'No pants, just great beer' in Hackettstown

Joe Fisher loves his beer, and now that his Man Skirt Brewery is soon opening at the former site of a bank — complete with a walk-in vault — he has a safe place to store it.

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"I'm thinking the vault might become a tasting room when we open," said Fisher, 39, a Staten Island native now living in Lebanon.

Last week, he brought Man Skirt growlers filled with American Red Ale and Abbey Double to the Main Street location in Hackettstown, which remains in a state of limbo, waiting for approval to start construction.

"The vision is ready," he said. "I'm just waiting." Fisher hoped to open Man Skirt Brewing — "No pants, just great beer" is the slogan outside the brewery — in December, but is still waiting for the proper permit approvals to move forward. In the meantime, the residents walk by the bank, see the sign and wait with bated breath and empty glasses.

"The town has been tremendously supportive. There's a good buzz about this place," Fisher said. "It's been exciting seeing people out on the town wearing my shirt."

Fisher said he plans to sell his beer at local bars and include menus of places that will deliver food right to the high top tables he plans to set up in the brewery since he cannot legally sell food on site.

"I look forward to getting the community involved and working with local businesses. I'm already getting all of my hops from the nearby Bentley B hop farm."

Fisher's planned seven-barrel system will allow him to rotate three beers at a time to start and he plans to be on site to hear what his customer base enjoys most.

"I love talking shop. It feels personal," Fisher said. "I never get offended when someone doesn't like my beer. I tell them we'll find them a beer they like."

Fisher said so far the brewing community has been very welcoming to Man Skirt.

"There are no egos," Fisher said. "They want everyone to succeed. It's a very inclusive community."

Fisher also plans to run the brewing operation as green as possible, using 100 percent electric — no gas or flames — with solar panels on the roof, as well as trading ingredients through Local Share NJ.

But legally, Fisher can't even brew on site yet. He's still working out of his basement where he's created more than 100 original Man Skirt beers over the past half-decade.

"I rarely make the same thing twice," said Fisher, who first began homebrewing in 2008.

"I just wanted to know how to make beer," he said. "My wife said, 'you clean up the basement and you can do it there.' Soon I was making 25 gallon batches."

Within months, he had purchased kegs and had four to seven rotating taps in his basement.

"I made an absurd amount of beer for a homebrewer," Fisher said. "And I drink a lot of beer, but you can only drink so much if you want to fit into the kilts."

The name, Man Skirt Brewery, came from the utili-kilts, American utility kilts, he began wearing with his friends during Celtic reenactments.

"I'm just not a fan of pants. The kilt became a part of my identity," Fisher said of his beer's namesake. "Eventually I started wearing it to parties and in my basement. So the name came from there. I was worried it might be too weird at first but everybody remembers it."

Fisher said it won't be a job requirement, but brewery employees will be "strongly encouraged" to don a man skirt.

Currently a computer programmer at Picatinny Arsenal, Fisher made the decision to open up a brewery in 2010. He hopes to transition to running Man Skirt full-time once the brewery officially opens.

"I love where I work and I love the people, but I was ready to leave the office," Fisher said. "People say don't turn your hobby into a job, but so far I love it. Even the cleaning, which is like 75 percent of a brew day."

In 2012, Governor Christie signed laws allowing brewers to sell beer on site, and Fisher began actively looking at real estate options.

His search started and ended in Hackettstown.

"Two years of solid real estate searching and this bank showed up in November of 2013 after going into foreclosure," Fisher said. "We won the auction for $350,000 — only about $5,000 more than I planned — and got the place."

As soon as Fisher bought the 144 Main Street location, formerly the United Jersey Bank and the People's Bank of New Jersey, he applied for the necessary licenses.

He has his Brewer's Notice, but still needs his license to brew and state manufacturer's license, which is pending an inspection. But he cannot have an inspection before the town approves his permits and plans.

"No matter how hard I work, I'm still at the mercy of other people," Fisher said. "It's frustrating that I can only do so much right now, because I'm driven."

But significant progress was made this week. An architect recently submitted new plans and Fisher picked up his approved permits from the town on Monday.

Now his equipment can go into the brewery and construction can begin.

"And there isn't much construction to do," he said. "Things will roll quickly now. After construction, since we already have the equipment, it's really just piping and inspections."

If all moves as it should, Fisher estimates he will be brewing on site by late April or early May, with Man Skirt's long-delayed grand opening coming in June.

In the meantime, people can track progress and purchase merchandise at http://manskirtbrewing.com/.

Fisher is also looking for help funding the tasting room and offers rewards for those who donate through a Kickstarter campaign. People will get to name fermenters, get deposit boxes in the vault and even brew a batch of beer.

Fisher has raised nearly $20,000 with more than half a month still to go in the campaign.

Go to https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1381697436/tasting-room-at-man-skirt-brewing to learn more or donate.

Staff Writer Michael Izzo: 973-428-6636; mizzo@dailyrecord.com

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