Yankee Brew News Archive

What's Brewing: Vermont

Originally Published: 06/97

By: Tom Ayres

Tunbridge Brewing marked its first anniversary with an April celebration at its diminuitive Tunbridge brewery. The eastern Vermont micro also celebrated the joint arrival of the state's famed maple sugaring and mud seasons with the release of its annual Sap Brew. A Green Mountain State specialty, the blonde ale is crafted in part with sap runnings from a local stand of sugar maples. The result is a delicate ale with subtle hints of maple and wood.

One of the state's smallest micros, Tunbridge is looking toward expansion with the recent approval of an economic development loan from the state. Meanwhile, the brewery is broadening its visibility on the marketing front. Tunbridge has participated in several recent food-and-beer pairings at area restaurants and sponsored a performance at the Crossroads Dinner Theater in Royalton in early May.

Homebrewers should also look for the first-ever homebrewing competition at the legendary World's Fair in Tunbridge in September. Tunbridge Brewing is sponsoring. Out-of-state homebrewers who want to a quintessential Vermont experience should check out the agricultural fair, particularly since it is held at the front end of foliage season. To learn more about what's on tap at Tunbridge Brewing, give the brewery a call at (802) 889-3406.

Only one New England homebrewing competition -- Maine's annual rite of spring, the Yankee Brewers Competition and Conference -- features commercial entries seeded amidst the homecrafted beers and ciders in twenty-two style categories. For the second consecutive year, Burlington's Vermont Pub and Brewery scored well at the mid-Maine gathering, held this year on the grounds of the Cask and Hive Winery, New England's newest meadery and cidery.

The brewers from the state's oldest brewpub walked away with three blue ribbons in the commercial division, nailing top honors for their Thetford IPA, Burley Irish Ale (in the Brown Ale category) and Smoked Porter (Smoked Beer). In addition, the Maine-iacs bestowed second-place kudos on VP&B's Roggen Daas Light Rye Ale (Herb/Spice), Dogbite Bitter (British Bitter), and fabled Wee Heavy (Strong Scotch Ale).

Another Burlington haunt, The Three Needs, broke new ground in May when it became only the second brewpub in the state to offer its beers for off-premises consumption in half-gallon growlers. The Shed in Stowe pioneered the practice when it proffered its first pub-brewed ales at its Mountain Road brewpub and through regional retail outlets last year. Growlers of a diverse range of Three Needs beers -- mostly German-style lagers and ales -- are available only at the brewpub at 207 College Street in Burlington. Vermont law allows the brewpub to distribute its beers in growlers as long as sales are logged on a separate, dedicated cash register. Growler sales at The Three Needs take place at the brewpub's new self-serve kitchen counter.

Summertime visitors to the north country may want to time their travels to coincide with the fourth annual Vermont Brewers Festival, set for Waterfront Park in Burlington on Friday and Saturday, July 18-19. Festival co-organizer John Caulo predicts as many as 32 breweries could take part in the 1997 gathering. In a delightful show of friendship, each of Vermont's sixteen breweries and brewpubs recommends an out-of-state brewery to participate. Although the list of confirmed attendees was still taking shape as Yankee Brew News went to press, breweries invited for 1997 include Stoudt's from Pennsylvania; Hansen's Time Square Brewery, Cooperstown Brewing, Kobor's, Troy Brewing, and the Lake Placid Pub and Brewery from New York; Casco Bay and Narrow Gauge from Maine; and Unibroue and McAuslan from Quebec.

The Vermont Brewers Festival will feature three tasting sessions under a spacious canopy tent on the Queen City's scenic waterfront. Enjoy a breathtaking view of Lake Champlain and the Adirondacks and savor a wide range of craft brews on Friday, July 18, from 6 to 10:30 p.m., and again on Saturday, July 19, from noon to 4:30 p.m. and 6 to 10 p.m. For more details, call the festival information line at (802) 865-FEST.