One of beer’s most remarkable aspects is its versatility. On top of the fundamental ingredients of water, grain, yeast, and hops, a brewer can add almost any extra ingredients (unless you’re in Germany, where there are literal brewing laws about what you can put into beer). Ingredients found in beer today include fruit, chocolate, coffee, nuts, waffles, cookies, spices, cocoa, marshmallows, breakfast cereal, toffee, and so much more. This is not to say that WE use all of these ingredients, just that brewers, mainly in the United States, have really been pushing the limits of what can be added to beer.

It’s 1993 and Rob Tod had recently graduated from Middlebury College. While deciding whether to go back to school for geology or do something else, he takes a temporary job as a keg washer at Otter Creek brewing. Two days later, he knows that his time in brewing won’t be so temporary.

Beer styles are meant to give you an idea of what you’re going to experience, before you experience it. Think of it like a genre of movie, but for beer. In the same way that you know, generally, what to expect when you hear action movie, rom-com, or drama, beer enthusiasts know what to expect when they hear biére de garde, California common, or wee heavy.

UPDATE 7/15/21 – We couldn’t be happier to say that Maine is now the first state to establish an Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) law for packaging. You can read more about EPR below.