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CTMQ > Food & Drink > Breweries > Breweries, Brewpubs & Cideries

Breweries, Brewpubs & Cideries

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Beer. And Lots Of It

I began this particular page in 2008 when there were four breweries in Connecticut: Cottrell, Hooker, New England, and Olde Burnside. Only one had a tasting room (Hooker) and each was pumping out only a handful of beers. There were a few brewpubs operating as well.

Area Two Brewing Experimental Brewing, Stratford

And we only had five breweries in 2011. Then there were thirty in 2015. 45 in 2016. Nearly 60 at the end of 2017. Nearly 100 at the end of 2019. You get the point… the industry exploded here and I enjoyed watching it happen and writing about it. The pandemic coupled with consumer fatigue/saturation slowed growth around 2021 and the state has been “stuck” at just over 100 for a few years.

Although the lists below are constantly in flux, I am confident that my list is consistently the best and most accurate one that exists. If you know of anything missing or outdated, let me know.

Jump to Breweries in planning
Jump to Closed breweries since 2010
Jump to Cideries & Kombucheries
(Meaderies are over here along with non-carbonated wine-like hard cider.)

Operational Breweries & Brewpubs

106 Independent Operational Breweries as of 12/1/2024 according to my counting system. Everyone views different set-up scenarios differently. On my main list, I don’t count second locations or distribution-only breweries, and “collectives” are counted as 1.

Links go to my visit reports, many of which are quite old, but that’s okay

Hopmeadow Brewing Company, Avon
Coles Road Brewing Company, Berlin
Broken Symmetry Gastro Brewpub, Bethel
Back East Brewing Company, Bloomfield
Thomas Hooker Brewery, Bloomfield
Caius Farm Brewery, Branford
Stony Creek Brewery, Branford
Thimble Island Brewing Company, Branford
Aspetuck Brew Lab, Bridgeport
Berlinetta Brewing Company, Bridgeport
Brewport Brewing Company, Bridgeport
Foolproof Brewing, Bridgeport
The New Cambridge Project, Bristol
Cheshire Craft Brewing Company, Cheshire
Counter Weight Brewing Company, Cheshire
Little House Brewing Company, Chester
Hop Culture Farms, Colchester
Norbrook Farm Brewery, Colebrook
Charter Oak Brewing Company, Danbury
High Nine Brewing, Deep River
BAD SONS Beer Company, Derby
Almost Famous Brewing Company, East Granby
Rule of 3 Brewing, East Hampton
East Hartford Brewing Group, East Hartford
The Beeracks, East Haven
Niantic Public House, East Lyme
Problem Solved Brewing, East Windsor
Powder Hollow Brewing, Enfield
The Red Brewster, Enfield
Surfridge Brewing Company East, Essex
Hops on the Hill Brewery, Glastonbury
Cambridge House Brew Pub, Granby
Bank & Bridge Brewing Company, Groton
Misfit Club, Groton
Mystic River Chocolate Cafe, Groton
Outer Light Brewing Company, Groton
Phantom Brewing Company, Haddam (orig. Hartford)
Haven Beer Company, Hamden
No Worries Brewing Company, Hamden
Dead Language Beer Project, Hartford
Kent Falls Brewing Company, Kent
The Boroughs Brewing Company, Killingly
Black Pond Brews, Killingly
2nd Bridge Brewing Company, Manchester
Ericit Brewing Company, Manchester
Urban Lodge Brewing, Manchester
Brewbury, Middlebury
Forest City Brewing, Middletown
Stubborn Beauty Brewing Company, Middletown
Dockside Brewery, Milford
Milford Point Brewing, Milford
Tribus Beer Company, Milford
5 Churches Brewing, New Britain
Alvarium Beer Company, New Britain
Brewery Legitimus, New Hartford
Armada Brewing River Street, New Haven
BruRm @ BAR, New Haven
East Rock Brewing Company, New Haven
Tox Brewing Company, New London
Housatonic River Brewing, New Milford
NewSylum Brewing Company, Newtown
Reverie Brewing Company, Newtown
Stewards of the Land Brewery, North Branford
Great Falls Brewing Company, North Canaan
Twelve Percent Beer Project, North Haven
Shunock River Brewery and Village Cafe, North Stonington
Spacecat Brewing Company, Norwalk
Epicure Brewing, Norwich
These Guys Brewing Company, Norwich
Myrcene Ale Company, Old Saybrook
Black Hog Brewing, Oxford
OEC Brewing, Oxford
Relic Brewing Company, Plainville
Concentric Brewing Company, Portland
Bear Hands Brewing, Putnam
Nod Hill Brewery, Ridgefield
Still Hill Brewery, Rocky Hill
Fox Farm Brewery, Salem
CT Valley Brewing Company, South Windsor
Kinsmen Brewing, Southington
Transcend Beer Crafters (née Skygazer Brewing), Southington
Witchdoctor Brewing, Southington
Off the Rails Brewing Company, Stafford
Third Place by Half Full, Stamford
Lock City Brewing/Brew Works, Stamford
Beer’d Brewing, Stonington
Two Roads Brewing, Stratford
Broad Brook Brewing, Suffield
Clocktown Brewing Company, Thomaston
Triple Raven Brewing, Thompson
Bad Dog Brewing Company, Torrington
Center Street Brewing Co., Wallingford
Brass Works Brewing Company, Waterbury
Lasting Brass Brewing, Watertown
New Park Brewing Company, West Hartford
WeHa Brewing & Roasting Company, West Hartford
Coastline Brewing Company, Westbrook
Sly Bandit Brewing Company, Wilton
Willimantic Brewing Company, Windham (Willimantic)
Little Red Barn Brewers, Winchester (Winsted)
Dudleytown Brewing Company, Windsor
Luppoleto Brewing Company, Windsor Locks
New England Brewing Company, Woodbridge
Woodbury Brewing Company, Woodbury
Taylor Brooke Brewery, Woodstock
Tree House Brewing, Woodstock

Second Locations

*No onsite brewing (real or planned)

Brewery Legitimus, Canton (Not yet open)
Kinsmen @ The Station, Clinton (Not yet open)
Five Churches by the Bay*, East Lyme
Ericit Brewing, Danbury (Not yet open)
Ericit Brewing, Fairfield
Beer’d Brewing @ the Silo, Groton
Thomas Hooker Brewery at Colt, Hartford
Urban Lodge Brewing Company*, Hartford
The Stack/Bear’s Smokehouse, New Haven
Thimble Island Brewpub, Old Saybrook
Area Two Experimental Brewing, Stratford

Distribution Only Breweries

Lost Tourist Brewing Company, Meriden
Athletic Brewing Company, Milford/Stratford(Non-alcoholic)
Ms. Beer Haven, North Stonington
Veritable Distillery Brewery, Stonington
Watson Farmhouse Brewery, Southbury

Breweries & Brewpubs in Planning

As of July 2024, I foresee only 2 or 3 of these ever happening.

Skulls Brew House, Berlin
Malpractice Brewing Company, Cheshire
Yellow Barn Brewery, Mansfield
Unnamed Research Parkway Brewery, Meriden
Tate’s Restaurant/Eli Cannon’s Brewing Collective, Middletown
SoNo Brewing Company, Norwalk
Boondoggle Beers, Rocky Hill
Twelve Gods Brewery, Wilton

Closed Breweries & Brewpubs (Since 2010)

Brew Pub at Mohegan Sun, Montville (Closed 2011)
Tullycross Tavern and Microbrewery, Manchester (Closed Nov. 2013)
Cavalry Brewing, Oxford (Closed May 2014)
Guvnor’s Brewery, Norwalk (Closed Dec. 2014)
Top Shelf Brewery, Manchester (Closed July 2016)
Tidal River Brewing, Canton (Closed Oct. 2016)
Southport Brewing Company, Various towns (Closed Various dates)
Hell or High Water Brewpub, Norwalk (Closed Oct. 2017)
Hooker Test Kitchen, Montville (Closed March 2017)
Church Owl Beer, Stratford (Closed Feb 2018)
Olde Burnside Brewing Company, East Hartford (Closed Dec. 2018)
Carriage House Brewery, Canton (Closed April 2019)
Parable Brewing Company, Manchester (Closed Apr. 2019)
Shebeen Brewing Company, Wolcott (Closed April 2019)
Steady Habit Brewing, Haddam (Closed July 2019)
Erector Brewing at NOLO, New Haven (Closed September 2019)
Hanging Hills Brewing Company, Hartford (Closed March 2020)
Stranger Tides Brewing Company, Colchester (Closed March 2020)
Bad Dream Brewing, New Milford (Closed June 2020)
Iron Brewing Company, Norwalk (Closed July 2020)
Noble Jay Brewing Company, East Lyme (Closed September 2020)
Fifth Year Brewery, West Haven (Closed October 2020)
Breakaway Brew Haus, Bolton (Closed October 2020)
The Crossings Restaurant & Brewpub, Putnam (Ceased brewing late 2020)
Stony Creek Brewing at Foxwoods, Ledyard (Closed March 2021)
Cold Creek Brewing & Tavern, Ellington (Closed June 2021)
Better Half Brewing, Bristol (Closed December 2021)
Fat Orange Cat Brewing Company, East Hampton (Closed December 2021)
30 Mile Brewing, Old Saybrook (Closed January 2022)
Cottrell Brewing Company, Stonington (Closed January 2022)
Connecticut Brewery Collective, Wolcott (Closed January 2022)
Veracious Brewing Company, Monroe (Closed May 2022)
Candlewood Brewing Company, New Milford (Closed July 2022)
Velvet Libations, Wolcott (Closed September 2022)
Fairfield Craft Ales, Stratford (Closed September 2022)
Front Porch Brewing, Wallingford (Closed February 2023)
DuVig Brewing Company, Branford (Closed February 2023)
Firefly Hollow Brewing Company, Bristol (Closed February 2023)
Hog River Brewing, Hartford (Closed April 2023)
Powder Hollow Middletown, Middletown (Closed May 2023)
Cliffside Brewery, Wallingford (Closed May 2023)
Redding Beer Company, Redding (Closed January 2024)
City Steam Brewery Cafe, Hartford (Closed March 2024)
Quirk Works Brewery and Blendery, Danbury (Closed May 2024)
Labyrinth Brewing Company, Manchester (Closed July 2024)
Barley Head Brewery, Groton (Closed July 2024)
Evening Sky Brewing Company, Burlington (Closed August 2024)
Paddle Creek Beer Company, East Hartford (Closed September 2024)
The Brewery at Maple View Farm, Granby (Closed November 2024)
Half Full Brewery, Stamford (Closed October 2024)

Cideries

(For wine-like hard cider, go here.)

Yankee Cider Company, East Haddam
East Coast Cidery, Enfield (Closed)
Bushy Hill Cidery at Clark Farms, Granby
Spoke + Spy Ciderworks, Middletown
Long View Ciderhouse, Southington
Stafford Cidery, Home of Crazy Cock Cider, Stafford
New England Cider Company, Wallingford
Tree House Orchard & Farm Fermentory, Woodstock

Kombucha

860Kombucha, Groton
Cross Culture Kombucha, Danbury
East Coast Kombucha Company, Norwalk
SouLstice Kombucha Brewing Company, Wallingford

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Comments

  1. Do you have any plans on doing a defunct list? More than just from 2010 to now?

  4. I’d like to post this on my website, I might be missing the author’s name so I can give proper credit to. Thanks!

  6. It’s on the list but since they are only Kegged Distribution only and aren’t “visitable,” they are separated from the main list.

  8. Jake – years ago, after asking people in the industry, I was guided to slot the meaderies in the with the wineries. Now, years later, I probably disagree with that, but… I don’t feel like changing it. So they’re over here.

  10. Both Bank & Bridge and Barley Head breweries are located in downtown Mystic, not in Groton.

  12. Thanks for publishing this list. This weekend I will close my goal of having been to every brewery in CT that is currently open. Love your in-depth reviews as well. I also chronicle my journies but do not go into the depth that you do.

  13. The Crossings in Putnam hasn’t been a brewery for 4 years and there ‘s no taproom at Athletic so I think the correct number is 103, unless Athletic counts under your system.

  15. FYI, just got back from the Crossings in Putnam which is NOT a brewery. And they don’t have any intentions of restarting the brewing from what I was told. Phantom Brewing is also not open in Higganum and their social media is totally inactive with no discussion of progress. Both places may have kept their licenses current for future potential, but they should not be on the list of open breweries.

  16. Black Pond Brews moved from Killingly to Dayville a couple of years ago. The Boroughs took over their original location.

  18. I’ll try this one more time. The Crossings in Putnam is not a brewery despite what you might find online. I just called there to confirm that they stopped brewing during Covid and have no plans to start up again. I was also told that their online platforms haven’t been updated in a long time. It could be a long disappointing drive for many people so I hope you will take them off your list. Thanks.

  19. I love your list! I had an amazing Helles from Barn Brew Co. from Groton. I have never heard of them and was wondering why they have never made your list?

  20. Barn Brew are contract brewers out of East Rock. The number of contract brewers over the years is impossible to count. Made the decision long ago to not include that type of brewery, as they don’t have a brewery of their own.

  21. Love this list and come back to it pretty often. I will note that I think Redding Beer permanently closed in January this year and also I think Ericit should be Elicit. Anyway, cheers and great work here.

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