A Beer Tourist’s Guide To…Portland, Maine

Yep, turns out there’s two of ’em.

While Portland, Oregon may receive international acclaim for its beer scene (and rightly so), its baby cousin is arguably just as good, despite sitting about as far away geographically in the US as it could possibly be. The beer, too, is far away, as the two Portlands perfectly typify the raging debate that has decimated US craft beer nerd-istry for the best part of a decade: Which IPA is better, East Coast or West Coast?

We took a little trip to find out how much juice we could squeeze out of just 70 thousand people and 20 square miles.

Getting There

Portland, Maine lies on that part of the USA that looks like it might be Canada, though luckily it sits right at the south of the state. You Could drive, but then you can’t really drink, and its location means transport from Boston is plentiful, with hourly buses and trains that both take around two hours and cost about $25. You’ll be left at the Portland Transit Center either way, and while it looks like you’re in the middle of nowhere, right here begins your beer odyssey…

Bissell Brothers Brewing Company
If there were a Nobel prize for inspired logistical decisions, BBB would be in the running: their epic taproom is a four minute walk from the Transit Center. You won’t notice it until you’re in front of it, a small doorway in a carpark (aren’t they all?) but on entry you are greeted by a stunning, colourful masterpiece of a brewery. The place is huge, with the aroma of malt floating around from the sizeable brewing apparatus that takes up the back half of the space. Find a table, head to the bar, ask for some tasters and enjoy some of New England’s most indicative IPAs straight off the bat. The food is also excellent, with local seafood along with more traditional brewery offerings that should do you perfectly for something to soak up the beer.
Don’t Miss: If they have Swish on tap, that is their mythical brew. If not, pretty much all the hazy IPAs go down a treat.

Once you’re done there, order a rideshare. You have two options for a destination, both chock-full of breweries that will keep you occupied for the best part of a day – we’ll be exploring both:
1) Head into Downtown Portland, just 10 minutes down the road.
2) Head up to Industrial Way, 10 minutes from the Transit Center and 15 minutes outside of the city centre.

Downtown Portland

Downtown Portland is extremely compact, with everything at most a 15-20 minute walk apart. The breweries are apportioned in a convenient strip towards the north-east of the city, so you can do this in either direction, though the breweries towards the top are open later so it may make sense to start at the bottom depending on the time of day.

Austin Street Brewery
Sitting on the edge of a small park, giving a real feel of space and nature, Austin Street has plentiful outdoor seating and a sleek, shiny indoor space, almost reminiscent of a modern art museum. Except the art here is beer.
Don’t Miss: Take a wander around, beer in hand, to see the funky architectural design of the building.

Rising Tide Brewing Company
Right next door to Austin Street is Rising Tide, a huge beer garden full of families in the sunshine, friends playing cornhole and you, people-watching to your heart’s content. The beer offerings here are diverse and a good opportunity to get off the haze train for one stop (don’t worry, you’ll get back on very soon). Try a refreshing amber lager for a warm day, or a smooth warming stout if it’s a little chilly out.
Don’t Miss: There’s nothing like a game of cornhole with a beer in hand in a sunny beer garden opposite a park.

Walk up the road a few minutes to your next stop, the sensational Belleflower.

Belleflower Brewing Company
The baby of the bunch, Belleflower only opened in 2021 and immediately turned heads with its rich, flavourful New England IPAs that stand shoulder to shoulder with its more established peers. Owned by two couples and largely driven by women, Belleflower prides itself on being an inclusive space with passionate, articulate staff. The interior is small and cosy, the beer garden sits in a carpark but is a real sun-trap if you’re lucky enough to be there in summer and they’ve decorated it enough that you might not notice the Chevys coming in and out of the lot.
Don’t Miss: Two beers really stood out as some of the best we tasted in all of Portland – Barn Hex and Finch & Thistle delighted so much that we came back the next day to get more to take away.

Bonus Extra Stop: Apres
Round the back of Belleflower, Apres is a brand new bar focusing on cocktails and hard seltzers. If you fancy a total change-up from beer for a moment, it is a large and beautiful spot with deckchairs and a delightful ambiance. If you don’t fancy a change up from beer for a moment, or ever, then continue on to the final duo.

Lone Pine Brewing Company
Ironically not alone, Lone Pine shares a building with Goodfire, with LP round the front getting aaallll of the setting sun. It’s pretty cosy both inside and out, probably the smallest of the lot, but size doesn’t matter when it comes to beer choice. An excellent selection across a variety of IPAs, pale ales and even a lager (gasp!) mean there is only one real option here: a flight. Yes, that most divisive of beer inventions, this is one of the only breweries in the area that actively encourages flights, and they lean into it too: ours was served in a small waterski. Sit back, relax, sip away and pretend that walking between breweries is as potent an exercise as going out for a quick session on the water.
Don’t Miss: Waterski flight.

Goodfire Brewing Company
Round the back of Lone Pine is the final stop. Goodfire has a small beer garden in a courtyard and an even smaller interior with only four tables, and perhaps doesn’t have the same aesthetic wow-factor as some of the others. The beer does have a wow-factor, though: their signature IPA, Prime, is fast becoming a nationwide sensation and having it fresh on tap here is a mind-blowing experience. Get a 4 pack to-go – it holds up really well in cans, too.
Don’t Miss: Prime.

Your choice now is to meander back into the town centre or catch a cab. If you do decide to walk off the booze, you are likely to pass Oxbow.

Oxbow Blending & Bottling
A quick drink here is highly advised, or if it is Thursday-Sunday, you could even consider starting here, given the food options. Oxbow specialises in farmhouse and sour beers, so get ready to once again diversify your palette from the hops. The beer garden is rustic and full of character, the interior is spacious and industrial and you can’t really go too wrong on the drink. The staff know a lot about their styles, so if you’re less familiar with a Biere de Garde (guilty) then get some tasters and choose the one you enjoy most. Then get some delicious frites from the food hut and tuck in.
Don’t Miss: The frites are some of the best you’ll find this side of the Atlantic.

Now onto the second brewery hub.

Industrial Way

Industrial Way is exactly what it sounds like – a remote industrial park that is saturated with breweries, all within a stone’s throw of each other (disclaimer: depends how good you are at throwing). Any order works here; be sure to check opening/closing times.

Battery Steele Brewing
A huge taproom with an entrance at both ends and plentiful seating throughout, Battery Steele embraces the haze craze with its signature Flume series – the same beer but amped up to squared, cubed and quadrupled (nah) version. Taste the gradient and decide how strong your liver is. Confession: we preferred the weakest one.
Don’t Miss: Funky seating throughout – have a quick explore before you decide where to perch.

Foundation Brewing Company
Sharing the same warehouse as Battery Steele, Foundation is a smaller taproom with a buzzing beer garden and a few more bells and whistles to its beer. They even have – whisper it – non-hazy IPAs. This is also the only brewery in the whole area that does mixed 4 packs to take away, so make the most of it. That being said, their Epiphany beer is possibly the least alcoholic-tasting, smoothest 8% beer we’ve ever had.
Don’t Miss: A mixed 4 pack to go, or several Epiphany’s.

Definitive Brewing Company
Across the carpark (certainly the phrase most uttered in brewery guides), Definitive Brewing sits proudly in a cute brick building with an inviting entrance and spacious taproom. It’s haze central in here as expected, with some exciting seasonal releases too. Note that this taproom is usually open slightly later than the others.
Don’t Miss: Their birthday beer, Orbit, stands out as a very special tipple.

Allagash Brewery
The one you’ve heard of. We’ll be releasing a specific guide dedicated entirely to the taproom experience soon, so won’t say much more here other than a) make sure you go, b) Allagash Wit and Tripel taste soooo much better at the source, and c) it IS independent despite their huge distribution and fame. Enjoy.
Don’t Miss: The flagship beers. It’s tempting to go niche because you’ve had Wit before, but right here, right now, this is a totally different drink.

After you’ve had enough of traipsing across carparks, get a 15 minute cab back into the city.

Food and Fun

Regardless of your day out choices, you’ll likely end up back in the centre of town once all the breweries are closed. Options for an evening tipple include Novare Res, a Belgian themed beer bar that is open late and offers exquisite food options and all sorts of international and local beers; High Roller Lobster Co., owned by one of the Bissell Bros and boasting 9 taps of hard-to-find craft beer spanning all styles, alongside the best seafood in town; or, and hear me out on this one, you can do worse than a visit to Arcadia, a huge bar full of old videogames, pinball machines and other classics like skeeball and table football. It has a monster beer choice and often is the last place you can find rare local produce like Maine Beer Co.’s Dinner IPA, because nobody realises they have it, so it doesn’t run out as quickly.

The Wrap Up

Overall, we would recommend 2-3 days if your goal is to drink the city dry, and be sure to check brewery websites in advance for opening hours, especially if visiting on Sundays, Mondays and Tuesdays.

Your final stop as you find your way back out of the haze could be Portland Beer Hub, which is exactly what it says it is and sells mixed 4-packs of other Maine-but-non-Portland beers. There is also Bier Cellar, a little further out of the centre, which is similar to the above though slightly bigger. To be honest, your bag is probably already bursting at the seams with to-go cans from all the breweries you visited, so make sure you don’t pick up a back strain from lugging too many cans. Taxi to the Transit Center, accidentally pop into Bissell Bros for one last sip of juice, and off you go.

The haze craze is alive and well in Portland, Maine and its eminent walk-ability makes it a perfect trip for a couple of days and more than a couple of beers. It will saturate your taste buds, introduce you to lots of friendly New Englanders passionate about their craft, and you may not feel like you need another IPA for at least few hours a while. Portland Oregon who?