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Ever hear the popular song “Little Red Rooster” recorded back in 1961 by American blues musician Howlin’ Wolf?
It’s not quite the same, but today folks are “singing” the praises of Red Brewster Brewery open four days a week in Enfield.
Get the similarity of combining “brew” with “ster” from rooster and coming up with a clever title for their brewery?
“We still have a red rooster who roams our property,” said Charlie Mastroberti, owner of Red Brewster Brewery along with his wife, Ellen, and daughter Christie Stewart, about the catchy name which was born after a brainstorming session together.
Mastroberti, who owns Quest Pest Control was looking for a new venture, one that would not only bring in extra money to the household, but one that would also provide a job for his special needs daughter Leah, who he said has been “quite a lot of help at the brewery.”
“My daughter Christie and her husband had visited several breweries in the past which they enjoyed. They found them to have a different feel from a regular bar, more of a community atmosphere. They took my wife and me around to a few of their favorite breweries and we felt the same way,” Mastroberti shared about their decision to go the brewer route for their new venture.
What followed was a three-and-a-half-year journey — dealing with the coronavirus pandemic at the time didn’t help, Mastroberti noted — before opening day on Sept. 21, 2023.
“We had to go before the town’s zoning board for a special use liquor permit, as well as apply for various federal and state permits … a lot of paperwork which took a lot of time,” he said.
Then came the hard work with Mastroberti starting from scratch to create the family brewery.
“We needed a structure to house our brewery and purchased a prefabricated barn from a company in Pennsylvania, requiring us to apply for yet another permit to build it on our property. Of course, the barn was just a shell and had to be outfitted with electricity, plumbing, heat, air conditioning, lighting, tables and chairs, a nice bar where our customers could sit and enjoy a cool one, and other pleasing décor, including beautiful paintings by my artist wife, Ellen, some of which are for sale,” he said.
Then, there was still the “not so little” subject of brewing and purchasing equipment — they have a one-barrel system. While many brewers begin brewing as a hobby in their homes or outside in their garages, eventually leading up to opening their own microbrewery, Mastroberti knew nothing about the brewing process, other than enjoying the final product.
“We have been fortunate enough to have guidance from a few brewers willing to share their knowledge with us,” said Mastroberti, who brews alongside his daughter, Christie.
Today, they brew using a one-barrel system, but because of its smaller size, it requires them to often work around the clock to be able to pour enough for their thirsty customers.
“We do have four fermenters, so we have four brews going at once. Still, we are considering purchasing a larger system in the near future to help make it easier on ourselves,” Mastroberti shared.
The Red Brewster’s current tap menu includes Cowboy Coffee Stout, Sunshine Pilsner, The Fizzy Farmhouse Seltzer, Final Frost Winter Ale, Norwegian IPA, Daisy American Pale Wheat Beer, Wicked Amber Red Lager, Barnyard Porter with Blueberry, and a Cowgirl Coffee Stout.
“We are constantly working on new beers so that we have a mixture of customer favorites on tap alongside something new to try. We will be bringing back our Mexican Lager for Cinco de Mayo, as well as introducing a new IPA and a German Kolsch,” Mastroberti said.
In addition to serving up their craft brews, last January the brewery was granted permission from the Planning and Zoning Commission to “manufacture, store, and sell wine and hard cider for consumption on the premises” only by Connecticut producers.
They have two different permits; one is a beer manufacturers permit and the other is a Connecticut Craft Café License, which allows the retail sale of alcoholic liquor manufactured in Connecticut.
There are wines — Zinful Red (Zinfandel), Worthington White (Cayuga White) and Vineyard Poetry (Vidal Blanc) — from Worthington Winery and hard cider from Stafford Cidery to choose from, as well as liquors from Litchfield Distillery including their Espresso Martini. For teetotalers there is water, cold brew coffee and Coke.
While there is no kitchen in their tap room, those imbibing don’t have to go hungry.
“We sell potato chips and will shortly have charcuterie boards available to purchase as we did last year. And we will have food trucks coming back on the weekends including Connecticut favorite Hog Tied BBQ, who were at the brewery as part of our St. Patrick’s Day celebration. We have also had Cousins Maine Lobster serving up fresh seafood, Dishmade Food Truck from Windsor, and Four A’s Food Truck out of Enfield,” Mastroberti said.
“And we also allow anyone to bring their own food. So, you can pack a picnic basket or order food to be delivered while you are here,” he added, noting there are many nearby restaurants where people can go to pick up or have their food delivered.
Adding to the relaxed atmosphere at Red Brewster Brewery, one side of the red barn is outfitted with a garage-like door that opens leading to a canopy tent with additional tables and chairs. Beyond that awaits a beer garden with fire pits to cozy up to if there is a chill in the air.
“We also have a little functioning farm that we started to get Leah interested in farming. Our llama, we call him Zazu, a name taken from 'The Lion King,’ who is a big hit with visitors, especially with the kids. And there are also chickens, ducks and goats among the menagerie,” Mastroberti
shared.
And come the warmer months, there will be plenty to do in addition to resting a spell and enjoying a good brew and good company.
In addition to the food trucks, most weekends they aim to have acoustic music — nothing electric so as to disturb
their neighbors, Mastroberti noted.
“In the past we have had a St. Patrick’s Day celebration, Trunk or Treat for Halloween, and Santa and Mrs. Claus who visit at Christmastime, all of which we plan to continue. We’ve also had a cornhole competition, which is now back on Wednesday nights through October, Paint and Sip Night, and a Card Night on Wednesdays in the winter for anyone who wants to come in and play,” he said.
An additional goal when considering opening the brewery was to help support Vinfen Corporation in Windsor, where Leah participates in a program at the nonprofit health and human services organization, providing community-based services for individuals with special needs.
“Her program has their clients make items, such as candles, to be sold at our brewery with all of the proceeds going directly back to the program. And, put these dates on your calendar. From [Sept.] 19-21, we will be hosting our first art event with Vinfen Corp., when their artists will display their different types of artworks throughout the brewery. These pieces will be for sale, and again the proceeds benefit the program with the artists also earning a percentage,” Mastroberti said.
To imbibe a cooling pint of one of Red Brewster Brewery’s pleasing concoctions will cost customers $8, who can also enjoy a flight of four for the same price.
While some craft breweries could bear the brunt of President Donald Trump’s recent tariffs on aluminum and steel, Mastroberti for now said he isn’t expecting it to affect his prices since he doesn’t can his products for distribution.
The brewer is pleased with the response the brewery has received from the public.
“A lot of the locals, I would say within a five-mile radius of the brewery, would have never met one another and become friends if it wasn’t for coming to Red Brewster Brewery. We have achieved a real community feel like those other breweries we visited before opening our own. And our customers are constantly telling us it feels like home when they are here and that they love the community and family atmosphere,” Mastroberti said about children being able to feel welcomed, too.
And there is another community that welcomed Red Brewster Brewery.
“I have gone to almost every local brewer in the area, and they have welcomed me with open arms, when as a new brewer, I have questions for them,” he noted.
RED BREWSTER BREWERY IS LOCATED AT 50 WEYMOUTH RD. IN ENFIELD. HOURS ARE THURSDAY, 5-8 P.M.; FRIDAY, 4-8 P.M.; SATURDAY, 3-8 P.M. AND SUNDAY, NOON TO 5 P.M.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CALL 860-817-9933 OR VISIT THEREDBREWSTER.COM OR THEIR FACEBOOK PAGE.