Local Microbreweries

[RhowdyRam02]

I heard Ravenous was looking to upgrade their space, but it hasn't happened yet

I have been meaning to post this but kept forgetting. They are moving about 5 miles south on Rt 122 to Cumberland near the 295/Mendon Road Exit

They reopened in their new location Saturday

[NYGFan_Section208]

I thought their Federal Hill was pretty good...never saw it in stores though

Was just reminded tonight, courtesy of Wolfrock Wine and Spirits, aka, 'The 'frock', that I also like Foolproof's Ocean State IPA.
First saw it a couple months ago, may be newer? ... Not necessarily a standout, but definitely good and drinkable.

[rhodyruckus]

I went to Apponaug Brewing for the first time on my way down to the PC game last Friday. Got dinner and sampled their beer. I liked their space and the food was ok. I however was not a big fan of the beer selection. Too many fruit infused beers for my taste.

Their food is the selling point for me. The beer is a level down, for example, from Proclamation which is basically down the street. Their NEIPA is a bit too "spiced" for me. In the nice weather their new patio out back is great, cornhole and sitting areas overlooking the river.

[rhodyruckus]

I stopped at Ravenous last week on my way to the Pats game since my buddy and I couldn't meet up for a proper tailgate in advance. On Industrial Drive a stone's throw off the Diamond Hill Rd exit from I-295. Great & big space inside and I didn't even check out an additional room visible when leaving. Maybe 4 TVs or so scattered about with the early football games on. POS stations on point with Square units that have chip readers. And two unisex bathrooms.

Open only Friday to Sunday temporarily since opening weekend drained most of their beer stock, but the intention is to be open Wed or Thu through Sunday in the near future.

[urirules20]

Check out Naukabout on Cape Cod!

[NYGFan_Section208]

Doesn't fit here (or anywhere really)...just a heads up... 32oz Rhode Trip at Cantina del Old Rhody Joe's...for a bargaineous $7.30.
I think that might be cheaper than what you get in a store...

[RF1]

Went to the Ravenous new location in Cumberland (Rtes 295/114) today. Like the setup. Much bigger with multiple tvs and plenty of parking. Had their Yo Mama and Diamond Hill IPA and liked both.

[SGreenwell]

We were in New England for a week, for the holidays and to check out our wedding venue, which is in Sturbridge. As a result, we finally went to Tree House - Holy hell. The beers are as good as advertised. It was the Friday after Christmas, so a huge line for cans, but it was "only" about 20 to 30 minutes of waiting for us to get some beers on draft. We're not super into hoppy beers, but we love stouts, and they have some really boozy, delicious ones.

We also went to Proclamation with a bunch of friends on Thursday, because we knew the space could accommodate us all. As usual, a wide range of delicious selections. Also went to Apponaug, and like usual, the food was way more impressive than the beer. Food is a solid A-, A, whereas the beer is always more in the C+ range. Nothing really bad, nothing really outstanding.

[UCH21377]

Was at Stony Creek Brewery at Foxwoods last night. I'm no beer expert, but the beers were ok IMO but nothing special. Tried 3 of them. Plenty of activities which is cool. Apparently they have a second floor upstairs; I didn't go up there.

[spookydog]

New brewery in south county. Wickford Alewerks

They are also on Instagram

I pay close attention to RI breweries but this one is completely under the radar.

[spookydog]

New brewery in south county. Wickford Alewerks

They are also on Instagram

I pay close attention to RI breweries but this one is completely under the radar.

I went to this one on Saturday before the URI game. This one is tricky to find & in the middle of nowhere. Once on the property, follow the woodchip path & the occasional red signs & look for the red shed on the property. Inside it is tiny af. Fits about 8 or 9 people inside. There is a deck on the shed & they are talking about making the outside into more of a beer garden. Beers were decent. I want to revisit because I had a cold so my taste buds were a bit off.

[spookydog]

Another place I forgot to mention is Warren Cider Works located on Child Street in Warren.

Looks like they changed their name to Sowams Cider Works

I definitely suggest checking this place out. Very cool bar inside. Super low key place.

[spookydog]

I just realized I haven't updated this in forever. So here is what has been going on in RI.


First, let's start with closures. RI unfortunately lost 2 breweries during quarantine, Wickford Aleworks & Community Bruin. Community Bruin was always on planning on selling as turnkey brewery but that never happened. Wickford Aleworks was tricky as hell to find, tiny af & I don't think anyone ever knew it existed. So both are now closed.


Now, let's look at what is already open.

Origin Beer Project is a gypsy brewery running out of the Buttonwoods Brewery. This brewery is run by Cheyne Tessier who used to brew at Proclamation & now is at Buttonwoods. It is only open on the weekends. I have had all their beers & their Small Victories pale lager is fantastic.

6 Pack Brewing just opened a couple days ago in Bristol. i have not made it over there yet. Here is an article about them in the EasyBay newspaper.


Finally let's see what is opening up in the future.

Moniker Brewery is being built across the street where Beer on Earth is located (a block away from Bayberry). This one is supposedly opening up in the fall. They have started brewing so maybe will just be cans to go to start.

Crook Point Brewing is opening right by the Henderson Bridge in East Providence. Opening sometime in 2021.

Pivotal Brewing is opening in Bristol in the winter of 2021. They are renovating the old National Rubber Company building, so they have a lot of work ahead of them.

West Passage Brewing is planning on opening in the old Gillian's ALe House in North Kingstown. I believe this will be more of a brewpub type of place.

[rhodyruckus]

In other news, Tilted Barn had a soft opening in their new barn closer to the highway and have fully opened to the public today. Must make advance reservations for seating and they sold out within minutes upon release of the Wed & Fri-Sun times this week. Otherwise they have a walk up window on the side of the barn for cans to go and I have to assume the quantities are increasing considerably. At least for this weekend everything was a case limit per the state take home maximum, whereas before they sometimes had to limit the amounts for each brand.

I'm rooting for West Passage to do well with their beer AND food if that is going to be a brewpub. I've been to many places around the country with high end beer combined with great food, but it just isn't a thing locally. Edmund's Oast in Charleston, SC is a place that immediately comes to mind, just great. Locally, Trinity makes a few nice limited/seasonal beers, but my wife refuses to eat there because the food has repeatedly been poor. We tried Brutopia several times while they were open, and the food could be pretty good but wow some of the beers were laughably bad. Apponaug Brewing has top notch food and they just brought in a former brewer from Tree House and Fox Farm, so my eyes are open to see if the beers can improve to match the food.

[SGreenwell]

In other news, Tilted Barn had a soft opening in their new barn closer to the highway and have fully opened to the public today. Must make advance reservations for seating and they sold out within minutes upon release of the Wed & Fri-Sun times this week. Otherwise they have a walk up window on the side of the barn for cans to go and I have to assume the quantities are increasing considerably. At least for this weekend everything was a case limit per the state take home maximum, whereas before they sometimes had to limit the amounts for each brand.

I'm rooting for West Passage to do well with their beer AND food if that is going to be a brewpub. I've been to many places around the country with high end beer combined with great food, but it just isn't a thing locally. Edmund's Oast in Charleston, SC is a place that immediately comes to mind, just great. Locally, Trinity makes a few nice limited/seasonal beers, but my wife refuses to eat there because the food has repeatedly been poor. We tried Brutopia several times while they were open, and the food could be pretty good but wow some of the beers were laughably bad. Apponaug Brewing has top notch food and they just brought in a former brewer from Tree House and Fox Farm, so my eyes are open to see if the beers can improve to match the food.

I thought the food was getting better at Brutopia, and the beer was/is Revival, which has always been hit or miss to me, but they offered a wide range of choices - there was always at least one or two that I liked. However, I always thought that was a really difficult location, and at least from posts the brewmaster made, it didn't seem like the relationship was ever that great with the landlord. (FWIW, I'm biased in all of this, because he also served as commish of the Providence Kickball League, and he was a good dude that I knew, haha.)

I always thought Trinity was kind of a tourist trap. It and Coddington's on Aquidneck Island are kind of weird OGs, in that they've both been doing this longer than a bunch of other places, but that didn't really translate into better quality on the food or beer end. At least Coddington's still had that "old hole in the wall" kind of feel. When I worked at the Newport Daily News, we would rotate through Coddington's, Newport Storm and Pour Judgment, depending on which one we hadn't visited in a while. (And admittedly, the third option there would always "win" out if it was just us "younger" kids going out.)

I live in Texas now, and we've only managed to make one trip back out to New England in the past 18 months because of Covid. But on that trip, we went to three breweries - Crooked Current (they always have something unique worth tasting, wife's favorite brewery), Treehouse (it's about 15 minutes from our wedding venue, which we were doing a tasting at), and Apponaug. The beer there is definitely just "meh," but the chicken and waffles, and nachos, are both really good without making you feel 500 pounds heavy the rest of the day. Definitely welcome news to hear that they're upgrading the beer, too.

By the way, if anyone ever wants Houston beer recommendations, let me know. Oddly, the local brewery laws are tighter here than in Rhode Island, so there aren't as many breweries despite the huge difference in population. But the ones that are around, they're cool in their own way.

[rhodyruckus]

In other news, Tilted Barn had a soft opening in their new barn closer to the highway and have fully opened to the public today. Must make advance reservations for seating and they sold out within minutes upon release of the Wed & Fri-Sun times this week. Otherwise they have a walk up window on the side of the barn for cans to go and I have to assume the quantities are increasing considerably. At least for this weekend everything was a case limit per the state take home maximum, whereas before they sometimes had to limit the amounts for each brand.

I'm rooting for West Passage to do well with their beer AND food if that is going to be a brewpub. I've been to many places around the country with high end beer combined with great food, but it just isn't a thing locally. Edmund's Oast in Charleston, SC is a place that immediately comes to mind, just great. Locally, Trinity makes a few nice limited/seasonal beers, but my wife refuses to eat there because the food has repeatedly been poor. We tried Brutopia several times while they were open, and the food could be pretty good but wow some of the beers were laughably bad. Apponaug Brewing has top notch food and they just brought in a former brewer from Tree House and Fox Farm, so my eyes are open to see if the beers can improve to match the food.

I thought the food was getting better at Brutopia, and the beer was/is Revival, which has always been hit or miss to me, but they offered a wide range of choices - there was always at least one or two that I liked. However, I always thought that was a really difficult location, and at least from posts the brewmaster made, it didn't seem like the relationship was ever that great with the landlord. (FWIW, I'm biased in all of this, because he also served as commish of the Providence Kickball League, and he was a good dude that I knew, haha.)

Oh don't get me wrong, I may not love but like Revival beers, but the Brutopia branded beers at least early on were yuck. Eventually Revival beers shared taps upstairs and that was an improvement.

[spookydog]

Another new brewery in Middletown (right on the Newport line) by Easton's beach. This one is called Rejects Beer Company. I think this one is run by the guy who used to be at Apponaug. He has tanks in his building already, so it is getting there.

[spookydog]

Moniker Brewery is being built across the street where Beer on Earth is located (a block away from Bayberry). This one is supposedly opening up in the fall. They have started brewing so maybe will just be cans to go to start.

Opens on 12/16 for carry out.

[spookydog]

Another new brewery in Middletown (right on the Newport line) by Easton's beach. This one is called Rejects Beer Company. I think this one is run by the guy who used to be at Apponaug. He has tanks in his building already, so it is getting there.

FYI - this one opens today for carry out.

[spookydog]

The guild is also opening up an offshoot in Warren this spring. It will be a small batch brewery & beer hall similar to the one in Pawtucket but on a smaller scale.

[TexRam]

By the way, if anyone ever wants Houston beer recommendations, let me know. Oddly, the local brewery laws are tighter here than in Rhode Island, so there aren't as many breweries despite the huge difference in population. But the ones that are around, they're cool in their own way.

The laws have opened quite a bit since about a year ago (finally). Spindletap, Ingenious, and B52 are the highlights of any trip down to the North Houston area. SpindleTap is only ten minutes down the road from Ingenious. Any of those breweries are good for trade partners.

In Dallas I was actually a member of a beer club for Celestial Beerworks and kept seeing another club member check into their beers with a big Rhody logo on their Untappd profile. We never did cross paths but i thought it was random for a club with only about 150 members in their first year of existence.

[spookydog]

The owner of Proclamation, Dave Witham, died from Cancer on XMas. Just awful news. A super nice guy in my interactions with him. Can't believe it.

[rhodyruckus]

The owner of Proclamation, Dave Witham, died from Cancer on XMas. Just awful news. A super nice guy in my interactions with him. Can't believe it.

Was just coming here to post the same. Very sad news, I wasn't close with Dave but seemed like a really cool guy. Leaves behind a 7 yo daughter and his wife now has to take over the business while grieving. There is a memorial fund setup here I donated to: https://www.gofundme.com/f/dave-witham-memorial-fund

In the announcement, Proclamation posted memorial donations can be made to Girls Rock! RI (http://girlsrockri.org/)

[NYGFan_Section208]

The owner of Proclamation, Dave Witham, died from Cancer on XMas. Just awful news. A super nice guy in my interactions with him. Can't believe it.

Was just coming here to post the same. Very sad news, I wasn't close with Dave but seemed like a really cool guy. Leaves behind a 7 yo daughter and his wife now has to take over the business while grieving. There is a memorial fund setup here I donated to: https://www.gofundme.com/f/dave-witham-memorial-fund

In the announcement, Proclamation posted memorial donations can be made to Girls Rock! RI (http://girlsrockri.org/)

Saw that earlier, so sad to hear. Talked to him a few times when Proclamation was just getting going around the corner from here in West K on Fairgrounds Road. As noted, seemed like a great guy. Thoughts and prayers for his family.

[rhodyruckus]

If you are going to grab a 4-pack from Shaidzon Beer Company anyway, why not tack on 4 glasses, koozies and Rhody basketball vouchers for the 2021-22 season? Pretty good deal for $40:

https://offer.fevo.com/shaidzon-4-pack- ... 3Fpage%3D1

To clarify, it is limited to "winter break basketball game". Should help the attendance for those games with a lack of students if enough people hear about it...

[spookydog]

West Passage Brewing is planning on opening in the old Gillian's ALe House in North Kingstown. I believe this will be more of a brewpub type of place.

West Passage is opening June 9th.

[SGreenwell]

West Passage Brewing is planning on opening in the old Gillian's ALe House in North Kingstown. I believe this will be more of a brewpub type of place.

West Passage is opening June 9th.

Oof, didn't notice when you posted it that Gillian's was closed, and has been for a while, even before the pandemic. That used to be a favorite drinking spot for the respective staffs of the Northeast Independent, South County Independent, the Narragansett Times and the NK Standard Times, a.k.a. the informal Rhode Island Press Club. You could also get some cheap domestic beers and free popcorn. (Unless I'm mixing it up with the other bar on that same part of Route 1 in NK, ha... We went to both.) I'm definitely not surprised it closed though, since it felt like a bar from decades before whenever we went.

[steviep123]

For those of you in the Boston area - Mighty Squirrel is one of my favorites now and have a great outdoor setup. Night Shift has also setup several out door beer gardens named "The Owl's Nest" - one right along the river on the Esplanade.

[spookydog]

Pivotal Brewing is opening in Bristol in the winter of 2021. They are renovating the old National Rubber Company building, so they have a lot of work ahead of them.

New article about Pivotal Brewing for anyone interested.

[spookydog]

West Passage Brewing is planning on opening in the old Gillian's ALe House in North Kingstown. I believe this will be more of a brewpub type of place.

West Passage is opening June 9th.

I went there last week. New space is very nice inside. Beer was mediocre in my opinion. They had 5 beers on tap (hoppy amber, brown, apa(?), cda, & ipa). Definitely has potential though. Wine & a full bar available. Nice to have an actual brewpub in south county. As of yet the beer isn't worth making the trip over there yet.

[steviep123]

Boston area people, I went to turtle swamp brewery in JP yesterday. Hidden gem.

https://www.lalasneapolitan-ishpizza.com/

Was there too. One of the best pizzas I’ve ever had.

[spookydog]

The owner of Proclamation, Dave Witham, died from Cancer on XMas. Just awful news. A super nice guy in my interactions with him. Can't believe it.

Proclamation is having a Daveapalooza on July 24th to honor the life of former owner who passed away last year. See you there.

[spookydog]

Some RI news...

12 Guns is opening a 2nd location in Warren right by where the the new guild is going in. No idea why a second place is needed. Someone associated with them must have money to get this second place open.

Buttonwoods will only be using their annex spot next door for patrons & the old spot will just be the brewery. They are putting in bigger equipment.

Iron Stag Brewing (formerly Antler Ale Works) is going to open up in Rolfe Square in Cranston, They'll be doing English Ales & cask stuff.

Origin Beer (currently brewing out of Buttonwoods) is looking for a spot down by where Revival is brewing (off of Valley St).

Hive Beer is brewing out of Grey Sail in Westerly.

[SGreenwell]

I was on vacation in New England last week for our wedding ceremony - got married in June 2020 in Texas, but couldn't have the proper celebration until July 2021 - and we hit up a couple of places in the Berkshires. Not really worth making the trip solely for the beer, haha, but if you're in the area, The Shire and the Barrington Brewery are both worth visiting. The Shire had a nice, wide selection of brews and really good food, and Barrington had some good, drinkable summer beers paired with pub food.

[UCH21377]

I was in Waynesboro VA last week. The Shenandoah Valley has a number of breweries and vineyards as well. The scenery is beautiful and most places have outdoor seating areas.

[ATPTourFan]

I was on vacation in New England last week for our wedding ceremony - got married in June 2020 in Texas, but couldn't have the proper celebration until July 2021 - and we hit up a couple of places in the Berkshires. Not really worth making the trip solely for the beer, haha, but if you're in the area, The Shire and the Barrington Brewery are both worth visiting. The Shire had a nice, wide selection of brews and really good food, and Barrington had some good, drinkable summer beers paired with pub food.

Congratulations Steve!

[spookydog]

Rumor has it that they are going to start brewing beer at the Huntinghouse Hopyard out in Glocester, RI.

[RF1]

[spookydog]

Forgot to mention this a couple months ago, but Nate Taylor the original founder/brewer of Bucket Brewery passed away in early September.

[RF1]

I visited Trillium's new Canton location back in late October. Could not get over the massive size of it. Very large outdoor section with two bars and many bench style Tables and Adirondack chair groupings. Inside was extremely large as well. Lots of taproom table seating with 500 person capacity. They serve food with pizza looking to be the main dish made right out in the open of the taproom in wood fired ovens. They unfortunately are following the growing trend of just 12oz servings (at the prices of the old 16oz). My friend was none too happy when the bill was tallied and he found out his wife got a 12oz coffee cake stout that cost some $13.50. Beer and selection was good.

Afterward, stopped by Castle Island Brewing off Rte 1 in Norwood. Much smaller and less fancy place. Beer was fine.

[KeaneyBluBallz]

I like beer

[rhodyruckus]

I visited Trillium's new Canton location back in late October. Could not get over the massive size of it. Very large outdoor section with two bars and many bench style Tables and Adirondack chair groupings. Inside was extremely large as well. Lots of taproom table seating with 500 person capacity. They serve food with pizza looking to be the main dish made right out in the open of the taproom in wood fired ovens. They unfortunately are following the growing trend of just 12oz servings (at the prices of the old 16oz). My friend was none too happy when the bill was tallied and he found out his wife got a 12oz coffee cake stout that cost some $13.50. Beer and selection was good.

Afterward, stopped by Castle Island Brewing off Rte 1 in Norwood. Much smaller and less fancy place. Beer was fine.

Trillium still makes some excellent stouts, but their IPAs have all started to blend together for my tastes. I think there is a certain yeast combination and fermentation process which helps avoid "bad batches" with the beer ready for packaging more quickly, but it also results in a thinnish feeling to the beer. Of course, I am quite a beer nerd and this is probably not a deal-breaker for the average drinker. I skipped the huge sit-down waiting line down the sidewalk this weekend while picking up cans to go, but on weekdays after leaving the office I see how cavernous the taproom is with a smaller crowd. Have to think the overhead cost demands that they draw slightly larger crowds on weekdays.

Castle Island Hi-Def double IPA is fantastic on tap. A big fan of this brewery, after visiting their opening day when there were just ropes, a cornhole game, and a few barrels setup inside the warehouse while serving samples only (they weren't approved for full pours for quite some time).

[spookydog]

Rumor has it that there is a new brewery opening up in West Warwick. Going to be near the Dels on Cowesett. Brason’s Brewery.

[rhodyruckus]

Rumor has it that there is a new brewery opening up in West Warwick. Going to be near the Dels on Cowesett. Brason’s Brewery.

Yes, I went over the owner/brewer's house last winter to try a few bottles of a peppermint stout that he was seeking feedback on from a craft beer facebook page. It was very well done, and from what I have seen from feedback on similar taste tests he's had since, I'm looking forward to this new brewery for sure.

[NYGFan_Section208]

Rumor has it that there is a new brewery opening up in West Warwick. Going to be near the Dels on Cowesett. Brason’s Brewery.

Yes, I went over the owner/brewer's house last winter to try a few bottles of a peppermint stout that he was seeking feedback on from a craft beer facebook page. It was very well done, and from what I have seen from feedback on similar taste tests he's had since, I'm looking forward to this new brewery for sure.

Peppermint stout?! Sign me up for trying that!

[spookydog]

Currently in NYC for work & stopped at the Blind Tiger (Its a great beer bar for those unfamiliar with the place). They had Tilted Barn on tap. Was not expecting that at all.

[SGreenwell]

Currently in NYC for work & stopped at the Blind Tiger (Its a great beer bar for those unfamiliar with the place). They had Tilted Barn on tap. Was not expecting that at all.

Ha, nice! Its ratings are so consistently high on Untapped that it wouldn't surprise me to see it popping up at more and more places. Can't say that I've ever had many beers that really balance the juiciness and hops as well as their stuff does.

On a random note - The wife and I will be going to the Grand Canyon for Thanksgiving, and then, back to the Worcester, Boston and Rhode Island area for Christmas. I could use any brewery recommendations for the first, if people have them, and for the second, recommendations on any place that's opened since 2019, when we moved out. (I realize that for the latter, it's probably about 10 to 20 places, but I'm not sure how much time we'll have to hit up breweries, so a Top 5 or so would be appreciated, if people have one!)

[NYGFan_Section208]

Currently in NYC for work & stopped at the Blind Tiger (Its a great beer bar for those unfamiliar with the place). They had Tilted Barn on tap. Was not expecting that at all.

Ha, nice! Its ratings are so consistently high on Untapped that it wouldn't surprise me to see it popping up at more and more places. Can't say that I've ever had many beers that really balance the juiciness and hops as well as their stuff does.

On a random note - The wife and I will be going to the Grand Canyon for Thanksgiving, and then, back to the Worcester, Boston and Rhode Island area for Christmas. I could use any brewery recommendations for the first, if people have them, and for the second, recommendations on any place that's opened since 2019, when we moved out. (I realize that for the latter, it's probably about 10 to 20 places, but I'm not sure how much time we'll have to hit up breweries, so a Top 5 or so would be appreciated, if people have one!)

Hmm...they have Tilted Barn in NYC, but not down the street from the actual place at Twisted Pizza. Gonna have to grill them tomorrow when we go. Although, tbf, Twisted usually has a fair selection. Enjoy the Grand Canyon. If you haven't been before...all I can say about it is, when we got there and looked at it...it was so cool, it almost looked fake, like it couldn't be real. Awesome place.

[Rhody74]

Best time at Grand Canyon is at sunrise.

[spookydog]

New collab beer with Shaidzon & Union Station.
Article here.
(I will also post this in the current URI vs PC thread)