Home | Hot Plate Brewing Co

top of page

CRAFTING CONNECTIONS

We're building a safe, inclusive, and resilient community in Downtown Pittsfield, MA.

Products & Services

IMG_0621_jpg 2.JPG

Hot Plate Exterior.jpeg

UPCOMING EVENTS

AS SEEN IN:

ALWAYS KNOW WHAT'S HOT

Join our email list to get all our latest updates.

🚨 New product alert!

Just in case you gluten-free drinkers are feeling a little left out during the 10x10, we just canned our first run of hard seltzers! We’ve now got 4-packs of these to go.

If the winter doldrums have you down, crack into a Raspberry Lemonade hard seltzer and pretend it’s summer!

🚨 New product alert!

Just in case you gluten-free drinkers are feeling a little left out during the 10x10, we just canned our first run of hard seltzers! We’ve now got 4-packs of these to go.

If the winter doldrums have you down, crack into a Raspberry Lemonade hard seltzer and pretend it’s summer!

🎉🎉🎉 Good news: Our all-alcohol license was approved by the state and craft cocktails are coming your way very soon!

Since we’re kicking off the 10x10 tonight, we’ve decided to launch our craft cocktails program on Friday, February 27.

We’re going to kick things off with a popup from our friends @berkshiremtdist who will be serving from our new curated list of cocktails and we’ll be teaming up with @djpupdaddy for Bring Your Own Vinyl Night, too!

And because we’re so stoked to be expanding our drinks menu, members of The Scrum will also earn 10 points that night when they check in.

Hope to see you there!

🎉🎉🎉 Good news: Our all-alcohol license was approved by the state and craft cocktails are coming your way very soon!

Since we’re kicking off the 10x10 tonight, we’ve decided to launch our craft cocktails program on Friday, February 27.

We’re going to kick things off with a popup from our friends @berkshiremtdist who will be serving from our new curated list of cocktails and we’ll be teaming up with @djpupdaddy for Bring Your Own Vinyl Night, too!

And because we’re so stoked to be expanding our drinks menu, members of The Scrum will also earn 10 points that night when they check in.

Hope to see you there!

📣 We’re kicking off the 2026 10x10 Festival this Thursday!

From February 12-22, we’ll be releasing a different small batch beer along with a unique, collaborative launch party to celebrate each release.

You can find more information on our website, but here’s the lineup of beers, events, and collaborators:

Thu 2/12 — I Won’t Cry for Yesterday Brut Pale Ale Meet the artist Cara Betti

Fri 2/13 — Cloudsplitter Nut Brown Ale @greghallmusic solo show

Sat 2/14 — Alexandria Smoked Chipotle Porter Book Fair feat local booksellers & authors @indiereaderyandrecords @thebookshires @authorarletarae @dwardern @laratupper @methewsiastic @montydrawz

Sun 2/15 — Instruction to Slay Mixed Fermentation Ale Berkshire Concert Choir performance

Mon 2/16 — Fiestas Mexican Lager 10x10 Quinceañera with @barringtonstage DJ DS-1 and food by @yurys_kitchenn

Tue 2/17 — Audrey II Pickle Beer Special Edition Trivia with @barringtonstage

Wed 2/18 — A Garden You Never See Saison
@redshirtfarm Seed Share

Thu 2/19 — One Beetle Recognizes Another Irish Red Ale Irish Dance Showcase + Fundraiser @irishdanceberks followed by @berkshireartassociation After Party & Benefit

Fri 2/20 — Monte Cassino Belgian Dubbel Language Exchange with @katunemo

Sat 2/21 — Berkshire Bonspiel Kriek Lambic Curling Double Header with Curling Club of the Berkshires

Can’t wait to celebrate with you all! 🙌🍻

📣 We’re kicking off the 2026 10x10 Festival this Thursday!

From February 12-22, we’ll be releasing a different small batch beer along with a unique, collaborative launch party to celebrate each release.

You can find more information on our website, but here’s the lineup of beers, events, and collaborators:

Thu 2/12 — I Won’t Cry for Yesterday Brut Pale Ale Meet the artist Cara Betti

Fri 2/13 — Cloudsplitter Nut Brown Ale @greghallmusic solo show

Sat 2/14 — Alexandria Smoked Chipotle Porter Book Fair feat local booksellers & authors @indiereaderyandrecords @thebookshires @authorarletarae @dwardern @laratupper @methewsiastic @montydrawz

Sun 2/15 — Instruction to Slay Mixed Fermentation Ale Berkshire Concert Choir performance

Mon 2/16 — Fiestas Mexican Lager 10x10 Quinceañera with @barringtonstage DJ DS-1 and food by @yurys_kitchenn

Tue 2/17 — Audrey II Pickle Beer Special Edition Trivia with @barringtonstage

Wed 2/18 — A Garden You Never See Saison
@redshirtfarm Seed Share

Thu 2/19 — One Beetle Recognizes Another Irish Red Ale Irish Dance Showcase + Fundraiser @irishdanceberks followed by @berkshireartassociation After Party & Benefit

Fri 2/20 — Monte Cassino Belgian Dubbel Language Exchange with @katunemo

Sat 2/21 — Berkshire Bonspiel Kriek Lambic Curling Double Header with Curling Club of the Berkshires

Can’t wait to celebrate with you all! 🙌🍻

🏳️‍🌈🪩💃🏻 Last night, we were fortunate enough to host our first Pride Night with @djpupdaddy with a special appearance by @bellasantarella (who stole the show with her Dolly impersonation).

We’re really excited to be the new home for Pride Night here in the Berkshires, and they’ll be taking place on the first Thursday of each month. The themes will vary from month to month, but if the first one was any indication, they’re guaranteed to be a fun time.

Thanks for everyone who came to party. We had a blast and can’t wait to do it all again in March!

🏳️‍🌈🪩💃🏻 Last night, we were fortunate enough to host our first Pride Night with @djpupdaddy with a special appearance by @bellasantarella (who stole the show with her Dolly impersonation).

We’re really excited to be the new home for Pride Night here in the Berkshires, and they’ll be taking place on the first Thursday of each month. The themes will vary from month to month, but if the first one was any indication, they’re guaranteed to be a fun time.

Thanks for everyone who came to party. We had a blast and can’t wait to do it all again in March!

🥳 Hot Plate just turned 3 years old! 🥳

While yesterday was our official third anniversary, we had the chance to celebrate with many of our friends, regulars, and frequent collaborators on Saturday night.

We were lucky enough to be joined by @djbengey for a special set and a food popup from @yurys_kitchenn

We’re especially grateful to our amazing team: @saraham23 @carazy12 @rea.fbx @jemigriff @steveareno1959 These folks all live our values and help make the taproom a really special place for us all.

As any one in the hospitality industry knows, running a business in the 2020s is not for the faint of heart, so we appreciate everyone who’s helped us keep the lights on and keep going. ❤️

📸: @wrzphoto

🥳 Hot Plate just turned 3 years old! 🥳

While yesterday was our official third anniversary, we had the chance to celebrate with many of our friends, regulars, and frequent collaborators on Saturday night.

We were lucky enough to be joined by @djbengey for a special set and a food popup from @yurys_kitchenn

We’re especially grateful to our amazing team: @saraham23 @carazy12 @rea.fbx @jemigriff @steveareno1959 These folks all live our values and help make the taproom a really special place for us all.

As any one in the hospitality industry knows, running a business in the 2020s is not for the faint of heart, so we appreciate everyone who’s helped us keep the lights on and keep going. ❤️

📸: @wrzphoto

🎉🎉🎉 Last week, Sarah was able to escape the snow and get a little breather from all the madness of this world to step into her new role as VP of @pinkbootssociety Board of Directors at this year’s conference.

Since the conference was held in New Orleans, she got to attend several different events celebrations the city, including “Chewbaccus” a Star Wars-themed parade that reminded us that “rebellions are built on hope.”

Through a mixture of educational panels and socializing, Sarah had the chance to (re)connect with so many of the women and non-binary folx who have made this journey so rewarding.

At a time when it’s easy to feel hopeless and disconnected, this organization stepped up as it always does to educate, inspire, and empower. And we need that more than ever, within and outside of this industry. ❤️

🎉🎉🎉 Last week, Sarah was able to escape the snow and get a little breather from all the madness of this world to step into her new role as VP of @pinkbootssociety Board of Directors at this year’s conference.

Since the conference was held in New Orleans, she got to attend several different events celebrations the city, including “Chewbaccus” a Star Wars-themed parade that reminded us that “rebellions are built on hope.”

Through a mixture of educational panels and socializing, Sarah had the chance to (re)connect with so many of the women and non-binary folx who have made this journey so rewarding.

At a time when it’s easy to feel hopeless and disconnected, this organization stepped up as it always does to educate, inspire, and empower. And we need that more than ever, within and outside of this industry. ❤️

📣 While some companies are choosing to participate in the General Strike protests against ICE, we simply cannot afford to join them. We suspect that we are not the only small business in this predicament.

This does not mean that we approve of what is happening to our country. This does not mean that we do not care.

Between the weather and Dry January, this month has been frighteningly lean. Closing on our busiest day of the week will not hurt this administration. They will not notice, or care.

We understand that people are angry, that they’re hurting, and that they’re looking for catharsis. Can an economic boycott alleviate any of this? Maybe. But only if it is directed toward the companies that profit from the exploitation of workers and consumers. Small, local businesses are not the culprit. They are victims of the rigged game of late capitalism, too.

If you want to make an impact, call your elected representatives and tell them how you feel. Shop at local and independent businesses that share your values. Donate to nonprofit organizations that desperately need your help.

📣 While some companies are choosing to participate in the General Strike protests against ICE, we simply cannot afford to join them. We suspect that we are not the only small business in this predicament.

This does not mean that we approve of what is happening to our country. This does not mean that we do not care.

Between the weather and Dry January, this month has been frighteningly lean. Closing on our busiest day of the week will not hurt this administration. They will not notice, or care.

We understand that people are angry, that they’re hurting, and that they’re looking for catharsis. Can an economic boycott alleviate any of this? Maybe. But only if it is directed toward the companies that profit from the exploitation of workers and consumers. Small, local businesses are not the culprit. They are victims of the rigged game of late capitalism, too.

If you want to make an impact, call your elected representatives and tell them how you feel. Shop at local and independent businesses that share your values. Donate to nonprofit organizations that desperately need your help.

🎉 Thanks to everyone who joined us for trivia last night! After a trying week, we were so happy to see so many returning teams and familiar faces along with a few new ones.

We had to mix up the format a bit just because the Curren Events/News category felt WAY too heavy to be a part of it this week, and it was fun to have teams rename one of our beers, rename the Pittsfield Suns, and tell us what their team would sing at karaoke instead.

While everything still feels really dark, we’re grateful for the moments we can come together and just get a little breather from all of it to have some fun as a community.

Shout out to the first-place team The Don’t Know it Alls who won in a tie-break!

We’ll be back at it in two weeks, but we’ve got plenty of stuff lined up in the taproom before then!

🎉 Thanks to everyone who joined us for trivia last night! After a trying week, we were so happy to see so many returning teams and familiar faces along with a few new ones.

We had to mix up the format a bit just because the Curren Events/News category felt WAY too heavy to be a part of it this week, and it was fun to have teams rename one of our beers, rename the Pittsfield Suns, and tell us what their team would sing at karaoke instead.

While everything still feels really dark, we’re grateful for the moments we can come together and just get a little breather from all of it to have some fun as a community.

Shout out to the first-place team The Don’t Know it Alls who won in a tie-break!

We’ll be back at it in two weeks, but we’ve got plenty of stuff lined up in the taproom before then!

We started working on Hot Plate during a personal crisis and launched the brewery as we emerged from a global one. Because of that, chaos has become familiar in ways we wish it wouldn’t, and having to once again make sense of a national tragedy while sheltering in place reminded us of the most important of our company’s values: Community.

This February marks the start of our fourth year in operation. Leading up to our opening, we’d anticipated a return to social norms following the isolation we experienced during the pandemic, but as most of us know, the years that followed have played out differently.

In-person socializing is nearly extinct. The very real and often terrifying rifts in this country continue to intensify. People are struggling more than they have since the Recession to make ends meet. And in the face of all this, we have to come on social media and try to make craft beer feel relevant.

But Hot Plate was never just about the beer; it’s always been about connection. We need this more than ever. All of us.

We’ll be back at it Tuesday night with Trivia at 7pm, and we’ll be gearing up for a fun and busy February. Because of all the events that gave us pause this weekend, we’re doing so with a renewed sense of purpose.

We’re grateful to all of you that have helped us build our little community here over the first three years, and we hope that you’ll all remember that our survival—financial and otherwise—depends on our ability to accept and celebrate our interdependence on one another.

We hope to see you and serve you soon. ❤️

We started working on Hot Plate during a personal crisis and launched the brewery as we emerged from a global one. Because of that, chaos has become familiar in ways we wish it wouldn’t, and having to once again make sense of a national tragedy while sheltering in place reminded us of the most important of our company’s values: Community.

This February marks the start of our fourth year in operation. Leading up to our opening, we’d anticipated a return to social norms following the isolation we experienced during the pandemic, but as most of us know, the years that followed have played out differently.

In-person socializing is nearly extinct. The very real and often terrifying rifts in this country continue to intensify. People are struggling more than they have since the Recession to make ends meet. And in the face of all this, we have to come on social media and try to make craft beer feel relevant.

But Hot Plate was never just about the beer; it’s always been about connection. We need this more than ever. All of us.

We’ll be back at it Tuesday night with Trivia at 7pm, and we’ll be gearing up for a fun and busy February. Because of all the events that gave us pause this weekend, we’re doing so with a renewed sense of purpose.

We’re grateful to all of you that have helped us build our little community here over the first three years, and we hope that you’ll all remember that our survival—financial and otherwise—depends on our ability to accept and celebrate our interdependence on one another.

We hope to see you and serve you soon. ❤️

🎉 Gluten-Free drinkers: we’ve got some good news! While we’re still waiting on our all-alcohol license, we will be releasing our own hard seltzers next Friday, January 30th.

We’ll have a few different flavors to start, including lime, watermelon, raspberry, and black cherry (and you can also mix and match). So if you can’t (or won’t) drink beer, we’ll be brewing up something just for you!

If you swing through the taproom next Friday, you’ll also earn 5 POINTS from our Community Rewards program—that’s how excited we are to be launching GF products at last!

🎉 Gluten-Free drinkers: we’ve got some good news! While we’re still waiting on our all-alcohol license, we will be releasing our own hard seltzers next Friday, January 30th.

We’ll have a few different flavors to start, including lime, watermelon, raspberry, and black cherry (and you can also mix and match). So if you can’t (or won’t) drink beer, we’ll be brewing up something just for you!

If you swing through the taproom next Friday, you’ll also earn 5 POINTS from our Community Rewards program—that’s how excited we are to be launching GF products at last!

🌟 10 DAYS. 10 BEERS. 🌟 Our favorite time of year is officially here— our annual 10x10 Series kicks off Feb 12 and we’re dropping a new small-batch beer + party every single day to celebrate Pittsfield’s Upstreet Arts Festival! 🎨🍻

From mixed-ferm pale ales to pickle beers, saisons to spicy dark beers, this lineup is wild, weird, and very us.

This year, we teamed up with local artist @carabetti for the custom artwork, and we’ve got even more collaborations lined up for our launch parties: artists, musicians, performers, dancers, choirs, curling teams, DJs, and more. ✨

🔥 10x10 Day-by-Day 🔥 Thu 2/12 — I Won’t Cry for Yesterday Brut Pale Ale 🎨 Meet the artist Cara Betti + @berkshireartassociation Benefit Party 🍾

Fri 2/13 — Cloudsplitter Nut Brown Ale 🎸 @greghallmusic solo show ✨

Sat 2/14 — Alexandria Smoked Chipotle Porter 📚 Book Fair feat local booksellers & authors 📖 @indiereaderyandrecords @thebookshires @authorarletarae @dwardern @laratupper @methewsiastic @montydrawz

Sun 2/15 — Instruction to Slay Mixed Fermentation Ale 🎶 Berkshire Concert Choir performance 💫

Mon 2/16 — Fiestas Mexican Lager 🎭 10x10 Quinceañera with @barringtonstage 💃

Tue 2/17 — Audrey II Pickle Beer 🧠 Special Trivia with @barringtonstage 🥒

Wed 2/18 — A Garden You Never See Saison 🌱 @redshirtfarm Seed Share 🌾

Thu 2/19 — One Beetle Recognizes AnotherIrish Red Ale 💃 Irish Dance Showcase + Fundraiser @irishdanceberks 🇮🇪

Fri 2/20 — Monte Cassino Belgian Dubbel 🌍 Language Exchange with @katunemo 🗣️

Sat 2/21 — Berkshire Bonspiel Kriek Lambic 🥌 + Curling Double Header with Berkshire Curling Club 🍒

🍻 Whether you’re here for artistry, community, quirky beers, or new friends—10x10 has something for everyone. See more details on the website and plan your week of sips & celebrations! 🎉 (link in bio)

🌟 10 DAYS. 10 BEERS. 🌟 Our favorite time of year is officially here— our annual 10x10 Series kicks off Feb 12 and we’re dropping a new small-batch beer + party every single day to celebrate Pittsfield’s Upstreet Arts Festival! 🎨🍻

From mixed-ferm pale ales to pickle beers, saisons to spicy dark beers, this lineup is wild, weird, and very us.

This year, we teamed up with local artist @carabetti for the custom artwork, and we’ve got even more collaborations lined up for our launch parties: artists, musicians, performers, dancers, choirs, curling teams, DJs, and more. ✨

🔥 10x10 Day-by-Day 🔥 Thu 2/12 — I Won’t Cry for Yesterday Brut Pale Ale 🎨 Meet the artist Cara Betti + @berkshireartassociation Benefit Party 🍾

Fri 2/13 — Cloudsplitter Nut Brown Ale 🎸 @greghallmusic solo show ✨

Sat 2/14 — Alexandria Smoked Chipotle Porter 📚 Book Fair feat local booksellers & authors 📖 @indiereaderyandrecords @thebookshires @authorarletarae @dwardern @laratupper @methewsiastic @montydrawz

Sun 2/15 — Instruction to Slay Mixed Fermentation Ale 🎶 Berkshire Concert Choir performance 💫

Mon 2/16 — Fiestas Mexican Lager 🎭 10x10 Quinceañera with @barringtonstage 💃

Tue 2/17 — Audrey II Pickle Beer 🧠 Special Trivia with @barringtonstage 🥒

Wed 2/18 — A Garden You Never See Saison 🌱 @redshirtfarm Seed Share 🌾

Thu 2/19 — One Beetle Recognizes AnotherIrish Red Ale 💃 Irish Dance Showcase + Fundraiser @irishdanceberks 🇮🇪

Fri 2/20 — Monte Cassino Belgian Dubbel 🌍 Language Exchange with @katunemo 🗣️

Sat 2/21 — Berkshire Bonspiel Kriek Lambic 🥌 + Curling Double Header with Berkshire Curling Club 🍒

🍻 Whether you’re here for artistry, community, quirky beers, or new friends—10x10 has something for everyone. See more details on the website and plan your week of sips & celebrations! 🎉 (link in bio)

Despite getting dumped on by several inches of snow on Saturday night, we were still happy to team up with our friends from @cellolenox and @redlovesbluemusic for a Benefit Show supporting @foodbankwma

Even if the weather put a slight damper on things, we were able to raise $107 in cash donations and are still waiting for the online donations to be tallied.

If you wanted to make it out to support the good bank but the weather kept you from stopping by, don’t worry! We’ve still got the cash donation box and QR codes set up throughout the taproom, and we’ll be raising money for the food bank all month long.

With additional federal cuts coming to SNAP benefits, the need to help food insecure families is real and growing, so we hope you’ll consider stopping by and making a donation! ❤️

Despite getting dumped on by several inches of snow on Saturday night, we were still happy to team up with our friends from @cellolenox and @redlovesbluemusic for a Benefit Show supporting @foodbankwma

Even if the weather put a slight damper on things, we were able to raise $107 in cash donations and are still waiting for the online donations to be tallied.

If you wanted to make it out to support the good bank but the weather kept you from stopping by, don’t worry! We’ve still got the cash donation box and QR codes set up throughout the taproom, and we’ll be raising money for the food bank all month long.

With additional federal cuts coming to SNAP benefits, the need to help food insecure families is real and growing, so we hope you’ll consider stopping by and making a donation! ❤️

📚 Book lovers: The first Community Read of 2026 will be THE BOOK OF ARON by Jim Shepard.

We’ll be discussing this book on Wednesday, January 28 at 7pm, which happens to be the day after Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Set in the Warsaw, Poland at the start of the Nazi invasion and occupation, THE BOOK OF ARON is a moving and intimate portrait of a young boy trying to navigate these impossible circumstances, and in light of recent events in this country, the novel has taken on a new, unfortunate relevance that we’re looking forward to discussing.

We’d love to have you pick up a copy from either our friends at @indiereaderyandrecords or @berkshireathenaeum

Here are the novels we’ll be reading for the rest of the year:

February: The Underground Railroadby Colson Whitehead
March: I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman
April: Rules for Ghosting by Shelley Jay Shore
May: My Year of Rest and Relaxationby Otessa Mosfegh
June: Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar
July: What We Tried to Bury Grows Here by Julian Zabalbeascoa
August: White Noise by Don DeLillo
September: Erasure by Percival Everett
October: Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli
November: Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano
December: Severance by Ling Ma

📚 Book lovers: The first Community Read of 2026 will be THE BOOK OF ARON by Jim Shepard.

We’ll be discussing this book on Wednesday, January 28 at 7pm, which happens to be the day after Holocaust Remembrance Day.

Set in the Warsaw, Poland at the start of the Nazi invasion and occupation, THE BOOK OF ARON is a moving and intimate portrait of a young boy trying to navigate these impossible circumstances, and in light of recent events in this country, the novel has taken on a new, unfortunate relevance that we’re looking forward to discussing.

We’d love to have you pick up a copy from either our friends at @indiereaderyandrecords or @berkshireathenaeum

Here are the novels we’ll be reading for the rest of the year:

February: The Underground Railroadby Colson Whitehead
March: I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman
April: Rules for Ghosting by Shelley Jay Shore
May: My Year of Rest and Relaxationby Otessa Mosfegh
June: Martyr! by Kaveh Akbar
July: What We Tried to Bury Grows Here by Julian Zabalbeascoa
August: White Noise by Don DeLillo
September: Erasure by Percival Everett
October: Lost Children Archive by Valeria Luiselli
November: Hello Beautiful by Ann Napolitano
December: Severance by Ling Ma

🚨 New Beer Alert! 🚨

We kicked off 2026 with the return of The Past is a Corridor, our Smoked Helles Lager.

This super-crisp beer was brewed with local malts from @valleymalt and some specialty beechwood smoked malt, which adds a hint of smoky flavor and aroma without making it overpowering.

We’ve got this lager on tap and in 4packs to go, so stop in and give it a try! (And don’t forget to check in an earn points when you visit us 😉)

🚨 New Beer Alert! 🚨

We kicked off 2026 with the return of The Past is a Corridor, our Smoked Helles Lager.

This super-crisp beer was brewed with local malts from @valleymalt and some specialty beechwood smoked malt, which adds a hint of smoky flavor and aroma without making it overpowering.

We’ve got this lager on tap and in 4packs to go, so stop in and give it a try! (And don’t forget to check in an earn points when you visit us 😉)

🎉 Please join us this Saturday as we team up with @cellolenox and @redlovesbluemusic in support of the amazing and necessary work that the @foodbankwma is doing in our region.

We’ll have a food popup with our friends from Cello, special Red Loves Blue duo show, and a portion of the proceeds from this evening will be donated to the Food Bank of Western Mass. We’ll also have a raffle, and other ways you can support this great cause.

If you’re a member of The Scrum, our new community rewards program, you’ll also earn 3 points when you check in for this event (link in bio to sign up or learn more).

Hope to see you all on Saturday!

🎉 Please join us this Saturday as we team up with @cellolenox and @redlovesbluemusic in support of the amazing and necessary work that the @foodbankwma is doing in our region.

We’ll have a food popup with our friends from Cello, special Red Loves Blue duo show, and a portion of the proceeds from this evening will be donated to the Food Bank of Western Mass. We’ll also have a raffle, and other ways you can support this great cause.

If you’re a member of The Scrum, our new community rewards program, you’ll also earn 3 points when you check in for this event (link in bio to sign up or learn more).

Hope to see you all on Saturday!

🥳 As you may have heard, we’ve got some big changes lined up for 2026.

We wanted to take a moment to talk about the biggest one: we’re in the process of converting our taproom license, which will allow us to start serving craft cocktails.

This change was approved by the City of Pittsfield right before the end of the year and now we’re just working on getting it approved at the state level by the ABCC.

We’ll have more news to share soon, hopefully, but in the mean time we wanted to let you know what’s coming soon.

Cheers! 🍹

🥳 As you may have heard, we’ve got some big changes lined up for 2026.

We wanted to take a moment to talk about the biggest one: we’re in the process of converting our taproom license, which will allow us to start serving craft cocktails.

This change was approved by the City of Pittsfield right before the end of the year and now we’re just working on getting it approved at the state level by the ABCC.

We’ll have more news to share soon, hopefully, but in the mean time we wanted to let you know what’s coming soon.

Cheers! 🍹

📢 We’ve got two days left before we take a little winter break, so we wanted to give you a heads up about all the events we’ve got lined up for January.

Starting in January, we’ll be launching our new loyalty program THE SCRUM, which is *free* to join. You’ll earn points for participation in our events, not purchases, and those points will turn into exclusive rewards like special beer releases, free admission to beer pairing events, and more. Link in bio to sign up.

The @foodbankwma will be our designated beneficiary for the month, and you’ll be able to make cash donations or donate through QR codes in the taproom (like we’re currently doing for the Hearth & Home campaign). We’ll have a special benefit show on January 17 with a popup from our friends at @cellolenox and a performance by @redlovesbluemusic

We’re excited to take a little break, and we’ll be ready to hit the ground running in 2026!

📢 We’ve got two days left before we take a little winter break, so we wanted to give you a heads up about all the events we’ve got lined up for January.

Starting in January, we’ll be launching our new loyalty program THE SCRUM, which is *free* to join. You’ll earn points for participation in our events, not purchases, and those points will turn into exclusive rewards like special beer releases, free admission to beer pairing events, and more. Link in bio to sign up.

The @foodbankwma will be our designated beneficiary for the month, and you’ll be able to make cash donations or donate through QR codes in the taproom (like we’re currently doing for the Hearth & Home campaign). We’ll have a special benefit show on January 17 with a popup from our friends at @cellolenox and a performance by @redlovesbluemusic

We’re excited to take a little break, and we’ll be ready to hit the ground running in 2026!

🎉🎉🎉 As we prepare to say goodbye to 2025, we wanted to look back on what was another wild year for us.

We tried a bunch of new things this year, and some turned out better than others, but along the way, we were able to strengthen some really great relationships and to build some new ones.

From kicking off the year with a nomination for USA Today’s 10Best New Breweries and earning the Number 3 spot to helping to organize and host a summer music series to all sorts of collaborations with writers, musicians, and local chefs, we continued to push what we can do as an organization.

We’ve got a lot of exciting stuff planned for 2026, but before then, we’re going to wind down for the rest of this year and take a little breather as we welcome 2026.

Thank you to our incredible team, the folks who have been there for us since day one, and all the new friends and collaborators we got to team up with this year! ❤️

🎉🎉🎉 As we prepare to say goodbye to 2025, we wanted to look back on what was another wild year for us.

We tried a bunch of new things this year, and some turned out better than others, but along the way, we were able to strengthen some really great relationships and to build some new ones.

From kicking off the year with a nomination for USA Today’s 10Best New Breweries and earning the Number 3 spot to helping to organize and host a summer music series to all sorts of collaborations with writers, musicians, and local chefs, we continued to push what we can do as an organization.

We’ve got a lot of exciting stuff planned for 2026, but before then, we’re going to wind down for the rest of this year and take a little breather as we welcome 2026.

Thank you to our incredible team, the folks who have been there for us since day one, and all the new friends and collaborators we got to team up with this year! ❤️

🥳🥳🥳 As we prepare to say goodbye to one year and look forward to another, we wanted to share some exciting news: Sarah, our fearless jefa, was elected to serve as Vice President for the @pinkbootssociety National Board of Directors for 2026.

If you’ve been following the Hot Plate journey for any length of time, you probably know how important Pink Boots is to all of us here, but for Sarah, it’s not at all hyperbole to say that she wouldn’t even be where she is without this organization.

From becoming a provisional member of @pinkbootsnyc in 2018 to joining her first Pink Boots collab brew day in 2019 to earning a scholarship to do some hops intensive training in Yakima, WA in 2021, this organization helped pave the way for her to break into this industry, and since then she’s been trying to pay it forward as an active member of @pinkbootsboston

There are way too many Pink Booters to thank for all the support over the years, but early encouragement from @annv_reilly @mylifeoncraft @lindsay.steen and @pinkbooter meant the world to Sarah when she was just a homebrewer with a hot plate.

🥳🥳🥳 As we prepare to say goodbye to one year and look forward to another, we wanted to share some exciting news: Sarah, our fearless jefa, was elected to serve as Vice President for the @pinkbootssociety National Board of Directors for 2026.

If you’ve been following the Hot Plate journey for any length of time, you probably know how important Pink Boots is to all of us here, but for Sarah, it’s not at all hyperbole to say that she wouldn’t even be where she is without this organization.

From becoming a provisional member of @pinkbootsnyc in 2018 to joining her first Pink Boots collab brew day in 2019 to earning a scholarship to do some hops intensive training in Yakima, WA in 2021, this organization helped pave the way for her to break into this industry, and since then she’s been trying to pay it forward as an active member of @pinkbootsboston

There are way too many Pink Booters to thank for all the support over the years, but early encouragement from @annv_reilly @mylifeoncraft @lindsay.steen and @pinkbooter meant the world to Sarah when she was just a homebrewer with a hot plate.

🤣 Social Media vs. Reality: After our team holiday dinner at @sibaritas_1264 we decided to head back to the taproom so we could have the place to ourselves for the after party.

When it came time to take a team pic, we decided to use Jess’s new Pixel because it allows you to take a picture by raising your hand (a feature that iPhone user Sarah both loved and abused).

After looking through a bunch we took from that night, the less pose-y ones definitely feel better to us.

We really love how lucky we are to have this amazing team, from Sara and Carly who have literally been with us since day one, to Andrea whose been with us over a year, to more recent team members Jess and Steve. Everyone brings their authentic selves to this place, works so hard, and makes it all worth it even on the shittiest of days.

We quite literally wouldn’t be the place we are without these amazing people.

🤣 Social Media vs. Reality: After our team holiday dinner at @sibaritas_1264 we decided to head back to the taproom so we could have the place to ourselves for the after party.

When it came time to take a team pic, we decided to use Jess’s new Pixel because it allows you to take a picture by raising your hand (a feature that iPhone user Sarah both loved and abused).

After looking through a bunch we took from that night, the less pose-y ones definitely feel better to us.

We really love how lucky we are to have this amazing team, from Sara and Carly who have literally been with us since day one, to Andrea whose been with us over a year, to more recent team members Jess and Steve. Everyone brings their authentic selves to this place, works so hard, and makes it all worth it even on the shittiest of days.

We quite literally wouldn’t be the place we are without these amazing people.

🎄 On Saturday night, we got to team up with our pals from @silverlakebooking413 for the last show of 2025. We were fortunate enough to co-host @nicetrykid_band Christmas Benefit Show, which featured an awesome lineup and supported our Hearth & Home campaign.

Between ticket sales, additional cash donations, and pints of Kardia sold, we were able to raise more than $800!

The show itself was such a great time, and while we always love seeing this DIY music community coming together, it was especially moving to see everyone rallying around the bands they love and a cause that makes a real difference in the lives of people here in Pittsfield.

We’re so lucky to play a part in all of this, and we’re looking forward to another great year of Hot Plate + Silver Lake collabs.

Thanks again for everyone who came through, and for all the love. Our hearts definitely grew three sizes Saturday night. ❤️

🎄 On Saturday night, we got to team up with our pals from @silverlakebooking413 for the last show of 2025. We were fortunate enough to co-host @nicetrykid_band Christmas Benefit Show, which featured an awesome lineup and supported our Hearth & Home campaign.

Between ticket sales, additional cash donations, and pints of Kardia sold, we were able to raise more than $800!

The show itself was such a great time, and while we always love seeing this DIY music community coming together, it was especially moving to see everyone rallying around the bands they love and a cause that makes a real difference in the lives of people here in Pittsfield.

We’re so lucky to play a part in all of this, and we’re looking forward to another great year of Hot Plate + Silver Lake collabs.

Thanks again for everyone who came through, and for all the love. Our hearts definitely grew three sizes Saturday night. ❤️

🥶 Let’s face it: winter is here and it’s cold af!

If you’re not in the mood for a cold beer, we get it. Here are some of the hot drinks we’re offering this holiday season:

☕️ Eggnog, Oatnog, and regular lattes brewed with @monsoonroastery beans
🍵 Matcha lattes
🍷 Mulled wine (on the weekends)

We also sell branded insulated travel mugs and you save 10% on cafe drinks when you use it!

🥶 Let’s face it: winter is here and it’s cold af!

If you’re not in the mood for a cold beer, we get it. Here are some of the hot drinks we’re offering this holiday season:

☕️ Eggnog, Oatnog, and regular lattes brewed with @monsoonroastery beans
🍵 Matcha lattes
🍷 Mulled wine (on the weekends)

We also sell branded insulated travel mugs and you save 10% on cafe drinks when you use it!

Yesterday, we announced that we’d be launching a beer collab to support @whalenforcongress

Like other fundraiser beers that we’ve done in the past (including our current community line beer, Kardia), the plan was to donate $1 from every pint sold and a portion of the can sales to support Jeromie’s grassroots campaign.

After posting on social media and sending out a press release, both the campaign and Hot Plate were contacted by some folks who questioned the legality of this arrangement regarding the way campaign contributions can or cannot be made.

Although the campaign had been in touch and was working with the FEC to be compliant, we’ve decided not to move forward with the collab beer out of an abundance of caution.

Little civics lesson for you: corporations can make huge donations to candidates that have the resources to leverage SuperPACs but an LLC can’t make a donation directly to a candidate, no matter how small the business or the donation might be.

While we’re bummed that we have to pull the plug on this, we’re also a little wiser to some of the real challenges of trying to make ground-up political change: the barriers to entry are so high and expensive, and there are some real limits on how you can try to be innovative with fundraising.

As individual citizens, you can obviously support campaigns financially (up to certain amounts per year), and small donations from a lot of different donors can add up over time.

So if you do want to see change in action, we encourage you to check out all candidates running for political offices in your community and support the ones that resonate with you in whatever way you can (pro tip: it just can’t be with a collab beer 😉).

Yesterday, we announced that we’d be launching a beer collab to support @whalenforcongress

Like other fundraiser beers that we’ve done in the past (including our current community line beer, Kardia), the plan was to donate $1 from every pint sold and a portion of the can sales to support Jeromie’s grassroots campaign.

After posting on social media and sending out a press release, both the campaign and Hot Plate were contacted by some folks who questioned the legality of this arrangement regarding the way campaign contributions can or cannot be made.

Although the campaign had been in touch and was working with the FEC to be compliant, we’ve decided not to move forward with the collab beer out of an abundance of caution.

Little civics lesson for you: corporations can make huge donations to candidates that have the resources to leverage SuperPACs but an LLC can’t make a donation directly to a candidate, no matter how small the business or the donation might be.

While we’re bummed that we have to pull the plug on this, we’re also a little wiser to some of the real challenges of trying to make ground-up political change: the barriers to entry are so high and expensive, and there are some real limits on how you can try to be innovative with fundraising.

As individual citizens, you can obviously support campaigns financially (up to certain amounts per year), and small donations from a lot of different donors can add up over time.

So if you do want to see change in action, we encourage you to check out all candidates running for political offices in your community and support the ones that resonate with you in whatever way you can (pro tip: it just can’t be with a collab beer 😉).

🎉🎉🎉 We’re so excited to announce that the @whalenforcongress iconic Vanana is back in action, and we’re ready to celebrate with a special collab beer to mark the occasion.

On Friday, December 19, at 5pm we’ll be releasing our new Vananarama Kölsch on draft and in cans!

Jeromie and his team will be in the taproom to meet and greet with all of you, and you’ll have the chance to donate to help support his campaign!

🎉🎉🎉 We’re so excited to announce that the @whalenforcongress iconic Vanana is back in action, and we’re ready to celebrate with a special collab beer to mark the occasion.

On Friday, December 19, at 5pm we’ll be releasing our new Vananarama Kölsch on draft and in cans!

Jeromie and his team will be in the taproom to meet and greet with all of you, and you’ll have the chance to donate to help support his campaign!

🎉🎉🎉 We’re getting ready to close out the year with a super-fun show on Friday, December 19 at 7pm.

Featuring a multimedia musical experience from Padded Waltz, we’re throwing down for Saturnalia with two different beer releases!

We’ll be launching a special collab beer called Vananarama Kölsch, which is inspired by @jeromiewhalen ‘s beloved yellow van and will be raising money for his @whalenforcongress campaign. Jeromie and his team will be in the taproom that night for a fun meet and greet prior to the show.

The second beer will a special small-batch holiday ale that Sarah brewed just for this end-of-year party. A lil boozy and brewed with holiday spices, it’ll definitely have you feeling jolly.

Our pals from @espetinhocarioca413 will be our food vendor for that night, and we strongly recommend checking out their Brazilian platter.

Hope to see you there! 🪐

🎉🎉🎉 We’re getting ready to close out the year with a super-fun show on Friday, December 19 at 7pm.

Featuring a multimedia musical experience from Padded Waltz, we’re throwing down for Saturnalia with two different beer releases!

We’ll be launching a special collab beer called Vananarama Kölsch, which is inspired by @jeromiewhalen ‘s beloved yellow van and will be raising money for his @whalenforcongress campaign. Jeromie and his team will be in the taproom that night for a fun meet and greet prior to the show.

The second beer will a special small-batch holiday ale that Sarah brewed just for this end-of-year party. A lil boozy and brewed with holiday spices, it’ll definitely have you feeling jolly.

Our pals from @espetinhocarioca413 will be our food vendor for that night, and we strongly recommend checking out their Brazilian platter.

Hope to see you there! 🪐

🚨🚨🚨 Over the last couple of years, we’ve had folks ask us if we’d ever do a mug club. Previously, the answer was no because we felt that the model was a little played out and little more than a cash grab. So we decided to put our own twist on it.

In honor of “Giving Tuesday,” we’re excited to announce that we’ll be launching THE SCRUM in January 2026.

The Scrum is a no-cost loyalty program that rewards *participation* not purchases.

We’re inviting you to sign up to become a community developer with us, and over the course of the year, you will have the chance to earn impact points by attending special events, supporting local businesses, and donating to mission-aligned nonprofit organizations.

We’ll have more information as we get closer to the program launch in January 2026, but you can sign up now on our website (link in bio).

🚨🚨🚨 Over the last couple of years, we’ve had folks ask us if we’d ever do a mug club. Previously, the answer was no because we felt that the model was a little played out and little more than a cash grab. So we decided to put our own twist on it.

In honor of “Giving Tuesday,” we’re excited to announce that we’ll be launching THE SCRUM in January 2026.

The Scrum is a no-cost loyalty program that rewards *participation* not purchases.

We’re inviting you to sign up to become a community developer with us, and over the course of the year, you will have the chance to earn impact points by attending special events, supporting local businesses, and donating to mission-aligned nonprofit organizations.

We’ll have more information as we get closer to the program launch in January 2026, but you can sign up now on our website (link in bio).

🇧🇪🍺 Today is another brew day, and Sarah’s making another batch of Countess of Flanders, our Belgian Golden Strong Ale.

We’ve been lovers of Belgian beer for quite some time now, and lately we’ve been on a really big Belgian kick at home drinking faves like Delirium and La Chouffe.

Because of that, we wanted to take a moment to give Sarah the chance to chat about why she loves to make and drink Belgian-style beers.

We’ve got two on tap now, and we’ve got several lined up for the 10x10 in 2026 🤫🤫🤫

🇧🇪🍺 Today is another brew day, and Sarah’s making another batch of Countess of Flanders, our Belgian Golden Strong Ale.

We’ve been lovers of Belgian beer for quite some time now, and lately we’ve been on a really big Belgian kick at home drinking faves like Delirium and La Chouffe.

Because of that, we wanted to take a moment to give Sarah the chance to chat about why she loves to make and drink Belgian-style beers.

We’ve got two on tap now, and we’ve got several lined up for the 10x10 in 2026 🤫🤫🤫

🍗 Happy Thanks giving from the Hot Plate team!

This year, we decided to take a second to reflect on everything we have to be grateful for. It’s not always easy to make space for gratitude, especially when the world is chaotic or we’re feeling those heavy boots.

No matter how you’re celebrating this holiday or who you’re celebrating it with, we hope that you can feel a little bit more thankful for how much good there still is in this world.

We’re certainly trying to cultivate that as much as we can, and to share it with all of you. ❤️

🍗 Happy Thanks giving from the Hot Plate team!

This year, we decided to take a second to reflect on everything we have to be grateful for. It’s not always easy to make space for gratitude, especially when the world is chaotic or we’re feeling those heavy boots.

No matter how you’re celebrating this holiday or who you’re celebrating it with, we hope that you can feel a little bit more thankful for how much good there still is in this world.

We’re certainly trying to cultivate that as much as we can, and to share it with all of you. ❤️

On Saturday, we were lucky enough to team up with @montebelmonte and @foodbankwma to participate in the first-ever Berkshire Mini-March.

With 13,000 households in Pittsfield relying on the Food Bank and all the local food pantries helping to fight food insecurity in this city, the needs right now are staggering.

During the walk, we got to stop at the Dream Center, the Mercado de Vida, and @southcommunityfoodpantry all of which are working every day to provide meals to those in need.

During the walk as well as the after-party we hosted in our taproom, we got to speak to so many folks who are on the front lines and making a difference behind the scenes. We came away from this experience blown away by the community’s generosity and selflessness, and we’re feeling even more committed to linking up with these folks and supporting their amazing work.

Please visit the Food Bank’s website to find out how you can continue to support what they do for the less fortunate in this region. ❤️

On Saturday, we were lucky enough to team up with @montebelmonte and @foodbankwma to participate in the first-ever Berkshire Mini-March.

With 13,000 households in Pittsfield relying on the Food Bank and all the local food pantries helping to fight food insecurity in this city, the needs right now are staggering.

During the walk, we got to stop at the Dream Center, the Mercado de Vida, and @southcommunityfoodpantry all of which are working every day to provide meals to those in need.

During the walk as well as the after-party we hosted in our taproom, we got to speak to so many folks who are on the front lines and making a difference behind the scenes. We came away from this experience blown away by the community’s generosity and selflessness, and we’re feeling even more committed to linking up with these folks and supporting their amazing work.

Please visit the Food Bank’s website to find out how you can continue to support what they do for the less fortunate in this region. ❤️

🎉 If you want to support our Hearth & Home campaign to fight heat insecurity here in Pittsfield, but drinking a Habanero Chocolate Stout isn’t your thing, we’ve got good news for you!

Our barista extraordinaire @rea.fbx will be more than happy to whip up a Lia’s Latte for you.

Brewed with beans from our friends at @monsoonroastery this Mexican hot chocolate-inspired espresso drink is named after Sarah’s abuelita and a portion of the proceeds will go to our fundraiser, just like we’re doing with Kardia.

And if you haven’t stopped in for a while to check out our coffee program, we definitely encourage you to see why we love Monsoon Roastery so much—either with an espresso drink or drip coffee!

🎉 If you want to support our Hearth & Home campaign to fight heat insecurity here in Pittsfield, but drinking a Habanero Chocolate Stout isn’t your thing, we’ve got good news for you!

Our barista extraordinaire @rea.fbx will be more than happy to whip up a Lia’s Latte for you.

Brewed with beans from our friends at @monsoonroastery this Mexican hot chocolate-inspired espresso drink is named after Sarah’s abuelita and a portion of the proceeds will go to our fundraiser, just like we’re doing with Kardia.

And if you haven’t stopped in for a while to check out our coffee program, we definitely encourage you to see why we love Monsoon Roastery so much—either with an espresso drink or drip coffee!

Just a friendly reminder that our Hearth & Home campaign is currently under way. If you happen to stop by the taproom, we have QR codes throughout the place where you can make a credit card donation online, but we’ve also got this big metallic box for cash and loose change donations, too!

We know that with the current economic challenges that so many of us are facing that it’s hard to know what to give, where to be frugal, and how to make a difference in the world.

If you are able, a small donation to this fundraiser, administered by the Pittsfield Area Council of Congregations (PACC) will ensure that every cent raised goes directly to providing oil to eligible households so that they can heat their homes this winter.

We’ve been so impressed by everyone’s generosity to date—including our team member @steveareno1959 who is donating all of his tips this month to the fundraiser—and we appreciate all the help we can get, even if it’s just sharing this with your communities.

We’ve got a link in our bio and on our website if you’re not in the area but still want to help.

From all of us at Hot Plate, we thank you for your support! ❤️

Just a friendly reminder that our Hearth & Home campaign is currently under way. If you happen to stop by the taproom, we have QR codes throughout the place where you can make a credit card donation online, but we’ve also got this big metallic box for cash and loose change donations, too!

We know that with the current economic challenges that so many of us are facing that it’s hard to know what to give, where to be frugal, and how to make a difference in the world.

If you are able, a small donation to this fundraiser, administered by the Pittsfield Area Council of Congregations (PACC) will ensure that every cent raised goes directly to providing oil to eligible households so that they can heat their homes this winter.

We’ve been so impressed by everyone’s generosity to date—including our team member @steveareno1959 who is donating all of his tips this month to the fundraiser—and we appreciate all the help we can get, even if it’s just sharing this with your communities.

We’ve got a link in our bio and on our website if you’re not in the area but still want to help.

From all of us at Hot Plate, we thank you for your support! ❤️

On a cold and rainy Saturday night, we teamed up with our pals @silverlakebooking413 for another killer show in our taproom.

@theentireearth opened the show, playing our taproom for the first time and setting the tone for the evening with a high-energy set that got everyone going right away

@b.u.g.world returned to our taproom with a few new tracks and showed that they’re really starting to gel as a band and finding their sound

@manmustexploreband also returned, making the trek from Albany, to play a bunch of songs from their latest album and really got the crowd going as well

@413_datura closed out the show with a really tight and impressive set. Seeing this band develop over the last couple of years has been really fun, and it was awesome to see how much love the got from the crowd, too.

Shout out to Silver Lake, all four of these bands, and everyone else who came through and has been supporting this scene since we started teaming up on these shows. ❤️

On a cold and rainy Saturday night, we teamed up with our pals @silverlakebooking413 for another killer show in our taproom.

@theentireearth opened the show, playing our taproom for the first time and setting the tone for the evening with a high-energy set that got everyone going right away

@b.u.g.world returned to our taproom with a few new tracks and showed that they’re really starting to gel as a band and finding their sound

@manmustexploreband also returned, making the trek from Albany, to play a bunch of songs from their latest album and really got the crowd going as well

@413_datura closed out the show with a really tight and impressive set. Seeing this band develop over the last couple of years has been really fun, and it was awesome to see how much love the got from the crowd, too.

Shout out to Silver Lake, all four of these bands, and everyone else who came through and has been supporting this scene since we started teaming up on these shows. ❤️

We were recently advised by our legal team that we needed to address the rumors that began to swirl as soon as we released our newest beer, Mirror of Simple Souls.

While this beer was based on recipes written by Belgian monks in the 14th Century and the name is derived from a mystical text written by known heretic Marguerite Porete, it’s just a simple Belgian witbier.

Any religious and/or mystical experience that you may encounter after consuming this product is purely coincidence and was certainly not induced by this beer or any other products produced by Hot Plate LLC.

We were recently advised by our legal team that we needed to address the rumors that began to swirl as soon as we released our newest beer, Mirror of Simple Souls.

While this beer was based on recipes written by Belgian monks in the 14th Century and the name is derived from a mystical text written by known heretic Marguerite Porete, it’s just a simple Belgian witbier.

Any religious and/or mystical experience that you may encounter after consuming this product is purely coincidence and was certainly not induced by this beer or any other products produced by Hot Plate LLC.

📢 Berkshire County: Join us on Saturday, November 22 at 9:30am for the first-ever Berkshire Mini-March supporting the @foodbankwma

With so much economic and political volatility, food insecurity is becoming an even bigger problem for so many members of our community which is why @montebelmonte from @nepublicmedia decided to expand his annual march to include Berkshire County.

We’re going to begin the march from our taproom in Downtown Pittsfield, and after we also wrap it up, we’ll be hosting an after party with drinks, live music, and more!

Hope to see you there!

📢 Berkshire County: Join us on Saturday, November 22 at 9:30am for the first-ever Berkshire Mini-March supporting the @foodbankwma

With so much economic and political volatility, food insecurity is becoming an even bigger problem for so many members of our community which is why @montebelmonte from @nepublicmedia decided to expand his annual march to include Berkshire County.

We’re going to begin the march from our taproom in Downtown Pittsfield, and after we also wrap it up, we’ll be hosting an after party with drinks, live music, and more!

Hope to see you there!

👏 This Saturday, we were fortunate enough to welcome US Congressional Candidate @jeromiewhalen and his team after they spent the morning knocking on doors for the campaign.

We first met Jeromie a few months ago, and since then we’ve become increasingly inspired by his campaign and the grassroots effort their whole team is putting into their effort to provide a fresh voice and representation for Western Mass, not a career politician backed by a ton of money from corporate lobbyists.

Not only do our values align very closely with his, but as a scrappy startup company fueled more by passion than deep pockets or inherited wealth, the work he’s doing on the ground and in the community resonates so strongly with us.

We’ve got some really fun collaborative efforts in the works but until then, we strongly encourage you to check out his website and platform to learn more about who he is and why he’s running.

📸: @whalenforcongress

👏 This Saturday, we were fortunate enough to welcome US Congressional Candidate @jeromiewhalen and his team after they spent the morning knocking on doors for the campaign.

We first met Jeromie a few months ago, and since then we’ve become increasingly inspired by his campaign and the grassroots effort their whole team is putting into their effort to provide a fresh voice and representation for Western Mass, not a career politician backed by a ton of money from corporate lobbyists.

Not only do our values align very closely with his, but as a scrappy startup company fueled more by passion than deep pockets or inherited wealth, the work he’s doing on the ground and in the community resonates so strongly with us.

We’ve got some really fun collaborative efforts in the works but until then, we strongly encourage you to check out his website and platform to learn more about who he is and why he’s running.

📸: @whalenforcongress

🔥 Heat Check! We just tapped this year’s batch of Kardia, our Habanero Chocolate Stout, and so we asked some of our team members to rate its spiciness on a scale of 1-5.

The answers were varied and inconclusive, so there’s only one way to find out for yourself: stop in for a pint or grab a four pack to go.

And as a reminder, this is our latest Community Line beer. We’ll be donating $1 from every pint sold to the Pittsfield Area Council of Congregations (PACC) Fuel Fund, which provides oil heat to eligible households in our community.

🔥 Heat Check! We just tapped this year’s batch of Kardia, our Habanero Chocolate Stout, and so we asked some of our team members to rate its spiciness on a scale of 1-5.

The answers were varied and inconclusive, so there’s only one way to find out for yourself: stop in for a pint or grab a four pack to go.

And as a reminder, this is our latest Community Line beer. We’ll be donating $1 from every pint sold to the Pittsfield Area Council of Congregations (PACC) Fuel Fund, which provides oil heat to eligible households in our community.

📣 Now that cold weather season is upon us, we’re kicking off our third annual Hearth & Home Campaign.

In collaboration with the Pittsfield Area Council of Congregations (PACC), we’ll be raising money in our taproom and online to support their fuel fund, which provides oil to every eligible household in Pittsfield so that they can heat their homes this winter.

With benefits being cut across the board, we know that the need will be even greater than it has been in years past. For many homes, they’ll have to choose between putting food on the table and keeping their house warm, and we want to help make sure things don’t come to that.

Having experienced heat insecurity ourselves, we know how challenging this can be, and we’re asking you all to join us to help the less fortunate in our community.

We’ll be kicking things off this Saturday, with a special benefit show featuring @djbengey as well as the launch of Kardia, our Habanero Chocolate Stout.

Hope to see you all there!

📣 Now that cold weather season is upon us, we’re kicking off our third annual Hearth & Home Campaign.

In collaboration with the Pittsfield Area Council of Congregations (PACC), we’ll be raising money in our taproom and online to support their fuel fund, which provides oil to every eligible household in Pittsfield so that they can heat their homes this winter.

With benefits being cut across the board, we know that the need will be even greater than it has been in years past. For many homes, they’ll have to choose between putting food on the table and keeping their house warm, and we want to help make sure things don’t come to that.

Having experienced heat insecurity ourselves, we know how challenging this can be, and we’re asking you all to join us to help the less fortunate in our community.

We’ll be kicking things off this Saturday, with a special benefit show featuring @djbengey as well as the launch of Kardia, our Habanero Chocolate Stout.

Hope to see you all there!

💀 Thanks to everyone who came to our Día de Los Muertos celebration on Saturday night, and especially to @yurys_kitchenn @jemigriff @lexi_weege @emmajeanoakley and @evergreened who all helped to make the event such a special collaboration.

Several of us at Hot Plate have hyphenate identities and were born into immigrant families. As a first- or second-generation American, you have to make a choice to either remain within your own ethnic community, assimilate to the mainstream, or attempt to synthesize the two into an identity that makes sense on an individual level.

By sharing the flavors, spices, and traditional Oaxacan dishes and pairing them with Sarah’s new Pulque Spritz, a modern twist on a pre-Colombian fermented beverage, we attempted to take the third option and bridge both sides of the hyphen of the Latin-American experience.

Complementing the food and beverages were really beautiful sets by Emma Jean Oakley and Lexi Weege, who even sang in both English and Spanish.

So many of us in this country are products of immigration and colonization, and listening to a variety of music that grew out of underclasses from all over the world helps remind us that beneath language barriers and the social construction of “whiteness” is a common struggle that we should feel united by rather than divided over.

On Saturday night, we were able to see that special synthesis in action, and were so grateful to all of you who helped make that happen. ❤️

💀 Thanks to everyone who came to our Día de Los Muertos celebration on Saturday night, and especially to @yurys_kitchenn @jemigriff @lexi_weege @emmajeanoakley and @evergreened who all helped to make the event such a special collaboration.

Several of us at Hot Plate have hyphenate identities and were born into immigrant families. As a first- or second-generation American, you have to make a choice to either remain within your own ethnic community, assimilate to the mainstream, or attempt to synthesize the two into an identity that makes sense on an individual level.

By sharing the flavors, spices, and traditional Oaxacan dishes and pairing them with Sarah’s new Pulque Spritz, a modern twist on a pre-Colombian fermented beverage, we attempted to take the third option and bridge both sides of the hyphen of the Latin-American experience.

Complementing the food and beverages were really beautiful sets by Emma Jean Oakley and Lexi Weege, who even sang in both English and Spanish.

So many of us in this country are products of immigration and colonization, and listening to a variety of music that grew out of underclasses from all over the world helps remind us that beneath language barriers and the social construction of “whiteness” is a common struggle that we should feel united by rather than divided over.

On Saturday night, we were able to see that special synthesis in action, and were so grateful to all of you who helped make that happen. ❤️

👻🧙🏻‍♀️We’ve got a special Halloween surprise for all of you High Priestess fans!

We just kicked the Oktoberfest last night, and wanted to let you know that we’d decided to bring back The High Priestess since so many of you were bummed once we sold through.

Brewed with spent blackcurrants from our friends at @currentcassis , this sour ale is back on tap and in cans starting today!

👻🧙🏻‍♀️We’ve got a special Halloween surprise for all of you High Priestess fans!

We just kicked the Oktoberfest last night, and wanted to let you know that we’d decided to bring back The High Priestess since so many of you were bummed once we sold through.

Brewed with spent blackcurrants from our friends at @currentcassis , this sour ale is back on tap and in cans starting today!

🎃 Last Saturday, we hosted the 3rd Annual Silver Lake Booking ⚔️ Hot Plate Halloween Cover Show and you all understood the assignment.

What began as a fun idea to try in the taproom has now grown into something we host offsite with more bands, vendors, and attendees.

Hosted at @thecommonroompfld we had seven bands performing cover sets, Hot Plate slinging beers and seltzers, Penny Arcade Press printing their custom tees, Seven Video Production filming, Wrz taking photos, and a tarot reader.

The lineup was:

@nicetrykid_band as Jimmy Eat World
@cemeteryweatherma as Silverstein
@mapof.thestars as Sum 41
MisPitts as Misfits
@hailsentiments as Title Fight
@modernegoband as Creedence Clearwater Revival
@crimson_lake_band as Jawbreaker

One last note: As many of you know, SLB and Hot Plate are all about creating a safe and inclusive environment for the DIY music community and their fans, and we want to give a special shout out to @peycakes for making sure we keep it that way.

Thanks to everyone who came through. See you on November 15 for our next Silver Lake Presents show in the taproom! ❤️

📸: @wrzphoto

🎃 Last Saturday, we hosted the 3rd Annual Silver Lake Booking ⚔️ Hot Plate Halloween Cover Show and you all understood the assignment.

What began as a fun idea to try in the taproom has now grown into something we host offsite with more bands, vendors, and attendees.

Hosted at @thecommonroompfld we had seven bands performing cover sets, Hot Plate slinging beers and seltzers, Penny Arcade Press printing their custom tees, Seven Video Production filming, Wrz taking photos, and a tarot reader.

The lineup was:

@nicetrykid_band as Jimmy Eat World
@cemeteryweatherma as Silverstein
@mapof.thestars as Sum 41
MisPitts as Misfits
@hailsentiments as Title Fight
@modernegoband as Creedence Clearwater Revival
@crimson_lake_band as Jawbreaker

One last note: As many of you know, SLB and Hot Plate are all about creating a safe and inclusive environment for the DIY music community and their fans, and we want to give a special shout out to @peycakes for making sure we keep it that way.

Thanks to everyone who came through. See you on November 15 for our next Silver Lake Presents show in the taproom! ❤️

📸: @wrzphoto

💀🇲🇽🌮 This Saturday, we’re hosting our third-annual Day of the Dead / Día de los Muertos party in the taproom!

We’re teaming up with @yurys_kitchenn who will be selling a variety of authentic Oaxacan dishes (if you haven’t checked them out on Tyler Street, it’s a must)!

In addition to Yury’s delicious Mexican dishes, we’re going to have a special solo performance from @lexi_weege who just released a really awesome jazz album called Renaissance Painting (check it out on Spotify) and we’ll also have a solo set from @emmajeanoakley who will be playing our taproom for the first time.

Last but not least, Sarah is going to debut her new Pulque Spritz, a gluten-free alcoholic beverage inspired by traditional pulque and reimagined for a modern audience. We’ll have that on tap (and in very limited quantities).

Shout out to our friend Marianthy from @evergreened for their support in making this event possible! ❤️

Hope to see you all on Saturday night!

💀🇲🇽🌮 This Saturday, we’re hosting our third-annual Day of the Dead / Día de los Muertos party in the taproom!

We’re teaming up with @yurys_kitchenn who will be selling a variety of authentic Oaxacan dishes (if you haven’t checked them out on Tyler Street, it’s a must)!

In addition to Yury’s delicious Mexican dishes, we’re going to have a special solo performance from @lexi_weege who just released a really awesome jazz album called Renaissance Painting (check it out on Spotify) and we’ll also have a solo set from @emmajeanoakley who will be playing our taproom for the first time.

Last but not least, Sarah is going to debut her new Pulque Spritz, a gluten-free alcoholic beverage inspired by traditional pulque and reimagined for a modern audience. We’ll have that on tap (and in very limited quantities).

Shout out to our friend Marianthy from @evergreened for their support in making this event possible! ❤️

Hope to see you all on Saturday night!

🎃🎸⚔️ We’re getting super excited for our third annual joint Halloween show with our pals @silverlakebooking413 so the team decided to share some of our favorite costumes from over the years.

Scroll through all of these for some real gems, and join us tomorrow night at @thecommonroompfld at 7pm for a special Halloween cover show!

Our friends @pennyarcadepress will be doing live screenprinting and we’re going to have SEVEN cover sets from:

@nicetrykid_band
@cemeteryweatherma
@mapof.thestars
@hailsentiments
@modernegoband
@crimson_lake_band

🎃🎸⚔️ We’re getting super excited for our third annual joint Halloween show with our pals @silverlakebooking413 so the team decided to share some of our favorite costumes from over the years.

Scroll through all of these for some real gems, and join us tomorrow night at @thecommonroompfld at 7pm for a special Halloween cover show!

Our friends @pennyarcadepress will be doing live screenprinting and we’re going to have SEVEN cover sets from:

@nicetrykid_band
@cemeteryweatherma
@mapof.thestars
@hailsentiments
@modernegoband
@crimson_lake_band

📣 Last Call!

Yeah, Carly is double fisting, but that’s only because we’re on the last kegs of both The Fifth Daughter, our Oktoberfest Märzen, and Eloquent Graffiti, our wet-hopped pale ale.

In the past, we’ve done a poor job of letting you know when some of these seasonal beers are about to kick, so consider this your last chance to snag a few pints before they go away for a whole year!

We’re also running low on four packs of both of these as well!

📣 Last Call!

Yeah, Carly is double fisting, but that’s only because we’re on the last kegs of both The Fifth Daughter, our Oktoberfest Märzen, and Eloquent Graffiti, our wet-hopped pale ale.

In the past, we’ve done a poor job of letting you know when some of these seasonal beers are about to kick, so consider this your last chance to snag a few pints before they go away for a whole year!

We’re also running low on four packs of both of these as well!

🚨 Attention gluten-free drinkers: we just expanded our menu with two exciting new items!

🍏 We’ve got a limited amount of the Community Cider Project from @berkshire_cider Not only was this special release made from apples harvested from all over Berkshire County, but a portion of the apples harvested for this project were donated to @berkshirefoodproj

🫚 We’ve also started selling @gingerlibation a delicious artisinal beverage coming to us from Amherst, MA. Refreshing, slightly carbonated, and gluten-free, Ginger Libation has quickly won over our staff and some folks got excited when they saw it in our fridge before we could even print new menus!

While beer is what we produce on-site, we’re constantly looking for new ways to make sure the taproom is as inclusive as possible so that it can be a third space for folks with gluten intolerances and sober individuals as well (don’t sleep on Lia’s Latte or the Cardamon Rose latte).

🚨 Attention gluten-free drinkers: we just expanded our menu with two exciting new items!

🍏 We’ve got a limited amount of the Community Cider Project from @berkshire_cider Not only was this special release made from apples harvested from all over Berkshire County, but a portion of the apples harvested for this project were donated to @berkshirefoodproj

🫚 We’ve also started selling @gingerlibation a delicious artisinal beverage coming to us from Amherst, MA. Refreshing, slightly carbonated, and gluten-free, Ginger Libation has quickly won over our staff and some folks got excited when they saw it in our fridge before we could even print new menus!

While beer is what we produce on-site, we’re constantly looking for new ways to make sure the taproom is as inclusive as possible so that it can be a third space for folks with gluten intolerances and sober individuals as well (don’t sleep on Lia’s Latte or the Cardamon Rose latte).

Two years ago, Mike and @mikeduffymusic were sitting at the bar discussing the idea of celebrating Sukkot at Hot Plate. Sukkot is a harvest festival commemorating the Exodus from Egypt, and even though we missed the official end of this seven-day festival this year, we were able to pull it off yesterday evening.

We were joined by members of the Jewish community both here in The Berkshires and from Columbia County, NY. We were really touched by how special of an event this was, by how the participants were from different temples and came together to celebrate, and how we as an interfaith community can continue to find ways to highlight and celebrate our shared values and beliefs rather than focusing on what divides us.

For those of you who might’ve walked by and wondered what this temporary structure was, it’s called a Sukkah, which is a small hut, and from within that structure the blessings were said and everyone shared food and drink.

Thanks again to Mike Duffy, Sarah Singer, and everyone else who came out on a chilly night to celebrate! We’re so happy we could be a part of this!

Two years ago, Mike and @mikeduffymusic were sitting at the bar discussing the idea of celebrating Sukkot at Hot Plate. Sukkot is a harvest festival commemorating the Exodus from Egypt, and even though we missed the official end of this seven-day festival this year, we were able to pull it off yesterday evening.

We were joined by members of the Jewish community both here in The Berkshires and from Columbia County, NY. We were really touched by how special of an event this was, by how the participants were from different temples and came together to celebrate, and how we as an interfaith community can continue to find ways to highlight and celebrate our shared values and beliefs rather than focusing on what divides us.

For those of you who might’ve walked by and wondered what this temporary structure was, it’s called a Sukkah, which is a small hut, and from within that structure the blessings were said and everyone shared food and drink.

Thanks again to Mike Duffy, Sarah Singer, and everyone else who came out on a chilly night to celebrate! We’re so happy we could be a part of this!

Silver Lake ⚔️ Hot Plate were at it again this weekend for a special Sunday Showcase celebrating the @hailsentiments record release.

We were happy to welcome back @yeah_universe who opened the show with a really tight set (and will be playing a longer show on 11/7)

Western Mass-based @undertheband played our taproom for the first time, and their low-and-slow vibe instantly connected with the crowd.

Following those acts were frequent performers and local favorites @radicaljoyma and Sentiments.

We’ve been saying it for a while now, and it remains to be true: while the world feels like an unrelenting dumpster fire, we are so grateful to team up with these independent artists playing their original music, and for the opportunity to provide a space for the community that has built up around these DIY shows.

Thank you to everyone who plays a part in this, from booking to running sound to (most importantly) showing up, bringing your friends, and buying the bands’ merch.

❤️ you all

PS: Don’t sleep on our Halloween show on 10.25 at @thecommonroompfld

Silver Lake ⚔️ Hot Plate were at it again this weekend for a special Sunday Showcase celebrating the @hailsentiments record release.

We were happy to welcome back @yeah_universe who opened the show with a really tight set (and will be playing a longer show on 11/7)

Western Mass-based @undertheband played our taproom for the first time, and their low-and-slow vibe instantly connected with the crowd.

Following those acts were frequent performers and local favorites @radicaljoyma and Sentiments.

We’ve been saying it for a while now, and it remains to be true: while the world feels like an unrelenting dumpster fire, we are so grateful to team up with these independent artists playing their original music, and for the opportunity to provide a space for the community that has built up around these DIY shows.

Thank you to everyone who plays a part in this, from booking to running sound to (most importantly) showing up, bringing your friends, and buying the bands’ merch.

❤️ you all

PS: Don’t sleep on our Halloween show on 10.25 at @thecommonroompfld

🍁🎃 Fall weather finally hit Berkshire County this weekend, and we were able to enjoy it while slinging beers at the @berkshirebotanicalgarden Harvest Festival!

This was our first time working the fest, and Sarah and @griffrm were slinging beers next to our pals @barringtonbrewery

We were happy to see a nice mix of new and familiar faces, and during the lulls Sarah got to live her best life checking out the other vendors like thelocalfluff cotton candy!

The fall fun continues with some more events over the next few weeks:

10/18: It’s Alive! with @downtownpittsfield on Dunham Mall and School Street

10/25: Silver Lake Halloween Vol. 3 with @silverlakebooking413 at @thecommonroompfld

11/1: Day of the Dead show with @lexi_weege and @emmajeanoakley with food by @yurys_kitchenn

🍁🎃 Fall weather finally hit Berkshire County this weekend, and we were able to enjoy it while slinging beers at the @berkshirebotanicalgarden Harvest Festival!

This was our first time working the fest, and Sarah and @griffrm were slinging beers next to our pals @barringtonbrewery

We were happy to see a nice mix of new and familiar faces, and during the lulls Sarah got to live her best life checking out the other vendors like thelocalfluff cotton candy!

The fall fun continues with some more events over the next few weeks:

10/18: It’s Alive! with @downtownpittsfield on Dunham Mall and School Street

10/25: Silver Lake Halloween Vol. 3 with @silverlakebooking413 at @thecommonroompfld

11/1: Day of the Dead show with @lexi_weege and @emmajeanoakley with food by @yurys_kitchenn

📚 Book Lovers! We wanted to remind you that we’ll be reading BUCKEYE by the great @patrickryannyc for this month’s Community Reads.

Because it’s a little longer, we wanted to make sure you have enough time to pick up a copy and join us for a discussion on Wednesday, October 29. Patrick will be joining us via Zoom, too!

Right now, all the copies are checked out from @berkshireathenaeum but @thebookstorelenox has a few copies on hand! (We called to make sure.)

Hope to see you all there!

📚 Book Lovers! We wanted to remind you that we’ll be reading BUCKEYE by the great @patrickryannyc for this month’s Community Reads.

Because it’s a little longer, we wanted to make sure you have enough time to pick up a copy and join us for a discussion on Wednesday, October 29. Patrick will be joining us via Zoom, too!

Right now, all the copies are checked out from @berkshireathenaeum but @thebookstorelenox has a few copies on hand! (We called to make sure.)

Hope to see you all there!

A few weeks ago, we released Eloquent Graffiti, our first-ever wet-hopped pale ale, and since then we’ve been getting questions about what “wet hopping” means.

In the Northern Hemisphere, hops are harvested once a year, usually in late August or early September. And because Massachusetts sits right inside the latitudinal band where hops can be grown, we’re lucky to live close enough to some local hops producers.

So this year, we added whole hop cones to a pale ale. Most of them were Chaos hops from @fourstarfarms and those were complemented by some fresh Cascade hops grown right here in Pittsfield by our friend and regular @puzduzsudz

The result is a much more dynamic and complex beer. Using a base American Pale Ale recipe, Eloquent Graffiti showcases the full range of aroma and flavor that hops can offer a beer.

If you haven’t had a chance to check this out yet, we’ve got it on tap and in cans to go!

A few weeks ago, we released Eloquent Graffiti, our first-ever wet-hopped pale ale, and since then we’ve been getting questions about what “wet hopping” means.

In the Northern Hemisphere, hops are harvested once a year, usually in late August or early September. And because Massachusetts sits right inside the latitudinal band where hops can be grown, we’re lucky to live close enough to some local hops producers.

So this year, we added whole hop cones to a pale ale. Most of them were Chaos hops from @fourstarfarms and those were complemented by some fresh Cascade hops grown right here in Pittsfield by our friend and regular @puzduzsudz

The result is a much more dynamic and complex beer. Using a base American Pale Ale recipe, Eloquent Graffiti showcases the full range of aroma and flavor that hops can offer a beer.

If you haven’t had a chance to check this out yet, we’ve got it on tap and in cans to go!

.pro-gallery-wix-wrapper {display: block !important;} .pro-gallery-wix-wrapper .gallery-item-container {opacity: 1 !important; display: block !important;}

Follow us on Instagram

@hotplatebrewingco

bottom of page