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Lager-loving locals and ale aficionados near and far love Czig Meister Brewing Co.

Sep 19, 2022 02:56PM ● By Jillian Risberg

Czig Meister Biergarten with sign

Matthew Czigler has crafted his life with passion and purpose and he wouldn't have it any other way.

Matt Czigler

 His Czig Meister Brewing Co. is chock full of beautiful beers brewed to old-world classic perfection.  

And you get that vibe there too; since the brewery is housed in a 1900s-era Hackettstown historical carriage house. They repurposed much of the original building, including black-iron piping, red bricks and wood planks.

While remodeling, they noticed painted walls of the tasting room were salvaged from similar vintage bricks from the recently demolished Bergen Tool factory building across the street to build-out their tasting room bar.

Since opening — the Czigler family has embraced this community by becoming active members of the Hackettstown BID, Mt. Olive Chamber of Commerce and they tirelessly worked to keep the brewery running and all staff members (22) employed during the pandemic.

“This has led to many successful events including other local businesses and brought more people to town to continue a thriving Hackettstown and surrounding area,” says brewmaster Czigler. 

They sell core styles, three rotating series monthly and 15 seasonal styles, barrel aged beers and three natural flavor hard seltzers, plus special pilot batches only sold at the tap room.

And they pump out 3000 barrels (93,000 gallons) of beer on a 15 barrel brew system; that’s roughly 750,000 cans. 

Their brewing process is manual; Czig’s brewers turn every valve, move every grain bag and keg by hand.

With its 15-barrel brewhouse, the brewery produces 3,000 barrels, or 93,000 gallons of beer (roughly 750,000 cans). 

“We create and master many styles of beer. If you come in and say you don’t like beer, you have not tried the right one for you yet,” Czigler says most breweries specialize in four to six beers. “What makes us different is our large variety so people can experience all the beer has to offer.”

Soak it all in and uncover the beer that speaks to you.

The brewmaster’s hand-crafted beers never go unnoticed.

Teku and flight

 Czigler was awarded a Gold for Barrel Aged Imperial Stout at the Great American Beer Festival while working at Kane Brewing Company and Czig Meister cleaned up at this year's New York International Beer Competition.

“We’re glad to see our hard work pay off, and many people enjoying the beers we love most,” says the brewmaster. “We also walked away with New Jersey's Ale Brewery of the Year and New Jersey's Hard Seltzer Brewery of the Year.”

2022 Winners:

Huntsman/German-style Kolsch (Bronze); Falconer/American Pale Ale (Gold); Shipwright/American India Pale Ale (Gold); Deep Sea Series/American India Pale Ale (Silver); Habonde/ Bourbon Barrel Aged Barleywine (Bronze); Seonaidh/Bourbon Barrel Aged Scotch Wee Heavy (Bronze); Tangerine CZeltzer/Hard Seltzer (Gold) and Strawberry CZeltzer/Hard Seltzer (Silver).

Recipe formulation is an art.

“Over time you learn how the hops, grains, yeast and spices work together,” Czigler says.

When making a new beer the brewmaster and head brewer Dustin Sallitt combine their years of knowledge to find the next best recipe.

The past six years Czig has created more than 500, many done for special events like Stout Fest, Imperial Fest and CZeltzerfest.

Their first was Prospector Amber Ale 2016. 

Czigler says the brewery provides beer for many local festivals, including Donaldson Farms Food truck Festival, Lafayette Village Garlic Fest and the brewery’s yearly Anniversary party, 90’s Block Party and town-wide Hackettstown Oktoberfest (Sept 24-25).  

If he doesn’t have a Czig beer in hand, the brewmaster’s favorite drinks are dark rum and whiskey.

“And depending on the style of beer I pair with the many great local restaurants in Hackettstown,” he says. 

It all started when Czigler began to home brew as a hobby and family embraced his change from a potential career in medicine to open his own brewery — and the rest is history.

“Owning a business is different from what I would have thought, since you get your hands in all parts — sales, tap room, self-distribution and the community,” he says. “The brewing part is exactly as I thought it would be.”

Quality Control tasting is a big part of Czigler’s role, starting at 8am.

And the brewmaster is a triple threat: with degrees in microbiology, biochemistry and molecular/cellular biology from the University of Maine. Czigler then earned a Master Brewer certificate from Siebel Institute and Doemens Academy in Munich, Germany.

He honed his brewing skills at Adirondack Pub and Brewery, then continued as head brewer at Kane. With a solid foundation in hand, he was ready to take Czig Meister on the brewery scene by storm. 

What’s next on tap for the Cziglers?

“Great beer, more awards,” says the brewmaster. “You may have seen our new look hit the shelves over the past few months — check out our rebranding everywhere you get your Czig Meister products.”

According to Czigler, about a quarter of the beer they brew is sold in their tap room -- with liquor stores, restaurants and bars across the state selling the rest. 

“If you can’t find us locally, we home deliver to your door,” he says. “Place your order on czigmeisterbrewing.com.”

Want to know more, visit Instagram: www.instagram.com/czigmeister and Facebook: www.facebook.com/CzigMeister.