So it’s becoming a slight tradition that if I tag along on one of Andrew’s race weekends, it’s gonna be a mini beerventure. Hey, I can be a supportive girlfriend sometimes. With incentives. So, because of good planning on my part, we needed to head down to West Windsor, NJ to pick up Andrew’s bib on Friday before the Sunday New Jersey State Triathlon. We decided to make the drive worth our while and visited two new breweries.
Flounder Brewing Co. (Hillsborough, NJ)
The first brewery we checked out was Flounder Brewing Co. This had been on my list since our first trip down this way in Jersey but it wasn’t until recently that they had consistent hours. Since we were still a half hour away from the park and it we were cutting it close timewise, we decided to split a flight of four. We ordered the Milkshake, Genevieve IPA, Sourlands Wheat, and Saison du Flounder. The Milkshake was actually the Genevieve IPA on Nitro which made it interesting to compare. We typically love nitros for stouts and porters because the creaminess enhances the flavor, but for IPAs you lose the bitterness of the hops. We found the same true of the Milkshake but rather enjoyed the CO2 version. The Sourlands definitely grew on me as I drank it. At first I felt it was bitter but there were floral undertones that were nice to finish. I enjoyed the Saison the most, it was a clean and crisp saison. Which I definitely needed in the brewery.
Flounder Brewery definitely qualifies as a microbrewery. The tasting area had two tables (about 10 seats total) and was smack dab in the middle of the brewing equipment. We guesstimate that it was a 5 barrel system with lots going on in the fermentors. When we visited it was about 90 degrees outside and felt warmer in the brewery. They had one industrial sized fan trying to cool down the bar but I was still sweating. Despite this, we enjoyed talking and drinking beer.
A cool side note is that Flounder was the winner of the National Brewing and Business Experienceship Award from Samuel Adams which we figure is a kind of internship/mentoring experience that ended with a collaboration brew with Sam Adams. Pretty cool for a small, young brewery!
Triumph Brewing Company (Princeton, NJ)
After stopping at the race course, we headed to Triumph Brewing Company for some more drinks and dinner. Princeton itself kind of reminded us of New Haven with its cute old town vibe. We finally found parking and were surprised at the size of the brewpub. It had three floors and a double decker brewhouse. We were told the wait for our table was 15 minutes so we headed to the bar to grab a some pints. Andrew ordered the Oatmeal Cream Porter and I got the Witbier. We are pleased to report that both were very true to style and delicious. Andrew even questioned if the porter was on nitro because it was so rich and creamy.
We are typically hesitant to visit brewpubs, especially chains (Triumph’s other location is in New Hope, PA) because the beer and atmosphere can feel very generic and standardized. But Triumph had lots of character. They must be doing things right, the place was packed! We meant to get a flight, but after finishing our pints and dinner (pretzels, chicken and fish and chips) we were stuffed and just wanted to go to bed. I guess that’s how we know we’re getting old!
So now we’re taking it easy, and then after Andrew’s race the beerventures will continue!
