MILFORD, NH – We wanted to try a brewery we hadn’t visited before, so started searching on-line. After finding several places that sounded promising but were further than we wanted to travel, we discovered Ogie Brewing in Milford. They sounded good, and it was a gorgeous day, so off we went.
The Space
Facing the street are large plate glass windows, protected from the sun by bright blue awnings. You enter through a door between two of the large windows. The interior is a comfortable, welcoming though modest space, with several tables and a small central bar. The front windows admit plenty of light. The blue awnings shelter the windows and keep the sun from baking the interior.
Near the back is a cooler full of cans to go.
The History
According to Ogie’s website, they grew out of a love of craft beer and the science behind it. After a long career in aerospace technology, Bill Ogert turned his passion for precision and creativity toward home-brewing. What started as a hobby with his brother Donny quickly became an obsession, as Bill immersed himself in the chemistry and artistry of beer making. That passion led to the creation of OGIE Brewing; a tasting room with a great portfolio of staple beers plus frequent new efforts.
We spoke to Bill about some of Ogie’s history. He related how at one point he’d recreated (with permission) a Russian Imperial Stout that had long been a favorite at a different local brewery which predated Ogie. The original brewer of that recipe came in before the release of Bill’s version to try it, and was extremely complimentary. He explained how he’d been planning to try many of Ogie’s other beers, but he liked the Russian Imperial so much he just kept drinking it. At one point he told his colleagues that he thought Bill’s version was better than the original. Lucky his colleagues were present — at 10.6% ABV the Russian Imperial was a strong ale.
As Bill explained, his “brother got me into home-brewing, and I didn’t want to use other people’s recipes. Yeah, even though it was a hobby, I thought, I don’t want to just do a Betty Crocker approach. So I decided I was gonna try to create my own recipes, which are complex. So I started, the first beer sucked, and I kept researching everything about brewing, and probably to the extreme, but after a while all my friends wanted my beer instead of what they buy in the store. You hear that enough, and you’re like, I should open my own place.
“Even then I had friends who were very successful businessmen, and they advised me that I could turn this into a business.
“So while I was tossing these ideas around in my head, I took a job that was 100% travel. This was like an interim job that I did after 15 years in my previous career. I thought I would let somebody pay me to go all over the country plus other countries, work on their product which was simple compared to my previous job, and I told my friends, they’re gonna pay me to go to new places and drink beer in other breweries — great experience.
“And what I found was that a lot of very successful breweries had very underwhelming beer. I got to the point where I’d be on my third or fourth brewery that week, and thinking I just want to go home and drink my home-brewed beer. That’s what actually convinced me, because I was like, this is crazy, I’m longing for mine instead of all these new beers I’m trying.
“So, I came home and created the core enterprise of Ogie, and then started working on it. And about seven years later, actually opened it. And now I have no hobby anymore! People always say, turn your hobby into a career, it won’t be a job. But yeah, it sometimes does become a job at times.
“In the early stages, my brother was involved. And, in his words, brewing at home in your garage, versus preparing for business, are two completely different things.
“One thing that I focused on was consistency. I made multiple batches of the same beer over and over and over again. We have to prove that we have consistency, right?
“Also: No more drinking beer while we’re brewing.
“Plus: taking copious notes about what you’re brewing and what you did differently to see, did or did that not work?
“So as your hobby becomes your business things do change. But I still love it.”
The Food
The menu indicated a good assortment of wraps, burgers, and flatbreads. Also a couple of appealing appetizers: breaded & fried banana peppers (I love banana peppers), and something called “fried corn ribs.” What are corn ribs? I wondered. I started with the banana peppers, leaving my wife to try the corn ribs. Sharing was anticipated.
My fried banana peppers were quite good, but by far the stand-out discovery of the evening was the fried corn ribs. They were out-of-this-world amazing. The trip would have been worthwhile for the corn ribs alone. Absolutely delicious.
How to describe them? They were essentially corn on the cob, sliced across the cob into halves or thirds, then also sliced lengthwise into quarters or sixths. To these pieces, various spices and flavorings were added, including ricotta, peach chutney, and raspberry agrodolce.
What is agrodolce? I had to look it up. The name agrodolce comes from Italian for “sour” (agro) and “sweet” (dolce), and it typically is a sauce with a sticky consistency. My wife and I can both happily confirm that all together this combination made these so-called corn ribs fantastic. I’m already thinking about when we can go back for more. They were a little on the messy side for a finger food, but napkins were plentiful.
We followed these appetizers with a flatbread and a chicken wrap. Both more than competent, very delicious.
Head chef Steven O’Connor trained at Johnson & Wales in Providence, well known for its culinary arts program. It is in fact the largest food service educator in the world, and is ranked as one of the top three hospitality colleges, according to the American Universities Admissions Program.
For a food menu, click here.
For mouth-watering photos, follow stevie_cooks on Instagram.
For the latest brewery updates (plus mouth-watering photos), follow ogiebrewing on Instagram.
The Beer
Kolsch is a favorite for my wife and that’s what she ordered. I wanted to try a few beers so I ordered a flight of four — Irish Red Ale, Czech Pilsner, Dunkelweizen, Fig Sour Ale.
The Fig Sour was a recreation of the very first ale Ogie brewed. It was good. Quite tart and sour (you will pucker!), with a bit of sweetness from the fig. However, I found myself wishing for a bit more fig flavor.
The other three were all quite good. I think the best flavor of all was the Von Oberkochen Dunkelweizen, tons of flavor in that beer.
I’m hard pressed to pick a favorite between the Sassy Red Lass and the Pre-Flight Czech. Both very good and easily drinkable. Excellent paired with a sandwich or pizza.
For a list of beers they currently have on tap, click here.
For a larger list of beers they have made, click here.
Summary: Ogie Brewing deserves another few visits, both for the beer and the food!
Just The Facts
Ogie Brewing is located at…
12 South St
Milford, NH 03055
Website: https://www.ogiebrewing.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OGIEBrewing/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ogiebrewing/
Untappd: https://untappd.com/OGIEBrewing
Email: contact@OGIEBrewing.com
Brewery Hours:
Thu & Fri: 2:00pm – 10:00pm
Saturday: 12:00pm – 10:00pm
Sunday: 1:00pm – 5:00pm
Kitchen Hours:
Thu & Fri: 4:00pm – 9:00pm
Saturday: 12:00pm – 9:00pm
Sunday: 1:00pm – 5:00pm
Map
