Plan Bee Farm Brewery - Poughkeepsie, New York

After a hiking weekend in the Catskills and a sort of failed local brewery attempt at Hunter Mountain Brewery (great food, no on-site brewed beer, still confused) I was excited to find a local brewery with great beer, and yes, a brewery that actually made beer on-site.  

What we found was even better.  

Not only do they brew a variety of great beer, but they do it using ingredients from the farm. 

This second brewery attempt was a trendy little brewery outside of Poughkeepsie where you can drink a beer brewed with local "right from the farm" ingredients while dodging roaming chickens and petting friendly goats.  If this is up your alley (or er, field?) look no further than Plan Bee Farm Brewery.

On the Farm: The brewery is on a mission is to brew 100% New York State ingredient beer. They source all their ingredients from the state of New York with many grown on-site.  Plan Bee is committed to local ingredients which I really admire and encourage.  Shouldn't this be the standard for all our local breweries?

The Property:  The property is dog-friendly (and kid-friendly!) with lots of room to roam.  You can hang out inside the rustic and beautifully styled tasting room, head outside and grab one of the picnic tables where the chickens like to hang out or wander around the property garden or head to the goat pen.  

It has the charm of trendy brewery mixed with a not-trying-to-be-fancy farm.  I loved the subtle and farm-focused decor all over the farm.  From the reclaimed wood to the honeycomb inspired tile, I loved the well thought out details and atmosphere of the brewery.  The tasting room was a little warm on a hot summer day (and we had the dogs) so we happily snagged a picnic table outside where Marshall met his first chicken and Olive happily relaxed in the shade eyeing our cheese plate. 

Food: The brewery welcomes outside food, or you can purchase some of their cheese and snacks from the cooler inside.  We weren't impressed with the cheese selection offered on-site (albeit local) and would definitely recommend bringing a picnic to enjoy on the farm with their local beverages.  

The Beer

I was immediately impressed with the adorable gold bee logo all over the bottles and the tap list at the brewery.  I was also immediately disappointed that they didn't offer flights.  While they did offer half pours, I was the only one imbibing which meant it was going to be nearly impossible (or drunkish and challenging) to try all the beers at the brewery.  

Instead, I settled on two half pours and some local cheese from the fridge and headed outside to enjoy my beer with Adam who was hanging out with the dogs and the chickens.  I tried their classic Barn Beer (Juicy & satisfying, fruity and funky with pineapple/resin hop notes) and Bee Roo (dark wild ale oak aged on plums and green + purple shiso leaf).  If you love classic farm ales, sours, and some fun and funky ingredients, you are going to love this beer list.

On Tap

BARN BEER:  Juicy & satisfying, dances btw fruity&funky fermentation

pineapple/resin hop notes.

BEE BOSS:  Farmhouse IPA brewed in collaboration with Newburgh Brewery with 100% NYS ingredients including NY hops, lemongrass & 300# of raw honey

SUMMER LANDSCAPE:  100% NYS ingredient historic lager by Industrial Arts Brewery

BLUFF:  100% Chinook hopped wild ale, boiled for 8 hrs to give it a funky, caramelized pineapple tasting note

BEEROO:  dark wild ale oak aged on plums and green + purple shiso leaf

KARNEVEL:  our Barn Beer aged on tart cherry juice from Bittner-Singer Orchards (Appleton, NY)

PICKLE:  It is back! Our cucumber and dill wild ale, on tap for a limited time. Refreshing and tart, this beer is a fan favorite

PRECIOUS:  wild ale, oak aged on apricots from the August 2018 harvest

KEEPER: 3 year old spontaneous ale

Plan Bee Farm Brewery

115 Underhill Road, Poughkeepsie, NY 12603

Tasting Room Summer Hours:

Thursday and Friday:  3pm to 8pm

Saturday and Sunday:  12pm to 7pm

This brewery was such a great place to relax.  Great beer in a lovely tasting room on a quaint rustic little farm that makes you feel like you are much farther in upstate New York, not Poughkeepsie.  This was my first time driving through Poughkeepsie and let me just say we were amazed that after driving through some rougher neighborhoods and city streets, this gem was waiting for us, tucked away on a dead-end street in the woods.  Bring the dogs to relax under the picnic table and take the kids to see the goats, all while you sip a delicious locally sourced made right here New York beer.  

Plan Bee, I was impressed with your facility, your charm, your adorable logo and of course, your beer.  I hope to be back with a big picnic and a few more friends.  In the meantime, I am really hoping you get some flights up in the works. 

Happy Drinking,
Katie