Another entry for my beer travelogue…

CRANSTON, Rhode Island, December 2015 — Between Christmas and New Years, I found myself in Rhode Island and took advantage of the time off to explore the local beer scene. After visiting Trinity Brewhouse in Providence, I checked out Brutopia Brewery and Kitchen in nearby Cranston.

Brutopia opened in May of 2015 with a mission to become a destination brewpub for BBQ and craft beer lovers in the Northeast. Sounds like my kind of place! But I was too full from the amazing Marghertia Pizza at Trinity to try the BBQ. The fried pickles were a perfect snack though.

Now on to the real reason I was at Brutopia – the beer! I sat at the bar and ordered a four-beer sampler rack.

Beers Sampled:

• Never Ender East Coast IPA (6.5%)
• RIPTA Belgian Triple IPA (9.5%)
• Conga Imperial IPA (9.5%)
• Bonfire Brown Ale (5.0%)
• Valhalla Amber Ale (5.0%)

I was most impressed with: The variety of strong, hoppy IPAs on the beer menu. If the 9%+ Triple and Imperial IPA were too strong, Brutopia offered a 4.7% Session IPA (which I didn’t bother with on this visit).

And oh by the way: Although Brutopia is in a dated, nondescript strip mall, with no identifiable sign on the building…

…the huge sign on the street let’s you know you found the place.

Besides the brewpub visits, I also enjoyed some local cans from Grey Sail Brewing in Westerly, Rhode Island:

• Flying Jenny, a hoppy Extra Pale Ale brewed with a generous amount of hops (6.0%)
• Captain’s Daughter, an unbelievable Imperial IPA that rivals the best IPAs I’ve ever tried, no joke (8.5%)

Rounding out my Rhode Island road trip was a six-pack of Mayflower Brewing Company IPA (6.1%) from nearby Plymouth, Massachusetts.