Changes at Basils in Red Bank & Uno

From Pub Scout Kurt Epps:

After a decade turning out the ales at Basil T's in Red Bank, brewer Gretchen Schmidhausler is leaving.

Pizzeria Uno brewer Mike Sella will take over at Basil T's.

Märzen chronicles, Book III (or yet again)

Oktoberfest is a short season, but the beer that distinguishes it from other fall observances deserves a lot of mention.

So here's some more, specifically, a spotlight on a couple of interpretations of the style that are worth your stein and leisure time.

It just went on tap at Uno Chicago Grill & Brewery in Metuchen a few days ago, and the Oktoberfest that brewer Mike Sella turned in this season is richer than Warren Buffet and more enjoyable than watching Jon Stewart riff on Glenn Beck's chalkboard, kabuki histrionics.

In fact, it's also a taste of two seasons: Clocking in at over 7% ABV, the beer has all the signatures of Oktoberfest but a middle flavor and coppery color that hints at doppelbock.

Mike's brew is also proof that you can take an ale yeast and bend it to a lager will. He used an American ale yeast and fermented at 58 degrees. If you didn't hear him cop to that, you'd never know it. (Yeah, other brewers have done this, too, but sometimes you still get that ale nose in the beer. Not here, Mike's is malty and lager-clean.)

Not quite a hundred miles down the Garden State Parkway from Uno, Tim Kelly set up the Tun Tavern in Atlantic City with some of his finest work since taking over as the brewer there in 2007.

Like Mike's fest beer, Tim's 6.6% ABV, noble-hopped Oktoberfest will have you time-traveling to March. By your second round, you'll swear you've poured a Maßkrug of doppelbock. (Honestly, that second glass will feature a middle flavor quite reminiscent of Salvator. And by the way, Tim did use a lager yeast.)

Tim's an ambitious brewer and has turned in some interesting Belgian styles for the Tun (a brown he made a couple Christmases ago tasted great at yuletide, but a filled-to-the-rim growler of it we aged until February became a really superior beer). For his first try at an Oktoberfest at the Tun, Tim reached for toasty melanoidin signatures and attempted a decoction mash.

"I'll never do that again," he says, with some self-deprecating humor.

The beer was fine. But problem was the Tun's brewing system isn't set up to do decoctions. Tim (with the help of Flying Fish head brewer Casey Hughes, as we recall) used buckets to ladel a portion of the grist from the mash tun into the kettle to be boiled, then back into the mash.

A regular five- or six-hour brew day thus grew by more than a couple of hours, a noble effort for a payoff that could still be attained by infusion mash means and some Munich and aromatic malts, as his efforts this season ably demonstrate. (That's not a swipe at decoction; try High Point's Ramstein fest beer to taste what decoction can do.)

Look for Tim's Oktoberfest at the Central Jersey Beer Fest on Saturday. Or better yet, head to the Tun. And Uno.

Uno's cask event

A quick look back at Pizzeria Uno's cask ale event from Saturday ...

If you went, then you know it was a treasure trove of hops: Sixpoint's Bengali IPA, Weyerbacher's Hops Infusion, River Horse's Hop Hazard and Hop-a-lot-amus Double IPA.

If you wanted to go big, there was Uno's Scotch Ale and Weyerbacher's Blithering Idiot Barleywine. Rounding out the bill was Uno's Gust N Gale Porter (made really velvety by the cask conditioning), Sixpoint Righteous Rye (this Brooklyn brew was worth seconds), and a nut brown ale from Climax that poured from a hand pump quite bright beneath a creamy head.

The flight of brews wasn't as bountiful as some of the past presentations (this was the fifth Uno cask ale event by our count). Assembling the lineup of ales through distributors and breweries was a little like hearding cats, with some brewers reluctant to fill anything but metal casks (not plastic). And those weren't always readily available.

So, there's a point of appreciation to be made off that circumstance: Uno brewer Mike Sella (that's Mike in the white shorts in the photo) still put together a respectable collection of cask-conditioned ales, and cask ale is a genuine treat.

Shout-outs: John the hired hand at High Point Brewing; friend of the blog and fellow writer John Holl; PubScout Kurt Epps; and special thanks to Mid-Atlantic Brewing News columnist Mark Haynie, who organized the trip up from South Jersey to Metuchen.

Casking call

Pizzeria Uno's cask event is this coming Saturday (March 27) at the brewpub along Route 1 in Metuchen. As of this writing, the lineup of brews is still taking shape.

But Uno brewer Mike Sella today offered a taste of the list for this pay-as-you-drink nod to real ale: Uno's Gust N Gale porter and Scotch ale are the host offerings, joined by a nut brown ale from Climax Brewing. (Climax, just up the Garden State Parkway in Roselle Park, has been part of the lineup since Uno began what has become a twice-a-year event back in 2008.)

You can also expect a couple of brews from Weyerbacher, as well as at least a half dozen other brands, if Uno's past cask events are any measure. The taps start flowing at noon.

Uno is located at 61 Route 1 in Metuchen, along the southbound side of the highway. The phone number is (732) 548-7979.


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On the horizon

Like green shoots breaking through the soil of spring, beer events are popping up all over.

So here's a quick hit of calendar items to consider:

High Point Brewing holds its first open house of the year on Saturday (2-4 p.m.) at the brewery in Butler, and the makers of the Ramstein brand say on their Web site it's the debut of the 2010 edition of their maibock. Bring your growlers. We haven't heard back on our inquiry with owner Greg Zaccardi yet, so we can't say if there will be any Icestorm eisbock available. Also, the maibock was one of the Ramstein beers that Greg has been making plans to put in bomber bottles. When we catch up with Greg, we'll repost.

One other thing to consider, unlike Ramstein open houses of the past, the brewery plans to cycle attendees through in two shifts. The events have become so popular that a little crowd management has become necessary to ensure everyone gets a taste, a tour and the chance to have a growler filled.

The Brewer's Plate is Sunday at the Penn Museum in Philadelphia. Now in it's sixth year, this is very much a worth-your-time event, with beers from select breweries within a 150-mile radius of Philly paired with food from the city's great restaurants. Tickets are still available as of this writing. The premium ticket is a little pricey, $115, but the event benefits Fair Food, a nonprofit that promotes community sustainable/fair trade farming.

Climax Brewing, Cricket Hill, Flying Fish and River Horse are New Jersey mainstays at this affair, while Brian Boak is making his second appearance with his Boaks Beer brand of Belgian brews and imperial stouts, which a lot of folks remember are brewed under contract at High Point.

But the Jersey connection runs a little deeper: Tri-state brewpub Iron Hill will be there, and those who have followed Iron Hill know it was started by three Jersey guys who struck a mash first in Delaware, then Pennsylvania, and last year enjoyed a homecoming to the Garden State. Then there's Tom Baker's Earth Bread + Brewery, the phoenix that rose in Philly's Mount Airy section from the ashes of Tom closing Heavyweight Brewing in Monmouth County four years ago. Tom's reputation as an artisan brewer is still intact.

You'll find the full list of Brewer's Plate restaurants and breweries here.

The Atlantic City beer fest is March 20-21 at the Convention Center. In the past, we've been a little down on this festival. In fairness, we'll back away from some of things we don't like about Celebration of the Suds and be positive: Atlantic City is probably one of the best locations for a beer festival in New Jersey. AC is destination, and if you want to book a room, there's plenty of hotel space, not to mention enough glitz to occupy your time before or after your festival session.

The downside (we're not going to skip that completely) is, this is a monstrously big festival, and with that there's been long lines to get in and to hit the restroom; there's also been a little bit of rowdiness (sorry to rain on parade, but it's true). There's plenty of beer, a lot of which can be found at packaged stores with good beer managers. That said, this festival is a good fit for those who are just coming to craft beer, folks who are a few steps beyond that juncture, or people who love the buzz of a big crowds in a gambling mecca.

Look for Boaks, Cricket Hill, Flying Fish and River Horse to be poured, as well as Hometown Beverage, whose light lagers are contract brewed by the Lion Brewery in Wilkes-Barr, Pa. The Tun Tavern brewpub, located across the street from the festival site, is also on the bill. The Tun will be pouring the dunkelweizen made as a tie-in At The Shore and The Press of Atlantic City.

If you're looking to hit the Tun for dinner after the festival on Saturday, make reservations. It's still a recessionary climate these days, and you might get a table without calling beforehand. But over the years, the Tun generally hasn't accommodated walk-ins for looking for dinner. Not to be a buzzkill, but if you go there for just drinks or whatever, please do everyone – yourself included – a big favor by not showing up drunk. If the Tun is too crowded (and it gets crowded post-festival), try Firewaters at the Tropicana casino. You'll find a wide variety of craft beer on draft and in the bottle there.

On March 27, Pizzeria Uno in Metuchen holds its fourth cask ale festival at the brewpub on Route 1. Brewer Mike Sella has done a great job assembling a rack of casks from breweries around the region for this pay-as-you-go event in Uno's comfy pub atmosphere. Cask ale is a real delight, and this festival, which begins at noon, has generally lasted as long as the beer flows, meaning it could run a second day.

Lastly, even though it's a long way off, the Garden State Craft Brewers Guild holds its 14th annual festival on June 26. Once again, it's aboard the USS New Jersey battleship museum, moored at the Delaware River waterfront in Camden. More on that festival later.

Uno's dinner, addendum

It seems there are some fits and starts tugging at this month's Pizzeria Uno beer dinner. It's still on the menu, and Kurt Epps has a couple of follow-up notes about it.

The one and only Uno

Pizzeria Uno in Metuch-ison-bridge (our portmanteau for the brewpub, given its location in a sort of nexus of Metuchen, Edison and Woodbridge) has a Monday night beer dinner coming up.

The ever-gregarious PubScout Kurt Epps is emcee of the event and has details here.

As most folks know, this Uno is the only one that features beer brewed on site. Mike Sella's beer, Moshe's menu and Kurt at the microphone ... you'll be in good hands if you go.

Send in the Marines

November is a military month, and there are a couple of things to highlight for this week.

Tuesday at the Tun Tavern, the 234th Marine Corps birthday bash is being held, beginning at 7 p.m. Think, beer, camaraderie and a chowline in Atlantic City.

This annual affair draws a pretty big crowd, and it's Tun Tavern owner Monty Dahm saluting his fellow teufel Hunden – Devil Dogs.

Brewer Tim Kelly will have a pin of Leatherneck stout to complement the Tun's tap lineup that features Devil Dog Pale Ale and All American IPA, the latter of which is often dry-hopped with some Cascade hops grown in New Jersey.

If you're familiar with US history, and US military history in particular, then you know the Marine Corps was formed at an 18th century Philadelphia watering hole called – what else – Tun Tavern. Like most grog houses, it was a place to meet and conduct business. When the brain trust of the Colonies decided the best interest for the crown-ruled 13 was armed rebellion, well the Tun, on Nov. 10, became ground zero for signing up stout-hearted men to the cause of consigning George III to the status of ex-monarch.

That was 1775. This is 2009. The original Tun burned down almost 230 years ago. Its site, alas, is now pavement, as in I-95 cutting through Philly, part of Eisenhower's legacy as president (not Army general), the interstate highway system. A heritage-themed restaurant is at the Marine Corps Museum in Quantico, Va. And of course, there is Atlantic City and Monty's Semper Fi homage to the Corps.

You don't have to be a Marine to show up and salute the cause.

Meanwhile, PubScout Kurt Epps offered an item last week about Pizzeria Uno's expression of gratitude to those in uniform. Check out the link to the right for tribute video done by Kurt's sons.

Carry on.

Roundup

Reminder
Basil T's in Toms River, soon to be known under the moniker Artisan, holds its Oktoberfest dinner on Friday evening (starts at 7 p.m.). It's a multi-course dinner by chef Steve Farley, paired with several beers from brewer Dave Hoffmann. PubScout Kurt Epps keeps the event on pace as emcee.

Upcoming
The Garden State Chapter of the Brewery Collectibles Club of America holds its fall show on Sunday (Oct. 4) at the Polish Cultural Center in Clark.

It starts at 10 a.m., and speaking of Dave Hoffmann, you'll find his Climax beers being poured there.

River Horse
River Horse's annual nod to fall will be held the weekend of Oct. 10-11, noon to 5 p.m. both days. As usual, it's pay as you go with the lineup of RH flagship beers; proceeds benefit Twin Rivertown Project.

Missing from this year's Oktoberfest beer lineup is Dunkel Fester, the dark larger RH did last year as a fall seasonal. Co-owner Glenn Bernabeo says the brewery had to sacrifice the seasonal to keep up with demand for RH's mainstay beers.

For instance, for 2009 the brewery nearly doubled last year's 7-barrel production of Summer Blonde.

The brewery also slipped a special project into its production, brewing the winning beer for a homebrew contest connected to the Office chain of restaurants. Glenn says the brewery hopes to boost capacity soon by adding additional tanks.

Given all of that, if you were a fan of last year's oatmeal milk stout, fret not. It's due back in Novermber, while RH's Belgian Freeze comes out this month.

Recap
If you made it to last weekend's cask ale event at Pizzeria Uno, then you saw a great model for scaling down beer fests: a low-key, pay-as-you-go affair with access to good food. Some of the bigger festivals (like Atlantic City) have become drunkfests, while the beer festival idea in general has become overplayed. It makes sense to rein things in a little, downsize and bring some focus.

Speaking of the Uno event, a shoutout goes to Kai Todd of Somerset County, who took the time to talk to us about the beers he was sampling, and Jersey beer in general. (Kai say he's considering adding his voice to the beer scene discussion with a Web site. There's always room for another perspective.)

Constructive criticism
We won't pound this too hard, since we couldn't make it up to the Woodbridge event held in mid-September. But a lot of folks told us about the long lines at the gate and beer staind, and the event running out of beer. Sounds like the Central Jersey Best Fest hit a growing pain, one that limiting ticket sales and boosting the $20 admission price to $35 could solve. (Thirty-five bucks is a common price, and quite frankly, 40 is not out of the realm of reason.)

Granted the Woodbridge festival is a charity event, so if organizers (J.J. Bitting brewpub is the main one) are worried that capping ticket sales will limit the amount raised for the dedicated charity, that can be addressed by having an informational booth to explain where the proceeds are going and to solicit donations. The festival's been a sensible fall addition, and the park where it's held is a great location. Some fine-tuning should help.

One more real thing

It's in the comments portion of yesterday's post, but just so it gets noticed here's the update from the kind folks at Hunterdon Distributors about Saturday's cask ale event at Pizzeria Uno.

Says Hunterdon: In addition to the Nugget Nectar, Troegs is sending their new seasonal, Javahead Stout. Smuttynose should have their Big A IPA and Pumpkin Ale ... doesn't look like Yards is going to make this one.

The real thing

Cask ale was the real thing long before Coca-Cola ever thought about it as a marketing slogan.

And the real thing will start pouring at Pizzeria Uno (Metuchen) on Friday evening as a warm-up to Uno's third edition of its cask ale event, which is officially timed to start at noon on Saturday (Sept. 26th).

It's pay as you go, priced by the pint, and there's Uno's pub fare menu you can order from. As far as the beer goes, there are a some gems on the lineup (this is from the Beeradvocate posting):

Jersey brews

• Climax ESB
• Flying Fish Abbey Dubbel
• River Horse Hopalotamus Double IPA
• Cricket Hill's American Pale Ale
• and a brace of brews from the host's playbook: Station House Red and Oktoberfest.

Keystone State brews

• Troeg's Nugget Nectar
• Weyerbacher Double Simcoe IPA and Imperial Pumpkin Ale
• and some offerings from the ever-respectable Philly brewer, Yards.

Brews from afar

• More flying wildlife: A duo from Colorado brewer, Flying Dog (Gonzo Imperial Porter and Snake Dog IPA).

Cask ale is a real treat, lots of flavors come rolling out when the carbonation is natural and dialed to the gentle setting. Not to mention the great aromas that really emerge.

Uno is on Route 1 (on the southside of the highway), and easy to find. Just point your car toward the Menlo Park and Woodbridge Center malls.

AC beer fest: meh

It’s Saturday and Sunday (with a VIP beer judging tonight), and we’re of two minds about this thing. We’ve been to the first three but we'll skip the fourth annual edition of the AC beer fest.

For our tastes, it’s just too big, and it if last year was a measure of the direction the festival is heading, it’s getting slovenly. A drunkfest. We’ll opt instead for lunch at the Tun Tavern and a pint or two of locally brewed, then hit Firewaters inside the Tropicana casino.

And if you’ll pardon a sort of drawn-out analogy, this festival has become like being in on the ground floor of a great band, watching 'em rise, win critical acclaim, release one or two commercially accessible albums and a few successful tunes, and BAM! ... they’re playing arenas, you can’t get tickets like you used to, and the lines to get in run longer than the Nile.

Except with the AC beer fest, the long lines at the turnstile have always been there, and there are sundry other issues the promoters have never quite bothered to solve.

We will say this, at 35 bucks for an advance ticket, AC is still an OK buy, comparatively speaking; tickets for day of event are 45 bucks, and the Saturday evening session has sold out. We should also give AC some props for drawing beers that the Philly Craft Beer Festival couldn’t this year (although there was some inside baseball going on with the Philly event, so for instance, Troeg's was missing). But honestly, a good liquor store has all of the beers at these fests anyway, making for few surprises for the taste buds.

Which leads to the next point: If you’re new to craft beer and better beer, you’re likely to have a good time in AC, despite the painfully long lines. It's not much of an event for discriminating tastes looking for something special or interesting. We’ve been to three of them, groused about the issues of the first, patted backs for good some changes in the second, but saw the third just get too sloppy. Ultimately that’s bad for good beer’s image, we say.

Then there’s this: With these big festivals coming year after year and few changes to distinguish them from one year to the next, you have to wonder if they’re starting to see their up and over on the evolutionary chart, in jeopardy of dying off in favor of something more refined, adapted to the market, times and discerning tastes.

Brewers (the ones who actually make the beer and are indispensable) are more than a year beyond being pissed off about being taken for granted and asked to give away the beer or swap it for booth space. Who could blame them? They pay too much in taxes, rent and raw materials to be enabling someone else’s vision of box office gold. And as a lot of brewers have been saying lately: The ice guy gets paid, so pay us.

Bottom line: AC beer fest, plenty of beer, a lot of it great, and some folks will like it. But for our tastes meh. We’re thinking these days, smaller, more intimate events – especially ones paired with foods chosen specifically to complement the beers – are the way to go.

Meanwhile, brewpub Pizzeria Uno (Metuchen/Woodbridge, located along Route 1) is holding its second cask ale event on Saturday, March 28.

Brewer Mike Sella is still putting the finishing touches on things, so we can’t tell you the lineup yet. However, the previous one in September featured casks from Climax, Chelsea Brewing, Captain Lawrence Brewing, Troeg’s, Weyerbacher, and, of course, your host, Uno,

There was no cover, and it was pay as you go, meaning you bought a full pint of beer. And if you can’t make it on the 28th, swing by on Sunday, because the casks will be there as long as there’s something in them to pour.

Recommendation: If you don’t already have a ticket to AC, save your money, wait a week and hit Uno’s. Why? Because it’s cask ale, a great way to enjoy beer, and you’ll get full pints. Plus, Uno has good bar food. It’s definitely the better deal. And if you think you still need to see all kinds of brands and spend some more cash, there’s a Joe Canal’s packaged goods store on Route 1 just a stone’s throw from Uno. Practically every brew on the AC lineup is in their cold box, and some great ones that aren’t.

Scouting around

A quick and incomplete survey of the hosts of Christmas Taps … If you’re still in the throes of holiday shopping and actually going to malls and outlets, this information may help.

• Basil T’s in Toms River (across from Ocean County Mall): Dave Hoffmann has two holiday beers flowing, a raspberry and molasses brew, something new to Dave’s recipe catalog. It’s not quite a winter warmer, but it tastes pretty good, and at 4.5% ABV, you can have a couple and still sound coherent talking to the sales rep about that discounted flat-screen TV.

Speaking of winter warmers, Basil’s second seasonal is Old St. Nick (6.8% ABV), a beer Dave has made in the past and does at the behest of Steve Farley, Basil’s chef, whose palate tends toward Samuel Smith’s Winter Warmer. We had both beers, and if we’re backing up pints, Nick gets the call. That flat panel can wait until the 26th, when the price may be lower yet.

Christmas Eve is usually a time when you stay closer to home, unless you don’t mind being branded a procrastinator. But here’s a reason to step out on the 24th: Dave has a doppelbock coming on at Basil’s that day. Have lunch, relax, take a growler home.

One more brew coming soon: A straw-colored hoppy ale that’s a twist on Dave’s cream ale.

Meanwhile at his day job in Roselle Park, there’s doppelbock rolling out of the doors at Climax Brewing next week. Dave’s got bock in his genes, so you can set your watch to this one, it’ll be spot on (7.8% ABV).

ALSO: Hoffmann Helles is ready, and the porter recipe Dave dusted off last year for the first time in about 10 years is back this year as draft only. It’s a 5.5% brew with a tawny head that beckons. It has found a following in Pennsylvania bars, with New York and Jersey waking up to it. Dave brewed just 10 barrels, so if you’re near a bar that makes room for Climax tap handles, hurry.

• JJ Bitting in Woodbridge: Cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, vanilla beans … sounds like a holiday mix. Bitting brewer August Lightfoot spiced a brown ale (5.5% ABV) that fits a pint glass and a growler jug. But variety is the spice of life, and August is pouring a chocolate cherry stout, too, so it sounds like a two growler tour at Bittings. Hey, why not, it’s the holidays.

Making for a trifecta on the taps in rotation at Bitting is Hop Garden Pale Ale (6% ABV). Let the name be your guide; it’s also on the handpump.

Coming soon: WHALES Imperial IPA. If you follow Bittings, you know this brew’s the scion of the Woodbridge homebrewers group. It’s about two weeks from being sighted on the port bow. August also has his Blackjack Oatmeal Stout in the pipeline and Barley Legal Barleywine, a 10% ABV brew that says sip first, ask questions later.

• Pizzeria Uno (beside Woodbridge Center mall): Coffee Stout, a 5.8% brew to revv you up before you shop.

• Trap Rock Restaurant & Brewery (near Short Hills Mall): A fireside beer – Willie's Winter Warmer (6.2%). Three varieties of crystal malt and a dash of spice to curl up with after fighting the crowds.

• Tun Tavern in Atlantic City (near The Walk outlet shops): Orange peel, cocoa, raisins and star anise in a Belgian brown: It’s Tun Noël, jump for the joyeux Tun Noël on the 18th. Using the same yeast Flying Fish ferments its Abbey Dubbel with, brewer Tim Kelly did five barrels of this 9% ABV ale, with an eye toward kegging off three barrels to put up for next year.

In the meantime, the Tun has a Vienna lager still pouring, a brew that returned from its debut in fall 2007. This year’s edition is a little hoppier, more attenuated than the inaugural batch.

Waiting in reserve: Tun Dark, a dunkel-like lager that Tim took home a bronze medal with in North American Brewers Association competition last summer.

Calendar items:

• High Point Brewing in Butler has an open house on Saturday (12/13), the last one until March. Their Winter Wheat Doppelbock makes the visit worth your time. Alas, it’s unlikely they’ll have the eisbock on Saturday.
• Gaslight Brewery & Restaurant holds its annual Victorian Christmas Dinner on Dec. 17th. The brewpub has more details at 973-762-7077.

Central Jersey Beer Fest 2.0

It’s back, it’s bigger, and yeah, as all promos for sequels boast, better than ever.

The Ws and the H
What: Second Annual Central Jersey Beer Fest
When: 1-5 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 20th (Rain date is the 27th)
Where: Parker Press Park in Woodbridge
Why: It’s for charity; plus it's one of Woodbridge's Main Street events
Weather: As of now, the forecast is picture-perfect: sunny in the mid-70s
How much: Twenty bucks. Tickets are limited (Phone number is 732-634-2929)
What you get: A souvenir glass and unlimited sampling (which means, you can enjoy small pours of the brews; however, don’t get drunk or be dickish. That will get you – rightfully so – shown the door. The 2007 event was family friendly and commendably free of bad behavior; help keep it that way)
Hungry? Yes, there will be food vendors (plus live music)

Last year’s inaugural drew 650 people, depsite only four featured breweries: JJ Bittings (the event organizer), Climax Brewing (Roselle Park), Pizzeria Uno (Metuchen/Woodbridge) and the Tun Tavern (Atlantic City). It was a crowd pleaser, answering a thirst for a fall beer festival in the Garden State. (Watch video of the 2007 fest.)

This year, the lineup has doubled, with Jersey brewers Cricket Hill (Fairfield) and River Horse (Lambertville) and Boak Beverage (Pompton Lakes), joining the returning 2007 lineup.

Brian Boak, a familiar face and volunteer at High Point Brewing (Butler), started Boak Beverage on the strength of winning top honors in the New Jersey State Fair homebrew contest a few years back and the fact that plenty of people liked his beer. High Point contract brews for Brian, and he self-distributes in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. This is his first festival, and he'll feature his core brands, Monster Mash Imperial Stout (the state fair winner) and his Belgian turn, Two Blind Monks.

Rounding out the beer lineup are Weyerbacher Brewing (Easton, Pa.) and Hunterdon Distributors, which will bring draft and bottled beers from out west: Lagunitas, Boulder Brewing, Stone, Rogue and Flying Dog, and Smuttynose from the Granite State.

Point of order
That latter part of the list raises the question, is this a Jersey brewer fest? Yes and no. Yes, in that the foundation of the festival is made up of Jersey-based brewers, and no, since this fest is independent of the Garden State Craft Brewers Guild (although five of the home state brewers are guild members). The guild will hold a fall festival at the Newark Bears stadium on Oct. 19th (that’s a Sunday; more about that one soon).

OK enough parsing. The bottom line is, version 2.0 of the Central Jersey Fest grew, fattened up and looks to easily outdo the inaugural version.

We chatted briefly with August Lightfoot, brewer at JJ Bitting brewpub (which is a stone’s throw from the park), who said he’s bringing his 2008 Märzen (it's not on tap at the pub yet, hint, hint), an imperial IPA inspired by the WHALES homebrew club, his raspberry wheat and a standby keg of porter.

Some more styles to expect: Tim Kelly of the Tun Tavern plans to bring a Belgian wheat, possibly a pumpkin spice ale (it was being filtered on Tuesday), and an IPA dry-hopped with Jersey-fresh Cascade and Nugget hops (grown by Tim’s friends, Ray Gourley and Kathy Haney).

See you there.

Calendar Notes

This Saturday – Sept. 13th – will be a busy one for beer fans. (Actually, all of September is.)

Pizzeria Uno (Metuchen/Woodbridge, located along Route 1) hosts its first-ever cask ale festival, featuring smooth unfiltered brews from Climax, Chelsea Brewing, Captain Lawrence Brewing, Troeg’s, Weyerbacher, and of course Uno, the only Uno in the USA that brews its own beers with the pizza it makes.


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Brewer Mike Sella says it’s a pay as you go event, starting at noon and running to the last drop (or thereabout). Have no fears, the per-glass prices will be reasonable, complemented with happy hour food prices during the event.

Mike says the cask fest, while definitely a first for Uno, is possibly the first such fest in the Garden State’s modern brewing history. So go, be part of history.

Also coming from Uno is their Oktoberfest, which goes on tap Tuesday (Sept. 9th), and a popular wee heavy that returns in October-November (and again around February).

You can also enjoy Mike’s beers at the Central Jersey Beer Fest (more on this one soon) on Sept 20th at Woodbridge's Parker Press Park and at the Manhattan Cask Ale Festival at Chelsea Brewing, Sept. 19-21.

Meanwhile, if you're the kind who likes to pack an itinerary, High Point will debut its 2008 Oktoberfest at the brewery in Butler at 2 p.m., also on Sept. 13th. (Again, more on that one in a day or two.)

And coming up, Oktoberfest in Philadelphia, Sept. 27th, where Flying Fish will be pouring Oktoberfish. (Yes, more details are on the way).

Central time

Skipping Long Beach Island’s Chowderfest this year? But your dance card still has an opening for this Saturday? Then here’s a cozy beer event you’ll probably want to be part of.

And since it’s the inaugural version of the Central Jersey Beer Fest, you’ll pick up bragging rights for getting in on the ground floor.

And who knows if it grows big, maybe one day you’ll be able to nostalgically reflect that you remember when the Central Jersey festival in Woodbridge drew just a handful of Garden State brewers.

The Ws
When: 1-5 p.m.
Where: Parker Press Park in Woodbridge.
Wallet: Admission is 20 bucks, or 10 if you’re a designated driving adult.
What you get: A souvenir taster glass (made from REAL glass, no plastic; cheers to that) and an opportunity to sample some great beer to a backdrop of live music while you browse the wares of local vendors. The event also benefits charity (veterans groups), so check with your accountant, you may be able to write off the admission charge.
Weather: As of this writing, the forecast for Saturday is a sunny 75 degrees. (The rain date is Oct. 6, just in case.)
Why: Because beer is culture, community and fun, and this festival could turn into the fall counterpart to the annual gathering held by the Garden State Craft Brewer’s Guild in June aboard the USS New Jersey battleship museum in Camden.

Unlike that summer festival, Saturday’s event comes not from the guild, but courtesy of the efforts Woodbridge’s own J.J. Bitting Brewing Company, which got a great assist from its hometown, and John McCormac.

If you’re still holding an old (and presumably losing) lottery ticket, say from a couple years back, you’ll notice John’s name on the reverse side as New Jersey state treasurer. He left that Trenton job and is now mayor of Woodbridge, and he made Parker Press Park available for the festival; Woodbridge has embraced the event as one of its Main Street happenings. John says the festival allows for an added theme to the Main Street events, which also include a farmers market. Plus, he points out, J.J. Bittings is a solid local business.

Note: The festival isn't exactly a municipally sponsored function. But the site help Woodbridge is providing merits mentioning, since finding a festival location – rented at a reasonable rate or used free of charge like the USS New Jersey – isn’t easy. So if you go on Saturday, take a moment to raise your taster glass to Woodbridge. (Trivia: John's a formidable contender when it comes to 1960s TV Batman trivia. He's also a bigtime Yankees fan, whose colors he flew in his ground-floor office in Trenton those years ago when we crossed paths.)

The lineup
J.J. Bitting: Beers the home team brewpub will be pouring include Avenel Amber, J.J.’s popular raspberry wheat, Victoria’s Golden Ale and an Oktoberfest dubbed Bad Boy.
Pizzeria Uno: Woodbridge’s neighbor from Metuchen plans to serve up its IPA, Gust ’n’ Gale Porter and hefeweizen.
Climax Brewing: Look for an Oktoberfest and possibly a cream ale that the Roselle Park brewery revived earlier this year.
Tun Tavern: Folks at the Tun in Atlantic City helped spread word about the Central Jersey festival and are looking into the prospects of organizing a similar event in the land of diving horses and tumbling dice. Until then, look for the Tun’s Leatherneck Stout and Vienna lager to be the brews it will take to Woodbridge.