Hill Farmstead Brewery

Been trying to get here for forever. Off the beaten path, so much so that when you get there it won’t really exist. Almost no cars seen on the drive so when you go over the last hill and see the place jam packed, you wonder where all the people came from. A real pleasure, just like Going to ebenezers in maine

What can I say. This is as close to (Beer) heaven as I’m ever gonna get. The ride from Waterbury was breathtaking and beautiful. This is everything I anticipated and more. Crowd was small and spread out; no lines at all. Plucked in the middle of nowhere, the farmstead is serene and relaxing. 12 taps and 6 bottle pours were available. All of the highest quality. A mix of ales, lagers, stouts and mixed culture brews. Haven’t visited the store yet, but will update after going there.

Our first port of call in Vermont after driving from New Hampshire. A gloriously sunny day with clear blue skies made the rolling green hills that Hill Farmstead looks out onto even more vivid. Whether it's a conscious effort to blend in with this landscape, or a nod to the rustic farmhouse breweries in Belgium I'm not sure, but Hill Farmstead is devoid of any signage at all, whether it's the dusty gravel road leading to the brewery, or within the brewery itself. The bar is plain, no beer list or fonts.. just a printed beer menu littered about the bar and on the seats outside. It's a nice wooden building with a small amount of seats and terrace area. But most people are making the most of the sun and sitting on the green lawn out front or playing with the usual beer garden games. Not too busy on my visit, maybe 25 people max, lots from Quebec half an hour away. From memory there were about 8 -10 HF beers on tap, plus some expensive looking bottle pours. Surprised to see they make a cider too. I got two beers and the cider, but the older lady at the bar was very quick to inform me of the state rule that I could not take more than two beers out at one time. So she carried one over with me. I got the feeling it was to check I wasn't buying for anyone under 21. The merch / beer collection was in another building, alongside a sizeable display of motivational / spiritual / buddhist / climate change books which were also for sale. Lots of peace and love self screen-printed posters dotted about the brewery too, although they weren't for sale. Three Drie Fonteinen bottles alongside the HF. $50 a pop. A really pleasant place overall, only complaint is the beers were served way too cold, with their overall flavour profile chilled dead. A real shame.

Rural location on rolling hills with glorious views. Small tap selection of up to date IPAs and lagers, and older cellar stock. Bottle pours and vintage bottles available as well, as far back as 2012 on my visits. Visited two days in a row, and significant turnover on bottles and bottle pours to have there. Prices are high, especially on the vintage stuff, but we decided it was worth it after the long drive. Decent selection of IPA cans and bottles to go, as well as growlers. Excellent cheese available to pair with the excellent beers. Worthy of its rating.

2022 New England Beer Tour, Stop 8 of 12, Oct. 14, mid-afternoon. Is it possible for the RateBeer No. 1 brewery to live up to its hype? Maybe I let my Hill Farmstead expectations get too high. The journey to it is a joy. Beautiful highways get progressively less improved and eventually are nothing more than a hardened dirt road. Around a dusty turn you go and there appears a rolling hilltop with a small brewery and taproom perched atop it. We arrived on an unusually warm October Saturday afternoon to find a medium-sized crowd and parking that didn’t require parking in (literally) the north forty. There were eight beers on tap but, alas, three had already sold out. To compensate, a beertender suggested we consider splurging on a $30 limited edition bomber (I forget which one). We declined. The available tap beers were reasonably priced (no flights). The merchandise area had beer to go and three different colors of the same short-sleeved T shirt. There was minimal indoor seating, but the warm weather made the many outdoor picnic tables overlooking the colorful area hillsides very inviting (though the same can't be said for the outdoor portable toilets). And that was it: good beer in a nice setting. I sensed many folks were quietly asking themselves what I was: This is the No. 1 brewery?

Located up in a high meadow, after a few miles I f dusty, bumpy gravel road. Scenic vistas. Looks like a farm. Taproom with porch around it. Lawn seating. Reservations recommended. Bottle shop on site. A venue worthy of the beer brewed here.

Finally made the pilgrimage here, and unfortunately it was a year and a half into the pandemic, which seemed to be slowing when we originally booked the trip. HF is currently open 12-5 Wednesday through Friday, with advance reservations required, and we were there from 3:30 to close on Friday. The weather was perfect, luckily. The location is a ways down a gravel (pretty smooth) road in the central-north Vermont countryside. Rolling hills, mountains in the distance, lots of green in every direction. The buildings look like farm buildings, with weathered wood shingles. The taproom has a porch on two sides, and there's a roped-in lawn with some tables and chairs, and one small pavilion. There were only about 6 things on draft when we visited and 8 bottles (4 sold out), plus a couple other things available for bottle pours. The beer is obviously world class. Service was good but the line system could be better (Vermont's 2-beers-per-person is annoying, too, for a group that wanted to split some bottles). There's a separate building for bottle sales, which fortunately did not have any line when we were there. But offerings were also fairly limited at the time. This place is great, and absolutely worth the trip. Wish we had some more time to air it out here.

Took a detour going from Portland to Burlington to get some beers to trade for Tree house beers. I was lucky that I was only one buys beer to go when I got there. Found out why, no hoppy beers available. Had to wear a mask and it kept fogging my glasses and could not read the list well. I got some my friend wanted. Even though I did not reserve a $5 seat in tasting room they left me buy a draft and stand at bar, I drank most of it while waiting in line for the one bathroom they have. One Bathroom after that loooong drive we have to make to go there!!!

Great tap-room at the back for draft deep cutz. Ryan came back from brewing to help out serving. The queue system needs to be improved. It's a very long wait. I had a really nice time but was put off by the three hours it took to get beer. Great place just I don't understand the ticket system. Visited in 2015 with some friends from MA and RI.