Berkshire County Historical Society Lecture on Pittsfield Brewing History

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PITTSFIELD, Mass.—The Berkshire County Historical Society will present a lecture on the history of beer making in Pittsfield and the surrounding Berkshire region.
 
The free lecture, titled "Thirsty in the Berkshires: Brewing from the 18th Century to Prohibition," will be delivered by historian and educator Cynthia Brown. The event is scheduled for March 20 at 7 p.m. at Hot Plate Brewing in downtown Pittsfield.
 
The lecture will examine the historical context of commercial and private brewing in Pittsfield, dating back to the 18th century. Brown will discuss the evolution of brewing practices and the role of beer in the region's culture, leading up to the Prohibition era. The presentation will also include information regarding Jane Prime (or Pryn), a Black resident of Lenox, listed in the 1860 U.S. Census as a "beer maker."
 
Hot Plate Brewing's "Small Batch Salon" series will host the event. In conjunction with the lecture, Hot Plate Brewing's head brewer, Sarah Real, has created a custom recipe inspired by historical gruits. This beverage is based on fermented cereal grains, and references historical documents that mentioned Dutch "kuyt."
 
A portion of the proceeds from the evening's sales will be donated to the Berkshire County Historical Society.

Tags: brewery,   historical,   

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Pittsfield Celebrates 'Twinning' With Irish Sister City

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Last week, the city celebrated St. Patrick's Day early with officials from Sister City Ballina, Ireland.

There was music, dancing, gift exchanges, and a lot of green.

"If you're wondering, what does a Sister City do?" Pittsfield Sister City Committee Chair Francis Curley said.

"We've had art exchanges, we had a female basketball team from Ballina come over and play here, we had a semi-pro basketball team from Ballina come here. So it's not just sports; it's like cultural exchanges. Every time I speak with someone from Ireland, I learn something new."

Pittsfield and Ballina have been "twinning" for 27 years, fostering cultural, educational, economic, and recreation exchanges.

"It's really special that we have that connection and I just feel that we have to keep it up," Ballina's Mayor Michael Loftus said.

Ballina is a community of about 10,000 people and, similar to Pittsfield, has a vibrant art scene and natural scenery. Even though the two cities are almost 3,000 miles away, Loftus displayed a photo of a local pothole to show that both places deal with the same everyday struggles.

"We also have potholes in Ireland and that's a diver, actually, in our potholes in Ireland," he said. "Whatever you do, please don't be criticizing. It's not just here that you have them."

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