Champage Wishes: Fire Island Beer Company Launches Lighthouse Ale, The First Craft beer From ‘The Other New York’

Fire Island Beer Company is very excited to announce the launch of Lighthouse Ale, the first official offering from the craft brewers headquartered in Fire Island, NY. And Whom You Know is very excited to try it! You will see a review on the product later-this is our announcement of it. Peachy Deegan decided to go with shot of Bailey's in her morning coffee with eggs and bacon and save the beer for later in the day... The American style ale will be the first of several unique craft beer recipe styles inspired by the experience of Fire Island.

Lighthouse Ale is the handiwork of two brothers and a cousin who developed their taste for craft beer and home brewing during the summers they spent on Fire Island, the naturally beautiful and very colorful barrier island just off of Long Island’s south shore. The ultra-relaxed island has attracted families, partiers, weekend beach-goers and outdoor sports lovers for generations, yet it refuses to allow cars, pretention and the frantic pace common to NY-metro area culture. This led the Fire Island Beer Company founders to coin it “The Other New York”, a concept they find very refreshing.

“We really wanted to make a beer that captured the laidback spirit and awesome character that you find on Fire Island, and Lighthouse Ale is that beer,” said Jeff Glassman, President and Marketing Director for Fire Island Beer Company. “After many years spent perfecting the recipe and sharing our beer with the community on Fire Island, we couldn’t be more thrilled to share it with the world.”

Co-founder and Head Beer Maestro, Tom Fernandez added, “The story of Lighthouse Ale begins at The Shack. It was a super casual lunch counter and bar in between the bay and the ocean in Atlantique Beach and we ran it during the summers when we were younger. It didn’t matter if you were a local, a surfer, a fishermen or a weekender…everybody gathered there and shared stories and laughs over a few beers. It was full of really easygoing people with a ton of character, just like Fire Island itself, so the vibe there was awesome. We always wanted to craft a beer that fit in there, so we started brewing Lighthouse Ale.”

Lighthouse Ale is a delicious golden to amber American style ale that is the product of four types of malts and three varieties of domestic hops. It is brewed to have a soft carbonation and light caramel finish that make it easy to drink, yet it has the toasty round body of a sturdy American ale to give it real substance. Truly easygoing with a lot of character, or as Fernandez likes to say, “…the kind of beer you want to have a beer with.”

What started many years ago as a basement home brewing experiment has grown into a meticulously crafted and well-received beer. Tom Fernandez and his brother Bert, Co-Founder and Account Manager, did not want to risk the recipe’s integrity in order to share it with a wider audience, so they enlisted some expert industry help from the Olde Saratoga Brewing Company (www.oldesaratogabrew.com) to bring their inaugural batches to life.

"Olde Saratoga has always supported the spirit of craft brewing,” said Paul McErlean, Head Brewer at Olde Saratoga Brewing Company. “When Fire Island came to us it was an exciting opportunity because we've never worked with a true home brew recipe before. The final product is outstanding and we are really happy to partner with these brewers as they share Lighthouse Ale with the world. From taste, to ingredients to marketing, they seem to be doing it all right."

To share Fire Island Lighthouse Ale with the people, the group has partnered with distribution heavyweight Manhattan Beer (www.manhattanbeer.com). As the largest single market beer distributor in the U.S., Manhattan’s Craft and Micro Division will be responsible for selling the new brand into target on and off-premise accounts in Long Island, Manhattan and Southern Westchester during its first year.

To help create a unique look and feel for Lighthouse Ale, Fire Island Beer Company turned to local branding and design boutique rocketdog (www.rocketdognyc.com). The innovative branding features original artwork and copy that will anchor all packaging, point of sale materials and digital applications for the beer company and its first offering. One way the brand will share its spirit is through the use six separate ‘stories’ that can be found randomly on the rear labels of its bottles. Each will communicate something different about The Other New York and the mindset found there. For example:

“If you ever visit Fire Island, you’ll

need to remember a few things

while you’re here. First, cars aren’t

allowed on the island so learn to

pack lightly. Second, respect the deer.

They run this island. Third, renters

take note: Never leave your trash sitting

outside before Sunday. (Trust us.) And

finally, grab a Lighthouse Ale, sip and

repeat. Life isn’t that complicated here

in The Other New York.”


“When we started Fire Island Beer Company we set out with one mission: To create world-class craft beers that are inspired by the color, character and the delicious experience of Fire Island. This is our first big step in realizing that mission,” said Glassman. “We are all about good times and great beer…and this is just the beginning.”

Lighthouse Ale is available in single 12oz bottles, 6-packs and 15.5 gallon kegs and is available to ship immediately.


Visit Fire Island Beer Company at www.fireislandbeer.com