Update: Kane Brewing moving along

Interior work progresses at Kane Brewing's site in Monmouth County.

Owner/founder Michael Kane is busy getting his 7,000-square-foot facility in Ocean Township ready for delivery of the brewhouse next month from Diversified Metal Engineering of Canada.

Sitting in a conference room adorned with blueprints and brewing-gear schematics on Wednesday, Kane took some time to provide an update on the Belgian-style and American ales brewery he's bringing to the New Jersey craft beer scene.

His site is just a bottle cap's throw from where Tom Baker built a cult following with Heavyweight Brewing, before Baker opted to pull up stakes five years ago and open Earth-Bread + Brewery brewpub in Philadelphia.

"Best-case scenario, middle of April; worst-case scenario, end of May," Kane says of his eponymous brewery's projected launch. "Delivery of the brewhouse should be middle of February, and then depending on what phase we are in building out the facility here – plumbing, electrical and steam – it will take a couple of weeks to get that installed and up and running. (We) should be in a position to start brewing the beginning of March."

For those anticipating another Jersey brewery, here's what you need to know: Kane brews will, at least initially, be draft-only in half barrels and sixtels, with self-distribution in Monmouth County and northern Ocean County, then points northward. However, with the Belgian styles, some bottle-conditioned brews packaged in 750-milliliter bottles are likely. You can also expect tours and the accompanying allowed samples.

A homebrewer turning commercial, Kane's vision of going pro began picking up some momentum late last year, after a planned site in Manasquan fell through. Undaunted by the setback, Kane pressed on and ended up signing a lease last August on the Ocean Township site tucked in an industrial park just west of Route 35.

Nearly six months later, he finds himself with plenty to do, besides an expected February installation the brewhouse, three accompanying 40-barrel fermenters, 40-barrel bright beer tank and 40-barrel hot liquor tank. There's also bringing a brewer on board, and of course, getting the green light from state and federal regulators, as well as having local officials give their blessing to the brewery, too.

On that last point, walking a trail blazed by Heavyweight offers some advantages (the Manasquan site was hampered by some misgivings on the part of locals about what goes on at breweries).

"The town was familiar with the process a little bit – what it is we'll be doing over here – so that helped out a little bit," says Kane, who counts himself among those who enjoyed Heavyweight brews like Perkuno's Hammer and Lunacy Golden Ale.

So would Kane like for Tom Baker to help christen his brewery with the first mash?

"We were down at his place about six months ago. It's a great restaurant, great beer. He's a great brewer, would love to have him come up if he's interested. He's welcome to come up here any time he wants," Kane says.

Hammer of the grogs

This is short notice (but not really since Lew Bryson’s blog “Seen Through A Glass” has had it listed for a couple weeks now):

Baltic Thunder, Victory Brewing’s new rich, gale-force porter that is heir to the throne of Perkuno’s Hammer, gets a draft unveiling this Saturday (that’s Jan. 5th) at The Drafting Room in Exton, Pa. A kind, female voice at the bar today confirmed the event is still on and says serving starts at noon. (See Lew’s site for the on-tap details.)

The story thus far
Named after the mythological Baltic god of thunder, Perkuno’s Hammer was the imperial porter created (with some key and label-credited assistance from Lew) by Tom Baker of Heavy Weight Brewing, the diamond in the rough brewery based in Ocean Township, Monmouth County (just south of Red Bank, where the original Basil T’s puts pints on the bar and Tom has guest brewed).

Robust, high gravity beers were the province of Heavy Weight, which sold its beer in four-packs (Smaller Package – Bigger Beer, as their saying went). Tom developed a following as an artisanal brewer before deciding to close HW (in August 2006, thereabouts), and take his mash rake and cross the Delaware to Philly (Mount Airy section), where yet even more blog words say he recently signed a lease for a new brewpub, where he can dust off his recipes under the banner “Earth, Bread & Brewery.”

The V sign
Beforehand, though, all the forlorn beer faces staring at the possibility that Perkuno’s Hammer would strike no more were buoyed by the news that Victory (of Downingtown, Pa., whose great beers we drank practically all December long, in between Jersey brews) had reached an agreement under which it would brew PH under the label Baltic Thunder, with some alterations here and there to the recipe, if we’re not mistaken.

A sneak peak
Tom was able to dole out a taste of the heir to PH as the finale to a talk he gave on the maltiness of beer last fall at Tria Fermentation School in Philly. If you were one of the 30 or so lucky folks there that evening, you can attest to the richness of PH’s progeny. (If you’ve never been to a Tria session, and you like to not just drink beer, but talk beer and gain a better understanding of the chorus of flavors that entice and wow you, then sign up for a Tria session. It’s fun and informative, and comes with great pretzels from Sansom Street, excellent cheeses and warm hosts and great speakers.)

Storm clouds are gathering. Listen to the thunder. It’s hammer time again.

What they (Victory brewers) say:
Truly a worldly beer. Baltic Thunder represents the Baltic Porter style admirably. Exhibiting the enticing, toffee roast of the British porter that originated the style in the 18th century, and the soothing, subtle fruit nuance of contemporary brews that flourish from Helsinki to Vilnius today, this dark lager honors the Baltic god of thunder. Created by an inspired collaboration of brewers and tempered with a touch of turmoil, Baltic Thunder rolls on to bring you enchanting light as the darkness fades.

Hops: European whole flower. Malts: imported German 2 row and roasted malts. ABV: 8.5%

The way you knew it:
A dark and mysterious, subtle, Baltic porter, a style difficult to find outside of the Baltics. PH's grain bill consisted of ample amounts of Munich malt with some chocolate and other specialty malts and Roman beans, fermented with a Bavarian lager yeast. Lew Bryson called it a collision of doublebock and imperial stout. 8% ABV