The 8 Best Craft Breweries In Vermont

The New England states are not just known for cold winters and American history –they're also great to visit if you love a nice, hearty craft beer. Vermont is home to avid brewers who take their time mixing hops, malts, yeast, and other ingredients that create the flavorful concoction we all enjoy.

There's plenty of support for the Vermont beer scene. According to the Vermont Brewer's Association's most recent data, the state has 77 craft breweries, creating nearly 3,000 jobs. For beer lovers, it means that you have no shortage of options when you'd like to enjoy a nice India Pale Ale (IPA), Porter, Stout, or another type of beer in a frosty glass. When you're looking for the best beer, it pays to know which microbreweries are the cream of the crop in the Green Mountain State. Here are 12 of the best Vermont breweries you should check out, whether you're a resident or planning a visit.

When you want a craft beer experience with an old-town community feel, Brocklebank Craft Brewing in the tiny town of Tunbridge is the place to go. It's been a craft beer mainstay in the area since 2015 and to top off the small-town feel, Brocklebank is located on the property of what used to be a dairy farm. This is a grail location for beer lovers in Vermont who want to say they've tasted hoppy nectar from a watering hole that not everyone knows about. True to the small-town vibe, Brocklebank Craft Brewing is a nanobrewery, featuring a modest 1.5-barrel operation.

Sample IPAs, pilsners, fruit beers, and a variety of other selections in the taproom on Fridays and Saturdays. A few of the microbrews include the Currant Affaire fruit beer made from raspberry and blackcurrant, Rooney stout, Road Crue session IPA, Stack O'Lee pilsner, and Potash Pivo Czech-style dark beer. 

Spread a blanket out on the lawn and enjoy the fresh Vermont air while sipping on a brew. You can also fill up growlers to take home or purchase cans of the Rooney, Freedom & Unity IPA, and Schatzi German-style beers in four-packs of the same style (or you can mix and match them). Brocklebank's beers are also circulated in locations throughout central Vermont.

In Winooski, Vermont, four quarters add up to delicious beers of all varieties. Four Quarters Brewing Co. was founded in 2014 and not only does it boast an extensive draft menu and plenty of food options, but it's also dog friendly. With 29 tap lines, the microbrewery specializes in sours, stouts, and flavorful, hoppy beers.

It distributes cans and bottles of beer all throughout the Winooski area, in addition to featuring a taproom that offers beers on draft and in cans. A few of the brews you can enjoy include the Drift Pilsner, Phaze American IPA, Space Face Double IPA, 4 Quarterez sour ale, Symphony of Stars oatmeal stout, and Great Bear chocolate oatmeal brown ale.

There's no shortage of food options that you can enjoy when you take a trip to the Four Quarters taproom. It offers excellent finger food options like chips and dip, nachos, wings, and a basket of fries. Four Quarters also offers an extensive selection of specialty burgers and sandwich options, such as the Cheeseburger in Paradise, Lunar Smashburger, Vermont Philly, Fungus Amungus, and Bleu Buffalo.

The taproom is open seven days a week and you'll also find the brewery's craft brews in grocery stores and establishments in the area. The brewery has a die-hard following, with beer fans also appreciating its merchandise.

Queen City Brewery is another business set in Chittendon County, which is a stone's throw from New York and just south of Canada. Here, you can enjoy beer from different regions, styles, and specialties. The brewery's slogan is "World-class beer without the jet lag," and you can take advantage of this in the form of 16 taps with a variety of rotating options.

Some of the beers in the Queen City Brewery tap room include South End Lager, Munich Dunkel, Schwarzbier German black lager, the Queen City Brewery Oktoberfest, Hefeweizen wheat ale, Argument IPA, Yorkshire porter, and Proper Jim's ale. The brewery also provides some limited edition and seasonal beers, such as the Black Knight Imperial Russian stout, Indigenous barrel-aged saison beer, and the Old Monty Barleywine-Style Ale.

This brewery opened in 2014 in a renovated and repurposed warehouse by two friends who love beer and have 30 years of brewing experience. You'll get to experience artfully crafted malts and hops prepared under the guidance of experts. Set in a historical area of town with bustling commerce, shops, and restaurants, the taste room features wide-open space that can be rented out for events and meetings. It's an elegantly designed environment, including a bar crafted from 50-year-old mahogany wood. Queen City Brewery doesn't feature a kitchen but suggests that customers enjoy a slice or two from a wood-fired pizza restaurant next door.

You might wander the land for the perfect beer, but you won't be lost if you end up at this brewery. Lost Nation is a microbrewery in Morrisville featuring a taproom and restaurant for guests to try some delicious ales, lagers, and other craft beers. It's a 7,000 BBL operation that prides itself on producing honest beer. 

The beer menu is extensive, featuring options like Mosaic IPA, Vermont Pilsner, Rustic Ale, Fullers London Pride, and Rock Art Blood Orange Radler. You can enjoy beers from the tap or purchase selections to go in the form of cans or bottles. This establishment also features food items to enjoy with your ales, such as ground beef or black bean tacos, Cabot cheddar grilled cheese sandwiches, the Lost Nation Smash Burger, and a New York City-style hot dog. 

You can sip on your beer and nosh your food indoors, or in the Biergarten, which opens in the spring. This is an excellent brewery to check out whether you're looking to drink something special from the tap or order something to go. 

If you're spending time in the White River Junction area of Vermont, River Roost Brewing needs to be on your list of places to visit. This microbrewery was founded in 2016 and has an extensive selection of beers of all varieties. The brewery is open six days a week and features beers on tap and in cans, and allows customers to fill up outside growlers.

Some of the beer offerings you'll find at River Roost Brewery include the hoppy Mas Verde IPA, Mo'Rilla IPA, Happiness Hotel pale ale, Glimpse Double IPA, Gravel pilsner, Shattered Illusions of Love porter, and Wheatfield Soul lager. Customers rave about both the taste and affordable prices of these beers.

The taproom has an intimate vibe and there are four picnic tables where you can enjoy your beers in the Hartford sunshine or under the night sky. It's located in the heart of the downtown area, so there are plenty of sights and sounds to take in no matter what day of the week you decide to stop by.

Alchemist Pub and Brewery in Waterbury opened its doors in 2003 as a 60-seat brewpub made by people who love beer, for people who love beer. It has since grown to a full-service microbrewery, and today, Alchemist beers are sold all over Vermont.

The business is 100% independent, family-owned, solar-powered, and provides retail sales and curbside pickups seven days a week. Alchemist's beer cafe serves brews fresh from the tap Thursday through Saturday. Some of the beers that you'll want to try include the Heady Topper American Double IPA, Black is Beautiful Imperial Stout, Beelzebub American Imperial Stout, Crusher American Double IPA, Rapture American IPA, Focal Banger American IPA, and Dark German lager.

Alchemist's mission statement centers around sustainability, inclusion, and community. It supports community initiatives, foundations, and art galleries, and regularly hosts events. Customers will soon be able to enjoy the company's inspired beers in a four-season awning space. Tours are offered every day for people wanting to learn the company's story and to further understand the beer cultivation process.

Switchback Brewing Company has a long-standing legacy built on an understanding of the finer points of beer. The company was founded in 2002 and has been a staple in Burlington and Vermont as a whole ever since. The very basis of the company's genesis was to create a beer that defies existing style guidelines. It was created by two business partners who stuck to this formula, and the proof is in the hops more than 20 years later.

Today, you can stop by Switchback Brewery to enjoy a combination of year-round staples and seasonal specialty beers. Some of the year-round beers you'll enjoy include the Switchback Ale, E-Z Ale, and Mansfield IPA. A few of the seasonal or specialty beers that customers appreciate include the Roasted Red Ale, El Dorado Cat Double IPA, Marzen Fest Bier, and the Switchback Slow Fermented Brown Ale. The taproom also offers exclusive experimental brews and limited releases that you can only get in person.

Switchback Brewing Company features a calendar full of events that you can add to your visit, including live music, fried chicken Sundays, and trivia night. The brewery also offers a $12 buns and brew night and half-priced wing days.

Foam Brewers is another Burlington microbrewery that was founded in 2016 by a group of entrepreneurs with different specialties. It's located perfectly on the beautiful Burlington waterfront, making it a prime location for people looking to enjoy stouts, IPAs, lagers, and all sorts of other beers while taking in the views.

Some of the draft beer offerings that you can try out at Foam Brewers include the Dayglow rice lager, Eternal Sunshine IPA, Second Hand Coffins Oat Triple IPA, The Factory imperial stout, Lupi Fresh IPA, and Pop Shop rice lager. The brewery also offers a small menu of snack foods, like fresh baked bread, cheese, and meat charcuterie boards, wood-roasted onion dip, and a selection of mixed nuts.

You can also purchase beer by the can or the growler to take home with you. The brewery features several events, such as trivia and live music.