Craft Beverage Aficionados
Spend some time tasting your way through Cooperstown & Otsego County...
With a history steeped in agriculture, hand-crafted beer, and other beverages, Otsego County was once the largest producer of hops in the United States. Today, the area is known as a forerunner in the craft beverage renaissance, producing high-quality, small-batch beers, wines, ciders, and spirits.
Self-navigate (with a designated driver, of course!) the Cooperstown Beverage Trail and learn firsthand about the region's hops and grape history. Most stops offer tastings and tours, so be sure to ask.
We recommend consulting each business before visiting, as many of them operate seasonally and have varying hours of operation as well as alterations due to COVID-19 guidelines.
Alternative Transportation:
Leatherstocking Trolley
Make your reservation now and plan to get “all-aboard” for a worry-free day of touring what was once considered the hops capital of the nations, it’s beverages, and more!
Fully experience craft beverages in the Cooperstown region by booking a private charter for your group on the Leatherstocking Trolley. This safe and memorable way to explore the Cooperstown Beverage Trail seats up to 34 passengers in a classically styled trolley. Providing professional, hassle-free service, Leatherstocking Trolley also offers themed sightseeing tours of Cooperstown. Call for more details.
Flavor Focused!
The Cooperstown Beverage Trail features several distinctive, high-quality craft beverage producers. Hit the 37-mile trail loop, the first official cuisine trail in New York State, for a selection of tastings, tours, farm-to-table dining, and events that celebrate the region's craft beverage resurgence.
Butternuts Beer & Ale (1 hour)
Located on a 120-acre refurbished dairy farm, Butternuts Beer & Ale creates no-nonsense beers that combine American-style farmhouse ales with German, English, and Belgian influences. Stop by to sample their specialty brews on tap.
Cooperstown Brewing Company (1 hour)
A true small-batch, English-style brewery specializing in premium ales, porters, and stouts brewed in 20-barrel batches. Here, you can sample Cooperstown Brewing Company's baseball-inspired brews like Old Slugger Pale Ale, Nine Man Ale, and Benchwarmer Porter, and enjoy a friendly game of indoor cornhole.
Red Shed Brewery (2 hours)
Making fresh, handcrafted ales using local hops and grains, Red Shed Brewery's Cooperstown tasting room features 20 taps serving a variety of ales, pilsners, wheat beers, IPAs, stouts, and porters. Enjoy a sampling alongside a menu of farm-to-table bites.
Rustic Ridge Winery (1-2 hours) Seasonal
Producers of sweet to dry and semi-dry white and red wines, Rustic Ridge Winery offers a varied selection of wines through its partnership with a well-established vineyard from the Finger Lakes. Visit for a tasting and take in the country setting, splendid views and occasional music sounds, and wood-fired pizzas on the weekends.
High Burl Brewery (1-2 hours) Seasonal
Neighboring Rustic Ridge Winery is the perfect stop for varied cravings. Located in the beautiful, vast countryside with some outdoor seating, it's easy to relax here! Locally grown ingredients are key to the 9 flagship flavors. Check Facebook for upcoming events.
Pail Shop Vineyards (1-2 hours) Seasonal
Specializing in cold climate grape varieties, reflecting the rocky soil of this hillside vineyard, Pail Shop Vineyards will satisfy your tastebuds looking for something special. Sample a selection of distinctive small-batch red and white blends and enjoy the rotating artist series in the winery's rustic barn tasting room. Also, you won’t want to miss Sangria at Sunset evenings!
Cooperstown Distillery (1 hour) Open year-round
The area's first micro-distillery, Cooperstown Distillery offers award-winning, artisanal spirits. Using locally sourced ingredients in its bourbon, whiskey, and other hand-crafted liquors, this farm distillery offers a 'field to flask' experience with a distiller-led tour finished with a tasting. 2020 is the year of expansion for us, so come check us out!
Honeypot Farms Meade (1-2 hours) Seasonal
Open Weekends: Friday and Saturday 1-7pm and Sunday 12 -5pm. This artisan Meadery located a beautiful 15-mile ride from
Cooperstown offers up the SWEETEST of all-natural nectar libations, from hive to table. Schedule a private or group tasting in advance of your drive out.
You also don’t want to miss...
The Farmers’ Museum (2 - 4 hours) Seasonal Explore the Lippitt Farmstead at The Farmers’ Museum to take learning to the experiential level, and learn about the very stuff our bubbly libations are derived from...hops! There is plenty to see and do here from the self-guided tour through this living history village where demonstrations keep your attention, to admiring the artistry of the Empire State Carousel, to the wonder of the Cardiff Giant.
Canoe & Kayak Rentals and Sales (1-4 hours) Seasonal Spend a few hours on the Susquehanna River with Canoe & Kayak Rentals and Sales. With kayaks, canoes, and stand-up paddleboards for rent by the hour, half-day, and full-day, enjoy out-and-back paddling on the river or explore the calm waters of the Otsego County area. Free instruction and certified instructors make it a fun-filled adventure for all skill levels, with additional locations at Brookwood Point and Glimmerglass State Park.
Please remember the travel time between the places you choose to visit.
