LI Craft Breweries: enjoyable can labels create buzz

Sand City Brewing Co., which opened its first brewery and taproom in Northport in 2015, has earned a loyal following for its hoppy IPAs. One of these beers has achieved cult standing for utilizing giant quantities of Centennial, Mosaic, Citra, and Galaxy hops, and in addition for its cheeky title – Oops! I Hopped My Pants – and a particular label that includes a classic Volkswagen bus.

The beer’s recognition led to the creation of Sand City’s annual Oops! Fest, which will likely be held this fall for the eleventh yr in a row. The competition, held at Sand City South in Lindenhurst, will function hoppy beers from different native breweries and particular variants of Oops! akin to Oops! I Mangoed My Pants and Oops! I Doubled My Pants. 

Forties Brewing Company, which opened its brewery and taproom in Holbrook in 2016, added capability in 2020 to increase manufacturing, together with extra canning for retail distribution. Founder Charlie Becker and his oldest son, Charles Becker II, who was then a brewer at Forties, got here up with the thought to call a beer after certainly one of their favourite motion pictures, Happy Gilmore.

“We decided on the name Just Tap It In for our hazy New England IPA and I asked my younger son Joseph, who is a graphic designer, to design a fun label for the cans,” stated Becker. “The beer has been our biggest seller in distribution outside the brewery since we introduced it over five years ago. The labels definitely help but it’s also important that you have a great beer to go with it.”

Becker got here up with the title for one more fashionable beer, Change at Jamaica, a sturdy Black IPA made with Simcoe hops. “I spent many years going into and out of Manhattan on the LIRR and wanted to pay tribute to all the workers who make the trains run, and Joseph designed a great label with a cartoon of a train and LIRR map.”  

Jones Beach Brewing Co., which was based in 2017 and opened its taproom in Point Lookout in 2025, has been a pacesetter in growing distinctive makes use of for its can labels, together with personal labels for Stan’s Sports Bar within the Bronx and St. John’s Red Storm. 

“We were the first brewery to put a tide chart and the first to put golf course scorecards on our labels,” stated Chris Mills, a cofounder and president of Jones Beach. Jones Beach launched its first canned beer, Jones Inlet IPA, in 2022, with a tide chart for the inlet, which on the time was badly in want of dredging. 

The first golf course scorecard label was launched on Long Island with the canning of Plandome Country Club’s Plandome Pilsner, and might scorecards at the moment are in use at 17 programs throughout the Northeast. “We’re proud to work with great partners to raise funds for worthwhile causes,” stated Mills; a portion of proceeds from the golf course labels are donated to Athletes Against Cancer. 

Many of Jones Beach’s beer names and art work deal with landmarks on the state park, together with West End Watermelon, Pencil Pilsner, and Bathhouse Blonde. For this yr’s Fourth of July airshow at Jones Beach, the brewery created a particular label commemorating the Blue Angels U.S. 250th anniversary air present. 

Lunchbox Brewing Company, which opened in Bellmore in 2024, has used dozens of popular culture references for its beer names and labels. Matt Campion, a cofounder of the brewery, stated, “One of our objectives this year was to expand off-premise distribution and so we’ve focused on making our branding and can labels stand out.”

Campion stated he and the brewery’s different three cofounders hold a operating checklist of concepts for beer names and art work with inspiration from motion pictures, TV reveals, and video video games. “Sometimes we think of the name first and come up with a beer style to match it and other times we have a beer and decide on a name that fits.”  

To title the brewery’s flagship IPA, the founders selected the well-known quote from Jaws – Captain, “You’re gonna need a bigger boat.”  For design work, they turned to Taste Design’s proprietor Kevin Fegan and artist Siobhan Mullen. “The relationship is especially meaningful since they’re regulars at the brewery and understood our vision from the beginning.”

For one other latest beer, the title got here first, from the film The Big Lebowski — “That rug really tied the room together.”

“We decided a West Coast IPA was the perfect beer style to fit the vibe of the movie,” stated Campion. Other enjoyable names have included Not My Gumdrop Buttons, an imperial pastry stout impressed by Shrek, and Ready Player 21, an American Pilsner named after a hockey online game, launched in collaboration with former Islander Kyle Palmieri and his basis.  

Bernie Kilkelly is the editor and writer of LIBeerGuide.com.