STEWARDS OF THE LAND BREWERY – AN INTERVIEW
Before all this corona virus craziness started, my brewery crew plus some friends met at one of the newer breweries in the New Haven area. Stewards of the Land brewery is located on the DeFrancesco family farm at 418 Forest Road in Northford, Ct. The recently constructed true farm brewery and taproom was opened in late 2019 by Alex DeFrancesco.
The Stewards of the Land‘s modern taproom is spacious and quite inviting and yes its located on a working farm. The bar is fairly large and there is enough space to accommodate a decent amount of patrons. Along one side there is a clear view of the glistening vats and brewing area. You could see Alex put a lot of thought and planning into the construction.
The Stewards of the Land brewery has an ample variety of beer. They range from the Golden Swallow (golden IPA) and Chocolate Swallow (cocoa stout) to the Sand Monk (German monastery ale). In keeping with the farm theme most of their brews are named after birds, in particular the Swallow.
As Alex and his family tended the bar I was able to ask a few questions. I was totally intrigued by DeFrancesco’s desire to replicate “a time when taverns brewed their beer with fresh, locally sourced ingredients“. I wanted to learn more about the use of these locally-sourced ingredients and hops so I set up a interview with Alex to dive in a little deeper.
AMP: What was your motivation for opening Stewards of the Land brewery?
Alex: Stewards has been a project in the making for over the past decade. I had a dream of brewing with freshly grown Ct. products which led me to create the Ct. Hop Growers Association to help bring hops back to Ct. for breweries to use local product. Through the Hops Growers Association we were able to create the Ct. Farm Brewery Legislation. It paved the way for the Thrall Family Malt to be classified as the first malt facility in the state.
The purpose of Stewards, is for farmers and the community to work with he land, while practicing good agricultural techniques. Ultimately, I hope to produce great tasting beer that is farm to glass. The idea of community comes in with the tavern aspect of the brewery. As one of the Defrancesco brothers that helps run the farm and lives in what once was the oldest tavern in town I love the neighborhood feel of things. A gathering place is something the towns and a majority of the breweries in the state are missing. When you enter Stewards you feel like you are entering a friend’s house with a warm environment, fire place and a large open space with a 24 person bar where anyone can be social. For those who crave a little privacy we also have high tops and tables.
AMP: What is a true farm brewery?
Alex: A true farm brewery set by the Ct. Farm Brewery Legislation is as follows: a licensed farm brewery is eligible to operate beer manufacturing and taproom operations in a residential zone providing certain guidelines.
- The first year of production each batch of beer must contain 25% or more Ct. ingredients by volume and the second year it increases to 50% by volume. Stewards has achieved 90 to 100% in each batch of beer from day 1.
- Farm breweries are limited to no more than producing 75,000 gallons or less per calendar year. 75,000 gallons was made the maximum point to prevent large commercial breweries from setting up on a farm pronouncing themselves farm breweries.
- Licensed farm breweries are allowed to participate in two farm markets a year.
- Products that use 51% or more Ct. ingredients by volume are allowed to use the Ct. grown logo for advertising and packaging purposes.
Stewards is the only farm and brewery that helped write the Farm Brewery Legislation and then followed up to obtain the licence. No other farm brewery or self proclaimed farm brewery in Ct. has done so.
AMP: How has your new brew master, Colin Nicholson, enhanced your brewing process?
Alex: Colin is the new head brewer at Stewards. With the growing season upon us I have to take a back seat from the brewery to focus on the farm. I have my vision and Colin has a decade of brewing experience. This truly unique marriage of farm and science is helping us produce a high quality farm fresh beer. Colin’s expertise has made the beer crisper and he maximizes the potential of the farm ingredients by utilizing a 3 bbl system. During this mandatory shutdown, the two of us are making “lemonade out of lemons”. We are working on making improvements to our barrel program and other aspects of the brewing process. We are focusing on our saisons, barley wines, imperial stouts and lagers. Styles that can age for long periods of time and still taste great.
AMP: What can we expect from Stewards when the world gets back to normal?
Alex: I’m hoping my vision for the farm brewery comes alive. Like I said before, we are working on products that can age well but when there is a glimmer of hope we will be ready to brew fresh exciting beer. We forecast that taprooms might open with certain restrictions in June or possibly the start of July. With the growing season upon us we will be utilizing a lot of fruits and vegetables from our and neighboring farms. The best thing about being on a farm is your source of ingredients. Your not limited to just hops, grains, yeast and water. We are also hoping to produce a 22 oz. and 750 ml bottle series.
I want to thank Alex in taking time in his busy schedule to respond to AMP. Alex’s perspective is a remarkable one. Treat the land well and it gives back in spades. I can’t wait to return to Stewards of the Land to lift my pint with old and new friends.
Stewards of the Land
418 Forest Road
Northford, Ct 06472
Phone: 203-641-0498
Head Brewer: Colin Nicholson
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