Name: Flying Fish Brewing Company
Location: Greentree, NJ
Type: Production brewery
Available in DC Market: Yes
What you need to know: The oldest of about 25 craft breweries in New Jersey, Flying Fish was formed in April of 1995, and in August of 1995 it became the first microbrewery to have a web presence. Flying Fish is particularly proud of that fact and last year celebrated fifteen years of being on the Internet. They are perhaps most well known for their Exit series, which has produced a number of well-received beers in a variety of styles. The series is an homage to the famed (or infamous) New Jersey Turnpike, and the brewery will produce a beer that represents each of the exits on the Turnpike. The most recent beer, the Exit 9, is a Hoppy Scarlet Ale in honor of Rutgers University.
Beer #1: Abbey Dubbel
Notes: The Abbey Dubbel won a silver medal at GABF in 2008. Flying Fish describes the beer as a “classic-style Abbey beer [that] features an immense head with a fruity nose and a generous body. Malty in the middle, the beer features a clean, almondy dry finish and a slight alcohol warmth. More like a wine than a beer—it has a lot of the qualities of a fine Burgundy.” At only 7%, this is on the lighter side for a Dubbel. That almondy note in the finish of the beer will no doubt pair extremely well with the richness of the croque monsieur that this beer is paired with.
Beer Advocate: B (197 reviews)
Rate Beer: 84 overall, 76 style
Beer #2: Exit 4
Notes: The first release in the Exit Series was Exit 4, an American-style tripel. This beer also won the 2011 Washington Post Beer Madness competition. It received a gold medal at the 2009 GABF in the American-Belgo style ale category. It has a pretty traditional tripel malt base with pils and wheat malts, but adds in natural brown sugar in place of Belgian candi sugar. The hop bill is all-American though with Cascade, Simcoe, Amarillo, and Palisades. An extraordinarily tasty beer, this one pairs well with a variety of foods and also hides its formidable 9.5% alcohol well.
Beer Advocate: B+ (159 reviews)
Rate Beer: 94 overall, 92 style
Summary: I’m from New Jersey, so I’m partial to Flying Fish. Their regular offerings don’t do much for me, to be completely honest, but I haven’t been let down yet by any of the Exit Series beers. Definitely stop by and try the Exit 4 no matter what, and if you’re a dubbel fan, go for the abbey as well. Also, think twice next time you make a New Jersey Turnpike Joke; that roadway is inspiring a hell of a beer series, folks.
This profile is a part of the DCBEER.COM SAVOR Brewery Profile series. For more information, follow the link to see profiles of all 2011 SAVOR participants.
Beer Review Disclaimer: The beer reviews found on Beer Advocate and Rate Beer do not represent the opinions of this site. We provide these in the hope that they will serve as a resource showing what some craft beer fans have thought of the beers. These reviews can be a helpful guideline, but are not the be-all end-all about a beer’s strengths or weaknesses.
