Alcohol

Over the past couple of months, you may have found yourself craving some of your favorite summer treats. Here are 12 options that Granite Staters enjoy.

Whether you want to enjoy a romantic getaway with your partner, a girls' weekend or bachelorette celebration, or simply want to spend quality time with friends and family, you can never go wrong with a relaxing visit to the vineyards.

Margarita donut inspired hard seltzer, anyone?

It's no surprise to anyone that Mainers have drunk more during the pandemic. For many of us, it's the reason we are carrying around an extra 10 pounds these days. But the effects of Mainers alcohol use, and misuse, especially during the past year, have led to some unfortunate consequences. We know that nationally 32% of people were binge-drinking in 2020 and that 60% of us increased our daily consumption of alcohol. In 2020, 584 Mainers had an alcohol-related death. That's a 28% increase from 2019 and a 75% increase from 2015. The State of Maine recently released a brief on alcohol use in Maine. It's certainly worth a read. Here are some key findings:

For the first time in more than 60 years, Brunswick's Fat Boy Drive-In will stay open for the winter and will roll out a new ice rink and alcohol tent

When alcohol sales dried up during Prohibition, Maine ingenuity kicked in and the concoction known as Applejack was invented

Despite the circumstances, there were plenty of good April Fools' Day jokes in Maine that went viral. Here's five of the best.