I Tried the Beer at Montauk Brewing Co. and it's Pretty Damn Good

I was nervous that I wouldn’t like it, because I knew my local bias was going to want to like the beer at Montauk Brewing Co. But let me tell you, when the fresh, ice-cold, crisp beer hit my lips after a fresh pour from the handmade bar across the street from the Montauk Movie, I was completely impressed. Montauk Brewing Co. is the real deal. The beer is really, really, really good. This ain’t no situation where a bunch of locals are getting charity support for a new business that is just “okay.” This is beer that is going to be sought out from fans all over the world in the next coming years.

The bar offers a tasting room, sort of like a winery. The deal is that you aren’t allowed a full pour of beer due to government regulations, so instead, for $8, you try a small pour of each one of their beers and, if you’d like, you can buy a growler of beer and take it home. It’s fun, it’s relaxing and the beer is good.

Owners Vaughn Cutillo, Joe Sullivan and Eric Moss—all locals and under 30—are now committed to the operation full time and are behind the bar, which sits underneath a painted wooden fence in the shape of an American flag.

Any time you are in Montauk and are looking for something to do, this is definitely high on the list of places to stop. It’s easy going and the beer is remarkably ice cold. “We keep the temperature of the beer almost exactly at freezing,” Joe Sullivan told me. “It’s just how we like it.”

My favorite was the Driftwood Ale, a smooth IPA that the owners are selling to restaurants throughout Montauk, including the popular Harvest on Fort Pond.

“You’re really living the dream,” I said to Joe. “We’re trying, it’s not easy and a lot of work, but that’s the point, I guess,” he replied.

I highly recommend the beer here. Montauk Brewing Co. is now one of the top reasons I’ll be making trips to Montauk more often this summer.