Under Twin Peaks at Mountain Base Brewery

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David Lynch’s Twin Peaks may be more well-known, but just west of Manchester we have our own dramatic pair of peaks that have cradled many sunsets.

I’m speaking of course of North & South Uncanoonuc. Between the Uncanoonucs and Manchester lies Mountain Base Brewery, a nano brewery and taproom in Goffstown that provides a great relaxation point after hiking the Uncs for the great views of Manchester and even Boston.

MB sign out front scaled

The Space

Mountain Base opened about 14 months ago and is very much a family operation. Founding brewer Jim is helped behind the bar by his wife Carrie, while daughter Candace helps with the brewing, event planning, and graphic design. Candace herself has small children who ask her why their friends’ moms don’t get up early to go to a brewery. Jim names the beers, and most of the names have some connection to the Goffstown area and history. Their website proudly proclaims them to be dog-friendly to well-trained dogs on a leash.

Logo

Their logo is a stylized depiction of a hop flower behind the twin peaks of the Uncanoonucs. I am assured that any resemblance of this hop flower to the skull on the cover of the Grateful Dead’s album Steal Your Face is entirely coincidental.

Their space (in a small shopping plaza, next to a Namco pool store) is not large but is quite comfortable. I was there for a recent trivia night and the place was packed; I counted 30 patrons at tables plus 5 at the bar. They seem to have many regular customers whom they address by name, and many of the patrons return that familiarity.

They hold many events at the brewery. On my first visit, as I was finishing up my flight, they began moving tables to make room for a salsa dancing lesson they were hosting that evening. Other events have included speed dating, board games, and couples painting lessons.

MB Glennie

Behind the bar is a plaque proudly announcing that Mountain Base is the favorite watering hole of Glennie, the mythical friendly dwarf plesiosaur that prowls the depths of nearby Glen Lake, where he’s been known to come to the aid of swimmers.

The Food

Mountain Base really serves no food to speak of, beyond chips, cookies, brownies, and animal crackers. Carrie assured me that patrons are welcome to order food for delivery to the taproom.


The Beer

When I visited they had twelve beers on tap. A 16-ounce pour is $7, a 4-ounce pour is $3.50, and a flight of 4 is $11. At present they have neither bottles nor cans, though they do plan to start canning. Nevertheless, they do have to-go options: aluminum crowlers for $6 empty, then $11 per fill. They also have a beer club for regular customers.

MB flight 2 scaled

On my first visit I decided to start with a flight, and chose:

  • Dirty Cog Cream Ale
  • Summit Stout
  • Tipping Rock – Pineapple Coconut (a fruity sour session ale)
  • Station 19 (a session ale)

Of these four, my favorite was Dirty Cog Cream Ale. In conversation with Jim and Candace, they called it “their first big happy accident.” They described how they had been following a specific recipe, and some mistake had occurred, after which the resulting brew tasted very different from what they had been aiming for. But at the same time they discovered that they very much liked this unexpected flavor, as did other guinea pigs (oops, I mean “early tasters.”) Luckily they were able to replicate it so today this delicious cream ale is available to all of us.

Carrie tells me that the Pineapple Coconut Tipping Rock is also very popular.

MB 2nd Flight scaled


On my second visit I again had a flight, this time choosing:

  • Summit Cookie Dough (a stout)
  • Snow Train (a stout)
  • Incline IPA
  • South Peak DIPA

One flight containing two stouts and two IPAs can mean only one thing — two taste-offs! 

I must admit I was a bit skeptical of a beer with “cookie dough” in the name, but sometimes it’s good to try new things. And so it was here: both stouts were good, with a similar sweet coffee base flavor. The taste of caramel with a wee bit of salt were present in the Snow Train, which for me gave it a slight edge over the Summit Cookie Dough.

On to the IPAs. Here I was much harder-pressed to choose a favorite, possibly because I’m less experienced as an IPA drinker. Both were good, and Jim had mentioned he was especially happy with the Incline, but if push came to shove I might choose the South Peak. I can’t find words to describe why precisely, the best I can say is that the combination of flavors, not easily identifiable to me, were just slightly more pleasant with the South Peak. Even as I write this I can feel an urge for the necessary further research!

Such additional research might let me taste their remaining four beers:

  • Tipping Rock Sour (session w/ sour cherries & tart grapefruit)
  • The Goffe Espresso (coffee porter)
  • Pine Plains IPA
  • North Peak DIPA

Say hello if you see me there!

Just the Facts

Mountain Base Brewery is located at…
553 Mast Road, Unit #111
Goffstown, NH 03045
Phone: (603) 935-7132
Website: mountainbasebrewery.com
Facebook: facebook.com/mountainbasebrewery
Email: see “contact” page of their website

Hours:
Thu: 4-8 p.m.
Fri: 4-8 p.m.
Sat: 1-8 p.m.
Sun: 1-5 p.m.


 

About this Author

Jeff Rogers

Jeff Rogers is a native Hoosier who’s lived in the Granite State for 30+ years. He’s worked on airborne radar systems and written a lot of software. Today he lives in Manchester where he seeks to answer the age-old question: saison, lager, ale or stout?