After our visit to Night Shift Brewing, we went to Idle Hands Craft Ales, also located in Everett, Massachusetts. The breweries used to be located next door to each other, at the location Idle Hands is currently in.
When we arrived, we saw many of the same faces we had seen at Night Shift- everyone was out to try some good beer!
Idle Hands Craft Ales is the Boston area’s first Nanobrewery- meaning they produce a very limited amount of beer. When they began in 2011, they were brewing only 1 1/2 barrels at a time. They now have a 5 barrel system, Due to Idle Hands being a nanobrewery, they are a little but more difficult to find than other breweries’ beers- but they have a great list (organized by town) of where you can find the beers in the greater Boston area.Idle Hands was founded by Christopher Tkach, a New Hampshire native who started homebrewing at age 21. He has been making beers for 15+ years. Christopher has a solid team with him, including his wife, two brewers and a tasting room manager.
Idle Hands is a Belgian inspired brewery. Belgian ale was originally crafted by Monks in the Middle Ages. It is still a popular style, both in Belgium and the US. Idle Hands also creates hybrids, like a Belgian stout. They have also crafted German style beers, like a Pale Weizenboch, coming in the fall. They do a lot of seasonals and like to experiment and make one offs as well.
Our tasting: 
Idle Hands:
- Blanche de Grace: 5.4%
A Belgian Wit.
Spices of coriander and citrus
light, creamy summer beer - Triplication- Abbey Style Tripel: 9%
doesn’t drink like a 9% beer, easier to drink than expected
good, subtle flavor
notes of clove, peach, pear and a hint of banana - Pandora- Belgian Pale Ale: 6%
everyone around us was raving about this beer- long before we tried it!
this beer was more straight forward in style
notes of citrus fruit, pepper and allspice - Patriach- table style beer: 5.8% (but varies)
crisp and light
notes of white grapes, apple
Belgian Single/Patersbier
Megan really liked this one - 23*26′- Hoppy Tripel: 8.2%
hybrid, Belgians don’t use hops traditionally
citrusy, grassy Belgian
Mark really liked this one
Enlightenment Ales merged with Idle Hands in December 2013. Two breweries under one roof is easier to manage. Their beers tend to be more hoppy than Idle Hands.
- Illumination- Farmhouse IPA: 6.8%
earthy taste, as expected from a Farmhouse ale
similar at times to a Saison, but hopped.
Mark liked this one - Enlightenment- Garrison- Hoppy American Table Beer: 2.8%
Spanish recipe
sweet green pepper flavor
Megan appreciated
Want to visit?
Hours of Operation:
Hours of Operation:
Thursdays 3 – 7 pm
Fridays 5 – 8pm
Saturdays 12 – 5 pm
Check their facebook for special events and holiday hours
look for this sign if you go- can be a little hard to find!
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