Four New Vermont Breweries Joining Burlington Area

In the next few months, four breweries will be opening their doors and their taps to the public in the Burlington, VT area. So, what do these newcomers to the VT beer scene have to offer? I decided to find out we can expect.

Queen City Brewery

Queen City Brewery (QCB) was founded by four friends/brewers: Paul Hale, Paul Held, Phil Kaszuba, and Maarten van Ryckevorsel. Currently under construction, the brewery is hoping to open in March of this year.

QCB is dedicated to preserving the history of brewing by making traditional styles of ales and lagers. They want to really create a connection between their brewery/beers and the cultural and industrial history of Burlington. Along this practice, they reclaimed the bar from the old Ethan Allen Club on College Street to use in their tasting room.

In looking at all of the pictures and updates on their website and Facebook as well as all of the events they have been hosting and sponsoring, QCB is already making quite a largeimpact on the Burlington area. I, for one, cannot wait until they open their doors later this spring. For more information check out their website or Facebook page.

Burlington Beer Company

Burlington Beer Company (BBC) was by Joe Lemnah. A long time brewer, Joe has brewed professionally for Olde Saratoga Brewery, Dogfish Head, and Evolution Brewing. He decided to move back to Vermont and open up Burlington Beer Company, a brewery inspired by farmer’s markets and the culture and agriculture of Vermont. After a successful Kickstarter campaign to buy the barrels, kegs, and other equipment needed to really put the brewery in to motion, Joe is hoping to start brewing by the end of February.

BBC also created a program that is unique in Vermont (so far) called Community Supported Brewery or CSB. Similar to a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), this program allows customers to pay a certain amount per year to receive a set amount of beer per month. So far there are two options for the CSB. The first is The Growler Club. This option costs $100 and includes a 2L growler and a card good for twelve fills. The idea is for one fill every month. The second option is The Barrel Reserve Society. This option includes thirteen 750ml bottles of limited edition brews throughout the year, plus two BBC snifter glasses. For more information check out their website or Facebook page.

Infinity Brewing Company

Infinity Brewing Company was founded by beer lovers Murray Seaman and Glenn Cummings and has already started brewing their first batches of beer. They plan to focus on using local ingredients and minimizing their carbon footprint. By using local/seasonal ingredients and spent grains in environmentally responsible manners, Infinity Brewing is really going to capture the essence of Vermont in their beers.

Infinity Brewing will be opening its doors to the public very soon so make sure to check out their Facebook page and website for more updates.

Four Quarters Brewing

Four Quarters is a new brewery opening in Winooski right down the street from the Woolen Mill. Founded by Brian Eckert, a web developer and avid homebrewer, Four Quarters Brewing is scheduled to open any day now. This new addition to the Burlington area beer-scape is going to focus on four barrel batches of Belgian and American inspired beers. They’ve acquired maple liqueur barrels from Saxtons River Distillery in Brattleboro to age some of their planned Imperial Stouts and Barleywines. Also, they’ve acquired Marquette red wine barrels from Lincoln Peak Vineyards and Shelburne Vineyards for the aging of some Saisons as well as their Belgian Strong Dark Ale, Sugar Plum Fairy.

Four Quarters have recently started to get shipments of their branded glasses and growlers in and will have a taproom for visitors to taste and buy the beers. The idea is for the taproom to be open Friday and Saturday nights and Sunday during the day. To see more check out their website or Facebook page.