Pleasant, but inessential, Belgian-styled witbier stays nebulous. Coriander-spiced navel orange peel sweetness and sugary pale malting contrast mild lemony peach tartness and white-peppered restraint above grassy hop astringency. By desolate citric-spiced finish, stylish template unravels.
Refreshingly tart summertime pale lager suits shandy lovers with its lemon-dropped ruby red grapefruit juicing and candied pineapple snip. Sugar-spiced ginger adjunct reinforces herbal-tinged citric splurge, but saw dust reminder and murky hop splotch prove weirdly astringent.
MORRISTOWN, NEW JERSEY
In a red-bricked, white-windowed corner spot across the street from Morristown’s railway. END OF ELM has operated as a cocktail-lounged gastropub since 2013. Featuring 24-plus brass-handled tap lines while specializing in unique cocktails and upscale food, this quaint one-room tavern brings low key elegance to this mid-Jersey county seat.
On my initial February ’16 stopover, my wife and I grab a seat at the windowed front corner booth to sample four diverse brews, including Magnify Low Visibility IPA, Rodenbach Caractere Rouge, Founders Nitro Rubeaus and Stone Bitter Chocolate Stout (reviewed in Beer Index).
Creative lunch menu brought forth distinctively innovative items such as Grilled Artichoke Bruscetta (with Almond Romesco-sauced fennel), Charred Jersey Beets, Lamb Burger and sticky-riced Sashimi Tuna Pizza.
As for its exquisite architectural design, the sage green interior spotlights a 10-seat copper-topped banquet table, eight 4-seat tables and a few side and back booths. Traditional walnut decor adds a tasteful backdrop to the granite-topped 14-set bar while railroad-tied pillars connect slotted flat scrap wood at the front right side, an artful exhibit complementing the train station.
A comfortable neighborhood pub with a friendly attitude, warm atmosphere and charming ambiance, End Of Elm will impress sophisticated beer snobs as well as casual cocktail enthusiasts and may be the best gastropub Morristown has to offer.
www.endofelm.com
On tap at Ambulance, heavenly espresso-flavored brown ale takes brewers’ Brown Angel on a milk-sugared cold brewed coffee journey. Dry black coffee bittering contrasts sugar-creamed espresso frontage and brown-sugared oatmeal bottom. Tertiary vanilla, caramel latte, cappuccino and hazelnut sweeten the back end. A delightful breakfast alternative.
Bitchin’ botanical stout (with viscous yeast sinew) successfully unites sweet pecan roast and West African chocolate richness with wafting magnolia flower petals. Creamy brown chocolate continuance heightened by cacao nibs resilience, molasses-sapped bourbon sugaring and mild anise smear. Peat-y walnut, cola, hazelnut and hickory illusions regale pecan adjunct just beneath the mocha surface as dried-fruited black cherry, blackberry and blueberry seep into the mix. Ultimately smooth, easygoing and clean-watered despite heavy viscosity and full-bodied nature.
On tap at Ambulance, fine breakfast stout layers bitter black coffee roast above hop-charred oatmeal stint and sharp-spiced black currant smidge. Caffeinated coffee theme variably promotes tertiary black chocolate, dried cocoa and espresso undertones.
On tap at Ambulance, velvety chocolate rum-caked bourbon vanilla sweetness picks up lactose milk sugaring in nitro setting. Dried dark cocoa, black chocolate, cacao nibs and espresso illusions lightly embitter Jamaican rum-aged Imperial Stout circa 2016.
On tap at End Of Elm, superb nitro-injected framboise draught perfectly complements original Rubaeus, retaining its pinkish ruby hue while gaining a sourer raspberry-rotted rasp to go against the syrupy raspberry soda sweetness above pale white wheat malting (picking up reluctant sour-candied raspberry, cranberry and crabapple tartness at the delicate Seltzer-watered raspberry finish).
Fantastic Belgian Kriek gains sour-fruited Flanders Red Ale influence by blending tart Bing cherry sweetness with champagne-fizzed oaken cherry tartness and medicinal cherry-candied astringency. Lightly acidic green grape tannins and puckered cranberry sourness contrast ripe red apple juicing and subtle strawberry sensation beneath rosé-wined cherry serenade.
On tap at Ambulance, cherry-dried version of Imperial Biscotti lacks originals’ distinction as dark-roasted black chocolate and cacao nibs bittering overrun any coffee-dipped almond biscotti niceties or oaken vanilla nuances. Blood-like saline acridity grafts desiccated cherry-soured Baker’s chocolate finish.
Staggeringly successful Stone series of hop-derived India Pale Ales culminates in full-bodied Christmas ’15 model (utilizing twelve lupulin varieties just for fun). Juicy ruby red grapefruit tang and bright navel orange briskness navigate thru light resinous pine bittering. Zesty citrus appeal picks up whiskey tinge as sparkly mango, peach, cantaloupe, nectar and apple subsidy further enlivens well-designed thirst quencher.
Ambitious trend towards enticingly ‘intense’ coffee-infused India Pale Ales continues with aggressive hop-forward full body from the good Captain. Stumptown cold brewed java brings surging green bean coffee bittering to less prominent fondue fruiting and sedate pine-hopped nuttiness. Delightful roasted coffee finish picks up tangy grapefruit, peach, tangerine and clementine illusions as well as mild peppery sensation.
