We’re currently right in the middle of Massachusetts Beer Week and we’re celebrating with all of our favorite local brews we have in the market all weekend long. We currently have beers and ciders from 15 different makers from all across the Commonwealth, from Boston, to Worcester, to Provincetown, and of course right here on island! Here’s a little background on some of our faves.
Shovel Town Brewery is based in North Easton and came to life after co-founders Frank Altieri and Jim McSherry began experimenting with brewing craft beer in their homes and entering their creations into local craft beer festivals. Since opening, their brewery and taproom has been enthusiastically received by their community and they just celebrated their four year anniversary in February. We currently have two of their brews in house, Flyaway IPA and their Coffee Cream Ale, both of which are outrageously delicious. We are the first and currently only place on Island to pick up Shovel Town so be sure to grab a 4-pack on your next trip out! Pick up a Shovel & dig in.
Wachusett Brewing Co. has called Westminster, MA home since the early ‘90s. It’s the classic story of three people – Ned LaFortune, Peter Quinn and Kevin Buckler – who were so passionate about craft beer that they left their careers to feed that dream. Inspired by their love of outdoors, they started brewing in an old dairy farm by Wachusett Mountain and became the first brewery in Worcester County. In the early days, the three partners relied on community volunteers to help them with bottling and distribution and that sense of community partnership is something that they carry with them to this day. They strive to keep their roots in outdoor fun, and their collection of lagers and ales reflect that. We currently carry Wally, their signature IPA and fan favorite – citrus forward but with a classic IPA finish, you can’t go wrong with this staple!
Bent Water Brewing believes that the water of Lynn, MA is their greatest secret ingredient. Founders Aaron Reames, Mike Shaughnessy, and Chris Crawford came together and used their individual skills as scientist, artist and beer enthusiast, respectively, to fine tune and launch their own brewing project. Balancing between the scientific and artistic elements of beer making allowed them to take their crushable brews in their signature psychedelic cans and double their production since Bent Water’s inception at the beginning of 2016. The name Bent Water comes from their passion for turning science into art and ability to “bend water into unique, flavorful beer.” Throughout the year, we like to bring in some of their seasonal brews, like Jolene, their classic American porter, and Fire Barrel, a distinctly fall IPA. We always have 6-packs of Bent Water’s pillar IPA Thunder Funk; with its classic west coast citrus and pine notes.
Shoal Hope Ciderworks was born when Rob Brosofsky decided to make a modern, New England centric version of hard ciders right in Provincetown, where New England began. He had been an avid home cider maker previously, and decided to dive into his passion professionally. After winning awards with his flagship off-dry Monument cider, he began experimenting with different blends and using classic New England ingredients like cranberry bog honey and cranberries themselves. He now produces nine different ciders all with unique and complex flavor profiles; using everything from dates, to watermelon, to elderberry. While cider maybe doesn’t technically meet the “beer week” criteria , we are thrilled to provide Nantucket with three of Rob’s varieties: the classic Monument, Little Tart which is brewed with Cape Cod cranberries, and Empty Barrel, a dry cider aged in whiskey barrels. Pick up one of each individual 500ml bottle to find your favorite!
MASSACHUSETTS BEERS we carry
Wash Ashore – Martha’s Vineyard, MA
Nightshift Brewing – Everett, MA
Cisco Brewers – Nantucket, MA
Progression Brewing – Northampton, MA
Untold Brewing – Scituate, MA
Aeronaut Brewery – Somerville, MA
Shoveltown Brewery – Easton, MA
Wormtown Brewery – Worcester, MA
Bentwater Brewing – Lynn, MA
Greater Good Imperial Brew Co. – Worcester, MA
Wachusett Brewing Company – Westminster, MA
Burke’s Alewerks – Hanover, MA
Artifact Cider Project – Florence & Cambridge, MA
Carlson Cider – Harvard, MA
Shoal Hope Cider – Provincetown, MA
Far From The Tree Cider – Salem, MA
written by Erin Hepinstall, Cheese & Wine Team
