ALTitude by Tuckerman Brewing Co.

As we get used to seeing longer daylight hours, our thoughts drift toward the eternal promise of spring and summer where we spend more time outdoors enjoying good times, delicious food and great locally brewed craft beer. New Hampshire shines in craft brewed beers and the one we check out this week is from Tuckerman Brewing Company.
Tuckerman is located at 66 Hobbs Street in Conway and finding their expanded location fitting their growing requirements to produce more great brews for their demanding fans. Back in 1998, Nik Stannic and Kirsten Neves, after meeting in college, came back to Conway and put together a small brew business celebrating New Hampshire’s Mount Washington and Tuckerman Ravine. The two decided to keep things simple because it worked better that way. Today, Tuckerman beer can be found in NH, Maine and Massachusetts. Their Pale Ale, Rockpile IPA, TRale Kolsch, Headwall Alt and 6288 Stout can be found most anywhere. You can find out more about their offerings at their website www.tuckermanbrewing.com
“ALTitude” is an ‘alt beer with attitude’ as the label declares and they are correct. This alt style is a brown ale straight out of Germany where alt stands for ‘old’ so these beers are conditioned for a longer period of time than standard brews. Dark copper in color with an abundantly persistent tan head, the aroma is sweet with Munich maltiness. Your first sip tells you about the medium to heavy body, with full mouthfeel and a malt-forward sweetness with a lightly hopped presence. This recipe is similar to the Headwall Alt which is a limited edition too. The ALTitude version is a slightly higher 7.5% ABV from Headwall which is deceivingly hidden as you enjoy this tasting experience.
With the many other offerings from Tuckerman, this is a brewery to become friends with. You can find it at Case-n-Keg in Meredith or Laconia, as well as other fine beer stores or grocery stores. Most on BeerAdvocate.com have rated this beer from 3.85+ to 4.25 out of a score of 5. Officially rated at 86 out of 100 which gives it a ‘Very Good’ officially. RateBeer.com gives it even higher scores.
Enjoy this beer while you can get it, but remember, if it’s out of stock or past the season, you will want to look for it next year, most likely in the winter or early spring. In the meantime, select another great Tuckerman beer to try… they are all great beers from a great brewery!

Jim MacMillan is the owner of WonByOne Design of Meredith, NH, and is an avid imbiber of craft brews and a home brewer as well. Send him your recommendations and brew news to wickedbrews@weirs.com.