Never has a man in a skirt looked so comfortable in his surroundings.

Such is the case for Joe Fisher, the utilikilt-wearing, craft-beer brewing owner of Hackettstown's newest soon-to-open business, Man Skirt Brewing. Located at the intersection of Main Street and Grand Avenue, Fisher opened the vault on a foreclosed building more than a year ago that once housed a bank to do something entirely different.

"I was looking into real estate in Hackettstown for a couple of years, really getting serious about the idea," Fisher said from behind the row of tap levers. "And this building, which I loved, was just way too expensive. I came back to it some time later and saw it was in foreclosure, and I jumped on it." And so the process of starting his own microbrewery began, not so much to grow a business, rather to share his love of the craft with the masses.

From Can to Craft At some point in the 1990s, Fisher's lips and taste buds were graced by a non-macro brewed beer. Guinness in a can, to be exact.

"I loved the flavor," he said. "That still holds a special place in my heart."

Like many microbrew beer lovers, Fisher's palate expanded with each taste, as he sought out different flavors, from ale to porter and every lager in between.

"Around 2007 I got the idea that I wanted to start making my own beer," Fisher said. "It started with a pot on a stove and some buckets and hoses. My wife said to do it in the basement, and it really just snowballed from there." Over the years Fisher's brews burgeoned, as he tried out different styles and spices. According to the brewmaster himself, Fisher has only made one bad batch of the 80 he's produced.

