Manafirkin Brewing Co, the Newest Firkin Brewery to hit LBI

May 22, 2017 newjerseyisntboring

There is no firkin way you won’t have a great time at LBI’s newest brewery, Manafirkin Brewing Co located in Manahawkin, NJ. The brewery opened to the public on May 20th, 2017, but I was lucky enough to attend the soft opening the day before.

I first met Todd Hunt, one of the co-owners of Manafirkin Brewing, at his donut shop Shore Good Donuts in Ship Bottom in May 2016. He told me during our visit that he and his two friends were opening up a brewery and I told him to keep me posted. Todd kept his word, and a year later almost to the date I was standing in their beautiful new brewery.

Todd and his wife Michelle and their friend’s Mick and Heather Committee have been friends for decades, and go on many family vacations together. Those vacations always included a trip to a local brewery. After a trip to a brewery in Florida they decided that they would love to open a brewery together…however they had no idea how to brew their own beer.

That’s where Don, the third co-owner of Manafirkin Brewing Co comes in. Don has been a homebrewer for years, and he and his wife Lisa welcomed the Hunts and the Committees over to learn how to brew. The rest is (after a long process of finding a location, getting permits etc etc) is history!

Walking into the brewery I was surprised to see that they already had 9 beers on tap, 7 of which are flagship beers. And yes, I tried all of them.

– Ice Tea PA; a pale ale brewed with black and pekoe tea flavors
– CobraKai PA; an IPA which has a great balance of hops and crystal mats
– East Bay Blonde; a golden ale perfect for the beach
– Kalsch Kolcsh; a traditional German beer named after their landlord
– Tabby Sesh; a light English Mild
– Wake the Firk Up; an Oatmeal Coffee Stout Brewed with Shore Good Donut’s coffee
– It’s Beach Saison; a beautiful saison that has added chocolate malt making it truly unique
– The Peace Pipe Porter; a smooth porter

Their Steeped Stupid Stout and their Cherry Poppin’ Porter were not ready yet for the soft opening…so I guess I’ll have to go back! I’m also curious what else they’ll brew up considering they have 20 taps to experiment with.

In addition to the beer being great, Manafirkin Brewing is definitely a brewery that likes to have fun. From their laid back beach attitude, to their selfie wall, to their Firkin puns…this is definitely a great new addition to the LBI region.