Craft beer and homemade spirits have found a home in Portland, Maine, at Eric and Julie Michaud’s In’Finiti Fermentation and Distillation, opened in March 2013. In In’Finiti’s copper pot still, prominently displayed in the restaurant-pub, Michaud brews a raft of beers, from his ’finiti Pils (using German malts and Saaz and Tettnang hops) to an organic Biere de Mars (in the French farmhouse ale style).
And in the distillery, Michaud and company (which includes brother Ian Michaud) have created Well…Vodka, Rhum Blanc (white rum inspired by rhum agricole, of the French Caribbean), and Old Port White Oak Whiskey (made with organic Maine oats).
A native of Yarmouth, Maine, Michaud was an early advocate for the craft-beer movement in Portland. He is also the owner of the city’s Novare Res Bier Café, which has 30 rotating taps and bottles in American/UK, German, and Belgian styles, as well as a section devoted to “beer geeks and connoisseurs.” “Novare res,” means “to start a revolution,” says Michaud, who adds, “Ours is a beer-drinking revolution….Though we are not overthrowing any governments or wielding any pitchforks, we hope to bring a new perspective to at least one of your senses…”