Cape May Brewing Company
TRP post courtesy of our East Coast Affiliate, Nick:
I first visited Cape May Brewing Company in September of 2011. It is located in an industrial park near the Cape May Airport and it’s run by two friends and one of their dads. The two of them had been homebrewing for a while, but their commercial endeavor just got legs in 2011.
It has an unassuming entrance and so I wasn’t sure what to expect when I walked through the door and into their garage-ish set up. Inside I found a very welcoming atmosphere. There were several other people there in the midst of a small tour, so I joined up and did a tasting afterwards. That day they had brewed a honey porter using locally produced honey. I couldn’t remember trying a beer with honey as a major ingredient so I knew that I would have to come back and try it when it was ready.
When I went back in December I was pleased to see that there were more people than the first visit. A few other things had changed too. First, they had a bunch of articles written about them on the walls (although sadly no blog posts from yours truly). So it’s clear that they are getting some good press in South Jersey. Second, they had more people coming in to buy take-out growlers. And third, they were discussing plans of expanding to the space next door.
They would like to maintain their current space as a dedicated tasting room and move the brewing operations next door. The impetus for this expansion of course is increased demand including the fact that their Cape May IPA is now available at several restaurants and bars in Cape May County.
During my two visits I’ve tried their IPA, a Dunkelweizen, a Wheat, a Stout, and the Honey Porter. The Stout is extremely well done and is going to be worth another visit the next time I’m in town. There aren’t too many craft brewers operating in South Jersey, so I’m excited to see what growth they go through in the next few months.
