HUDSON, NEW YORK

Inside a rustic cement-floored industrial warehouse, evolving ‘destination farmhouse brewery,’ HUDSON BREWING COMPANY, has helped revitalized this small Columbia county city.

Formerly a well-respected local nanobrewery stationed just across the railroad tracks from its new location, Hudson Brewing moved to its new Front Street digs May, 2017, and continues to craft six staples alongside exciting new recipes for their growing fan base.

Owner PJ Birmingham recently hired 27 year-old brewing guru, Aaron Maas, an acquaintance through several mutual friends.

With a twelve-seat crushed-metal bar at its core, this features twelve draught handles, a wood-boarded beer listing Behind the bar are the windowed brew tanks serving tonight’s fare this brisk December ’17 eve.

Though I miss out on the popular Irish Red Ale, there are eleven different draught beers consumed during my two-hour closing time stint.

Light-bodied staple, Shadie Sadie Cream Ale, caressed dry pale malts and popcorn-like maize rusticity with grassy hop astringency.

Mildly citrus-spiced Wayward Woman Kolsch let grassy hops contrast sweet breaded pale malting.

Dewy ESB brought moderate dried fruit spicing to leafy hop astringency and dainty brown tea illusions.

Tobacco-roasted Altbier benefited from wispy chocolate and rye malting.

Called a ‘Sierra Nevada with a burst of flavor,’ approachable Proprietors Pale Ale’s candy-spiced orange, peach, apple and tangerine tang picked up grassy hop resin.

‘Basic’ Widows Walk IPA stayed stylistically prim as gently-spiced grapefruit, pineapple and orange briskness gained subtle piney hop bittering and mild grassy notions.  

Floral-perfumed yellow grapefruit spicing fronted dry rye-malted Rye To Me Rye IPA.

Brisk piney tropical fruiting inundated Beached Whale New England IPA, where grapefruit-peeled orange rind bittering picks up lemony hop phenols to contrast sweet peach-mango tang and prickly floral spicing.

Honeyed nuttiness casually affected English Brown Ale, a moderate-to-medium body with drifting molasses, caramel and chocolate truffle dollops.

Dark chocolate malts crested atop Burnt Caramel Porter, letting caramelized molasses contrast its light wood char just beneath the mocha surface.

For dessert, Tainted Senorita Mexican Coffee Stout allowed its cold-brewed coffee tones spread across dark chocolate malts and dark roasted hops, gaining light vanilla, espresso and cacao nibs tones by the finish.

www.hudsonbrew.com