This may seem like a pretty open ended and random request but I'm hoping some of you fine NE folks can help out. I've got a buddy going on a golf trip to NE this weekend (leaves Friday). He's into beer, but not REALLY into it like some of us are. He told me to let him know what to bring back but I'm not exactly familiar with what will be easily available to him and/or what breweries he might be in the vicinity of on his travels. He's landing in Boston, then going around to the following golf courses (in order): The Ledges (York, Maine), Country Club of New Hampshire (North Sutton), The Golf Club at The Equinox (Manchester, VT), Shennecossett (Groton, CT), and Newport National Golf Club (Middletown, RI) before heading back out of Boston. It doesn't look like he'll have any chance to hit places like Treehouse or Hill Farmstead based on his schedule, but what local stuff can he find at bottle shops or breweries that might be in those areas? I don't know if things like Heady, SoS, or Trillium are available at certain stores or not...or perhaps even better, other breweries that might now be on our radar that he can pick up stuff from.
This won't help with bottle shops but this site is pretty useful in finding breweries. http://www.brewerymap.com/
If he is going to be in Boston he can always go to Trillium. They always have a done of bottles available for take out. Night Shift is also in Boston. Heady and SoS will require some searching and effort.
Thanks - I figured as much about Heady & SoS, which probably means he won't get any since he's really focused on golf. Thanks for the tip on Night Shift - do they bottle/can at all?
I'd think he could find some Foley Bros. brews while in Manchester, VT. I don't know of a specific store in that area though. Heady and SoS in VT would take some effort, timing, line waiting this time of year. Tell him to also look our for Frost Beer Works bottles, Jack's Abbey, Lost Nation, Hermit Thrush cans (not too far in Brattleboro). Groton CT will be pretty close to Beer'd in Stonington and Grey Sail in Westerly RI.
Well, on the way from RI back to Boston, he'll likely be able to stop at Yankee Spirits in Attleboro, they have Trillium bombers and Night Shift brews. Also some Castle Island stuff, which I recommend. There's no way he shouldn't be able to stop at Trillium's Canton location - it's right near where 95 and 93 intersect, so he'll be going past it driving up from RI. Honestly, that's probably more worthwhile than stopping at a shop. And that's only about a 5 minute drive away from Castle Island's brewery - check their website, if they have Big Ern or Causeway it's well, well, well worth it. Heady you need to scout out where they're delivering on a particular day - headyspotter.com will do that for you - and the same with SoS, at https://www.lawsonsfinest.com/find-our-beer/ Both of those sell out within a few hours of getting delivery, usually, so he will need to hit those shops day of. Good news is, any shop in VT that receives Heady/Sip will also have nice selections of Maine Beer Co. and Foley Bros., and if you're SUPER lucky some Fiddlehead. Manchester is way far away from the parts of VT that I go to, so unfortunately I don't have any good suggestions for bottle shops near there. Looks like everywhere Lawson's distributes is at least an hour and a half drive from Manchester, so you might be out of luck there.
You need to get some Night Shift. They can their hoppy stuff - Santilli IPA, Whirlpool APA, Morph IPA and The 87 DIPA - along with some of their interesting non-hops beers like Furth (hefe). They also do bombers of their farmhouse ales and sours, all of which are more or less seasonal. I'd recommend the canned hops - Whirlpool is a massively crushable and delicious pale ale. They hit the local distro - any Craft Beer Cellar, or Yankee Spirits - but the NS brewery is only a ten minute drive north of Boston in Everett.
I'd hit up Trillium in Boston (located on Congress St and very close to the airport) after landing and stock up. Also, right next door is Fort Point market which has a great selection of beers. He could also try Row 34 (on the other side of Trillium) for a top-notch draft list and seafood if he's hungry after the flight. Lawson's does distribute SoS and Super Session #2 in CT. However, getting any would just be plain old luck. Package stores will typically keep their allotment in the back and you'll have to walk in and ask for it (I'd ask for G-bot from New England Brewing Company as well). If they do have it, at most you would be getting a 4 pack of SoS but often they will only give you 2 cans. After his round in Groton, I'd go to Beer'd in Stonington (probably about 25 minutes and on the way to RI) and then Grey Sail Brewing and Proclamation Ales in RI. I believe RI has a limit of only 72 ounces per person when buying from a brewery though.
In Boston there are a number of stores now that stock Trillium. They are listed on the brewery website. You may be able to find Night Shift cans at some of these spots, depending on delivery day, as well as other locals like Castle Island and Mystic. If you buddy is looking for a good golf beer he should pick up some Notch session ales. His best best to find something interesting on the way to York is to stop at the Kittery 7-11 https://www.facebook.com/7ElevenKittery32530/ Out in that part of Vermont you won't find Heady or SOS but Foley Brothers is in the vicinity, as well as Hermit Thrush. On what I presume will be his trip from Manchester to Groton he could stop in at Bldg 8 in Northampton, folks have been saying good stuff about their IPA for some time now. I don't know a lot about CT beer but Beer'd is not far from Groton and i think New England Brewing's Sea Hag can be found with minimal effort.
Thanks for all the responses thus far. It's good to get the reality check of what to expect on Heady/SoS, but even more valuable is finding about some of the other breweries that we aren't familiar with out here.
Not to sidetrack the conversation, but I got some BLDG 8 cans a few weeks ago and was very underwhelmed. Good call on NEBCo. Also, you sort of reminded me that Lawson's distributes to CT now, but they don't list the stores they distribute to on their finder. Someone may have insight into where you can get Sip in CT, but that someone ain't me unfortunately. Also, while in RI if lucky you could find some Grey Sail Captain's Daughter. Highly-rated DIPA. I don't love it, but a lot of folks do.
It looks like Meuleman's Craft Draught store, 22 mins away from Manchester, may be your best regional store option in Vermont. Their website, http://www.craftdraughts.com/beer.html, has a nicely updated beer list. I'd recommend any available Foley Bros., Burlington Beer Co cans and bottles, Roaring Brook Sharkbite, Switchback Citra Pils, and 14th Star Tribute. Also, Hermit Thrush focuses nearly exclusively on sours, and while they're great, they are VERY sour and not very cheap. You may want to avoid those if on a fixed budget.
Thanks - your comment on Switchback reminded me of a beer I had when at Stowe 8 or so years ago with some friends and remember having something from Switchback that I loved. At the time, I wasn't all into craft beer, but remember looking them up afterwards and finding that they stick to VT and thought it was keg only. Do they bottle/can their beer?
Yes, they bottle the brews. Should be able to find a few options. They had some in the gas station I stopped in this morning in VT. I think they are widespread in the state.
Switchback Ale now comes in bombers and 6 packs of adorably stubby shaped 12 oz bottles! It used to be draft only for a long time. If you liked it then, definitely look into grabbing some of the classic- it hasn't changed at all but still tastes great. The new Extra Pale Ale is also amazing.
