This week, think local, drink local

Some thoughts on American Craft Beer Week …

New Jersey is, as Benjamin Franklin is said to have noted, a barrel tapped at both ends. 

That's widely taken as a metaphor for the gravitational pulls of New York and Philadelphia, which result in distinct identities of North Jersey and South Jersey.

Flavors of the state, if you will.

Regarding beer, there's a third element to consider these days: the great beers that come into the state from other parts of the country and from overseas. 

It's hard to resist them, especially when elevating your beer horizons compels you to drink them (you, indeed, should drink them). 

Some of them are the much-sought-but-hard-to-get brews; others are the next wave in style. So, they're very much part of the craft beer landscape, part of what has you doing the thousand-beer stare at the store or endlessly poring over your favorite bar's beer list.

But that said, over the course of this week don't let the cornucopia of selection from elsewhere overshadow the home-state beers created by the Jersey brewers who are part of that pursuit of something better, something tastier.

This week, don't forget to think Jersey and drink Jersey.

Cheers.