OEC Brewing / B. United Trip.

OEC Brewing / B. United Trip.

Oxford, CT

Last weekend I had the pleasure of taking a road trip down to one of the newest New England breweries that just opened called OEC Brewing, short for Ordinem Ecentrici Coctores, which translates to "the order of eccentric brewers" or just "eccentric brewers". I have been excited about the opening of this place since I caught wind of the project at an open house B. United had held a year or so ago. If your not familiar with B.United they are a great importer that brings some excellent selections of beer to the US from places like Belgian, Germany, Italy and Japan just to name a few. Some of my favorite breweries they import from are:

Birrificio del Ducato / Birra del Borgo / Baladin / Wild Beer Co.

Loverbeer / BFM / Bahnhof / Hanssens / De Dolle / Alvinne / Hitachino Nest

and the list goes on....

I won't go into a lengthy explanation why I love this importer or the great lengths they go to make sure the beer they distribute is served with the integrity and care that the product deserves and the brewers expect. Along with a dedication to the product B.United is also bubbling with creativity that is very apparent when you tour the warehouse and come across the renowned Zymatore barrel room where the importer sources some of the most obscure and niche barrels and fills them with some of the very beer that they import. This is possible because they also do a good amount of their own kegging and bottling in house and choose to have the beer they import shipped over via tanker trucks and small batch containers. A very unique perspective that I have never thought of as a possibility. My mind was blown when I visited last year and a tanker truck was parked in the driveway serving different variations of Bahnhofs Berliner Weisse from a tap on the side of the truck... its true there was a oat and potato berliner being poured out of a tanker truck !

Here you can see the side of the warehouse of B.United. 

Oh did I mention that the trip wasn't just about visiting OEC brewing but they were also holding a "Meet the Brewer" event so the place was crawling with some of my favorite brewmasters from all over the world !

As usual B.United threw an amazing party with some BBQ being served in the parking lot, a few tents were pouring great selections from the brewers on hand, a jazz trio was setting the mood and the brewers were lingering and sharing some great info about their process as well as things that were in the works. 

The crowd was mellow and my co-pilot and I ended up running into a good amount of familiar faces as seems to always be the case when good beer is being served.

On the grounds they also have started a small vineyard and orchard where they are growing Marechal Foch grapes, Mission & Kadota Figs, Peaches and a greenhouse full of obscure fruits like Kumquats, Yuzu as well as lemons and limes that all will find their way into barrels and batches of the Zymatore project and OEC brews.

Inside the brewery was an impressive selection of beers, spotless equipment and a clearly enthusiastic staff who were as excited about serving the beer as I was about drinking it !

I found the beers to be way above average across the board and the styles to be right up my alley.

On draft for samples and 750ml's to take home, they had a few sour saisons, a berliner, a grodziskie, porter and sour porter ! Along with growlers they offer sample paddles, full pours, glassware and a relaxing environment to sit chat and take in the focused brews that were offered.

After a lot of sipping, in depth conversations about beer and of course some relaxing, we were able to get a behind the scenes tour of the warehouse and the Zymatore room.

Warehouse

A new container that will be used to ship beer across the Atlantic for limited small batch goodness!

I think we interrupted a secret meeting happening just outside the Zymatore room...

Barrel Aged Goodness.... Keep your eyes peeled for bottles and draft options of the highly esteemed Zymatore project !

Long blogpost short. If you love beer and are looking for a new place to visit, go check out OEC brewing and forage some tasty growlers when you arrive ! 

Cheers.

Some Recent Sippers.

Some Recent Sippers.

In addition to enjoying some nice quebec beers over the last few weeks, I enjoyed most of these selections as well:

Hill Farmstead Double Citra

Some classic Vermont Hop Juice

Societe Original & Brasseurs Illimites

La Saison Chaude

Bright & peppery with nice round doughy, round, rustic malts and a dry bitter finish. Paired perfectly with some cured meats from Montreal and some Goat Brie. 

Firestone Walker Lil Opal

Complex barrel aged saison with nice layer of dusty lemon, ripe stonefruit and spicy vinous oak.

Firestone Walker Feral One

This beer is getting better and better, big funky sour with great layers of nectarine, toasted vanilla and mouth puckering !

                                                        Oxbow / Infiniti Collaboration 
                                                               Infinite Darkness

Solid beer but not quite what I was expecting from a apple brandy aged imperial stout. Read to me more like a Belgian strong ale or maybe even a Belgian stout. But regardless of some style questions the beer had nice balance and the barrel character was dialed in resulting in a short life in the glass.

                                                    Jackie O's Paw Paw Wheat

Mmmm Paw Paw fruit, nice pale ale with fruit addition !

A Saturday Evening Rooftop Bottleshare.

(from left to right)

Wicked Weed Bretticent

Free Will Kriek Lambic

the Bruery Batch #50 Grand Funk Aleroad

Rare Barrel Home, Sour Home

Grassroots Brother Soigne

Hill Farmstead/Blaugies La Sarrasin

Side Project Saison de Rouge

Dunham Propolis - Biere de Ferme

Olvalde the Auroch's Horn

Ls Brasseurs du Temps La Saison Haute

Mystic Vinland Two

Night Shift Art #21 Farmhouse Bramble

Fiddlehead Bourbon Aged Frog Run

Kane A Night to End All Dawns (Coffee)

Sipping some Dieu du Ciel.

Sipping Some Dieu du Ciel.

After the trip to Montreal I was obviously excited to get into some of my foraged bottles so considering the only bottles I got that were hop forward in any way were the selections of Dieu du Ciel so I decided those should be the first to crack and over the course of the last week and a half I have had the pleasure of sipping....

Moralite'

"Pours a vibrant yellow golden color with a finger plus of eggshell foam. Aromas are bright grapefruit, sweet mango, some light malt and layers of tropical fruit. The palate follows with a nice juicy hop punch and the round soft palate provides an excellent backbone that is present but just supports the hop profile which is handled very well. Tropical fruit, some sticky wood sap and a clean bitter finish."

Chaman

"Pours a deep golden sienna color with a finger of eggshell foam. Nose is sweet caramel, bready malts, citrus and some earthy grass. Palate follows with more sweetness, honey, citrus, boozy and lingering bitter grass finish. Probably a bit past its prime but still drinking pretty nice."

Solstice d' ete aux Framboises 

"Pours a deep ruby red with a finger of pink foam. Nose is beautiful raspberry fruit, some basement funk and light foggy grain. The palate follows the nose with great layers of earthy raspberry funk, tart ripe fruit and lingering musk. Really enjoyable from beginning to end !"

Blanche Neige

"Pours a orange glowing golden color with a finger of sticky white foam. Nose is spiced orange peel, bubblegum, cotton candy and clove. Palate follows with a big sticky sweet backbone that is cut with some bitter clove and dandelion herbal spice, Lingering earthy dusty wheat, ginger, black tea some booze... not really drinking it in season but raging through some shelf picks that I just snagged while in Montreal !"

La Paienne

"Pours a medium golden color with a finger of white foam. Nose is grainy, sweet malt, biscuit a touch of honey. The palate is clean with a nice balance of bitter and sweet with some layers of earthy honey, bready malts and traces of spicy yeast. Kind of a belgian inspired pilsner. Refreshing."

Isseki Nicho

"Pours a deep dark burnt umber with three fingers of sticky khaki foam. Nose is heavy on the roast, layers of baking chocolate, dark ripe berry, forest floor, moss trace of smoke. Palate follows the nose with great complexity, dusty dark chocolate, blueberry, anise, some umami character,mushroom, boozy burnt brownie. Yummy, this beer makes more sense of the pinot barrel version I tried at the first festival, now Im interested to revisit that beer !"

And finally the collaboration with Le Trou du Diable... side by side tonight !

I've read some reviews that say it is the same beer, but after trying them forwards to back, backwards to forward and beginning to end, well Im finishing the last sip of the Diable version as I type but I am confident in saying that isn't the case. I detect some brettanomyces character in the Dieu du Ciel version, and also find the hop presence to be far more juicy and excessive in the Diable version. Both delicious but different beers that Im grateful to have been able to try !

Dieu du Ciel ~ Divine Comedie 

"Pours a medium golden color with a finger of white fizzy foam. Nose is fruity mosaic hops, spicy brett, some bready malt and fresh grass. Palate is a nice mix of pine, melon, pineapple, pepper, horsehair, very dry with a abrasively bitter grassy finish. Drinking from the bottle and had it on draft at the brewpub a few weeks ago ! Tasty."

Le Trou du Diable ~ Divine Comedie

"Pours a slightly hazy orange golden color with three fingers of billowing foam that settles to a thin layer with great lacing. Nose is peachy, orange rind, spicy yeast, biscuit, dank grass. Palate is round and juicy with a more subtle yeast character than the Dieu du Ciel version. Big citrus. some mango and stonefruit, bitterness is strong but lends a nice contrast to the honey kissed sweetness and full mouthfeel. Lip smacking good !"

MontreHaul and Vermont Sipcation. Part III

MontreHaul and Vermont Sipcation. Part Three.

Ok save the best for last !

Montreal > Greensboro.

So after a nice day of bouncing around brewpubs we were not familiar with, it was time to go visit a standby whenever going to Montreal.

Dieu du Ciel

29 Laurier Ouest

Always a must stop, it was a straight shot two mile walk up to the brewpub from our hotel... but going up Saint Laurent and branching off for some bagels then hitting up a few record shops and lots of vintage shops and galleries we arrived at the pub around quarter past three.

One of the first few people to grab a seat, as always the service was top notch. We chatted a bit with our waiter about the beers on tap and ordered a few apps to accompany our research, haha !

Solstice d'Ete' aux Framboises on draft for the win !

This is a beautiful summer sipper and after putting 3 plus miles on the legs this was a nice first pour and by no means is this beer meant to be consumed as a sampler.

For kicks and because I just talked this beer up here is my review:

"Pours a deep ruby red with a finger of pink foam. Nose is beautiful raspberry fruit, some basement funk and light foggy grain. The palate follows the nose with great layers of earthy raspberry funk, tart ripe fruit and lingering musk. Really enjoyable from beginning to end !"

4.2 out of 5

Also on draft go figure at the brew pub... Disco Soleil which apparently used to be called "Fortunella" regardless its a kumquat infused ipa and was also enjoyable and refreshing.

From there it was on to half pours with 19 offerings we had our work cut out for us...

Another standout from the list besides the usual suspects was the Divine Comedie' which is a collaboration with Le Trou du Diable that I found very tasty. I actually liked it enough to forage around and score a bottle of each breweries bottled version and look forward to reviewing them side by side in the coming days.

I was so thankful the wife is becoming more of a beer fan and was able to help polish some of these offerings off. She really enjoys the two distant spectrums of beer... lagers and pilsners then quads and imperial stouts, especially those in bourbon barrels ! Her favorite was the Rigor Mortis from the line up.

It really doesn't take very long for this place to start filling up... granted we spent a good couple hours and ordered a nice salad, some pretzels and a pickled slaw that was so delicious we ordered another batch.  Anyhow I can't say enough good things about this place the vibe and the quality of the beer they produce. If you live in New England put this place on your destination lists !

While on the topic about amazing stops... within a 20 minute walk of Dieu de Ciel is, in my opinion, the number one beer bar in Montreal.

Vices & Versa

6631 Saint Laurent

Sweet copper ceiling with just an overall good vibe, we were greeted by a couple folks working the bar and they told us we could sit wherever. They had a welcoming bar area and off that was another spot to the right that had a wall window that was wide open to let the breeze come through and then we saw a doorway in the back left corner that went out to the beer garden in the rear...

Yes please ! It was a perfect day with temperatures close to 80˚, and with a big old shade tree this was prime spot to sip some local Quebec brews!

The service was some of the best yet, the guy working the bar, I forget his name, ugh! Anyway he was super helpful and knowledgable and at some points I felt bad about how many times he would just walk over to the tap and pour a few ounces so I could take a sip of a few things I was curious about. Every time it tasted just how he described it would and I even told him he was being to good to me, but it was early and slow so he was excited to have us there experimenting with some local brews and was very gracious to lend his advice and offer some conversation about the local beer scene!

the draft list.

Great beer and poutine... why not !

This place made me so happy I actually allowed my wife to take a picture !

Some beers I had the pleasure of trying at Vices & Versa

Dunham Berliner Melon Weisse BMW

Dunham Swæfberht IPA

Pit Caribou BA Oude Brown

Hopfenstark 7 Sisters Maia

Hopfenstark 7 Sisters Merope

Les Trois Mousquetaires Gose

L'Alchimiste Pilsner Blonde

Cannot say enough good things about this place, go there and find out what all my hype is about.

Along the way we hit up a good amount of local bottle shops, none of which I found the need to take pictures of even though in hindsight that may have been nice. Anyhow, I will list them in my order of preference and talk about my experience at each spot:

La Grange du Marche'

"Sweet little spot, actually had the canards du lac brome store inside the bottle shop which if your looking for anything duck than it is the place to be. But now with the merger with Marche des Saveurs its a must go spot and l alway visit the sweet marche jean talon market across the street when Im in Montreal so its a no brainer , Go Here ! Anyhow they had some modern conscious reggae playing on the system and the clerk working the shop was super friendly and helped me scope out some saisons and other things that were fresh and sip worthy!"

Les Delires du Terrior

"Nice little shop in a bustling strip of stores and people. Little rustic appeal with various local packaged Quebec goodies for munching and a decent and well laid out beer selection. The person working the counter was helpful and knowledgable. He steered me to a couple nice bottles I would have overlooked and the prices were pretty on par with other spots I’ve visited in the area."

Epicerie Unique - Le Depot de la Biere

"This spot is one I visited last time I was in town, its right on the main drag of Saint Laurent and just a block away from Schwartz's. I had a nice conversation with the owner last time I was in and he is actually originally from Cambridge MA.  I reminded him about our conversation before and he remembered me and actually saved my life so I could take a leak there before shopping. Anyhow Im sure it worked out in his favor as I spent more money on an empty bladder than if I had to rush through... he was even nice enough to go downstairs and pull me a couple bottle of the Dieu du Ciel Solstice Framboises for me ! Guess its harder to come by up there than I thought. Anyhow its pretty crammed and a small market/bottle shop but the owner is very friendly and the selection is worth the stop if you find yourself strolling by! "

Epicerie Jose Inc.

Little corner looking store in the heart of downtown. Decent selection and pricing but cash only. Kind of similar to the independent corner store you would find in the US with cheap junk food snacks, cigs, magazines and lottery tickets.

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Well... that's the full wrap up of the Bottle Forager's best spots of Montreal... beer wise at least. I also posted a few non-beer related restaurants, galleries and farmer's markets to visit on my other blog that can be found here:

Localrootz Project / Montreal Vacation: Street Art, Food and Farmer's Markets !

Now the long trip back to Portland, Maine... wait don't forget Greensboro!

Hill Farmstead Brewery 

Greensboro, VT

Everyone knows that I cannot come within a couple hours of this spot and not make a stop !

Things are really coming along... as we stood in line we peered through the old doorway of the brewhouse and old retail space !

Place was bustling as usual... the employees had a busy day ahead of themselves filling growlers including ours !

Lots of tasty treats on draft and in bottles.
The wait only ended up being about an hour and a half total.

Phase two of the expansion is moving fast... this place is going to be sweet when its 

all said and done, hey I thought it was pretty sweet already! 

Another successful journey to my favorite brewery !

 Wow, spent and tired, ready to get home and haul all our goodies up to the third floor to share with friends and fellow foragers.

The final Haul:

Dieu du Ciel & Le Trou Diable selections.

Did I mention I like saisons... a few Dunham saisons and various other saisons from various Quebec breweries.

Another epic Hill Farmstead Haul along with a pick up from Fiddlehead Brewing added on !

You gotta get it while the getting is good.

Cheers.