Opening in 1997, Blue Point Brewing Company began as many craft breweries do, with two homebrewers dreaming of their own brewery. They meandered through their professional lives, eventually ending up at the same brewery — one as a brewer, the other as a sales rep. It wasn't long before they were making plans to go it alone, pouring their own money, time and lives into their own brewery. Their dreams came true, a fact we can all celebrate. Now with a line of nearly 20 different beers, Blue Point offers some excellent choices for every taste.
"Blue is the New Green," states the Blue Point Brewery website. Like so many of the forward-thinking craft breweries across the U.S., the folks at Blue Point in Long Island, New York are committed to conducting business in a sustainable, environmentally friendly way. From high-efficiency equipment and energy reuse to the disposal of spent mash either by composting or as feed for local farms, the commitment to going "green" is clear. Their website boasts several pages of their credentials, as well as links to other local and national sustainable efforts. Granted, the business practices of a brewery do not matter to everyone, and matter even less if the beer isn't any good. Fortunately, this is not the case with Blue Point.
One of Blue Point's lighter choices is the flagship Toasted Lager. Crisp and flavorful with hearty tones, it's delicious without being too filling. It has an amber color and perfect carbonation with excellent lacing and body, making it very drinkable during these hot Florida days. At 5.3-percent ABV, you can have several, but they can sure sneak up on you. You can easily find Toasted Lager nearly anywhere that sells craft beer.
For craft beer drinkers who like something a little different, the RastafaRye Ale is a good choice. The hearty rye malt blended with fresh West Coast hops results in a delicious, deep copper ale with just the right amount of rye flavor to offset the spicy, floral characteristics of the hops. The 7.5-percent ABV is very well disguised, so be careful. Something else to note is that Blue Point Brewing Company donates a portion of all RastafaRye Ale sales to They Often Cry Outreach (TOCO; theyoftencryoutreach.org), a Taj Weekes charity foundation that helps orphaned and underprivileged children in the Caribbean and around the world.
A popular favorite among the bitter set, Hoptical Illusion is an American-style India Pale Ale. It comes in around 6.8-percent ABV and is readily available in better beer stores and craft beer bars. This beer pours a deep golden color, with a near-perfect off-white head. The flavor is bitter up front with a good malt balance. If anything is lacking in this one, it's finishing hops; they don't quite fill in the back of the palate the way the bitterness fills the front. Still, this is a very enjoyable IPA.
A less common offering (in fact, I have only had it at Pepin Distributing's Brews with Attitude Festival), but a great beer if you can find it, is Blue Point's No Apologies Double IPA. A very limited release, this monster comes in at 93 IBUs and 10-percent ABV. And it's delicious. It's all about the hops, which should be no surprise, but there is a good presence of sweet caramel malt in the back to take just enough of the edge off the bitterness.
With a balance of quality beer-making and an environmentally sound business practice, Blue Point definitely has it all. I recommend trying all of their beers, as each I have had has been excellent. And knowing that you are supporting a progressively conscious company is an added bonus!
This article appears in Jun 30 – Jul 6, 2011.