East Coast Brew Review

The Stats  Loca tion: Middletown, CT History: Forest City opened about a year ago.  Food Service: No The Scenario We pulled up to a long warehouse and entered through an open door with a sandwich board outside displaying the name of the brewery. We were met by a line that extended beyond the inside door of the brewery. People were lined up with coolers and empty growlers ready to fill. Typically, breweries have separate lines for growler fills and drafts/flights but it didn't appear that this was the case here. This resulted in a wait of over 20 minutes (at least) for a single pint. We stayed only until we finished the beer and ventured to the next brewery. Fortunately, we didn't have to go far. We made our way through the warehouse past various artist's workshops and plastic wrapped furniture to our next stop, Stubborn Beauty.  The Ratings Ginger Saison K: 2/5 - Maybe I'm bitter that I had to wait 20 mins for this, but the ginger taste is too strong for m

The Stats  Loca tion:  Highland, NY History: Before purchase, described as a "hoarder's paradi se , " Hudson Al e Works was a laundromat, machine shop, and cabinet sh op. Th ree friends collaborated, cleaned the place out, and now stands Hudson Ale Works which first opened in the Spring of 2016. Food Service: Yes, a small menu of snacks.  W ebsit e:  hudsonaleworks.com The Scenario When we walked in there was clearly a lot of patrons. We had to park in their auxiliary lot next to a sketchy antique shop down the road , a short walk away. Upon entering we realized there was a baby shower happening in their side room. This is not the first time we have witnessed a baby shower happening at a brewer y and we wonder if these are some cruel punishments for the mother s to be , it's unclea r. In a ny case , Deanna grabbed a table and Kyle hit the bar to get our drinks. While Kyl e was not carded at the bar, Deanna was just sitting at a table, no beer in sight

The Stats  Loca tion:  New Paltz, NY History: On the sit e of an old Hotel, The Gilded Otter was co nstructed in 1996 when four friends decided to open the brewery. The Gilded Otter is named after the ship that New Paltz's founding fathers sailed in from Europe on "The Gilded Otter. " Food Service: Yes, very delicious selections. Highly recommend the cheese curds! Websit e:  gildedotter.com The Scenario We stopped in to the Gilded Otter not soon aft er they opened f or the day on a weekend. It was not very crowded and we were seated promptly in the dining area. Having seen the unique round circle on which they serve flights, we knew we had to get one. Kyl e had been here previously and recommended we order the cheese curds , which turned o ut to be a solid idea. Be tween the cheese curds , the sandwiches , and the beer we ordered, we were extremel y f ull and everything was delicious.  The o ne thing that stri kes you a bout this place is how big it is. W ith

The Stats  Loca tion:  Hackensack, NJ History: Ha ckensack's premier micro brewery, The Alementary Br ewing Company prides itself on making appro achable and uncomplicated world-class beers. Food Service: Food trucks Websit e:   alementary.com The Scenario Our first New Jersey brewery! Alementary is located in a relatively ur ban area in Hackensack, NJ. There are plenty of nearby parking lots but we got lucky w ith a spo t right in fro nt. Alementary is a re latively large s pace with a long bar and some long communal tables. We headed right to the bar and got ou r drinks of choice and sat a t one of the long tables. While we were there we saw a re latively large sp ace f ill up nicely. The highlight was a tiny d og that seems to belong to someone who works there roaming around greeting the guests. The Ratings Let's Begin Sour-Gose D: 3/5 - Not very sour and not much flavor. Smooth and drinkable. Witbier w/ apricot syrup K: 4.5/5 - Going with the apricot fl

The Stats  Loca tion:  Tuckahoe, NY History: Named after Broken Bow, Nebraska, this brewery was established in 2013. It's family owned and operated.  Food Service: No but they do have soft pretzels and some snacks.  W ebsit e:  brokenbowbrewery.com The Scenario This was actually our second visit to Broken Bow. We visited for the first time before we officially started documenting our brewery adventures. Upon the announcement of their new sour, we need we needed to return. On a rainy Friday night, we entered into the dim brewery and went straight to the bar to order the sour. It was fairly empty for a Friday night but there were a few groups of business men and older folks gathering over some brews. The beer was good and we both had two each and took our time enjoying the night. There were different seating arrangements, from long beer hall tables to stools and leather chairs. They advertised an outdoor beer garden but we didn't get to enjoy it as the weather wasn'

The Stats  Loca tion:  Gardiner, NY   History: The brewery recently moved to their current space from a 400 square foot shed. The brewmasters started a Kickstarter campaign and raised over $41,000 to fund their move to a larger space with room to brew their beer.  Food Service: Yes, they had quite the selection of food to order.  W ebsit e:  yardowlcraftbrewery.com The Scenario This place is a bsolutely in the middle of now here. When we pulled up there weren't many cars in the lot but there was a stretch limo parked outside. As we approached, I commented that it sounded like a band was playing inside. However, there was no band just a wedding party loudly gabbing around a long table toward the back of the tap room. The room was quite bi g and resembled a large garage so the noise echoed. We enjoyed a sampling of their beers and inaccurately pronounced their french names (well, at least Deanna did).  The Ratings Casa Diablo Dark Ale brewed with coffee K: 2/5 - Agai