Three Cheers For Beer!

I must begin this post by admitting that I am not a huge beer fan.  I don't know the difference between stouts, pilsners, ales, reds or whatever other types of beer there are.  I can tell you that I while I am not a fan, I keep trying beer in hopes of finding some I like - and that is one of the reasons for this post (Let's face it, beer is usually less expensive than liquor or wine at a bar and I am watching my finances.)

Between beer tasting opportunities and a tavern tour, Boston has no shortage of beer related tourist attractions.  So far my favorite beer outing is beer tasting at Harpoon Brewery.  One of the largest craft breweries in New England, Harpoon conducts tours and tastings year round and is easy to get to via public transportation (they also have a parking lot so you can drive there too).  About a year ago they changed how they ran the tours - for the better in my opinion - now you can actually walk through the brewery depending on the day you go.

During the week visitors hang out in Harpoon's tasting room and on the weekends visitors get to walk through the brewery's facility since they don't brew over the weekends.  No matter when you go, you get to hear about how they make the beer (amazing how the four simple ingredients of water, yeast, hops and barley can taste good) and the brewery's interesting history.

Tasting is free during the week and costs $5 on the weekend - but it is definitely worth it.  For the price of admission you not only get to walk through the brewery to see where they brew the beer, where they bottle it and fill kegs and where they store the beer (which looks like A LOT, but in the grand scheme of beer consumption it isn't - go figure).  But you also get to keep the tasting glass and try green beer.   Not the food colored stuff served during St. Paddy's day, but "green" as in young.  When I went they were sampling their I.P.A. before the beer had truly settled and it was carbonated.  (I must say it wasn't bad, initially on the sweet side, but the finish was a bit harsh.)

After the tour, you go back to the tasting room to try Harpoon's beers.  Unlike other brewery tours I have been on, at Harpoon you get to try everything on tap (within the 30 minute tasting time).  You also get to learn a little more about the types of beer Harpoon makes.  Now a word of caution - or a great tip (depends on how you look at it) - depending on your tolerance level, how much you drink and how much you've had to eat, you can get drunk from tasting. (Not a bad thing, but it is good to know going in that it is possible.)  The 2 oz. tasting glass (that is where the line on the glass is) gets filled to the top - definitely more than 2 oz. - and you can try as many or as few of the beers as you want.

No matter what, I would recommend you (or someone in your group and you take a sip of theirs) try the following - the ale, the 100 Barrel series (they make 100 barrels and then it is gone) and the cider.  I like the cider and the ale, and while I haven't always enjoyed the 100 Barrel, I always try it just to try it and because it probably won't be there when I return.

Another plus to Harpoon is that you can buy beer at the brewery (a novel concept, but something you can't do at all breweries).  So go, enjoy and as my father says, "Drink up Shriners" or in our case "Drink up Tourists."