There are about 9,000 breweries in the US. While places like California, Maine, Colorado, and Oregon are famous for beer, no state is more saturated with IPAs, lagers, and stouts than Vermont.
If you didn’t know it, Vermont is much more than the state that brought us Ben & Jerry. The New England state is arguably America’s beer capital. While it doesn’t have the population of some of the other beer centers, it’s number one per capita, with more than 74 breweries. That’s between 14.5 and 15 breweries per 100,000 people. This includes iconic breweries like The Alchemist, Foam, Lawson’s Finest Liquids, Zero Gravity, and the renowned Hill Farmstead Brewery.
While there are many different beer styles made at the breweries throughout the state, as a fan of hazy IPAs, I love Vermont. This is because we can thank John Kimmich, brewer at The Alchemist, for creating the popular New England-style IPA back in 2004. I spend all summer long drinking hazy, juicy IPAs, so Vermont will always hold a special place in my beer-soaked heart.
These beers make the list of my current favorites
Since the state is such a beer-lover’s dream state, crafting a list of the best beers from Vermont isn’t an easy task. I could easily write a list solely comprised of IPAs. But, since I’m not in the business of leaving people out, I’m going to mention a few different styles, including lagers, IPAs, and more.
How I picked the best beers from Vermont
Just like I pick all of my beers, I started my Vermont list by looking for easily available, balanced, flavorful beers. I didn’t want to include any beers that you can only get by driving to a brewery in the middle of a cow field somewhere in rural Vermont. These are beers you should be able to find at your local beer or grocery store (or hopefully one nearby). Keep scrolling to see all of the picks.
Fiddlehead IPA
Vermont is home to countless award-winning IPAs. One of the best is Fiddlehead IPA. This popular hazy 6.2% ABV hazy IPA is brewed with water, proprietary barley malts, house ale yeast, and select hops. It’s well-known for its cloudy appearance and nose of grapefruit, tropical fruits, caramel malts, and resinous pine needles. The palate features notes of ripe mango, peach, grapefruit, tangerine, and dank, pine. The finish is loaded with tropical fruits, citrus, and ends with a prickly, bitter, piney flourish that leaves you craving one more.
von Trapp Pilsner
Yes, the von Trapps who own the Vermont-based von Trappe Brewing are the same family made famous in ‘The Sound of Music’. And, on top of having a musical history, they’re pretty good at brewing European-influenced beers as well. This includes the award-winning von Trappe Pilsner. This Bohemian-style pilsner is brewed with Pilsner malt, house lager yeast, and Perle and Saaz hops. This creates a refreshing, flavorful beer that begins with a nose of cracker malts, freshly baked bread, and clover honey. Wet grass, and floral, earthy hops. Sipping it reveals flavors like cracker malts, caramel, cracked black pepper, and citrus peels. and floral hops. The finish is crisp, thirst-quenching, and pleasantly floral and spicy.
Lawson’s Finest Sip of Sunshine
If you only buy one Vermont beer, make it the always outstanding Lawson’s Finest Sip of Sunshine. This 8% ABV IPA is brewed with simple ingredients like water, malted barley, ale yeast, and Citra hops. This creates a memorable beer that begins with a nose of tangerine, mango, caramel malts, and dank pine. The palate features flavors like grapefruit, caramelized pineapple, guava, orange peel, and prickly pine needles. The finish is crisp, dank, and pleasantly bitter.
Zero Gravity Green State Lager
Vermont might be known for IPAs, but it’s also a great state for lagers. A great choice is the always refreshing Zero Gravity Green State Lager. This German-influenced lager is brewed with 100% German Pilsner malt, house lager yeast, and Hallertau Mittelfruh and Saaz hops. This creates a complex brew that begins with a nose of fresh-baked bread, honey, wet grass, and floral, noble hops. The palate is loaded with flavors like cracker malts, fresh bread, honey, citrus peels, and floral, earthy, piney hops. The finish is crisp and dry, ending with a mix of spice, citrus, and floral hops. This is the kind of crushable beer you’ll want to drink all spring and summer long.
Bottom line
I assume you understand the appeal of Vermont-made beers by now. I suggest you take a deeper dive into the state of New England. First, try some (or all) of the above beers, and then branch out and try some award-winning IPAs, lagers, stouts, and other beer styles from some of the other notable breweries in the state.
