Alex Steed and friends are working on a documentary about craft brewing in Maine called Kind of Like Surfing. Film crews from KoLS and WCSH were filming Tuesday at Bunker Brewing. The piece for WCSH is expected to air on Sunday.
Category: Beer
Hayride Autumn Ale
Baxter Brewing has announced the upcoming release of their Fall seasonal beer, Hayride Autumn Ale. Hayride should be showing up on Portland store shelves in just a couple weeks at the start of September. According to the press release,
Cold conditioned on a bed of American oak, Hayride is a blend of rye malts and exotic New Zealand hops, enhanced with touches of peppercorns, ginger and sweet orange peel, which produces a unique beer perfectly timed for leaf-peeping, apple picking, evenings around the campfire, and hayrides.
Rise of Wild Beers
Allagash and their coolship beers are mentioned in an article on Gilt Taste about the new wave of interest in wild beer fermentation.
But one of the most sought-after beers in the room, an ale brewed in the Belgian lambic tradition called Resurgam, comes from Allagash Brewery in Portland, Maine. It is so rare it isn’t even announced with the others, instead moving quietly through the crowd, a whisper between friends.
Bar Review of Rivalries
Today’s Press Herald includes a bar review of Rivalries.
Rivalries is hands-down a sports pub, but with flare. With black tables and chairs contrasted with light walls and exposed beams upstairs, the pub’s decor makes a nice place to gather and watch a game.
Also in today’s paper is an article on lobster pricing and the latest installment of the What Ales You column.
Best Beer Bars: Great Lost Bear
The Great Lost Bear has made it onto the Food & Wine list of America’s Best Beer Bars.
A charming, cluttered Portland bar, Great Lost Bear started serving craft microbrews in 1979 when it had just eight taps. As the number of local breweries grew, so did the offerings. Sixty-nine taps now spotlight microbreweries like Marshall Wharf, whose Big Twitch is a sweet, citrusy style of IPA.
Maine Craft Breweries & Reviews of Scarpa’s and The Holy Donut
As I had mentioned last weekend the new issue of The Bollard is out. They’ve now put the articles online. The July issue includes a bar review of Scarpa’s,
On my follow-up visit, I tested Maciek’s creative side. Still strapped for selection behind the bar, he whipped up a light mix of Stoli orange and raspberry vodkas with citrus juices. As a summer drink, it hit the spot and was a competent companion to the delicious Chicken Saltimbocca — the broth was so good I ordered a side of bread to clean my plate.
a breakfast review of The Holy Donut,
So what does the future hold? For all I know, upscale doughnuts could go the way of the frozen yogurt shop and disappear within a few years. Or maybe they’re here to stay, and we’ll be seeing Holy Donut franchises opening up across the country. Regardless, they’re here right now, in Portland, and you should go get some today before they’re all gone. This is one upscaled, luxury food you can’t afford to miss.
and an article about the latest wave of craft breweries to open in Maine.
The battle is becoming a rout. No fewer than six homegrown breweries have been established in Maine in the past three years. Portland is home to four: Bunker Brewing, Maine Beer Company, Bull Jagger and Rising Tide. Baxter Brewing Co. is cranking out cans in Lewiston’s Bates Mill. Oxbow crafts Belgian farmhouse beers in a remodeled barn in Newcastle.
The Bollard: Maine Beer, The Holy Donut, Scarpa’s
The July edition of The Bollard is now out. It includes:
- A feature article on the latest wave of craft brewers to open in Maine: Maine Beer Company, Bull Jager, Rising Tide, Bunker Brewing, Baxter Brewing, and Oxbow.
- A review of The Holy Donut (194 Park Ave)
- A bar review of Scarpa’s (15 Exchange St)
The articles aren’t on The Bollard website yet, but they usually posts them up in the week following print publication. In the meantime you can find free print copies in just about every coffee shop and cafe in Portland.
Bar Review of Flask & What Ales You Column
The Press Herald has published a bar review of Flask,
I met a friend out for a weekend-welcoming drink at Flask on a recent Friday. For both of us, it was our first time hitting up the lounge near Portland’s West End. Shortly after we walked in, I spotted the lineup of flasks on a ledge near the ceiling. Each one had a little funky flair to it, just like the bar.
and the What Ales You column in today’s paper challenges its readers to reach past their go-to brew for something new this 4th of July.
So, I am going to suggest you try something new — three established craft breweries that have been around for a decade or more, but which have just been introduced to store shelves in Maine. They are Lagunitas, from Petaluma, Calif.; Founders, from Grand Rapids, Mich.; and Green Flash, from San Diego, Calif.
Strawberries, Strawberries, Strawberries
Both Sweeter Salt and Map & Menu have written up their recent trips to Maxwell’s Farm for strawberry picking,
…There seemed to be quite the contest to see who could pick the most perfect looking strawberry (I maintain that I was a clear winner in this contest) – in the end, we ended up picking quite a lot of these perfectly shaped beautiful, bright berries, and have enjoyed eating them on just about everything since! They’ve accompanied our morning oatmeal and daily salads, and have made the perfect topping for an angel food cake we picked up at Whole Foods. Strawberry pie & strawberry jam are both on our list of things to make this week as well.
and via a pair of re-tweets from Maine Foodie Tours we learned that Allagash is working on a strawberry-infused variant of Allagash Four called Avance (pic 1, pic 2), and that Maine Mead Works will be putting out a strawberry-flavored mead in July.
Review of Congress Bar & Grill
the Press Herald has published a review of Congress Bar & Grill.
I stopped in at this neighborhood establishment in the Arts District one day last week, desperate for something quick, tasty and not too expensive. Congress Bar & Grill fit the bill. It boasts hearty American fare — substantial, meaty food with robust sides.
This week’s What Ales You column is on fruit beers.
The two blueberry beers I had show the different styles. The Sea Dog Wild Blueberry Ale tasted like blueberries, with almost no hops and with the malt in the background. The Bar Harbor Blueberry Ale tasted more like a good pale ale, with just a hint of blueberries in the background.