N
WHAT’S BREWING: Bodi Blonde is a citrusy blonde ale of barley,
wheat and corn brewed with organic flaked coconut (6.5 percent ).
Boom! Roasted (named for The
Office lead character Michael Scott’s
saying) is a smoky porter brewed with
Hoboken’s Kubrick roasted coffee
blend (6.2 percent).
WHERE TO DRINK IT: Various
festivals, competitions and other craft
beer events. In pre-revenue, Hoboken
Brewing is nearing mass production
and distribution channels for kegs and
six-pack cans.
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FALL 2015 (201) GOLD COAST
WHAT’S BREWING: LBIPA (floral with notes of citrus, 7 percent
ABV), portion of the proceeds from the beer benefit the Alliance for a
Living Ocean; 1787 Abbey Single Ale (Old World Belgian style, 4.8
percent ); Hudson Pale Ale (a bright hoppy nose with a smooth,
refreshing finish, 5.8 percent ); Garden State Stout (full-bodied
chocolate stout, 6.6 percent ); Weehawken Wee Heavy
(malty Scottish ale with notes of caramel,
9 percent ABV).
WHERE TO DRINK IT: More than
166 retail and consumption locations
throughout New Jersey carry New Jersey
Beer Co. beers. The brewery’s tasting
room, located at 4201 Tonnelle Ave. in
North Bergen, is open 5-9 p.m. most
Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights
and 1-6 p.m Saturdays.
COURTESY OF THE BUSINESSES
I
n 2007, Brendan Drury took on home brewing as an afterwork stress reliever to keep his mind off his day job as a
stockbroker. It began to consume him – to the point where
high finance took a back door to crafting beer.
“As time progressed, my love for brewing and the challenges
that came with it snowballed,” Drury says. “My entire department was laid off in 2011 and I knew it was a sign to transition
careers.”
So, Drury, as head brewer, brought on fellow craft-beer lover
Andrew Zebrowski, a sales specialist, and they both staked a
50 percent claim in the inception of Hoboken Brewing Co.
They have been renting brew space – which has been open for
viewing by potential investors since August – while honing their
recipes and developing a comprehensive business plan.
Their flagship, Bodi Blonde, will be the first beer they roll out
in mass production, in six-pack cans and for draft lines.
“It’s a sessionable blonde ale, with California hops and yeast
giving it a nice citrus note and aroma, and then we run the beer
over organic coconut flakes,” Drury says. “I originally made it as
a joke as I thought Bodhi (Patrick Swayze’s character) from
Point Break would love that beer as his favorite. We quickly took
it to events and won all of them.” (Bodhi was shortened to Bodi
because they feared the “h” was confusing).
“What we’ve come to realize as the craft-beer world has
refined itself over the last 5 to 7 years is that as long as you love
your product and have the right intentions, there is no wrong
way [to run a brewery],” Drury says. “I welcome all brands to
the market, as long as their goal is the same as ours. Make good
beer for good people.”
orth Bergen-based New Jersey Beer Co. hit the scene
10 years ago modestly, first premiering at Iron Monkey in
Jersey City. Today, they are brewing with the force of the
winds of Superstorm Sandy, with a capacity for 3,000 barrels
annually with room to grow. The brewery’s craft beer can be
found in more than 150 locations throughout New Jersey on tap
in bars and regularly at special events, and in bottles on liquorstore shelves. And if you can’t find its beer, you can head to the
Tonnelle Avenue brewery’s tasting room, four days a week, to
get your fill.
“We want to grow, but stay small enough to control our quality and know our customers,” Paul Silverman, chairman of New
Jersey Beer Co., says.
“We are all about New
Jersey. Our brewers,
our chairman, our
manager, our tasting
room staff, our salesperson and our
investors are all born
and raised here. So we
plan to sell only in
New Jersey. Maybe
someday, New York,
Connecticut or
Pennsylvania.”
The devotion to
New Jersey is evident
in each beer’s name.
Five in all, they pay
homage to all things
Jersey. “We often get
suggestions for names from friends, but we like to say that
the recipe comes first and then we talk about the names,”
Silverman says. “We like to have a New Jersey tie-in for names.”