Cape May Brewing, Cape May, NJ  9/20/13
http://capemaybrewery.com/

Cape May Brewing is located in a small industrial park and could easily be missed but is worth searching out. This was my second visit to the brewery. The first was shortly after they opened and were experiencing some growing pains. Upon arrival it was clear they had worked out the kinks. The tasting room is very inviting and beckons one to kick back, relax and enjoy. The tasting room is comfortable with large picnic tables to sit at or you can pull up a stool at the tasting bar. They had a nice crowd for a Friday afternoon at 2:30pm and several people were filling growlers for take home.

A taster round includes 4 4oz pours, a tour and a souvenir pint glass. You can taste an additional 4 4oz pours for only $5 more. There were 8 beers to choose from this time around compared to just 3 on tap the first time I visited. There was also a house brewed root beer for the nondrinkers. The staff is friendly and knowledgeable as well.

First up….
Dunkelweizen  (a  dark wheat – 4.7%) – Lots of caramilization going on that compliments the roasted malts perfectly. It’s a very clean, smooth and refreshing beer. They nailed the style.

Alt Bier (amber – 5.0%) – Fizzy was the first word that popped into my head after the initial sip. It seemed to calm down some by the third or fourth sip. Beautiful amber color with a slight greenish head which made me think I would be tasting some hops but really didn’t; it did however have a slight flowery taste to it. It didn’t knock my socks off but still a very drinkable beer.

Devils Reach  (Belgium strong ale 8.0%) – Oh this is a lovely sipping beer. It’s creamy with light citrus flavors accented with hints of coriander and banana. Very smooth and goes down easily. Love this beer. Even my non beer drinker companions enjoyed trying this beer and were pleasantly surprised by the cornucopia of flavors it had going on.

Honey Porter   (made with local honey 5.1%) – This is a very nice porter with a rich dark body and light creamy head. The honey was a nice compliment to the roasted/charred malts, coffee and nutty chocolate flavors of this beer but was not overwhelming with honey sweetness. If I didn’t know this beer was made with honey I would have sat there racking my brain as to what the accent flavor was.

A very nice afternoon at Cape May Brewing and I look forward to trying future offerings from them. They were out of the Hitching Post Bourbon Stout and I most certainly need to try that.