When Activist Groups Run Out of Things to Do......

Mothers Against Drinking is.... oh, I'm sorry, Mothers Against Drunk Driving is upset at Flying Fish Brewery in Cherry Hill, NJ for naming beers after NJ freeway exits:

It is acceptable to name your alcoholic beverage after a moving vehicle so long as a car isn't the vehicle in question; e.g. Night Train Express wine and Warbird beer (How about Thunderbird? - Ed). In fact, it's frowned upon to give alcohol a name that can even be associated with cars. New Jersey craft brewer Flying Fish has attracted the attention of MADD, the NJ Turnpike Authority (NJTA), and the press for breaking the taboo with its line of beers named after exits on the New Jersey Turnpike.

The Exit 4 American Trippel was the first in the "big beer" series -- they come in 750-ml bottles -- part of "a multi-year brewing experiment to brew a series of beers as diverse as the great state of New Jersey." Exit 11, a Hoppy American Wheat Ale, will be coming later this month and is "a tribute to Woodbridge's exit, where the Turnpike meets the Garden State Parkway." Which must taste delicious...

MADD feels that "The combination of a roadway and advertising for any kind of a beer doesn't make any kind of sense." The NJTA wants to make sure no one thinks it's turned into a brewer. To address both issues each bottle of flying fish includes a disclaimer, "The New Jersey Turnpike Authority has no affiliation with the Exit Series. Both the Turnpike Authority and Flying Fish agree that you should never drink and drive." That hasn't quite quelled the controversy, but it does tell people two things they should already know.

(Photo by Mike Derer, AP)