Top Three Small Breweries (15K bbl or less)
Maine Beer Company (Freeport, Maine)
While Dinner may get most of the attention, Maine Beer Company produces a remarkable slate of intriguing beers. Whether aiming for rich and chocolaty (Mean Old Tom) or clean and bright (an experimental lager I was lucky enough to try one evening—along with a brisket-and-meatball pizza), it’s obvious they can do more than just produce a great DIPA, which is one reason I’m so glad that they’re in the process of doubling their production!
pFriem Family Brewers (Hood River, Oregon) If you haven’t had the opportunity to try pFriem’s beer (which tends to be available only in the Pacific Northwest), you’re missing out. Find a friend to ship you some or add them to your “must-stop” list for your next trip out West because their beer nails a wide range of modern and classic styles—truly, a great beer for everyone. It helps that they’re fun, friendly, helpful people, too.
Forest & Main Brewing Co. (Ambler, Pennsylvania) I promised myself I’d put only one Philadelphia-area brewery on this list but know that I could have named a dozen or more. But if we’re talking “small,” I’d love to highlight Forest & Main (which, conveniently, is also their location in Ambler). Their Victorian front porch is as bucolic a setting for drinking beer as you could ask for, and if the weather isn’t cooperating, the interior is just as charming. The beer they pour ranges from a simple (but exquisite) hand-pumped bitter to some of the most creative farmhouse-inspired beers you could ask for to stand-up-to-anyone’s IPAs and stouts.