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Enjoy lobster, oysters, craft beer and more in Maine
From wild brambles located inland to the cold, clean waters of the coast, Maine is full of culinary treasures. To revel in the state’s authentic food and drink experiences, follow these tips!
Lobster
There’s not a more iconic taste of Maine than lobster, and the lobster roll is its perfect showcase: a buttered bun topped with fresh-caught lobster, drizzled with butter and blended with a touch of mayonnaise. Equally iconic is enjoying the delicacy at a coastal shack in summertime. Statewide, lobster tails are also served whole, or as a star ingredient in pastas, soups and other dishes.
You can't get more iconic than lobster in Maine, with most of the country's supply coming from Maine's rugged and rocky coasts.
Oysters
Maine’s brisk waters produce oysters year-round. The Maine Oyster Trail is a new way to enjoy Maine oysters whether you want to shuck, taste and learn from the experts or just grab and go. Featuring 75 one-of-a-kind Maine oyster businesses, the trail has options for everyone including farm tours, boat tours, top oyster purveyors and raw bars. Plan a tour with a boutique farm to try your hand at harvesting oysters, get tips on buying oysters or simply enjoy them with lemon or a mignonette sauce of peppercorns, vinegar and shallots.
Maine oysters are caught off the chilly water along the coast and can be found in many restaurants throughout the state.
Farm-to-Table
There’s more to Maine’s culinary scene than sea-to-table goodness. Wild blueberries, crisp apples and tart cranberries thrive here, and restaurants and farmers’ markets statewide showcase them. For a unique immersion, visit Pineland Farms, a working farm with its own market, creamery and farm dinners in New Gloucester.
It's hard not to be part of the farm-to-table movement in a place like Maine, where fresh produce can be found across the entire state.
Craft Beer
The Maine Beer Trail tips travelers off to more than 150 microbreweries and brew pubs across the state. In addition to mapping locations, the trail suggests which Maine microbrews to look for on tap across the state, and offers a printable passport to help travelers track their stops.
Maine is home to many craft breweries and brewpubs serving hand-crafted ales, lagers and more.
Craft Spirits & Wine
Take your pick of Maine-distilled spirits. Cold River makes vodka with local potatoes, then flavors it with Maine botanicals. Twenty 2 Vodka is a multiple award-winner making smooth vodkas. Maine Craft Distilling produces a unique barley spirit. Learn more about the Maine micro-distilling movement on a tour of family-run New England Distilling. Prefer wine to vodka? Don’t miss Sweetgrass Farm Winery & Distillery (in Union and Portland) or Bartlett Maine Estate Winery in Gouldsboro.
Cold River makes their vodkas with locally grown potatoes and adds botanical flavors for a unique taste.
Sweets
Time for a sweet ending! Gifford’s Famous Ice Cream, with five quaint stands across the state, crafts an internationally-awarded chocolate ice cream and flavors inspired by the Maine outdoors (imagine wild blueberry and “Fly-Fishing Fudge”). The Whoopie Pie, Maine’s official state treat, sandwiches a creamy filling between two cake-y cookies (typically chocolate). Order yours at almost any restaurant or shop in the state. For chocolate-lovers, Ragged Coast Chocolates crafts artisanal confections on Isle au Haut. Their Cassis de Resistance truffle — made of blackcurrant berries grown on the island and Venezuelan bittersweet chocolate — won a prestigious Good Food Award in 2015.
Explore all of your delicious dessert options in Maine, from decadent baked goods and artisanal chocolate to ice cream in an array of regional flavors.
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