For nearly a century, New Hampshire has been a national leader in fine craft. Generations of New Hampshire artists, craftsmen, and creative entrepreneurs were building a legacy rooted in skill, authenticity, and the belief that handmade work matters. Since its founding in 1932, the League of NH Craftsmen has helped establish New Hampshire as one of the most respected craft communities in the country — preserving traditions while championing innovation, artistry, and excellence across generations of makers.

That same independent spirit continues today not only in studios and workshops, but also in breweries across the Granite State. From potters and blacksmiths to brewers and woodworkers, New Hampshire’s identity has always been shaped by people who transform raw materials into something meaningful, lasting, and uniquely their own.

This collaboration between the League and the New Hampshire Brewers Association began with a simple conversation at the New Hampshire Cultural Summit — a gathering designed to explore the future of the state’s creative and cultural economy.

At the time, Kate Saunders, Executive Director of the League, and CJ Haines, Executive Director of the Brewers Association, had never met. But during conversations about sustaining New Hampshire’s creative communities, Kate reached out with a question:

What might fine craft leaders and craft brewers possibly have in common?

The answer, it turned out, was almost everything.

Both fine craft and craft brewing are built on a deep respect for materials — whether that means carefully sourced wood, clay, glass, fiber, or metal, or thoughtfully selected hops, malt, yeast, and water. In both worlds, makers dedicate years to refining technique, experimenting with process, and developing a signature style that reflects both skill and personal expression.

A potter throwing clay on the wheel and a brewer refining a seasonal ale are engaged in remarkably similar acts of creation. Both transform raw ingredients into experiences that tell stories. Both balance tradition with innovation. Both understand that craftsmanship is not rushed — it is practiced, refined, and lived.

After that first meeting, Kate spent the next two months traveling throughout New Hampshire, sitting down with brewery owners and brewmasters to pitch an entirely new kind of pairing — one that brought together the stories of brewers and craftsmen through a shared creative process.

The idea was simple but powerful: each brewery collaboration would unite a brewmaster and a craftsman to co-design a unique summer ale inspired by their shared values, creative process, and connection to community. Every beer would become a toast to New Hampshire’s makers — celebrating not only the artistry behind the craft, but also the role local breweries play in creating gathering spaces, supporting local economies, and strengthening communities across the state.

The collaboration also became an invitation for the public to participate in something much larger: the Annual Craftsmen’s Fair, now celebrating its 93rd year and recognized as the largest event of its kind in the United States.

A legacy of craft was forged in New Hampshire. For generations, artists, craftsmen, and makers have built a culture rooted in skill, creativity, and independence. Every year, hundreds of the League’s nearly 700 juried craftsmen gather at the Fair to share that legacy with the public — and now, alongside New Hampshire’s breweries, the collaboration celebrates the thousands of creative individuals whose work continues to shape communities throughout the Granite State.

Together, the League and New Hampshire’s breweries are inviting residents and visitors alike to experience the state through its makers — to visit studios and taprooms, meet the people behind the process, and discover the stories poured into every pint and shaped into every handmade piece.

Craft built New Hampshire’s cultural identity nearly a century ago, and today a new generation of artists, craftsmen, and brewers is carrying that tradition forward. This collaboration is more than a partnership between breweries and makers — it is a statewide toast to the people, passion, and handmade traditions that continue to make New Hampshire a national leader in craft, ensuring this legacy of creativity, community, and craftsmanship lives on for generations to come.