Worcester County Wonders: Don't worry, Be Hoppy at Wormtown Brewery

WORCESTER ― It's the most common question the good folks at Wormtown Brewery get: Why the name Wormtown?

For Worcester locals the answer is easy. The nickname for the city has been a staple for decades, coined by former WICN and WCUW disc jockey Leonard B. Saarinen, aka L.B. Worm. For taproom manager Britton Atchley, the name is the ultimate tribute to what this beer is all about: Worcester.

"This place is all about Worcester and we like it that way," Atchley said as she sat at the bar on a Wednesday afternoon, the last planned day of brewing at Wormtown's Shrewsbury Street location before production moves to Framingham later this summer.

The malt, rye, hops and water all come from Worcester, which gives the company motto, "A piece of Mass. in every glass," a literal meaning and gives the entire business a "three-decker attitude."

Like many great ideas, Wormtown Brewery was born after a few beers between friends. One of them, Ben Roesch, would be instrumental in creating not just the brewery but also its staple beer, Be Hoppy, an India pale ale.

"People come in here and they say, 'I'll have the Wormtown,' and of course they mean they want a pint of the 'Be Hoppy,'" Atchley said, adding it's always been the brewery's bestseller.

The first beer was officially poured March 17, 2010, in a small addition of the former Peppercorn's Ice Cream Factory. The brewery would operate out of that small space until 2015 before moving to Shrewsbury Street. Since then, the brewery has expanded on Shrewsbury Street and opened another taproom and "test kitchen" at Patriot Place in Foxborough. Now the brewery offers around 30 beers on tap throughout the year.

Earlier this year, the brewery announced a major brand refresh and introduced two new beers: Be Fearless, a double IPA, and Be Smooth, a hazy IPA.

Recently the brewery announced it would be acquired by the Hendler Family Brewing Co., owner and operator of Jack's Abby, a Framingham-based brewery. The sale will be finalized this summer and aims to strengthen the craft-brewery industry as a whole, particularly smaller microbreweries in a post-pandemic arena.

"We're really passionate about the craft brewing industry and stabilizing it," said Sam Hendler, co-founder and CEO of Hendler Family Brewing Co. "We're making a long-term commitment not only to Wormtown and Shrewsbury Street but to Worcester."

Hendler gushed about future plans, including potentially doubling the size of Wormtown's current taproom on Shrewsbury Street.

Sarah Lee is director of people operations at Jack's Abby and could barely contain her excitement.

"We have absolutely no intention of taking over the very-Worcester brand," she said. "Wormtown is its own thing, the brand is really a sense of pride for so many and we wouldn't want to do anything to change that. Plus, our brands don't compete."

She's right of course — the two breweries make very different beers. Jack's Abby focuses mainly on lager beers, while Wormtown is best known for its IPAs. When asked if the two brands might work together on a Jack's Abby-Wormtown creation, the answer was "never say never."

Brightly colored graffiti dazzles across the bar of the taproom on Shrewsbury Street, a former car dealership where a stained-glass Buick emblem remains visible. Worcester's history is represented in every one of the beers on tap, as the iconic smiley face, created by Worcester resident Harvey Ball, grins back.

"We have something here for everyone," Atchley said. Aside from beer, it offers seltzer, hard iced tea, mules and other cocktails.

"Everyone loves the Mass Whole; you can really tell who is a local and who isn't when it comes to the Mass Whole. Locals order with a giggle and go home with our Mass Whole merchandise. If you know, you know."

Apart from the Mass Whole, a lager beer, the brewery has a slew of Massachusetts-themed brews including the Blizzard of 78, an English brown ale, and Table Talk Brownie, described as a lava pie stout.

The brewery has also experimented with some rather strange flavors over the years, including chocolate chip mint, and even a pickle beer, which surprisingly went over incredibly well.

The older of the two spaces on Shrewsbury Street has just turned 21 and was given a slight makeover as a "beer garden," with artwork painted by local teacher Jennifer Adams.

Adams, who was in the running for America's Favorite Teacher earlier this year, has been teaching elementary school students for the last 17 years. She teaches third graders in the dual language program at Worcester's Chandler Magnet/La Familia Elementary.

Meantime over in Framingham, Jack's Abby boasts artwork from Framingham native Mia Cross decorating its space. Her work is displayed in private collections around the world, in addition to the permanent collections at the Danforth Museum and Simmons University. For the brewery she's painted a 300-foot mural sprawled across the outside of the taproom on Clinton Street.

"When Wormtown was founded, Roesch really put everything into this livelihood and into their beer, and now we've got another family at Jack's Abby, who are just as passionate about beer and the local community as us," Atchley said with a smile.

Roesch left Wormtown in 2023 and has since opened his own brewery, Murder Hill, in Whitinsville.

As Wormtown heads east, it'll bring the majority of its existing staff, including two of the original brewers who've been with Wormtown for a decade.

"All of that important community isn't going anywhere," Lee said, saying Jack's Abby would continue to use the same Worcester-based ingredients in Wormtown's beer production, except for one thing — the water. Luckily Framingham has plenty of that.

Thanks to Jon for his suggestion of Wormtown Brewery for this edition of Worcester County Wonders.

T&G engagement editor Sarah Barnacle is getting to know Central Mass. by exploring some of the best places to go and things to do in Worcester County. If you have an idea or suggestion, please email sbarnacle@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Don't worry, Be Hoppy at Wormtown Brewery in Worcester