In the city of Middletown, New York, the line forms early outside of Equilibrium Brewery on weekends for fans jonesing for a hops fix. This is what happens when professionally trained scientists get involved in brewing.
When a brewer who cut his teeth on classic styles and learned the importance of repetition and quality is unleashed into a brand-new brewery where the only limitation is his imagination, good beer is bound to happen.
People make pilgrimages to the Suarez Family Brewery. There are no pints, only pours, and most of what’s on offer is below 6 percent ABV. Here it’s about taking it slow, appreciating nuance, and working with both tradition and the surrounding area.
“New lambic blender” are words not often spoken, but upstart Raf Souvereyns’s Bokkereyder lambic brand is putting that phrase in headlines with a distinct nod to the blending tradition and a progressive attitude toward incorporating winemaking techniques.
Best known at the moment for their hoppy IPAs and pale ales, Fox Farm is using location to its advantage. The emphasis on sourcing local ingredients and taking a culinary approach to beer-recipe development translates to a farm-to-glass experience.
Proving that experience is the best teacher, Jay Bullen, a homebrewer turned pro who has bounced from one side of the country to the other, recently settled in northern Massachusetts and is now focused on creating traditional styles.
With a new tasting room and a second location, Highland Park Brewery in Los Angeles can clearly follow two paths: the predictable, more controlled one of beers made in stainless with one yeast strain, and the other path—mixed-culture fermentation.
Tulsa, Oklahoma’s newcomer Heirloom Rustic Ales courts locals with open-fermented saisons and lagers, proving that good beer takes time and that as craft evolves and grows, having recipes for the uninitiated is great for business.
There’s general agreement that Alberta, Canada, is about a decade behind its brewing neighbors to the south. Still, while there’s a lot to celebrate locally, Blind Enthusiasm Brewing Company in Edmonton might just be the brewery that ushers in the new age.
Troon Brewing is a small brewery that sits in an old barn on 800 acres in New Jersey’s rolling farmland. The beers produced are largely hazy IPAs, and more and more, they are being traded, checked-in, and closely examined.