Canterbury AleWorks

Local beers with local roots

Steve Allman opened Canterbury AleWorks in August of 2012 as a single-barrel, water-powered nanobrewery. In addition to running a one-man operation, Allman also grows 26 varieties of hops on his 70-acre Hidden Wonder Farm and plans to forage for native hops growing in the area in the spring. The plants are supposedly left over from Prohibition days.

In his lower-level bar on his Canterbury farm, he offers tastes of his beers, usually about 10 at one time ,and sells 32-ounce growlers and 22-ounce bomber bottles. Beer varieties include Be Hoppy, an India pale ale with citrusy notes; Canterbury Ale, an American pale ale with a balance of hops and malt; Old Darn Bard, a British brown ale; Val-Halla Weizen, a Bavarian hefeweizen. Heavier beers include Granite Ledge Stout, a rich oatmeal stout with espresso overtones; a German Kolsch, a smokehouse porter where the malt is smoked at nearby Fox Country Smokehouse. British malts rule in davESBeer, an extra special bitter. This ESB-style beer is malty and creamy with a welcomed bitterness at the finish.