President of Beers: #29

#29 Saranac Pale Ale: Matt Brewing Company, Utica, New York

State: Skyscrapers, the Statue of Liberty, Broadway, Central Park, and Times Square all come to mind when one thinks of New York. And then you realize that those are all just in Manhattan–and Lady Liberty is pretty much in Jersey. Legend has it that the state extends even further north than Westchester.

Brewery: In 1888, German immigrant F.X. Matt took over what would become Matt Brewing Co. in the foothills of Adirondack Mountains near Utica, NY. The brewery has grown to become the 8th largest craft brewery in the country. Matt Brewing Co. is the second-oldest family run brewery in the U.S., and quite possibly the oldest run by people with two first names. While Oregonians may be more familiar with Brooklyn Brewery, it is in fact much smaller than Matt Brewing.

Beer: Saranac Pale Ale–not to be confused with Saranac Pale Pale Ale–is an English-style pale ale. Matt Brewing began brewing the Saranac line of beers in 1985. In case you were curious, "Saranac" is an old Iroquois word meaning "craft beer is more interesting than American lagers."

Difficulty of Obtaining in Oregon: Moderate. Matt Brewing does not distribute further west than Kansas, but you can order it over teh internets.

Rating: 62.3

WWeek 2015