Syrupy cling peachiness efficiently contrasts lightly lingered habanero heat above white wheat base. Peachy sweetness picks up dried apricot and tangerine tartness as spritzy lemon zesting curbs peppery hop prickle.
All posts by John Fortunato
SAMUEL ADAMS SUMMER CITRUS WHEAT ALE – 2023
Easygoing lighter, brighter ’23 version retains lemon lime zesting of yore and white-peppered grains of paradise spritz of not long ago. Softly fizzed lemon-candied brining perfect complement for seafaring events.
VON TRAPP GRAPEFRUIT RADLER
On tap at Seven Lakes Station, sessionable ‘light lagered’ radler prickles salty pink grapefruit perfuming with wispy lemony orange zesting and ultra-dry lime brining. Delicate lemonade-sugared pink grapefruit pith, rind and seed tartness settles softly above teasing ginger-licked herbage seeping thru light pilsner malting.
TRILLIUM POCKET PIGEON PALE ALE
On tap at Ambulance, unconventional New England-styled pale ale undercuts its salty guava-gooseberry souring, tangy orange-juiced pineapple zing and mild yellow grapefruit bittering with arid spelt-starched wheat dextrin. Musky herbal tinge slides thru musty sourly fruited finish.
MONKISH PLAYFUL W/ MOSAIC & CITRA
On tap at Ambulance, sharp Citra-Mosaic hop blend brings sunshiny West Coast IPA vibe to “hoppy springtime blonde.” Bitter lemony yellow grapefruit rind entry obtains orange pith riff and mild lime zesting plus musky cannabis pungency. Mild oats creaming hikes pale malt sugaring for smoothly bitter tropical fruiting supersizing this haughty blonde.
EVER GRAIN SALUD MEXICAN LAGER
On tap at Ambulance, flaked corn toasting ingrains lemon lime zesting and rice wining of whimsically easygoing Mexican lager. Light white peppering prickles its zesty lemongrass oiling beneath the surface.
FIFTH HAMMER NEIGHBORBRAU PILSNER
On tap at Ambulance, heady lager-styled German pils brings spritzy lemon fizz to rustic fresh-cut hay leathering, musky Saaz-hopped floral herbage and bitter green tea nip. Slight cabbage rot spotted.
DROWNED LANDS WATER ELM: BERRY RICE LAGER
On tap at Seven Lakes Station, easygoing beige-cleared rice lager with washed-out raspberry-blackberry tartness and even wispier blush champagne and orange mimosa reminders gathering for spritzy summertime fodder. Ricey pilsner malt base too delicate.
SPELLBOUND BREWING
MOUNT HOLLY, NEW JERSEY
Inside a tan brick warehouse in the close-knit Philadelphia suburb of Mount Holly, SPELLBOUND BREWING opened its doors in 2014. One of Jersey’s finest breweries, its owners are passionate homebrewing geeks crafting “everyday classics” and “extreme boundary pushing recipes.”
An overhead door leads to the small cement bay where several stainless steel brew tanks and some gray benches exist. Reclaimed wood decorates the eight-seat lacquer-topped bar and a few tables fill out the pub. There are a dozen-plus draughts available.
My wife and I went in late April ’23 to check out Spellbound’s expansive beer lineup.
Sweet Mango Pale Ale allowed its tangy mango juicing to embrace lemon Pez tartness and papaya-passionfruit zing fortified by lacquered pine tones.
Toning down its sweet banana-clove stylishness for lemon-rotted lemongrass herbage, dried plantain tartness and green grape esters, Dreamnesia Hefeweizen stayed dryer than expected.
Ginger-dried lemongrass herbage and lemony cologne perfuming consumed unique Arcana Ginger Lemongrass Ale, finishing like a rice-wined sake.
Dewy Vienna malted honey white breading and apple-skinned pear crisping gathered for 8th Anniversary Doppelbock, curtailing its wispy dried fruiting.
Fascinating 5th Anniversary Quad dangled dried cherry, sugar plum and date syrup alongside whiskeyed toffee sweetness and roasted tobacco crisping above chocolate pudding creaming.
Easygoing Peach Major Nelson NEIPA let tangy peach lead the way for spry lemon zesting, bittersweet mango salting and delicate passionfruit-strawberry tartness cruising above mildly creamed flaked oats.
Zesty orange-peeled pineapple and grapefruit tanginess picked up mild piney bittering and some grassy astringency for brisk Phase 7 NEIPA, leaving lightly creamed flaked oats on the bottom.
Soft-toned pale yellow cleared Enlightened IPA serenaded mild yellow grapefruit bittering, lemon peel zesting and floral-spiced mandarin orange sweetness with sugary pale malts countering grassy hop astringency.
Brown-sugared gingerbread cookie knockoff, Gingerbread Brown Ale, gained mild cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice illusions atop its sweet chocolate base.
Luscious bourbon barreled stout, Living The Dream, scurried light bourbon sweetness across dark chocolate syruping, picking up burnt wood bittering plus latent dry burgundy licks.
STRATOSPHERE BREWING COMPANY
MOUNT HOLLY, NEW JERSEY
Residing at a rustic tan brick warehouse, veteran-owned STRATOSPHERE BREWING COMPANY became Mount Holly’s third brewhouse on St. Patrick’s Day, 2023. Entrepreneurial head brewers Christopher Pike (a navy reservist) and Jason Martinez (union electrician) were experienced home brewers way before taking on this venture with the promising slogan: “Elevating the craft.”
A gray concrete-floored high-ceilinged pub with elongated 15-seat oak bar, three overhead doors and several surrounding wood-metal seats, Stratosphere utilizes reclaimed wood for its bar back, corrugated aluminum siding as its frontage and Edison lighting for olden textile charm. Tanks are stationed behind the bars.
During my one-hour stopover on a Friday evening in April ’23, I discovered five rounded draughts.
Mild wildflower honeyed dryness caresses spicy citrus splash and tertiary peach-apricot-pear conflux above biscuity cornbread base of Lhotse Cream Ale, a popular light body.
Briskly sharp NEIPA, Tropical Depression, retained dried-out yellow grapefruit bittering, sweet orange peel zesting and peachy mango tang above dry pale malts.
Peachy nectarine tang and orange-peeled grapefruit bittering juiced-up Barometer Fruit IPA, leaving wood lacquer upon its pale malt sugaring.
Lemon-dried oaken cherry and tart peach souring inundated U.S.S. Nitze, a fruited sour with moderate acidity and no residual sweetness.
Dark-roast coffee bean nuttiness further embittered by black chocolate chalking of Strato Pivo Dark Lager, letting dewy peat slightly sweeten the rigid mocha insistence.
VILLAGE IDIOT BREWING CO.
MOUNT HOLLY, NEW JERSEY
Beneath a green and gold proprietary signpost in a red brick downtown Mount Holly shop, VILLAGE IDIOT BREWING COMPANY came to existence in 2013. A prohibition-styled pub with straightforward homemade artisanal beers on draught, its cozy neighborhood feel gets reinforced by the beautiful antique wood mural (at the 12-seat right side bar) plus olden wood floors, furnishings, booths and tables.
Founded by long-time homebrewers Vince Masciandaro and Rich Palmay, Village Idiot enjoys treating its guests to both “traditional and unusual fun ales.” Each small batch brew emulates from the brew tanks in the back. Former home of Bridgetown Pub, Village Idiot preserved the original tables strewn about the bar.
Visited mid-April 2023, I downed eight fine rounded brews prior to dinner on a sunny Friday afternoon.
Lightly creamed pale malted Hipster Lager combined lemony orange fizzing with mild herbage and musky hop astringency.
Smooth summertime light body, Bridgetown Blonde Ale left mild lemon spritz on its doughy white bread base.
Traditional pale ale, Bike Rail, let brisk floral-daubed lemony orange zesting and astringent wood tones softly rise above dry pale malting.
Lemony banana-clove entry of Folestephaner Hefeweizen sweetened its white-peppered lemongrass zesting.
Nitrogenated Monkey’s Breath Banana Bread placed caramelized banana bread sweetness next to sugar-rimmed cinnamon toasting and stayed not far removed from Wells Banana Bread.
Dry West Coast IPA, Hoptimizer, contrasted brisk orange-peeled grapefruit bittering against peachy pineapple tanginess as grassy hop astringency settled atop mildly creamed pilsner-like malts.
Sweet brown chocolate coated the creamy peanut buttering and honeyed Graham Cracker base of Peanut Butter Cup Porter, recalling Reese’s Puff cereal.
Smoothly creamed Elvis Is In The Building, a chewy peanut butter and banana dessert treat, gained bittersweet hazelnut-glazed cocoa nibs richness.
FROST HEAVY IMPERIAL STOUT
On tap at Taphouse 15, creamy dark chocolate bittering and black coffee remnant drape wood-burnt hop char as ashen nuttiness ensues over polite Blackstrap molasses-tinged flaked oats base.
