Ludlam Island Brewery

Over the past 2 years Ludlam has become one of my regular brewery stops in the area. It's located in an industrial area not far from Route 9 in Cape May County, NJ. There are both indoor and outdoor seating areas. It's informal but the local patrons are friendly, as is the staff. I've engaged in some lively conversations about beer with patrons from South Jersey and Pennsylvania. he beer ranges from okay to quite good and has improved dramatically. They sell cans, as well as growler fills. To me, Ludlam is now near or at the level of Slack Tide.

 

Very IPA friendly, awesome location. Love the charging ports under the bar, the slightly industrial vibe, the clear visibility into the brewhouse. Their beers are amazing and anything DDH they have is typically one of the best at the shore.

 

 

Probably the smallest brewery I have ever been in -- seating for perhaps 14 people, max. Solid beers, too many IPAs on tap for the limited amount of handles available.

My wife and I visited Ludlam twice while we stayed nearby at a campsite. Very small but impressive. We didn't learn of the upstairs area until we were ready to leave but still a tight squeeze at the bar. Check it out if you can. My only complaint was that nothing topped 7% ABV. Copper Hat is listed on their website at 7.5% but when we arrived it was 6.7%. Not really disappointing but would love to see a solid heavy hitter in there along with the lower, more sessionable beers.