Author: bcasse

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OFF FLAVOR

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This past Saturday, I took a sensory training class called “Off Flavor,” put on by my good friend Os Cruz from HeySmartBeerDude.com and Vito Forte of The Copper Mine Pub. Off flavors are something that are experienced in beers quite often, in certain cases it is tolerable but there are extreme cases that completely ruin the beers we drink, this short class is the ideal way to learn to identify them.

With everyone going for Cicerone certifications and becoming beer judges lately, Os Cruz, saw an opportunity to aid people in their studies by hosting this class to help people along during their studying process. Since I am going for my certified beer server in a few months I thought it would be a great way to learn something and grab some new content for the blog. Continue reading “OFF FLAVOR”

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TRAP ROCK BREWERY & RESTAURANT


We don’t have many brew pubs here in New Jersey 10 to be the exact number and yet I feel they are over looked as a source for good food and great beer. Brew pubs live in the shadows of big breweries under the radar turning out some of the most interesting and freshest beer around. Over the next few months we are going to visit our local brew pubs here in NJ and we are going to kick things off with Trap Rock Brewery & restaurant in Berkley Heights. Continue reading “TRAP ROCK BREWERY & RESTAURANT”

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SMUTTYNOSE BREWING COMPANY NOONAN


Can you remember the first time you had a black IPA? I know I remember mine and being a little obsessed with the idea at first. Here you have a black, roasty beer with the hop profile of a traditional American IPA. Visually, my mind could barely wrap around the idea of a “Black IPA”, but my palate sure could. Upon looking up some facts about the Black IPA style I came across a fellow by the name of Greg Noonan and a little story about one of the first craft breweries here in the US. Long story short (you can read the story below) Greg Noonan and fellow brewer Glenn Walter created this magnificent recipe in 1994 and set a trend for the Black IPA today. It seems every brewery is making their version but only one is paying homage to it’s creator –  Smuttynose Brewing Company from Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Continue reading “SMUTTYNOSE BREWING COMPANY NOONAN”

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HANGER 24 BREWING COMPANY

Our friend from the distant state of California Johnson Liv sent me this awesome flick he put together for Crave Online. It’s a neat piece interviewing founder and brew master of Hanger 24 Brewery, Ben Cook. What I really like about this film is the incorporation of the aviation theme that compliments Hanger 24’s story very well. Enjoy the film as it takes you from from a plane ride around Redlands California to every aspect of Hanger 24’s facility. It’s most certainly not a film to miss.

-Brian

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KANE BREWING COMPANY AT THE CLOVERLEAF


Tap take overs are awesome, usually we see them from some of our more premier craft breweries here in the US but there are times when our own local breweries pull out all the stops and bring out some of the breweries best concoctions. Tuesday night brought us to Cloverleaf Tavern for seventeen taps of Kane Brewing. Kane, a young brewery, has been opened a little more then a year and they sure have been making waves with the beer drinkers of New Jersey. Making every thing from hopped up IPA’s to imperial stouts, and barrel aged Belgians. Michael Kane brought out some of his staples and a lot of rarities that brought drinkers from all over the state. Continue reading “KANE BREWING COMPANY AT THE CLOVERLEAF”