Welcome to the Garden State Craft Brewers Guild Newsletter for December 2009 — keeping you posted on what’s brewing in New Jersey.

Ramstein Winter Wheat gets Kudos from Gourmet Magazine

Ramstein Winter Wheat, rated by Gourmet Magazine as one of the 8 Greatest Winter Beers is now available on draft and in bottles in NJ, NY, and PA.

High Point brews up a homebrewer contest with the Office Beer Bar & Grill of NJ. The judging will be on Dec. 8 and Dec. 12. Details on Facebook and office-beerbar.com. Among the prizes, winner gets to brew at High Point and have the beer served at all Office locations.

High Point’s final open house for 2009 will be on December 12 from 2-4pm. Featuring Ramstein Winter Wheat, Golden Lager, Amber Lager and Classic Dunkel. Visit their website for details.

Flying Fish Still Looking for Input for Next Exit Series Beers

The question is not just “What exit are you from?” it’s now “What beer goes with what exit and why?” As Flying Fish ramps up production of its next round of Exit Series beers they’re looking for your input. A historical brewery near you? Interesting bit of history? Some strange bit of New Jersey weirdness? Send it on at the exitseries.com website.

Iron Hill Maple Shade Hosting Beer Dinner/Pairing

Iron Hill Brewery in Maple Shade will be hosting a December Beer Dinner on the 2nd, including five courses, and five different beers paired exquisitely. It will be $60 a person, including tax and gratuity. Reservations are required. Call (856) 273-0300 for more information.

Basil T’s Offers YouTube Video Tour

Gretchen Schmidhausler is the brewmaster at Basil T’s in Red Bank. Watch as she peels back the mystery when she leads you on a YouTube video brewery tour. See where all the magic happens.

Gaslight Hosting Annual Victorian Christmas Dinner

It’s time again for the Gaslight Brewery Victorian Christmas Dinner. The event takes place Wednesday, December 9th at 6:30 PM. This is a seven course dinner with beverages selected to compliment the cuisine. Call (973) 762-7077 for more information.

Ring in the New Year at the Ship Inn

The Ship Inn welcomes back Joey D from 6-8:30 PM to celebrate the turning of the New Year in London at 7 PM. Dinner is served through the regular hours. The late night, bringing in the New Year features the Loose Screws from 10 PM -1 AM.

On New Years Day the Millstone River Morrismen bring their country folk dancing to The Ship Inn. Call (908) 995-0188 for more information.

Triumph Barrel Tappings Continue

Join Triumph Brewing Company every month when the brewer drags up a barrel out of his secret stash. The supply is very limited (about ten gallons), so make sure to be on hand when the tap is hammered home.

This month’s tappings:
Princeton – Barrel Aged Scotch Ale Wednesday, December 2 at 6pm
Philadelphia – Dunkelweizen Thursday, December 3 at 6pm
New Hope – Winter Brunch Friday, December 4 at 6pm

December Events

The Garden State Craft Brewers Guild website is continuously updated with new events. Check out the calendar to see what’s brewing in New Jersey this month.