Top 5: Best Craft Breweries in New England

Somerville Brewing Company’s Flower Envy Slumbrew © Kelsey Roth | Flickr

If you’re a dedicated and proud beer snob, you’ll want to take a tasting tour of the many craft breweries scattered throughout the New England states. To make your map of must-see stops a little easier to narrow down, read up on these five much loved local brewers.

Somerville Brewing Company

Sitting just outside of Boston, Mass., the Somerville Brewing Company crafts the popular line of incredibly flavorful beers known as Slumbrew. Their blood orange Hefeweizen — Happy Sol — is a must-try year-round staple, while their seasonal line-up is especially creative. Enjoy the rum barrel-aged strong ale, Yankee Swap, during the winter months, and the Lobstah Killer — a hoppy Imperial Red Ale — come spring.

CitySteam Brewery

This Hartford, Conn.-based brewery made its mark on history for incorporating The Hartford Steam Company’s vapor and steam pipes into their brewing process. Today, it’s a 23-barrel brewery cafe best known for The Naughty Nurse, a spicy and slightly sweet amber ale.

Shipyard Brewing Company

One of the largest and fastest growing brewing companies in the United States, Shipyard ales came from humble beginnings in Kennebunkport Harbor, Maine, before settling in the major port city of Portland. Their seasonal selections are what keep them on the map; look for Pumpkinhead on draft in the fall, and order it with a rim of cinnamon sugar.

Smuttynose Brewing Company’s Old Brown Dog Ale © Joe Loong | Flickr

The Woodchuck Cidery

While Woodchuck doesn’t brew beer, they sure craft a mean hard cider. Woodchuck ciders are crisp and refreshing, brewed in the backwoods of Vermont, and their Granny Smith is a sip worth writing home about. Fun fact: They based their brand on the nickname for the “Vermontiest of Vermonters,” who are sometimes endearingly called “woodchucks.”

Smuttynose Brewing Company

Based out of New Hampshire, Smuttynose pays extra attention to the New England region’s history of beermaking. They are constantly experimenting with flavor combinations, but are most admired for their classic American brown ale, Old Brown Dog.