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Front Porch Brewing

Front Porch Brewing is in Wallingford just down the street from New England Cider Company. This is a true industrial brewery space. Their tasting room and brew space is all in one large storage bay. The signage is small, when I pulled in, it was dark and without the strand of Christmas lights I may have missed it all together. 

When I opened the door I was met with the big aromas of an active brew. They had definitely been brewing that day. They offer a number of beers on draft, but no growlers to go. The small space was lite up with some Christmas lights and you could hear the vintage arcade games and video game console beeping out enticing fun.

They offer flights of their beer, but also flights of Whiskey, of which they have a variety. There were some couples at the bar sharing whiskey sips and flights of beer. We ordered 2 flights and got one of each brew. For such a small place, I was surprised about the number of beers I liked.

Finger guns to the fullest

Finger guns, a sour IPA, was great. Tart, sweet, fruity, with big hop aromas and only a mild bite of bitterness in the finish. That was my favorite. I did also like all three stouts too, a sour, a more traditional, and a one on the sweeter side. Each provided something different but all were well executed. I like trying different types of the same beer. Great stuff. This hole in the wall of a place is definitely worth the trip, and being so close to the Cider company, a double whammy should be in your future.

Map it out

Where all the pastries at?

Libby’s Italian Pastry Shop

All the Biscotti (source)

Picture from their website

Since the cookies part of beer and cookies lifestyle is so important, we thought that sharing some of our favorite Connecticut bakeries would be helpful for the explorer looking for quality cookies without all the mess in the kitchen. The first in our series of featured bakeries is Libby's Italian Pastry shop. 

Libby’s is a traditional Italian pastry shop. Their shop on Wooster Street in New Haven is where it all started. They are right next door to the famous Pepe’s pizzeria. I remember as a kid getting pizza at modern or Pepe’s and then going over to Libby’s for Italian ice afterwards. The shop hasn’t changed since, well, ever. The floors have the wear and tear of a place that has millions of people shuffling in for a cannoli, Italian ice, or cookies.

They also offer a variety of coffee products as well. You can sit, order a cappuccino and some biscotti and have a conversation like you were sitting in a European cafe, except you’re on a busy new haven street. My favorite thing about Libby's is the biscotti; they offer a number of flavors. They always have chocolate, almond, anise, cappuccino, and sometimes chocolate dipped. They are all great. I prefer the almond but each are crunchy, crisp, and very dippable. I also love the Italian ice they offer, lemon, cherry. Watermelon, chocolate, if it’s a flavor they probably have it. We often bring a pint of lemon and a pint of chocolate to our grandparents for Sunday dinner.

Lemon is the best

Other than cookies and Italian ice, they also offer a wide variety of Italian pastries, pies, and cookies. There are a wide variety of cannoli flavors as well; in short, the trip is worth it if you are looking for something sweet and delicious.  

They also have a location in North Haven. Their satellite location seems to offer just about everything their New Haven spot offers but it is super convenient, you don’t have to deal with the lack of parking on Wooster Street, and the cookies and Italian ice are just as delicious. An important note about their North Haven location is that it is directly between a Luigi’s Pizza shop and Vines Wine & Liquor a boutique liquor store, both of which are totally worth a stop.

Who is worthy of the potato chip cookie?

Potato Chip Cookie and NECC Ciders or Kinsmen Breliner Weisse

This cookie is magnificent.

Before our regular gaming night, some of us got together with our kids and family to have some dinner. We had some wonderful homemade hummus, pumpkin chili, salad, all finished with a fun cookie pairing challenge. Bob picked up a few ciders from New England Cider company, and John had a crowler of Earthbound Misfit, a cherry-lime berliner weisse. It was fun to get everyone involved in talking about the beer and how surprising the cookies were. An experience like this makes me continue to see the value in enjoying your food and exploring fun ways to experience it. A good time was most definitely had by all.

The Beer: We chose two beers to try with this superior cookie. The first was a hard cider from the New England cider company. The ‘fresh blend’ it is a mildly sweet cider with a familiar aroma of apples and a well-balanced flavor profile. It really tastes like adult apple juice. I was thinking that the sweetness of the cider would complement the mild saltiness of the cookie.

The other beer we chose to experiment with was from Kinsmen brewery, a cherry-lime berliner weisse. The beer comes in at a very light 2.8% abv, featherweight body with light citrus notes, tart smell and taste with a clean finish predominated by cereal. A classic berliner, it does not carry much sweetness but the lime and cherry give it a juicy aroma.

The cookie: The potato chip cookie is like a jack in the box that pops a second earlier than the song would lead you to expect it. You think you know what's going to happen, but it ends up surprising you anyway. The chips bring a mild salty finish, but is balanced with the sugar you sprinkle over the finished cookie. It is buttery and soft, but also crisp from the chips and the bake on the edges. I love this cookie.

The pairing: The potato chip cookie presents a significant pairing challenge. It is a favorite amongst those who try it and, on paper, it should go with just about any beer. The simple nature of the cookie, with mild sweetness, nutty notes and hint of salt makes it a natural companion to any brew. Unfortunately I don’t think either of these beers are exactly right for the potato chip cookie. The cider is timeless and did better of the two, but some sort of ‘punch’ was lacking. The berliner weisse have a nice tart kick, but it tended to overwhelm the subtle flavor of the cookie. Both brews were very satisfying and we had no trouble with the plate of cookies, but absent was that synergy, the sum greater than its parts.

Peanut Butter & Jelly Thumbprints and Still Hill Sluggy Buggy Oatmeal Stout

The Beer: Still Hill is a brewery in Rocky Hill that has been open for a couple years and is situated in a nice, hand painted space that makes the usual industrial warehouse vibe much more homey. The brewer there pulled off many a homebrewer’s ideal in which he made beer in his basement, garage and driveway for many years and did everything he could to learn about the craft. I know many people throw around the phrase “this is good, you should open a brewery!”, but in his case they were right. Eventually he gave into demands and made the plunge, the result is one of my favorite places because they do uncomplicated beers exceptionally well. 

The Sluggy Buggy is the first beer I had once the place opened and I immediately fell in love. Oatmeal stouts hold a cherished place in the heart of many beer lovers because the oats add a nice body to a dry stout, without blowing the lid off and going into imperial territory. The beer is very dark with a tan head. The aroma is of coffee, roasted malt and some chocolate and the flavor mirrors that quite well. Primarily dark fruit and chocolate roastiness, coffee is noticeable on the finish with a hint of bitterness and low booze.

The Cookie: Having recently acquired a new cookbook, these caught my eye immediately when flipping the pages. The premise is a soft, very peanut-buttery cookie, rolled in crushed peanuts and indented with a central well, filled to the brim with your favorite jam. These cookies delivered in every way.  The peanut butter was very prominent and the cookies were slightly crisp, both elements enhanced by the crushed peanut coating. For the first batch I went with a jam composed of grapes, currants and raspberries, with the grape and raspberry making up the dominant flavors. I love this cookie and the possibilities it represents. The jam is the perfect counterpoint to the not-too-sweet peanut butter dough.

The Pairing: Given the uncertainty of the jelly on top I was very reluctant to dunk, but after accidentally dropping my cookie into the glass I had the break through I needed. The cookie has so much going for it that forcing the two components of the pairing together creates a better result.The cookie, though having a couple of powerful flavors, went well with the mildness of the beer. I found the peanut butter playing off of chocolate and roast with high notes from the jelly a very satisfying combination/ Low bitterness was important to the pairing so it did not cover up the subtle pb&j dynamic.

You can also see there was an attempted pairing with the potato chip cookie, but alas the best mate for the current front runner in favorite cookies eludes us still. 

Thimble island Lager or Coffee Stout and Biscotti

Biscotti and Thimble island Lager or Coffee Stout

The Beer: We tried both the Coffee stout and the Lager. The stout is a traditional American stout with beans from a local coffee shop. It is light bodied, with a pleasant malty sweetness. Very roasted in aroma and flavor, the coffee beans come through but not in an overwhelming way. This is a very pleasant beer that is easy drinking.

The Lager is light crisp, and reminiscent of the big block American brewers. I thought it was very good. It had the lightness and crisp finish of ‘lite’ lagers that are out there, but not watered down or lacking in flavor. It had a grainy, fruity, bready taste. It is very light bodied, a great beer for after mowing the lawn, or, anytime really.   

The Cookie: The traditional Italian biscotti cookie might be the most adaptable cookie for dunking in a drink. Biscotti are crispy, crunchy breaded cookie. It is not too sweet. It comes in a variety of flavors, sometimes they are dipped in chocolate. Libby’s Italian pastry shop makes both chocolate biscotti with slivered almonds on top and an all almond flavor. Both are brittle crisp cookies that are very absorbent. They are especially delicious when dipped into a quality cup of coffee. I prefer the almond biscotti; it is sweet and very flavorful. The chocolate is good, but a little less sweet. Also, unless you are Italian or are familiar with the language you might be saying the name of the cookie wrong, this is the "proper" pronunciation. 

The Pairing: Of course with this cookie, the dunk is the preferred method. Before we visited the brewery I was thinking that the best combination would be the chocolate biscotti with the coffee stout. While this was good, the cookie does such a
good job absorbing the beer while maintaining its crisp that when you bite into the moist cookie there is almost as much liquid as is you took a sip of beer. The chocolate married well with the roasty flavors of the beer.

However, the lager went incredibly well with the almond biscotti. This was the first magical cookie beer combination for my wife. After she eat her first bite, she said, “Ohhhhh you have to try this.”

When I did, I knew. The mild sweetness of the cookie was boosted by the flavors of the beer to make it seem sweeter. The beers mild finish was helped by the almond notes of the cookie. The cookie was better because of the beer and the beer was better because of the cookie.

As we left the brewery I tried to share my last 2 biscotti sharing our table, but the declined. I feel like accepting cookies from a stranger is something we are taught about young.