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15 Best Breweries in Hudson Valley and Upstate New York
Pure magic, 150 miles north of Manhattan.
Photography courtesy of Brewery Ardennes
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Updated on September 10, 2024
Let me describe the Hudson Valley to those who have never lived in New York City. It’s a magical place about an hour’s drive north of Manhattan. Flush with rolling hills, bountiful meadows, and rich farmland, the region has become a verdant escape for many of the 8.4 million people living in NYC. It also has some of the best breweries in the country, which is why we named it to a list of “Best Beer Cities” in America in 2018 even though it isn’t technically a city. While you certainly can’t go wrong with any of the brewing operations that extend roughly 150 miles up the Hudson River from Manhattan to Albany, we certainly have our favorites, which is why we’ve made a list of what we think are the best breweries to visit in the Hudson Valley.
And we couldn’t stop there because if you just keep driving north or northwest, you’ll find some more incredible breweries everywhere in what is considered the “upstate” part of New York.
Dotted with tiny towns and sleepy riverside villages, the Hudson Valley and Upstate New York are the ideal getaway destinations. And in the fall? Fughetaboutit. These areas transform into a utopia of foliage, apple orchards, pumpkin patches, and farm breweries. Sipping an Oktoberfest or Märzen or even Festbier at one of these sixteen beautiful taprooms fulfills every fall lover’s wildest dreams.
From one of the top sour IPA producers in the world to a farm brewery making pickle beer, these are the exquisite breweries that make the Hudson Valley heaven and Upstate New York utopia for craft beer lovers.
Hop Culture’s 15 Best Breweries to Visit in the Hudson Valley and Upstate New York
Hudson Valley Brewery
7 E Main St., Beacon, NY 12508 | (845) 218-9156
Photography courtesy of John A. Paradiso
To put it quite simply, If there’s only one brewery north of Manhattan that we could recommend visiting, it’d be Hudson Valley Brewery. Almost eight years ago, co-founders Jason Synan, Mike Renganeschi, and John-Anthony Gargiulo took the area by storm when they started perfecting the art of sour IPAs. Demand exploded, with lines often extending the length of the brewery’s parking lot on a Saturday morning just to nab that week’s release. And the incredible beer doesn’t say anything about the brewery’s awesome art.
The sour IPA concoctions coming out of Hudson Valley Brewery are surreal. For example, Peach Silhouette, a brunch-style sour IPA with wheat and peaches and hopped with Citra that hits an incredible 4.3 on Untappd. And just to prove they do the regular IPAs well, too, there’s Theta, a hazy brewed with oats, wheat, Nelson Sauvin, and Citra. We love this brewery so much that we named them one of our top breweries of 2017.
In the past, we’ve spent plenty of time with Synan, Renganeschi, and Gargiulo. We even threw a festival nearby in Pete and Toshi Seeger Riverfront Park. When the Hop Culture team moved away from NYC, we missed many of our friends, and Hudson Valley Brewery was among them. We cannot reiterate this enough: If you’re in the Hudson Valley, visit Hudson Valley Brewery. And send us some cans while you’re at it.
The Drowned Lands Brewery
251 State School Rd., Warwick, NY 10990 | (845) 986-2337
Photography courtesy of The Drowned Lands Brewery
Is there a Hop Culture “best-of” list The Drowned Lands hasn’t made? One of our best new breweries of 2020, one of the 20 best beers we drank in 2020, one of the 20 best beers we had this summer, and one of the 20 best beers we drank last summer.
A brewery that continually comes out on top for us has to be on your own must-visit list if you’re in the Hudson Valley. Wondering how a brewery stands out in a landscape of fantastic breweries? For us, it’s by producing rustic beer styles in an eye-catching taproom. Think wheat pilsners, foeder-fermented rye saisons, and farmhouse ales alongside excellent single, double, and even triple IPAs. In our opinion, everything at The Drowned Lands works perfectly. We ask that they never change a thing.
Fidens Brewing Co.
897 Broadway, Albany, NY 12207 | (518) 608-0014
Photography courtesy of Fidens Brewing
Arguably the hypest brewery in the country for several years now and rated as the top brewery in New York on Untappd, Fidens just nails the hoppy ale game every time they brew. They have so many light-banished bangers because they express pure dedication to uncovering the many secrets of those little green cones.
Fidens Co-Founder and Head Brewer Steve Parker summed up the brewery’s exploration pretty succinctly when we interviewed him several years ago, “IPAs are our brew of choice, and we don’t apologize for it.”
It’s a courageous choice. One reflected directly in the brewery’s name. Fidens is a Latin term meaning courageous or without fear.
You’ll find that unabashed, brave brewing in beers like Pigeon Camera, a hazy IPA with Idaho 7 in the whirlpool and a dry hop with Citra and Simcoe that’s one of Untappd’s All-Time Top-Rated Hazy IPAs.
Sure, Albany is a cool two-and-a-half-hour drive straight north of New York City, but trust us, for a brewery like this, it’s totally worth it.
Mortalis Brewing Company
5660 Tec Dr., Avon, NY 14414 | (585) 438-4200
1250 Niagara St. Suite 130, Buffalo, NY 14213 | (716) 314-5097
Photography courtesy of Mortalis Brewing Company
Let’s not beat around the bush. Mortalis makes some of the world’s best, most indulgent, most electrifying, most satisfying smoothie sours. Releasing a new one pretty much every week, Mortalis gives you plenty of pastry sours to keep you on your toes.
Which is why the Avon-based brewery, about five and a half hours northwest of New York City, ranks as the fifth-best brewery in New York on Untappd.
Hop Culture Content Writer Giovanni Albanese Jr., recently profiled the brewery, sitting down with Mortalis Co-Founders Paul Grenier and Dave Luckenbach to discover their secrets.
For instance, few may know that Mortalis brewed a 4.5% ABV cream ale as their first batch on their commerical brew system. “We’re from Rochester, N.Y. [home of Genesee, the maker of the iconic cream ale], so if you don’t brew a cream ale straight out of the gate, I don’t know who you are!” Grenier told Albanese Jr.
Once they banged that out, Mortalis turned it up a notch, making As Above So Below, a 10% ABV imperial stout.
As Above So Below originally was brewed by one of Mortalis’ owners Josh Bauerlein as a home brew. According to Grenier, Bauerlein used his favorite coffee from a local roaster and has always been in love with the imperial stout style.
“It only seemed right that we brew that as our second beer on our system,” Grenier says. “And we have been using that exact same coffee ever since.”
Luckenbach adds, “We’re very well known for that beer. We brew it at least four times a year.”
Mortalis has embraced big stouts and added fruited sours to their repertoire. In fact, it’s their bread and butter. And they treat it as such.
“We brewed our first smoothie style as professional brewers on Dec. 26, 2018. It was Hydra | Passion Fruit + Mango + Peach,” Grenier recalls. “We released it to the public very early in January 2019. We knew when we tried it that it was something very special.”
Grenier says they fell in love with the style and customers really seemed to enjoy the flavor combinations.
“Getting the right synergy of those flavors was such an awesome experience and it felt like we were on the edge of something crazy,” Grenier remembers. “Watching someone try that style for the first time, seeing their eyes light up, we just fell in love with that magic and have not looked back.”
And just in case you need to know, they also have a location in Buffalo, NY.
Plan Bee Farm Brewery
115 Underhill Rd., Poughkeepsie, NY 12603 | (765) 307-8589
Photography courtesy of Stacey Lee-Weitz
When my wife and I first moved to New York, we cruised through the Union Square Greenmarket. For those who don’t know, this is a trendy farmer’s market in the middle of the Union Square neighborhood of Manhattan. Towards the end of our time there, we came across a small stand sampling something called Pickle (Farmstand Ale), which a tiny brewery in upstate New York produced. Yes, you read that right. Pickle. A koelschip-cooled, wild ale aged on cucumbers and dill was my first introduction to Plan Bee Farm Brewery.
On a mission to brew one hundred percent New York State-ingredient beer, Plan Bee sources all its ingredients from its home state, with many grown on site (such as the cucumbers and dill in the above Pickle). We loved the beer so much that my wife and I stopped at the brewery on a car trip back from Montreal. It was just a yurt set up in the middle of a field at the time. Nowadays, husband-and-wife duo Emily and Evan Watson have expanded and built an incredible facility. However, even after the expansion, the brewery’s original ethos remains authentic, local beer made from ingredients grown in New York. Plan Bee’s taproom and beer represent the Hudson Valley region to a T.
Pro Tip: If you want to visit, check their website before going, as the taproom has seasonal hours. They closed last year during the winter (Dec., Jan., and Feb.) and did not reopen until March 2024.
Suarez Family Brewery
2278 U.S. 9, Hudson, NY 12534 | (518) 537-6464
Photography courtesy of John A. Paradiso
Suarez Family Brewery Palatine Pils is one of my favorite pilsners of all time and certainly a favorite amongst the Hop Culture team. Hop Culture Founder Kenny Gould named Palatine Pils one of his favorite beers of 2018. Gould made the trip to this upstate gem after reading a great article from Austin L. Ray.
And we’re not the only ones who think so. On Untappd, this German-style pils ranks as the fourth-highest-rated of all time.
Founded by Dan Suarez, a former homebrewer who became a protege of Sean Hill, founder of Hill Farmstead, Suarez Family Brewery does all the little things right. They pay attention to detail in the brewing process (making pilsners is not easy, my friends), releasing simple, rustic, well-balanced beers (Dan also makes fantastic saisons) and creating an inviting taproom for families far and wide.
Built inside an old lamp factory, Suarez Family Brewery oozes charm. We fell in love when my wife and I visited in the fall of 2018. We tucked into the aforementioned Palatine Pils while watching cars whiz past cornfields and the changing leaves waving in the wind outside.
Marlowe Artisanal Ales
139 Hoyt Ave. Suite A, Mamaroneck, NY 10543 | (914) 412-0016
Photography courtesy of Marlowe Artisanal Ales
Untappd’s twenty-eighth-highest-rated brewery in New York, Marlowe Artisanal Ales, focuses on pub beers, highly drinkable ales, and lagers. And actually, we think that makes this spot pretty underrated. In our humble opinion, we see no reason why Marlowe couldn’t crack the state’s top fifteen and even ten top-rated breweries.
It’s a brewery that has been on our radar for a long time, so we were stoked when Half Time Beverage COO Jason Daniels told us Marlowe Brewer and Owner Zac Ross is “making some of the best beer I have had in a while, if not ever.”
One of our favorites, The Broken & The Dead, is an incredibly highly rated 4.16???? American brown ale brewed with Cascade, Centennial, and a touch of Columbus hops. Another is Marlito, a 4.06 ???? Mexican lager with heirloom corn, and No Return, an intensely dry-hopped hazy with Citra, Mosaic, Nectaron, Nelson, and Freestyle Hops Sub-Zero Hop Kief.
Just this year alone, we’ve named Marlowe to our “Top 14 Beers We Drank in April” and “Top 11 Beers We Drank in June.” That should tell you everything you need to know.
We haven’t had a chance to visit Marlowe quite yet, so you can bet that this top-notch brewery is at the top of our list the next time we go to New York.
Equilibrium Brewery
4 South St., Middletown, NY 10940 | (845) 956-0211
Photography courtesy of Equilibrium Brewery
Equilibrium Brewmaster and Owner Peter Oates has established his brewery as a master of the New England-style IPAs by taking a scientific approach to the style. As a result, fans flock from across the country to Middletown, New York, to try them. Newly released beers often sell out quickly to folks who have lined up for hours; these are beers like Fluctuation, a massive, resinous, tropical, softly bitter 8.1% ABV DIPA, and MC2, a highly rated DNEIPA with prominent notes of mango, pineapple, and apricot.
As Oates once told us during an interview, “It’s about achieving equilibrium in each beer.” And it’s not just IPAs that have Equilibrium tipping the scales. Crazy, whacky, fantastical stouts such as Baklava Life After Death—made with Emperor’s toasted coconut, raw coconut, cacao nibs, Mostra + EQ Kinetic Blend coffee, pistachios, and honey—are equally as balanced and popular.
Foreign Objects Beer Company
150 W. Mombasha Rd., Monroe, NY 10950 | (845) 238-3556
Photography courtesy of Foreign Objects Beer Company
It can be easy to fall into the belief that Foreign Objects is just another hazy IPA brewery, but you’d be wrong. In 2019, Foreign Objects caught our eye on social media with its poppy can art, dedicated following, and buzzy beer. But we went behind the gorgeous Instagram photos and chatted with Co-Owner and Director of Brewing Operation Steve D’Eva about what actually grounds the brewery.
His response? Simple, delicious beer. From hoppy modern ales to clean lagers, D’Eva brews all of his beers intentionally and precisely. Sure, there’s creativity (Nansensu, a rice lager). Sure, there’s experimentation (Predation Biology, a new American hoppy ale with Mosaic and Motueka hops). But at the end of the day, it’s D’Eva’s philosophy to make simple—but damn fantastic— beer that keeps us coming back to Foreign Objects week after week.
Mixed Breed Brewing
457 NY-146 Guilderland Center, NY 12085 | (845) 784-6436
Photography courtesy of Mixed Breed Brewing
Currently the ninth highest-rated brewery in New York on Untappd, Mixed Breed Brewing is something of a mash-up. And that’s just the way they want it.
Started by Guy Bucey, a former Marine sergeant, and four other friends, Mixed Breed alludes to Bucey’s half-pitbull, half-mastiff dog, Bennie, and a nickname for his group of deployed soldiers in Iraq.
When Bucey returned from Fallujah, he took up woodworking and beermaking as hobbies, eventually opening the brewery in 2020.
At Mixed Breed, that focus isn’t on the hype but instead on the humble, everyday beers. For instance, a flagship brown ale named after the pooch above that one might say resembles a traditional English Newcastle Brown and a cream ale.
But they have plenty of the hoppy stuff, too.
Whatever Bucey and his partners have been doing for the last few years seems to be working; Mixed Breed is on the map!
Tin Barn Brewing
62 Kings Hwy Bypass, Chester, NY 10918 | [email protected]
5428 NY-14, Dundee, NY 14837
Photography courtesy of Tin Barn Brewing
“Turn at the red tractor and drive down the hill. On your right, sweeping grass lawn. On your left are wetlands and old railroad tracks. Go around the bend, and in the middle of the idyllic Sugar Loaf artist community, you’ll come across a tin barn.”
This is Tin Barn Brewing, a three-year-old brewery in Upstate New York that makes some of our new favorite regular, double, and even triple New England-style hazy IPAs, heavily fruited sours, and the occasional Willy Wonka-esque pastry stout. With a touch of what co-owner Lauren Van Pamelen calls “farm shui,” Tin Barn Brewing has made a name for itself as a destination brewery.
As a farm brewery, Tin Barn leverages local ingredients where possible. Moreover, Van Pamelen’s obsession with brewing the perfect hazy IPA has her churning out stunning NEIPAs and DIPAs.
“I’m a mad scientist … [and] New England IPAs are supreme beings,” says Van Pamelen. “I want a beautiful, hazy beer that’s opaque and glorious.”
This borderline compulsion means folks venturing to Tin Barn are treated to expert expressions of the style. For example, take Tin Barn’s most popular beer: Queen Citra NEIPA. Van Pamelen uses Citra hops in the whirlpool; the beer is also triple dry-hopped and bio-hopped, a technique where brewers add hops mid-fermentation. She also tackles sours (her Kaleidoscope Eyes Fruited Sour series made our list of best beers we drank this summer). But if you’re turning right at the red tractor (and we highly recommend you do), it’s probably to taste and see if Van Pamelen has reached her ultimate goal of crafting the perfect hazy IPA.
Brewery Ardennes
570 Snell Rd., Geneva, NY 14456 | (315) 325-4858
Photography courtesy of @breweryardennes
One of our “13 Best Breweries to Watch in 2024,” Brewery Ardennes had a Tripel that we named to our list of “The Best Beers We Drank in 2023.”
We feel that nailing a tripel is to Belgian brewers what a Czech pilsner is to lager brewers.
Piqued by this beer, we tried many of Brewery Ardennes’ award-winning beers, including the 2023 International Beer Competition gold medal limited-release Grand Cru Barrel-Aged Tripel; bronze-winning Speciale Belge; and silver-winning Grand Cru Dubbel.
This Belgian-inspired brewery in the Finger Lakes region of upstate New York also won Belgian-style Brewery of the Year for New York in 2022.
We don’t often find a brewery wholly dedicated to making Belgian beers. Bruz Beers, the first we’d found while visiting Denver for the Great American Beer Festival in 2022, inspired us to search for more.
We put out a call to our fans, searching for other Belgian-inspired breweries across the U.S.
Brewery Ardennes answered.
Opened in May 2020, Brewery Ardennes is the brainchild of Stacey Edinger and her husband, Derek Edinger, who morphed his “out-of-control hobby” homebrewing and passion for Belgian beers into a business.
The brewery has racked up acclaim in just a short time, so we’re excited to keep an eye on (and hopefully visit) this Belgian beauty in 2024.
District 96 Beer Factory
395 S Main St., New City, NY 10956 | (845) 499-2409
Photography courtesy of District 96 Beer Factory
District 96 almost reminds me of a modern Cheers bar in upstate New York. The first time I walked in, I felt right at home, as if everyone knew my name.
Don’t get me wrong—the space is modern, beautifully bright, and airy. But it’s the vibe. I sat down, ordered an eggplant burger (being the vegetarian I am) and a Wit House witbier, and immediately felt like I’d been going there for years. The small-batch brewery is an extension of owner John Potenza’s burger restaurant right next door called The Burger Loft. At D96, you get a dependable, reliable brewpub with well-crafted food and approachable beers in a wildly friendly environment.
Industrial Arts Brewing Company
511 Fishkill Ave., Beacon, NY 12508 | (845) 765-1355
Photography courtesy of Industrial Arts Brewing Company
Brewing is a delicate balance of science and art. So is Industrial Arts. I mean, this is a place where everyone excels at the tools of their trade. The brewery has a location in Beacon, NY (where you’ll also find Hudson Valley Brewery!), and makes seven core offerings alongside limited releases, seasonals, and one-offs such as their Landscape and State of the Art series.
A perfect example of an Industrial Arts beer is Wrench, a classic pilsner with Mosaic and Citra.
Obercreek Brewing Company
59 Marlorville Rd., Wappingers Falls, NY 12590 | (845) 632-1078
Photography courtesy of Obercreek Brewing Co.
A perennial favorite at our Juicy Brews festivals back in the day, Obercreek Brewing Company became the talk of the town when it opened in the back of Obercreek Farms in 2017. As the story goes, Phil Shaw, a former economics professor and twenty-year homebrewer, decided to go pro. So he cold-called Alexander Reese, sixth-generation owner and operator of Obercreek Farm, and gave him the beer. And Reese loved it.
Four years later, the Wappingers Falls-based brewery has earned a reputation for beers built with creativity and locality. For example, some beers use hops from a small hop yard on the property, and others use fruits from the local Hudson Valley.
Obercreek Brewing is a tiny operation but a mighty one. Keep your eye out for their incredible sours!
About The Author
Grace Lee-Weitz
Currently Drinking:
Fort Point Beer Co. KSA
Grace is the Senior Content Editor for Hop Culture and Untappd. She also organizes and produces the largest weeklong women, femme-identifying, and non-binary folx in craft beer festival in the country, Beers With(out) Beards, and the first-ever festival celebrating the colorful, vibrant voices in the queer community in craft beer, Queer Beer. An avid craft beer nerd Grace always found a way to work with beer. After graduating with a journalism degree from Northwestern University, she attended culinary school before working in restaurant management. She moonlighted as a brand ambassador at 3 Sheeps Brewing Co. on the weekends before moving into the beer industry full-time as an account coordinator at 5 Rabbit Cerveceria. Grace holds her Masters degree in the Food Studies program at NYU.
