USA, NJ: Esker Hart Artisan Ales to open in Hunterdon on May 4

After nearly a year without a brewery, a new “heartbeat of High Bridge” is set to open in the wooded Hunterdon County borough, MyCentralJersey.com reported on April 16.

Esker Hart Artisan Ales will open May 4 at 20 Main St., the former home of Highrail Brewing Company.

“Everyone is extremely excited to start coming because they told me this brewery has been the heartbeat of High Bridge,” said owner and brewer Bob D’Angelo. “They’re waiting for that heartbeat to come back.”

Esker Hart Artisan Ales will be open 4 to 9 p.m. Fridays, noon to 9 p.m. Saturdays, and noon to 6 p.m. Sundays. Later this year, it will also have Thursday hours.

Inside the rustic-yet-contemporary 1,800-square-foot space, up to 45 visitors can sit on sleek leather chairs next to live edge, reclaimed wood tables. The forest-themed space will feature a preserved moss wall, as well as black and tan walls. Alternative rock hits from the 2000s will play on the speakers, with songs from bands like My Chemical Romance, Taking Back Sunday and Circa Survive.

The vibe will match the beers cans’ new labels, which D’Angelo described as “rustic meets '50s parlor meets film noir.” D’Angelo majored in fine arts and specialized in photography and graphic design before he became a brewer.

Esker Hart Artisan Ales will have six beers on tap at opening, including a pub ale, a sour ale, an American lager, a double IPA and an American stout.

However, don’t expect many of the former Esker Hart Artisan Ales beers, which were previously sold at liquor stores throughout the country, to make it to the brewery.

“I’m trying to start off on a fresh slate and separate what was homebrew and what this will be,” said D’Angelo. “I don’t want to tie myself to a lot of what I’ve done in the past, so I’ll pick and choose just a few of them to continue.”

Even though many Esker Hart Artisan Ales beers will be new, D’Angelo’s brewing philosophy is the same: to create high-quality representations of classic and modern beer styles.

That’s what D’Angelo has done since he started the decade-old business, which will have its first brick-and-mortar home with the High Bridge opening.

D’Angelo’s trail to beer began 10 years ago when a friend asked him if he wanted to try homebrewing. He did – and enjoyed it so much that he headed to a Niagara College to get a degree in brewing.

After receiving his diploma and returning to New Jersey, the Hampton resident worked at Kean Brewing in Ocean before Twelve Percent Beer Project began scaling up Esker Hart’s recipes and selling its beers in stores throughout the country in 2022.

What's with the name? An esker is a long and narrow gravel pathway typically flowing uphill. The driveway to D’Angelo’s former home on Hart Drive — which is where he grew up and where he began homebrewing — was gravel and led uphill.

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