Boston to Burlington

A few of my favorite stops in between - hit ‘em coming or going -River Roost Brewery in White River Junction for samplers and growlers - if you like juicy beers - these guys are at the top of the mountain; Worthy Burger for amazing wood fired burgers and great tap list in S. Royalton; Montpellier for 3 Penny Tap Room and Hunger Mountain (think Whole Foods but mostly VT stuff); Waterbury for the Tri-Fecta of pubs; Beer Celler for bottles and cans and Hen of the Wood for dinner (must make reservation - this is my #1 on the list - incredible farms to table food/local cheeses and HT on tap- a really unique and special VT experience); Stowe for Alchemist and eat at Doc Ponds (same owners as Hen of the Wood).

 

I did something similar last year (and actually doing something similar this coming year) but with a few more days. If you are looking to get cans home, I'd recommend Trillium Congress street shortly after landing (it's pretty close to the airport). From there, decide if you want to go to Burlington or HF. If Burlington, check to see if Fiddlehead has anything worth picking up then hit them up on the way. In Burlington definitely hit up Foam for beers and Farmhouse for food (my favorite breakfast place there was Pennyclause if you're going to be around for Breakfast). On the way to HF definitely go by way of Waterbury (Blackback, Pro Pig, Beer Cellar) and Stowe (Alchemist and Doc Ponds). If you decide to go to Stowe out of Boston, hit up Nightshift brewing just outside of Boston, if not hit them up on the way back in to town. Seek out Frost Beer Works and Foley Brothers when in Vermont.

 

Doing this trip next month. Going to hit up trillium and lamplighter. Leave Boston Saturday morning hit up Parker pie the going to hill farmstead. Staying in Waterbury. On Sunday going to do fiddle and foam thenfly back to the cle

 

Are there any other breweries you'd particularly like to go to? How many days do you want to spend in Burlington? What days of the week are you going? Do you want to minimize your time driving or do you not care? There's a ton of good ways to do this trip (especially since you're including HF from the jump), it just depends on your preferences.

 

Personally I'd probably go up 93 to Littleton NH on Thursday, spend the night there (stay in town, go to Schilling for beers/dinner), then spend Friday traversing from Littleton to Burlington with stops at HF, Alchemist, Lost Nation, any of the Waterbury stops, etc, and then have Friday night/Saturday for exploring Burlington.

Alternatively, head to Tree House on Thursday, then go up 91 to stay in Waterbury or Montpelier. Then Friday you're headed to HF, then all the back back to Waterbury and onto Burlington. There's a few more high profile stops if you go this way, personally I favor the 93 route because it's a little more direct, a little less driving, and there's still more good beer and good food than you can possibly consume along the way.

 

I stopped by River Roost and had some delicious BBQ right next door at Fatty's. Definately a first stop on the way from Boston IMO.

I also went to Foam which has a nice, small taproom. They had a can release the next monringand maybe you will luck out as well. I had the best BBQ pork crepe at the skinny pancake and would highly recommend that as well.

The drive to HF is a bit scary during mud season so be carreful.

 

Highly recommend the Hotel VT in Burlington if your budget can support - they have a nicely stocked bar w the big boys on tap/cans — and the beer concierge will take care of you when you arrive — this was from a few years ago. I was pretty pumped.

 

Lots of good suggestions above. In addition I'd highly recommend:

Burlington Beer Co - Williston
Archives - Burlington
The Parlor at the Farm House Tap and Grill - Burlington
4 Quarters - Winooski

 

I was also going to suggest Littleton, since the OP doesn't seem to be looking for the most direct route. There are few drives in New England more stunning than the ride up I-93 through Franconia Notch. You can stop for a quick hike to the Flume Gorge (or stop for more series hikes) in Franconia Notch, or just enjoy the scenery passing through--either way, Littleton is about 15-20 minutes north of the Notch.

I'd recommend staying at the Beal House Inn, which is comfortable and about a 5 minute walk from Schilling. There's nowhere quite like Schilling in New England--the types of beers they brew (which in my experience have all been very good to excellent), and the setting (a 200-year-old grist mill next to a covered bridge, with outdoor seating overlooking the river below) are truly unique and well worth a visit. Littleton is also a fun town to spend a bit of time in before heading west to Vermont--it has some nice shops, and feels more laidback and funky to me than some of the other mountain towns like Stowe or North Conway.

 

We have some time to kill before our conference on Monday this weekend coming up...
So our plan is to stay outside Worcester, MA Friday night. It's free, and my buddy's in-laws. Brownie points for him and free for both. Then head up to Pro Pig Saturday am. They have the old brewing equipment from RAR in Cambridge, MD...and we are delivering goodies from the RAR boys. Have some lunch, grab some brews, check out the shop across the street for Lawson's, then hit Alchemist. On the way back into Burlington, hit Ben & Jerry's (have to!) and swing by Burlington Beer Co. Maybe hit Foam, but they are having their Aniv. party, so kinda want to steer clear. Maybe hit Frost and Fiddlehead, then grab food at American Flatbread which has Zero Gravity brewing inside. This could be altered when they actually release the second round hockey schedule. Maybe...

And on our way out, we're hitting Tree House at lunchtime on Wednesday. Should be a good trip.

 

This is a clutch itinerary. Beware that Flatbread/Zero Grav downtown is a nuthouse on Saturday. Another way to do it would be having pizza at Folino's (next door to Fiddlehead) and then visiting the Pine Street Zero Gravity location. You can buy growlers/cans at Fiddlhead and bring them right over to Folino's for BYOB consumption (they have EXCELLENT pizza; it's on par with Flatbread)... they even have pint glasses to use. Honestly, I try avoiding downtown Burlington on the weekends as much as possible.

 

Awesome. Thanks for the heads up. That might be a solid re-work to the schedule.
(Does Folino's have tv's? I know American Flatbread doesn't...or didn't)

 

IIRC - They have a single muted TV that is like a direct feed to this non profit organization doing volunteer work in a 3rd world country. Welcome to Vermont. Flatbread doesn't either. I assume you want to watch a sports event. Unfortunately, there's inverse relationship around here where quality of food declines when amount of TVs increases. A few notable exceptions:

• Reservoir in Waterbury
• On Tap in Essex Jct
• Barnyard in S. Burlington is solid but unspectacular
• McGillicuddy's in Williston has a SICK tap list... food just okay though. It's where to go when you want a 23oz pour of HF for like $8.

 

Not sure about tv’s but folino’s also has a downtown location next to city market, also byob.

 

I’d also consider checking out Blackback pub across from Pro Pig. Great spot.

 

Cool. It's all dependent upon the caps-pens game, when they decide to finally release the schedule. No game sat night, no problem. Unplug and enjoy the other VT.

 

Highly recommend visiting Armsby Abby while in the Worcester area - one of the best tap lists in MA and excellent farm-to-table menu.

 

Very true. Wormtown is worth a visit as well: http://wormtownbrewery.com/

And on the topic of sports bars: watched a football game at Brew City last time I visited friends in Worcester. Would highly recommend: http://www.brew-city.com/