Sena Farm Brewery, Worthington MA

18 May 2024

I wanted a drive today and thought it would be nice to include some brewery that I’d never been to before, and perhaps never even heard of. Sena Farm was it. It’s in Worthington, the very definition of a “hill town” in the eastern Berkshires, and it’s a very rustic place on a remote farm with very nice people and decent beer. We’ll start with views of the outside, (part of) the inside, and the outside seen from the inside (I sat at the table right inside this window):

I’d arrived just as they opened and there were just two others, a young couple, who went in the door as I was getting out of my car; they got their beers and played a spirited game of Cribbage before moving to a different table and just chilling out. I started at the bar to choose a flight and was interested to find that they offer two different sizes of glasses for the flight of four, a $10 size and a $15 size — I went for the $15 size, of course! The bar itself was interesting and rather eclectic:

As you can see, they don’t have a lot of taps and a couple were down. I opted for the two lagers, the stout, and the lone IPA that is just off the bottom of this photo. I’ll describe them left-to-right:

Gilded Lager – Classic American Lager, 4.8% – This was my least favorite of the four, but only because it had an unexpected bitterness to it. The initial flavor was excellent … but it ended bitter and left me thinking it was a somewhat unpleasant brew.

Maibock Lager – German Style Bock, 6.3% – After the first one, this was a very pleasant surprise! I really liked it, and in fact, I greatly enjoyed all of the flight with the exception of that first lager.

Vertical Stride IPA – IPA, 6% – I’m curious what hops they used in this one as it strikes me as more of a West Coast IPA style. Regardless, it was tasty and didn’t have such a strong flavor that it would compete with food; I can see it accompanying almost any meal.

Belphegor Stout – Stout, 9.7% – I really wonder where the name Belphegor came from! I also have to really hand it to the brewer; this beer in no way tastes like it’s a 9.7% ABV. It’s no wonder that their online beer list states very clearly that customers are strictly limited to just two pints of this brew.

There’s no food at Sena Farm although the bartender was just firing up the popcorn machine as I took my first sips. As the machine was behind the bar, I don’t know whether the popcorn is free on request or if there’s a charge for it. I assume it’s fine to bring outside food in if you want, but I suspect most people just stop in for some beer and then go home or elsewhere to eat. While they have some cans to go, they were down to just one of the beers available in cans so I suspect that’s not a major focus for them

The location is rustic and when I told the bartender where I was from, he said they don’t get many people from my area. I’m not surprised — it’s an enjoyable and scenic ride, but it certainly isn’t in a convenient location so you have to be heading there as a part of a day in the hills. That certainly worked out for me today, but I don’t know when I’ll get back there. I’ll certainly keep it in mind for future drives, however.