The beer boomtowns: Stretch of tiny cities sprawled over hidden valley in New York sees NINETY breweries spring up - and now it's dubbed 'the Napa of beer'

An explosion in breweries across upstate New York has transformed the region into what many have dubbed the new Napa... of beer. 

The unofficial ale trail in the East Coast Hudson Valley, which includes ten counties and stretches 150 miles from New York City to Albany, is now home to some 90 craft breweries, which each offer their twist on the popular beverage.

This growing beer boom has seen an influx of tourists flock to the region, with scores of city dwellers descending on little-known towns to taste their finest brew. 

The Hudson Valley Tourism board's detailed brochure can be viewed online.

An unofficial beer trail is taking over Upstate New York - one that some say is forming a sort of 'Napa Valley' in the area's Hudson Valley. Pictured, a pair of drinkers toast during a performance at the Lasting Joy Brewery in Tivoli, New York, after it opened two years ago

Lasting Joy Brewery - (Columbia County)

Set on a picturesque slice of farmland in small-town Tivoli, Lasting Joy Brewery opened its doors in 2022.

In the two years since, the brewer has earned a reputation one might expect more from a winery in Northern California than a dark, dreary brewpub.

But here that stereotype is turned on its head thanks to the surrounding gardens, hills full of cherry blossoms and apple orchards.

The tasteful terroir pairs well with its tasty drinks, including five signature brews made on-site. 

Set on a picturesque slice of farmland in small-town Tivoli, Lasting Joy offers a wide variety of beers, including five signature brews made on-site

Rows of corn and barley there also reign supreme - all set to become ingredients for a future grain-to-glass drinking session.

'Wineries are very hospitality-first. It's not just the product they're putting in front of you,' Lasting Joy co-founder Emily Wenner told Bloomberg last month of how her and her staff's California-esque approach have helped them succeed thus far. 

'You have to offer the experience.' 

Suarez Family Brewery - (Columbia County)

Just up the road you will find Suarez Family Brewery, which - like Lasting Joy - is located just two hours from the city.

A self-professed 'mom and pop' operation, the brewer offers a range of ales of mixed fermentation, as well as a mix of delicious, unfiltered lagers and other 'crispy' beers. 

It can be found in the neighboring town of Hudson, in a prewar building that harks back to the backroad aesthetic seen there during the Great Depression.

Here, small-batch reigns supreme, while families also often visit for the other fare offered.

Just up the road you'll find Suarez Family Brewery, which - like Lasting Joy - is located just two hours from New York City

The small-town feel of the place, however, is even more noticeable - as are the flavors of the unique blends that are dreamt up there.

This includes the roasty Bones Shirt - a delectable German-style lager - and the Domain Fruit (Blend 5), a mix of two botanical country beers and two malts made on-site.

Outside, a set of long, simple tables exemplify homespun simplicity, and each May, the business pans out to take over the entire street for a whole month.

This is all done inside what was once a tractor dealership and then a 1970s lamp factory.

Arrowood Farms - (Ulster County)

Across the river is Arrowood Farms - set on a sprawling 48 acres that utilizes homegrown ingredients almost exclusively.

It opened back in 2013, when New York State enacted legislation that allowed brewers to serve consumers directly if their beers were largely local, Bloomberg reported.

This saw Arrowood led the charge in the area's decade-long beer boom, with more than the mandated 60 percent of its beermaking ingredients coming from the great state of New York.

This official 'farm brewery' designation, moreover, is not unique to Arrowood, with most of the other entries on this list meeting that standard.

Right across the river is Arrowood Farms, which is set on a sprawling 48 acres and utilizes homegrown ingredients almost exclusively

The brewery completed renovations on its historic mill building just last year, adding new elements like a tasting room that set it apart from the pack.

Guests are urged to tour the property, to see - and even touch - the different ingredients that go into each beer.

The move itself is reminiscent of places like Napa, or the Kentucky Bourbon Trail where guzzlers can see the corn, rye, malted barley, and wheat that goes into each batch. Samples, of course, are also available.

'We love connecting people with the natural world that enables their beer to exist,' head brewer Matt Schulze told Bloomberg, citing how his on-premise sales have doubled since 2018. 'That's the best way to weave those things into our story.' 

Plan Bee Farm Brewery - (Dutchess County)

Plan Bee Farm Brewery is a personal favorite of Schulze - likely due to its barnlike barroom and long list of yeasts made from their own homemade honey.

The quirk gives the business its name, and like Arrowood, it uses 100 percent state-grown ingredients.

Most are grown right on their farm in Poughkeepsie, making all their beers seasonal. Moreover, their vintages are directly tied to the local landscape, in a true field-to-glass brewery found in the heart of Dutchess County.

It's located in a secluded corner of the city back on the other side of the river, where couples commonly congregate in one of two taprooms that tout an unmistakable farm-like atmosphere.

Plan Bee Farm Brewery is a personal favorite - due to its barnlike barroom and long list of yeasts made from their own homemade honey

'Estate grown hops, heritage grains, well water, wild cultivated yeasts, locally grown oak tanks, homegrown fruits, herbs and flowers -all defines our terroir,' owners write on their website.

'Going forward on the farm we are designing beers with profound flavors & aromas that highlight the ingredients that we will painstakingly grow, harvest, & process.

'Tart and delicate,' the statement concludes.

Their soft, lemony Barn Beer ale seems to be the drink of choice this season - and appears to take a page out of Napa's book in the businesses' quest to showcase not only the flavors but the beauty of the region.

Hudson Valley Brewery - (Ulster County)

Hudson Valley Brewery boasts a more modern feel, but still has a reputation for reputable farmhouse ales and fruity IPAs that also utilize 100 percent New York wheat.

The beer itself, meanwhile, is brewed right there in the business's traditional mill, located in the quaint town of Beacon.

Inside, visitors can find a taproom adorned in all white, with stainless steel canisters carrying hundreds of gallons of microbrew ready to be poured on tap.

The result is more refined, with staffers instructed to operate more like a wine room than a typical brewpub.

Hudson Valley Brewery, meanwhile, boasts a more modern feel, but still has a reputation for reputable farmhouse ales and fruity IPAs that also utilize 100 percent New York wheat

This is achieved with a lack of flashy signage, as well as natural light, tap lists caressed in leather-bound booklets, and a steady stream of conversation between the staffers that sell the drinks and the patrons that drink them

'Having fun with the tasting notes works better than things like 'fresh-cut grass' that's harder to pin down,' Harry Manning, the brewery's marketing and sales manager, said of his store's approach.

'We do make a higher-end product, and I think we market ourselves that way. But we want to break down the pretension.'

Drowned Lands - (Orange County)

Voted the best brewery in the entire state in 2022, Drowned Lands is one of the most critically acclaimed entries on this list.

Located in the village of Warwick about an hour and a half's drive from Manhattan, the main facility is a building that was once a reform school for boys, now repurposed into an impressive taproom.

Outside, visitors will find  a 3,000-square-foot patio and a 1,000-square-foot deck, both of which overlook nearby Wawayanda Creek and the all-encompassing Appalachian Mountains.

Its vast acreages and modern tasting rooms, moreover, serve as the perfect venue for weddings and tourists.

Voted the best brewery in the entire state in 2022, Drowned Lands may be the most critically acclaimed entry on this list

Along with their world class beer is a plethora of pizzas - all made fresh in the facility's coal-fired pizza oven.

Billed as New York's 'most beautiful destination brewery' on its website, the brewer also has specialized occasions like a Whiskey & Cigar Night and pizza specials every Monday and Thursday, where patrons can snap up a Margherita pie and any lager for just $20.

Woodstock Brewing - (Ulster County)

Woodstock Brewing is another brewer based in the Hudson Valley, found just off Route 28 in the very small town of Phoenicia.

The hamlet has less than 300 residents, and is surrounded by the Slide Mountain Wilderness Area - 47,500 acres of forest protected by the state.

It is the largest area under any kind of wilderness protection between the Adirondacks and the southern Appalachians, and Woodstock Brewing has surfaced as one of its crown jewels.

The town's placid nature pairs well with the brewer's abundance of beers, each made in the 15-barrel brewery.

Guests love the brewery's outdoor performance stage, game area, and fire pits perfect for making s'mores. An impressive menu includes bar food staples along with vegan options like roasted cauliflower banh mi.

At Woodstock you'll find unique selections, including a specialty brew created by an AI startup based in NYC.

'Brewed in collaboration with our favorite tech startup, interactive streaming company Adventr, founded by Grammy award winning producer Devo Springsteen,' the IPA's description reads. 

'Brewed with Citra, Mosaic and Galaxy, it has notes of Mandarin, Mango and Candied Grapefruit peel.'

Woodstock Brewing is another brewer based in the Hudson Valley, found just off Route 28 in the very small town of Phoenicia

The spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation is central to the Woodstock Brewing's founding.

The brewery was started by two friends with 'a passion for beer and tinkering,' according to its website - evolving from a 1/2 barrel pilot system in a Woodstock garage to the one seen today.

If good drink in a serene setting is your thing, Woodstock may be right up your alley.

'We're all about tasty and ever-changing brews in a relaxing environment,' staff there say. 

The Factory @ Sloop Brewing - (Dutchess County)

Once a beer seller at local farmers markets, Sloop Brewing has since burgeoned into a full-blown operation - and won gold at the World Beer Cup in 2016.

Owners Justin and Adam began brewing together in Justin's garage in Poughkeepsie before moving a few miles downstream to East Fishkill to found the current facility.

Not only are there a plethora of beers but a full-on kitchen - pumping out delectable foods masterminded by an executive chef.

Authentic international street food and pizzas are among the resulting fare - along with traditional items like burgers and fusion dishes for the more adventurous.

Once a beer seller at local farmers markets, Sloop Brewing has since burgeoned into a full-blown beer operation - one that won it the gold at the World Beer Cup back in 2016. There. The ever-changing list of IPAs and sour ales on tap are the main attraction

The ever-changing list of IPAs and sour ales on tap, however, are the main attraction - all found in a building that once housed an IBM plant.

Beers that are either available year-round or by the season are all made onsite in a 25,000-square-foot brewery Christened 'The Factory,' which houses not only Sloop's original tanks, but three additional 120-barrel brits. 

There is also a fleet of fourteen 120-barrel fermentation tanks and a full-service restaurant.

They are largely known for their flagship northeastern IPA, Juice Bomb, so be sure to take a taste.

Brewery at The Culinary Institute of America - (Dutchess County)

The Brewery at The Culinary Institute of America is the only brewer on the list that can be found at a college.

At the on-campus brewery for the decorated school in Hyde Park aspiring chefs learn about the ingredients and equipment necessary to forge particular brews, which are then sold on tap when school is in session.

They are also available at all of the college's on-campus restaurants like American Bounty, Bocuse, and Caterina de Medici.

Students can take the class as an elective, all while being instructed by some of the best in the business on techniques to make both lager and ale.

Unique in that it is the only brewer on this list that can be found at a college, the Brewery at The Culinary Institute of America is the resident on-campus brewery for the cooking school in Hyde Park

That said, anyone is welcome, and there is an outdoor area that overlooks the Hudson.   

It was created in 2015 in partnership with Brooklyn Brewery, whose brewers often appear as guest lecturers. 

The class is billed as a means to get future food professionals thinking about beer differently, elevating its status as a fine beverage on the same level with wine.

Helderberg Mountain Brewing Co. - (Albany County)

Last but not least is the Helderberg Mountain Brewing Company, found in East Berne, all the way up near Albany.

Located on the town's main street, the brewer boasts a 7 BBL brewing system, meaning it has more than 217 barrels of beer - or 14 full kegs - going at all times.

Many use only New York-sourced ingredients, handcrafted to perfection by a team of skilled beer experts.

The beers are then either canned or poured, with most containing a mix of 90 percent to 100 percent NY malts and hops. 

Last but not least is the Helderberg Mountain Brewing Company, found in East Berne, New York

'Our Blonde Ale, Wheat Ale, Hefeweizen, Pale Ale, Amber Ale, and IPA are made from 100% NY ingredients just to name a few,' staffers write on their website.

'We support NY agriculture and want to serve beers that are made from the best local ingredients sourced right here in NY!'

All the entries above can be reached by a Hudson Valley business known as the Brew Bus, which carts drinkers throughout the Valley's various counties for a taste of Upstate New York.