Nearly twenty years ago, a local farmer stopped by our brew pub looking to sell his truck full of wild Maine blueberries, providing the inspiration for our Bar Harbor Blueberry Ale. That year our beer debuted at the first-ever Maine Brewer’s Festival where it was enthusiastically received. This brew stands alone as a beer first, ending with a subtle berry finish. Unlike many fruit beers on the market, which are imbalanced with sweetness our amber ale isn’t overly fruity—just enough berry flavor to complement the hops.
With the recent explosion of over-the-top hopped IPAs, we wanted to return to an India Pale Ale that was well-hopped, but still balanced and smooth. Our brewers wanted to name it after one of our hardworking staffers, so we decided to name it after Dave—the new guy. This beer is made with one hundred percent Columbus hops and only one malt, yielding a nice earthy tone and spicy flavors. Columbus hops have a citrusy profile, which is more subtle than that found in most IPAs.
When we opened back in 1991 this was our first beer. We created this recipe while brewing with our mentor Pierre in his friend's garage in Montreal. We wanted to develop a beer that was smooth and easy-drinking, yet still retained an assertive body to set it apart. The result was a beer with nice caramel tones and a balance of the malt and hop profiles. Over time we have refined the ingredients to achieve what we feel is a perfectly balanced session brew.
There is a much debate in the brewing world about the difference between porters and stouts. At one time the two were even considered synonyms. Nowadays porters are often more malted, while stouts tend to be more roasted in flavor. When we decided to add a dark beer to our repertoire we chose to pursue the rich, chocolate tones of a porter. This ale continues to gather accolades in the beer world for its strong malt backbone and well-balanced, bitter hops.