It was a dirty job, but someone had to do it. In 5 days, I tasted 50 craft beers and 20 spirits from small distilleries.
At first, it might sounds like a weird idea to dedicate a trip to beer and liquor tasting. Micro breweries and micro distilleries understand the need to distance themselves from mass produced beers and spirits. They like to create unique products with distinctive flavors. So yes, it does make sense to plan a trip around craft beers and liquors, and Central New-York is the perfect place to do it.
In the late 1800s, the area was producing about 90% of United-Stated hops. It then stopped to be produced during prohibition because of the lack of need, and the industry never really recovered until few years ago. The state of New York relaxed some of its law regarding alcohol production and how local producers can sell their creation, igniting the renaissance of beer production. Micro breweries require local products because hop needs to be used within 24 hours of harvesting. As the micro breweries are growing, the demand for hops grows. We don't realize how much breweries and distilleries are tied to the agriculture industry. I was told often during this trip how important it is for brewers and distillers to use local crops and how major the imprint is on the local economy. Ken Wortz, owner of Kymar Farm Distillery, explained that for every dollar that he spends, 33 cents end up into the pocket of a local farmer. This is huge.
Enough talking, let's do some tasting. My first stop was in Binghampton, near the Pennsylvania border.
I entered the Water Street Brewing (168 Water Street, Binghamton, NY) and sat at the counter to have a chat with Michele Bleichert, co-owner of the place.
I was pretty new to the world of craft beers so Michele served me a beer flight to taste the six products they were offering then. It is something that I highly recommend to do. It will allow you to practice your pallet to recognize the various savors and kinds of beer: Lager? IPA? Stout? Speaking of stout, you probably fear them because the only one you ever tasted was a Guiness, a very bitter beer, and you then associated dark beer with bitter. Actually, it's the other way around. Guiness is bitter. Stouts don't have to. That's what Michele told me and, since I was taking this trip with a very open mind, I took on the challenge and tried her Hadriagan dry stout. I was happily surprised: a pleasant roasted taste, with a vague feeling of coffee.
All of Water Street brewery's products are seasonal. If you like a beer, it might not be there 6 months later. They want to get people out of their comfort zone, almost forcing them to try something new each time they come. To make a long story short, I liked all their products. They where not too wild for someone diving into the craft beer world to enjoy, but different enough to understand in what kind of universe you are getting into.
A short two minutes walk brought us to Galaxy Brewing Co. (41 Court St. Binghamton). They just opened and are already offering hight quality products. We started with a great lunch: my tempura beer battered fried green beans served with a malt vinegar aioli where fresh, crusty, and a real delight. If you want a taste of Central New York specialty dishes, try the chicken spiedies. The side of Mac and cheese, made with goat cheese, was equally good and surprising.
After lunch, we ordered a beer flight to try a little bit of everything. Oh my! Galaxie offers the most unique beers I ever tasted. From a St. Stusan Ale with a curious kick of banana to an Andromeda IPA with so much aroma and a citrus ending. And let's not forget the pulsar Porter with a hint of coffee and the wildest beer I tried on this trip: the Mint Chocolate Stout. Yes, chocolate and mint. It was very unexpected.
I headed north to Syracuse, but stopped about 20 minutes before hitting town to visit Beak and Skiff (4472 Cherry Valley Turnpike, LaFayette, NY). Started more than a century ago as a 100 acres apple orchard, Beak and Skiff is now a fifth generation business, a 1,000 acres farm. What interested us here was the micro-distillery subsidiary that started just after the end of prohibition. Actually, they where the first in the state to get a license. They offer their product under the brand name 1911 Spirits.
Step into their newly built facility: a huge and magnificent building made of three abandoned barns that they bought and moved to combined them as one to create a huge multi-purpose facility. All made of wood, the tasting room is truly one of a kind.
Their gin is the first made from apples in the world, which is worth noting. The apples are also a key element of their vodka, as the natural sugar of the fruit gives a gentle nose of vanilla and caramel. You don't have that burning feeling in your throat that you can have with other vodkas. It is a strong liquor, but it is surprisingly easy to drink.
They also distinguish themselves with a line of five hard ciders: The 1911 Hard cider, the Sweet Apple, the Light and Crisp, the Raspberry, and the Blueberry. I particularly enjoyed the blueberry and the raspberry. Go easy: it's sweet but it's not juice!
I left Beak and Skiff to continue my journey to Syracuse. After checking in at the historic Jefferson Clinton hotel (416 S. Clinton Street, Syracuse, NY) in the beautiful and historic Armory Square district, I headed to Empire Brewing (120 Walton St. Syracuse, NY) for dinner and some beer tasting.
After a quick tour, I sat at the bar with Master Brewer Tim Butler, a very passionate man who is in love with his job.
I asked Tim for a staple food I could have with his beers, and he suggested a "sweet fire." In front of me was an andouille sausage served with Creole mustard. It was very spicy but OH! So good!
When it came to the beer tasting, Tim presented us with some of the best beers you can find. For good reasons, he was particularly proud of his Golden Dragon, a Belgian golden ale. When I asked him "what do I taste that I cannot point my finger on," he smiled. Locally grown Thai basil was the secret ingredient. Tim has great hope with this beer for the upcoming American beer Festival, the biggest competition in the country.
I also enjoyed the White aphro and Skinny Atlas Kölsch, a German kolsh style that would be a perfect fit if you are a Bud drinker that wants to try a craft beer. If you want to try something a little bit different, try the Local Grind, a beer with an interesting taste of coffee. And let’s not forget the Empire blueberry ale, probably the one with the most amazing color of all.
After a comforting night in my huge room at the Jefferson Clinton Hotel, I headed East to Critz Farms (3232 Rippleton Rd. Cazenovia, NY).
First generation farmers, Matthew and Juanita bought the place in 1985. They offer great food, some that are Central New York staples like the Apple fritters and Coney. You can come to pick your own apples, blueberries, or pumpkins and play in their 10 acres corn maze. They own one of the oldest working press cider in the world and, if you come at the right time, you can see it in action. However, I was there for some tasting.
They have a selection of eight ciders. The three that I have tried where really special. The Four Screw has a hint of maple syrup at the end, which makes it very different. If you really are into maple syrup, then the Maple Moon is for you. 10% of the content of each bottle is actually made out of the golden liquid. The Maple Moon won a double Gold Medal at the 2012 Indy International Wine Competition and a Silver Medal at the 2013 International Eastern Wine Competition. It is a truly unique product. Speaking of unique, what about a cider that taste like cider, but smells like a beer? This is what the Heritage Hops is. They aged it in Madison County Heritage hops, a strain of hop that farmers stopped growing during prohibition.
I headed to the Colgate Inn (1 Payne St. Hamilton, NY) for the night, but made a beeline to their dining room first. I am a big fan of reuben sandwiches, and this one did not disappointed me. For breakfast, my Yugurt, Fruit & Granola was filling and, at a mere $6, it was a steal.
I meander in the cute little town, then headed for the Mexican restaurant La Iguana (10 Broad St. Hamilton, NY) for my lunch. My next destination was the guy next door: Good Nature Tasting Room (8 Broad Street, Hamilton, NY).
Carrie Blackmore and Master Brewer Matt Whalen where very welcoming and happy to have me try their great products in their new tasting room. They have five flagship beers offered year-round. Others are offered as seasonal. I tasted some very amazing beers here. The India Pale Ale won the "best traditional English style" award at the New York craft beer festival in 2013 and has a very interesting citrus aroma. Amazing. The American Brown Ale was also a delight with a strong malt taste of chocolate. The Chicory Mocha Porter was even more surprising: a fine mellow beer with a strange but good taste of coffee that comes from the chicory.
Of all the beer I tasted in this trip, it is hard to say which one I liked best, but the Sour Bourbon Brown might me the one. It is a little bit pricier since it is aged in Bourbon Barrels for six months and on fresh cherry for two, but it is a beer with so much character where flavors come and go to make room for the next one. Bourbon. Cherry. The dark ruby red color will amaze you. Matt crafted a little gem. Sadly, I had to leave for my next destination.
The Upstate Tavern is a recent addition to the Turning Stone Resort and Casino (5218 Patrick Rd. Verona, NY). It might seem out of whack to speak about a casino resort in a story about craft beers and spirits, but bear with me. The Upstate Tavern features local craft beers and a menu inspired by local food. Many micro breweries and micro distilleries discussed in this story are featured on the menu. Moreover, the AAA Four Diamonds The Tower hotel offers great lodging. It was a great place to rest before, you guessed it, more beer and liquor tasting.
Utica is home to 125 years old FX Matt Brewing Co (830 Varick St. Utica, NY), known for their Seranac line of beers. They are a small player in the national beer industry, but they are definitely way bigger than a simple micro brewery. Since they want to appeal to a wider clientele, their motto is "distinctive but drinkable." Five dollars per adult is what it will cost you for a tour that will include 2 pints of your choice. They also make a very good root beer that you can have on tap during the tasting, so fear not to come if you have kids.
One of their flagship is the Pale Ale that has a classic taste that will appeal to the "Bud guy." I would also suggest the Legacy IPA, made from a tweaked handwritten 1914 recipe, and the White IPA. This one was supposed to be a seasonal, but sold so well that they made it one of their permanent product. It is a very silky beer with a distinctive beginning and finishes. I liked the fine mix between a Belgium white and an IPA.
They don't know who and why it started, but mixing their Ubu or Black Forest with their root beer is apparently a thing in the area. Ask them to make you one (from 70% beer and 30% root beer to a lighter 50-50 mix)
Leave your car where is it because your next destination is a short 5 minutes walks away. Adirondack Distilling Co. (601 Varick St. Utica, NY), like most other places I visited, is a very young business. They started in the fall of 2012 to distill corn in order to produce handcrafted Gin and Vodka. It is an ingredient rarely used to produce spirits; Less than 1% of vodkas are made out of it and it is even rarer for gin.
I am not a huge connoisseur when it comes to gin and vodka, but if you are one and want to try something different, that might be it. The bottle and label design are beautiful. Would I dare to say "sexy"?
I then headed to Cooperstown, famous for the Baseball Hall of Fame. Ommegang Brewery (656 County Highway 33 Cooperstown, NY), in a beautiful setting and a gorgeous building, specializes in Belgium style beer.
They offer six year-round beers, one seasonal, plus some limited editions. They are very famous for one of those limited editions: The Game of Thrones beer, a very tasty Stout. There is a reason HBO went with Ommegang to brew their product: they know how to make great beers. I loved everything that I tasted, and I was particularly in awe with the cheese made out of their beer. You can taste them during the tour and buy some at the gift shop. Highly recommended.
The last alcohol related place I visited was Kymar Farm Distillery. They have two amazing spirits that I urge you to try. The Scholarie Shine is an unaged whiskey made from sorghum that makes tasty drinks when mixed with lemonade or iced tea. The Schoharie Mapple Jack is even tastier; a blend of Apple Brandy with a hint of Maple Syrup. I liked it. A lot.
Ken and Laurie Wortz started the business thinking it would be a part time thing. They where hoping to sell their first batch in 4 months but it flew out of the shelves in just 2 weeks. The demand for their products is so big that they just bought an old industrial building to expand their production and set up a tasting room. It should be ready somewhere in the summer of 2014 (Bindery Lane, Charlotteville, NY). Until then, look at their website to see where to buy some.
When I look back at this trip, I think I am disappointed. I am disappointed I could not stay longer and bring back home more bottles.