Fox Farm Brewery - Salem, Connecticut

Don V.

Super awesome beers, and staff to match. I hate when I go to a brewery and they are snobby. Fox Farm is a great craft beer experience with two levels of seating inside, and lots of outside seating as well. Don't be mad if parking is an issue, get their earlier, it's worth spending a few hours exploring their brews.

Margaret H.

Great beer! Great service. Great outdoor sitting area to sip and enjoy time with friends. We saw people with kids and pets. Indoor and outdoor seating. They do not sell food, but you can bring your own. There's also a pizza restaurant .4 miles away. We enjoyed the relaxing atmosphere at this brewery.

Gregory H.

Greta spot, love hanging out on the patio area during nice weather. Inside is nice as well! Great beers.

Amy N.

My friends and I love meeting here. It’s quintessentially New England, set on a farm with a barn and silo. Gorgeous property! The beers are always delicious. I had the Rubis, which was a raspberry beer which had perfect sour flavor! My absolute fav! Many women in our party, who don’t drink beer, loved this beer! The atmosphere is always a great time and vibe. We had reserved a table for a birthday party and all the guests appeared comfortable as the tree outside provided much shade for the event. As for parking, there is plenty. Despite the high number of guests, the line moved quickly and the bartenders were super friendly! The merch is excellent too. I purchased the red hat and love being able to advertise one of my favorite breweries here in South County, Rhode Island. 5 stars! We’ll be back!

Geoffrey H.

I finally got the chance to head out to this brewery. It's a little over an hour drive for me, but it's worth every bit. With a friendly and knowledgeable staff and an excellent tap list that is top-notch, this is a must stop if you are in Connecticut. Nestled back in the winding roads of the Connecticut woods, you'll come to this brewery. A warm and inviting landscape draws you into the peaceful surroundings of this farm. With both indoor and outdoor seating that brings you back to a true New England feel, I felt very at home here. There is an easy to access drive-through for pick-up with a great selection of beers as well. Make it a point to get to this place you will not be disappointed. UPDATE I do visit this place from time to time and it's still fantastic.

Jerome S.

Whether or not their beer is to your liking depends a great deal on your tastes. I have pretty much written off American Craft beer as mostly undrinkable, over-hopped wastewater. And I used to be a big fan of IPAs, with Sierra Nevada Torpedo a regular staple. My current favorites are mostly German lagers and pilsners, a few Belgian Abbey Ales, and Guinness Extra Stout. Spaten Premium Lager and Warsteiner are perhaps the best lagers made, IMO.

So that provides you with a frame of reference. Initially I was very critical of Fox Farm and gave them a 1 star rating. But over the last four months I made a number of visits to the brewery and consequently have revised this review extensively.

Let me start with the the offerings at Fox Farm Brewery that I very much liked, though some more than others.

Welly English-Style Best Bitter - This one mostly worked for me though I thought it was bit overdone on the dry hopping. I lived in the UK for 2 years and spent a lot of time in Manchester, where Bitter was the drink of choice. So I am very familiar with the real deal. Bitter is a bit malt forward with the bitterness coming up on the finish. Dry hopping is minimal and takes something of a back seat to the malt, though it is present.

Ashlawn Nitro Coffee Stout - Excellent coffee stout. Not much else to say.

Helmhold Munich-Style Dunkel - While I felt this one was also a bit over hopped it mostly worked for me. I still have some of this left and am enjoying it. Not sure if I will buy it again though.

Einfluss Triticale Landbier - This beer was awesome and I wish I could get more. Down to just a few cans left.

Rays Bavarian-Style Weissbier - One of the best wheat beers I have tasted. Gorgeous color and spot on banana-clove flavor profile. When it is available again I will buy a case.

Quiet Night Czech-Style Dark Lager - Another cracking good beer.

Bower Kölsch-Style Ale - Great beer.

Stet Düsseldorf-Style Altbier - True to the style. Highly recommended.

The Cottage Helles Lager - Again, another terrific beer that fans of the style shouldn't miss.

Beers that I tried and intensely disliked. In every case it is due to an obscene level of hops that make these beers largely undrinkable.

Little Brook American Blonde Ale - Massively over-hopped. The beer was almost white out of the can. It looked and smelled a lot like carbonated grapefruit juice. Bought two cans just to try. After a couple of sips the first can went down the sink and the second can went into the trash.

Gather German Style Pilsner - Way overdone on the hops. I have spent a lot of time in Germany drinking the real thing and this one is nothing like a real German Pilsner. Huge disappointment.

Tines Märzen Lager - Again, over-hopping this lager killed it for me. Has little in common with the real thing.

Allora India Pale Ale - Undrinkable. I took a sip of this and it literally made me gag, and I am no stranger to IPAs. I am quite surprised that there is actually a market for absurdly hopped brews like this. For comparison I have included a photo of an IPA that I brewed at home about 6 weeks ago. It uses Simcoe and Citra hops. ABV is 6.0%. The color and the flavor of my home brew is much better than Allora. The IPA I brewed is drinkable, Allora is not.

I will give Fox Farm Brewery a revised 4 out of 5 stars. They lose a point on their hop forward offerings, which in my opinion are uniformly over-hopped in the extreme. To their credit they have been coming out with a number of notable German Lager/Pilsner and Czech Lager styles that are right in my wheelhouse and quite good. They are easy to recommend. If they could dial the hops back a on the Gather Czech style pilsner it would help it a lot.

Ozzy R.

Aside from the fact that this is a beautifully secluded little spot, their offerings are delicious. The staff was friendly and helpful. Fox Farm instantly became one of my top favorite places to visit in the New England area. Their Burst IPA is addictive. I can’t stress enough how great of a place this is. They’re showcasing a masterclass on concocting excellent IPAs and I love just how special of a spot this place is.

Britt B.

A must stop when we pass through. Great beers, a lovely atmosphere, and the variety of cans and bottles to take with us never disappoints.