The judges for this event are all brewers and beer connoisseurs, from all over the US, which meet during the tournament to grade each IPA pairing. These judges are organized in panels of 3 and are served the pair of beers to be judged without knowing what the beers are (blind tasting). Within the 3-member panel, the majority vote determines which of the beers in the judged pair wins. I don’t have any idea who you have to know (or?) to get to be one of these judges, but as a professed and acknowledged hop head, I would want/need/love to be a part of the judging for this event (hint, hint)!

The Brewing News has run this IPA tournament since 2008, when it was only a competition among 32 IPA “teams”. Previous year’s winners include:

• In 2008, after four rounds of pairings, Green Flash Brewing’s Green Flash IPA was declared the winner in this first ever NIPAC final challenge against Bell’s Brewing Two Hearted Ale.
• In 2009 they doubled the number of competing beers to 64 IPA teams and the final winner was Big Sky Brewing’s Big Sky IPA in a competition against Laurelwood Brewing’s Workhorse IPA
• In 2010 they, again, doubled the number of IPA teams to 128. The final winner last year was Fat Head Brewing’s Head Hunter IPA in a final battle against Firestone Walker’s Union Jack IPA.

I have competed in all of these NIPAC events so far and I have to admit, like this year’s basketball tournament, I have not done very well in picking the final winner or even the winners of the many IPA pairings each year. The only excuse that I have, if you’ll allow that (Mulligan please), is that many/most of these beers are not available in Vermont and I have not (yet) had the pleasure to sample that many of them. That being said, my wife would tell you that I am the “worst” when it comes to “betting” of any kind of anyone that she has ever met… I am useless in a casino and she won’t even let me touch the lottery tickets, which we splurge on occasionally, for fear that I will “contaminate” them with my bad luck. I still have fun with NIPAC and, since it costs nothing to enter, the damage is inherently/fortunately limited in this particular case.

Participating in this year’s NIPAC competition was decidedly different for me. This year there was a Vermont brewer involved in the competition for the very first time… Lawson’s Finest Liquids had entered their Triple Play IPA… a truly excellent IPA, I might add. You have heard me speak before of Lawson’s, the 1-barrel brewer from tiny Warren, Vermont, as the “mouse that roared” at last year’s World Beer Cup, when Sean Lawson’s Maple Tripple won a bronze medal in the specialty beer category. Sean has steadily been building his skills and repertoire as a first-class brewer through his high showings in both national and international events like NIPAC and the WBC.

To make this story short and very sweet (for me), Lawson’s Triple Play IPA beat out the other 127 best IPAs in this year’s tournament and was declared the winner of the 2011 NIPAC challenge against Big Dog Brewing’s Dirty Dog IPA in the final round.

Like some of the smaller, “Cinderella” teams in the NCAA tournament, Lawson’s Finest Liquids continues to show the nation and the world that being small does not necessarily mean that you can’t compete at the same level as the better-funded and much larger brewers which enter these events. No brewer has ever repeated as a NIPAC winner… I am looking forward to 2012 and the chance to see Lawson’s Finest Liquids be the first to attain that lofty and very unique distinction!

The three previous articles in the series, in the order that they appeared, are:

• Made in Vermont – Burlington Region
• Made in Vermont – The Spine of the Green Mountains
• Made in Vermont – The Northeast Kingdom

I count myself as truly fortunate to live in a state that caters so heavily to the craft beer movement and I am exceptionally lucky that Vermont is such a small place that each of these breweries is but a short drive away. Several of Vermont’s breweries have won medals and awards in both national and international competitions. You need to understand, however, that Vermonters are not ones to rest on their laurels and the state’s beer industry is in constant flux. For example, I am aware of at least two new breweries in the development stages and there are several of the existing breweries that are in the process of expanding their operations; some of them significantly.

The Long Trail Brewery is located at the junction of Routes 4 and 100A in the tiny burgh of Bridgewater Corners. The brewery and the small store nearby represent nearly all of what this town has to offer. In spite of its relatively remote location, Long Trail is both one of the oldest and largest commercial breweries in Vermont. They recently purchased the Otter Creek/Wolvers brewery up in Middlebury to give them increased capacity and a better avenue for the distribution of all of their beer. Long Trail Ale was one of my first experiences with a non-macro beer and it was love at first drink for sure. I have a number of other favorites from this brewer. They relatively recently began producing a “Brewmaster Series” of beers and a couple of those have become some of my most sought after Vermont beers; the Centennial Red and the Coffee Stout in particular.

The other major brewery that calls southern Vermont its home would be the Harpoon Brewery. Although headquartered in Boston, where they have another brewery, the brewery in Vermont inhabits the former Catamount brewery facility in Windsor. I have talked frequently of the events that they hold at the Vermont location as well as of their significant contributions to Vermont communities, charities and social causes. For one event or another, I end up visiting this venue several times each year and I look forward to that each and every time that it happens. Harpoon’s IPA was an early favorite in my craft beer career and to this day you will find a can or two of this beer in my fridge awaiting my enjoyment. Like many brewers, Harpoon offers a“premium” line of beer, two of them in fact; the “100 Barrel Series” and the “Leviathan” series. I am a big fan of several of these Harpoon beers and like their IPA, you are apt to find at least one of these higher end brands either aging in my beer larder or being chilled in preparation for its final showing.

From there we move from beer production on a much smaller scale. Northshire Brewery is located in Bennington, at the very southwest tip of Vermont. Relatively new to the Vermont craft beer scene, I am starting to see their beer in more places, some of them farther north where I have easier access to them. Most of my experience to date with their beer has been as samples at the Vermont Brewers Festival, held every summer in Burlington. Having just visited their Web site, I can see that they have greatly expanded the number of places where their beer can be purchased. I definitely plan to catch-up with them at one of these new locations in the very near future.

Madison Brewing Company & Pub is also located in Bennington and right on Main Street in the downtown area. Madison offers a very nice location to both have some great food and to sample some of their fine beer. Like most brewpubs, they offer a regular selection of beers that are nearly always available and then seasonal or special offerings to fill in at different times of the year. I particularly enjoyed their Old 76 Strong Ale the last time that I was there, along with something called a “New England Bog Salad” for a light lunch.

Last on our list of breweries, but hardly least, we finally come to McNeill’s Brewery, which is located in Brattleboro. McNeill’s is another of Vermont’s breweries that have been around for a while and it has been producing high quality beers for as long as it has been around. One of my long-time favorites had been their Imperial Stout , which is no longer made. Some of Ray McNeill’s latest creations are coming on strong though; like his Warlord Imperial IPA, a hop head’s dream and one that I grab now and again just to satisfy my hop cravings.

Well that brings us to the end of our series on the current list of 21 Vermont breweries. Don’t you think for one moment that this is the last that you will hear of Vermont’s fine beers. Vermont can rightfully be called a craft beer-lover’s mecca and I think that it is high time that you finally planned a vacation (or beer quest) to a state that is just bursting with both scenic beauty and great beer, no matter where you are in the state. Although our winters are long here, which is a good thing for some of the best ski areas in the East, it is not cold and snowy all year long. The summers here are a perfect escape from the sweltering heat of the real deep south and the colors of our autumn can’t be matched anywhere. Come to Vermont and enjoy our people, enjoy our scenery and enjoy some of the best beer this side of anywhere!

Let’s start with just a few of the beers I found that have what I consider to be unusual names. At the top of this particular list would have to be Mikkeller’s Beer Geek Breakfast Pooh Coffee Cask Festival Edition. Now don’t get me wrong, Mikkeller (as many of you will attest) makes great beer. This one just happens to be made with the most expensive and unique coffee in the world; from kopi luwak beans. Why is that unusual, you might ask? For those of you that do not drink exotic coffee, kopi luwak coffee is unique because the beans have passed through the digestive tract of the luwak (Asian Palm Civet). Closely related to the mongoose and about the size of a house cat, this animal feasts on coffee cherries from the trees and leaves behind the indigestible coffee beans in its scat (pooh). These beans are happily collected by the Sumatran owners of the plantation and sent off to be produced into coffee (sans scat, hopefully). I found no fewer than 11 beers on RateBeer that claim to be made with this coffee and many of those come from top shelf brewers. I am sure that this person is long gone, but wouldn’t it be interesting to talk with whomever was the first person to make “scat coffee”… what were they thinking?

Next on the list of unusual beer names has to be Big Sky Moose Drool Brown Ale. For you city folk and for those of you that live in areas where moose are not found, this is one big, majestic, but ugly animal. This beer is not, of course, made from moose drool (fortunately) and I am sure that those that enjoy it… it is one of the most popular beers in Montana… would agree that it is a good beer. I have only been up close to one moose that had been shot by a hunter (about 1,000 lbs with a 40+” antler rack), but the idea of beer being made from something that smelled that bad sort of turns my stomach. Male moose have the disgusting habit of rolling in their urine to make themselves attractive to the females of their species. Moose hunting season and mating seasons are close together and I have to tell you that I would gladly drink gallons of “skunked” beer to keep from having to drink one tiny glass of beer that smelled like that moose!

Let’s move onto beer with unusual ingredients. The classic here has to be beer made with chili peppers. Sadly, most of these beers, both from the few that I have tried and from looking at the RateBeer ratings are not very good beer. Cave Creek Chili Beer was (perhaps) the first of these to be sold commercially in any quantity. I have tried a small amount of this beer and I was not a very big fan. Novelty aside, the pale lager base beer, the little amount of heat and the small amount of chili flavor just did not mix well together. Something that would be more to my liking would be a darker beer, an Imperial Stout, made with chili. There is a long acknowledged affinity between chocolate and chili pepper flavors. Sierra Nevada makes one called Sierra Nevada Hellraiser Chocolate Chili Imperial Stout that sounds interesting to me because of the chocolate connection. I found 75 beers on RateBeer that have “chili” in their name. If you find one that you like, let me know.

There are also other types of pepper used to make beer and, being the pepper lover that I am, I really enjoy some of these as well. Two of my favorites are Dieu du Ciel Route des Épices, made with black and green peppercorns, and Vermont’s- own Bobcat Café Unrepentant Stout, made with Pippali (Piper longum). The pepper influence makes both of these beers a perfect pairing for a hearty steak dinner or a Montreal smoked meat sandwich (Yum!).

We could not pass by unusual beer ingredients without mentioning watermelon. At last year’s American Craft Beer Festival held in Boston, there were a number of brewers offering beer samples with this ingredient. After having tried quite a few of these, I have to admit that, at least in my mind, there should be room in the beer world for watermelon beer, if it is done right. My favorite watermelon beer, to date, has to be Thomas Hooker Watermelon Ale. Its excellent watermelon aroma does not follow exactly to its taste, but a small slice of red, ripe watermelon plunked into the beer makes for a nice garnish and completes the experience for me.

Lastly, and to the beers that actually got me thinking on this topic, we come to beers that are being target marketed to a select group of people. The ones that caught my eye this week are brewed by Minerva, a small Mexican brewer. These “artisan honey ales”, called Salamandra and Purple Hand, are being produced and marketed toward the LGBT community. The name “Purple Hand” draws reference from the historic 1969 San Francisco protest by the Gay Liberation Front and the Society for Individual Rights at the San Francisco Examiner. These are supposedly the first beers targeted at this group of people and, if the reaction of the Internet media is any indication, this small brewer has hit upon something that other brewers may pay attention to. The initial 500 cases of this bottled beer that Minerva produced sold out quickly and they are, of course, making more. There is also talk of the brewery opening a “Purple Hand” bar in Mexico City and producing other alcoholic drinks targeted at this particular group of people. Being a businessman at heart, I say “bravo” for establishing a new niche market for their products.

Well, I could go on and on about other unusual beers, but I think that I will save some of those for a follow-up article on this same topic on another day. I am a really big fan of the Travel Channel’s “Bizarre Foods” show and like the host of that show, I strongly encourage a similar approach to drinking unusual beer as he has for unusual food… if it looks or sounds good, they only way to find out is to drink it!

First of all I’d like to call to your attention the appearance of one of Vermont’s own brewers, the Hill Farmstead Brewery, on these these lists. Hill Farmstead is listed twice on Ratebeer’s Best; as the top new brewery in the world and also for his truly wonderful Edward Pale Ale. If you have followed some of my previous articles here, you know that Shaun Hill’s small brewery, located in the tiny town of Greensboro in north-central Vermont is one of several shining stars among the 21 breweries that can be currently found in this small state. The appearance of Hill Farmstead on these lists is but the latest in an already impressive accumulation of accolades and awards that this young brewer has earned over the last few years. At last year’s World Beer Cup, three of Shaun’s beers, created by Shaun when he was working for Danish brewer Nørrebro Bryghus, won medals (2 golds and a silver) at this lofty international competition. If you look through the Ratebeer ratings for Shaun’s beers you will quickly see that Vermonters are not the only ones that are in love with Shaun’s creations and I truly believe that many of his beers would stand up well against a goodly portion of the other beers on Ratebeer’s Best. For many of you, however, Hill Farmstead beers might be some of the best beers that you will have never tried, as Shaun currently only runs about a 7-barrel operation and, although I know that some of his beers have appeared in Philly and NYC, most of Shaun’s beers do not make it very far out of Vermont… and that is fine with me. Come to Vermont and find out why Hill Farmstead rightly deserves their spot among the other brewers on Ratebeer’s Best.

The second observation that I have and I am not the first to point this out (See the 2010 article by fellow HopPress writer K.M. Weaver), no less than 34 of the top 50 beers on the list are Stouts or Imperial Stouts. There is probably nobody that likes a good Impy better than I do, but one would think from looking at this list that there are no other great styles of beer other than stouts… and that is clearly just not the case. While the other 16 beers that make up this list are of other styles, although far too few in number (my opinion), I was gratified to see some IPAs and Sour beers appear on the list; two other styles of beer that I enjoy very much. I hope that the folks that put together this list and beer raters in general are a little more open minded in the future about what constitutes a great beer. Great beers can and do include stouts, but that designation of a beer’s greatness can and should encompass much more than that (Understand? ¿entiendes lo que quiero decir? Verstehen? Vous comprenez? Dong ma?).

I was quite surprised (amazed?) to see Lost Abbey’s Framboise de Amorosa on the list. Having grown up in a house here in Vermont that had a huge patch of raspberry bushes in the back yard, I really have a soft spot in my heart for anything that has raspberries in it and that applies to beer as well. I have not had a chance to try this beer, but you can bet that it will go on my “Want” list right after I finish this article.

The last thing that I was left thinking as I looked over these lists was just how long it was going to take me to find and sample all of these great beers on the lists. The fact is that some of these beers and even some of the brewers may not even exist by the time that I have an opportunity to get to them all. I am not too stressed about this, mind you, but it does give one pause to hear Joe Tucker talk about the more than 130,000 beers and 10,000 brewers *currently* found in the Ratebeer database; and I am certain those numbers are growing. The world of craft beer is a huge one these days and growing rapidly. That is, without any question, due to the hard-working people that make up this industry and it’s good to see more than a few of them receive the praise that they truly deserve from the likes of Ratebeer and others.

I have no realistic hope of sampling all of the different beers on this year’s Ratebeer’s Best list in the near future and I will probably only sample a tiny fraction of the total number of beers listed in the Ratebeer database in my entire lifetime (the Ratebeer top rater currently has just under 20,000 ratings, which is amazing in itself), but in spite of all of that, I know in my heart that there are still a large number of beers that I will drink in the future that will end up on the VTHopHead’s Best list and I will surely take the time to enjoy and savor all of those beers I try in between those that I think are “great”. Do yourself a favor, print out these lists (or download them to your phone) before you head out to your favorite bottle-shop the next time and see if you can locate just one beer on these lists of what many believe are Ratebeer’s Best Beers…. I doubt that you’ll be sorry if you find one!

Earlier this week I received a “Friend of Harpoon” newsletter, which is distributed by the folks at Harpoon Brewery.  “Friend of Harpoon” is a fan club of sorts for people who enjoy Harpoon’s fine selection of beers; which I definitely do. As a club member, you are entitled to the newsletter, of course, which contains a listing of upcoming Harpoon events and special news about just about everything else Harpoon-related. They even issue a membership card to their “Friends”, which can be used to collect member-only discounts at events and at the Harpoon company stores… but I digress. This particular edition of the newsletter also contained an announcement of the 35^th beer to be released in Harpoon’s “100 Barrel Series” of beers; a rebrew/reformulation of a previously released beer, called Catamount Maple Wheat, which was also #26 in the series.

My interest in this beer was not so much its imminent release (early February), though I did like it the first time they produced it, but it really got me to thinking about other brewers that have their own special series of beers that they distribute only seasonally, at odd times (when the whim strikes them) or on an annual schedule. As I poked around on Ratebeer, I first discovered that there are, in fact, quite a number of brewers that do this and, secondly, some the beers in these “brewer’s best” series of beers are some of my favorite beers from those brewers.

Harpoon is an excellent example of a brewer that plays this “game”.  Not only do they have their “100 Barrel Series” of special beers, they also offer a “Leviathan” series of big or higher ABV beers. As I mentioned above, the 100 Barrel Series is up to its 35^th beer. This series has seen a diverse selection of beer types and tastes over the years. Everything from barleywines to wet hops to Belgians and Saisons to real oyster stouts… a virtual smörgåsbord of many different beers that is sure to please any beer drinker at one time of another (or fairly constantly, like me). These are quite limited release beers that have been, at times, hard to find if you are not paying attention. I am sorry to say that I have not have the pleasure to taste all 35 of these beers, but the dozen or so that I have were all quite good.

Harpoon’s other “series” is called Leviathan and for good reason; these beers are all at least 9% ABV (topping out at about 12%) and all quite good. There are currently 8 beers in this series and I am happy to say that I have tried (and liked) all of them. Beer types in this series have ranged from barleywine to Belgian to wheat (Triticus)… not nearly as big a variety as the 100 Barrel Series, but every bit as good and worth seeking out when they are available.

I can’t possibly list all the brewers that I found that have these series of beer releases and, after my brief survey on Ratebeer, I am fairly certain that I only found a small fraction of the ones that do. Attempting to list even the ones that I found wouldn’t possibly do each of them justice in terms of the qualities and benefits that each of their beers bring to the craft beer marketplace. However, I have decided to list below a very small selection of some, just to give you a flavor of the variety of ways which brewers are participating in these “series”.

• Long Trail Brewery – Long Trail offers their “Brewmaster” series of beers. Currently there are five beers in this series of various types and styles.  Their site does not list a particular schedule for their release, so one could assume that they are released on a “whim”.
• Otter Creek Brewing – Otter Creek offers an “Imperial” series of beers; I believe that there are about five so far (a bit hard to identify from their names) and all quite enjoyable. Otter Creek also produces Wolavers Organic beers, which could (I guess) be called another “series” and there are 14 different types of this brand offered as well.
• Dogfish Head Brewery – Dogfish Head does not refer to their special beers as a “series”, but they do maintain a definite production schedule (as known as “Thee Schedule”) of when these beers are due to become available. These beers fall into categories… “Seasonals” (Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter), “Strong Fruit”, “Agables” (barleywines, stouts and IPAs) and “Ancients”. Known for their big beers as well as for their use of unusual ingredients and recipes, I can’t imagine this long distribution list not containing something that would appeal to most beer drinkers.
• The Lost Abbey – This fine brewer runs two separate series of beers throughout the year; their “Seasonals” and their “Non-Denominationals”. Both series contain a variety of different beer either timed to release relative to a particular time of year or holiday (Seasonals) or on a loose schedule throughout the year (Non-Denominationals). I am truly hoping that beer from this brewer becomes available in Vermont soon!

That is just a very small sampling of the brewers that offer one or more special series of beers or schedule times for their releases during the year. I do have to admit that this type of an approach appeals to me. I follow a number of these scheduled beer releases from quite a few brewers and I definitely look forward to particular times of the year when some of my favorite beers are due to become available. I am sure that some (most?) of you must follow at least one brewer that produces a “series” and I think that you would be well-served to seek out more of them. In many cases these brewers are offering you a bit more than something different and special at a particular time of the year; they are very often offering you their brewer’s best.

My first article in this series – The Burlington Region – covered the seven breweries to be found in the northwestern portion of our state; those nearest our largest city, Burlington (pop. only 38,647 in 2009). The second article in the series – The Spine of the Green Mountains – focused on the north central portion of the state; in the region surrounding the capital city of Vermont, Montpelier, near where I live. In today’s article I will highlight the three breweries that can be found in the northeastern portion of the state; known to all Vermonters as “The Northeast Kingdom” or NEK. This “wild” and sparsely populated region of the state is not necessarily a “destination” for visitors coming in from out-of-state; unless you are a skier and are looking for the deep powder and long skiing season to be found at the Jay Peak ski area, which is located in the heart of the NEK.

Trout River Brewing – Located in tiny Lyndonville, VT and owned by Dan and Laura Gates, Trout River has been producing fine beer since 1996. Their beer is a common offering at many restaurants across the northern half of the state and a few of their beers are among my Vermont favorites. I am particularly fond of the two heavyweights in their lineup; Boneyard Barley Wine and Knight Slayer Imperial Stout.

The Vermont Beer Co. – Located in Bradford, VT and housed in The Perfect Pear Cafe, this is one of Vermont’s newest and definitely our smallest brewers. Beer here is produced in 10-gallon batches. I have been there twice, so far, but have only been able to sample their beer one of those times. Exhibiting some signs of an early startup operation, they offer only limited hours of operation (why I missed their beer the first time) and the brewer is also the head chef for the cafe, which leaves little time to try and keep all the “balls“ in the air at the same time. Food at the cafe was excellent, but I was only able to try their Devil’s Den Brown Porter because the tap for their IPA was not working that day. I was disappointed, since the hoppy beers tend to be my sweet spot and the porter was pretty good. I have heard rumors that the owner/chef/brewer has hired a chef to take over the kitchen, so that the brewing can be given its due. I look forward to returning soon to see the improvements that have been made since this last summer.

Jasper Murdocks Alehouse – Located in Norwich, VT and housed in The Norwich Inn, a historic property that traces its roots all the way back to 1797. This quaint establishment offers not only great beers, but also fine dining and excellent accommodations. Specializing in English-style ales, some of which are award winning recipes and only served on-site, I find that most of their beers to be quite “sessionable” and easy drinking. A particular favorite of mine, when I can get it, is their Old Slipperyskin IPA.  This establishment has become famous for offering events that combine some of the services that they offer. Most notable of these are their Brewers Weekends and Brewers Banquets. The Brewers Weekend, which I hope to participate in one day, offers two nights stay at the Inn, meals (including a Brewers Banquet) and an opportunity to get some hands-on instruction in beer making from their resident brewer. The Brewers Banquets are meals that highlight Jasper Murdock beers paired with specially prepared foods from their kitchen. Participation in one of these banquet events does not necessarily need to be in conjunction with a Brewers Weekend (less expensive that way) and are open to the paying public.

Well, there it is, short and sweet, the third article in my series highlighting 3 more of Vermont’s 21 brewers. The fourth and last article in this series will focus on the brewers found in the southern part of the state. For those of you that have not had the chance to visit our beautiful state, I encourage you to make that plan now. Vermont offers unmatched scenery in all four seasons and, in spite of our small size, there is plenty to do and see here throughout the year. I promise to save you some beer for when you arrive!

Courtesy of Vermont Brewers Association

Rock Art Brewery - Located in Morrisville, Vermont, the Rock Art Brewery has been producing great beer since 1997, when Matt and Renee Nadeau began brewing in the basement of their home. They moved to their current home in 2002 and have grown rapidly since. Rock Art recently broke ground on a new brewery just a few miles down the road. Their newly expanded operations, when completed, will allow even greater beer production and wider distribution. Some of you may remember Rock Art as the brewer that fought (and won) against Monster Energy Drinks over the trademark relating to their awesome Vermonster beer. In addition to brewing great beer, Matt is now actively working to change the laws that allow large corporations to bully smaller ones over trademark and copyright issues. The Rock Art Web site has several great articles and videos on this topic. Personally, I think that Matt’s work in this area will have an impact and I appreciate his hard work; as we all should.

Hill Farmstead Brewery – Located in tiny Greensboro Bend, Vermont, Hill Farmstead is the current culmination of Shaun E. Hill’s short, but illustrious brewing career, In spite of his relatively young age, Shaun has been banging around breweries in Vermont (The Shed, Trout River, VT Pub & Brewery) for quite few years and even spent a couple of years working in Denmark for Nørrebro Bryghus. Three of the beers that Shaun created in Denmark won medals at the 2010 World Beer Cup.

The Shed Restaurant & Brewery – Located on the Mountain Road in Stowe, Vermont, The Shed has long been one of Vermont’s anchor brewpubs. For those of you not familiar with the Stowe region, Stowe hosts some of the state’s finest ski areas. Shed beer is enjoyed throughout the year, but is exposed to many more people during the winter months, when skiers from all over the world flock to Stowe for a taste of winter in Vermont.

Trapp Family Lodge Brewery - This brewery just opened within the last year at the Trapp Family Lodge in Stowe, Vermont. This Vermont tourist mecca is owned and operated by members of the von Trapp family, made famous by the Sound of Music movie. In a distinct break from the more traditional ales brewed in this country, Trapp Family brews only high quality European-style lagers, like those reminiscent of the Bavarian region of Germany and Austria that the von Trapp family hails from. Currently a small 2-3,000 barrel operation, the Trapp beers are selling as fast as they can make them.

The Alchemist Pub and Brewery – In late 2003, John and Jennifer Kimmich opened this fine establishment in the old Post Office building in the heart of Waterbury, Vermont. John is well known for his insistence that his high quality beers be only sold at the pub. That steadfast “rule” was broken recently (today, as a matter of fact), when John put up for sale 600 bottles of his Heady Topper at the brewery. The Alchemist is known not only for their great beer, but for the wonderful mix of “casual” foods offered by their restaurant. A significant step up from the more traditional bar fare, the Alchemist offers many great dishes prepared with only the freshest of ingredients (they are a member of Vermont’s Fresh Network). The Alchemist is a “regular” for me and it is probably a good thing that I don’t live closer.

Lawson’s Finest Liquids – I jokingly call Sean Lawson “the mouse that roared” as Lawson’s was also a medal winner at the 2010 World Beer Cup. While that does not sound too amazing in itself, you need to understand that Sean runs a ONE BARREL operation; brewing his beer only 30 gallons at a time! I am absolutely certain that most of you will never get a chance to try the beer that he won this medal for in the WBC “Specialty Beer” category. I can say that with such confidence due to the fact that the ingredients that Sean uses are unusually rare and because he produces so little of it each year. The Maple Tripple he produces is made using partially boiled maple sap instead of brewing water and pure maple syrup is added to the bottle to encourage carbonation… save for the yeast and the small amount of hops used to make this beer, everything else comes from a maple tree. Amazingly unique and incredibly delicious! The other beers that Sean produces are also of a very high quality and are highly sought after by the Vermont beer community. All of us would like to see Sean expand his operation, but only If he can do that and maintain the superior quality of his beers, of course.

That completes the second article in my series on 6 of the 21 Vermont breweries that can be found in Vermont. The next article in this series will focus on the breweries that can be found in the northeast corner of the state. Vermont is blessed with an abundance of high quality beer producers and we are more than willing to share all of that with the rest of you, but in most cases that means that you will need to actually come and visit our beautiful state in order to enjoy them. In spite of our small stature and population, there is plenty to do here in all seasons. Let me know when you are going to be in town and we’ll arrange to have a cold Vermont beer together… I promise you’ll not regret it.

Courtesy of the Vermont Brewers Association

Some of my fellow HopPress writers have presented a tour of the breweries in their own states, so I thought that it would be only right that I do the same for Vermont. With there being 21 of them, I will not spend the time in this article attempting to cover all of them; that would end up being quite long and pretty boring. Instead I will talk, first, about the 7 breweies located in only one region of the state… the greater northwestern portion of the state, which I will call the “Burlington” region, named after our largest city (pop. 38,647 in 2009).

Three Needs – Located on College Street in the heart of downtown Burlington, this bar/brewpub is (how do you say this) a bit “scruffy” around the edges. The times that I have been there I have always been able to find a beer to my liking (the “Impaler” DIPA the last time was awesome), but some of the reviews you see on-line for this place describe it as a bit of a “dive”… and they might be right. Not much more than a room the size of a decent house living room, with a bar in one corner and a pool table in the other, you sort of expect to see “Norm” peeking out from behind one of the substancial dust bunnies or piles of “stuff” you can see at this place. Each time I go, I wonder why this place survives either financially or because the Health Dept has not shut it down yet… but survive it does and, apparently, quite well. The regulars here (in the bar and on-line) are quite vocal and supportive of “their” bar and the way that they like it. If you are looking for some decent beer and a more than laid back place to enjoy it, you may have found your spot. As long as the beer is good, I’ll keep going back!

Switchback – This brewery is located near the waterfront just south of downtown Burlington. Founded in 2002 by the brewer and a close friend, the brewery has intentionally produced a limited number of beers (4 to date) that focus on high quality. Due to its “shoestring funding”, Switchback has relied primarily on word of mouth to spread the word about its beers, which are now also available in New Hampshire and New York as well as many bars and restaurants across Vermont. Their beer I find to be good and quite “sessionable”; very popular with locals and tourists alike.

Magic Hat – Founded in 1978 by craft beer pioneers Bob Johnson and Alan Newman, Magic Hat was one of the first to the Vermont beer scene and has been one of its standard bearers ever sense. One of my favorite things about this company is its social conscience. Magic Hat has contributed 10′s of thousands of dollars to the community that it does business in through direct donations and support of many fund raising events over those years. Once known for its eclectic, zany beers and names, Magic Hat has become more mainstream in its offerings. Merging with Pyramid Brewing a few years ago, it recently was snapped up by an out-of-state beer comglomerate. The main Magic Hat brewery remains in South Burlington and one hopes that they will continue to produce some of my favorite Vermont beers for years to come.

Vermont Pub & Brewery – Back in 1988, this brewpub (Vermont’s very first) was founded by the legendary Greg Noonan. Prior to Greg’s lobbying work with the Vermont Legislature, brewpubs were not allowed. Greg Noonan, of course, is known for his contributions across the brewing industry. Greg Noonan lost his battle with cancer a while back and is sorely missed by all that knew him or of his great work. Since its founding, the Vermont Pub & Brewery, which is located near the center of downtown Burlington, has produced dozens of different types and styles of beers and has been an “incubator” that has trained many brewers who have gone onto greatness in their own right. This place is still one of my favorite downtown Burlington destinations; whether it is for some of their great food or just a quick beer before a UVM hockey game.

Zero Gravity – Located just a few doors down from Vermont Pub & Brewery, the Zero Gravity is located in American Flatbread’s Burlington Hearth restaurant. The brewpub forms the basis for one of the first true taprooms in Vermont, which offers a large selection of draft and bottled beers with your dinner or just at the bar. This is a very popular place and you will have trouble squeezing in most any night, but go early and you might get lucky. The flatbreads here are amazing!

Otter Creek Brewing – Located just off of Route 7 and quite south of Burlington, just outside of Middlebury, this brewer has seen some change over the last several years. The original Otter Creek company was purchased by Wolaver’s, a nationally distributed organic line of beer, to help provide a realiable production facility. Wolaver’s elected to maintain the Otter Creek lines of beers after the puchase. Just within the last year or so, Wolaver’s/Otter Creek was purchased by the Long Trail Brewing company, which is also another Vermont brewery. While the continuance of any of the beers of this large collective brewery will likely be based on sound business decisions, I hope that they will choose to hang on to the many favorites that I have among their three major lines of beer.

Bobcat Cafe – Even though it is a bit off of the beaten path, the Bobcat Cafe is one of my favorites on this list. Located in downtown Bristol, a quite small and very quaint town in the western/central part of Vermont, the Bobcat offers some of the finest food of any on this list (it is not expensive either). Brewer Mark Magiera offers some of the best beer in this region and my wife and I visit here every chance that we get. The staff is courteous and efficient and the bartenders are very knowledgeable about the beer. I can hardly wait to go back!

Well there you have it. The first in a series of articles that tour Vermont’s excellent beer scene. As I am sure that you can begin to see, Vermonters love their beer and we are really fortunate to have so many great options to choose from. Stay tuned for the next chapter in this series (coming soon), where we will tour the breweries and brewpubs that make up the central portion of this small beer-drinking state.

Courtesy of Vermont Brewers Association

I spent some time with Andra Muhlfelder, one of Rock Art’s brewers, on a sunny and warm afternoon in April this year. Andra, Matt (the owner) and another brewer we did not meet (Zeb) share the brewing chores and from Andra’s description, put in a very full week turning out enough Rock Art beer to meet the current demand.

Andra told us that they produce about 150 barrels of beer a week in increments of either 15 or 22 barrels per batch, depending upon which beer it is that they are producing. All of the tasks associated with beer production, from brewing to bottling to packaging, are handled mostly by these three individuals. That, coupled with their relatively cramped quarters, means that Rock Art is operating at the full capacity of their small operation. There was no mention of expansion during our discussion, but I can’t imagine them being able to squeeze any more equipment into the tight space that they occupy now.

One of the most interesting pieces of equipment was their bottling machine. Dating from the 1950s and once used to bottle Dr. Pepper soda, I was fairly amazed to hear that this machine is still very reliable, although Andra described Matt as a “mechanical genius” and I am sure that his skills help keep this 60 year old piece of equipment humming.

The bottling machine is able to fill approximately 80 12oz or 22oz bottles per minute and will also apply the labels to the 12oz bottle. The labels for the 22oz bottles, I was absolutely shocked to hear, are applied individually BY HAND. Andra described her skills at doing this manual task as “fair”… Renee chimed in that Andra had an incredible knack for doing this very quickly and at the same time getting them on straight and wrinkle free… I believe the word “amazing” was used.

Like many brewing businesses these days, Rock Art is contributing to the “green brewing” movement by using unbleached, recycled paper in their six-pack cartons as well as shipping all of their grain and yeast waste to a farm in Eden, VT to be used as livestock feed. All of Rock Art’s beer is produced with natural and, when possible, fresh ingredients (natural ginger, jasmine, etc.) and contain no extracts or artificial additives.

There are, no doubt, many of you that remember Rock Art’s battle last year with the company that produces Monster energy drinks (see Rock Art vs. Monster and Rock Art Wins “Monster” Battle). The very large company had taken Rock Art to court in an attempt to try to stop them from using the word “monster” in the name of their excellent “Vermonster” beer. They claimed that they held a copyright/trademark on the use of that word in beverage names… not that Rock Art Vermonster is the only beer name to contain that word, of course. Fortunately the courts overruled the petty “monster” claim and Rock Art continues to use “Vermonster” today. Since that fight, Matt has become very involved, at the national level, in promoting trademark legal reform. Associated with this fight were several videos which were, in part, responsible for Rock Art’s success in the courts. In a video available at Rock Art Monster Battle, Matt talks about the “cease and desist” order that was issued by the courts and the reforms that are necessary to keep other small companies from falling prey to the predatory trademark legal practices of much larger corporations.

My visit to Rock Art, though brief, convinced me that Matt and Renee as well as their employees are extremely passionate about what they do. I have long enjoyed the fruits of their labor and, in fact, some of the newer “extreme series” beers that they have fairly recently started producing are among my “regulars” for beer consumption. It is gratifying for me to see that these products which I consume are produced by a very successful local Vermont company that is committed to producing the finest product at a reasonable price so that everyone can enjoy them. I plan to watch, with pride, as another excellent Vermont-based brewer continues to spread their wings and begins to gather the acclaim that all of their hard work deserves.

I have not done extensive calculations to back up my claim, but I would hazard a guess that, on a per capita basis, Vermonters also had the most WBC medals of any state as well. In total there were 4 Vermont breweries or Vermonters that won 6 medals at this austere event. Using the census figures from above, that comes out to one medal for every 103,545 Vermonters… I’ll let someone else calculate that for the other states. The Vermont winners were The Alchemist Pub and Brewery, Harpoon Brewery, Lawson’s Finest Liquids and Shaun E. Hill (now of Hill Farmstead Brewery). Let’s take a look at each of these in some detail.

The Alchemist Pub and Brewery is located in the small town of Waterbury, Vermont. I have written previously about this quality brewer (Alchemist Magic) and this is not the first beer competition in which their owner/brewer, John Kimmich, has taken a medal. He won a Gold at the 2004 Great American Beer Fest (GABF) for his Sterk Wit Belgian-style Witbier and followed that up with a Gold and a Bronze at the 2009 GABF for his Celia Framboise and Celia IPA in the gluten-free category. John’s medal at this year’s WBC competition was for his Celia Saison, also in the Gluten-free category. John’s seeming obsession with gluten-free beer comes from his wife’s inability to drink regular beer. I think that it is a wonderful gesture that he brews award-winning beers for his wife and I am very grateful that he also chooses to share that beer with the rest of us!

Lawson’s Finest Liquids is, undoubtedly, the mouse that roared in this competition. Based in the very small town of Warren, VT and accurately described as a “nanobrewery”, Sean Lawson runs a ONE-barrel brewery to produce his excellent, high quality, limited production brews. Sean’s Maple Tripple won a WBC Bronze medal in the Specialty Beer category. So why is a “tripple” considered a “specialty beer”? The secret comes from the rather uniquie ingredients that he uses. You may not know that tiny Vermont is responsible for about 40% of the maple syrup produced in the US and Sean taps into one of the raw ingedients used to make this tasty and very sweet treat. The maple tree sap which is used to make maple syrup is also used to make Lawson’s Maple Tripple (instead of plain water). It takes about 40 gallons of this boiled down sap to produce one gallon of syrup, so Maple Tripple is not a very sweet beer, but it does pick up maple flavors from this sap and that, along with the addition of some real maple syrup before bottling produces a very unique, very tasty and truly Vermont beer.

Harpoon Brewery, actually headquartered in Boston, purchased the Catamount Brewery in Windsor, VT in 2000. Harpoon’s UFO Hefeweizen won a WBC Silver medal in the American Style Wheat Beer with Yeast category. Harpoon beer has long been a favorite of mine and it is not at all unusual to find a 12-pack of Harpoon IPA in my beer larder for my “everyday” enjoyment. In my opinion, Harpoon is also notable for their socially responsible contributions to the Vermont community. They are heavy supporters of charitable causes in Vermont, the most visible of which is their primary sponsorship of the Harpoon Point-to-Point bike race each August. The profits and donations from this race benefit the Vermont Foodbank and their important mission to feed hungry Vermonters. Harpoon also hosts the New England BBQ Championship each summer at their Windsor facility. It is a marvelous weekend of fun mixed with great beer and great BBQ… and it does not get much better than that folks!

The last of our Vermont winners, and perhaps the most noteworthy of all, is Shaun E. Hill. The fact that Shaun won medals at this year’s WBC was, unfortunately, not heavily reported by the media. The 3 WBC medals that Shaun won were for beers that he created when working for the Danish brewer Nørrebro Bryghus. Shaun has long been a fixture in Vermont brewing and some might remember his work at The Shed in Stowe, VT before his stint in Denmark. Shaun won WBC Gold medals for both his SEVEN Imperial Stout (Niepoort barrel-aged) and his Little Korkny Barleywine (Niepoort barrel-aged). He also won a WBC Silver medal for his Viking Oud Bruin.  I previously wrote (The Denmark Connection) about these beers, which are definitely worthy of all the accolades that they received.

Shaun is back brewing in Vermont and has opened his own brewery, Hill Farmstead Brewery in Greensboro, VT, on farmland that his family has lived on since the late 1700′s. Shaun’s first beer, Edward India Pale Ale (named after his grandfather), hit the streets this week and is already creating a “buzz” in the Vermont beer community. If this work of art IPA is a sign of the type of beer that Shaun will produce from his small brewery, you can expect more medals to be forthcoming. I visited Shaun at his new brewery last weekend. He had all of the markings of a tired new business owner getting ready for his “grand opening”, but all that has definitely not dampened his passion or drive to create great beer. I had the good fortune to sample both an “in production” Imperial IPA and a maple smoked baltic porter that, while not quite ready yet, showed all of the signs of the “world class” beer that I expect that we will see from him in the future. Look for more about Shaun and his new brewery in a future article.

Congratulations to all of these Vermont WBC medal winners… you have all done our small state proud!  Come to beautiful Vermont and be prepared to both sample and enjoy some of the best beer you can find anywhere. That’s not just my opinion… the WBC’s 127 beer judges from 27 countries say so too!

Photo by Shaun E. Hill