Beer saved the world! At least that is the theme of the 2011 documentary, “How Beer Saved the World.” The documentary leads the viewer to an understanding that brewing beer saved early humans from drinking tainted water, and was behind the agricultural revolution, the birth of the factory, and the construction of the pyramids (as payment to the pyramid construction crew).
All this history and not even a hint of how important beer is to boaters! Beer and boats just seem to go together (of course after you are anchored or moored for the night—at PropTalk we always advocate the responsible consumption of alcoholic beverages).
The Chesapeake Bay is blessed with many things. Among them are a handful of craft breweries you can visit by boat. Now we are talking a trifecta: boats, cruising the Chesapeake, and craft beer!
With these blessings in mind, your authors prevailed upon the editors at PropTalk to let us do the research on Bay craft breweries and report our findings to you, our loyal readers. It was a tough job, but somebody had to do it.
Some definitions may be helpful here. The craft brewing business includes brewpubs (mostly brewing beer for onsite consumption), microbreweries (selling less than 15,000 barrels a year), and regional breweries (selling up to six million barrels a year). Some folks even divide the smallest microbreweries into a category called nano-breweries.
So, how did we even get to a place where breweries may be located at the water’s edge? The evolution of craft brewing is important to understand as context.
In the 70s the beer industry in the U.S. was fairly consolidated in the big brands. Breweries were large industrial operations (think about the behemoth Anheuser-Busch Corporation with 12 major breweries around the country including the one closest to all of us in Williamsburg, VA). The craft brewing business has its roots in that corporate-controlled, limited-selection world. Simply speaking, more choice was needed.
In the 80s and 90s, small start-up breweries began appearing here and there. They were accepted and adopted by the beer-drinking public. By the end of 2022, there were an amazing 9500 craft breweries in the U.S. Craft brewers had retail sales of $28.4 billion in 2022. Those sales accounted for 24.6 percent of the total U.S. beer market.
Today, there are more than 300 craft breweries in Maryland and Virginia. With this kind of penetration, the odds favored some of them being close to the navigable waterways of the Bay. For this article, we arbitrarily decided that the craft brewery needed to be in a city or town welcoming to and easily accessible by boat. The brewery itself had to have a tasting room (having food was a bonus) and had to be easily walkable from the place we moored the boat.
Before we get to the craft breweries themselves, let me introduce you to the Godfather of Maryland craft brewers: Hugh Sisson.
Hugh Sisson grew up interested in acting. His mom and dad owned and operated a restaurant and bar in Federal Hill in Baltimore called Sisson’s. It should come as no surprise that Hugh also grew up interested in beer—drinking it and, fortunately for all of us, making it.
The desire to get into acting was stronger than his beer-making interest. And so, after completing a graduate program in theater, Hugh walked into Sisson’s to tell Mom and Dad he was leaving town to make his mark as an actor. His dad had other ideas.
The exact exchange is probably lost to history. It was likely something like “Son, Mom and I are retiring to Florida. The bar is yours.” Trust me, Hollywood’s loss was our gain.
That was the early 80s. By all reports, Hugh was a good owner/manager. However, he was also forward-thinking and maybe a little restless. And, there was that beer-making interest.
By the mid-80s Hugh was interested in brewing some of his own beers for consumption in Sisson’s. At this point, he ran slam into Maryland law which did not permit brewing and consumption in the same place. Time for acting skills to kick in.
In 1987 Hugh, working with the Brewers Association of Maryland, convinced the General Assembly to change the law. What we know today as a plethora of craft breweries, tap rooms, brewpubs, nano-breweries, and micro-breweries can trace their existence to the changes in the law Hugh championed almost 40 years ago.
By 1989 Sisson’s was brewing beer onsite and plans were being hatched for craft breweries and taprooms across the state. Regional craft brewery Heavy Seas Brewing was born out of Sisson’s, and Hugh is the big boss and head beer taster.
Hugh, on behalf of beer lovers everywhere, thank you!
Now, about those craft breweries…
RAR Brewing, Cambridge
Cambridge is the home of RAR Brewing. Walking from the Cambridge Yacht Club or Cambridge Yacht Basin and turning left as High Street meets Poplar Street will get you to the RAR taproom in an 80-year-old former pool hall and bowling alley. Founded in 2013, RAR brews 10 barrels at a time in this brewery, tasting room, and pub.
Forward Brewing, Annapolis
Take a slip, mooring ball, or drop the hook in either Spa Creek or Back Creek and Forward Brewing is just a short walk. The craft brewery was founded four years ago by Cam and Claire Bowdren. If you ask Cam why he founded a brewery, his response is something like, “Because nobody else had done it.”
Eastern Shore Brewing, St. Michaels
St. Michaels is a Middle Bay destination known to most cruisers. If you don’t know it, go there immediately! Eastern Shore Brewing calls St. Michaels home and asserts a claim to being the oldest craft brewery on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. They are celebrating 17 years of craft brewing this year.
Bayheads Brewing, Chesapeake City
Bayheads Brewing was founded in 2016 by Charlie Copland and a couple of lifelong buddies. They were determined to start a brewery in their hometown of Chesapeake City. Their experiences at the top of the Bay greatly influenced their lives. The connection between boating, enjoying great craft beer, and their community is ultimately what led to the naming of their brewery Bayheads.
They opened a taproom in 2018 away from the waterfront. The recent pandemic allowed them to rethink things and they were drawn back to the waterfront. Last August they re-opened their brewery and taproom within a couple blocks of the Chesapeake Inn, Restaurant, and Marina.
Market Street Brewery, Havre de Grace
Market Street Brewery in Havre de Grace claims to be Harford County’s only “waterfront” brewery. Indeed, the taproom does offer some great views of the Susquehanna River. You can grab a slip at the Tidewater Marina and walk across the boatyard to the back door to the brewery.
The brewery and taproom opened in 2022. The owners are Andy Chabalowski and Bill Bolton. Both are lawyers with “day” jobs but a love of craft beer that literally keeps them up at night.
Battery Island Brewing, Havre de Grace
Clearly, Havre de Grace is overperforming in the craft brewery department. Battery Island Brewing is just a couple of blocks from the marinas and worth the steps. The owner and founder is Kyle Hurst, an active-duty Army officer stationed up the road at the Aberdeen Proving Ground. Kyle does the brewing with some assistant brewers in this three-year-old brewery.
On the wall in the taproom is a “Beer Buddy” bulletin board. Thumbtacked to the board are prepaid beer vouchers, courtesy of past visitors. The vouchers go to specific categories of future visitors like: Army veterans, helicopter pilots, folks going through a bad divorce, school teachers, nurses, etc. There is probably a free beer waiting for you.
Diamondback Brewing Company, Locust Point, Baltimore
The taproom at Diamondback Brewing is aptly described as “rustic-meets-industrial.” The brewery and taproom offer eight craft beer taps in a really cool space that only Baltimore could do. To go with their beer choices you can enjoy some great craft pizza done Neopolitan style. The taproom is located in Locust Point in McHenry Row about a mile walk from the Inner Harbor Marina and less if you get a slip at the Harborview Marina.
Before you ask where the rest of the list is, let us admit that our research and exploration kept us in the Upper and northern Middle Bay. We surely missed some boatable craft breweries. If you think so, let us know and maybe we will be compelled by fairness to do a follow-up article. Darn…
By Mike Pitchford and Kevin Hoffman