Well I am back from an exciting weekend in Boston. My blog this evening will be about brewery tours. While I was in Boston, my friends and I went to Sam Adams and Harpoon. Two very different breweries that provided two different experiences.

Our experience began Saturday morning at 10:30 when we arrived at Sam Adams. We were 30 minutes early for their 11 am tour. Sam Adams was a more structured tour where Harpoons was more of a tasting. At Sam Adams they took us in the research and development plant and showed us their brewing areas. The provided us with a lot of information about their company, their beers and the brewing process. After about 40 minutes the tour was over and it was time for the tasting. The tasting was OK. We were only given three samples (the Boston Lager, White Ale and a new research beer(which sucked!)). Sam Adams did have a great gift shop. We all picked up a set of their perfect pint glasses (which are amazing!). We left the brewery about 12:30, which gave us plenty of time to get to Harpoon for 2.

At Harpoon, we stood in a room that overlooked the brewing plant. As i said previously, Harpoon was a tasting, not a tour, so instead of taking us around and telling us how great their beer is, they let us drink it. For 45 minutes we were able to try as many samples as we desired. Within the 45 minutes there was a brief intermission where the bartenders talked about each type of beer. I am a big fan of Harpoon, especially the winter warmer, so I was very excited about trying some newer beers. After the tasting, we perused the gift shop, which was not that great. They did sell a lot of their beers but the merchandise was sub par.

After all was said and done we visited two of Bostons greatest breweries in one day and survived. If your asking for a recommendation, I would say it depends on your interests. If you are interested in learning a lot about beer then I would say go to Sam Adams. If you are interested in drinking a lot of great beer then Harpoon is up your alley. Personally I prefer Harpoons beer over Sam Adams so I would say Harpoon is the choice.

Here all the bombs fade away
JK