SUGAR LOAF, NEW YORK

Up in the woodsy rural hills of Sugar Loaf three miles north of similarly rustic Drowned Lands, TIN BARN BREWING opened springtime 2020. Co-owning head brewer, Lauren Van Pamelen, whose rotating beer lineup pours from twelve-plus taps, honed her skills as a homebrewer and an apprenticeship at Long Island’s Oyster Bay Brewing Company.

Inside a spacious forest green farmhouse lodge with pitched high ceiling, exposed pipes, a cozy couched hearth section and Industrial wood-metal-plastic furnishings, Tin Barn’s mammoth stainless steel brew tanks occupy the entire left side. The food station (next to the gray ’52 Ford tractor) provides specialty gas-fired red and white pizzas.

Plus, there’s plenty of outside backyard seating as the benched wood deck and its mezzanine sidle the turf grounded open air outdoor pavilion.

I step up to the wood top bar and order a few rangy homemade brews (reviewed below) before heading outside on this warm Saturday afternoon May ’21 to watch acoustic duo, the Al’s, give a new spin to old classics while offering funny pandemic-related originals such as “Where’s My Charger?” and “Plan B.”

Sessionable hazy straw yellowed NEIPA, 1938 Farmall, let spritzy lemony grapefruit tanginess pick up mild pineapple, mandarin orange and tangerine slumber as well as piney hop resin.

Easygoing sunny yellow-glowed Oh! How I’ve Dreamt Of Taps, a lightly creamed triple IPA moderation, saddled its peppery lemon tang with oats flaked mineral grains.

Musky golden marbled NEIPA, Dank Island, retained yogurt-soured pineapple tartness, grapefruit-pitted orange rind bittering, lightly peppered lemon spritz and spiced mango salting.     

Tartly sour Tropical Tsunami brought puckered orange-juiced guava, mango, pineapple and tangerine tropicalia to the moderately acidic surface above oated white wheat dryness.

Whipped cream banana pudding received chocolate chip sugaring for richly creamed Chocolate Chip Cookie Bourbon Banana Pudding Imperial Pastry Stout, leaving fudgy molasses brownie goodness all over ancillary bourbon vanilla sweetness.