IPAs (Trillium, Springdale, Mystic, Night Shift, Lamplighter, Exhibit A, Idle Hands, etc.).

Definitely agree that if someone is coming to town and eager to immerse themselves in NE IPAs, CBC is probably not for them. I was just addressing the question about the relatively lower beer ratings. If someone is looking more generally for a great local brewery with a broad selection of expertly brewed styles set in a nice location with great food and atmosphere, then CBC ticks those boxes.

 

Just tell them this:
http://www.cambridgebrewingcompany.com/brewmaster-will-wins-russell-schehrer-award/

 

I think the fact that CBC predates the craft resurgence doesn't help as far as people really yearning to go. Nowadays it's all about the new latest and greatest. As great as they are they don't have the pull they would have I'd they were the new thing.

They also don't brew tons of the sexy styles. What they do brew in them are off the charts. I would out thier sours up against anyone's. YEMS is the low-key value BA stout of my dreams. The IPAs are solid but not on the fashionable style.

Ratings seem to ride lower at brewpubs overall too.

 

I almost got in on the eventbrite to purchase the cans but eventually passed since I doubted I could fit it into my weekend. Was surprised that I was able to find a few 4 packs at Yankee Attleboro yesterday which was a win.

Count me as someone who likes their idea of releases.

 

I like the idea too, and it sounds like it works out really well...until you have a hyped up release.

Maine Beer Co. does something similar with Dinner but tickets sell out online incredibly fast.

Regardless, this is definitely better than releasing a popular beer at the brewery in a free-for-all.

 

I recently visited Boston and since I was with two young children and a pregnant wife I had to prioritize...

got stuff to go at Trillium Fort Point location instead of going to Canton

the only two breweries I visited and had drinks at were Night Shift and Mystic...wanted to try a variety of things at Night Shift not available in cans and take some cans to go as well (they sell singles now)

for other places in the area I wanted to check out (Aeronaut, Exhibit A, etc.) my plan was to drop in Fort Point Market (basically right next door to Trillium) and grab some singles

I did get a few singles of Aeronaut cans but forgot about Exhibit A while I was there

 

This....

 

It's a good question and I think that there are several reasons, some of which have already been outlined by others. I personally feel they make some phenomenal beers that are subtle and not necessarily in the sexiest of styles. I don't think that they've made a true New England IPA to date. They've done variants of YouEnjoyMyStout, but those have been very (surprise surprise) subtle. Will might give me shit for this, but I honestly can't remember the last time I had a Remain In Light or a Flower Child. I really do like Flower Child, but when I'm at the brewpub, I want something on draft.

To side track for a second and give examples of beers I liked, they have a Helles on draft that I have to order one of every time I'm there. I feel compelled to do the same when Cerise is on draft. They had a Belgian IPA a while ago that was as good and hoppy as some of the American styles but people probably wouldn't touch due to the Belgian yeast. I would be drinking a lot more of that Hefeweizen were it not for the Helles or my desire to try new things.

That's one of the other key aspects of it. A lot of the ever evolving beers at the brewpub are draft only and don't get out to distribution. People's impression of them is going to be from those cans and possibly their very reasonably priced bottles. RiL and FC, while good beers, aren't "earth shattering" in the current craft beer landscape. They're not the beers that persuade people to visit the brewpub. With the Mystic bottling program, it feels like they're releasing some of the stuff that's been draft only forever, like the barleywines and sours, and those are the beers that I feel will wow people. Picture of Nectar is in distribution now and definitely worth checking out.

Then you have the fact that they are a brewpub. The menu is always changing, so how many people are going to go there for beers and review them. I feel like a lot of "reviews" on BA involve taking the time to write something out, which isn't necessarily what you're doing at a brewpub when you're most likely with friends or family. They only brew so much of some beers and those beers only last so long. They're not going to be reviewed by enough people. They're not going to be on BA lists.

Location is an issue I'm not sure gets brought up enough. While a lot of people do live in the city. Kendall is kind of isolated without a lot of free parking. Driving through Cambridge, something I do every day, is a pain. I think that kind of isolates it a little versus a place that actually has parking like Night Shift. Again, it's not trendy like Lamplighter (whose beer I genuinely enjoy) and going to garner lines on Friday and Saturday nights. If I didn't live close by, I'm not sure I'd go nearly as much as I do.

CBC has been around forever. They're going to celebrate 30 years in a couple years. It's a time honored brewpub. They've been doing all sorts of beers forever. Their portfolio is as diverse as it comes. They make the best barleywines in the state. Their sour program is so much better than everyone else's in the state. Go to a sourfest or a barleywine fest and get blown away. Additionally, Will knows what he's doing and he imparts his knowledge and curiosity on his disciples. There's a reason that many CBC alums have gone on to do produced great beer on their own (see: Honest Weight, Wormtown, Enlightenment to name a few). CBC is an institution to me.

CBC is one of my locals. I go there frequently, so I'm replying because I feel compelled to vouch for them. I don't think I've said anything ground breaking here. I also don't think a 3.97 beer average is unimpressive.

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To add and to get this thread back on subject - has anyone seen freshies of Aeronaut's pilsner around? I still haven't had it and would like to try it.