Vermonters will tell you that their state has more per capita than any other state. From my experience, that is probably true. If you want good beer, go to Vermont!
Vermont’s “star” brewery has to be Magic Hat. The Magic Hat brewery sits a few miles outside of downtown Burlington in a pretty unimpressive strip mall area. You would miss it, except that Vermont is really into great signage for their attractions. The brewery is very ecclectically decorated, just like the bottle labels for their brews. The “tour” consists of walking up a ramp and looking over the brewery floor. However, once you are done with the tour, you get to the tasting bar. There is a real bar with several groups of taps where really friendly staff serve you as many samples as you want at no cost (they do encourage tips for the staff). I went back a couple of times while in Vermont.
There are also dozens of smaller breweries throughout the area. Downtown Burlington hosts the Vermont Pub and Brewery. This brewery has a great local following and pretty good food. It is a great place to go for a bite and brew while downtown. Middlebury, VT, about an hour from Burlington, hosts Otter Creek Brewery. Otter Creek is also a bit hard to find as it sits in a kind of industrial area slightly off the main road. Long Trail Brewery sits in Bridgewater Cors, VT. This place has a great outdoor patio right next to the river which is a great location to sit on a warm day. We were in Vermont right after Hurricane Irene and were impressed that this brewery was doing a lot in the community to help relief efforts, including developing a special beer, Goodnight Irene. The beers here are great and a good selection to suit every palate.
I can’t forget to mention that Harpoon Brewery now has a satellite facility in Windsor, VT. You can’t go wrong with Harpoon and their signature IPA. This has to be one of my favorite beers of all times. Harpoon’s UFO series is also a good bet. The Windsor brewery has a great brew pub with excellent food. I would highly recommend a stop here!
Finally, I have to mention the other great places to visit in Vermont. I was shocked at the number of wineries in Vermont. I would highly recommend stopping at as many as you can. The staff in each one we visited was very friendly and the wines were quite good. I really would have never imagined good wine could come from Vermont. Vermont is of course known for its maple syrup and there are lots of great places to stop and get a sample. Cabot cheese is also a Vermont favorite. There are several places around the state that have cheese tasting bars and the Cabot facility is a great place to stop. Of course I can’t forget the other Vermont staple, Ben and Jerry’s. The tour of the factory is a bit crowded and touristy but they do give you a free ice cream at the end.
I highly recommend getting a car and just driving around the state while stopping at everything that interests you. You can’t go wrong in Vermont, unless you do what I did and eat cheese, maple syrup, and ice cream while washing it down with wine and beer. This has a tendency to make your stomach hurt!
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