On tap at Morris Tap & Grill, dryer-than-expected tripel-dubbel blend relegates the best aspects of two popular Belgian styles. Musky green grape esters outdo tripel’s candi-sugared fig spicing and dubbel’s lighter dried fruiting and musty fungi-like cellar funk, placing acrid spelt-oats graining in dubious position.
On tap at Morris Tap & Grill, clear amber-browned Imperial IPA richer, darker and chewier than typical piney citric East Coast varietal. Glazed mango, grapefruit and pineapple tang sweetened by honey-spiced pale malting, leaving earthen pine hop bittering in the dust.
Aged two years in Window Jane whiskey barrels, eccentric liquored-up version of gluten-free Modern Cup Of Sole brings driest bourbon whiskey and burgundy tones to musky cocoa-dried dark chocolate bittering, picking up light wood-seared nuttiness. But its the lactic cold-brewed coffee murk, dirty earthen soiling and gritty buckwheat, millet and rice graining that undermine the offbeat oak-aged milk stout.
On tap at Plank Pizza, fine Cascadian Dark Ale loads sugar-sweetened black chocolate syruping onto less prominent black grape, yellow grapefruit and currant illusions as well as moderate charcoal-stained dark roast hop char.
On tap at Plank Pizza, worthy collaboration uniting Jersey City’s Departed Soles with Linden’s nearby 201 Ton utilizes “gingerbread maple syrup” to enhance bittersweet Madagascar vanilla bean adjunct as well as creamy molasses-sugared chocolate malting. Smooth dewy peat earthiness and tertiary cocoa-cinnamon illusions stay below.
On tap at Plank Pizza, Jersey City brewer hooked up with local ModCup Coffee to make mild milk stout with midrange cold-brewed coffee roast upending bittersweet black chocolate complement and dark-roast nut remnant. Lightly creamed mocha nut char at finish reminiscent of dry Irish stout. In the can, mild coffee bean roast, dry espresso sashay, distant nuttiness and tarry black licorice licks define light-bodied collaboration.
On tap at Plank Pizza, easygoing light-bodied kolsch spreads cotton-candied lemon meringue tartness, tingly spiced mandarin orange sentiments and mild pear snips across polite gluten-free sorghum base.
On tap at Poor Henry’s, legit gluten-free dry body takes on Cascadian Black Ale style with relative success. Designed to taste like a “Black & Tan shaken up,” robust ebony-hued Jerseyite layers charcoaled medium-roast coffee bittering atop hop-charred black grape, pineapple and grapefruit illusions. Resinous pine tones deepen the bitter end.