Issue link: http://southshoremagazine.uberflip.com/i/489430
45 building, our rooms were called Trillium and Moosilauke, the rooms were appointed with all the amenities you would need but utilizing rustic, antique replica charm. High score here! All of the various buildings that make up the Inn are former homes that have been converted and renovate to guest rooms, all are within easy walking distance. Well, ironically we arrived just in time for Happy Hour! Great planning on my part! Woodstock brews 10-12 signature beers, the also brew a special beer, Loon Golden Ale that is served at Loon Mountain just up the road. In addition to the signature brews, Woodstock brews several seasonal specialties. One of my favorite beer styles is Porter, I like the darkness and heavier body. Well, the beer gods were on to me, one of the specialty beers on tap was a Vanilla Porter. I am not usually one for additive flavors to my beer, but this was amazing!! The rest of my crew did the beer flights to sample 5 of Woodstock's creations. Our group's favorites were the Vanilla Porter and the Wassail Winter Ale. Paying homage to their surroundings the majority of the Woodstock Brewing offerings refer to area names: White Mountain Weasel, Kanc Country Maple Porter, 4000 footer IPA, Red Rack Ale, Cogsman Ale, Old Man Oatmeal Stout, Through Hiker, Pemi Pale Ale and White Mountain Weasel to name a few. Well Friday night was so much fun with copious amounts of beer, great pub food and live music that the early morning start of 7am was not met. About 815 I strolled down the ramp to where are Brewers Weekend was to meet, sans my teammates Kevin and Tom. Sitting at the Bar, decked out in knee high rubber boots and having breakfast was our brew master Anthony Reynolds. Anthony giggled when I mentioned that we had overindulged in vanilla porter. He suggested we head to breakfast and return in 30 minutes or so, I had only missed a small stage of mixing the dry ingredients. The breakfast is AMAZING, breakfast is included with all rooms at Inn, no menu exceptions, everything is from scratch and the other ingredients are locally sourced. The breakfast menu is vast and extensive with very ample portions and plenty of coffee. Well at 8:45 it was back to the brewery to get to work: The day's batch was the White Mountain Weasel Wheat, this is one of Woodstock's lighter creations, the liquid is straw in color, with a low hop character and bitterness, and it has a light dry finish, with 4.13 ABV. A nice session beer that pares well with chicken, fish etc. Anthony is the most enthusiastic and positive, fun person you could have for an event like this. He ABSOLUTELY loves his job, it shows! There were 10 of us attending for the weekend, most were home brewers enthusiastically hoping to learn new techniques. The actual weekend takes place in the original brewery connected to the side of the Inn's main building, this brewery that we were in handles smaller batches, while the new modern brewery housed at the rear of the new timber frame handles the main demand and bottling and canning of the products. On a side note Woodstock Brewing also makes the most delicious Root Beer that you have ever tasted! Brewing is a very exact science, it is full-scale chemistry, and timing is everything! For you brewing enthusiasts our schedule was as follows: 7:00 mill grains per recipe and mash in. 9 - 9:10 Set taps and sparge from mash tun to kettle. 11:20 - 11:30 Copper up and Boil. 1:00 Fridge - move from copper to fermenter. 2:30 Declare wort for tax purposes and start caustic rinse. 4:00 Finish rinse, weigh out grains, and treat water for next recipe. The smells all day are amazing, the grains and cooking and hops and yeast creating their magic. The brewery is also extremely conscious of its use of water and by products, the grains are recycled 2 ways, one is that the grains are sent to local dairy and pig farms, because the grains are partially broken down they make digestion easier for the dairy cows which has yielded a 20 % increase in milk production! The other use for grains is an amazing bread made from the grains and served warm or used in sandwiches at the in house restaurants. The end of your day in the brewery is well rewarded, a dinner with your co-workers and your brew master is presented by the kitchen staff. It is a 5-course meal, with each course using one of the many beers as an ingredient in a sauce, dressing, marinade or part of the dessert. Each course is paired with a beer (not Woodstock) that the brew master has chosen to enhance the flavors of your customized dinner. We had a wonderful house salad with dressing made from the maple porter, a crab bisque with the White Mountain weasel, beef tenderloin, green beans and garlic potatoes with a dark horseradish sauce using the seasonal Stout and for dessert chocolate Moose made with oatmeal stout. Our server and the bar staff and everyone we encountered on the weekend were truly enthusiastic about working at Woodstock Inn and were all very knowledgeable beer lovers! Check out the Woodstock Inn you won't be disappointed! Their motto which I can attest is true is: "Great Tastes from a Special Place." Cheers! WOODSTOCK INN STATION & BREWERY 603.745.3951 (800.321.3985) 135 Main Street, North Woodstock, NH woodstockinnnh.com TheSouthShoreMagazine.com