By Tony Iocono

Welcome to the Brew Review on Jersey Beer Guys, pause for effect, The Website. This will be a reoccurring monthly segment where I highlight the best beer I drank in a certain month. I am not going to attribute a rating of the beer within the article, but the main point is going to try to highlight the beer and the brewery that makes it.  I am going to try to keep it to the local Greater Philadelphia and New Jersey area but occasionally a beer from outside our local area may be so transcendent that it makes an appearance.

(in alphabetical order by brewery)

Brewery: Chimney Rustic Ales

Where: Hammonton, NJ

Beer Name: Phantasmic Voyage

Beer Style: India Pale Ale – Imperial/Double

ABV: 7.6%

Background and Tasting Notes: Phantasmic Voyage is true to its name; a cosmic sojourn of swirling citrus and bright melon with a rounded, creamy finish without any added lactose. Phantasmic Voyage has everything you want in an IPA, it has a blast of dankness and a solid but inoffensive hop profile that highlights the best flavors of any great IPA. I would put this beer in the New England IPA category and after having some Tree House from Massachusetts this month, I can honestly say Phantasmic Voyage was either as good or better than every Tree House NEIPA I tried this month.  Phantasmic Voyage also delivered on something I rarely do, I had two full pours of it. Sometimes as you drink an IPA or heavily hopped beer, the hop burn becomes evident on your pallet as you drink it. After, two full pours, that was not the case. I could’ve even gone for a third pour if I was not driving. This would be a no-brainer everyday beer and honestly a true toss up between Chimney’s 43% Burnt Vanilla Porter. (Great Dillinger Escape Plan reference)

Brewery: Dr. Brewlittle’s Beer Company

Where: Maple Shade, NJ

Beer Name: Timtern

Beer Style: Baltic Porter

ABV: 8%

Background and Tasting Notes: Owner Jack from Dr. Brewlittle’s is one of my favorite people. He has a passion for craft beer that comes off through his brewery. Normally, my millennial heart would’ve stopped me from ordering this beer, but Jersey Beer Guy Rob suggested that I get this beer. He is an expert on all things Dr. Brewlittle’s, so I obliged.  Baltic Porters are not a go-to style of beer for me. Per my untappd (follow me on untappd @TonyIocono) history, I have only checked in two Baltic Porters ever. This was not only the best Baltic Porter I have ever drunk but one of the best Porters. This beer was the biggest surprise of the month. I like dark beers, but I do not necessarily love them. The beer was robust and full of malty goodness yet not heavy. The main flavor was roasted malts and a hint of tobacco in the best way possible. After drinking about half of this beer, I gazed up at the tap list and realized this beer came in at 8%. A true part of the wizardry of craft beer is being able to hide the ABV behind the depth of flavors. This beer delivered on taste without being boozy.

Bonus: Listen to the upcoming Jersey Beer Guys episode with Ark Brewery. The Timtern beer gets talked about, mainly the person (Tim) who brewed it.

Brewery: Gusto Brewing Company

Where: Cape May, NJ

Beer Name: Disco Flip

Beer Style: India Pale Ale – Imperial/Double – West Coast

ABV: 8.5%

Background and Tasting Notes: I first drank this during the podcast with Gusto and I am pretty sure you can hear me moan just slightly. And it was just the tip…of the iceberg with this beer. My quote on the podcast was “if this was every West Coast IPA, the New England IPAs would never have been a style.” West Coast IPAs are not a go-to style. It seemed for a while the move was to make everything unbearable hoppy and see how many IBU (International Bitterness Units) they could pack into a beer. It was a pallet wrecker and soiled any other beer (or food) you would follow it with. Enter Disco Flip, a true to style, a hoppy and dank with a great body and citrus and tropical flavors aplomb. There was no heavy bitterness or overly strong negative flavors that sometimes hamper the West Coast style. This is a style that has faded due to the rise of New England style IPAs. However, this is the best version of West Coast Style and I would love to see Gusto or anyone try a session version of this for all day use. When the citrus and hops act so harmoniously it is a thing of beauty.

Brewery: Slack Tide Brewing Company

Where: Clermont, NJ

Beer Name: Head Shake – Peach

Beer Style: India Pale Ale – Milkshake

ABV: 7.1%

Background and Tasting Notes: Slack Tide is one of my favorite breweries and they are criminally underrated because they put out at least one delicious beer in every style. The first iteration of Head Shake was a pineapple version and it was my top beer of 2019. It tasted like a Dole Whip in beer form. Blasts your tastes bud with vanilla and pineapple without being cloying or too milky from the lactose. The younger sibling of the Head Shake Pineapple is not much different. The Peach version also attacks your taste buds with a heavy stone fruit tartness and a creamy finish. The vanilla is not as pronounced as in the Pineapple version but is still there akin to a Haagen Dazs Peach ice cream. The peach lends a sweet but not overpowering essence. I hope Slack Tide keeps making more beers in this series.

Brewery: 7Mile Brewery

Where: Rio Grande, NJ

Beer Name: Just Juice

Beer Style: India Pale Ale – New England/Hazy

ABV: 7%

Background and Tasting Notes: I had this beer on tap at the Haddon Township PJ Whelian’s. Yeah, I know this is the 4^th IPA on this list, but I like what I like. Just Juice is an interesting beer. The name screams that this is going to be a juice bomb but comes in as an oddly poundable 7% beer that I could drink all day. It is a softer tasting IPA than the look of it gives. The notes of overripe mango linger on your tongue but doesn’t stay too long. It was right down the middle with a nice blend of hoppiness and citrus. This is a beer I would introduce to someone who has never had an IPA to. None of the taste is too strong yet packs enough taste to bring back for more. The picture below has beautiful lacing around the glass. I kicked the keg at PJ’s so 7Mile is doing beer correctly far away from home.