Mould's Beer Blog

Just a little more than one year ago, my family and I relocated to Indianapolis from New Jersey due to some changes in my full-time job.  It was a tough, yet exciting, move for us.  We quickly had to put our small, 2nd floor condo up for sale, and at the same time travel to Indianapolis to house hunt and find a neighborhood that would suit us. The prospect of moving to an area with a completely new to me beer landscape was intriguing.  As soon as I knew for sure that my family and I were making the move to Indiana, I performed some online searches to compile a list of the breweries that were local to our new area.  A Google Map was created just for the breweries.  Facebook pages and Instagram pages were followed. Sun King and Founders collab, Riding the Rails I quickly learned that Indiana isn't quite like other states I've visited where alcohol is involved.  Some of these laws astonished me! First things first, any minor (under 21 year...

With the insane growth of the number of breweries in New Jersey, it's not surprising to see businesses related to the beer industry sprouting up throughout the state.  Breweries need supplies and ingredients, and businesses are stepping up to fill this need.  From labs maintaining yeast strains, farms building hop yards, and mobile canning lines that jump from brewery to brewery, businesses from all over the state are embracing the explosion of the local beer community. Anthony Verdi and his family created Sky High Hops to supply breweries with a quality product that can make their beers stand out.  Situated at Sage Hill Farm in Flemington, NJ, Sky High Hops is in their second growing season with no plans of slowing down. The entrance to the Hop Yard at Sage Hill Farm Three types of hops are currently grown in the Sky High Hops yard..  The Centennial and Cascade vines are in their second year, while the Chinook vines are first year.  Owner Anthony V...

Hey folks!  It's been quite awhile, right?  Even though this blog has been silent, I've kept up my exploration of local beers as well as taking the time to enjoy some older favorites.  While my Facebook and Twitter pages have been dormant for the most part, my Instagram account has been relatively active.  I could just send you over to Instagram, but I will post some of the highlights from the past few months here for (hopefully) your enjoyment! First off, I'm tending to buy six packs (and sometimes four packs) more often these days.  For years, as a general rule, I would only buy single bomber bottles or "mix-a-six" pack at a liquor store that allows it.  A lot of these were special release beers, destined to never be brewed again.  Now, I've grown somewhat tired of the fleeting experience of having a single bottle of beer.  When I have a beer I enjoy, I want to enjoy it over several rounds or several days. Of course, I don't only ...

Well, my goal to write something here every day didn't work.  With all honesty, that is a pretty lofty goal.  But I am going to update this space with posts multiple times a week.  It will mainly be posts written about what beers I've been drinking, places I've been going and just random thoughts about beer. To recap, last weekend I visited Flounder and Lone Eagle breweries.  It was good fun because I hadn't been out to a brewery in a good while.  Our son is now old enough where we have an easier time packing him and all his things up and bringing him along.  I went to Flounder by myself, but Kerry and our son came along to Lone Eagle where we had a great time. Which brings me to my main topic tonight.  Do you think it's ok for people to bring their kids (infants, toddlers, teens) to a brewery? With laws changing the way they are in NJ, there is no denying that breweries are becoming more and more like bars.  Its true, not all are headed this ...

(I'm in an effort to write something, anything every single day.  It's been awhile since I've been writing blog posts, so I'm hoping this will get me back in the groove.  Hope you enjoy my rambling.) Tonight I am sipping on a glass (or three) from my growler of Flounder Brewing's Genevieve IPA that I picked up on Saturday.  It is tasting mighty fine, and I highly recommend it.  If you want to know what kind of flavor notes it has, go ahead and pick up a pint and try it yourself. A few months ago, Lone Eagle Brewing opened up near the outlet mall in Flemington, NJ.  A unique aspect about this new brewery is that it is in a completely newly constructed building instead of being in the local industrial park.  Its not really a positive or a negative for me, its the beer that counts and speaks for himself. So we paid a visit to Lone Eagle yesterday to relax after a little bit of shopping at the outlets.  I will give a more in depth write-up when I go ...

(I'm in an effort to write something, anything every single day.  It's been awhile since I've been writing blog posts, so I'm hoping this will get me back in the groove.  Hope you enjoy my rambling.) Yesterday, Flounder Brewing opened up for a few hours of growler sales.  It had been at least six months since I paid Flounder a visit, so I decided to stop in.  My wife and our son weren't up to the trip, so I ventured out for a quick jaunt to Hillsborough on my own.   Their layout changed a bit since my last visit.  In Flounder's new configuration, you enter through the open garage door, try some samples at a small table they set up, then head to the bar to order a pint of beer or a growler.  I'm not too sure if they were selling pints or not yesterday, due to it being a growler sales day.  They were selling 5 oz. samples of their collaboration beer with Sam Adams, a cranberry-helles called Devil's Nectah.  I was worried it would be a ...

This post is a contribution to Typology Tuesday , a monthly project started by the Brookston Beer Bulletin.  On the last Tuesday of every month, beer bloggers are invited to explore a different style of beer and write a post about it.  For the month of February, we are writing about bocks. To be perfectly honest, I don't have a ton of experience with bocks.  That is part of the reason why I wanted to participate in this month's Typology Tuesday.  Jay Brooks from the Brookston Beer Bulletin compiled a good amount of history, style guidelines from various sources and further reading suggestions for bocks, located here . Bocks are lagers that generally fall into the 6.3-7.6% ABV range.  They are dark brown or very dark in color and have a high malt complexity.  You won't find much hop bitterness in these beers; just what's enough to cut the sweetness from the malt.  Bready, biscuity, nutty...all those bread descriptors could likely describe bock...

I love when a new brewery starts up and is able to get their beer in bottles.  It also makes me nervous though, because in the past I've been burned from getting bad bottles from new breweries.  My only assumptions are that there must be a higher chance for variation/contamination when filling bottles.  When bottling, you need consistency of fill volume and carbonation, and you need to make sure those bottles are clean and sanitized or else off flavors may develop in the beer.  These are all problems I've seen from bottles in the past. Let's hope that we don't have any bottle problems today! 902 Brewing entered the New Jersey beer scene a little less than 1 year ago.  Instead of starting out with their own brewery, they contract out the brewing and tank space at Climax Brewing in Roselle Park, NJ. This had me a little worried, because Climax is one of the brewers that I've had bad bottles from. Most of the business 902 Brewing does is in and around the Ho...

Bolero Snort Brewery is killing it.  I can't say it enough.  They have been sporadically releasing new beers in 22 oz. sized bomber bottles, alongside their year round beers (Longhop IPA and Ragin' Bull amber lager) and barrel aged treats.  The beers that have been released in the bombers have been stellar, and they have also been competitively priced.  I've shared my drinking of several of their new beers on all of the social media, just not on this here blog (I'm trying to rectify that!) As of this writing, some of the unique 22. oz bombers that Bolero Snort has released have been El Matador (a session ale brewed with cilantro, lime and jalapeno), Variabull 001 and 002 (an IPA and a smoked brown ale with coffee, respectively), and Explorabull (another IPA).  Coming out on 11/1 in 22 oz. bottles (and kegs of course) is Moovember Milk Stout. Bravehorn The latest bomber from Bolero Snort that I've enjoyed is Bravehorn, a scotch ale/wee heavy style beer w...

Hey folks!  Welcome to the latest batch of new beers you'll be seeing soon from NJ breweries!  Makes your mouth water a bit, doesn't it? 902 Brewing 902 Brewing started selling their beers in NJ earlier this year.  Contracting out of Roselle Park's Climax Brewing, 902 Brewing has been pumping out kegs of their IPA, Pale Ale and Black IPA.  Here we have the label for their first bottle release.  It is for their Heaven, Hell or Hoboken IPA and will be packaged in 22 oz. bottles! 902 Brewing's IPA: Heaven, Hell or Hoboken Belford Brewing keg label for Honey Hudson (Ale Brewed with NJ Honey) Boaks Beer keg label for Wooden Beanie brewed at Free Will Brewing in Perkasie, PA (Barrel Aged Belgian Style Brown Ale) Brix City Brewing Little Ferry NJ's Brix City Brewing is another one of NJ's newest breweries to open, and the below label is for their KTK Double IPA.  Like 902 Brewing's IPA, KTK will also be packaged in 22 oz. bot...

With all of the new breweries opening in NJ, there are more and more label approvals coming through the system.  To keep these "Upcoming NJ Beers" posts shorter, I am going to try and post them every two weeks instead of once a month. Let's see what new labels have come through the system since the last update! 902 Brewing   had kegs of"Black Dynomite" Black IPA approved Angry Erik saw 3 keg labels approved for the following beers: To Taste American IPA (6.0% ABV), Two Shoe Brew Copper Ale (6.0% ABV) and Fjord Crosser Belgian IPA Beach Haus Brewery Belford Brewing Bolero Snort Climax Brewing    saw approvals for Hammer and Ale Imperial IPA, Maxwell's Summer Ale, Maxwell's Pale Ale Cricket Hill   received two keg approvals for the following:  Philly Roller Derby Lager and Tiff's Limited Release Ale Cypress Brewing , gearing up for their launch event , received several more keg approvals: double chocolate imperial ...

I can't stress enough how much of an exciting time this is to be a beer fan in NJ.  The majority of NJ residents now live within a short drive of a local brewery, giving them the ability to get their beer as fresh as possible, from the source. Welcome to Conclave Brewing Conclave Brewing, opening July 11 in Raritan Twp., is making that drive a lot shorter for Hunterdon County residents  Ever since River Horse moved a little farther south down the Delaware River to Ewing, Hunterdon County has been devoid of a production brewery (there is The Ship Inn brewpub, in the northwest corner of the county). Part of Conclave's Brewhouse Conclave Brewing's thirsty customers will be able to imbibe in a farmhouse saison and an espresso milk stout.  Once hop orders are secured, a pale ale will be added to the list.  To spice things up, variants of these beers with different treatments will also be available. Conclave Brewing's Tank Farm The brewery is a 3 barre...

Get excited for another NJ brewery opening soon!  Cypress Brewing will be opening their doors in early July in a tucked away industrial park at 30 Nixon Lane in Edison, NJ.  They are currently prepping for their July 9th launch party at Hailey's Harp and Pub in Metuchen, NJ, and their fermentation and brite tanks are full to prove it.   The Barstools at Cypress Waiting to be Filled For their launch, Cypress Brewing will have 10(!) beers ready for NJ beer fans to try out.  Their idea is to have something for everyone to be able to enjoy. Hop heads can relish in three different IPAs:  a "nearly sessionable" Cypress IPA, a Cypress Double IPA and a 106 IBU "hop bomb" that is Cypress West Coast IPA.   Stout lovers will clamor over the Cypress Double Chocolate Imperial Oatmeal Stout, where at 8.8% ABV, Cypress will only sell it to you in half glasses (in their tap room, at least).   You will find a full list of their launch beers, along with...

Wow, it's been almost 2 months since my last update on upcoming NJ beers.  Get ready for lots of labels! (also, I didn't add any pictures of the keg labels.  So if there's no picture with the beer's name, it's a keg beer!) Angry Erik Brewing : American Limey (India Pale Ale brewed with lime zest and lime juice), Aloysia Citrodora (Pale Ale brewed with Lemon Verbena) Beach Haus Brewery: Beach Haus Brewery Krampus Spiced Ale, take note of the large bottle format Brix City Brewing :  Here we have the first bottle release from newly opened Brix City Brewing out of Little Falls, NJ! Brix City Brewing St. Stephen's Saison Cape May Brewing: Cape May Brewing Tower 23 Berliner Weisse  Carton Brewing : Tharsis (ale brewed with Thai chiles and saffron, 6.2% ABV) Cypress Brewing : Another new NJ brewery!  Northern English Style Nut Brown Ale and Rye Saison Ale Flounder Brewing : Cascadian Dark Ale, American Ale Flying Fish Brewing Company : Go...