August 26, 2016
As a child, I hated pork roll (it's not Taylor ham, you North Jersey heathens), but grew to love it as I got older. As a young adult, the taste of beer was bitter at first, but grew familiar and comforting over time.
Using that timeline as a frame of reference, it should only be a matter of time before I fall in love with Camden County-based Flying Fish Brewery's new Pork Roll Porter. Right?
The beer maker announced Thursday it's introducing three new brews for its 20th anniversary. The beers, which will have limited releases, are the Exit 5 Sour Forage Beer (brewed with pine needles, wintergreen and goldenrod), the Exit 14 Imperial Pilsner (has a whopping 8.5 percent BAC) and the Exit 7 Pork Roll Porter.
The beer celebrates New Jersey's "quintessential breakfast meat." Here's how Flying Fish describes it:
This deliciously dark brown caramel porter is enhanced by the addition of pork roll and spices in the brew kettle. The aroma features notes (sic) of cocoa, with hints of maple and smoke from the peat-smoked barley. The flavor showcases characters of chocolate, maple, toasted nuts and a bit of spice from the pork roll.
Sounds ... pretty good, actually? Assuming the pork roll taste isn't overwhelming to the point that it's like gulping the grease leftover from the pan, the combination of sweet flavors with the hint of pork roll spice sounds solid.
Flying Fish will introduce all three brews at a taste-testing event that's open to the public at 4 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 1, at their headquarters in Somerdale.
