USA, NH: Tilton Brothers Brewing closing its doors for good

The steady flow of foot traffic into Tilton Brothers Brewing on Saturday, January 15 was only trumped by the overflowing emotions inside, the Seacoastonline reportedon January 19.

Beer lovers from across the Seacoast and beyond made the trek to Hampton to raise a glass to a beloved brewery many viewed as far more than simply a source of great beer.

The brewery, which is owned by brothers Ben and Dave Tilton, along with their partner, Joe Chase, announced earlier in the week that it would be closing its doors for good due to increasing financial pressures.

“I think one of our fellow mug clubbers put it best and said, ‘it’s like the death of a friend,’” said Rye’s Dave Meehan, No.2 on the brewery’s tight-knit mug club list that numbers nearly 200. “This is like a two-week wake.”

An Irish wake to be precise with the final calling hours for the always welcoming and fun-loving brewery off Route 1 slated for this weekend, Friday and Saturday, Jan. 21-22 from 1 to 9 p.m.

“We’ll be trying to capture that last bit of magic and say goodbye,” said Ben Tilton, who did all of the brewing at Tilton Brothers and spent a good deal of his waking hours at the brewery the last three years.

Glancing at the overflow crowd Saturday of fellow brewers, loyal mug club members and craft beer aficionados of all ages, it was hard for either brother to contain their emotions.

“This really cements that a lot of people appreciate us even though we couldn’t make everything sustain itself,” said Dave Tilton. “All the love and support means a lot. It means a lot to all our regulars and to all of our staff to be able to have this closure.”

The brewery opened to the public in March 2019 at the site of the former Four Pines Brewery and The Blue Lobster Brewery before that. When the coronavirus pandemic hit a year later, Tilton Brothers went to about a 75% packaged product, investing in a new $50,000 canning line.

Looking to double its brewing capacity, Tilton Brothers embarked on a public revenue sharing campaign this spring and not only reached its $75,000 goal, but nearly doubled it. Plans were to build out the intimate brew house and a slew of new equipment was ordered and paid for, but due to stagnant supply line issues the equipment never arrived.

“We’re so thankful to the people that gave us that vote of confidence,” said Ben Tilton of the outpouring of support and strong brand loyalty. “I’m so torn about it, that we were never able to show them what we had planned.”

Marked price increases in brewing materials in recent months – and more delays in receiving them – further exacerbated things for the brewery.

“I can only speak for myself, but I think we all saw the challenges ahead and were forced to make a call,” Ben added. “It wasn’t what our hearts wanted.”

Unfortunately, it’s not an unfamiliar story for many small businesses, especially microbreweries, in this uncertain climate. Both brothers were buoyed to see so many of their peers, like Tom Bath and Peter Mead from Portsmouth’s Loaded Question Brewing Co. stop by and offer their support in recent days.

“It’s hard when you see that happen,” said Mead. “People who pour everything into what they’re doing and pour everything into the community that they are in and sometimes it’s just out of their control. That's the nature of the world we live in right now. You can do everything right and still struggle.

“They’re just really good people,” Mead added. “Everybody that has worked for Tilton and everyone I have met here are really good people.”

Ben Tilton figures he brewed upwards of 80 beers in his time in Hampton and it was that rotational tap variety, along with the strong sense of community, that helped make the brewery such a staple among local beer lovers in such a short time. Always tasty and often pushing the envelope from established styles, many of the beers came with compelling backstories as well like the recently released Wolf Hollow IPA, which helped raise funds for the non-profit wolf sanctuary by the same name in Ipswich. A proud Seacoast United soccer alum, Ben points to a “For you too” a collaboration with the club in Hampton and dedicated to all the tireless youth sports parents as one of his favorites.

Ben Tilton says his phone “has not stopped pinging '' since word of the closure hit Facebook and along with all the calls and texts of support, he has already received several inquiries about purchasing the brewery’s equipment. The preferred path is to sell everything together as a turnkey business and have someone come in and assume the lease.

Both Tilton brothers, who grew up in Newmarket and got their love of brewing from their dad, Dave Jr., brewed their first batch together nearly a decade ago in the bathtub of an apartment they shared in Washington D.C.

“In those days this is what we envisioned more or less,” said a slightly choked up Dave Tilton of those early days as he panned the packed crowd. “To have a spot no matter how big or small it was, but just to have a place for people to gather and to have a space where Ben could experiment and create great beer.”

They certainly checked those boxes and several more in Hampton and both brothers left the door more than slightly ajar in terms of a Tilton Brothers 2.0 in the future. Despite the physical demands and long days inherent in running a microbrewery, especially during a pandemic, Ben Tilton noted the ultimate reward always remained on the other side of the expansive bar at Tilton Brothers at the end of the day.

“You can focus on all the hard work,” he noted, “but to come out (from the brew room) all covered in sweat, yeast and hops and see everyone enjoying your beer? That reward has always been worth it.”

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