Portland, ME Guide

[Brez071]

Driving up from Hampton Sunday, gotta pick up my Substance cans first off at Bier Cellar. Then probably stop somewhere for lunch (maybe Nosh? or duckfat) Then walk around the downtown area near the water. The gf isnt huge into beer, so just trying to mix in some places to eat with good beer and then check out allagash on Monday before we leave. So trying to do some non beer related things as well. First time in Portland so im open to any advice from the locals

Non-beer centric places that still have a good tap list would be Duckfat, Nosh, Little Tap House, Pei Men Miyake, LFK, Outliers. Probably missing a few but probably enough since you're only in town 1 night haha

 

[tehzachatak]

Non-beer centric places that still have a good tap list would be Duckfat, Nosh, Little Tap House, Pei Men Miyake, LFK, Outliers. Probably missing a few but probably enough since you're only in town 1 night haha

Salvage BBQ!

 

[chaggy5]

Awesome guys, thanks for the advice. Will most likely do a lighter lunch with some beers and then walk around downtown area then check out one of the other recommended places for dinner and drinks. Will def make the reservation for the tour, as Allagash was the main one I wanted to check out. Hopefully be able to grab some bottles of the release as well.

 

[neorunner]

Pai mien. Great food, decent tap list and cool Asian spins on classic cocktails.

 

[Brez071]

Pai mien. Great food, decent tap list and cool Asian spins on classic cocktails.

**** I love those things

 

[JBP]

Pretty much no line for Neddles this morning, a few people waiting to pay around 10:15. Most were buying just a couple bottles even with the no limit. $15 each, buy 6 and you get a free black cloth 6-bottle Allagash tote to carry them in which is a pretty cool gesture on their part. Was told about 1200 bottles total so this one should stick around for a bit. Cracking one tonight, should be interesting.

 

[lambandtunaphish]

Awesome guys, thanks for the advice. Will most likely do a lighter lunch with some beers and then walk around downtown area then check out one of the other recommended places for dinner and drinks. Will def make the reservation for the tour, as Allagash was the main one I wanted to check out. Hopefully be able to grab some bottles of the release as well.

Crap should have posted this earlier... chaggy5 - Bring some extra Needles bottles back to CT!

Will buy you one of those big ass Jake's burgers as a thank you

 

[tehzachatak]

Pretty much no line for Neddles this morning, a few people waiting to pay around 10:15. Most were buying just a couple bottles even with the no limit. $15 each, buy 6 and you get a free black cloth 6-bottle Allagash tote to carry them in which is a pretty cool gesture on their part. Was told about 1200 bottles total so this one should stick around for a bit. Cracking one tonight, should be interesting.

Interested to hear your thoughts. I am generally not a bourbon barrel sour fan and while I've never had a rum barrel sour, I would imagine my feelings about them would be similar, but on the other hand, its an Allagash 375 for me to tick...

 

[JBP]

Pretty much no line for Neddles this morning, a few people waiting to pay around 10:15. Most were buying just a couple bottles even with the no limit. $15 each, buy 6 and you get a free black cloth 6-bottle Allagash tote to carry them in which is a pretty cool gesture on their part. Was told about 1200 bottles total so this one should stick around for a bit. Cracking one tonight, should be interesting.

Just heard about 300 bottles left, they are moving fast! May not stick around long after all. Also there appears to be a 2-case (12 bottle) limit which has been put in place later in the day.

 

[Brez071]

Just heard about 300 bottles left, they are moving fast! May not stick around long after all. Also there appears to be a 2-case (12 bottle) limit which has been put in place later in the day.

I'd be curious as to why they switched from day-of notice to announcing releases ahead of time. Wouldn't think it's a storage thing but you never know...

 

[chaggy5]

Crap should have posted this earlier... chaggy5 - Bring some extra Needles bottles back to CT!

Will buy you one of those big ass Jake's burgers as a thank you

Got 6 myself, should have a couple left over I will let you know. It is really good by the way, got to try it on draft. Hope the bottles are just as good

 

[JBP]

Interested to hear your thoughts. I am generally not a bourbon barrel sour fan and while I've never had a rum barrel sour, I would imagine my feelings about them would be similar, but on the other hand, its an Allagash 375 for me to tick...

So I really enjoyed Neddles. It's got a really solid oud bruin base, musty oak was the predominant element for me, very very woody, but I like that type of thing. The rum adds a nice balanced fruity spice accent, without being overpowering or tasting like cheap booze. Sourness level is about a 6-6.5, good balanced acidity. Has a little bit of the classic Allagash "damp basement" funk that all their non-Coolship sours of late have had. Overall another nice offering.

 

[eyesonsaison]

Are the coolship beers released roughly annually? And how much is generally produced?

 

[tehzachatak]

Are the coolship beers released roughly annually? And how much is generally produced?

Recently there have been.. I dunno, 4 or 5 releases per year? Last year I think there was one release of Red, one or two releases of Resurgam, two releases of Cerise. Resurgam and Cerise bottles usually last for quite a while, Red not so much... Don't know about bottle counts though. For Resurgam at least, I assume at least 1000+ bottles per given the need to blend multiple barrels and how long they last at Allagash.

 

[eyesonsaison]

Thanks, Zach! If you have surplus Resurgam you should bring over a bottle to split, I'll crack something from sara or side project

 

[tehzachatak]

Thanks, Zach! If you have surplus Resurgam you should bring over a bottle to split, I'll crack something from sara or side project

I'll see what I can do. Don't think I have an extra Resurgam, but I might have a spare Red... have you had that?

 

[chaggy5]

I'll see what I can do. Don't think I have an extra Resurgam, but I might have a spare Red... have you had that?

Ill swap you a neddles for a Red. Pretty please

 

[eyesonsaison]

I'll see what I can do. Don't think I have an extra Resurgam, but I might have a spare Red... have you had that?

No worries man, I just thought from that authoritative response you may have a stockpile of sorts. Red is the only one I've tried and it was very nice, but I don't care what you bring so long as there's pickles.

 

[tehzachatak]

No worries man, I just thought from that authoritative response you may have a stockpile of sorts. Red is the only one I've tried and it was very nice, but I don't care what you bring so long as there's pickles.

I do... but I'm actually down to only 1 Resurgam and I still need to do my big horizontal of Allagash sours. Maybe can find another before next week!

 

[eyesonsaison]

I do... but I'm actually down to only 1 Resurgam and I still need to do my big horizontal of Allagash sours. Maybe can find another before next week!

Don't put yourself out, friend.

That said, if anyone reading this wants to trade a couple bottles for hf or loons, feel free to drop me a line.

 

[Brez071]

Don't put yourself out, friend.

That said, if anyone reading this wants to trade a couple bottles for hf or loons, feel free to drop me a line.

You looking for a particular batch? Might have some to offer up.

 

[Brez071]

Oxbow is going to build a tasting room in Portland! Woohoo!

http://www.portlandfoodmap.com/

 

[Apetaster]

Oxbow is going to build a tasting room in Portland! Woohoo!

http://www.portlandfoodmap.com/

That's great news and will really help get their stuff out there for folks unable to make the trip north. I was just up at the brewery this weekend. Really nice folks there.

 

[Don2]

Anyone looking to split a room for the Sierra Nevada thing? Can't find anyone from my normal group in Boston going up, don't want to drop $100 on the motel 6 on my own lol. Or if anyone has a lead on a cheap room or something. Thanks!

 

[bramsdell]

Hit up the King's Head last week for a late evening beer after dinner at Fore Street (preceded by Novare). I was duly impressed with their list and had my first Substance. Impressed as well.

Portland is just the ****.

 

[SSTroller]

I think I need some help from some locals. I'll be in Portland for a night and up in Acadia for two nights with the wife for her birthday. Being from the Midwest, we want to indulge in as much seafood as possible. Please suggest your favorite joints, doesn't matter if its upscale or divey. We're primarily looking for places that offer the best bang for your buck lobster and oysters. Places with a good tap and bottle list will be huge plusses for both of us. Thanks!

 

[Brez071]

I think I need some help from some locals. I'll be in Portland for a night and up in Acadia for two nights with the wife for her birthday. Being from the Midwest, we want to indulge in as much seafood as possible. Please suggest your favorite joints, doesn't matter if its upscale or divey. We're primarily looking for places that offer the best bang for your buck lobster and oysters. Places with a good tap and bottle list will be huge plusses for both of us. Thanks!

Truth be told, most of the seafood I eat is at home so I will ultimately defer to others. That said, Portland Lobster Co is a fun place to hang out with decent options for food and beer. We normally go to Boone's for oysters, but also like Eventide (if it's not too crowded).

 

[tehzachatak]

Truth be told, most of the seafood I eat is at home so I will ultimately defer to others. That said, Portland Lobster Co is a fun place to hang out with decent options for food and beer. We normally go to Boone's for oysters, but also like Eventide (if it's not too crowded).

I was also going to mention Boone's. Slightly overpriced oysters, IMO, so maybe not exactly meeting your criteria, SSideTROLLer, but they're very good, the atmosphere is nice, especially sitting out on the deck, and the beers are pretty solid.

 

[SSTroller]

Truth be told, most of the seafood I eat is at home so I will ultimately defer to others. That said, Portland Lobster Co is a fun place to hang out with decent options for food and beer. We normally go to Boone's for oysters, but also like Eventide (if it's not too crowded).

I was also going to mention Boone's. Slightly overpriced oysters, IMO, so maybe not exactly meeting your criteria, SSideTROLLer, but they're very good, the atmosphere is nice, especially sitting out on the deck, and the beers are pretty solid.

Thanks guys! I definitely don't mind paying a little more for scenery and better quality. I'll make sure to check out Boone's then.
I should also mention the only time I've been to Portland was two summer's ago for work and we hit Lobster Shack and really enjoyed the experience (even though I wish we knew it was BYOB then), but reading recent Yelp reviews makes it sound like they greatly increased prices and reduced portion sizes.

 

[tehzachatak]

Thanks guys! I definitely don't mind paying a little more for scenery and better quality. I'll make sure to check out Boone's then.
I should also mention the only time I've been to Portland was two summer's ago for work and we hit Lobster Shack and really enjoyed the experience (even though I wish we knew it was BYOB then), but reading recent Yelp reviews makes it sound like they greatly increased prices and reduced portion sizes.

I don't mind Lobster Shack at all, the food's good, but I just have never quite gotten the appeal. Can't attest to it recently though, I haven't been in about three years.

If you're not opposed to a SLIGHTLY less direct route to Acadia (probably about, I dunno, 30 min longer than the "fast way," but definitely prettier...), I recommend both a) stopping at Red's Eats in Wiscasset for a very good lobster roll (a touristy stop, for sure, but it really is a solid lobster roll. It's a shack, though- no beer. Not sure you can BYOB either as it's outside but unsure!) and b) stopping at Oxbow in Newcastle for some of the very best beer in Maine... snag a couple growlers for Acadia.