Harpoon Brewery Tour
August 4, 2010 by Parker
Filed under Brewery Profiles, Brewery Tours
Welcome to Harpoon Boston!
Living in South Boston has many advantages. There’s the beaches, the close proximity to Downtown Boston and the waterfront, among others. All of that is great, but I have to say the hands-down best thing about living in South Boston is Harpoon Brewery.
Many Bostonians are familiar with the various Harpoon Festivals throughout the year, such as the October and Harpoon St. Patrick’s day Festivals, but few are aware of what else goes on at 306 Northern Avenue in South Boston. Here, Harpoon hosts many exclusive “friends of Harpoon” tasting events, beer dinners and brewery tours.
The Harpoon Brewery Tour is hands-down the best brewery tour that I have ever been on. Period. Sorry Sam Adams, Shipyard and Redhook, Harpoon has outdone you all.
Beer holder. Mmm.
What makes the Harpoon Brewery Tour so great? No, it’s not the 25-minute open bar at the end of the tour (that helps), but it’s the overall package. The tour starts out like any other, with every other tour guide yelling his tired and rehearsed jokes loud enough so all of the eager out-of-towners in the group can hear. He shows you the goods, all of the storage containers and then talks about hops, malts, barley, WORT and blah, blah, blah.
What makes this tour so special is that the tour guides (two of them switch off) actually like what they are doing. All too often brewery tours are hosted by no-personality robots who act as if they are performing a chore rather than a hobby. At Harpoon, the guides are enthusiastic enough without being annoying or fake, productive enough to ensure that the tour lasts 20-25 min (before tasting) and doesn’t bore the regulars and most importantly, they are unpretentious and real enough where you don’t feel “stupid” when asking a question about unfiltering, UFO beers and so on.
"Green" IPA
Speaking of unfiltered beers, another one of the highlights of the Harpoon Brewery Tour has to do with an unfiltered beer that is not part of Harpoon’s UFO line – the IPA. Yes, Harpoon’s flagship beer, the Harpoon IPA is sampled during the tour as a “green” beer. No, this isn’t their attempt at a Peak Organic IPA, this is Harpoon IPA before filtering, straight from the source in it’s fermentation stage.
This was definitely one of the highlights of the tour, but not the last. A walk through the brewery past cases upon cases of Harpoon, ready to be distributed led into a explanation of the Brewery’s history, and being granted the brewers license #001 in Massachusetts, and battling neck and neck with Magic Hat as New England’s #1 and #2 brewer (Sam Adams doesn’t brew in Boston). Great stories overall, which actually kept you entertained the whole time through.
Beer Tasting and Gift Shop
This leads us to the end of the tour, about 20-25 minutes, as promised, after the tour began. As you can imagine, the ending has us in a tasting room. The Harpoon Brewery tasting room is actually a small bar in the middle of it’s gift shop. With two bartenders behind the bar and a brief introduction of all the beer on tap (about 6 including 100 barrel series and Leviathan), our 2 ounce glasses are continuously attended to.
After the tasting is over (about 20 minutes long), you have a great understanding of Harpoon’s beers and a great glow to go along with it. This is great marketing on Harpoon’s part, as you are then released into the gift shop feeling as happy as ever.
Growler Koozies
If you do end up spending money after the Harpoon Brewery Tour, be sure to splurge on a growler and a growler koozie to go along with it. Simply brilliant, and perfect for a afternoon trek back to Southie.
Harpoon Brewery Tour Information:
Saturday – 11:30-5pm (every half-hour)
Sunday – 12-3pm (on the hour)
For more information visit harpoonbrewery.com
Hophead Throwdown at The Publick House & Monk’s Cell in Brookline
July 29, 2010 by Parker
Filed under News and Events
If hops are your thing, as they should be, you should be at The Publick House, Saturday, July 31th, for Hophead Throwdown.
For more information visit http://www.eatgoodfooddrinkbetterbeer.com
Narragansett Introduces Limited-Edition Tallboy Can
July 20, 2010 by Parker
Filed under News and Events
Beer of the Clam
Like it or love it, New England’s Narragansett Beer, the official “Beer of the Clam,” is ready to toast off the summer season with the release of a new, limited-edition Tallboy can and a bunch of events to toast to at some of the region’s top seafood joints and clam shacks. The events will feature specialty menus, entertainment, contests, promotions, and of course, plenty of Narragansett!
For full schedule of events, ticket pricing and availability, please visit: http://www.narragansettbeer.com/events
Dogfish Head Beer Tasting at Morton’s Seaport
July 12, 2010 by Parker
Filed under Beer Tastings
Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA
Morton’s Steakhouse welcomes Boston beer lovers and BeersInBoston to sample offerings from Dogfish Head Craft Brewery, out of Milton, Delaware. You will enjoy the following four craft Dogfish Head beers at Morton’s The Steakhouse Seaport location:
- Midas Touch IPA – a Turkish recipe for the oldest known fermented beverage in the world
- Raison – a Belgian style ale brewed with beet sugars and raisins
- 90 Minute – dubbed the “Best IPA in America” by Esquire
- Palo – an aged brown ale with caramel and vanilla notes derived from handcrafted wooden brewing vessels
Each beer will be paired with a selection of outstanding fine cheeses, including aged Wisconsin parmesan, cubbedu moderately aged sheep’s milk cheese, wild horseradish cheddar and smoked gorgonzola. Beers and cheese will also be served alongside signature Morton’s hors d’oeuvres.
The Dogfish Head beer tasting will be held on Wednesday, July 21, 2010 front 6-7:30pm.
$45 per guest, inclusive of tax and gratuity
Morton’s The Steakhouse will donate $5 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation for every event ticket purchased.
Reservations are required. Call 617-526-0410 to reserve your spot as space is limited.
Morton’s The Steakhouse is located at 2 Seaport Lane in Boston, MA
Yankee Homecoming Brewfest
July 7, 2010 by Parker
Filed under Beer Fests, News and Events
After a year off, Newbury will host it’s annual brewfest as part of Yankee Homecoming. If you haven’t checked out a Yankee Homecoming event before, this is the year to go. Yankee Homecoming is a yearly festival on the Newburyport waterfront which features live music, parades, food, etc, etc. All of the good stuff for the whole family.
At July 24th at 4pm and lasting through 9pm, the Yankee Homecoming Brewfest will feature over 30 craft beers room local breweries and live music from the band Ol Brown Shoe.
This will be my first Yankee Homecoming Brewfest.. very excited about it. Newburyport is one of my favorite cities in the state, sure to be a good time!
First Annual Amesbury Brewfest
July 1, 2010 by Parker
Filed under Beer Fests, News and Events
On July 2nd from 5-8pm, Amesbury will host its first annual brewfest entitled “Amesbrewery Days International Craft Brewers Festival.” I’m sure the actual brewfest will be better than it’s name.
This event will be held at the Amesbury Mass Town Hall parking lot next to Maggie Sundae. The brewfest will cost $25, but the moeny will go directly to the 2011 Amesbury Days Festival and Fireworks display. Not sure what that means… Beerfest!!!
For more information go to www.amesburydays.com
American Craft Beerfest 2010
June 23, 2010 by Parker
Filed under Beer Fests
Mid June is my favorite time of year in Boston. No, not because the temps break 70 for the first time all year, but because the best of American Craft Beer assembles at the Seaport Hotel.
2010 marked the third year of the American Craft Beer Fest, and again it did not disappoint. I found the lines to be somewhat long this time around, as the word seems to have gotten out amongst the city. Not like 2008 or 2009 had poor attendance, but some of the lines this year were ridiculous. Dogfishead and Pretty Things led the way with lines backed up to the bathrooms, while others such as Harpoon watched from near-empty booths.
Beeradvocate, you did a great job. Please, please host your other yearly events at the Seaport – The Cyclorama events seem to fall very short after this event.
High & Mighty Beer Company
February 23, 2010 by Parker
Filed under Brewery Profiles
High & Mighty Beer Company began in 2006 as an offshoot of Shelton Brothers beer importing company. Will Shelton took his idea for a novel German-style ale to Paper City Brewery in Holyoke, Massachusetts, and Beer of the Gods was born, to extraordinary commercial success, critical acclaim, and unabashed adoration from beer geeks the world over. Eventually, Will discovered that he enjoyed selling the beer he made even more than he did the splendid beers that Shelton Brothers imports, and in June 2008, he abandoned his brother to focus on making American beer that added an American attitude to the best of European beer styles.
High & Mightly beer is currently made at Paper City, but look for High & Mighty to open a brewery of its own in 2010.
Harpoon St. Patrick’s Festival 2010
February 22, 2010 by Parker
Filed under Beer Fests
The 2010 Harpoon Brewery St. Patrick’s day celebration will take place on Friday, March 6th and Saturday, March 7th. Plan to show up to the South Boston brewery early because there WILL be a line. This celebration is a rain or shine event – it will be hosted under huge tents, with the outdoor section opening up behind the brewery as the weather allows.
As you know, nobody does a celebration of life, beer, and music quite like Harpoon. The city of Boston will be in attendance, so make sure you are too!
Tickets will be sold at the door, starting at 5:30 on Friday, and 2pm on Saturday. Free shuttles will run from South Station to the waterfront brewery regularly.
A peak into this years event from the Harpoon website:
What is Harpoon St. Patrick’s Festival all about?
- Come dance the jig, enjoy Harpoon beer, and celebrate St. Patrick!
Honest Town Brewery
February 21, 2010 by Parker
Filed under Brewery Profiles
Honest Town Brewery is located in Southbridge, Massachusetts. It was founded in 2005 and takes its name from one of the proposed names for Southbridge. Honest Town Brewery brews three year round beers and many specialty brews, which are available seasonally. Its brewer s Michael Labbe, who can be reached via e-mail at brewer@12crane.com. Labbe is also the American Beer coordinator for the Great British Beer Festival in London England and the head cellar man for the New England Real Ale eXhibition, and cellar man for the British Beer Company’s pubs.
Honest Town Brewery’s year round beers include Padraig’s Irish Red, a dark ale with a unique red color and a crisp finish from malted barley; S.O.B or Southbridge Ordinary Bitter, the brewery’s lightest offering which provides easy drinking and a light malt aroma and crisp hop finish; and Blueberry, a light, refreshing ale with a taste of blueberry. Seasonally, Honest Town Brewery offers an American Pale Ale, Hefe Weizen, Antul’s 80 Shilling, Imperial Sturbridge Coffee Roasters Stouth, Honest Town Uberraschen Hefeweizen, Honest Town IPA, and Carpall Dorche Stout. Its present seasonal offering is the Capall Dorche Stout, which is black and velvety smooth with a rich, creamy feel. It contains mild roasted flavors and a cocoa and milk chocolate finish. It contains Nugget and East Kent Goldings hops.
Honest Town Brewery is a part of the 12 Crane complex, located at 12 Crane Street, Southbridge, Masachusetts. Its phone number is 508-764-1100. There, one can enjoy Honest Town Brewery offerings at the Dark Horse Tavern.
Visit http://www.12crane.com/honesttown/index.php to learn more.
