Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
I am sure everyone has encountered the issue of being at a taproom of a brewery and getting a bit peckish, only to discover that the food truck cancelled or is running late.
One way to get around that problem is to bring food in house which is what Angel City Brewery has done with a new food truck – House Made by Angel City. It promises “craft-beer-worthy bites out of a trailer situated in our brewery’s parking lot…”
Next time in DTLA, you might want to check it out.
Each year Firestone Walker finds a partner and concocts their own Festbier and the style has run the beer gamut. Now we know this years beer is….
“Trailing West is this year’s Firestone Walker Invitational Beer Festival signature, collaborative release. A limited-edition pilsner made with our friends at Half Acre Beer, the recipe pairs a decoction mash of an Austrian barley variety over 100 years old with old-world Hersbrucker and Hallertaur Mittelfruh hops.”
Here in Glendale we used to have an old school hardware store named Virgils. They had a little bit of everything and people who actually helped and because the store wasn’t a mammoth, you could actually find those helpful people.
Alas Virgils got priced out. Somewhat luckily a new Ace, sensing a market, opened up and I wandered in to see what they had. And what did I see but rack of spices and rubs for BBQ. Some in a familiar can shape…
…apparently under the Spiceology banner is Derek Wolf BBQ Rubs and some that are beer “flavored”. Don’t know how beer-y these are or if they are any good overall but might be a fun host gift for summer backyard BBQs.
Sorry for putting that song into your head but it had to be done for the collaborative beer from Beachwood Brewing and North Park Beer Co.
Santa Monica Brew Works always has a big weekend crowd on their large patio. People dart in to order and then return to the sun and their parties.
New to me was the traffic flow changes as the brewery and Emmy Squared Pizza expanded. Now there are two bars to order from, more interior seating and the noise level has been spread out.
Just the slight amount of extra space makes all the difference. And I really prefer the electronic signage of the beer list than the one that is used on the first bar. It allows for a bit mor creativity as well as just being cleaner and more clear to read.
And I also quite liked the Posh London Lager. Super low ABV at 4.1% but it was not a water bomb at all. There was a lovely malt note that filled you up while not filling you up.
One of the breweries that I am hyped about is ISM Brewing in Long Beach. I grabbed a couple in cans recently and it is review time.
Coastal Curves is the hopped up West Coast Pilsner and it pours a bright and bubbly yellow. Aroma is definitely hoppy. Getting a bit of Simcoe, I think. There is a bit of berry here. also a peppery note as well. Not super crisp but there is a minerality there that keeps this from veering into pale ale territory.
Sonic Substance a collaboration with Creature Comforts and it too pours a bubbly, vibrant yellow color. Getting a bit of a soft pine near a citrus grove feeling from this one. Not dank but not a fruit bomb either. Tastes heavier than the 6.66% listed ABV.
If forced to choose, I would go toward the pilsner. But it is a close race.
This month the theme is unique and hard to find and I have three that will test your mettle as both a beer shopper and a beer drinker.
Homage Brewing – The Flower Called Nowhere Barrel Aged Saison – 6% – “This marks the 5th blend of one of our favorite beers to make. A few years ago we conceptualized a Saison with delicate nuances of flowers. We trialed various flowers and settled upon Europe Rose for its soft and fragrant aroma, as well as Osmanthus, which has a unique fragrance of peach and apricot that compliments the stone fruit qualities of the wild yeast. Lastly, we added Chrysanthemum, which has a sweet, hay, and honey like quality that supports the aged hops in the beer, adding a rustic touch.”
New Belgium – Tart Lychee – 7.5% – ” sour ale brewed with lychee and a hint of cinnamon that combine to create a beautiful balance between sweet and tart.”
The Bruery – Cire – 18.9% – “Produced through painstaking care and attention from our Bruers, Cire is more than just a beer; it’s our Solera Blended Anniversary Old Ale. Blended from the best of the Bruery’s stock each year & aged in Buffalo Trace and Heaven Hill Bourbon barrels, Cire carries a deeply complex, layered flavor profile. The perfect way to commemorate 16 years of leadership in the industry.”
It’s been a bit since I have talked up Claremont Craft Ales but they have recently released their first New Zealand hopped beer….
If you haven’t visited their taproom, it is well worth the trip especially for a summer road trip.
The NFL draft and all its many rounds and players is done and now we wait for the season to start and to see which of the plethora of Quarterbacks taken in the Top 10 alone will fare. Which will play and show promise, which will hold the clipboard (or is it iPad now?) and which will pull a Zach Wilson and flame out real hard and get called out by his owner.
Bear in mind that the offensive coordinator and the receiving corps are integral to any QBs success and some of these passers will not get either and will be harder to grade because of it. Some will not be able to scale up to the speed of the NFL. And despite more and more mental and physical tests and all sorts of AI and computer modeling, no one is any closer to predicting success.
But I will go out on a limb and give a few guesses as to who will make a mark and who might have trouble….
Good Spots
Caleb Williams the No. 1 pick is walking into a team with two big wide receiver additions in Keenan Allen and Rome Odunze to go with DJ Moore and lowered expectations from past QBs make this a great spot to to land.
J.J. McCarthy in Minnesota also inherits a strong receiving and tight end corp and will not need to put the team on his back. Just needs to get that pigskin to the playmakers.
Drake Maye in New England is following some really mediocre quarterbacks so has a really low bar to clear for success and since the Patriots have a new coach and are clearly rebuilding this can be a learning year.
Bad Spots
Michael Penix in Atlanta. Why the Falcons selected any QB after backing up a Brinks truck for Kirk Cousins is way beyond me. Then the GM says that Penix will be groomed to take over wheb Cousins contract is done in FIVE YEARS.
Jayden Daniels is the new Commanders QB and I don’t know which direction the entire team is going so I fear Daniels will be running for his life.
For beer, see if you can find a brewery from each of those five cities or you can just go get Kansas City beer since Patrick Mahomes is the ne plus ultra of quarterbacks.
If I had to pick a state that The Bruery would add a location to, Idaho would not have made the list. But apparently, this summer (or thereabouts) there will be a Bruery in Boise.
I would have thought that anywhere in California might be easier, or Las Vegas but Idaho it apparently is.