Boston Craft Beer Guide: Best Breweries, Taprooms & Beer Trails

Boston has undergone a craft beer revolution that has transformed the city from a Samuel Adams monoculture into one of America's most exciting regional brewing scenes. The Greater Boston area now hosts over 50 craft breweries ranging from neighbourhood taprooms in converted warehouses to destination breweries drawing visitors from across New England.

The epicentre of Boston's craft beer scene is the Seaport District and East Boston, where the industrial heritage lends itself to large-format brewery taprooms. Trillium Brewing Company (Fort Point location) is the marquee name — their hazy IPAs have achieved cult status, with lines forming before opening on weekend release days. Night Shift Brewing in Everett offers an enormous taproom in a converted armoured-car factory. Aeronaut Brewing in Somerville has become a neighbourhood gathering place with excellent food trucks and live music.

For a focused beer trail, the Cambridge-Somerville axis offers walkable hopping between Remnant Brewing, Lamplighter Brewing Co (Cambridge), and Idle Hands (Malden). Many Boston craft breweries offer brewery tours on weekends; Harpoon Brewery on the Seaport waterfront has a particularly popular tour with live music in summer. The Beer Summit held annually at the Cyclorama is the region's premier craft beer festival.