Earlier this month I made a trip down to Middletown to meet family and spend some time together. We met at Aspire Brewing, a newer brewery founded in 2023 by the family behind the chain of craft beer stores called Beer World. With a pedigree like that, I was excited to try them out.
I started with a pour of Favor, an Imperial IPA that comes in at 8% ABV. Their description calls out that they use Riwaka hops which is one of my favorites. A very well balanced body and thicker mouthfeel, with a deceptive light straw color. Riwaka hops bring a little bit of bitterness that balances the sweetness of a higher ABV IPA. I picked up a four pack of this to bring back to some of my co-workers so they could try it too [Editors Note: ahem. Not seeing these on my desk].
I also tried the Keen, a 5.8% Kolsch that brought me back to my early days of craft beer and some of my favorite spots around Binghamton. Crisp and earthy, it was so clear in the glass with a rich amber color. The carbonation was perfect, small bubbles that didn’t fill the glass but filled my mouth the second I took a sip, exploding with flavor.
Then I did a 4oz pour of Nightglow, a 7.5% Bock. Super carbonated as it should be, it hit me with light peppercorn and banana flavors, so rich I should have ordered a full pour. Using the three sip system (shout out to anyone who read last month’s article) I got much more caramel on the back of the tongue!
Aspire is still a new brewery, and at least on my visit with my group, some of the growing pains showed. Service was struggling a bit and some things we had to remind them, but they are doing some great things with their brewing and I’m going to be keeping an eye on them. If you’re ever in the Hudson Valley area, they are worth a stop for a pint.