I find myself doing some pretty ridiculous things to visit breweries. I’ve walked through desolate industrial parks on weekends, risked seasickness on ferries across rough waters, and spent two or three hours on trains just to spend forty-five minutes at breweries. But I’ve never taken a flight to visit a brewery for the day. That changes tomorrow, when I hop on a morning flight to Nantucket to visit Cisco Brewers for the afternoon. The AB-owned brewery on a farm on the far-off island has been on my to-do list for years, and with hotels there booking months in advance and requiring multiple-night stays, this seems like the most logical, economical way of getting to Cisco.
By the way, if you’re looking to replicate this trip yourself, flights from New York to Nantucket start around $44 each way. It’s still a lot to spend on a trip to a brewery, but there’s other stuff to do on the island, too, if you give yourself enough time. I’m renting a bike and riding to the lighthouse that’s depicted on one of Cisco’s beer labels before I go drink their beer.
Events on the Brew York Calendar
A reminder that there are still tickets available to this Saturday’s Kills Boro Pizza Party at the Snug Harbor Cultural Center on Staten Island. $65 gets you unlimited beer from several local breweries and eight slices from some of the island’s finest pizza makers. Tickets are available through Eventbrite.
Next Saturday, August 7th, Five Boroughs Brewing Co. is celebrating their fourth anniversary with a party in their taproom. They’ll have special merch and beers for the occasion, as usual, DJ Wally Wonder spinning up a storm, and Italian sandwiches for sale from Cento Percento. The fun gets underway at noon and there’s no fee to enter.
If you’re hosting a special beer event you’d like added to the calendar, all you have to do is fill out this form (or, if you’re especially lazy, just reply to this email. I won’t judge)!
Another new seltzer brand emerges on the heels of seltzer’s biggest month yet
Hard seltzer isn’t going away. Brooklyn Brewery is the latest NYC outfit to hop on the hard seltzer train. Brooklyn Hard Seltzer debuted earlier this month in 12-packs of slim 12-ounce cans. The 12-pack is a variety pack featuring four flavors: Grapefruit, Black Cherry Apricot, Lemon Cloudberry, and Mango.
Meanwhile, Nielsen IQ data suggest that seltzer is still growing. It had 13% market share of spend across beer in the first two weeks of July, its highest point yet. Compared to past Julys, seltzer is up 189% over just two years ago (although just 9% up compared to last year). Of the ten biggest growth brands in beer in the past four weeks, eight of them are hard seltzer (Modelo Especial and Twisted Tea were the lone non-seltzers). Bizarrely, some publications were writing seltzer’s obituary last week on the news that Boston Beer did not meet market expectations as Truly sales fell short, but Truly remains the second largest seltzer brand in a category that’s still growing.
And here’s a shocking nugget: Truly and Twisted Tea made up 84% of Boston Beer’s total sales volume in the four weeks ending July 10th. Sam Adams, their core beer brand, represented just 7.3%.
Brewery Tracker
Total brewery count: 2,307
New breweries in 2021: 233
Breweries visited in Virginia: 49
Brewery Visit of the Week
Brewery #2296, Black Narrows Brewing Company, Chincoteague, Virginia (Visited 23-Jul-2021)
When at least a half-dozen people you know and whose opinions you trust about beer insist that you visit a brewery that they have, you take their advice. So when the opportunity arose last weekend to make the 10-mile detour off U.S. 13 to have a beer at Black Narrows on the way to the Hampton Roads, I took it. I was not disappointed. The taproom is nestled on the center of Chincoteague Island, and while it was teeming with tourists in town for the annual Blueberry Festival, the service still felt personal and the vibe was authentic. I settled in with a Plover Season, a delicious Amber Lager with a touch of sweetness. My friend opted for a flight that started with the How Bout It Corn Lager, a clean refresher made with local corn that was simple enough for the Bud Light drinkers on the island, but with enough complexity to please beer geeks like us.
As we sipped, owner and brewer Josh Chapman popped over to ask us how we were enjoying the beers. I mentioned that his spot had come highly recommended from friends in Washington, D.C., and connected the dots once he mentioned he had previously brewed at Bluejacket He took far more time than he probably had to talk with us about his approach to beer, walk us through what was on the board, and just chat about the beer industry in general. Over that chat, I enjoyed a Weathered Together, a Pale Ale made with hops grown locally — something I didn’t expect to see on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, and Salts, a tart wheat ale with oysters — a nod to the brewery’s past life as an oyster shucking house.
Josh has made an effort to use local ingredients in his beers in an area that’s dominated by agriculture and aquaculture, but it doesn’t feel so intentional that the beer is gimmicky. It’s just good, clean beer that feels far more a part of this part of Virginia than the tourist-trap mini golf course or antique shop does. And next time, I’ll pair my oyster beer with local oysters.
Beer of the Week
Little By Little
Benchtop Brewing (Norfolk, Virginia)
Foeder-Aged German-Style Pilsner
4.8% ABV
I, regretfully, did not take a photo of this beautifully crisp lager with a pillowy head. But picture that in your mind as I tell you about this glass of perfection I enjoyed on a warm Saturday afternoon in Norfolk. Benchtop is making some really creative beers — far and away the best I had in the Hampton Roads last weekend. Among them, some lovely hazy IPAs, a Beet Kvass, and a Phantasm-hopped Hard Seltzer with Raspberries. But this crispy boi stole the show, with its earth hop character, subtle notes of oak, and a very clean finish. If you feel like you’re missing out, this beer reminds me a lot of Threes Brewing’s Kicking and Screaming and Finback Dot Dot Dot, which you can pick up at their respective taprooms in cans now.
Long Read of the Week
At Beer Dabbler, Louis Livingston-Garcia has an update on the progress that Beer Kulture, a lifestyle brand-turned-non profit that promotes educating and hiring people of color in the beer industry. Included in the piece is NYC’s own Torch & Crown, who hired an employee who found the job posting off Beer Kulture’s job board. Beer Kulture also has a Production Intership program at Bronx Brewery, who just selected their third member in the program.
One More Thing
If you’re not familiar with Em Sauter’s Pints and Panels, you should be. Her site is fun, whimsical, educational, cute, and… all about beer. And she also sells prints of many of her illustrations! In a world with a lot of negativity, Em’s work exudes positivity. Enjoy!
Cheers,
Chris
Thanks Chris! Any Indianapolis recommends? I have only been to Sun King but curious to know if there’s any other breweries you like? Thx
Chris, strong move making the day trip to ACK, but if you were a real baller you would have called Blade ;). While we can debate whether ACK is part of Cape Cod or not, I thought I'd point out a few less traveled Cape Cod breweries. My wife and I discovered Devil's Purse in Dennis way back in 2013 on their opening weekend and they've been turning out lots of good beers. Further out you can find Hog Island Brewing which is a perfect place to hang on a non-beach day. Devil's Purse is all about the beer. I haven't investigated, but I do think there's a brewery at the end in Ptown. There are a few closer to the bridges, including the new T'house location in Sandwich. Sometime's breweries aren't out of the way, but you pass them too quickly like we did last Friday while ferrying from New London, to Shelter Island to East Hampton! Greenport Brewing was part of the itinerary, but as we were skipping across S.I., smack dab in the middle of town was Shelter Island Craft Brewing! A quick U-turn dropped us in front and I had time to run in for a quick sample and a 6 pack of their 114 NEIPA to go. Moral of the story, breweries are everywhere!