Thursday, June 26, 2014

Beer and Food Updates...Because That's What We Do!

Chef Jon has just released new entreés for your summer dining pleasure! They're available all over the Brewery, in the Jimmy LaPanza Lounge, both dining rooms and the beer garden. 
         -Char-griled New York Strip, hand-cut and trimmed, grilled to your liking and served with mashed potatoes and creamed spinach. You can also add (for a fee of course) a gorgonzola gremolata or a pearl onion, mushroom and stout demi-glace.
         -Lemon Ginger Salmon: a grilled fillet of Atlantic salmon glazed with a lemon-ginger gastrique over a drizzle of chili oil alongside jasmine rice and sauteéd broccolini.
         -Dijon Statler Chicken: a crispy, seared breast and wing of hormone-free chicken sauced with a  Dijon-ale cream witha  side of garlic roasted potatoes and the vegetable of the day.
         -Mediterranean Pasta: a melange of kalamata olives, sun-dried tomatoes, fire-roasted peppers and roasted, whole garlic tossed with fresh, handmade linguine in a butter-ale sauce, topped with Pecorino Romano curls.

Tomorrow, (Friday, June 26), we've got two new beers coming on tap. A new batch of Oatmeal Pale Ale, made with flaked oats, oat malt and a beguiling blend of Simcoe and Nugget hops. We've got 14 barrels of this silky smooth elixir waiting just for you.

Chef Jon and his team have prepared for a run on our popular Spicy Curry Mussels because Thaizenheimer is back and it might be the most perfect beer-food pairing to come out of Portsmouth Brewery! This American-style wheat beer has been kicked up a notch with infusions of ginger, galangal, lemon grass and kaffir lime leaves; it's just perfect for sunny weather day drinking.

Finally, as of, July 1, you will be responsible for cleaning your own growlers. After more than a decade, we're getting out of the growler cleaning business. We're lucky that our fellow Seacoast breweries have done an excellent job teaching the importance and ways of clean growlers.

Last but not least, we'll be open for Portsmouth's fireworks in July 3!  You can't see them from inside, but we'll be happy to refresh you with a cold beer when the bombs are done bursting in air.

We'll see you at the pub!




Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Growler News

We began filling growlers nearly 15 years ago at Portsmouth Brewery. A lot has changed since then, but nothing more significant than the overall increase in growler culture. We now have eight breweries filling growlers on the Seacoast. Countless beer drinkers, Seacoasters and brewery tourists alike, love a freshly-filled bottle of draft beer and that means overall growler literacy has increased.

 This change in growler culture and awareness has given us an opportunity to change our growler program as well.

Beginning July 1, the Portsmouth Brewery will no longer exchange your dirty growler for a clean one when you come in for a fill. You will be responsible for cleaning your own growler and we know a whole heck of a lot of you know how that works. If not, here are some guidelines.
 
Cleaning your own growler is important because we will not fill dirty growlers. If we did, the beer would taste bad, leading you to not only think maybe we weren’t good at brewing beer, but you wouldn’t be able to enjoy the beer you just bought. For those of you who aren’t used to cleaning your growler, here are some helpful instructions on how to keep your growler in prime filling condition. We will be checking the bottles you bring in, but beginning July 1, exchanges will stop. Hopefully, you all can begin using the new system now so that cut-off date passes painlessly.




Another change we’re excited to tell you about is a second size of growler. The new bottle, available exclusively at the new Smuttynose Brewery at Towle Farm, will hold 32 ounces of beer, just two pints. We like these for several reasons:
          
    -They’re a better size for stronger beers.
    -There’s less of a chance that beer will sit in your fridge going flat and oxidizing, because it’s half the size of the classic model.
    -Best of all, you’ll be able to use them at both Smuttynose and Portsmouth Brewery! Each brewery’s logo is on the bottle. When you fill it, we’ll write the brand name of the beer under the appropriate company’s logo, so you’ll know what’s what. The pencil wipes off with a wet paper towel, so the bottle will be blank and ready for your next fill.
    -Each bottle is $2. Fills will either be $6. $9 or $12 depending on the beer. Sales at Towle Farm start this Friday, June 13.

Cleaning Your Growler

 

1) As soon as you’ve emptied the growler, please give it a few good rinses with water, allowing the bottle to drain fully between rinses. If there are any residual deposits after the rinse, keep going; you don’t want that stuff drying on! You can always clean it later, but a prompt rinse will save you lots of future hassle.

2) Allow your growler to dry completely before replacing the top. Residual moisture can easily lead to residual grossness and neither you, nor we, want any residual grossness in the beer. Residual grossness is also more difficult to clean.

3)  If you slack off (we all do from time to time) and your growler gets gross, you can either clean it with soft-tipped bottle brush and light detergent, or you can buy a fresh bottle for $2. We will also be selling growler-cleaning tablets in both retail stores, for your convenience.

We'll see you at the pub!

Saturday, June 7, 2014


All those folks looking for hops...  We found them!  Come get a taste of our Whipper Snapper Session IPA, Grizzly Imperial Pale, or Lonesome Pale Ale.  Plenty of hoppy beers to curb your cravings!  
Peace and Fermentation!
Cheers,
Matt