Almost Famous Brewing – East Granby, CT

0 2

By New England Beer Buddy Beer Blog Breweries Connecticut Brewery Craft Beer Craft Brewery New England Brewery Taproom March 23, 2025

The Connecticut brewery landscape has become quite interesting over the past few years. As someone who went to University in the Constitution State, specifically just outside of Hartford, I get intrigued at both the openings, closings and especially the breweries that would have been a nice collegiate distraction back in the day. One in particular was Almost Famous Brewing in East Granby. Been meaning to visit for quite awhile but just didn’t get going on it. Until, that is, when my fellow beer geek Bud Estey, of Buds Beer Blurb, reached out about a social media event that he was planning and hosting. Never one to turn down a beer invitation I finally returned to the Capitol Planning Region to explore yet another Connecticut brewery on my list.

Just outside of Bradley International Airport, Almost Famous is tucked within an industrial park just off CT-20. You can’t miss the sign out front when pulling in. Limited front door parking available but there is plenty scattered throughout the neighboring complexes.

Almost Famous was founded in February of 2022 by Chip Glanovsky and Jim Wilfinger. Chums since high school, the pair were avid beer drinkers and made plans to open a brewery since 2018. Hitting the usual obstacles that occurs while trying to build and open a taproom it took some time and patience until they finally were able to introduce themselves and serve the masses.

Not just owners in name, Chip and Jim (Jim also serves as the head brewer) as well as their social media manger, Sandy Lisella, completely run the show. All are active with greeting people, creating and pouring beers and are very passionate about what they do. Especially Jim who emphasized that if there was anything about his product we didn’t like, he requested we let him know.

The Almost Famous building itself looks part colonial brick townhouse and part spacious warehouse. The front door atrium greets you with a pair of sidewalk signs and you walk into a small hallway that leads you into a very spacious taproom.

If you haven’t picked up on this yet, Almost Famous is in part a reference to the Cameron Crowe film of the same name. Although I didn’t see any pictures of Stillwater on the walls, there are plenty of rock n roll aesthetics to be seen. The hit movie aside, the name is also a term for how the owners see their brewery vision: “Not quite famous, not quite obscure.”

A long and sturdy looking bar greets you as you make your way to the back to place an order. The wood from the bar itself (as well as tabletops) are built from old, local bowling alley lanes.

The pouring station and tap handles themselves are one of the more creative I’ve ever seen. Guitar tap handles that are boxed in by Marshall amplifiers. It’s pretty kick-ass.

The taproom itself is filled with table seating and even some couches for you to plop down to enjoy your beverage of choice. And that is just the MAIN room. Almost Famous also has rooms for rentals and private events that would a fun way to host a corporate or even a family outing.

There are game rooms to enjoy during your visit. One room is dedicated to the video games of old and for the lost appreciation of the pinball machine! Of course, some of the great rock band inspired games are there to keep with the ambience. If a simple game of pool is your thing there is also a tiny billiard room.

The beer selection is quite impressive with plenty of styles to choose from. I sampled plenty and just need to say everything on the Almost Famous beer list is worth trying.

My highlights were the Milk & Honey Milkshake IPA (not too sugary, smooth and flavorful), the Blueberry Crushable Sour (blend of sweet, fresh berries and vanilla), Stranger than Fiction stout (nitro pour, super creamy with dry roasted notes), Next of Kin New England IPA, Anything’s Possible Pilsner (straight up American style pilz, nothing flashy but very tasty) and the Bitch “B” Trippin’ Double IPA.

As the name of the brewery and the scenery implies there are plenty of live music events that happen at Almost Famous. Pretty much a live show every Friday and Saturday night with a stacked event calendar.

No on-site food is made, however, there are scheduled food trucks and a very liberal BYO policy. They required “bags of chips at a brewery” are also on hand for snacking.

Almost Famous is also incredibly dog friendly! Many pooches to be seen throughout the taproom with their responsible owners. In fact the brewery’s own mascot, Koda, was seen supervising from behind the bar and overseeing the brewing production process.

Adjacent to the guitars and amps is a shelf for all the Almost Famous Mug Club members. Subscribers get a 15 oz mug with an assigned number. Said mug gives you $2 off per pour as well as 1 free pour on Wednesday or Thursday and a free pour on your birthday.

As a beer, rock music and pinball machine fan, I found Almost Famous to be a fun musically inspired brewery and taproom with an incredible staff, great beers and plenty of things to do. A good stop if planning a brewery tour or if you have time along the way to the nearby airport.

Once again thank you to Bud Estey for the invitation and hosting the event. You can read Bud’s blog at www.budsbeerblurb.com/