Book Review: Beer Lovers New England

I’m not what you would call a world traveler. I don’t jet set across the country when I take a vacation. I do however, get in the car and travel around New England. I’m originally from Vermont, so a visit with the family takes me on a six hour ride. To break up the monotony of the ride I’ve been known to plan my route around breweries for a tour and brewpubs to check out food and pick up a new growler for my collection.

I’ve had books in the past that highlighted New England breweries and brewpubs, but in a constantly evolving craft beer landscape things change quickly, so I recently purchased a copy of “Beer Lovers New England” a book that calls out all of the best breweries, brewpubs and beer bars in New England, and more.

Beer Lovers New England is written by local expert and beer lover Norman Miller, author of the “Beer Nut” column for the Metro West Daily News in Massachusetts and also publishes the “Beer Nut” blog on Wickedlocal.com.

I like the way the book is organized, the write ups are broken up by state then sorted alphabetically. Each brewery, brewpub and beer bar has its own write up that supplies you with all the information you could want; address, website, founders, brewers, flagship beer, year round and seasonal offerings and possibly most important of all, info on tours and times. I really like how each write up includes a “Beer Lovers Pick” or a “Beer Event” that spotlights a beers or an event.

The book has some fun extras as well. There is a listing of beer festivals in New England with an etiquette guide for beer fest attendees. A brew your own section with a list of “Brew on Premises” businesses, also included are a few beer recipes that I’m going to have to try. The “In the Kitchen” section has a quick reference for food and beer pairings and some excellent sounding recipes that of course, include beer. Last but not least, Norman includes maps of some of the best pub crawls in New England with information about the stops along the way.

Beer Lovers New England is a book that I’ll constantly be referencing for New England beer stops, tour times and addresses. It won’t find a home on my bookshelf, but will live in my car, close at hand for those long car rides.

If this sounds like a book you would like to check out, or you already own it and just want to thank Norman Miller for writing such a useful book, head over to the Rising Tide Brewery in Portland’s East Bayside this Saturday, October 13th 1-3, Norman Miller will be signing copies of “Beer Lovers New England”. I’ll be heading south to get my copy signed.

Cheers!

Chaddah

Links:

Norman Miller

Web: http://blogs.wickedlocal.com/beernut/#axzz290DSRgJg

Twitter: @RealBeerNut

Rising Tide Brewing Company

Web: www.RisingTideBrewing.com

Twitter: @RisingTideBeer

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/risingtidebeer

Chad Lothian

About Chad Lothian

Chad Lothian lives in Old Town, Maine. He is a craft beer enthusiast and homebrewer. Chad has travelled to brewpubs, breweries and brewfests all over New England.