It was short lived, but I recently learned that a brewery had opened in my hometown of Branford, CT. When I was down for Thanksgiving, I decided to check Coastal Wine & Spirits for some beers I can’t get in RI. I discovered Carlson Craft Brewery. Upon closer inspection, I saw that they were from Branford.
I picked up a bottle of each of their 3 main beers (Coastal didn’t carry their Yule Ale) – Gamma Öl (Old Ale), Bärnsten Öl (English Ale), and Vëte Öl (Wheat Ale). I have since tried the Old Ale and the English Ale.
The Old Ale, at around 5% isn’t like most Old Ales. In fact, I’d classify it more as a Scottish Ale. It’s tasty, a little smoky, but not much of an Old Ale. Regardless, it’s good and worth trying if you can still find some.
The English Ale was fantastic. It’s an English Pale Ale and tastes just like it came out of a cask (assuming you let it warm to the proper serving temperature). It’s got low carbonation, but lots of flavor.
Upon further investigation, I learned that the brewery is a 1 barrel brewhouse, basically converted from the brewer’s homebrew system. He kept it at 1 barrel to make taxes easier (taxes are based on the number of barrels). Unfortunately, because of the economy and some issues with the landlord, the brewery closed shortly after the first of the year. It had only existed for about a year or so from what I could tell. I wish Andrew Carlson the best of luck in his future endeavors and can’t wait to see what he does next in the beer industry. He’s a talented brewer.