Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
Moonlight Brewing ended 2024 (or started 2025) strong with a winter pils. “A nod to our classic Reality Czeck Style Pilsner and the Czech holiday tradition of higher gravity beer. 14° P Special clocks in at 6.7% ABV with extra special hops, grains and all the mouth watering deliciousness of a Moonlight Pilsner with a little
extra to keep you warm and fuzzy.”
When the San Diego Beer News makes a recommendation, I tend to listen. And listening is the key word as there were two recent podcasts highlighted….
I found I Like Beer in my Overcast app and you can check out the Beer for Breakfast show HERE.
Today I have three links where various and sundry beer folks smarter than I talk about what they expect to see in the coming year. The first two are in podcast form and the final is the written word.
What will or won’t come true is up for our future selves to figure out.
I am not one for Best of the Year lists, more of a in the moment person so I am grateful for outlets like Hop Culture that go in on the whole look back at a whole year thing. You can read their list HERE but first a visit to the Yakima Valley and one of the breweries on the list, The Outskirts Brewing Co.
We start the flight off with an award winning pale ale….
Canyon Crusher Pale Ale – “Light, crisp American pale with notes of Citrus and tropical fruit cup. Too aromatic to be a traditional pale, but too crushable to be a traditional IPA. Hits right in the middle in the perfect way. This recipe won 1st place pale at the 2023 Fresh Hop Ale Fest and People’s Choice at Public House Pre-Harvest Party.”
Barn Raiser NW IPA – “Our flagship IPA. Big notes of Pine, Citrus and Dank (cannabis). Great beer for the IPA fan. Still very clean, but with the extra kick an IPA drinker is looking for.”
My Oh My IPA – “We hit a home run with this one, just in time for baseball season. Go M’s! A clean and clear IPA with huge aromatic notes of berry, pineapple and tropical fruit. Medium body, with a sweet (but not malty) backbone and low bitterness.”
Starting tonight, Native Son craft beer bar in Downtown L.A. is having friendly contests. Each Thursday is a Thirsty Thursday with two breweries going head-to-head.
The first duel is between ISM Brewing and There Does Not Exist. And the rest of the bracket is similarly stacked.
Sierra Nevada will be going agricultural with their upcoming new Estate Series Heirloom Landbier that will be brewed with 100% homegrown purple Egyptian barley. This new 4.8% lager will come in 16.9oz bottles so quite different from the current can culture.
Firestone Walker has a heads up on a future beer release. Wandering Don a West Coast IPA brewed in collaboration with Colorado’s Odell Brewing has been unveiled as the official beer of what is now being called the FWBC Beer Fest which will be happening in Paso Robles on May 31st of this year.
Topa Topa will be canning up some 19.2oz beer this year but the Good Good Hazy Series of 19.2s won’t be flagship IPA or a high alcohol DIPA but instead “four staggered releases of hazy single and double IPAs each made in partnership with select 1% for the Planet non-profits…”
The first will be “a 7.2% hazy IPA in partnership with Heal the Ocean, a Santa Barbara-based non-profit that focuses on combatting ocean pollution that is caused by wastewater and ocean dumping. Heal the Ocean and Topa Topa will celebrate the launch by hosting beach cleanups in Ventura and Santa Barbara in late February…”
Now I have no beef with Dry January or Sober October or N/A May or whatever. I do find it funny that the second Friday in January is Quitting Friday, as in quitting your resolutions.
I would suggest reading this blog post from the Beervana blog. You can also read THIS from the Brewers Association I would add that if your local pub or brewery taproom has food options. Why don’t you go and get some food. Any good craft beer spot usually has soda on offer or if you really want to stay healthy then just get water or hop sparkle water. And usually this month sees some barrel-aged or darker beers, so buy a 4-pack and save if for February. Or if you are easily tempted, buy a gift card so that you can get a future beer.
My better half asked me before 2024 finished up its run if I had any resolutions for 2025 and I cheekily responded that I would try to be less great this year to give others a chance.
When it comes to craft beer, I do not really have resolutions either just what I call mindfulness.
With that in mind, here is what I will be paying attention to this year…