The state of Maine may be less populated than many of the others in our union, but there is certainly no shortage of craft beer. In fact, 26 of Maine’s breweries will be coming together this week, starting on November 10th, to celebrate the state’s first ever Beer Week. I did some quick math and that’s just about one microbrewery per 50K citizens. Hot damn.

I hold a special place in my heart for Maine, not only because I lived there for a few years, or because of its absolute coastal and mountainous beauty, but because being in Maine was the catalyst for my true love of good beer. Before moving to Portland, I had never had any brew besides those produced by the likes of Anheuser-Busch, MillerCoors and other macro types.

My very first week in the state found me at a local waterfront dive, Three Dollar Deweys, sipping on Magic Hat #9, wondering how I’d gone so long without ever trying a craft brew. The apricot pale ale paired perfectly with the coconut battered shrimp, especially when dunked in the sweet mango side.

Although I don’t often imbibe in the Vermont brewery’s #9 anymore, I’ll always attribute it, alongside my move to Maine, as the reason I got into craft beer in the first place. That said, nothing would make me happier than to pack up the car and bring the man on his first trip to Portland, one of my very favorite cities, this weekend to celebrate Maine Beer Week. Although it’s not possible for us this year, I’ll most definitely be marking my calendar for next.

TAGS [ MAINE BEER WEEK | CRAFT BEER | MICROBREWERIES ]