What's good in NJ?

If you go to new brunswick also add Old Bay to this list. All four of these new brunswick places are in close distance, and it really just does depend on taplists if that's what you are looking for. For food I love stuff yer face.

 

Where AND when are you going to be when you come visit? It'll help us give you better suggestions.

 

I keep forgetting about Old Bay. It's good I just never go to it. Hate how it's set up.

 

Keep it simple: cans of Boat Beer make great souvenirs.

 

I pretty much agree with what everyone's posted. My opinion is if you want to be impressed by jersey local beer then you have to either make it to Kane or Carton (both are a great time) or find them on tap somewhere. You can find Carton Boat beer in cans but Kane doesn't have any bottles available right now. Not sure when your last trip was but both breweries are probably in more bars in the Morristown area now. For bottles shopping, I'd use seekabrew and head over to Liquor Outlet in Boonton...probably 15-20 mins from Madison.

 

There is a Gary's in Madison that has a decent beer selection. You also have the huge bottle king in Livingston and the Wine Library in Springfield. No need to go all the way up to Boonton. Like others have said, you won't find much that isn't available in your home state. On tap, the best NJ has to offer is Kane and Carton. There are some restaurants/bars in that area that may have some of their offerings. Check beermenus.com and see what is close to you. You can probably find Carton 077xx which is a great DIPA, maybe carton Rickey (cherry lime sour), monkey chased the weisel (interesting beer), Kane head high (IPA) and Kane overhead (DIPA).

 

High Point is also an excellent brewery. Always a fan of the Ship Inn.

 

I live in the town over. This is an absolute dead zone for craft. Best craft bar you'll find nearby is the Stirling Hotel about 15-20 min away. Gary's in Madison is alright but most of their hoppy stuff is unrefrigerated and dated. I just get the new releases when I go there since the store's freshness is a question mark. Wine Library in Springfield is generally better because they refrigerate all their hoppy stuff. You're better off taking the direct train to NYC if you want a craft beer of any sort because they're certainly not around the Madison/Chatham area, which is home to just wine lovers it seems. Madison/Chatham both VERY boring towns but both are desirable to live in due to no crime and easy NYC commute.

You won't find any rare bottles in any of the stores here due to population density. For example, Wine Library is imposing a one per person limit for something as basic as Stone Enjoy By. Even something fairly common like that is kept in the back for request-only due to the density. It's pretty ridiculous how little craft beer options there are for the amount of people in this county specifically. I wish I had the capital to open a new craft beer bar or shop because there is absolutely a demand for it here. Hopefully someone realizes that soon.

And yeah, if you want to visit a brewery head an hour or so south to Carton and Kane. Kane only open Fri and Sat so plan ahead. They are both world class quality though. I heard good things about Cape May Brewing too if you are heading significantly south. I wouldn't bother with Flying Fish unless you see one of their Exit series fresh, which is hard to find