Mainebiz

V O L . X X I I N O. I I I F E B R UA R Y 8 , 2 0 1 6 24 while only a handful of craft brewers opened up in the state in the past six months, Sean Sullivan, exec- utive director of the Maine Brewers' Guild, expects the pace to pick up this year, with at least 13 craft breweries on tap to open in the first half of 2016. One, Northern Maine Brewing Co. in Caribou, will be the first in Aroostook County in a long while. LeGassey of Fore River says there's no issue with market saturation of craft brewers now, and with neighborhood brewers coming back into fashion, there's plenty of room for growth. "Breweries are start- ing to have different things like sours and are using other types of bacteria and wild ingredients, like UFF's different fermentables and gruit," he says. Fore River makes three beers: John Henry, which is an oatmeal stout, plus Irish Red TimberHitch and Lygonia IPA. Like Fore River, Bear Bones is the first brewery in its neighborhood in Lewiston. e two owners were born in Lewiston and met in middle school on the cross country ski team. ey started the brewery in 2013, and experimented with recipes out of their home until they found their current location. e name for their brewery came from Tüüri telling Dingman that he was ready to start a brew- ery and wanted to keep it minimalist, or bare bones. "We wanted to keep things simple. Everything we can reuse we do," Tüüri says of the brewery's empha- sis on kegs and refillable growlers and minimal waste, with no disposable bottles or cans. He blew the glass for the light fixtures, and the two reused wood and other construction materials found in their building and elsewhere. Even the carriers for the growl- ers — available for $50 each — were made by a local woodworker from the old wood lath that was used in the past to hold plaster on walls. ey salvaged an industrial stainless sink for $250, and refinished the inside of the tasting room and brewery themselves, a process that took more than a year. "We want to be small and sustainable and grow with the community," Dingman says. "ere's no other place in town where you can fill up a growler." e goal was to be thrifty in their two-stage build-out, and make a comfortable space where everyone could come and drink beer or their home- made Halal ginger soda. "ere's a mosque down the street so we'll have Halal soda on tap at all times," says Dingman. "We made a point to make this an inclusive space for all ages." And while both men like the popular IPA ales, when they did taste-testings in their neighborhood, they discovered they were not popular. "So we lis- tened to our customers," Dingman adds. e brewery is making Double C.R.E.A.M., Old Smokey pale ale, plus a hoppy season ale and rye brown ale. e plan is to get people in the door to both taste their beers and then buy and take them home in growl- ers. And the men welcome other breweries in the area. "is street is vivacious," says Dingman, referring to the three restaurants and other businesses on the block. "Hopefully we'll get more brewers here. e more we build up the community, the better." Lori Valigra, Mainebiz senior writer, can be reached a t l v a l i g r a @ m a i n e b i z . b i z a n d @ LVa l i g r a Welcome, Bill! Katahdin Trust is pleased to announce that Bill Lucy has joined our business banking team as Senior Vice President, Commercial Services. An Orono native, Bill brings 35 years of experience in banking to his role at Katahdin Trust. 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And, yeah, when you need some heavy lifting, we're there for you. » C O N T I N U E D F RO M P R E V I O U S PA G E Brewers opened in the past six months Fore River Brewing Co., South Portland Marsh Island Brewing Co., Orono Lubec Brewing Co., Lubec (opened May 2015) Blank Canvas Brewery, Brewer Breweries planning to open in 2016 Bear Bones Beer, Lewiston Northern Maine Brewing Co., Caribou Theory Brewing, Wells Gruit, Portland Mast Landing, Westbrook North Haven Brewing Co., North Haven Foul Mouthed, South Portland Lone Pine Brewing Co., Portland Amherst Mill Fermentation Co., Amherst (formerly Square Tail Brewing Co.) Atlantic Brewing Downtown, Bar Harbor (new, second location for existing brewery Atlantic Brewing Co.) Mason's Brewing Co., Brewer Saco River Brewing, Fryeburg Dirigo Brewing Co., Biddeford S O U R C E : Maine Brewers' Guild

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