Flying Fish Exit 16

They call New Jersey "The Garden State". Others have some choice nicknames for this oft ragged-upon melting-pot, and I call it home.

The irony of "The Garden State" is the outsider's perception, which tends to stray far from the lush green fertile lands the title implies. I'm told the state does output a noteworthy volume of produce, and I know there are some rural spans, but really... that sort of thing isn't going on where I live. The scene by me is a dense suburban commercial haven, a destination for shoppers and restaurant-goers while home to thousands of New York City commuters.

Our commuters traverse a complex system of highways, bridges, and tunnels through our beautiful marshlands, scenic woodlands, and a mechanized industrial utopia. The central pipeline for the commuters' carnival? That, my friends, is a 122 mile stretch of rubber-scorched asphalt called the New Jersey Turnpike. 

Honoring our great home state, Flying Fish, New Jersey's largest craft brewer, offers the "Exit Series", each named after a different exit on the Turnpike. In the brewer's own words:

The Exit Series of beers is a multi-year brewing experiment to brew a series of beers as diverse as the great state of New Jersey. These big beers–in size as well as flavor–will celebrate each exit of the state-long artery that connects us. Each beer will focus on a unique aspect of an individual exit.

Writing about New Jersey beer is a tricky business, as this place is rarely a haven for beer lovers; perhaps that's why I reserve my thoughts for the best this state has to offer. Proudly, the Exit Series is something worth writing about. 

Of Risk and Reward

Let's face it, Flying Fish hadn't been putting out the kind of beer that garners national attention. No knock on this wildly successful (at least for New Jersey) brewery, but prior to this Exit Series, most of their beer has been  - I hate to say it - rather ho hum. And then it all changed...

It was about a year ago, in the spring of 2009 when the first of this series was released: Exit 4 - American Trippel. New Jersey folk and craft beer fans alike welcomed the concept with open arms, and the beer was really quite impressive. The brewery was even crowd sourcing ideas on their website. Then, the summer brought about Exit 11 - Hoppy American Wheat. A little more intense in the hops department, word spread like wildfire; Flying Fish had a certifiable hit on its hands.  

All the press surrounding the campaign unfortunately caught the attention of Mothers Against Drunk Driving. That summer they publicly condemned the project, implying that it encouraged drinking and driving. This wasn't quite the press the brewery was looking for, but it was press nonetheless. Flying Fish acknowledged the response, reiterating the importance of drinking responsibly, and ultimately decided to roll on with the series; they did so with the autumn release of their Exit 1 - Bayshore Oyster Stout, brewed with real Oysters. As far as I was concerned the series was getting better with each release. Better yet, I was waiting for a solid roasty stout from Flying Fish, and this one delivered. With Exit 1 I was officially on board. 

Now we've got another exciting beer to talk about: Exit 16 - Wild Rice Double IPA. Released March 15, here are some of the brewery notes: 

Although usually identified with landfills and pipelines, the Hackensack Meadowlands is an amazingly diverse ecosystem providing vital animal and plant habitat. In a nod to a once common food plant here, we've brewed this beer with wild rice. We also added organic brown and white rice, as well as pils and pale malts.

Experience

I took these tasting notes before I read the brewer's write up, but certainly their descriptors are more accurate. While taste is personal, I'm also still working on my palate and ability to pick up some of the subtler notes - so my eternal disclaimer reads: try it for yourself, see what you think.

Appearance: Hazy, pale golden-yellow with bright white head, nice lacing.

Aroma: Powerful hops, subtle funk/skunk, grapefruit/apricot (?) backbone.

Mouthfeel: Bubbly, surprisingly full body for such a pale ale. Pleasantly surprised.

Taste/finish: Hops, hops, hops! Up front, mid palate, and finish, all hops. Great bitterness, solid grapefruity resiny goodness. Interesting familiar background in the finish, I suspect the rice comes into play - I feel like I've been here in a lager before [with the dry finish], but the hops reminds me I'm somewhere special.  

Overall this is a nice surprise from Flying Fish. Often underwhelmed by their everyday brews I've been enjoying their exit series, and this may be one of the best. I find this to be the most intense of the four brews released so far.

Now here are the brewery tasting notes to supplement mine: 

Rice helps the beer ferment dry to better showcase the five different hops we added. Lots and lots of them. We then dry-hopped this Double IPA with even more-generous additions of Chinook and Citra hops to create a nose that hints at tangerine, mango, papaya and pine. This beer pairs extremely well with spicy foods and all kinds of seafood. And of course, it's quite enjoyable all by itself.

Having looked those suggestions over, the tropical citrus notes make a ton of sense, but are also not as common to me as some of the flavors I picked out. I enjoy tasting 'blind' without influence of other tasting notes, as I find that it helps my palette-in-training. 

Final Thoughts

If there's a single word to describe the progression of the Exit Series from Flying Fish, it is "crescendo". These folks have proven beer after beer that the Exit Series is the real deal, getting better with each brew. This is the kind of aggressive push I've been waiting for from a New Jersey brewery, and I hope this sparks a flame under the rears of the others sitting idly by. 

From the Braveheart-esque battle speeches of Cricket Hill's Rick Reed to the bold Brewer's Reserve releases of River Horse, New Jersey is screaming at the top of its lungs for some attention in the winner's circle. But I've got word for you Garden State, being good isn't good enough anymore; if you really want to be heard, start putting your biggest, boldest brews forward. Look toward the best if you want to BE the best, and stop brewing these middle-of-the-road easy drinkers, trying to win over the non-beer-geeks. Brew for your fans, ask your people what they want, and for God's sake deliver! This is what Flying Fish has finally done for us. 

Let's face reality, New Jersey has a weak beer scene. We're not going to win over the meatheads that drive to Belmar for their $5 buckets of Miller by brewing the New Jersey Lager (sorry to pick on you Cricket Hill, I still love ya!), never mind the rest of the country. If you blaze a trail with artisan brewing, you will have support group to push the product. That's what I'm all about - and so are the #BrewYork circle of NY/NJ bloggers on Twitter and Facebook. If you brew it, they will come. 

So thank you very much Flying Fish, and congratulations - you've nailed it. 

America - 8.2% ABV

Flying Fish [website]

Wild Rice Double IPA