With winery tours well established (click “Wine Trails” at newjerseywines.com), Shore and Pineland breweries and distilleries are catching up. A trail is essentially just a map that can be followed in any order. Enlist your favorite designated driver with promises of scenic roads and local attractions, and head out:
• Surf & Sip Brew Trail Run by the Southern Ocean County Chamber of Commerce, this choose-your-own itinerary includes breweries as well as summery stops such as the Surf Museum at Tuckerton Seaport and Jetty Apparel in Manahawkin. Click on “Brew Trail” at southernoceanmade.com for a list of places to pick up your attractions map.
• Wine & Ale Trail Pineland buffs will revel in the agricultural landscapes around Hammonton in visiting the seven wineries and three breweries listed at visitsouthjersey.com/the-wine-ale-trail-of-south-jersey. Two of the breweries (Three 3’s and Tomfoolery) are in Hammonton, and the third (Berlin) is in Berlin. Driving point to point can be done in a couple of hours, but don’t rush. Give yourself a day or two to take it all in.
• Atlantic County Brewery & Distillery Trail Three 3’s and Tomfoolery are among five breweries and a brewpub on a map at atlantic-county.org/tourism/brewery-trail.asp. The map includes two distilleries, Lazy Eye in Richland and Little Water in Atlantic City. The Kafkalas family’s Lazy Eye has won awards for its grape vodka and grappa-like rakii.
• Jersey Shore Craft Beer Tour Climb into a van departing from and returning to the Hampton Inn in Neptune and give your designated driver a break. Tours are $75; reserve in advance at jerseyshorecraftbeertour.com/book-online. “We want people to come try what the Shore tastes like,” says founder Dan Cooper.