Category Archives: United States Brewpubs

CROOKED CURRENT BREWERY

United States Brewpubs

PAWTUCKET, RHODE ISLAND

Inside an old red brick industrial mall with green doors, CROOKED CURRENT BREWERY came into existence during 2016 when Narragansett-raised brewmaster, Nichole Pelletier, and entrepreneurial businessman, Jason Lourenco, combined forces. Proudly obtaining the title of “smallest brewery in the smallest state,” this friendly dive features a gigantic right-walled Crooked Current sign, cozy left side tasting bar, slanted white-walled ceiling, several cool caricature drawings, painted wood floor and exposed ducts.

Packed to the hilt on a freezing afternoon in February ’17, my wife and I grab a counter and consume samplers of each three fine offerings currently available on draught.

First up, tropical Kiwi-bound fortified New Zealand IPA #3, where subtle passionfruit, pineapple, mandarin orange and grapefruit pith tartness sits atop alder wood-lacquered hop bittering.

Bringing its stylized vanilla-chocolate-strawberry flavoring to the surface, Neopolitan Brown Ale allows tart raspberry, plum and prune subtleties to affect its coffee-grounded earthen hop bottom.

Another dessert treasure, White Stout, brewed with cocoa and coarse ground coffee, picked up a sweet-spiced vanilla tingle, powdered sugar-glazed donut bumrush and lemon rind-embittered coffee snip (as well as a green tea spot), finishing a l’il like a coco caramel latte.

crookedcurrentbrewery.com

BENNY BREWING COMPANY

United States Brewpubs,

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WILKES-BARRE, PENNSYLVANIA

Since moving into its new digs at a roadhouse-styled aluminum outpost not far from its original spot in Nanticoke-based Marty’s Blue Room (where brewmaster Ben Schonfeld mastered his skills), BENNY BREWING COMPANY competes favorably with nearby Catholic school-housed Breaker Brewing.

A 20-seat L-shaped wood bar with antique railroad ties and three TV’s counter the right side open kitchen as hard rock blasts from the speakers upon my mid-afternoon early February ’17 jaunt. Entrees include blackened haddock, crab cakes, burgers, cured meats and sandwiches while fine cocktails, mixers and wine lift the spirits.

Each of today’s six offerings prove to be well-balanced, stylistically spot-on and memorable. Refreshingly clean moderation, Wit, brings tart lemon-dropped spicing to recessive banana-clove sweetness, light white-peppered yeast funk and subtle herbal whims.

Sharply fruit-spiced 570, an American Amber Lager, mingled brusque apple, orange, grapefruit, tangerine and pear illusions with toasted amber and caramel malts.

Orange-peeled yellow grapefruit and pineapple tang provided juicy frontage for resiliently pine hopped Pale Ale.

Interesting limited edition India Pale Ales included One And Done #6 Black IPA, where dark-roasted chocolate and coffee lingered above dried fruited tenacity. And crisply clean One And Done #7 Session IPA let its sweet orange-peeled tangerine tang ride above sugar-spiced lemon tartness and oily pine hops, leaving an aspirin-like astringency upon the reductive citrus finish.

The perfect dessert treat, Oatmeal Chocolate Stout brought fudged brownie, black chocolate syrup and vanilla-sugared cocoa overtones to its mild oatmeal spine. Its Nitro version retained a softer tone as mildly creamed chocolate cake sweetness enveloped bitter cocoa, dark-roasted peanut butter, toasted almond and Amaretto niceties.

In its newly expanded version, the ever-popular brown aluminum sided pub, Benny Brewing, featured a newly designed open kitchen and an even finer array of homemade brews from its left side brew room. Inspired by owner Benny Schonfeld’s parents local Marty’s Blue Room restaurant, the Cajun food influence added further intrigue.

As of my July ’22 revisit, there was an outback covered dining space with overhead doors leading to the wood-walled community tabled patio (with high chairs and strung Edison bulbs), enlarging the friendly local hangout beyond its 25-seat wood bar and interior dining area.

There were wines, sangrias, margaritas and martinis to complement the choice brews while burgers, pastrami, salads and sandwiches balanced the Cajun fare. I dug into my delicious blackened haddock and hummus on this sunny Thursday afternoon.

Dry golden-cleared Euro pils, Czech Yourself, maintained a brusque lemon-fizzed herbal hop bittering dotted by mild green grape esters and vegetal herbage.

Dry pale wheat ale, American Wheat, let frisky lemon fizzed misting cover its wet grain musk before picking up wispy cherry snow cone snips.

Zesty lemon briskness awakened Summer Kolsch, a dry herbal-tinged Saaz hop moderation with celery watered crisping and oven-fresh French breading.

Tartly sour ale, Cherry Dreamsicle, plied lactic oaken vanilla tannins to candied cherry, cherry jubilee, cherry-daubed champagne and lemony cherry ice pop illusions.

Easygoing golden cleared NEIPA, Chuggernaut, let delicate orange-peeled lemon rind bittering brush against tangy pineapple, mango and guava tropicalia and gentle piney hop astringency.  

www.bennybrewing.com

GLENMERE BREWING COMPANY

United States Brewpubs,

Glenmere Brewing Company

FLORIDA, NEW YORK

Inside an inconspicuous large grey shed behind a car wash in the rustic village of Florida, New York, GLENMERE BREWING COMPANY came into existence during July ’16. Located within a few miles of Warwick beer pub haven, Eddie’s Roadhouse, and respected garden center, Pennings Farm, Glenmere’s reliable logo “Elements Of The Craft” represents co-owner/brewmaster Michael Sandor’s sound philosophy of proving ’the hallmark of all beer should be good drinkability and likability,’ preferably from locally sourced ingredients.

A lifelong local Orange County native, Sandor became active in the homebrew community and judged brewing competitions before starting his own business plan with partner Fred Mehler. Some of his favorite stylistic offerings are Imperial Stouts, German Lagers and dunkelweizens.

Although there’s too much random beer info online these days, he still appreciates reading (now-deceased) premier beer enthusiast Michael Jackson’s stuff. Not wanting to get stuck making only flagship beers from his pristine stainless steel 15 barrel system, Sandor prefers to allow a ‘nice rotation’ of diverse brews to gain exposure with the local denizens now populating Glenmere’s barrel-topped bench and stool tasting room.

“The area was changing and people’s tastes were also changing,” Sandor confides as he pours four goblet samplers for me this cold February ’16 Saturday afternoon. “Millenials always want the next thing. But it’s challenging. 70% of what they purchase is stuff they never had before. Most recipes are developed, then there are adjustments. But ultimately, it’s worked in our favor. We’re always onto something else.”

Presently, Glenmere’s fermenting an English Style Strong Ale as well as readying a smoked porter and a stout. As of February ’17, they are self-distributing within New York State.

Sandor says, “Because there are so many India Pale Ales available, I haven’t concentrated on that style. A large percent of the craft beer market are IPA’s and seasonals. Once people get past the bitterness, they build a comfort level for IPA’s. It’s my favorite hangover style for the morning after.”

Nevertheless, one of Glenmere’s finest offerings, Lucid Dragon, is a robust IPA loading lemony orange-peeled grapefruit, pineapple, mango, tangerine, peach and guava tropicalia as well as subtle sugar spicing atop biscuity Maris Otter malts, leaving a mildly dank piney hop bittering upon the zesty fruitful finish.

Softer palates will appreciate The S.A.G.A. Amber Ale, a classic well-balanced moderation with a sprinkling of tangy IPA-like fruiting (grapefruit, orange, mango, pineapple, tangerine, clementine) atop woody dry-hopped bittering and caramel-spiced malting.

Perhaps Glenmere’s most admired brew yet, boldly dark-roasted Pennings Brown Ale, provides a nutty chocolate decadence so undeniable it won a Gold Medal in Portland, Oregon’s Craft Beer Show.

My personal fave may’ve been richly resilient Wicked Witch Stout, where dark-roasted cola-walnut-hazelnut overtones and black chocolate syruping gain ‘deciduous black raspberry’ rasps along with pureed blackberry, strawberry and blueberry subsidies.

It’s also worth mentioning the live acoustic showcases that take place once in awhile.

The New York landscape for brewers has never been better. And Glenmere’s entrepreneurial mavens prove there’s still room for more growth. Cheers!

glenmerebrewingco.com

BREAKER BREWING COMPANY

United States Brewpubs,

Image result for breaker brewing  

WILKES-BARRE, PENNSYLVANIA

Off the main drag in a red brick edifice formerly housing St. Joseph’s Catholic Monastery, Wilkes-Barre’s BREAKER BREWING COMPANY is the brainchild of day-time engineers Chris Miller and Mark Lehman. Going up the wood ramp to its backdoor entrance during my initial May ’13 visit (and December ’17 followup), I enter the still-developing microbrewery’s spotless sample room and meet the friendly entrepreneurs at the alter-like mahogany bar.

Lehman, a hop-headed Sierra Nevada Pale Ale lover since ’94, began brewing operations out of Miller’s garage in ’09, making small batch brews that kept running out due to local popularity. Nowadays, a clean tan-tiled brew station with 150-gallon tanks, mash tun, and brew kettle overlooking the Wilkes-Barre valley serves as the engine driving this expanding business. Presently, 20-plus local bars carry Breaker’s approachable fare.

Framed pictures of ancient factory workers and barrel-breaking prohibitionists line the wall behind the serving station (made from rectory church pews) while curtained windows, exposed ducts and a blackboard beer list also don the provincial interior. Though only Lunch Pail Ale, I Love Pa., and Potbelly Pumpkin Ale have been bottled for consumption as of this date, Lehman claims he’d like to expand the line. Look for a Double IPA and Barleywine in the near future.

Saddling up to the bar, I begin my two-hour session with assertive flagship offering, Lunch Pail Ale, where sharp India Pale Ale-like fruiting and astringent hop bittering pick up floral-spiced orange-tangerine-lemon tang over its toasted barley spine.

Easy drinkin’ lighter-bodied 5 Whistle Wheat provided bark-dried grain husk to lemony banana-plantain tartness, candied orange lollipop sugaring and raw-honeyed acridity.

Easygoing Golden Blonde Ale plied perfume-hopped coriander, orange peel and lemon zest to a mellow grain malt bill, scattering tangy mandarin orange, navel orange and tangerine undertones below the surface.

Named after Pennsylvania’s indigenous coal, hybridized Anthracite Amber Ale combined ESB-derived earthen peat dewiness and weedy grain must with red ale-like citric spicing and caramelized sugaring, finishing with a rye-dried black tea bittering (and vegetal hint).

Another hybrid, Phoebe Snow White IPA (with its Lackawanna Railroad ad moniker) blended white-peppered Belgian fungi yeast with India Pale Ale-related sweet orange peel zest and lemon-pitted bittering, bringing musty cellar pungency to tertiary dark floral nuances and wispy sage-rosemary herbage.

Lively I Love PA (India Pale Ale) segued floral grapefruit-peeled orange rind piquancy into pelleted reedy hop bittering  and pungent rye-malted grouting.

Before heading out, sampled Old King Cole Stout, a deep-roasted dark ale cajoling hop-toasted dark chocolate, charred tobacco and freeze-dried coffee notes.

A tribute to the local mining businesses that once ran America’s Industrial Revolution, Breaker Brewing should interest any brew hound traveling thru the capacious Keystone State.

On a cold New Years Eve 2016 afternoon sojourn, my wife and I sampled eight goblet samplers (five of which were previously untried India Pale Ales) at the lacquer wood-furnished old convent section. An eclectic menu of artisan pizzas, paninis and salads went well with each carefully flavored elixir.

Botanical pine-needled Mosaic hop tropicalia enveloped clean-watered sensation, Smooph Mosaic, a crisp medium-bodied IPA bringing lemony orange zest and passionfruit to the fore while tangy mango, pineapple, peach, grapefruit and red apple illusions gain strength atop the sugary caramel malt spine.

Bitterer Citra-hopped version, Smooph Citra IPA, guided musky lemon dryness and tangy orange-peeled mango, peach, pineapple, grapefruit and papaya juicing to its crystal-pale malt base.

Dank earthen wood tones deepened the grassy hop astringency of Terra IPA, as orange-peeled yellow grapefruit bittering contrasted candied mango, peach and pineapple sweetness. Wood-dried orange rind and grapefruit pith bittering surfaced above light pale malting for Earthly IPA.

Cascadian-styled Black Diamond IPA let dark-roasted chocolate malting, black licorice remnants and black grape wisps contrast dry-hopped charcoal char.

Detonator Series – West Coast ESB combined brisk IPA fruiting and hardwood lacquering with dewy peat malts, leaving tangy clementine, navel orange and tangerine in its wake.

For dessert, two stylishly deviant ales sufficed.

Sugared hazelnut glazed Banana Hazelnut Ale while rotted banana sweetness and sharp hop spicing picked up rich S’mores and Kahlua undertones as well as bubblegum hints.

Before heading out, we enjoyed Patchtown Chocolate Mint Porter, a Dutch cocoa and mint-infused porter with mint-leafed black milk chocolate milking picking up Christmastime nutmeg-ginger-wintergreen spicing for its Junior Mint/ creme de menthe finish.

During pre-July 4th heatwave, visited with wife and dog, Roscoe, utilizing the centralized patio deck to enjoy rangy elixirs.

Surpassing every stylistic competitor, well-defined Wild Watermelon IPA let its dank dry-hopped watermelon rind frontage gain cucumber-watered honeydew resonance, mild limey sourness and musty compost snips over oats-flaked spelt malts. Peculiarly nifty.

Capturing the essence of a tropical milk-sugared breakfast cereal, Short Shake Imperial IPA glazed Madagascar vanilla bean sweetness with cotton-candied marshmallow residue before its champagned mango-guava-papaya tang kicked in alongside brisk (IPA-styled) grapefruit-peeled lemon rind bittering.

Equally compelling tropical summertime treat, Escape IPA, perfectly re-created a sour pina colada as its pureed pineapple and milky coconut insistence obtained salty lime acidity and wispy peach-apricot undertones for the perfect Citra-Mosaic-Simcoe-hopped dessert.

Utilizing tart wild blueberries, 5 Whistle Wheat Blueberry moved from sweetly tart to lightly lemon-spritzed souring above its sugared wheat spine.

Hoppier and less lemony, 5 Whistle Wheat Mixed Berry coalesced tart blueberry, boysenberry, blackberry and huckleberry fruiting over briskly clean juniper hop bittering.

Lemon-juiced Laurel Lime Lemongrass Ale saddled its herbal lemongrass adjunct with musky cologne-spiced reminders.

On softer light side, mild Light Headed IPA brought dry wood tones to moderate yellow grapefruit and lemon rind bittering above oats-flaked cereal graining.

Mellower still, politely citric sweet Summer Up Blonde Ale (Batch Orange) provided the perfect summertime refreshment with its gentle mandarin orange, clementine and tangerine tang riding above the dainty pale malt setting.

Jasmine-flowered tropicalia, Jasmine IPA, regaled cologne-perfumed lemon zest with coniferous juniper-tipped fern woodiness and light herbal nuances.

Again perused Breaker Brewing during November ’20 on a cold autumn night for eight more previously untried suds. The outdoor heating units were utilized as my wife and I quaffed elixirs at the side deck.

Sessionably light-bodied champagne-cleared Santa Fe Pils  gathered delicate honeyed maize-flaked pilser malting for Moteuka-hopped grape tannins, earthen wood-dried Hallertau hop herbage and wispy lemon-limed tartness.

Mediterranean sea salting picked up limey green grape tannins for mildly acidic Blackberry Gose, letting citric-laden Cascade hop bittering burrow its delicate white wheat base.

Tart peach puree-daubed Peachy Cream Sour Ale, a moderately acidic kettle-soured fruit-tart concoction, gathered fig-dried green grape tannins and subtle apricot notions for lightly creamed vanilla beaning.

Delectable two-staged blonde ale, Minefire Mango Habanero, allowed initial habanero heat to get overrun by citric-bound mango tanginess, leaving green pepper sweetness upon the salted tropical fruit finish.

Floral-bound tropical fruiting endured for Passionfruit Dreamcicle, a milk-sugared vanilla creamed Imperial IPA with yogurt-like passionfruit tartness gaining grapefruit-mango tanginess above white-wheated oats malting.

Mighty golden-hazed NEIPA, Pho-Kit All, brought vodka-iced 11% ABV boozing to tart lemon-dropped Loral hops, piney Amarillo hops, candied tangerine tanginess and zesty orange briskness over malted oats sugaring.

Cinnamon-toasted brown sugaring glazed richly creamed adjunct Brown Ale, Potbelly Pumpkin, an autumnal pumpkin pie-spiced dessert fave with ancillary cotton-candied marshmallow sweetness. Similarly, toasted cinnamon apple-fronted Amish Apple Pie Brown Ale, a maple walnut-sugared confection, let subsidiary oats-flaked vanilla beaning counter mild Chinook hop herbage.

www.breakerbrewingcompany.com

 

JERSEY GIRL BREWING COMPANY

United States Brewpubs

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MOUNT OLIVE, NEW JERSEY

A large JERSEY GIRL BREWING COMPANY banner welcomes folks to the aluminum-topped white Industrial complex housing this large Mount Olive-based 30-barrel brewpub since April ’16. Owned by homebrewer Michael Bigger and beer enthusiast Charles Aaron, Jersey Girl started out big so expansion would not be necessary.

Taking in multi-faceted head brewer, Jodi Andrews-Stoudt, a nearby Allentown native, the busy team enjoys crafting reliably “good, spot-on” versions of a wide array of styles.

Aaron explains, “What started out as having one too much to drink one night got us deciding to start a brewery. Chuck loved the idea. We made the rounds to Jersey breweries such as Forgotten Boardwalk and Carton. One of my favorites was Kane Brewing. I love Michael Kane’s India Pale Ales and Sunday Brunch Imperial Porter. They all said if they were to do it again, they’d all start out bigger. So we did.”

At the laminated wood bar in the Tasting Room early Saturday afternoon, I grab a stool alongside my wife to try ten well-rounded offerings on my November ’16 birthday.

Perhaps the finest, award-winning King Gambrinus Tripel (named after the patron saint of Belgian brewing) maintained a mild crystalline-watered tone as lemony banana-clove-coriander sweetness picked up soft white-peppered herbal hop resin. Lemon meringue, key lime pie, chamomile and hibiscus undertones added depth.

Nearly as fabulous, fruitful Scotch Wee Heavy utilized viscous Wyeast yeast to bring its dry Scotch warmth and dewy moss dampness to juicy red cherry, orange, nectarine, cantaloupe and honeydew sweetness above earthen hop resin.

Sharp piney fruiting ignited New England-styled Rake Breaker IPA, a tropical delight gathering lemony orange, tangerine and clementine succulence for its spicy oat-sugared spine and dryly bitter wood tones.

Approachable Sun-Kissed Citra gave its expressive Citra-hopped briskness a dank hop-dried pine needling to contrast the candy-coated orange, tangerine and lemon tang. Crisply clean Blonde Ale sufficed as its candied citrus tang relegated the bready pale malt spine. Peachy apricot and tangy orange inundated wood-dried, soft-toned Pale Ale.

A large hard-candied tangerine contingent surfaced for dry-hopped IPA (featuring Mandarina Bavaria), a sharp medium body contrasting sweet citrus vigor with moderate pine oiling.

Marzen-styled Golden Lager spread sweet n’ sour lemon-rotted orange tartness across leafy hop earthiness and pale malt breading.

Dark-roasted nuttiness and caramelized black chocolate malts secured Nut Brown Ale, a traditional English ale combining peanut-shelled walnut overtones with less prominent hazelnut coffee notions.

For dessert, mocha-bound Chocolate Coffee Porter brought mild black chocolate creaming to its dry-roasted walnut char contrasting the lightly sweet hazelnut glaze.

www.jerseygirlbrewing.com

CZIG MEISTER BREWING COMPANY

United States Brewpubs,

Czig Meister Brewing opens Saturday in Hackettstown | Brewing, Meister, Open

HACKETTSTOWN, NEW JERSEY

Within walking distance of Hackettstown’s Centenary College on a rolling hillside in an antiquated red brick repair shop, CZIG MEISTER BREWING COMPANY’s Old World-styled tasting room, patio-benched biergarten and 15-barrel brew system filled up quickly during my Saturday afternoon November ’16 perusal.

Led by biochemistry-majored homebrewing enthusiast Matthew Czigler, this family-run pub succinctly re-creates “traditional old world classic standards,” emulating European styles with ambition, passion and creativity.

In a capacious space with exposed black pipes, wood-barreled tables and overhead garage door, Czig Meister’s  tasting room features a dozen community tables plus a leathery living room setup. The salvaged wood bar top with bolted foot rail piping sits above a red brick base. Grabbing a stool at the bar, I quaff eight diverse brews over a memorable two-hour session. Since opening in early ’16, Czigler has hand crafted dozens of sudsy elixirs in a short time frame – many of which are experimental limited edition models.

Up first, corn liquor-smitten Hefeweizen belied its banana-clove stylishness with putrid orange-soured lemon tartness. Next, mossy mainstream seasonal, Octoberfest, brought fall foliage to wavered citric spicing and mildly sugared pale malting.

Approachable rye-dried Pumper Dunkelweizen retained overripe banana and juicy citrus tones. Citric herbal delight, Belgian Dubbelbock, crossed white-peppered Belgian yeast and spry lemon spritz with German doppelbock-inspired raisin, plum and prune overtones in a winning manner. Candi-sugared Belgian Quad was equally compelling, draping dried fruited plum, date and fig tones atop light hop-spiced caramel malting.

Refreshingly crisp amber-hazed medium body, Summer IPA- Citra, received a dry wood lacquering to protect lemony yellow grapefruit, tangerine and Navel orange illusions above creamy crystal malting.

Convincingly fruitful Barleywine conveyed candied banana, cherry, fig and red grape tones over caramel malt sugaring in a smooth manner.

Before hitting the road, black chocolate-smoked Milk Stout developed a polite dark-roasted coffee nuttiness over time.  

At the tent-topped parking lot, my wife and I consumed twelve samplers November ’20 – including five diverse IPA’s, four German-styled offerings, two Belgian elixirs and one barrel aged stout.

Musky raw-grained German pilsner, The Carriagemaker, let lemon-spiced herbal hops caress mild wheat-cracked pilsner malting.

Dry lemon-rotted herbage delicately clasped dry pale malts for The Huntsman, a sessionable moderate-bodied kolsch.

Well integrated hefeweizen hybrid, The Lawman’s Sweet Justice, upstaged its stylish banana-clove sweetness with sharp cinnamon spicing and pureed peach tanginess (as well as spritzy orange zest).

One step removed from a rauchbier with its smoked beechwood-like Band-Aid astringency, Tidal Offerings, a hybridized wee heavy, allowed sweet ‘n dry Scotch tones to enter the fray alongside less obvious orange-fig-date-apricot fruiting.

Mild for its style, Chaos Belgian Dubbel, left subtle fig-raisin dried fruiting upon its gentle caramelized toffee spicing contrasting herbal fungi funk.

Soothingly smooth Shield Oath Belgian Tripel retained buttery Chardonnay wining, rummy banana daquiri sweetness and phenol white-peppered herbage above honey-roasted caramel malting.

Recalling a salt-rimmed Margarita, Citra-Cascade-hopped Imperial IPA, U.S.S. Limon, lavished a resounding lemon lime ice pop likeness upon candied ginger-leafed soda sweetening and slightly bitter grapefruit, pineapple and orange reminder above its wispy sugared oats base.

Acute Imperial IPA, U.S.S. Cassis, permitted yogurt-soured blackcurrant intensity pick up subtle raspberry-blueberry-boysenberry tartness and latent yellow grapefruit bittering.

Reserved Hammerhead Milkshake, a lactose NEIPA (in the Deep Sea Series), embellished its vanilla creamed orange peel sweetness with lemony grapefruit pith bittering and yogurt-soured milking, leaving mild acidity upon the juicy citrus pulse.

Durable pinkish amber, Hydrozoan Milkshake, another lactic NEIPA, placed Madagascar vanilla beans alongside its sweet n’ sour cherry vibe, gaining mango-salted tartness and peachy ambrosia sour creaming above sugary wheated oats.

Semi-sharp Master Of The Seas Tripel IPA let moderately embittered tropical fruiting and sour grape esters override piney hop resin while tripel-like candi-sugared pilsner malting nipped vodka-soaked grapefruit, orange and mango tropicalia.

For an early nightcap, bourbon/ red wine-barreled Imperial Stout, Brontes, did the trick. Sweet ‘n dry bourbon tones regaled brown chocolate-spiced fig, raisin and date as well as milk-sugared coffee tones and sweet coconut-hazelnut nips.

www.czigmeisterbrewing.com

 

MAN SKIRT BREWING

United States Brewpubs,

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HACKETTSTOWN, NEW JERSEY

Inside a pristine red-bricked Peoples National Bank on the corner of Main Street in the sleepy Western Jersey village of Hackettstown, MAN SKIRT BREWING became the area’s first new brewpub (since innovative hillside mainstay Long Valley) in October, 2015. As of my November ’16 one-hour jaunt, entrepreneurial brewing owner, Joe Fisher, manned a small stainless-steeled 7-barrel system that countered the custom penny-laminated tasting room bar set up alongside a few walnut tables.

Unlike its bigger-sized competition at Jersey Girl and Czig Meister, Man Skirt relies on a smaller amount of hand-crafted tap brews. But each of the five offerings available this Sunday afternoon were right on the money and wholly worthwhile.

For starters, dainty moderation, Gold Bar Blonde, retained spicy orange fruiting and sour lemon dryness above crisp barley malts, capturing the natural essence of Cascade-Centennial hops.

Peaty dry-bodied Better Than Pants Best Bitter, a lean English pub ale, brought mossy earthen dew to oily hop resin, biscuity wheat malts and gentle nuttiness.

Also leaning on the Brit side, Hop Jostler Fresh Hop IPA caressed caramelized Maris Otter sugaring with dewy mineral graining and dankly citric hop resin.

Sugared fig battled back sour plum over banana-breaded caramel malts for cherished medium-bodied delight, Badunkeldonk Dunkelweizen.

An earthen-grained coffee and chocolate roast permeated lightly creamed, black-malted dark ale, The Great Porter.

The brewing floodgates have opened for New Jersey’s rustic northwest region and no matter what size or shape they may come in, each has its own distinct suds, charm and rural splendor.

manskirtbrewing.com

 

TWO RIVERS BREWING COMPANY

United States Brewpubs,

  Two Rivers Brewing Company

EASTON, PENNSYLVANIA

Inside a converted hotel on a busy downtown street corner, TWO RIVERS BREWING COMPANY resembles a dimly-lit 1920′s speakeasy with its rustic red brick exterior, copper-embossed tile ceiling, dark wood veneer, old Classical columns, dramatic mirrored bar mural and ancient Telecom phone system. Open during 2012 by long-time married friends Judy and Brad Nelson and Kathy and Troy Reynard, Two Rivers delights in crafting a well-rounded batch of mostly limited edition fare.

A low-ceiling 20-seat bar (with two TV’s) services ten tables plus a few private upstairs rooms. My wife and I get seated upstairs for sinner in the maroon-walled room with single-pane windows and stark drapes. An ever-changing food menu includes several culinary delights such as the incredible pecan-seared walleye, delectable peach, beets and goat cheese salad, jalapeno hush puppies with molasses and cinnamon butter and a host of fabulous appetizers.

There are ten elixirs readied for my gullet this cold Saturday evening in November ’16. First up, tangy citrus briskness and pasty caramel malts sweetened moderate-bodied Pre-Prohibition Lager. Next, dry Hallertau hops and tropical Mosaic hops befit Main Street Mosaic Pilsner, a crisp light body with polite grapefruit, lemon and berry illusions.

Easton Farmers Market Festbier tossed autumnal leafy hop crisping at orange-oiled opulence and mild herbal nuances. Pumpkin pie-spiced Seven Spirits Pumpkin Ale picked up light cinnamon-nutmeg-clove-allspice seasoning above sorghum-syruped lemon-soured pale malts.

Spritzy lemon sourness picked up salty coriander-clove spicing, mild banana sweetness and earthen barnyard funk for Five Acre Saison. Lilting lemon-limed souring gained resinous Cascade-hopped tropicalia and white-peppered herbage to propel oats-dried hybrid Aaron’s Bugle Farmhouse IPA. Lemony banana and clove fronted Pine Street Belgian Blonde, sprinkling white-peppered goodness atop candied sugar spicing while leaving a frisky carbolic spritz.

Meanwhile, fruitful Gallows Hill Red IPA allowed tangy grapefruit, orange, tangerine and peach spicing to caress its toasted caramel spine.

For dessert, dark chocolate and coffee tones decorated the ashen nuttiness and light caramel malting of Bankers Brown Ale.

As an extraordinary nightcap, Easton Assassinator Doppelbock (named after local boxing legend, Larry Holmes) brought ripe raisin-prune-plum overtones to chewy toffee malting.

www.tworiversbrewing.com

WEYERBACHER BREWING COMPANY

United States Brewpubs,

Touring Weyerbacher Brewing Company in Easton and Tasting Their Delicious Beers - Uncovering PA

EASTON, PENNSYLVANIA

Established in 1995, Easton’s increasingly popular WEYERBACHER BREWING COMPANY has become one of Pennsylvania’s largest and prestigious microbreweries, competing against long-time stalwarts such as Troegs, Victory and Yards. Under the guidance of master brewer, Dan Weirback, Weyerbacher has produced some of the best malt-heavy brews on the East Coast.

Specializing in richly complex flagship offerings given hilariously ludicrous monikers (Merry Monks Tripel, Old Heathen Imperial Stout and Blithering Idiot Barleywine), this expansive brewing facility concentrates strictly on its uncompromising beer. I’d already tried over fifty different Weyerbacher beers before visiting the brewery on my initial Sunday at noon November ’16 jaunt.

Inside a large tan brick warehouse, Weyerbacher’s unassuming exterior and no-frills atmosphere contrast against the ultra-sophisticated full-bodied elixirs that dominate the Tap Room Menu. Some of my absolute faves (all reviewed in Beer Index) include Heresy, a dry chocolate-y stout with tannic grape-soured cherry tartness; Blasphemy, a cherry kirsch-like quad with brown-sugared molasses saaping and ripe dried fruiting; and Insanity, a caramelized barleywine with endless cognac warmth.

I grab a seat at the U-shaped 30-seat bar and order some samplers emanating from the thirty 6-barrel tanks in the large rear brew room. Six barreled tables provide further seating. The space may be raw, but the colorful chalk-boarded beer insignias, fascinating tap handles, inspiring refrigerated bottle selection and cathedral high ceilings need no extra highlighting. And today’s NFL game keeps the sports fans involved.

Taking in the autumn weather, I begin with Festbier, a traditional German marzen exposing a leafy hop earthiness and peaty malt dewiness offset by light clementine, tangerine and navel orange illusions. Dark-roasted black chocolate malts picked up nut-charred coffee dryness to contrast sugared molasses notions for Easton Brown & Down.

Next, vinous white wining consumed oak-dried Brunicorn, a raspberry-flavored Pinot Noir-barreled sour ale with blush rosé, sauvignon blanc and chardonnay notions amidst green apple tartness overridden by eye-squinting vinaigrette piquancy. A collaboration with nearby Two Rivers Brewing, tannic French oak-barreled Sixth Street Sour brought bittersweet cherry and raspberry fruiting to black-malted coffee tones, sticky anise whims and nutty respites. 

Delightful Belgian blonde ale, Mellow Monks, proved to be a sessionable Merry Monk as dry white-peppered hops casually cavorted with sweet banana-clove propensities, subsidiary apple-pear fruiting and herbal lemongrass-chamomile notions. Complex dark saison, Jester’s Choice, enhanced its stylish orange-peeled lemon zest and earthen herbal minerality with a maltier-than-expected wild rice and toasted buckwheat influence (plus latent brandy wining).

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Fabulous and far-reaching Imperial Pumpkin Ale invigorated its pumpkin pie spicing with sweet cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom and clove spicing as well as tertiary whiskey, raisin and anise notions.

On the dark side, worthy limited edition Sunday Mole Stout used the foundation of Weyerbacher Sunday Morning Imperial Stout for its capacious dark coffee-chocolate expressiveness, adding peppery heat to subtle mocha-spiced bruised black cherry, bourbon, cinnamon and powdered cocoa undertones.

Nitro-only Sunday Mole Stout Pilot Batch #2 swimmingly coalesced black coffee, dark cocoa, cinnamon and chocolate illusions atop light ancho, pasilla, mulato and chipotle peppering.

Feeling like a nitro with its smoothly watered resolve, dry-bodied Oyster Stout serenaded its briny sea-salted black malting with boggy peat moss.

www.weyerbacher.com

DU VIG BREWING COMPANY

United States Brewpubs,

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BRANFORD, CONNECTICUT

In a gray industrial mall just north of New Haven in the coastal town of Branford, DU VIG BREWING COMPANY opened for business during 2014. As the story goes, homebrewing neighborhood buddies Kim and Dan Vigliotti decided to hook up with Scott and Darcy Dugas to create a friendly local microbrewery featuring approachable fare that “remain true to style.”

Working with a small 6-barrel system with a hanging TV separating the rear brewing area from the cozy tap room, Du Vig’s sessionable suds reinforce the front-walled motto, Deconstructing Beer.

During my quick October ’16 stopover on a sunny Sunday afternoon, I pick up a few growlers and sample five lively offerings.

Pleasantly off-dry Cream Ale brought sugar-spiced pilsner malting and lemon-limed grassy hops to light earthen graining.

Lactic lemon-seeded sourness gains a bitterly salted coriander edge above its wispy white wheat bed for the soft-tongued Berliner Wiesse.

Stylishly heady Leetes Island Amber Ale balanced citric Cascade-Centennial-Chinook hop pining with peaty mineral grains and toasted caramel malts.

Barley-roasted nuttiness inundated chocolate-malted English Brown Ale, a fine moderation with ample peanut-shelled walnut illusions picking up gentle lemon-soured green raisin, apple and plum notions.

Best bet: illuminating American Pale Ale maintained a crisply clean carbolic mouthfeel as its sunny yellow grapefruit tang and brisk orange rind bittering spread across the oats-dried wheat husk and bark-like wood astringency.

www.duvig.com

ASSAWOMAN BAY BREW PUB & RESTAURANT

United States Brewpubs,

OCEAN CITY, MARYLAND

Right on Ocean City’s bustling bayfront in a large multifaceted complex, ASSAWOMAN BREW PUB & RESTAURANT features a cement-floored pub area, sizable restaurant space, second floor banquet room, kitschy tiki bar, windowed brew tank station and patio dining section. Within walking distance of the Civic Center, the yellow-hued frontage and red lettering hail from the days Shallow Water Pub & Restaurant existed.

Open for biz since 2015, my wife and I grabbed a seat at the sidewinding wood lacquered bar (with cool brewing coasters and stickers) for our late afternoon snack time, June ’16. Equipped with 36 tap handles (dedicated to its own brews plus several fine craft beers), plentiful wood furnishings and Edison lighting, the red-bricked barroom centers Assawoman Bay’s interior.

Classic reggae music plays in the background as I sample seven stylish elixirs. We move outside when the enjoyable Texas Toothpicks (beer-battered jalapeno and onions with sriracha mayo) arrive and the place fills up with the Monday dinner crowd.

For starters, Assawoman Bay’s initial release, Bayside Blonde, took a walk on the wild side with its minty cucumber adjunct adding a sage-like tease to the tropical mango-guava tang, candi-sugared yellow fruiting and lemon-soured pineapple juicing overriding mild diacetyl buttering.

Beechwood-smoked peat malts imbibed For Peat Sake Scottish Ale, a mildly nutty mocha-spiced moderation with wavered black cherry and black grape notions. Spiced rye malts, dry walnut and fig secured Red Head Rye Ale, a soft-toned medium body.

Instructive ‘peppercorn’ and garlic’ adjuncts provided a unique sidebar to Pony Swim IPA, where dry wood shavings tingle sharp Cascade-hopped orange and grapefruit spicing as well as caramelized pilsner malts.

  Assawoman Bay Angry Clown Brown AleEasygoing Angry Clown Brown Ale brought nuts, raisin and dark cherry to the fore as caramelized biscuit malts and coffee-stained Fuggle hop bittering gained latent hazelnut, fig and molasses undertones. Not as clearly defined, TransPorter traipsed dry cocoa above desolate vanilla and caramel tones.

The darkest ale, Commodore Decatur Black IPA, brought thriving black chocolate and dark cocoa overtones to dry grapefruit tartness while its damp-wooded hop char gained bitterness.

Unfortunately, the ever-popular Weizen Shine Hefe kicked right before we entered.

Though this copious venue may seem mainstream with its affluent sportsbar feel, family-styled pub dining and mall-like atmosphere, Assawoman Bay’s fine beer selection will capture everyone’s attention.

assawomanbaybrewing.com

MOTHER EARTH BREWING

United States Brewpubs,

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KINSTON, NORTH CAROLINA

Taking up a whole street corner in Kinston’s rustic downtown, MOTHER EARTH BREWING has taken the Inner Banks section of North Carolina by storm and helped revitalize the small community since starting production during 2009. Run by owners Trent Mooring and Stephen Hill and brewmaster Josh Brewer, Mother Earth’s expanded into a large operation with its own bottling line, beer garden, windowed brew tanks, boutique store and exquisite modern deco-styled taproom (with U-shaped 16-seat bar, side tables, couched lounge and snazzy blue and white hanging lights).

During my mid-morning stopover June ’16, I picked up five bottled and one canned brew running the gamut from ever-popular Weeping Willow Wit to stylishly wondrous Endless River Kolsch to sessionable Park Day Bohemian Pilsner to Sisters Of The Moon IPA to Dark Cloud Dunkel Lager and Old Neighborhood Oatmeal Porter (all reviewed in Beer Index). But the best way to discover Mother Earth is thru its sterling taproom, where limited edition, one-offs and seasonal specials prove just as worthy as the bottled-canned staples.

The environmentally responsible brewery also makes use of recycled material, organic compounds and spent grain. Anyone traveling thru the heartland of Carolina needs to discover this fine gem.

www.motherearthbrewing.com