I flew back to Cape Cod to celebrate Christmas and New Year with my family. One of the only outings I did while there was a father-daughter date day of checking out motorcycles, attempting to find new motorcycle boots, and stumbling across a great brewery in Hyannis – Barnstable Brewing. What went from a “call them and see if they are open” to one of the best afternoons of sampling all their beers on tap, to continuing to purchase their beers while on Cape and finally a new regular spot for my dad and his friends.

From the initial call, I was in love. A super friendly guy answered the phone and invited us to “come on in” and my dad made friends with the wife of one of the brewers – what do they share in common? She got married last year at the same exact church my parents got married in a couple of decades ago. Did I mention their beers are delicious? If you are on the Cape anytime soon – please check out this place!

Barnstable Brewing’s passion for great quality ingredients and outstanding beer started where their hearts have always been: their family. Co-owner Peter Connor started home-brewing over 30 years ago. What started as a family tradition at barbecues, graduations, and family weddings blossomed into something much bigger in 2012 when Peter won the Samuel Adams “Come Brew With Us” contest. After brewing with professionals at a larger scale, Peter realized that he was on to something special. Shortly after, Peter and his wife, Ann Connor, found the perfect Cape Cod location to make their dreams come true. Suddenly, the vision came to life. “Barnstable Brewing” was born.

While preparing for the grand opening, Ann & Peter’s son, Mark Connor, attended the Siebel Institute of Technology in Chicago and Doemens Academy in Munich, Germany where he became a certified Brew Master and helped to refine some of Barnstable Brewing’s most successful recipes. Mark’s background in science and Peter’s decades of experience have come together to create a dynamic duo in crafting some of the best beer on Cape Cod.

Barnstable Brewing prides itself on being a family-owned business with the passion and skills to create a beer that you will fall in love with. I can not stress this enough – they have a huge passion for great beer and family connections. You walk in that door and you are like family.

Here are the beers we tried:

CAPE CRUSHER (Helles Light Lager)  

Another beer in the ‘Heritage Series’! A crisp Light lager brewed using 100% imported German ingredients. This beer is inspired by the time while studying brewing sciences at the Doemens Academy in Munich, Germany. A Helles is a traditional German Pale Light Lager. This “bier” is full-bodied, mildly sweet, light-colored, with lower amounts of perceived bitterness, making it the perfect beer to “crush” at your favorite places on Cape Cod. ABV: 4.9% IBU: 16.3. I can not wait to come back to the Cape next summer and sip some of these on the beach.

BLUEBERRY ALE (Fruit Beer)

A refreshing light fruit ale fermented with frozen Blueberries from Maine and hopped with Northwest US hops.  Floral and berry aromas, with just enough bitterness and biscuit malt backbone that makes this beer refreshing and crisp. ABV: 5.3% IBU: 10.2

AMERIHOP (American Pale Ale)

To say this beer is incredibly balanced would be an understatement. It is pouring out of taps with a yellow hue and a creamy, white foam head. Pick up a light floral aroma with a hint of citrus thanks to 100% American hops sourced from the Pacific Northwest. Faint late bitterness is in pleasant equilibrium with a sweet malt backbone. ABV 5.5% IBU: 13.6. Clearly, I’m a little biased because I love things from the PNW, but this beer is an amazing year-round beer. You can not go wrong with it.

WOBBLY JACK (Pumpkin Beer)

A refreshing pumpkin Ale with select grains and hops from Europe, fermented with Organic Pumpkins from Massachusetts and Illinois, Organic Brown Sugar, and finished with Organic Vanilla Beans from Mexico. ABV: 6.7% IBU: 12.8. All I wanted to drink while in the USA was dark, pumpkiny (or other interesting beers – kelp and oysters for example) and this one was a personal pleaser. Thank you for creating this beer.

JESUIT JUICE (New England IPA)

Barnstable Brewing’s New England IPA series calling it EXAMEN. It is inspired by our family’s Latin Jesuit education at both Boston College, and Creighton University. With each brew, they changed every variable, dry hopping techniques, and ingredients. EXAMEN 25 – JESUIT JUICE – is quite simply a powerhouse NEIPA! Tons of tropical fruit, big juicy flavor, and loooooong hazy appearance. It’s full of ridiculously good hops. They had to name it – it’s a behemoth. ABV: 6.5% IBU 37.

TWO JESUITS WALK INTO A BREWERY (Imperial IPA)

Packed with grapefruit and passionfruit, citrus and tropical aromas. ABV: 8.2% IBU 70.

BAVARIAN SLAM (Munich Dunkel)

Dark beer boasting ABV: 5.5% and IBU 22.

RASPERRY K-DUB (Kristallweizen)

A harmonious marriage of German Wheat Beer and raspberries. The key attributes of our Kristallweissbeir create a base for this fruit ale. Fermenting this bier over raspberries provides additional fermentable sugars for the yeast to consume, resulting in more alcohol, a slightly sweet finish, and beautiful fruit aroma. Pouring from the taps with a pink hue and a balanced carbonation profile. ABV: 5.7% IBU: 10. This was the beer that my dad bonded with one of the bar tenders. She shared that the picture on the cans was from her wedding – a small little chaple on Cape Cod – turns out it was the small little chaple my parent’s also got married at! Needless to say, we bought a four-pack to take home and show my mom.

MANGO MILKSHAKE IPA (Milkshake)

Honestly, not my favorite beer from Barnstable Brewing. However the ABV: 7.5% might make you change your mind.

CIVIC RENT (Lager)

A delicious, malty lager with ABV: 4.9% and no IBUs. Barnstable Brewing is proud to collaborate with Shepley Wood Products to produce Civic Rent. Civic Rent combines both of passions as a social obligation to pay back to the community. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of every 4-pack of Civic Rent benefits the Housing Assistance Corporation and their Workforce Housing Relief Fund.

RIZZY (Russian Imperial Stout)

Back again!! This beer is the king of all stouts. With an alcohol by volume in the double digits, it is a beast of a beer. Expect massive chocolate and roasted malt flavors, with a hint of dark fruit. Sip nice and slow to allow this beer to warm up, as the flavors intensify and the alcohol becomes more prevalent. ABV: 10.5% IBU: 97. Great beer for a cold snowy night on the Cape with a fire burning.

CATCH ME LAGER (Lager)

Catch Me Lager is baseball beer made for the Martha’s Vineyard Sharks in the New England Collegiate Baseball League. There is nothing quite like summer ball on the Cape and Islands! ABV: 4.9% No IBUs.

Ever been to Barnstable Brewing? What beers did you like?

One of the best perks of being a beer blogger is the amount of beer that gets dropped off at your doorstep. Even when you aren’t home and don’t get a pitch email about it. Thankfully, Charlotte was home to try some amazing new beer from Public Coast – the Hazy Grapefruit Mosaic IPA.

This American style IPA​, boasts a 5.8% ABV with three kinds of hops and 160 pounds of grapefruit puree give this Hazy IPA a full body mouthfeel with a refreshing kick of citrus. Hazy Grapefruit Mosaic IPA is the first release in Public Coast‘s SLACK TIDE IPA SERIES. They are brewing every style of IPA – West Coast, Sessionable, Hazy, and Imperial. Some straight forward and others are a bit twisted. Sit back and enjoy the evolution.

Charlotte was able to try the beer while heading outdoors and shared: the beer tastes refreshing and like summertime! I want to sit out in the sun at the coast or hang out in the forest by a fire and drink this beer. Two thumbs up!

Practicing social distancing: Public Coast offers Beer to Go! Kind of like Car2Go, but for beer. Bring your growler or purchase one of theirs. They’ll fill it with any of their beers on tap. Then go off and explore, have a picnic, do whatever you love to do over ice-cold beer; bring back the empty; repeat. They also have crowlers of any beer on tap and 4 & 6-packs of an assortment of their hand-crafted beers. And don’t forget about their 4-packs of Stephen’s Root Beer.

Huge thanks to the team at Public Coast for another great beer. Can’t wait to get back to the coast – rain or shine – and have another pint. Looking forward to the next SLACK TIDE IPA SERIES offering. Cheers!

Ecliptic Brewing is proud to stand with San Antonio’s Weathered Souls Brewing Company in supporting efforts to raise awareness for racial injustice through their Black is Beautiful initiative. These efforts include a special draft-only Black is Beautiful Stout beer release, with Ecliptic’s version coming July 31^st.

Ecliptic will donate 100% of the beer’s proceeds to two local organizations: the Black Resilience Fund and Don’t Shoot PDX. Additionally, Ecliptic will donate 10% of their restaurant sales – split between both organizations- at the beer’s launch event on Friday, July 31st.

The base recipe for the campaign was created by Weathered Souls and allows each participating brewery to add their own twist to the beer. Ecliptic’s was brewed in the Export style and features full roast flavor, while still managing to hit the spot on a warm summer day with a 6% ABV.

“I am proud that we are joining breweries from all over the world to help raise funds for this great cause and the charities that support ending racial injustice”” says Ecliptic’s Owner and Brewmaster, John Harris.

Ecliptic Brewing’s Black is Beautiful Stout will be released on draft-only and in very limited distribution throughout Portland, OR, and Seattle, WA.

About Black is Beautiful Stout

Ecliptic Brewing’s Black is Beautiful Stout is brewed in the Export style with Dark Chocolate Malt and Roast Barley, boasting a full roast flavor, complimenting subtle notes of coffee and chocolate. Finishing clean and dry, this beer clocks in at 6%, making it an easy drinker, even in the heat of summer.                                                  

ABV: 6%

IBU: 25

About Don’t Shoot PDX

Don’t Shoot PDX’s organizational work and activism, including direct community education workshops, support the outreach of their continued advocacy as first respondents and have helped community members contribute through direct engagement and legislative value. For more info, and to sign up to volunteer, visit: www.dontshootpdx.org.  

About the Black Resilience Fund

The Black Resilience Fund is an emergency fund created to encourage healing and resilience by providing immediate resources to Black Portlanders. It is an initiative of Brown Hope, a nonprofit and community solution for racial justice. For more info, visit: https://www.blackresiliencefund.com/

About Ecliptic Brewing

Ecliptic Brewing is a venture from John Harris, an Oregon beer icon whose background is steeped in the state’s rich craft brewing history. The name Ecliptic unites Harris’ two passions: brewing and astronomy. As such, the brewery celebrates the Earth’s yearly journey around the sun through both its beer and restaurant menus. Harris’ signature beers include Starburst IPA, Phaser Hazy IPA, Carina Peach Sour Ale and Capella Porter. For more information, visit: eclipticbrewing.com.

Zupan’s Markets has partnered with Portland’s Breakside Brewery and Reverend Nat’s Hard Cider to develop the tenth beer and first cider in their Farm-to-Market lineup. The beer, a lightly hazy IPA features Chinook, Mosaic, Citra and Wakatu hops with notes of tropical fruit. The cider is dry-style, medium-bodied and crafted with a blend of Pacific Northwest apples. And both pair perfectly with all things Thanksgiving and holiday. 

“Zupan’s Markets is excited to continue to grow our Farm-to-Market lineup,” said Zupan’s Markets President and CEO Mike Zupan. “Both Breakside and Rev Nat’s are leading the way in innovation in their respective categories, and together we have created two beverages that showcase the best of Portland’s brewing culture.”

This IPA and hard apple cider are currently on shelves at all three Zupan’s Markets locations. The cider is sold in single 16 oz cans for $4.99 or a 4-pack for $16.25. The beer is sold in a 22 oz bottle for $6.99, and its label was designed by local artist Eric Abel. The beer and cider will only be available for a limited time. 

“Zupan’s Markets is one of our biggest champions, and we are really impressed by their excitement for craft cider,” said Nat West, Cider master and founder of Reverend Nat’s Hard Cider. “Partnering with them on our first collaboration cider is a perfect fit.”

“Breakside is honored to be partnering with Zupan’s Markets on their Farm-to-Market series during this holiday season.” said Breakside’s VP of Sales and Marketing E.K. MacColl. “Zupan’s Markets is a perfect showcase for this collaboration beer.”

Farm to Market Beer Profile: ABV 6%, IBU 52
Malts: German Pilsner, Vienna, Munich, Acidulated malts
Hops: Chinook, Mosaic, Citra, and Wakatu.
Tasting Notes: A persistently citrusy IPA, complex with tangible tropical fruit and brimming with aromas of lime zest and pine.
Beckie’s Thoughts: Fresh hop flavor. Easy drinking. Hop-forward.

Farm to Market Cider Profile: ABV 6.5%

Tasting Notes: Fermented to crisply dry perfection, with light cloudiness to impart a softness of texture and body. Versatile enough to use in the kitchen, in a cocktail or simply enjoyed.

Beckie’s Thoughts: The cider was great! Not too sweet, not too dry. Great apple flavor!

About Breakside Brewery
Breakside Brewery opened in 2010 in Northeast Portland as a restaurant and pub brewery. The brewery is known for its innovative, experimental and diverse beers. In 2013, Breakside expanded operations to Milwaukie, OR with a 30 bbl production brewery filled with 30, 60 and 120 barrel tanks, barrel rooms for wild and non-wild/sour fermentations, a high-speed bottling line and a 24-tap tasting room. The brewery expanded to Northern California in 2016 and in 2017 Breakside opened its third location in the Slabtown district of Northwest Portland. In addition to winning several national and regional awards for its beers, Breakside was named Brewery of the Year at the 2019 and 2017 Oregon Beer Awards and the 2018 Best of Craft Beer Awards. Breakside sells on draft and in 22oz bottles in Oregon, Washington, Hawaii, Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, North Carolina, South Carolina, Massachusetts, Northern California, British Columbia and Alberta. Learn more at https://breakside.com/

About Reverend Nat’s Hard Cider
Reverend Nat’s story begins in 2004 with Nat himself when he began experimenting with the abundance of apples from his friend’s apple tree. The first year he made 5 gallons of hard cider, then the next 15 gallons, then 40, then 6 years later he made 500 gallons of cider and was a better cidermaker and a popular neighbor and opened in an abandoned warehouse in Northeast Portland. While he loved the classic apple, he wanted to make ciders that no one else was making and began creating interesting flavorful profiles.  Learn more at http://reverendnatshardcider.com/

About Erik Abel Art
Erik Abel is an artist and designer currently living and working in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. Inspired by his love of the ocean, surfing and travel, Abel’s work articulates the spirit of the water and awe of nature. His roots as a California surfer intermingle with his experiences living in the Pacific Northwest as well as traveling to the South Pacific and Central America, imparting an organic, tribal style to his subjects and compositions. His original pieces have been featured in galleries across the country and abroad while his commercial work has attracted clients including Patagonia, Reef, REI and Billabong. Learn more at abelarts.com.   

About Zupan’s Markets 

Founded by John Zupan in 1975, Zupan’s Markets is a local and family-owned gourmet market that has served Portland’s food-loving community for more than 40 years. Zupan’s Markets has three locations that focus on quality, selling everything from the best meats and wines to the freshest produce, baked goods, gourmet deli products, specialty foods, flowers and more, always emphasizing locally-sourced, artisan products when possible. For more information, visit www.zupans.com.