Tucked in the woods a quarter mile down a dirt road, built on the backside of a multi-story woodworking studio, Canterbury Aleworks is one of the more-hidden of hidden gems.
The first hint that you’ve found something special comes in the form of a traditional red British telephone booth positioned at the top of a wooden staircase pointing toward the building’s rear. Proceeding down the staircase, green hops surround the handrail, a multi-level terrace of beer barrel tables comes into view, and the faint tune of an Irish jig emanates.
Ambling into the cramped, dim quarters of the nano-brewery, you may feel transported to a pub on the streets of Dublin or London rather than one in the backwoods of New Hampshire. (Canterbury Aleworks eschews the English-Irish rivalry and has branded itself a “British/Irish inspired brewery”.) Polaroid photos of past guests line the walls, and popcorn flows from an old-fashioned popper. “Got cell service? Prolly not,” a sign reads.
Behind the counter’s 18 intricately decorated taps stands Steve Allman, the brewery’s founder, owner, and sole employee. Donning his signature green Hawaiian shirt festooned with the head of his trademarked “Aleman” – a letter away from his surname – Allman fills pints ($9) and flights ($10) with an eclectic mix of punnily-named libations, from “We’ve been Jammed!” (a raspberry sour, which is indeed both quite sour and very raspberry) to “Weisscracker,” (a mesquite smoked habanero wheat ale that packs quite the punch).
Allman, 59, started brewing beer around 2012, nearly two decades after he built the woodworking studio above which his brewery operates. He considers it a “semi-retirement job” with a full-time salary. Aside from some monthly events, Canterbury Aleworks is open only on Saturdays and Sundays from 1 to 5 p.m., with a weeks-long winter break between Christmas and the start of February. During the week, Allman – who lives in a house overlooking the property – brews an average of one or two batches of beer per week using a wood-fired boil kettle.
“This is the center of my universe,” Allman said. “I’ve always liked to work where I live and live where I work.”
Allman grew up in Manchester as a self-described “Brita-phile,” watching Monty Python and speaking in a British accent from time to time. His father, an employee of an English aerospace company, bounced between the family’s home in Manchester and a flat in London, and shipped home the red phone booth when Allman was a teenager.
When Allman decided to open his brewery a little more than a decade ago, he knew next to nothing about brewing beer.
“My resume when I started this was I’d watched two friends homebrew once,” he said.
“How hard could it be?” Allman thought.
Little by little, he learned the tricks of the trade, developing a devoted following called the crüe (think Mötley Crüe, the heavy medal band) along the way.
“We just love the vibe,” said Andy Van Cleave, a Canterbury resident and one of the most active crüe members. “I love that your cell phone doesn’t work well so you have to put your phone down and actually talk to people.”
Locals and visitors, bikers and grandparents, humans and dogs all flock to Canterbury Aleworks. On a summer Sunday afternoon, a 21st birthday was celebrated on the bottom level of the terraced outdoor seating area at the same time as an older couple read quietly in Adirondack chairs on the top level.
Both the beers and the atmosphere change with the seasons, Allman said. During the spring’s maple season, patrons come for the Murphy’s Red Friday made with maple syrup; in the fall, they line up in droves for the Oktoberfest lager. Certain beers stay on tap all year long, including favorites Galaxius Maximus (a hazy New England IPA) and Big Ben (a British Extra Special Bitter cask ale).
Outside of the weekend service, Allman opens the brewery for certain special occasions, including Shanty Night – a sing-along on the second Thursday of every month – and a crüe night for the regulars.
Amid its old-style pub vibe, Canterbury Aleworks is also perpetually changing – though certainly not losing its old-time feel.
Allman’s next project? A replica 1965 Shelby Cobra.
Jeremy Margolis can be reached at jmargolis@cmonitor.com
