New Brew Thursday - Portsmouth Brew Pub

Over the summer hubby and I were on vacation in the beautiful state of New Hampshire.  On the one rainy day we had during the week we took a drive to Portsmouth to check out of a couple of the local breweries.  

A must visit on the list was none other than Portsmouth Brewery.  The brewpub is cozy with a very pleasant waitstaff and you can watch the brewers work as you enjoy your food and drink.  

Since this wasn't the only stop on our little beer tour we decided to get a sampler . . . mmmm, okay we both got a sampler.  I have to say of all the places where I've gotten a beer sampler Portsmouth, by far, has the most generous sample pallet . . . ten beers, all told.  A mix of beers from Portsmouth Brewery and Smuttynose (a sister brewery) and an odd man out from Tuckermans.

The first on the pallet was the Dirty Blond Ale (4.5% ABV).  A bright lemon color with a frothy white head.  A light, sessionable brew.  Citrussy, a little sweet with a touch of hoppiness.  Refreshing and exceptionally drinkable . . . a very nice summer beer.   Overall . . . very good.

Onward and forward . . . Belgian Wit (4.5% ABV).  A hazy golden color with a fluffy white head.    A lot over wheat beers that's all you can taste . . . wheat.  But this a nice wheaty beer with distinctive floral notes.  Interesting and tasty.  Overall . . . very good.

Ah the dark beer,  Black Cat Stout (5.5% ABV).  I'm not a big stout drinker but I can appreciate a good one.  This is one of those.  This beer is dark, smooth, creamy and a little bitter. The best part?  Black Cat is chock full of coffee flavor . . . uhm, drooooool. Overall . . . very good.

Saison (6% ABV).  A hazy golden beer . . . it tastes like it looks.  Slightly sweet honey, some pineapple and a touch of citrus.  It tastes like summer and is very refreshing.  Delish!  Overall . . . very good.

Rye?  Rye Not (5.5% ABV).  The rye is evident in the aroma . . . along with some malty goodness.  Another good summery beer with refreshing hops and citrus.  In fact, to me, this was more IPAish; something you won't here me complain about.  There was a bit of fruitiness that balanced out the beer quite nicely.  I liked it.  Overall . . . pretty good.

Smuttynose Finest Kind (6.9% ABV).  Another American IPA . . . another one tops on my favorite list here.  What can I say? I'm an IPA kinda girl.  This beer starts out a with a malty caramel sweetness the morphs into something in between floral and citrus then  ends with a crisp hoppiness.  A wonderfully complex and delicious beer.  Overall . . . awesome!


Smuttynose Shoals Pale Ale (5.5% ABV).  This is an American Pale Ale.  A lovely coppery red color  . . . definitely the prettiest beer in the bunch. It tastes like it looks.  That is, toasty caramel maltiness which compliments something subtle and fruity . . . hmmm, apple maybe?  It finishes crisp and clean with a touch of hoppy bitterness.  Yummy!  Overall . . . nearly awesome!

Smuttynose Star Island Single (5% ABV).  A Belgian Pale Ale.  A hazy straw color with a poof of foam on top.  It's like drinking fresh bread and a touch of jam . . . yeasty, fruity . . . mmm.  It finishes crisp and clean with bitter notes.  Goes down easy, very tasty, easily sessionable.  Overall . . . very good.

Last but nowhere near least . . . Tuckerman's Pale Ale (4.75% ABV).   What can I say about this beer?  I can tell you it's made by one of my favorite New Hampshire micro-breweries!  And also that this is my favorite of their offerings.  An American Pale Ale that is light and refreshing with citrus and bitter hops but not quite IPAish.  It's lightly carbonated and exceedingly drinkable!  So good!  Overall . . . nearly awesome!





Visit the websites for Portsmouth Brewery and Smuttynose and Tuckermans.  Or, check them out on Facebook here, here and here respectively.

New Brew Thursday - Sunday River Brewing Company

Hubby and I went off on a long motorcycle ride on a beautiful day. We went through two states. . . Maine and New Hampshire . . . three notches. . . Evans, Grafton,  and Pinkham. . . making a 200 mile trip.  The plan was simply a nice long ride and to see some beautiful sites.  Which we accomplished most successfully but we had the bonus of finding a micro brewery along the way.

Sunday River Brewing Company

The brewery / brew pub was waaaaay out of the way in the middle of nowhere.  And, because we were on the bikes we obviously weren't going to be slamming down a whole big pile of beers.  Hell, I don't feel comfortable riding after having a single beer. 

So, we decided to share a sampler and a whole big pile of hot wings. . . a few sips each of six beers . . . just a tease really. . . and noms.

About the brewery:  Sunday River Brewing Company (SRBC)  . . . once tied in with the now defunct Stone Coast Brewing Company . . . is located on  Sunday River Road in Bethel Maine. It is a decent sized pub with clear viewing of the brewing area.  The brew master . . . or pro brewer, as he is called there . . . is Stewart Mason.  A home brewer to start he began working for breweries in Boston and then other locations until he made his way to Sunday River, where he’s made his home. 

Our lovely and knowledgeable server, Darcie, brought us our sampler and described the brews as such . . .  a blonde, an alt, an IPA, a porter, a wheat and a double IPA.

The first, Sunday River Blonde, was a pale lemon colored ale; a very light and refreshing but tasty 3.8% ABV; this would make an excellent session beer that you could enjoy many of on a long hot day.

The second, Sunday River Alt, was a tawny colored ale that is lightly sweet and has a clearly define caramel flavor. Another excellent beer.  Smooth and delicious. (4%ABV)

The third was Sunday River IPA. For some reason I have been lusting after IPAs recently and this one didn't disappoint me. Grapefruity hoppiness, bitter on the front end with a clean finish. A classic English IPA flavor with 5.7% ABV.

So far we're going three to three on liking this brew pub's offerings . . . and the wings are pretty darn good, as well . . . they all cant possible be good. Can they? Read on . . .

The fourth was Black Bear Porter.  This was my least favorite of the sextet . . . but not because it was bad.   It was indeed quite good, in fact.  What made me like it less than all the others is the smoky aspect. . . I'm jot a fan of smoky beer, that's all.   Hubby claimed this to be his favorite partially because of the smoky flavor . . . so, to each his own. This porter is typically dark and malty but surprisingly hoppy.  6% ABV

The final two were seasonals . . .

The fifth in the line up was a Belgian Wit a pale golden yellow.   A fruity wheat beer simply screams summer.    Like a lemonade beer . . . oh so good and refreshing . . . was refreshing, light and tasty.  The lemon wasn’t overpowering but instead complimented the wheat to create a nicely balance beer.

The final beer in our sampler was Mollyockett’s Revenge, a double IPA. A very big IPA coming in at a strong 8% ABV.  Despite the high alcohol content there was no boozy taste.  A really good hoppy beer . . . bitter, citrusy and seriously good. 

The beer discovery of Sunday River was nearly as amazing as the awesome ride.  If you’re ever in the area of Bethel Maine stop by and have yourself a few brews, you won’t be disappointed . . . great beer, pleasant staff and good food make for an all around experience.

Cheers.