Background
Smuttynose Brewing was founded in 1994 in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, by Peter Egelston and his sister, Janet. The name comes from Smuttynose Island, one of nine that form the Isles of Shoals. And the mascot, a harbor seal.
Smuttynose was not their first brewery as Peter and Janet had opened Northampton Brewery in 1987. Northampton Brewery is currently the oldest operating brewpub in the Northeast. Peter was Head Brewer until 1991, the year they opened the Portsmouth Brewery, New Hampshire’s first brewpub.
In 1993, Peter purchased the bankrupt Frank Jones Brewing Company which was to become Smuttynose. Over the next several years popularity and production increased and the brewery was expanded. Still, Peter found himself in need of a new brewery site. After two potential sites fell through, he discovered the historic 17-acre Towle Farm in Hampton, New Hampshire. In 2010 brewery construction began at Towle Farm.
In 2012, Smuttynose began a $24 million expansion, and create an eco-friendly brewery. It won the designation as a LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification. Smuttynose officially moved to the Towle Farm headquarters in 2014.
Within four years, Smuttynose fell on financial hardship. Egelston cited overleveraging of investments and missed growth projections due increasing competition from other craft brewers. In 2018, Smuttynose announced a bank auction of the brewery. At auction, The Provident Bank purchased the company for $8.25 million. Later that year, Runnymede Investments purchased the company from The Provident Bank.
Runnymede Investments have since renamed the holding company as Finestkind Brewing. In addition to running Smuttynose, they have purchased Brooklyn’s Five Boroughs Brewing and most recently Wachusett Brewing.
Experience
Arriving at Smuttynose on a Friday afternoon, the outdoor area was full of people enjoying the weather and a beer. We went into the tasting room of this huge facility and started with a flight. Small plastic cups were used for the flight which surprised us as we have never seen that in the 100s of breweries we have visited. I assume they use plastic because most people hang outside. We tried several options and found them drinkable.
I understand the property also houses a popular restaurant that we did not try. The indoor tasting room is not large. There are a few hightops and you order your beer from a small bar. It appears the aim is to come get a pint and hang out on the grounds while you wait for your restaurant reservation.
The grounds are quite large. If you have issues walking a far distance, this might not be a great option. Once you near the tasting room, it is accessible. It appears to be a great place to take the family, the family dog and perhaps a picnic.
If you are heading to Maine, check out Odd by Nature Brewing and York Beach Beer Co! Also read about the original Egelston brewery Northampton Brewing.
