Hoppiness Starts Here
In 2008, two of our passions (beer and farming) collided in a wonderful experiment! At a time when our farm was in need of diversification, we saw an opportunity to start growing products that make for really great beer: hops and grains! So we planted a 3/4 acre hop yard with little more than the strong desire to grow hops, a love of craft beer and a firm understanding of how to be good farmers… What do you mean these things don’t come with instructions?!?
We’ve had to be creative in our approach to growing hops from the very beginning; including everything from hop yard design to building our own equipment for harvesting, drying and packaging. While we’d never say that our foray into hops was easy (more like: hard, costly, humbling, time consuming and terrifying) we’ve gained so much insight and knowledge that we can now stand proudly in the middle of 17 aromatic acres worth of our own hops!
We love what we do and it’s great to be hitting our stride in production, relationships with brewers, and quality. As we’ve continued to grow, we’ve become a regional supplier of hops to breweries across New England: wet/fresh hops, whole leaf cones, and pellets.
Chris Sellers
Co-Owner, General Manager, Brewer
Chris’ philosophy of brewing is that making great beer is a simple but purposeful process. Creating complexity and depth within traditional styles has always been a passion of his. In addition to a strong appreciation of classic beer styles, Chris enjoys expressing unique ingredients and processes in a way that brings something new to beer drinkers, presenting unique characteristics in technically complex beers.
Chris graduated from Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA with a BA in Political Science and started home brewing. After a year of homebrewing experimentation and learning, he made his way to Western Mass intent on finding a job at a brewery. Chris landed at The People’s Pint Restaurant and Brewery in Greenfield, Mass helping out in the brewery with packaging, sales, and deliveries.
In 2010, Chris attended the Master Brewers Association of the Americas Brewing and Malting Science course at the University of Wisconsin and passed the Certificate in Brewing Exam from The Institute of Brewing and Distilling. After completing his brewing course, Chris was promoted to Brewery Manager where he ran brewery operations from 2010 to 2020. In 2018, Chris came on board as a consultant to begin planning for The Brewery at Four Star Farms and started full time as Co-Owner and General Manager in July 2020.
Chris has brewed everything from traditional lagers and one hundred percent locally grown beers to kettle sours and hazy IPAs. He is continuously excited for the opportunity to spread the word about locally grown hops and locally grown flavor.
Liz L'Etoile
Co-Owner, Farmer
Liz is super excited to give visitors a closer look at Four Star’s primary crop: hops; through two of the Brewery’s best lenses: beer and location. Liz’s favorite style of beer is beer but if forced to choose, it would be anything wet hopped…or crisp.
Nathan L'Etoile
Co-Owner, Craft Beer Lover, and Liz’s Husband
Nathan is no stranger to farming (he grew up on one) and spends his days advocating for farmers, helping to preserve farmland for the future, and educating the public on the importance of agriculture and the land it requires. From what can be found in his fridge, he’s a BIG FAN of hoppy IPAs and any beverage made from local ingredients.
Eugene L'Etoile
Co-Owner, Hops Farmer, and consumer of all things beer
It’s Gene to whom we give thanks for steering the farm in the direction of hops. The two most likely places you’ll find him? Out on a tractor or drinking a pint in the taproom.
Jacob L'Etoile
Co-Owner, Farmer
Jacob exists, and has for some time. He hopes to continue for a while.
Robin L'Etoile
Co-Owner, Teacher
Robin is sometimes a farmer and always a teacher. She lives at the farm with Jacob and their two children, Hugh and Edith.