Thomas Hooker Beers

Thomas Hooker Brewing Company
Bloomfield

Beer List:

American Pale Ale, C
Blonde Ale, C
Brewtus Maximus pale ale, A-
Defiance Pale Lager, B-
Hop Meadow IPA, A-
Imperial Porter, A-
Irish Red Ale, C+
Liberator Doppelbock, A
Munich Style Golden Lager, B+
Spinster XPA, C

Seasonals and the Less Common:

Late winter/spring: Chocolate Truffle Stout, A-
Summer: Watermelon Ale, F+
Fall: Octoberfest, B
Winter: Nor’Easter Lager, D

Old Marley Barleywine, A+
2012 Barrel Aged Saison, A-

Draft only, Private labels, One-offs and Experimentals:

2014 is bringing some new and exciting stuff from Hooker. They are responding to the market and I am excited.

Tenacious Belgian IPA
Soft Spoken table beer
Demure Smoked Saison

Flippin’ Bird Ale (Sliders private label), C
Cappy’s Ale (Flanders Fish Market private lablel), C

Hooker One-offs, casks and experimental Beers

…………………………………………………..

Hooker. Not exactly a subtle name but one which has immense historic underpinnings in the Hartford area. For it was Thomas Hooker who founded Hartford. The Hooker name is so prevalent in and around Hartford that it’s not even all that funny to those of us who live here. Heck, there’s a Hooker Drive in my hometown of West Hartford not too far from the Sarah Whitman Hooker Homestead.

Of course, Hooker Brewing does not shy away from selling Hooker t-shirts and such with such cheeky witticisms as “No Wife, No Girlfried, No Date… You Need a Hooker” and “Hooker: Always a Happy Ending” among others. But that’s par for the course in the beer industry of course. Even in our relatively small brewing state, we also have Beaver Beer who play this same game and the Great New London Brewing Company who have a rather sexy video on their website.

But whatever. Hooker has been my “hometown” brewery for years and years. Even way back in the day when they were born as Trout Brook Brewing in the old Spaghetti Warehouse in Hartford. (I don’t know how that begat this, but I’m 99% certain there was some continuity and connection.) I can get up to Hooker in about 12 minutes from my house and refill a growler for only 8 bucks on any random Saturday.

Hooker is, I think, the biggest brewery in Connecticut but they still retain their craft brewing merits. The owner, Chris, is a really good dude who has taken time out to help me with the fundraiser I put together to raise money for research on my son’s rare syndrome. (In fact, Hooker is a wonderfully charitable business as you can see here.)

For that alone I love them. I also love that they expanded their old tattered tasting room to what is now a large, clean and comfortable taproom area with tv’s and everything.

Let’s be honest; Hooker makes a couple seasonals that I find repellant. But I also know they both sell really well and other people like them plenty. And heck, Hooker is ranked number 15 in the top 50 American Micro Breweries by the Beer Advocate.

(I need to mention that an upstart craft brewery has now joined Hooker in Bloomfield and they show great promise – Back East Brewing Company is mere minutes north.)

And both are right in my backyard.

Cheers!

My visit to the brewery
Thomas Hooker Brewing Company
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