You can also find wild blueberries in other states like Pa and Ny. My father lived in Northeast Pa and there were wild blueberries everywhere, both on tall bushes and low-lying bushes covering the ground. These were very small, no much larger than a pea and very flavorful but take a long time to pick. In the higher elevations of upstate Ny they are easy to find as well but may very well be a different variety than the wild ones in Maine, I don’t know. However they were very good.

We just returned from a week in Maine and brought back six pints of fresh-picked blueberries. They are in season for only a couple of weeks and we bought them from a woman who was selling them from her car on the road. Apparently this is a yearly ritual in Maine. The low bush blueberries are only grown in Maine and Canada. The ones you get at the stores (even in Maine) are from New Jersey and are the cultivated variety. We managed to get the good ones for $2 a pint and $3.50 a quart. Just check around at several locations off main roads. I’ve already made blueberry muffins and will be making a blueberry crostada next! We found the blueberry ale at local Maine supermarkets and brought some of that home, too. Don’t forget to bring a cooler to keep the berries fresh. Have a great honeymoon!

Sorry that I keep getting the "quote" thing screwed up/ I did not explain myself clearl on the Maine blueberries being cheap. I just thought they were cheap as I bought them right after they had been "raked". I did not realize that it would take hours to remove the debris such as green berries and leaves and twigs, etc. I did raalize that the end result was well worth the price as the berries were wonderful! I just wish I could buy the real thing here.

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Originally posted by Sundancer7

quote:

Originally posted by chezkatie

Blueberries from Maine, normally, are very small……….much different than the blueberries that you see in the supermarkets. I will never forget the time that I bought 1/2 bushel of freshly raked blueberries in Maine. I put them in a huge cooler and when I got home the next day, discovered why they were so cheap. They had to be "picked" over and took me all day………..but I must say that they were well worth the work because they were so much better than supermarket ones!

You indicated that they werre cheaper in Maine. This past Saturday, they were much more expensive that the ones I bought at Walmart today. I saw people picking them on hands and knees. Just watching them made me tired. At that point, I would have paid more than I did. The ones at Walmart were so cheap, they must have been picked with a vacuum cleaner.

You were right on another point as they were much bigger at Walmart and not nearly so sweet.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

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Originally posted by Sundancer7

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Originally posted by chezkatie

Blueberries from Maine, normally, are very small……….much different than the blueberries that you see in the supermarkets. I will never forget the time that I bought 1/2 bushel of freshly raked blueberries in Maine. I put them in a huge cooler and when I got home the next day, discovered why they were so cheap. They had to be "picked" over and took me all day………..but I must say that they were well worth the work because they were so much better than supermarket ones!

You indicated that they werre cheaper in Maine. This past Saturday, they were much more expensive that the ones I bought at Walmart today. I saw people picking them on hands and knees. Just watching them made me tired. At that point, I would have paid more than I did. The ones at Walmart were so cheap, they must have been picked with a vacuum cleaner.

You were right on another point as they were much bigger at Walmart and not nearly so sweet.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

DaveM: Thanks for the info. I know you added your thoughts to the other thread we started regarding our honeymoon trip to Cape Cod, Maine, and Vermont. I’m looking forward to trying some of the microbrews/brewpubs of the area.

The answer is cultivated vs. wild.
I picked blueberries in Maine (West Kennebunk) the week of August 1st, and they were large berries. This means they are cultivated, meaning that at some point the farm(er)planted blueberry bushes as a crop.
The larger berries, often referred to as "nickel" sized, are almost always cultivated berries.
Wild bluberries most often tend to be smaller, hence the difference in flavor.
Many times blueberry patches are often the outgrowth of de-forestation or forest fires.
I remember as a kid in Nova Scotia and Maine going into wooded areas where my uncle had told me a forest fire had been through years before and finding blueberries among the scrub brush.
Wild blueberries are more readily available the further north you travel in Maine-Washington county especially.
As far as the Bluberry Ale is concerned, this is usually a wheat beer with the bluberries added to the mash. This is different than many brewpubs, like Boston Beer Works, which may pour real blueberries in syrup in the bottom of a glass, then pour wheat beer over it.
Many places don’t brew it because they must clean the blueberry flavor out of the kettles afterward, and it is time consuming. Same reason many brewpubs or breweries do not make homemade root beers or sodas unless they have special tanks designated for just that.
What Paul had sounded like Bar Harbor Blueberry Ale from Atlantic Brewing Co. of Bar Harbor. This company started as a small batch brewery, and really made their reputation with this as a signature product among others. It really doesn’t get distributed very far south, it is hard to find in Boston. 3 Dollar Dewey’s in Portland usually has it on tap.
I have had 3 different samples this year so far-the aforementioned Bar Harbor Blueberry, Sea Dog Wild Blueberry (now owned by Shipyard Brewing), and Wachusett Brewing (berkshires,MA) Blueberry Ale.
CheeseWit, you can definitely find this beer at the Portland Public Market in downtown Portland. SeaDog Wild Blueberry Ale will be on sale in 6 packs in Kennebunkport (try any convienience store), as well as just having reopened brewpubs in the Rockland,Topham, Camden area.
While in Kennebunkport, I suggest a trip to Federal Jack’s brewpub, owned by the Shipyard Brewing Co.. They will have raspberry wheat bear on tap, made the same way as the bluberry ale.
Downstairs is an artist who paints wonderful portraits of Civil War generals, as Shipyard Brewing is paying homage to 12 different generals on beer labels. Joshua Chamberlain has a beer named after him.
Sorry if I rambled folks, didn’t mean to drag the topic from blueberries to beer.
DaveM

Blueberries from Maine, normally, are very small……….much different than the blueberries that you see in the supermarkets. I will never forget the time that I bought 1/2 bushel of freshly raked blueberries in Maine. I put them in a huge cooler and when I got home the next day, discovered why they were so cheap. They had to be "picked" over and took me all day………..but I must say that they were well worth the work because they were so much better than supermarket ones!

Paul, most of the blueberries sold here in Eastern PA are from Southern NJ. They’re fine…until you taste Maine berries. Then you know there’s a difference. Hey, I’ll still buy ’em and enjoy ’em on my trip.

Do you think the roadside prices are inflated to take advantage of tourists? Were the Walmart blueberries from Maine?

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Originally posted by Sundancer7

I was at Walmart today and they had blueberries at $1.79 a pint. That was about $3.00 cheaper than the roadside stands in Maine [?][?].

Go figure? Perhaps they were not as fresh or the same species. I do not know.

Paul E. Smith
Knoxville, TN

Thanks for the tips Paul. I will be stopping at Young’s on Rt. 1. They were already on my list of stops. Man, I can’t wait! But first there’s the wedding ceremony on Sunday the 17th in the Phila. area. Monday, the 18th we leave for Cape Cod and will be there Monday afternoon/night, Tuesday/night, and then on to Kennebunkport on Wednesday morning the 20th. We’ll be in Kennebunkport until Friday the 22nd when we drive up to Bar Harbor for 3 nights. Then we have 2 nights in Vermont and then back home on Wed. Aug. 27th. It will be a great Roadfood adventure.