A traditional beer that's designed for easy drinking
For A.V. CLUB *NEW YORK*
By Paul Caine
November 20, 2009
In What’s On Tap, we speak to the sort of people for whom beer is life—brewers, bar owners, writers, and others who have devoted their time and energy to elevating the wondrous nectar—about a specific beer, be it one they've made or one they just happen to enjoy. Up now is Dylan L'Abbe-Lindquist, assistant brewer at Cape Ann Brewing Company in Gloucester, Mass., speaking about the brewery's nautical flagship, Fisherman’s Brew.
On the beer's flavor profile...
The Fisherman’s Brew is an amber lager, a Vienna-style lager. Vienna-style is just a mildly hoppy, more malty-backboned beer that has some nice biscuit flavors to it. We’re going for a nice crisp hoppiness and a good malt backbone. It’s not an overly hoppy or an overly malty beer. It’s got a nice toasted malt flavor and sort of a dry hoppy finish to it, and it's just a clean, crisp, nothing-too-crazy beer.
On the process behind the Fisherman's Brew...
Our brew house is set up in a very German style—we don’t filter our beer, and we use bright tanks, which is basically a [method of] passive filtration. After the primary fermentation, we pump that into our bright tanks. We’ll drop the temperature down to right about 28-30 degrees. What will happen is any sediment, hops, and yeast that have made it over to this tank will settle out and you end up with a layer of sludge on the bottom. It allows us to get away without filtering our beer but still gives us a clear product. With filtered beer, all the good stuff’s taken out. So we still leave some of that goodness in there.
On the contrast between Fisherman’s Brew and heavier, hoppier beers...
It’s an easily quaffable beer. You look around at a lot of the microbrews that are coming out in the United States and there’s a lot of the extreme beer: IPAs that are absolutely decimated with hops and these crazy alcohol contents. We try to stick more to traditional beers, the way they were meant to be brewed and the way they were originally brewed. Fisherman's Brew reflects that.
On how the brewery reflects its waterfront location...
Being on the seaside, our brewpub’s bar is shaped like a boat. Damn near every other day I’ve got somebody coming in here looking for a job on a boat. And I tell ‘em, “The dock’s over there. You’re better off asking at the dock than at the bar.”
Cape Ann Fisherman's Brew can be found at a number of bars in New York, including The Hop Devil Grill in the East Village (129 St. Marks Pl, 212-533-4468), The Gutter in Williamsburg (200 N. 14th St, 718-387-3585), and The Stag's Head in Midtown (252 E. 51 St, 212-888-2453).
See the article.
Monday, November 23, 2009
Tuesday, October 20, 2009
Cape Ann Brewing Co: Pints of Passion by Mike Smith
Pints of Passion follows TJ Peckham, Captain O' Sales of the Cape Ann Brewing Co., as he shares the artistry of handcrafted brewing at the local brewery in Gloucester, Massachusetts. See how Cape Ann Brewing Co. makes their Fisherman's brews and specialty seasonal brews. Learn about the role of the local community in the brewery's mission.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Pumpkin Stout Beer Poured From a Pumpkin
From BeerInBaltimore.com:
We’re going out on a limb here and guessing this is the first time most of you (including us) have seen something like this. Last night at Max’s Taphouse, they poured Fisherman’s Pumpkin Stout from Cape Ann Brewing Co. from an actual pumpkin. A select few even got to have their beer poured into smaller, carved out pumpkins. No, we’re not making this up! See the photo evidence below.
John Gasparine (wood craftsmen, creator of “The Star Spangled Banger“) was there and provided us with these pictures. He informed us that the event was pretty awesome and “this beer is awesome in any form” (we agree!)
“To set the record straight” John says, “the pumpkin was dry-tapped and then filled by pitchers from the draft system… so it didn’t really have any opportunity to pick up flavor or aroma from the pumpkin itself… but it was very fun regardless… lots of positive feedback from other patrons.”
Were you there? What’d you think?
http://beerinbaltimore.com/2009/10/14/pumpkin-stout-beer-poured-from-a-pumpkin/
Drink This Now: Fisherman's Pumpkin Stout
Fisherman's Pumpkin Stout
Photograph: Jolie Ruben
Come October, certain revelers start heeding Halloween’s siren call, stocking up on candy corn and pumpkins by the bushel. But we care less about carving jack-o’-lanterns and more about drinking them, a desire satisfied by Cape Ann Brewing Company in Gloucester, Massachusetts. Since 2004, head brewer Jeremy Goldberg has crafted wonderfully balanced beers such as the Fisherman’s Brew, a smooth amber lager with a bitter kick, and Fisherman’s IPA, made with Japan’s relatively rare Sorachi Ace hops, which impart a slightly lemony character. But with cool, chilly fall settling in, we favor Goldberg’s ode to the season, the Fisherman’s Pumpkin Stout. Typically, pumpkin beers are strong, sweet and aggressively spiced—dessert ales that taste like liquid pumpkin pie. Instead of riffing on this treacly style, Goldberg decided to reinvent the recipe. Goodbye, ale; hello, stout. Here’s why: A stout’s inherent roasty, chocolaty characteristics mean it’s able to stand up to spices without being overwhelmed. Goldberg brewed his strong stout (7 percent ABV) with pumpkin flesh, then added a few dashes of allspice, nutmeg and cinnamon. These accents enhance the rich, creamy creation, which finishes with the flavor of pumpkin straight from the patch—not the can. Befitting the season, it’s scarily good. $10.99 a six-pack at Whole Foods’ Bowery Beer Room, 95 E Houston St between Bowery and Chrystie St (212-420-1320).—Joshua M. Bernstein
http://newyork.timeout.com/articles/bars-clubs/79398/fishermans-pumpkin-stout-drink-this-now
Time Out New York / Issue 733 : Oct 15–21, 2009
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Documentary examines the dichotomy of the beer industry, American dream
Gloucester Daily Times, By Alexandra Saville, Correspondent
Beer. Is it really possible to see the American Dream drenched in the amber, foamy alcohol that we have all come to enjoy? Anat Baron, former general manager of Mike's Hard Lemonade, explores this in her documentary, "Beer Wars."
The film, released nationally on DVD last week, delves deeper than what is ordered at a local bar or restaurant. "Beer Wars" looks at beer as an icon, a culture, a business, even as a symbol of the American Dream.
The beer industry is a multifaceted business that is more complicated than what is seen on the surface. For the small independent brewers, it is their perfected blend, their life's work, realized. A beer that is unique and individual is brewed with the sweat, blood, and tears, of independent, sprouting businesses. However, independent craft beer breweries, such as Boston Beer Co., Yuengling, and Dogfish Head, only make up a tiny percent of the industry's yearly income. About 78 percent of the annual revenue is brought in by beer's "Big Three" — Miller, Coors and Anheuser-Busch.
Taste tour around the country
But this was not the first beer documentary released in recent years. Jeremy Goldberg of Cape Ann Brewing Co. in Gloucester was featured in a full-length documentary released in 2004 titled "American Beer, a Bockumentary," produced by his childhood friend Paul Kermizian.
In 2002, he was among a group of five friends who traveled across the country, exploring the world of craft beer in the United States by stopping at 38 breweries in 40 days; two years later this road trip would become their documentary.
"We went from Maine to California, up to Seattle and down to New Orleans, and all the little places in between," said Goldberg.
This experience was a catalyst for Goldberg to enter the beer brewing industry.
He was working in a small finance firm in Manhattan on Sept, 11, 2001.
"I was one of those people you saw running from the collapsing buildings. We started leaving after the second plane hit," recalled Goldberg. He had planned to leave that job in December anyway, when he was invited by Kermizian to be part of the beer documentary.
"I was planning on moving, and since I was between jobs, he asked if I was interested," he said.
As a result of the documentary experience, Kermizian entered the beer business in Brooklyn and Goldberg started Cape Ann Brewing Co. in Gloucester.
The dichotomy of the beer war
The Baron documentary takes a different angle, looking at the competition between the big brewers and the small brewers.
The "war" is being fueled by television with the catalyst of consumerism. The "battle ground" is the liquor stores. There is a lot at stake for such a simple beverage choice; the industry has become a microcosm for everything capitalism, for all that works in America, and for everything that we as a nation should be simultaneously proud and ashamed of.
"Beer Wars" takes viewers on a trip complete with hops, barley and bars, as Baron interviews several owners of small microbreweries who divulge their work ethic and their thoughts on never being as recognizable as the "Big Three," despite putting in the tremendous effort required to start a company from scratch.
The story of Anheuser-Busch was once described as one of "classic American dedication," but can it still be considered that now? According to Baron's documentary, the formula for Anheuser-Busch's light lager has little room for improvement and their behemoth profit numbers can be directly tied to their equally large marketing expenses. The film begs the question: Has decades of repetitive marketing brainwashed America into thinking they want a light beer with less taste?
Can it still be considered "classic American dedication" when the story ends with the American company selling out to a Belgium beverage giant known as InBev?
During the documentary Baron tried to answer the "brainwashing" question by holding a taste test using Miller Lite, Coors Light and Bud Light. She asked some of "America's beer drinkers" to decide which of the "Big Three" they were drinking. Even staunch "Bud Light guys" or a "serious Coors gal" couldn't tell the difference between the three light beers. When asked "What makes you a Coors Light guy?" one consumer responded, "Habit."
"The Big Three have been selling 'sameness' for years," says Sam Calagione, founder of Dogfish Head brewery in New Jersey, and one brewer of this "David and Goliath" story.
It's a strange dichotomy. Does the American Dream always default to the bottom line, or does pride in your product still count for something? The founder of Boston Beer Co. and Samuel Adams beer, Jim Koch, admits that it is an uphill battle.
"A company like Anheuser Busch is 100 times our size. They literally spill more beer off their packing line than I make in a year. My passionate life's work is their waste," Koch explains during the film.
No matter which side of the fence you stand on, one thing is for sure — the craft beer movement is growing and America is in the middle of a beer renaissance. In the midst of a poor economy, where the Big Three are experiencing sagging revenues, the craft beer segment is the only segment that is improving, according to the film.
At Cape Ann Brewing Co., Goldberg isn't concerned about the "Beer War," or the David vs. Goliath scenario. Theirs is a "story about the David." Of course, Goldberg understands that the Big Three offer the cheapest drink and the beer that most have grown up with. But he, and many craft brewers like him, are excited to put out a quality beer that will be supported by "people looking for authentic, local brews that give value to a dollar."
The 2004 documentary, "American Beer, a Bockumentary," is available at Cape Ann Brewing, or at sixhundred.com. "Beer Wars," is available at local retailers as well as online at beerwarsmovie.com.
Staff writers Gail McCarthy and Scott Pytlik contributed to this story.
Home Brewing Basics with T. J. Peckham of Cape Ann Brewery
Home brewing was actually outlawed at the end of prohibition. In 1979 President Carter, at the urging of his brother Billy, changed the law to allow legal home brewing. Homebrewers often become craft brewers, making beer for a living.
Charlie Papazian wrote the "bible" of home brewing - "The Joy of Homebrewing". He founded the AHA (American Homebrewing Association). They have a magazine and their web site is www.beertown.org.
Ingredients:
Water
Grains (malted barley and adjuncts)
Hops
Yeast
Equipment:
5-7 Gallon Stainless Steel Pot
Thermometer
5 gallon glass Carboy fermenter
Bottle capper and caps
Air lock
Kitchen scale
Bottle filler with tubing and siphon hose
Hydrometer
Thermometer
Mesh strainers
Rubber stops
Large spoons
Large funnel
Bottle brush for cleaning bottles
Wort chiller
48 beer bottles
Beer. Is it really possible to see the American Dream drenched in the amber, foamy alcohol that we have all come to enjoy? Anat Baron, former general manager of Mike's Hard Lemonade, explores this in her documentary, "Beer Wars."
The film, released nationally on DVD last week, delves deeper than what is ordered at a local bar or restaurant. "Beer Wars" looks at beer as an icon, a culture, a business, even as a symbol of the American Dream.
The beer industry is a multifaceted business that is more complicated than what is seen on the surface. For the small independent brewers, it is their perfected blend, their life's work, realized. A beer that is unique and individual is brewed with the sweat, blood, and tears, of independent, sprouting businesses. However, independent craft beer breweries, such as Boston Beer Co., Yuengling, and Dogfish Head, only make up a tiny percent of the industry's yearly income. About 78 percent of the annual revenue is brought in by beer's "Big Three" — Miller, Coors and Anheuser-Busch.
Taste tour around the country
But this was not the first beer documentary released in recent years. Jeremy Goldberg of Cape Ann Brewing Co. in Gloucester was featured in a full-length documentary released in 2004 titled "American Beer, a Bockumentary," produced by his childhood friend Paul Kermizian.
In 2002, he was among a group of five friends who traveled across the country, exploring the world of craft beer in the United States by stopping at 38 breweries in 40 days; two years later this road trip would become their documentary.
"We went from Maine to California, up to Seattle and down to New Orleans, and all the little places in between," said Goldberg.
This experience was a catalyst for Goldberg to enter the beer brewing industry.
He was working in a small finance firm in Manhattan on Sept, 11, 2001.
"I was one of those people you saw running from the collapsing buildings. We started leaving after the second plane hit," recalled Goldberg. He had planned to leave that job in December anyway, when he was invited by Kermizian to be part of the beer documentary.
"I was planning on moving, and since I was between jobs, he asked if I was interested," he said.
As a result of the documentary experience, Kermizian entered the beer business in Brooklyn and Goldberg started Cape Ann Brewing Co. in Gloucester.
The dichotomy of the beer war
The Baron documentary takes a different angle, looking at the competition between the big brewers and the small brewers.
The "war" is being fueled by television with the catalyst of consumerism. The "battle ground" is the liquor stores. There is a lot at stake for such a simple beverage choice; the industry has become a microcosm for everything capitalism, for all that works in America, and for everything that we as a nation should be simultaneously proud and ashamed of.
"Beer Wars" takes viewers on a trip complete with hops, barley and bars, as Baron interviews several owners of small microbreweries who divulge their work ethic and their thoughts on never being as recognizable as the "Big Three," despite putting in the tremendous effort required to start a company from scratch.
The story of Anheuser-Busch was once described as one of "classic American dedication," but can it still be considered that now? According to Baron's documentary, the formula for Anheuser-Busch's light lager has little room for improvement and their behemoth profit numbers can be directly tied to their equally large marketing expenses. The film begs the question: Has decades of repetitive marketing brainwashed America into thinking they want a light beer with less taste?
Can it still be considered "classic American dedication" when the story ends with the American company selling out to a Belgium beverage giant known as InBev?
During the documentary Baron tried to answer the "brainwashing" question by holding a taste test using Miller Lite, Coors Light and Bud Light. She asked some of "America's beer drinkers" to decide which of the "Big Three" they were drinking. Even staunch "Bud Light guys" or a "serious Coors gal" couldn't tell the difference between the three light beers. When asked "What makes you a Coors Light guy?" one consumer responded, "Habit."
"The Big Three have been selling 'sameness' for years," says Sam Calagione, founder of Dogfish Head brewery in New Jersey, and one brewer of this "David and Goliath" story.
It's a strange dichotomy. Does the American Dream always default to the bottom line, or does pride in your product still count for something? The founder of Boston Beer Co. and Samuel Adams beer, Jim Koch, admits that it is an uphill battle.
"A company like Anheuser Busch is 100 times our size. They literally spill more beer off their packing line than I make in a year. My passionate life's work is their waste," Koch explains during the film.
No matter which side of the fence you stand on, one thing is for sure — the craft beer movement is growing and America is in the middle of a beer renaissance. In the midst of a poor economy, where the Big Three are experiencing sagging revenues, the craft beer segment is the only segment that is improving, according to the film.
At Cape Ann Brewing Co., Goldberg isn't concerned about the "Beer War," or the David vs. Goliath scenario. Theirs is a "story about the David." Of course, Goldberg understands that the Big Three offer the cheapest drink and the beer that most have grown up with. But he, and many craft brewers like him, are excited to put out a quality beer that will be supported by "people looking for authentic, local brews that give value to a dollar."
The 2004 documentary, "American Beer, a Bockumentary," is available at Cape Ann Brewing, or at sixhundred.com. "Beer Wars," is available at local retailers as well as online at beerwarsmovie.com.
Staff writers Gail McCarthy and Scott Pytlik contributed to this story.
Home Brewing Basics with T. J. Peckham of Cape Ann Brewery
Home brewing was actually outlawed at the end of prohibition. In 1979 President Carter, at the urging of his brother Billy, changed the law to allow legal home brewing. Homebrewers often become craft brewers, making beer for a living.
Charlie Papazian wrote the "bible" of home brewing - "The Joy of Homebrewing". He founded the AHA (American Homebrewing Association). They have a magazine and their web site is www.beertown.org.
Ingredients:
Water
Grains (malted barley and adjuncts)
Hops
Yeast
Equipment:
5-7 Gallon Stainless Steel Pot
Thermometer
5 gallon glass Carboy fermenter
Bottle capper and caps
Air lock
Kitchen scale
Bottle filler with tubing and siphon hose
Hydrometer
Thermometer
Mesh strainers
Rubber stops
Large spoons
Large funnel
Bottle brush for cleaning bottles
Wort chiller
48 beer bottles
Basic Home Brew Beer Recipe
This is an American-Style Microbrewed Pale Ale that is easy to make and easy to drink. It provides an excellent introduction to the art of brewing for the first time brewer.
Before beginning to brew this recipe, you'll need to make sure you have all the required equipment and ingredients. See Basic Brewing Equipment for a list.
Ingredients:
1 can (3.75 lbs) Coopers "Bitter" Brewing Kit
2 lbs of gold or light dry malt extract
1 oz Cascade hops (pellets)
Instructions:
Bring one gallon of water to a boil in an uncovered pan large enough to hold 1.5 to 2 gallons.
While heating the water:
Remove the plastic lid and yeast packet from the top of the Cooperâs extract can. Put the can in a container of very hot tap water so that the thick paste inside will soften.
Clean and sanitize your "brew day" equipment according to the directions found in Sanitation.
When the water has come to a boil:
Open the can of extract from the bottom, pour the contents into the pan with the water. (Scrape out with a spatula, rinse with a small amount of hot water.) Stir until dissolved. Add the dry malt extract. Stir until dissolved. When this comes back to a boil, add the hop pellets and boil for 5 more minutes.
During the boil, empty the sanitizing solution from fermenter. Then fill the fermenter about one-half to two-thirds full (approximately 3 gallons) with cold tap water.
At the end of the boil time, turn off the fire under the kettle. The strong, unfermented beer now contained in the pot is called "wort." (Pronounced "wirt.")
Carefully pour this wort into the fermenter containing the cold water. If your fermenter is marked in gallons, add additional cold water, if needed, to bring to total volume to 5 gallons.
Put the clean, sanitized floating thermometer into the fermenter so that you can check the temperature periodically. Set the lid for the fermentation bucket loosely on top while the wort is cooling.
Adapted from All About Beer Magazine
Quick facts about the beer industry
Source: beerwarsmovie.com
This is an American-Style Microbrewed Pale Ale that is easy to make and easy to drink. It provides an excellent introduction to the art of brewing for the first time brewer.
Before beginning to brew this recipe, you'll need to make sure you have all the required equipment and ingredients. See Basic Brewing Equipment for a list.
Ingredients:
1 can (3.75 lbs) Coopers "Bitter" Brewing Kit
2 lbs of gold or light dry malt extract
1 oz Cascade hops (pellets)
Instructions:
Bring one gallon of water to a boil in an uncovered pan large enough to hold 1.5 to 2 gallons.
While heating the water:
Remove the plastic lid and yeast packet from the top of the Cooperâs extract can. Put the can in a container of very hot tap water so that the thick paste inside will soften.
Clean and sanitize your "brew day" equipment according to the directions found in Sanitation.
When the water has come to a boil:
Open the can of extract from the bottom, pour the contents into the pan with the water. (Scrape out with a spatula, rinse with a small amount of hot water.) Stir until dissolved. Add the dry malt extract. Stir until dissolved. When this comes back to a boil, add the hop pellets and boil for 5 more minutes.
During the boil, empty the sanitizing solution from fermenter. Then fill the fermenter about one-half to two-thirds full (approximately 3 gallons) with cold tap water.
At the end of the boil time, turn off the fire under the kettle. The strong, unfermented beer now contained in the pot is called "wort." (Pronounced "wirt.")
Carefully pour this wort into the fermenter containing the cold water. If your fermenter is marked in gallons, add additional cold water, if needed, to bring to total volume to 5 gallons.
Put the clean, sanitized floating thermometer into the fermenter so that you can check the temperature periodically. Set the lid for the fermentation bucket loosely on top while the wort is cooling.
Adapted from All About Beer Magazine
Quick facts about the beer industry
- Eighty percent of the beer made in the United States is now controlled by two companies, one based in Belgium and one in South Africa.
- The top American owned brewer is Boston Beer Company (Sam Adams).
- Anheuser-Busch took 40 years to get to 50% of the beer industry from 12%.
- Bud, Miller and Coors' beers are made using rice or corn as adjuncts to the original ingredients (water, yeast, malt and hops).
- On average, every American now lives within 10 miles of a brewery.
- Beer is the second most popular beverage in the world, coming in behind tea.
- Beer is sometimes referred to as "liquid bread" because brewer's yeast is a rich source of nutrients. Beer can contain magnesium, selenium, potassium, phosphorus, biotin and B vitamins.
- The freshest beer is found at your local brewery.
- Beer is one of the most regulated industries in America with over 37,000 beer laws.
- The United States is the only country in the world with a three tier system for alcohol distribution.
- It is illegal for brewers to sell beer online.
- Beer is sold in over 531,000 retail establishments.
- Directly and indirectly, the beer industry employs approximately 1.7 million Americans, paying them almost $55 billion in wages and benefits.
- In 2006, the beer industry recorded 2.2% growth, hitting an all-time record of over 210 million barrels of beer.
Source: beerwarsmovie.com
http://www.gloucestertimes.com/archivesearch/local_story_273002608.html
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Cape Ann Brewing Selects Tea For New Beer
Cape Ann Brewing • Reading the Tea Leaves 8/10/2009
brought to you by GOODMORNINGGLOUCESTER.com
Tuesday, July 28, 2009
August 13th Sunset Cruise on Schooner Lannon
We had a fabulous time on Sunday night's sail on the Thomas E. Lannon Schooner. The trip sold out very quickly and lots of people were put on a waiting list so we're doing it again on Thursday night, August 13th.
Join us for a sunset schooner sail from 6:00p.m.-8:00 p.m. and enjoy three Cape Ann Brewing Company beers, all at a reduced price of $25/person. Regular sail cost is $37.50 and 3 beers normally will set you back $15. You do the math. It's a great deal and it will be a great time.
Mention that you are friend of the Cape Ann Brewing Company when you call. The discount will apply to everyone in your group as well, so long as they are at least 21.
Call them at (978) 281-6634 to reserve your spots. Space is limited, so call today.
Get directions and find out more about the Thomas E. Lannon Schooner at www.schooner.org.
Don't get put on the waiting list again. Call us today.
See you onboard!
Join us for a sunset schooner sail from 6:00p.m.-8:00 p.m. and enjoy three Cape Ann Brewing Company beers, all at a reduced price of $25/person. Regular sail cost is $37.50 and 3 beers normally will set you back $15. You do the math. It's a great deal and it will be a great time.
Mention that you are friend of the Cape Ann Brewing Company when you call. The discount will apply to everyone in your group as well, so long as they are at least 21.
Call them at (978) 281-6634 to reserve your spots. Space is limited, so call today.
Get directions and find out more about the Thomas E. Lannon Schooner at www.schooner.org.
Don't get put on the waiting list again. Call us today.
See you onboard!
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Thursday, June 18, 2009
THE BEER NUT: Cape Ann brewing up a storm
Photo by Art Illman/DAILY NEWS STAFF
Beers from Cape Ann Brewing Co. in Gloucester
By Norman Miller/DAILY NEWS STAFF, GHS
Posted Jun 17, 2009 @ 11:00 AM
View Article in Milford Daily News
In 2002, Jeremy Goldberg took part in a documentary where he and four friends traveled around the country and visited 38 breweries in 40 days.
During that trip, memorialized in the 2005 documentary "American Beer: A Bockumentary," the seeds of opening a brewery were sown.
In May, 2004, Goldberg and his partners opened up Cape Ann Brewing in Gloucester.
"If you watched the movie, I'm kind of talking about how I had an interest in getting into the industry, and I was mocked (by his friends)," Goldberg said.
Now, five years later, Cape Ann beers have won numerous medals in differing brewing competitions and are available in nine states.
Cape Ann gets a lot of inspiration from German breweries.
"My favorite beers have always been German lagers," said Goldberg. "I think German lagers, and German beers in general, are underrepresented in America because American pilsners have given lagers a bad name in the United States. A lot of people come up to me say, 'I don't like lagers.' I say, 'You don't know that you don't like lagers because there are so many lagers out there.' "
Along with the German inspiration, Cape Ann has carved a niche for itself by brewing some beers that are unique, but at the same time, aren't unique for the sake of being unique.
"What we're trying to do do here is we're trying to do stuff other breweries don't do," said Goldberg. "We look for the Snuggies of beer. You look at things, and you think, 'How could someone not think of that already?'
"But, we're not trying to do things that are outlandish," he continued. "I want to make beer where people want to have more than one."
One of those beers that fits that description is Cape Ann's fall seasonal, the Fisherman's Pumpkin Stout. One of my personal favorites, it also works fantastically in a pumpkin pie recipe. (If you want the recipe, contact me via e-mail, which is listed below).
"It was a style that no one was really doing before we did it," said Goldberg. "I was blown away no one was doing it. In my mind, the flavors seemed to really make sense together chocolate and pumpkin."
Another one of those beers is the Fisherman's Tea Party, a barley wine made with three types of tea, only available on tap at the brewery.
The regular lineup of beers are all excellent beers.
The brewery's flagship beer is the Fisherman's Brew, described as an American amber lager, similar to Sam Adams Boston Lager and Brooklyn Lager, Goldberg said.
"It's a very well-balanced beer," said Goldberg. "The best compliments I'll get is one person will come up to me and say they like it because it's not too hoppy, and someone else comes up to me and said they like it because of the hops. That show's how well-balanced it is."
The Fisherman's IPA is an English-style IPA. It's brewed with a little-known hop called Sorachi Ace, a Japanese hop.
"It's not overly hoppy," said Goldberg. "As far as IPAs go, it's very well balanced. It's different than most IPAs. It's a little more earthy, a little less citrusy."
The Fisherman's Ale, a German-style kolsch, is a wonderful summertime beer. It won the gold medal at the 2007 Great International Beer Festival in Rhode Island.
"It's crisp, with little fruity hints," said Goldberg. "It's just another great session beer, the kind that goes with everything. It's perfect in the summer on a hot day. We thought it was originally going to be our summer beer, but it's just such a good beer that we didn't want to stop making it just because the summer was over."
Cape Ann's summer beer, the Fisherman's Bavarian Wheat, is one of the most authentic tasting German-style hefeweizen's I've tasted in a long time. Goldberg said it is brewed with authentic German yeast, and you can taste the slight hints of banana and cloves, which is a byproduct of German yeast.
The other seasonal, to go along with the wheat and pumpkin stout, is the Fisherman's Navigator, which is available during the winter. It is a German-style doppelbock.
Cape Ann beers are available at Fannon's in Natick, Marlborough Wine & Spirits, Julio's in Westborough, Kappy's in Sudbury, Marty's in Newton, Newtonville Wine and Spirits and Austin Liquors in Shrewsbury.
Norman Miller is a Daily News staff writer. For questions, comments, suggestions or recommendations, e-mail nmiller@cnc.com or call 508-626-3823. Check out The Beer Nut blog at http://blogs.townonline.com/beernut/.
Smoked Beer
Article By: Lew Bryson
Massachusetts' Beverage Business
. . . smoked beers are more than likely,every bit as old as smoky whiskey, and were once much more widespread.
The first time I had Victory Brewing’s St. Victorious doublebock, I noticed a difference from other doublebocks I’d had. It had an extra dimension to it, a richness that wasn’t coming from malt, a certain appealing raunchiness, the origin of which eluded me. What is that, I asked brewmaster Ron Barchet, and he smiled. “Just a little smoked malt,” he said.
Maybe The Platters are right about smoke getting in your eyes. But I prefer it in my glass.
Smoke aroma and flavor in beer can be as elusive and enriching as Victory’s doublebock, or Harpoon’s recent 1OO Barrel entry, Rauchfetzen (a German word meaning “wisp of smoke”). But there are other beers, like the German Schlenkerla Urbock, made with all smoked malt, that fill your mouth like a rack of slow-smoked ribs. Smoked beers – rauchbier, as the Germans say – are a flavor innovation that’s been around a lot longer than the stuff we’ve seen in the past ten years.
Just because they’ve been around a while doesn’t mean there aren’t some fresh ideas. For instance . . . most people think smoked beer is a wintertime, rich-flavor beer. Why not sell smoked beers in the summer to complement all the grilling and barbecuing that’s going on?
Think of it. I’ve got a big double handful of hickory chips soaking in water, and in about an hour, they’ll be in the smokebox of the grill. It’s mixed grill time: chicken legs, Hungarian bratwurst and pork chops. I hit the deli and picked up smoked cheese – Gouda and Bruderbasil – and some smoked mixed nuts (the only way Brazil nuts are edible). They’ll make good appetizers with the smoked salmon. Vegetables? You bet: I steamed some asparagus and wrapped it up in thin slices of prosciutto. It’s going to be great with the smoked beers I’ve got chilling.
STARTING the FIRE You might be more familiar with the idea of smoke in whisky. Scotch whiskies like Ardbeg and Lagavulin get their smoky character from malt that is smoked over smoldering peat. Bourbon and Tennessee whiskeys pick up some light touches of smoke from aging in charred oak barrels.
But smoked beers are, more than likely, every bit as old as smoky whiskey, and were once much more widespread. “I assume that at some point most beers around the world had a smoked flavor,” Barchet told me recently, “as wood firing was the only method of kilning malt for many years.”
That’s still how it’s done at the Brauerei Heller-Trum in Bamberg, Germany, where they make what is probably the best-known rauchbier in the world, Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier. “Yes, they have their own malting equipment,” confirms the man who imports Schlenkerla, Matthias Neidhart, President of B.United International. “It has become very rare, a brewery doing its own malting, but they do their own malting, their own smoking. We’ve had their business for 12 or 13 years, and it’s a tremendous family. They’re very much aware of their history and would never do anything to jeopardize the flavor or the quality.”
He’s talking about the Trum family, and Matthias Trum, who is the 6th generation of family ownership; the brewery itself dates farther back, to the 15OOs. I met Trum a few years back; he’s a fairly young man, quite passionate and energetic. He took us around the brewery, including the smoking room, where beechwood billets are carefully burned in a small furnace to allow the smoke to rise through the malt above. The smell of smoke was as rich as any barbeque pit.
The main beer is the Schlenkerla Märzen, a very drinkable 5.1%. It is made with 1OO% smoked barley malt, and the smokiness is billowingly huge. Like other great smoked beers, the smoke is in what’s a good beer to begin with. “We truly believe that if they used non-smoked malt in the Märzen,” says Neidhart, “it would be an incredible classic Märzen beer, the kind you can’t find any more. It has the color, the roasted aroma, that made 19th century märzen such a wonderful beer. But it’s not happening! The smokiness, in my opinion, is beautifully balanced.”
The brewery branched out in recent years, adding a few other beers to the brand. There is the Urbock, a bigger lager at 6.5%, packing a huge body; it is the Märzen turned up to 1O, bigger, chewy and smoked to match. They also do a Weizen, made with 5O% smoked barley malt and 5O% unsmoked wheat malt. “The smokiness is much reduced,” Neidhart notes. “They use a traditional Bavarian wheat beer yeast. Again, it’s the balance. You have the smoke, the barley sweetness, but you have the banana, the clove, the vanilla in there as well. It’s very refreshing.”
Schlenkerla also makes a very limited release Fastenbier, draft-only and unfiltered, meant to be poured between Ash Wednesday and Easter. A few kegs make it to the US, including to places like Deep Ellum in Allston. “We poured three kegs of the Fastenbier,” said co-owner Max Toste, who likes to keep a smoked beer on one of his tap lines all the time. “Then I got another, the last one in the state, and I’m saving it. We’re pouring the Helles right now.”
The Helles has a wonderfully subtle smokiness to it; definite but understated. But it’s the joker in the pack: there’s no smoked malt in it. Neidhart laughs. “We had people who didn’t believe us,” he says, “so we had Matthias put it in writing that there was no smoked malt in it!” The first time I had the Helles was on a press trip to Bavarian breweries, and the lot of us were stunned by how good this smoky unsmoked beer was.
How does that smoke get in there? “The Helles is 1OO% barley malt, no smoke,” Neidhart repeats. “First, it goes through all the same equipment that the smoke beer goes through. Think of it like a coffee machine. If you put spiced coffee through your coffee machine for a time, and then put regular coffee through, even though you wash it, you will get those spiced flavors. When the helles goes in the tanks and equipment, the smoke’s sitting in the steel. It imparts that taste. He also uses the same yeast, and the yeast has taken on smoky characteristics over time.”
The Helles is smoky, but primarily it’s a helles; a smooth drinker that tastes like having more. The first time I had it – on a press trip in Bavaria – my first thought was where I could get another one.
That was the same thought when I stopped at Spezial, Bamberg’s oldest rauchbier brewery (brought in by Shelton Brothers). Spezial’s base rauchbier, the Lager, uses only 4O% smoked malt, and so it’s lighter in the mouth, maybe more drinkable. I know I ‘drinkabled’ quite a few of them the last time I was at the brewery pub.
Victory (Downingtown, PA) makes more ‘rauchy’ beers than the smoke-kissed doublebock I mentioned earlier, too. They have a rauchbier, Scarlet Fire, and a smoked weissbier, Scarlet Moon; they also make a Rauch Porter in limited draft distribution. “They are smoky,” said Barchet, “but not as smoky as Schlenkerla. They have a similar smokiness to the beers from Spezial. Up to this point we have used only beechwood-smoked malts from Bamberg.” That’s easy enough; the well-known Weyermann maltings are in Bamberg, so of course, they make smoked malt.
The Bamberg brewers make rauchbier because that’s what they do – it’s Bamberg, after all. Why do brewers like Victory make rauchbier, if it’s such a niche product? “The same reason we brew all of our different beers,” Barchet explains. “It’s because (co-founder) Bill Covaleski and/or I feel like brewing and drinking one. It only took me a half liter to decide I like smoked beers. At this point, there are a number of us here at Victory who love drinking anything rauch.”
Jeff O’Neill, the brewmaster at Ithaca Brewing (Ithaca, NY), makes their Gorges Smoked Porter for roughly the same reason. “We built (smoke) into a porter because that’s a style that most people seem familiar with,” he says, “and the smoke character really accentuates some of the other components of a Porter. Not to mention that we can’t get any smoked beers from most other breweries, so we had to do our own.” Gorges is a robust American Porter, brewed with about 2O% Bamberg-made smoked malt. O’Neill describes it as medium-smoky, “not over the top, but it’s there.”
A WISP of SMOKE “It’s there.” Smoke in a rauchbier is as evident as hoppiness in an IPA. Smoked beers represent a great example, maybe the best, of beer’s directness. If a winemaker wants a smoky character in wine, they use grapes and yeast and oak that have produced wine with hints of smoke before . . . and then they suggest that smoke to the consumer. When a brewer wants smoke in beer, on the other hand, they do just that: they put smoke in the beer. Period. They smoke the malt, just like you smoke fish or cheese or meat, and then brew the beer with it. Smoke is in the beer.
Brewers don’t always want the power of a straight-up rauchbier, though. Sometimes, like Victory’s smoke-tinged doublebock, they just want a hint, the added depth that smoke will give a beer, like the difference between pork belly and bacon. “There are so many different approaches to smoked beers,” notes Greg Koch, CEO and co-founder of Stone Brewing in Escondido, California. “Some are immensely satisfying with their smoke character that they are more ‘sipping’ beers. Some, and I believe that the Stone Smoked Porter falls into this category, are more ‘drinking’ beers. The smokiness in Stone Smoked Porter becomes quite mellow and in-the-pocket by the end of the first pint that the smokiness does not overwhelm at all.”
That’s what Matt Steinberg planned for his porter at Mayflower Brewing (Plymouth). “The beer’s called Mayflower Porter,” he says. “We decided not to use the word “Smoked”. We didn’t want to push people away in case they didn’t like smoked beer. It’s got 2% peated malt from Thos. Fawcett. It’s rich stuff; with just 2%, it’s there, you can taste it. People drink it, and they say, ‘What is that about the beer I really like?’ I almost guarantee it’s because of that subtle smoke.”
Why did Steinberg use peated malt? “I wanted to use something without much weight,” he says. “The first batch I made, I used Bamberg smoked malt, and it gave it a kind of lingering meatiness that I didn’t like. I got a bag of peated malt, and tried small amounts. I liked it more. I don’t do things stylistically, I work backwards from what I want the beer to taste like. It’s 5.2%, a pretty rich porter, but actually on the dry side.”
Crystal Burlingame, who does beer at Blanchard’s in Marshfield, loves the results. “Mayflower Porter is just awesome,” she judges. “It’s a dry porter, nice and light; you get all the roasty, deep flavors of a big beer, but it’s lighter. Sometimes in the middle of the summer, something bigger is too much.”
When Charlie Cummings at Harpoon Brewing got his chance to design a beer for their 1OO Barrel series, he took the same kind of tack with the recent Rauchfetzen. “The rough translation is ‘Wisp of smoke’, he tells me. “That’s the concept. It’s not a Bamberg-style rauchbier, very smoky. It’s a lighter interpretation, drinkable, with the complexity of the smoke. I was kind of consciously trying not to brew to a style. I used Pilsner and munich malt, and a little de-husked roasted malt, with 3O% smoked malt. We used our house yeast, which I like to think has a German feel to it.”
Matt Gamble, craft beer manager at Winchester Wine & Spirits, liked the Rauchfetzen while it was out. “It went over very well,” he recalls. “It had a lower smoke flavor to it, which appealed to people. We also had the Weyerbacher Fireside, a smoked brown ale. You can definitely tell the difference between the beers. The Fireside’s kind of spicy, the Harpoon just has a little kiss of smoke on the end.”
Weyerbacher brewmaster Chris Wilson is “not a huge smoked beer fan,” according to him, but said he’d had some subtly smoked beers that he really liked. “A little touch of smokiness adds a lot to the beer, some depth,” he says. “Fireside had 1O% Weyermann beechwood-smoked malt. It’s not too smoky, but it is smokier than I thought it would be. It’s almost addictive. Maybe similar to a Scotch ale, because it’s on the malty side; it’s not a hoppy beer by any means.”
Scotch ales, at least as American brewers have interpreted them, have been common subjects for similar small touches of smoke. Whether or not the addition of small amounts of peat-smoked malt is an “authentic” touch or not has been long-debated; it’s likely that it’s no more so than a lot of other dogma.
Authentic or not, enough people decided they liked it to keep the practice alive. Scotch ales are malt-balanced, sometimes outrageously so, and that maltiness, and caramel notes, blends beautifully with a little smoke. It’s entirely possible that folks don’t even know they’re getting smoked as they enjoy their beer.
Boston Beer puts some in their Samuel Adams Scotch Ale, “a rare peat-smoked malt commonly used by distillers of Scotch malt whiskey. This unique malt gives the beer its distinct, subtle smoky character and deep amber hue.”
Sprecher, the long-established Milwaukee craft brewery, is fairly new to the Massachusetts market. But they came in smokin’ with Sprecher Pipers Scotch Ale. Pipers is what the Scots call, ironically, a wee heavy; just a tiny little big headthumper. At 8.2%, Pipers calls that tune, with a slight, smoky aroma floating over caramel malts and a very delicate hop finish.
Oskar Blues, the Lyons, Colorado brewery noted for putting real craft beers in cans in a big way, lightly smokes their Old Chub (also a biggy at 8%), but they tip in a bit of Bamberg beechwood smoke rather than peat. “The smoke provides a nice counterpart to the sweetness of the beer,” says Marty Jones, brewery spokesman. “It tempers the residual sugars. So it’s a very gentle amount of smoke, just a kiss, but it’s crucial to the beer’s flavor. It’s the crucial ingredient for balance.
“Like many craft brewers, we dig smoked beers,” Jones affirms. “They make for a completely new realm of beers, otherworldly and wonderful. We dig some of the assertively smoked gems for sure. But we wanted Chub to be on the subtle side, with the smoke adding an extra tickle or two instead of a wallop of wood and smoke.”
Stone Smoked Porter wears its smoke up-front . . . at least, up-front on the label. “Stone Smoked Porter is made with just a touch of peat-smoked malt,” says Stone Brewing’s Greg Koch. “The smoke is an ‘element’ of the flavor, rather than being ‘the’ flavor. The smokiness adds a really nice depth and complexity to the robust porter’s chocolate, coffee and roasty overtones.”
Why did Stone, best-known for assertive beers like Arrogant Bastard, make a beer with “just a touch” of smoke? “Why we make Stone Smoked Porter is really in the ‘because we wanted to’ range,” Koch says. “It was the second beer we ever brewed. Steve (Wagner) and I really liked the idea of a smoked beer that had a very mellow smokiness to it. Most at the time had more aggressive smoke character, and we approached it from the perspective of brewing a great robust porter that had just a touch of smokiness to it, rather than brewing a smoked beer that just-so-happened-to-be a porter.”
Matt Nadeau, the founder and brewer at Rock Art Brewery in Morrisville, Vermont, straddles the line with his two smoked beers, Midnight Madness Smoked Porter and Double Porter Smoked. “My first smoked beer, Midnight Madness,” he recalls, “was fashioned after the original porters in England, when real wood fires were used to roast grains. I would envision a background smoke character to the beer from that process, although as with everything subjective, I have people with feedback on both sides of the galaxy. ‘Too much smoke! Not enough smoke!’ I feel an overstated smoke character would take away from the enjoyability and quaff of the beer.”
Nadeau’s description of why he brews the smoked beers was perhaps the most appealing, the most visceral. “I like the smell and taste of the smoked grains when you open the bag,” he says, emphatically. “It’s amazing, the mouth-watering smoke smell. I brew it because I like it, plain and simple. It seems like a match: a beer style that is not overrun with mouth feel and unfermented sugars, it benefits from the additional complexity.”
SMOKING OUT SALES That’s the laundry list of smoke. There’s a big difference between having them…and selling them. Deep Ellum’s Toste takes a broad view of selling smoked beer. “We have 28 drafts and a cask every day,” he says, “and I have a smoked beer year ’round. There’s a market, people like that. Everyone’s got IPAs and Belgians. I don’t want to go to a restaurant that just has 2O different burgers. I’m pretty passionate about the spread.”
Toste put me in mind of a piece I did on porter a while back in these pages. I talked to a number of porter brewers in New England, and over half of them used the same word to describe their porter sales: steady. “They have a following,” he agrees. “I’ve got a guy named Art who lives in New Hampshire and works in Boston. He’s hip to the smoked beers. He was there every single day I had the Fastenbier on.”
Matt Gamble agrees. “One of the other guys who works here tried them in Germany and convinced me to try them,” he recalls. “I loved it. I brought some in, and they’re doing well. They’re steady sellers; don’t fly off the shelves, but there are smoked beer customers who will come in pretty regularly.”
“The smoke beer customer is a person who’s looking for something different,” says Crystal Burlingame at Blanchard’s, “One guy will order cases of Schlenkerla at a time. That’s a bit too much for me! But I love them, so it’s usually me hand-selling them. I like to have a diverse selection so when a customer comes in who doesn’t know what they want, I can say, hey, how about a beer that tastes like bacon and eggs? I usually carry the whole Stone line-up anyway, and I do very well with the smoked porter, the customers really like it. I’m not setting records, of course, but it gets picked up.”
“There’s only one way,” says Matthias Neidhart, when asked how to get people to try smoked beer, “no, two ways. Many people try it when their friends tell them about this outrageous smoky beer. We still hear from people who just cannot believe there is such a thing as a smoked beer. The other thing is that you have to allow people to taste it. If you really want to get it selling, you have to sample. That person will either hate it – ‘This isn’t beer, I can’t drink that!’ – or they’ll be amazed. It’s an incredible experience. There are people who love it at first sip, but most people need a second sip to think about it. Just allow your customers to taste it. A small glass, and that’s all it takes.”
What everyone, the retailers and brewers alike, agrees on is that people aren’t so-so about smoked beer. “You get people who can’t stand the smell, and the guys who just love them,” says Gamble, laughing. “I never met anyone who kinda likes them. I love ’em. The best barbecue beers in the world.”
“We make our own sausage,” says Toste, “and a charcuterie plate we make in house: terrines, galatines, prosciutto, you name it, anything made of meat – smoked beer goes with it.”
That’s why summer – grill season – is really a natural time for smoked beers. Tailor your approach – there are lighter smoked beers, just as there are lighter dark beers – and you’ll have some smokin’ sales this summer.
SMOKED to a TEA
Pick up a glass of Cape Ann Brewing’s barleywine, Fisherman’s Tea Party, and smell the smoke. Taste it, and there’s smoke. But when it’s brewed . . . there’s no smoked malt. Schlenkerla’s Helles pulls off that trick by virtue of years of steeped-in smoke from their other beers; how does Cape Ann’s Jeremy Goldberg do it?
You only have to look as far as the name of the beer. “We use three types of tea in the Tea Party,” he explains, “one of which is Lapsang Souchang, a very smoky tea that imparts the smokiness. Originally I used just the Lapsang – and far too much – and the result was the smokiest beer you could imagine. First sip, for the smoke-ophile, was absolute ecstasy. The third or fourth sip unfortunately ended up being about all you could handle; the fifth sip never came.”
Technically, there is smoke in the Fisherman’s. Lapsang Souchang is dried by smoking it over pine embers, the same kind of direct smoking used in malts. But getting the tea-smokiness into the beer sounds more like hopping.
“I have two tea additions,” Goldberg says. “Due to the potency of the Souchang, I add it directly to the mash, getting a bit of a more subdued smokiness. The other two teas, a Young Hyson Green tea and a China Keemum are added in the whirlpool. These two teas add to the smooth finish of the beer and are just as important, if more subtle, as the Souchang. Just as I would when making a cup of tea, the Hyson and Keemum are steeped for five minutes in the whirlpool and then removed.”
There are coffee beers on the market, but not many tea beers, and that’s why Goldberg tried this one. “When trying to come up with a new beer,” he says, “I like to think about what hasn’t been done or over-done. But instead of just picking ingredients out of thin air and saying, ‘I wonder how pineapple would taste in an alt-bier?’, I try to find the ‘why the heck hasn’t this been done before’ beer. Tea and barley-wine seemed to be a very righteous combination.”
That doesn’t mean he’s averse to a more conventional wood-smoked beer . . . but don’t expect him to do that like everyone else does, either. “We have a local smokehouse here in Gloucester,” he muses. “I’d be interested in trying to get a set-up where we blow smoke through the wort during the knock-out. Different types of wood might be very interesting.”
I don’t think he’s just blowing smoke.
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Fisherman's Green Beer announced on Goodmorninggloucester.com
As a Saint Patrick's Day special, Cape Ann Brewing Co. serves Green Beer. See the video featured on www.goodmorninggloucester.com.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Entertainment scene expands on Gloucester's West End
by Leslie Friday/Correspondent
GLOUCESTER - Picture the perfect night out. Grab an early dinner, no winces when the bill arrives. Pop in for a cold and frothy at a nearby brewpub. Maybe catch a short play by a local director. Then cap it off with a late-night concert.
Do it all within a couple city blocks. Sounds good? Sounds like Boston. Wrong, think Gloucester.
With the recent addition of the Cape Ann Brewing Company’s pub and West End Hall’s opening, Gloucester’s West End is further blossoming into a focal point for entertainment. The new sites add to the overall mix of restaurants, bars and clubs that have sprouted along Main and Rogers streets over the years.
Undaunted by competition, West End business owners unanimously supported the new brewpub and event hall.
“There’s always room for another falafel house on the block,” joked Ian McColl, a New York native and Blackburn Performing Arts’ managing director. “The more things going on, the better.”
Alex Pardo, co-owner of Jalapeños Mexican Restaurant, agreed.
“I always believe in the more businesses you bring into downtown Gloucester, the better it will be for everybody,” Pardo said. “We need each other.”
Dozens of beer lovers packed Cape Ann Brewing Company’s headquarters at the tip of The Fort neighborhood during its brewpub’s grand opening on Saturday, March 7. They lounged in wooden rocking chairs, sidled up to the bar — shaped like the port side of a boat — or gathered at communal picnic tables.
The pub’s inspiration hearkens back to Germany in the Middles Ages, when everything was built around the brewery, according to Jeremy Goldberg, the company’s owner and head brewer.
“The brewery was really the meeting point,” Goldberg, 33, said. “That’s what we want to be.”
Brewing beer was a hobby for this New Jersey native and former Wall Street employee. But when the Twin Towers fell on September 11, 2001, Goldberg said he did the “walk of disbelief” across the Williamsburg Bridge back to his home in Brooklyn.
That’s when it hit him: “I need to be doing something more than just pushing money around.”
Goldberg said he wanted to make a difference in the world, to do something he was proud of. After a 40-day, 38-micro-brewery tour and making a documentary on the journey (“American Beer”), he and his father launched Cape Ann Brewing Company in 2004.
Since opening, Goldberg and crew have sold 64-ounce growlers, done tastings and marketed a variety of brews to bars from Maine to Virginia. But the intention was always to have a brewpub on site.
“There’s nothing more rewarding than to see people enjoying my beer right here in front of me,” said Goldberg, who tends bar with two of his employees.
Not everyone is happy with the pub’s opening. Fort residents protested the brewing company’s arrival. And city officials treated it as “the canary in the mine shaft” to test new business’s success in the area, Goldberg said.
Yet Gloucester at-large has welcomed the brewing company.
“The whole city’s taken us on their shoulders,” he said, adding that local artists have displayed their work at the pub. “It’s theirs, it’s not ours.”
Less then two blocks down Rogers Street, West End Hall is opening its doors on Saturday, March 14 with the U-2 cover band Joshua Tree.
Formerly the St. Peter’s Club function hall, West End Hall aims to be an affordable alternative for those planning concerts, weddings, bar mitzvahs, business conferences and school events.
“I would really like the function hall to support the community,” said Shannon Mount, West End’s function manager. “It’s part of a lot of people’s families at this point.”
The hall rents for $500 per five-hour event on weekdays and $800 Friday-Sunday. It comes equipped with large screen televisions, a stage, full-size bar, wet bar and a separate prep kitchen.
Mount said she has a list of vendors that clients can choose from in planning their events, or bring their own.
The 32-year-old Gloucester resident hopes to bring a bride expo to Cape Ann in late spring and dreams of bigger bands, arts shows or mystery dinners renting out the hall.
But for now, Mount is focusing on the Joshua Tree concert. Tickets sell for $15 apiece. Doors open at 8 p.m. with hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar available to concert goers.
“The band is excited about playing up here,” Mount said.
Meanwhile, the rest of West End continues to pulse with activity. Sometimes the fun gets out of hand.
After opening in late summer last year, Latitude 43 launched a late-night club that proved to be too successful. Co-owner Mark McDonough was called before the city’s licensing board on Feb. 26 to confront a list of complaints from residents, councilors and the police.
Overserving, breech of the public peace, public urination and serving underage drinkers were among some of the complaints filed against the establishment. Board members voted to rescind Latitude’s liquor and entertainment license for three days as punishment, with McDonough closing shop from March 1-3.
The day after the board’s ruling, McDonough sent members a letter in which he apologized for any wrongdoing and announced Latitude 43 would no longer be in the club business. He vowed to have police presence on Fridays and Saturdays and to remove outside speakers, among other changes planned.
“I’m happy because that type of place did not fit with the rhythm and beat of the harbor,” said Attorney Edward Pasquina, chairman of the licensing board.
McDonough referred all questions about the incident to his booking agent, Dan King, saying, “I’ve got some clean-ups to do.”
King, a musician who also plays around the city, said they cancelled their concert series scheduled for March and April and refunded tickets. He regretted most of all telling dozens of musicians they lost their shifts.
Latitude 43 has since retooled their entertainment line-up, with a variety of music shows Thursday-Sunday.
“Nobody was just trying to cause trouble,” King said. “I think those guys [at Latitude 43] are getting a tough break.”
Do it all within a couple city blocks. Sounds good? Sounds like Boston. Wrong, think Gloucester.
With the recent addition of the Cape Ann Brewing Company’s pub and West End Hall’s opening, Gloucester’s West End is further blossoming into a focal point for entertainment. The new sites add to the overall mix of restaurants, bars and clubs that have sprouted along Main and Rogers streets over the years.
Undaunted by competition, West End business owners unanimously supported the new brewpub and event hall.
“There’s always room for another falafel house on the block,” joked Ian McColl, a New York native and Blackburn Performing Arts’ managing director. “The more things going on, the better.”
Alex Pardo, co-owner of Jalapeños Mexican Restaurant, agreed.
“I always believe in the more businesses you bring into downtown Gloucester, the better it will be for everybody,” Pardo said. “We need each other.”
Dozens of beer lovers packed Cape Ann Brewing Company’s headquarters at the tip of The Fort neighborhood during its brewpub’s grand opening on Saturday, March 7. They lounged in wooden rocking chairs, sidled up to the bar — shaped like the port side of a boat — or gathered at communal picnic tables.
The pub’s inspiration hearkens back to Germany in the Middles Ages, when everything was built around the brewery, according to Jeremy Goldberg, the company’s owner and head brewer.
“The brewery was really the meeting point,” Goldberg, 33, said. “That’s what we want to be.”
Brewing beer was a hobby for this New Jersey native and former Wall Street employee. But when the Twin Towers fell on September 11, 2001, Goldberg said he did the “walk of disbelief” across the Williamsburg Bridge back to his home in Brooklyn.
That’s when it hit him: “I need to be doing something more than just pushing money around.”
Goldberg said he wanted to make a difference in the world, to do something he was proud of. After a 40-day, 38-micro-brewery tour and making a documentary on the journey (“American Beer”), he and his father launched Cape Ann Brewing Company in 2004.
Since opening, Goldberg and crew have sold 64-ounce growlers, done tastings and marketed a variety of brews to bars from Maine to Virginia. But the intention was always to have a brewpub on site.
“There’s nothing more rewarding than to see people enjoying my beer right here in front of me,” said Goldberg, who tends bar with two of his employees.
Not everyone is happy with the pub’s opening. Fort residents protested the brewing company’s arrival. And city officials treated it as “the canary in the mine shaft” to test new business’s success in the area, Goldberg said.
Yet Gloucester at-large has welcomed the brewing company.
“The whole city’s taken us on their shoulders,” he said, adding that local artists have displayed their work at the pub. “It’s theirs, it’s not ours.”
Less then two blocks down Rogers Street, West End Hall is opening its doors on Saturday, March 14 with the U-2 cover band Joshua Tree.
Formerly the St. Peter’s Club function hall, West End Hall aims to be an affordable alternative for those planning concerts, weddings, bar mitzvahs, business conferences and school events.
“I would really like the function hall to support the community,” said Shannon Mount, West End’s function manager. “It’s part of a lot of people’s families at this point.”
The hall rents for $500 per five-hour event on weekdays and $800 Friday-Sunday. It comes equipped with large screen televisions, a stage, full-size bar, wet bar and a separate prep kitchen.
Mount said she has a list of vendors that clients can choose from in planning their events, or bring their own.
The 32-year-old Gloucester resident hopes to bring a bride expo to Cape Ann in late spring and dreams of bigger bands, arts shows or mystery dinners renting out the hall.
But for now, Mount is focusing on the Joshua Tree concert. Tickets sell for $15 apiece. Doors open at 8 p.m. with hors d’oeuvres and a cash bar available to concert goers.
“The band is excited about playing up here,” Mount said.
Meanwhile, the rest of West End continues to pulse with activity. Sometimes the fun gets out of hand.
After opening in late summer last year, Latitude 43 launched a late-night club that proved to be too successful. Co-owner Mark McDonough was called before the city’s licensing board on Feb. 26 to confront a list of complaints from residents, councilors and the police.
Overserving, breech of the public peace, public urination and serving underage drinkers were among some of the complaints filed against the establishment. Board members voted to rescind Latitude’s liquor and entertainment license for three days as punishment, with McDonough closing shop from March 1-3.
The day after the board’s ruling, McDonough sent members a letter in which he apologized for any wrongdoing and announced Latitude 43 would no longer be in the club business. He vowed to have police presence on Fridays and Saturdays and to remove outside speakers, among other changes planned.
“I’m happy because that type of place did not fit with the rhythm and beat of the harbor,” said Attorney Edward Pasquina, chairman of the licensing board.
McDonough referred all questions about the incident to his booking agent, Dan King, saying, “I’ve got some clean-ups to do.”
King, a musician who also plays around the city, said they cancelled their concert series scheduled for March and April and refunded tickets. He regretted most of all telling dozens of musicians they lost their shifts.
Latitude 43 has since retooled their entertainment line-up, with a variety of music shows Thursday-Sunday.
“Nobody was just trying to cause trouble,” King said. “I think those guys [at Latitude 43] are getting a tough break.”
Saturday, March 7, 2009
A brewing triumph: Pub's debut caps 2-year struggle for founders
By Robert CannStaff Writer
Gloucester Daily Times
Benjamin Franklin once said, "Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy."
And while today's grand opening of Cape Ann Brewing Co.'s Brewpub has left some feeling contrary, for its supporters, and co-founder Jeremy Goldberg, "it's a struggle that's finally come to fruition."
Cape Ann Brewing Co. first tried to open its doors, and its taps, to serve microbrews from its 27 Commercial St. site in May 2007. However, after meeting strong opposition from Fort Square and Beach Court residents, the city Licensing Board decided not to issue a license.
"We called it a soft opening; we let our regulars know about us," Goldberg said. "This grand opening is to let everybody know."
Golberg said the grand opening will have raffles, trivia, complimentary chowder from Turner Seafood and chips and salsa from Chili Choice.
"It's just kind of welcoming Gloucester to us," Goldberg said. "It's a big thank you for the people who have supported us in the past." According to Goldberg, Cape Ann Brewing Co. has a "Farmer's Brewing Pouring Permit" to serve beer, which means it can only serve beer that brewed in-house. The pub cannot serve liquor, or even its own bottled beer, which is brewed and bottled in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
While the brew pub, which is open today from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., serves food, it doesn't have its own kitchen.
"We're trying to bring in food from local establishments," Goldberg said. The brew pub will serve food from Panorama Pizza, Ned's Groceria and Sasquatch Smoked Fish, among o
Gloucester Daily Times
Benjamin Franklin once said, "Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy."
And while today's grand opening of Cape Ann Brewing Co.'s Brewpub has left some feeling contrary, for its supporters, and co-founder Jeremy Goldberg, "it's a struggle that's finally come to fruition."
Cape Ann Brewing Co. first tried to open its doors, and its taps, to serve microbrews from its 27 Commercial St. site in May 2007. However, after meeting strong opposition from Fort Square and Beach Court residents, the city Licensing Board decided not to issue a license.
"We thought it was going to happen in May of 2007," said Goldberg, who added that "it wasn't really an option to give up."
A year later, Goldberg and his brother-in-law Michael Beaton, who is co-owner of the Brewing Co., went before the Licensing Board once again. this time for a license to pour beer for four hours a day during three days of Fiesta.
They got it, and Goldberg said, "it was phenomenal."
A year later, Goldberg and his brother-in-law Michael Beaton, who is co-owner of the Brewing Co., went before the Licensing Board once again. this time for a license to pour beer for four hours a day during three days of Fiesta.
They got it, and Goldberg said, "it was phenomenal."
"The crowd was as diverse as it gets: old, young, all walks of life," Goldberg said. "It was as good as we could have ever expected it to be."
Golberg said that since "Fiesta went off without a hitch," the Brewing Co. decided it was once again time to try for a year-round license to serve. By late January, the Licensing Board approved, and the Brewing Co. received a license in mid-February and held a "soft opening."
Golberg said that since "Fiesta went off without a hitch," the Brewing Co. decided it was once again time to try for a year-round license to serve. By late January, the Licensing Board approved, and the Brewing Co. received a license in mid-February and held a "soft opening."
"We called it a soft opening; we let our regulars know about us," Goldberg said. "This grand opening is to let everybody know."
Golberg said the grand opening will have raffles, trivia, complimentary chowder from Turner Seafood and chips and salsa from Chili Choice.
"It's just kind of welcoming Gloucester to us," Goldberg said. "It's a big thank you for the people who have supported us in the past." According to Goldberg, Cape Ann Brewing Co. has a "Farmer's Brewing Pouring Permit" to serve beer, which means it can only serve beer that brewed in-house. The pub cannot serve liquor, or even its own bottled beer, which is brewed and bottled in Saratoga Springs, N.Y.
While the brew pub, which is open today from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., serves food, it doesn't have its own kitchen.
"We're trying to bring in food from local establishments," Goldberg said. The brew pub will serve food from Panorama Pizza, Ned's Groceria and Sasquatch Smoked Fish, among o
thers.
"Our focus is to help Gloucester grow along with us," he said.
Goldberg says he looks to Gloucester and the sea for inspiration for his beers. "The history of Gloucester is something that is important to the people of Gloucester, and as such, it's something that we made very important to the Cape Ann Brewing Co."
Goldberg, the comapny's brew master, said that whenever the staff comes up with a new beer, they try to make it relate to the sea.
One of the seven beers that they'll be pouring today is The Fisherman's Tea Party, a barley wine-style beer that features three varieties of tea that were dumped into Boston Harbor during the Boston Tea Party.
As for the brew pub's opposition, some in the immediate neighborhood aren't thrilled about the opening.
"Our focus is to help Gloucester grow along with us," he said.
Goldberg says he looks to Gloucester and the sea for inspiration for his beers. "The history of Gloucester is something that is important to the people of Gloucester, and as such, it's something that we made very important to the Cape Ann Brewing Co."
Goldberg, the comapny's brew master, said that whenever the staff comes up with a new beer, they try to make it relate to the sea.
One of the seven beers that they'll be pouring today is The Fisherman's Tea Party, a barley wine-style beer that features three varieties of tea that were dumped into Boston Harbor during the Boston Tea Party.
As for the brew pub's opposition, some in the immediate neighborhood aren't thrilled about the opening.
Joseph Palmisano, who grew up near the Brewing Co.'s location and owns an apartment building in the vicinity, said he believes the "neighborhood's been getting stepped on."
"We're not against brewing beer, we just don't want a pub in front," he said. Palmisano fears that loud patrons will wake up his tenants late at night and disturb the neighborhood.
While Golberg said Cape Ann Brewing Co. has had a "tenuous" relationship with its neighbors — and didn't do everything it could have to reach out at first — he says the owners have been doing more to improve the relationship lately.
Goldberg said he gave out his cell phone number to those who live nearby, and the Brewing Co. had started privately throwing away its used grain and has raised the stacks from its boilers so that the smell from the production would be less noticeable.
Goldberg said giving up in the struggle to serve beer wasn't ever an option.
"There were many nights that I questioned if this was a good idea, but we persevered and kept going," he said.
Goldberg says he fell in love with the beer industry after quitting his job as a Wall Street broker after Sept. 11, 2001, and making a documentary called "American Beer," which took him to 38 breweries in 40 days
He said it's a friendly industry and "all the breweries help each other out."
"You're competition isn't your competition," Goldberg said. "We're all in this for good beer."
"We're not against brewing beer, we just don't want a pub in front," he said. Palmisano fears that loud patrons will wake up his tenants late at night and disturb the neighborhood.
While Golberg said Cape Ann Brewing Co. has had a "tenuous" relationship with its neighbors — and didn't do everything it could have to reach out at first — he says the owners have been doing more to improve the relationship lately.
Goldberg said he gave out his cell phone number to those who live nearby, and the Brewing Co. had started privately throwing away its used grain and has raised the stacks from its boilers so that the smell from the production would be less noticeable.
Goldberg said giving up in the struggle to serve beer wasn't ever an option.
"There were many nights that I questioned if this was a good idea, but we persevered and kept going," he said.
Goldberg says he fell in love with the beer industry after quitting his job as a Wall Street broker after Sept. 11, 2001, and making a documentary called "American Beer," which took him to 38 breweries in 40 days
He said it's a friendly industry and "all the breweries help each other out."
"You're competition isn't your competition," Goldberg said. "We're all in this for good beer."
Nick Drayer of Rockport enjoys a few slices of pizza and a beer with some conversation with bartender Dylan L'Abbe-Lindquist at Cape Ann Brewing Co. yesterday afternoon. After receiving its pouring license, Cape Ann Brewing Co. will be holding its grand opening today, offering tours, pub eats, trivia and its Fisherman's Brew.
Photo by Mary Muckenhoupt / ©2009 Gloucester Daily Times
IF YOU GO
What: Cape Ann Brewing Co.'s grand opening
Where: 27 Commercial St.
When: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. today.
Details: Seven beers on tap, pub eats, trivia, tours.
IF YOU GO
What: Cape Ann Brewing Co.'s grand opening
Where: 27 Commercial St.
When: 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. today.
Details: Seven beers on tap, pub eats, trivia, tours.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Cape Ann Brewing Company Opens Brew Pub in Gloucester
Contact: Dylan L’Abbe-Lindquist
Cape Ann Brewing Company
978-281-4782
www.capeannbrewing.com
Cape Ann Brewing Company Opens Brew Pub in Gloucester
(Gloucester, MA) - Cape Ann Brewing Company, an award-winning, family-owned, micro-brewery and the home of Fisherman’s Brew, in the heart of downtown Gloucester, announced today the opening of its highly anticipated Brewpub.
The Brewpub, features the brewery’s award-winning craft beers brewed onsite, in a unique community gathering room featuring a bar shaped like the port side of a ship. Long, German-style wooden tables and a sitting area with several rocking chairs create a mellow, laid back atmosphere unlike anything else in the Cape Ann community. Classic board games, books, magazines, newspapers and bar games are available for leisurely enjoyment. Local artist renderings adorn the wood-paneled walls and the large picture windows look out onto St. Peter’s Square where the famed St. Peter’s Fiesta is held each June.
Cape Ann Brewing Company was founded in 2004. Head brewer and co-founder Jeremy Goldberg began his sojourn into professional brewing as a home-brewer and broker on Wall Street. After September 11, 2001, looking for a change Goldberg embarked upon a 38 brewery 40 day micro-brewery cross-country tour with a some of friends to film the documentary, American Beer. Upon return, Goldberg knew that the brewing industry was his future and 6 months later, along with his father Michael Goldberg and his brother in law, had begun preparation for the opening of the Cape Ann Brewing Company. In May of 2004 Cape Ann Brewing released it’s Fisherman’s Brew and have grown to distribute it’s beer in 9 states from Maine to Virginia.
”My family and I are immensely proud of the brews we produce and are delighted to be able to serve our customers on premise,” said Jeremy Goldberg, Head Brewer and co-founder of Cape Ann Brewing Company. “It was my father’s and my dream to start a micro-brewery together. Our Brewpub is family-friendly and not the typical watering hole. We don’t serve liquor at all, and only serve the beer is made right here.”
The Brewpub will also feature non-alcoholic beverages and pizza from Panorama Pizza in Gloucester. The menu will soon expand to include offerings from several local businesses including Panorama Pizza, Ned’s Groceria, and Sasquatch Smoked Fish, as well as an assortment of bar snacks.
Cape Ann Brewing brews a variety of craft beers at the brewery -
Available both on draft and in the bottle:
-Fisherman’s Brew, the company’s flagship offering is an American Amber Lager.
-Fisherman’s IPA, an Indian Pale Ale
-Fisherman’s Ale, a Kolsch style ale which received the gold medal at the Great International Beer Festival in the fall of 2007
-Fisherman’s Pumpkin Stout, our autumn offering, which was awarded the 2007 New England Microbrew Championship at the 2007 Lowell Ribs-’N-Brews festival
-Fisherman’s Navigator, a German style Doppel-bock offered during the Winter season
-Fisherman’s Bavarian Wheat, our Spring/Summer offering, a Hefeweizen
Available only on draft when available:
-Fisherman’s Tea Party, a barley wine made with three different types of tea that were amongst those dumped during the Boston Tea Party
-Fisherman’s Greenhorn Double-IPA, a high alcohol amply hopped IPA, not for the faint of heart
-Fisherman’s Dunkelweiss, a dark German wheat beer
Cape Ann Brewing Company
Founded in 2004, Cape Ann Brewing Company is an award-winning, family-owned, micro-brewery in the heart of the historic seaport of Gloucester in Cape Ann. Brewing beer whose bold flavor and character reflects the spirit and courage of the sailors of the North Atlantic fishing fleet, and is the same passion that drives what we do. The Fisherman’s line of beer is a tribute to hard work, and a salute to friendships that endure. Cape Ann Brewing continues it’s support of the Northeast Seafood Coalition, a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving fishing communities, protecting fishery resources and feeding the world, and urges people to get involved in aiding our local fishermen.
Cape Ann Brewing Company
978-281-4782
www.capeannbrewing.com
Cape Ann Brewing Company Opens Brew Pub in Gloucester
(Gloucester, MA) - Cape Ann Brewing Company, an award-winning, family-owned, micro-brewery and the home of Fisherman’s Brew, in the heart of downtown Gloucester, announced today the opening of its highly anticipated Brewpub.
The Brewpub, features the brewery’s award-winning craft beers brewed onsite, in a unique community gathering room featuring a bar shaped like the port side of a ship. Long, German-style wooden tables and a sitting area with several rocking chairs create a mellow, laid back atmosphere unlike anything else in the Cape Ann community. Classic board games, books, magazines, newspapers and bar games are available for leisurely enjoyment. Local artist renderings adorn the wood-paneled walls and the large picture windows look out onto St. Peter’s Square where the famed St. Peter’s Fiesta is held each June.
Cape Ann Brewing Company was founded in 2004. Head brewer and co-founder Jeremy Goldberg began his sojourn into professional brewing as a home-brewer and broker on Wall Street. After September 11, 2001, looking for a change Goldberg embarked upon a 38 brewery 40 day micro-brewery cross-country tour with a some of friends to film the documentary, American Beer. Upon return, Goldberg knew that the brewing industry was his future and 6 months later, along with his father Michael Goldberg and his brother in law, had begun preparation for the opening of the Cape Ann Brewing Company. In May of 2004 Cape Ann Brewing released it’s Fisherman’s Brew and have grown to distribute it’s beer in 9 states from Maine to Virginia.
”My family and I are immensely proud of the brews we produce and are delighted to be able to serve our customers on premise,” said Jeremy Goldberg, Head Brewer and co-founder of Cape Ann Brewing Company. “It was my father’s and my dream to start a micro-brewery together. Our Brewpub is family-friendly and not the typical watering hole. We don’t serve liquor at all, and only serve the beer is made right here.”
The Brewpub will also feature non-alcoholic beverages and pizza from Panorama Pizza in Gloucester. The menu will soon expand to include offerings from several local businesses including Panorama Pizza, Ned’s Groceria, and Sasquatch Smoked Fish, as well as an assortment of bar snacks.
Cape Ann Brewing brews a variety of craft beers at the brewery -
Available both on draft and in the bottle:
-Fisherman’s Brew, the company’s flagship offering is an American Amber Lager.
-Fisherman’s IPA, an Indian Pale Ale
-Fisherman’s Ale, a Kolsch style ale which received the gold medal at the Great International Beer Festival in the fall of 2007
-Fisherman’s Pumpkin Stout, our autumn offering, which was awarded the 2007 New England Microbrew Championship at the 2007 Lowell Ribs-’N-Brews festival
-Fisherman’s Navigator, a German style Doppel-bock offered during the Winter season
-Fisherman’s Bavarian Wheat, our Spring/Summer offering, a Hefeweizen
Available only on draft when available:
-Fisherman’s Tea Party, a barley wine made with three different types of tea that were amongst those dumped during the Boston Tea Party
-Fisherman’s Greenhorn Double-IPA, a high alcohol amply hopped IPA, not for the faint of heart
-Fisherman’s Dunkelweiss, a dark German wheat beer
Cape Ann Brewing Company
Founded in 2004, Cape Ann Brewing Company is an award-winning, family-owned, micro-brewery in the heart of the historic seaport of Gloucester in Cape Ann. Brewing beer whose bold flavor and character reflects the spirit and courage of the sailors of the North Atlantic fishing fleet, and is the same passion that drives what we do. The Fisherman’s line of beer is a tribute to hard work, and a salute to friendships that endure. Cape Ann Brewing continues it’s support of the Northeast Seafood Coalition, a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving fishing communities, protecting fishery resources and feeding the world, and urges people to get involved in aiding our local fishermen.
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
Cape Ann Brewing Grand Opening Announcement Video
Dillon of Cape Ann Brewing makes the Grand Opening announcement to goodmorninggloucester.com. Check it out here!
Monday, January 12, 2009
Cape Ann Brewing Co. Sponsors Best of Boston Home Issue Launch Party
BOSTON HOME PARTYCape Ann Brewing proudly sponsored the Boston Magazine's Launch Party for the Winter 2009 issue of Boston Home at the Beehive in the South End on 1/12/2009. View bestofboston.com for more photographs.
Pictured at left Mary & Jeremy Goldberg, Co-founder & Head Brewer of Cape Ann Brewing Co.
Photo ©2009 Boston Magazine
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