• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • HOME
  • NEWS+OPINIONS
    • NEWS TO US
    • COLUMNS
      • APPARENT HORIZON
      • DEAR READER
      • Close
    • LONGFORM FEATURES
    • OPINIONS
    • EDITORIAL
    • Close
  • ARTS+ENTERTAINMENT
    • FILM
    • MUSIC
    • COMEDY
    • PERFORMING ARTS
    • VISUAL ARTS
    • Close
  • DINING+DRINKING
    • EATS
    • SIPS
    • BOSTON BETTER BEER BUREAU
    • Close
  • LIFESTYLE
    • CANNABIS
      • TALKING JOINTS MEMO
      • Close
    • WELLNESS
    • GTFO
    • Close
  • STUFF TO DO
  • TICKETS
  • ABOUT US
    • ABOUT
    • MASTHEAD
    • ADVERTISE
    • Close
  • BECOME A MEMBER

Dig Bos

The Dig - Greater Boston's Alternative News Source

BOSTON BETTER BEER BUREAU: WINTER HILL BREWING

Written by CITIZEN STRAIN Posted November 11, 2019 Filed Under: Better Boston Beer Bureau, COLUMNS, Eats, LIFESTYLE

 

Dank Darlin’s and Russian stouts in cozy digs with killer brussel sprouts and parking too

 

Welcome to the Boston Better Beer Bureau, our latest incarnation of the trusty suds reporting we’ve done at DigBoston ever since people referred to beer as suds. Really, we remember the days when we’d spend half our checks on fancy German bottles just so that we could review them, whereas these days breweries from all around New England kindly send us samplers and stay in touch. The BBBB is our attempt to return that love, all while sharing more news about the innumerable microbreweries and pubs among us. 

 


 

First of all, while I know you’re not supposed to necessarily be driving to these places, I have to note that Winter Hill Brewing in Somerville has lots of parking, or at least one parking lot, which is more than most. It’s just so goddamn rare these days that it is probably worth mentioning, plus the taproom isn’t exactly next to the train, so perhaps you’ll want to get a friend to roll you in their car. It’s fine if they don’t drink; as you’ll see in the part where I extol the food, there’s something for just about everyone, even sober vegetarians.

 

Unlike modern breweries that have the whole Dave & Buster’s appeal with games and attractions, this spot’s simply built for good drinking and grubbing, and I cannot stress enough that there is nothing wrong with that. Not unlike Dorchester Brewing Co., Winter Hill’s home base doubles as a neighborhood bar, one where somebody might actually know your name. With the frigid months approaching, this is a place you’ll want to have on your cozy and comfortable list.

 

 

I’ll expand on the sips in a moment, but first I have some props for the food. Even in 2019, in an age and time when baseball parks sell sashimi and McDonald’s offers craft coffee, I still don’t walk into most breweries expecting top-notch fare. It’s nice when there’s a food truck out back to help quell my munchies, but pretzels and mustard will do the trick just fine. With that said, Winter Hill Brewing has some spectacular bites; like, I’d go there even if I wasn’t looking to get trashed. We only had the brilliant brussel sprouts, fantastic mac and cheese, and fried buffalo broccoli that could compete with any plate of traditional chicken wings, but we were motivated enough to return and sample the rest, especially the overstuffed sandwiches that kept giving us whiplash as they manifested on tables around us.

 

For beer, it’s only right to start off with the signature Darlin’s IPA. At 6.6% ABV, which I faithfully believe is basically the perfect percentage for a strong ale of this variety, and in the service of the tagline, “West Coast meets East Coast. Floral and Dank,” this is one of our region’s leading numbers, equal parts challenging and easy on the pipes. Packing citrus, marmalade, resin, and pine notes, it’s the kind of beer you marry.

 

Once you’ve settled in with a Darlin’s, or perhaps one of the usually available Johnny Juice Bomb hazy hopalongs that Winter Hill is also known for, it’s time to reach for some exotics, like the evening-ending Russian Ending Imperial Stout (9.2% ABV), or the Rose of Slovenia IPA (5%), which is light with a small bite, visually resembling generic table beer but offering much more upon the palette.

 

On our last trip to the brewery, we also got to enjoy a few pours of Lazy in the Sky stout, which we found to be sweet and filling, like an apple donut stuffed with candy corn, though slightly more subtle. The taste propelled us deep into a cavern, the kind of place we’d like to hibernate for several of the coming months.

 

A place, I suppose, like Winter Hill Brewing.

CITIZEN STRAIN
+ posts

Citizen Strain/Grain is an amalgamation of a bunch of us who, in addition to the hard and oftentimes depressing journalism we report for the Dig, also enjoy sampling and writing about the various beers, spirits, and cannabis products that vendors from near and far send our way. If you want us to check out your product, please contact us at info@digboston.com.

  • CITIZEN STRAIN
    https://digboston.com/author/citizen-strain/
    This New Camino Gummy Put Us To Sleep Without Boring Us
  • CITIZEN STRAIN
    https://digboston.com/author/citizen-strain/
    Bite This: Koko Gemz
  • CITIZEN STRAIN
    https://digboston.com/author/citizen-strain/
    The Solubles: Cannabis Products That Melt In Your Mouth
  • CITIZEN STRAIN
    https://digboston.com/author/citizen-strain/
    These Are The Preroll Packs We’re Bringing To Holiday Parties

Filed Under: Better Boston Beer Bureau, COLUMNS, Eats, LIFESTYLE Tagged With: BBBB, Beer, Boston better Beer Bureau, craft beer, IPA, new england, SOMERVILLE, Winter Hill Brewing

WHAT’S NEW

State Wire: Funds Aim To Support Municipalities With Expanded Mail Voting

State Wire: Funds Aim To Support Municipalities With Expanded Mail Voting

Parks & Checks: Wasteful, Opaque Bookkeeping At Two City Of Boston Nonprofit Arms

Parks & Checks: Wasteful, Opaque Bookkeeping At Two City Of Boston Nonprofit Arms

Surf’s Upcycled: Meet The Bay State Surfers Conserving The Oceans Where They Ride

Surf’s Upcycled: Meet The Bay State Surfers Conserving The Oceans Where They Ride

State Wire: Public Supports Changes To High-Stakes Testing For Mass Students

State Wire: Public Supports Changes To High-Stakes Testing For Mass Students

State Wire: White Supremacist Gatherings, Incidents Hit All-Time High In New England

State Wire: White Supremacist Gatherings, Incidents Hit All-Time High In New England

State Wire: Protests, Construction Continue at East Boston Substation

State Wire: Protests, Construction Continue at East Boston Substation

Primary Sidebar

LOCAL EVENTS

AAN Wire


Most Popular

  • Does Massachusetts Underestimate Its Greenhouse Gas Emissions?
  • The Most Expensive Massachusetts City For Car Insurance (No, It’s Not Boston)
  • If You Find A Mini Felted Animal Around Boston, This Is Where It Came From
  • Photo Dispatch: “Ukraine Day” Rally In Boston’s Copley Square
  • THROWBACK SPECIAL FOR MARCH MADNESS IN MASS: THE KING OF BOSTON BASKETBALL

Footer

Social Buttons

DigBoston facebook DigBoston Twitter DigBoston Instagram

Masthead

About

Advertise

Customer Service

About Us

DigBoston is a one-stop nexus for everything worth doing or knowing in the Boston area. It's an alt-weekly, it's a website, it's an email blast, it's a twitter account, it's that cool party that you were at last night ... hey, you're reading it, so it's gotta be good. For advertising inquiries: sales@digboston.com To reach editorial (and for inquiries about internship opportunities): editorial@digboston.com