Name: Lumberjack Sap
Brewing Company: Readington Brewery and Hop Farm
Location: Neshanic Station, NJ
Style: Dark Ale
ABV: 7.1%
An interesting, fun beer from one of New Jersey’s newest breweries.
From Readington Brewery’s Instagram post for the beer:
Ale created entirely with sap tapped from the maple trees on our property.
When a brewery opens up less than 2 miles from your front door, that’s a good thing. What’s even better is that each time I’ve visited and sampled the beer at Readington Breweryand Hop Farm, I can taste improvement. They’ve had traditional styles like Pilsners, Dunkelweizens, and IPAs, but the brewery has also had some playfully crafty styles like this beer made with Maple Syrup.
The beer I’m given looks like maple syrup, which is not a shock. There’s a slight maple aroma, again, that’s expected.
First sip is a delight. There’s a nice malty element, but the maple is the most prominent flavor component. I’ve had issues with some beers that feature maple syrup, some have been far too overpowering and cloying or even an unpleasant sour taste. This beer, Lumberjack Sap, has a wonderful balance. The maple flavor is omnipresent, but not over dominant, if that makes sense. Through and through, this is a beer.
I really like how the sweetness from the maple sap plays with the carbonation. It is pleasant and makes you to keep drinking more, and that’s important. Of course the “wants to make you keep drinking it” is important. Also important is the fact that, carbonation is a main characteristic of beer and the carbonation here proves that yes, this is indeed a beer.
If I can level any criticism at the beer is that it felt a little thin on the body. For 7.1% ABV, I’d expect the beer to have a bit more thickness to it.
This beer is called a “Dark Ale,” which is a rather wide descriptor. It isn’t a stout by any means, nor is it a porter. It isn’t hoppy enough to be considered a Black IPA or Cascadian Ale. Regardless of what this beer style is, the flavors are delicious.
I’ve had Readington Brewery’s Pilsner, Dubbel and others and they’ve all been quite tasty. This beer is unique and interesting and the kind of one-off / small batch beer that makes visiting a brewery so much fun. You’ll likely always find something interesting like this beer and I hope to enjoy fun one-offs (as well as many other beers on their tap list) like this in future visits to Readington Brewery and Hop Farm.
Recommended, link to 4 bottle cap untappd rating check in.
The Tap Takeover 