Yankee Brew News Archive

What's Brewing: Vermont

Originally Published: 02/97

By: Tom Ayers

When the Lord gets ready, the old Mississippi Fred McDowell blues tune intoned, you gotta move.

The brew gods have deemed it time for two of Vermont's most venerable micros to hit the trail toward new quarters.

The Catamount Brewing Company -- Vermont's oldest brewery and one of New England's micro pioneers -- broke ground on a new, 25,000-square-foot brewery in Windsor in December. Located on a 2-1/2-acre plot in the Windsor Industrial Park, the brewery will have an initial capacity of 50,000 barrels, according to Catamount spokesman Jeff Close. The new facility is expected to be up and running by late spring or early summer. Catamount will continue to run the current White River Junction plant as a keg-only operation, while turning its bottled product out of the state-of-the-art Windsor brewery.

Magic Hat Brewing Company will also be operating out of two Vermont-based locations soon. The brewery will open up shop in new quarters at the former Grossman's Lumber building, off Route 7 on Bartlett Bay Road in South Burlington. The move will enable the eclectic fermenters to cease contract-brewing their bottled ales in Kennebunkport. Startup of the new operation is expected in late spring or early summer. Magic Hat cofounder and head brewer Bob Johnson says the brewery will "mothball" its present, keg-and-growler-only facility in Burlington for "three to four months" after the new South Burlington site is up to speed. In keeping with Magic Hat's idiosyncratic reputation, Johnson promises New England beer lovers some intriguing "surprises" when both plants are operational later this year.

Speaking of idiosyncracies, Green Mountain brewers continue to bend style categories and challenge conventional notions of what microbrew entails. One of the newest kids on the block, the Franklin County Brewery in St. Albans, is offering Rail City Ale, an American-style alt bier, to quaffers in northwestern Vermont. Franklin County founder Bennett Dawson and his new brewery are profiled elsewhere in this issue of Yankee Brew News.

Another newcomer, Montpelier's Golden Dome Brewing Company, is now offering the first sweetish milk stout ever proffered by a Vermont micro. Available in growlers at the riverside Pioneer Street brewery, Double Ringer Stout may, in fact, be the only New England-made exemplar of the venerable British style made famous by Mackeson's. Golden Dome's Ian Dowling hints that Double Ringer will be available at Central Vermont retail outlets this winter if it clicks at the brewery.

In Burlington, the Three Needs Taproom and Brewery is finally fermenting as well. Brewers Glenn Walter and Dan Lipke crafted a kolsch and a maerzen for early winter consumption at the College Street pub. Watch for a profile of the Queen City's third brewpub in an upcoming issue of YBN.

Across the state in Tunbridge, Vermont's smallest micro has responded to consumer demand and opened for tours. Liz Trott at Jigger Hill Brewery warns that due to the remote location and changeable Vermont weather, it is advisable to call ahead if planning a visit. You can reach Jigger Hill at (802) 889-3406 if you'd like to schedule a visit. In addition to bottled Telemark Mild, Covered Bridge IPA, Ox Pull Stout, and seasonals World's Fair Special and Sap Brew, you'll find fine works from local artists available for purchase at the brewery. Jigger Hill markets its beers under the Tunbridge Quality Ales moniker.

Kudos to Ray and Holiday McNeill at McNeill's Brewery in Brattleboro. The combination micro and brewpub offered locals a spiced Wassail Ale during the recent holidays and donated proceeds of $1 per bottle retail or $1 per glass at the bar to Community House, a short-term residential home for children who've become wards of the state.

The McNeills hoped to raise more than $1,500 for the troubled youngsters. Our benevolent government sees to it that these kids get food and shelter, but without private donations they would never see a movie, a baseball game, or go fishing, Ray noted. Needless to say, they've also had very difficult childhoods. We would like to encourage other brewers to do something similar. How significant are the proceeds from one beer when you produce a couple hundred a year? McNeill's wassail offering was spiced with oranges, nutmeg, cinnamon, and ginger.

Following on the heels of the wassail, McNeill's planned the winter release of a hefty, hoppy Imperial Stout, as well as the highly touted Old Ringworm Barleywine. Ray promises that both will push the limits of Vermont's eight-percent law. In addition, the colorful downstate brewer says, the stout is one of the thickest, blackest, richest beers we have ever seen, and it has enough hops to make a typical hophead squirm. Lastly, Ray reports his American-style pale ale, dubbed Champ Ale, will soon make its debut for year-round distribution in Vermont markets.

Hopheads who are undaunted by McNeill's Imperial Stout will likely want to check out the Green Mountain State's hoppiest site on the World Wide Web. University of Vermont Extension System hops guru Leonard Perry recently wrote me to highlight his Web page, which reports on hops horticulture in the region. In recent years, Leonard has been working with a bevy of others to promote the reintroduction of hops as a viable agricultural crop in Vermont. To learn more about his efforts and other news of import to hopsters, point your browser to http://www.uvm.edu/~pass/perry/hops.html.