Culture

4 Beer Related Activities You Can Do in the Fall

By: John Couchoud |September 4, 2019

Summer is over. Football is here, Halloween candy and costumes are out on the store shelves, and stores are already stocked with fall beers. This doesn’t have to be a time of mourning for all that summer was. The barbecues, beach trips, pool parties, and other warm weather events may be coming to an end, but there are still plenty of good times to be had. Here are 4 beer related activities that you can do in the fall.

Attend a Beer Festival

Fall is the perfect time to attend a beer fest. The cooler air makes it more comfortable to drink outside and breweries tend to bring more seasonal offerings to give you a taste of something different than the summer festivals offer. We are looking forward to a few festivals this fall including the Glassboro Beer Festival on 9/28, and Witch-Craft, a “Mystical Encounter with Broos and Spirits” at Lake Lenape Park in Mays Landing on 10/19. Witch-Craft is brought to you by the same organizers of the Atlantic City Beer & Music Festival. Oktoberfest season is also nearly upon us and you should start seeing a bunch of these pop up all over South Jersey and the surrounding area soon. Stay tuned for the details.

Drink Your Summer Stash of IPA’s While They are Still Fresh

IPA’s ruled the Summer releases and, if you are anything like us here at SJBS, you want to try them all. This usually leads to a refrigerator full of random beers that are sitting there screaming at you “DRINK ME”. This is great advice as most brewers will tell you that IPA’s taste best fresh and should be consumed as soon as possible. In as little as 3 weeks the hops can fall off and the beer will tend to turn more malty or caramel flavored – definitely not the profile of an IPA or what the brewer had intended. You might want to consider drain-pouring anything older than 90 days (or giving them to your non beer savvy guests).

Do a Beer Tour

Fall/Winter is the perfect time to do a multi-brewery beer tour here in South Jersey as the craziness of summer is over. Kids are back in school, summer homes are closed up, and local breweries are not as busy as they were during the height of the season. Smaller crowds usually afford the brewery staff the time to actually talk to you about their beer. You also get to drink your samples in a more relaxed environment. Overall, a better experience for both the brewery and their patrons. Looking to go on a brew tour? Check out our tour schedule here.

Learn To Home Brew

So you have caught the craft beer bug and you want to learn how to brew beer at home but have no idea where to start. You could start by reading the bible of home brewing, but there are also plenty of local home brew shops and clubs in the area that can help get you started. According to our friend Tara Nurin of Forbes Magazine (and John’s Co-host on What’s On Tap), more than 40 home brew shops have closed in 2019 across the United States and the trend is not showing any sign of stopping. Home brewers made the craft beer industry what it is today. It would not be crazy to say that almost every professional brewer, including 99% of all South Jersey brewers, got his or her start by brewing beer at home. Look up your local home brew club or stop in and see our friends at Fermented in Hammonton, or Eastern Homebrew in Northfield and see if that brewing bug is ready to bite you.