Bring some local pride to the table this Thanksgiving #MABeer

Anything wine can do, beer can do better - so clear the wine glasses and make room for Mass. made craft beer as you set the table this Thanksgiving.

From the buttery stuffing and mashed potatoes, tangy cranberry sauce, flavorful turkey and creamy pies, there’s a local offering that can hold up to any side or dessert you can dish up. 

We unfortunately can’t help you navigate political conversations around the dinner table, or make your in-laws more bearable, but we can help you navigate the craft beer aisle with a list of beers brewed right here in Massachusetts. 

And when all else fails, just change the subject and talk about how great the beer is …

First Thanksgiving on a Sour Planet!, Aeronaut 
A tart wheat ale, brewed with 180 lbs. of Massachusetts grown apples and exotic cinnamon. A pleasantly refreshing sour with prominent apple pie notes along with warming autumnal spices.

“Gose Well With Cranberries” and “Gose Well With Pumpkin Pie,” Second Wind Brewing Co.
Second Wind Brewing Co., released two beers just in time for Thanksgiving. A split a batch of “Gose Well...” with the first made with pureed pumpkin and holiday spices and the second made with pureed cranberries. Both 4.7 ABV and mildly tart. Available for sale in the taproom only.  

Kill Your Idles: Crantastic, Idle Hands 
A sour ale brewed with cranberry and blood orange puree then back sweetened with Lactose to balance the acidity. Full of cranberry flavor with just the right amount of citrus notes to keep the beer interesting. The addition of lactose allows for the flavors of the fruit to stand out among the acidic character of the base beer.

Cranberry Wheat Ale, Stone Cow
An American wheat ale bursting with fresh cranberry flavor and aroma. This trusty Thanksgiving sidekick can hang throughout the entire meal, from first bite to last sip. Especially great for cranberry sauce lovers. 

Goody Two Shoes Kölsch-Style Ale, Exhibit ‘A’ Brewing Co. 
This well-carbonated traditional Kölsch is a great partner to Thanksgiving dinner. Higher carbonation helps cut the richness of the turkey, gravy and stuffing and the light body and low ABV won't fill you up, leaving more room for pie. 

Rising Wind, Moby Dick Brewing Co.
A medium bodied, well balanced German-style, Dortmund/Export lager. What’s a Dortmund/Export lager you ask? As far as German golden lagers go, it breaks down like this: Pilsners are hoppy, Munich lagers are malty, and Dortmund/Export lagers are well balanced. This beer goes well with chicken, turkey and pasta as well as fatty flavorful fish like salmon, swordfish or tuna. 

Sweet Brown, Castle Island
Castle Island’s limited fall release, Sweet Brown, is a brown ale brewed with sweet potatoes. By including this ingredient, the sweet potatoes are able to provide a rich complexity to the mouthfeel that helps distinctly characterize the beer. Toasted malts also provide deep roasted chocolate and caramel notes that round out the beer and allows it to stand up to any Thanksgiving feast.

Slumpkin Pumpkin, Somerville Brewing Co.
It’s still Pumpkin beer season. Somerville Brewing recommends Slumkin Pumpkin to pair with dinner and pie. Awarded a Top 10 in the US by Rate My Pumpkins, this beer delights with fresh sugar pumpkin and a tiny hint of spice.

Storm Door Porter, RiverWalk
When the days get shorter and the shadows longer, the storm door goes on signaling the end of summer. So we meet the season head on with a beer sturdy enough for the harsher weather. Vanilla beans and cinnamon sticks enhance our rich dark malt to create a warming finish to sustain us all until the warmer weather returns.  

With the weather set to bring us the coldest Thanksgiving on record, Storm Door Porter pairs well with roaring fires, full bellies and hearts filled with thanks. Rated the #10 Porter in the country in 2018 by Paste magazine, this beer is the perfect choice for hiding from the weather and relatives alike.

Skwäshbuckle Imperial Porter, Turtle Swamp Brewing Co. 
This beer is named after the linguistic and phonetic spelling of squash, because umlauts are fun. It also shares a surname with Jim Buckle, the New England farmer who grew the 100 pounds of various baking squash that went into this beer. This rich and hearty limited offering is brewed with squash and spices, and pours dark brown with ruby red highlights, foaming up with a frothy, mocha colored head. Brewed with cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, ginger, and clove, the initial sip of this porter is surprisingly light with notes of brown sugar and only a hint of the heat from its 10.7% ABV. The finish releases more complex notes of dried fruit, banana, clove, and hints of pine from the Cascade hops. 

Trappist Holiday Ale, Spencer Brewing Co.
Mahogany in color, wholesome in body, lightly spiced, a heart-warming feast day ale from our table to yours.

The Spencer Brewery Announces the Release of Second in Fruit Series and Craft Assortment 4-pack

St. Joseph’s Abbey in Spencer, MA is home to the first certified Trappist Brewery outside of Europe. The monks and brewmaster at Spencer Brewery have developed and received approval to produce and sell nine different beers, ranging from classic Trappist ales to traditional German-style lagers from the International Trappist Association. The ninth beer to be approved is their Grapefruit IPA, which will be released in limited quantities and is the second in the brewery’s Fruit Series.

Spencer’s Grapefruit IPA is brewed with grapefruit and Citra hops. There is a ruby red hue in its color, and it is tart and clean with a closing bitterness characteristic to IPAs (6.5% ABV).

This Grapefruit IPA from Spencer will be introduced to the market first in their new Craft Assortment 4-pack. This 4-pack will feature the brewery’s American Craft beer offerings, which include their original IPA, feierabendbier (Pilsner) and Festive Lager. Spencer’s Craft Assortment 4- pack is now available at retail.

The Spencer Brewery’s Grapefruit IPA will be available at retail in four packs, as well as on draft throughout The Spencer Brewery’s distribution network after April 16, 2018. We hope it is enjoyed, pairing with family and friends.

About The Spencer Brewery
Spencer, MA is home to St. Joseph’s Abbey, a community of Trappist monks who follow the Benedictine counsel of ora et labora (pray and work). One of the ways the monks support themselves and their charitable outreach is by brewing and selling the beer that they make in The Spencer Brewery, located within the monastic enclosure. The Spencer Brewery opened in 2013 and is the first certified Trappist brewery located outside of Europe. Spencer brews both traditional bottle-conditioned Belgian style ales, like their European brothers, as well as American Craft beer styles. The Spencer Brewery team is excited about launching their new Fruit Series during 2018. 

American Trappist Brewery Introduces New Quadrupel Ale

Spencer, MA – The Spencer Brewery announced today the forthcoming release of its new Spencer Monk’s Reserve Ale, a classic Trappist Quadrupel in the Belgian tradition.

Belgian brewing tradition developed a system of characterizing bottle-conditioned ales based on the quantity of malt and the ale’s original gravity.  The resulting categories include the Single, the Dubbel, the Tripel and the Quadrupel (or Quad).  Quads are “big”, strong, dark, ales that typically contain 10%+ alcohol by volume and are considered top-of-the-line products.

Spencer Monks’ Reserve Ale is fragrant, robust and full bodied, mahogany in color and crowned with a dense, tan, frothy head.  Its malt-forward profile yields to a warm finish, with an ABV of 10.2%.                                                                                                                                                   
The recipe development phase of this Quad stretched over three years and 13 experimental brews.  The Spencer monks sought an alternative to the use of spices for flavor enhancement by pushing the boundaries of traditional Trappist Quad malt profiles, even incorporating some local barley grown in nearby Barre, MA, which was craft malted in Hadley, MA. The outcome is a unique product with a distinct flavor profile well situated within the Trappist family of Quadrupel ales.  Spencer Monks’ Reserve Ale received the approval of the International Trappist Association in March 2017.

In announcing Spencer Monks’ Reserve Ale, Father Isaac Keeley, Spencer Brewery Director, notes, “It is a major event for a Trappist brewery to introduce a new Quad.  We took our time developing this one and we are rather happy with the result.”  This beer was well received in Brussels by the Board of the International Trappist Association to whom it was presented for sensory evaluation and a vote of approval.  The monks of Spencer look forward to serving this new Quad during their Sunday supper, as well as sharing it with their friends in the United States, Europe, and Asia. 

Spencer Monks’ Reserve Ale will be available for public tasting in the US at the BeerAdvocate Microbrew Invitational at the Seaport World Trade Center in Boston on June 2-3, 2017.  Spencer Monks’ Reserve Ale will be available to our distributors on June 12th and at retail shortly thereafter.  It will be featured at The Spencer Brewery’s Open House on June 24, 2017.

In 2013 St. Joseph’s Abbey became home to The Spencer Brewery, which is one of eleven certified Trappist breweries in the world and the only one located outside of Europe.  The monks of Spencer make bottle-conditioned ales in the centuries-old tradition, as well as various American craft beers – all while living the motto “ora et labora” (pray and work).  In accordance with the Trappist way of life, all proceeds from their work are used to support the monastery, with any surplus donated to charity – primarily charities that help the poor.  The beers crafted by The Spencer Brewery are available in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Connecticut, Ohio, Michigan, and throughout Europe.  Outside our distribution area Spencer products are available at belgianstyleales.com.  The Spencer Brewery plans to start exporting to Asia later this year.  For more information about The Spencer Brewery and the monks of St. Joseph’s Abbey visit their websites at spencerbrewery.com and spencerabbey.org.  For any specific questions regarding Spencer Monks’ Reserve Ale (media inquiries, distribution, etc.) please email frisaac@spencerbrewery.com.

Spencer beers make a good day better and a special occasion all the more memorable. Pair with family and friends.

Four Facts About Mass Craft Beer