Author: Sean Inman

Posted on

23 Years is Old


Wow. Karl Strauss has been around for 23 years. That is amazing. And breweries do well with anniversaries. A lot of great beers are made for the yearly celebration. Like this one….

“The 23rd Anniversary Old Ale was aged for 12 months in American oak barrels and is the first Karl Strauss barrel-aged beer to be offered unblended. It’s loaded with complex layers of toffee, molasses, dried figs, and toasted oak. A pronounced warming bourbon flavor contributes to the beer’s 12.2% alcohol content—making this strong ale an ideal after dinner sipper or accompaniment to desserts like bread pudding. The company only bottled 413 cases of this beer, encouraging fans to enjoy one now and lay another down several years. “This beer is only going to get better with age,” says brewer Segura. “As time passes, the bourbon character will mellow and more of the dried fruit and vanilla flavors will come out.”

The 23rd Anniversary Old Ale will be available on tap at all six Karl Strauss Brewery Restaurants and select beer bars across Southern California, beginning February 2, 2012

Posted on

Portland Beer Trip – Part the First

Last weekend, I journeyed up to Portland. I brought some Golden Road Point the Way IPA and Hefeweizen for people and brought back some goodies for me. But in between those deliveries, I did this….

I found this wine and beer shop in Sellwood while picking up dinner next door. Great spot with a nice choice of bottles and (4) taps. I sampled the New Belgium / Elysian Trip XI which was odd but refreshing. I also spied this bottle in the middle.

I made my pilgrimage to Belmont Station as well but I also found another bottle shop with taps in the Mississippi district.

SO hard to choose from a small list!

I decided to go with the Good Life Pale Ale which was only OK in my book. Too hoppy to be a pale and heavy on the vegetal hop notes that are not my favorite at the moment. But it looked gorgeous in the glass.

I went by this “cart” twice but it was not open on either occasion.

Posted on

California Heights Market

The Bixby Knolls section of Long Beach has not only The Factory for craft beer but now I have learned there is a bottle shop in those whereabouts as well. California Heights Market can be the place to check out their beer collection.

You can never have a big enough arsenal of beer stores (especially in the vast and quite often traffic ridden expanses of the LA area) so I am happy there is another location that offers up the good stuff.

Posted on

Drinking with Mom – Eagle Rock Equinox

A new (occasional) feature on this here blog is what I’m calling “Drinking with Mom”. I will be sending beers to her in Portland and she will send some to me in Los Angeles. Or we will pick a beer we can both get and we will compare notes on the beer. The point being to get a different perspective on the craft beer revolution. One beer at a time. A little background. My mom is primarily a wine drinker with a particular soft spot for champagnes. When it comes to beer she prefers the porter/stout style. But not the imperial stout.

First up is Equinox from Eagle Rock Brewery.

It is a sour blonde ale with Brett yeast. Now this was a reach on my part. This is out of my mom’s comfort beer range for sure. Back in 2010, my review of the beer when it first came out was as follows, “pours really yellow. aroma is faint but a little fruity. sourness is minimal but the acid does leave its mark. very refreshing. one of my favorite sour ales so far because it doesn’t try to pucker your mouth into a grimace” I gave it a 3.7 out of 5.

My mom was “pleasantly surprised” despite not being a sour fan. She found it refreshing, easy to drink and effervescent. She appreciated the light touch on the sourness. She explained that it was similar in many respects to champagne. The Brett didn’t register as too big either because she didn’t even mention it. Maybe the cage and cork played into the wine aesthetic?

On a final note, my brother in law tasted as well and with he gave it a thumbs up too. So there you go, three different enthusiastic reviews! Check Eagle Rock’s taproom to see if any bottles are left of that or their second anniversary beer, Deuce.

Posted on

The return of the Winter colLAboration!


Here is the full info on the re-scheduled Winter colLAboration event.

“Winter ColLAboration is back on! The mobile craft beer garden (from the brains behind Tony’s Darts Away/Mohawk Bend/Golden Road Brewing, Verdugo Bar/Surly Goat, Blue Palms and 38 Degrees) will be revived in the form of a weather-proof, indoor late-winter wonderland on Sunday, February 26th at the Belasco Theater in Downtown L.A. – located conveniently near the Metro Blue Line. 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.

As previously planned, the garden will feature a selection of winter brews and favorites from: Anchor Steam, Avery, Bootleggers, Bruery, Beachwood, Cismontane, Dogfish Head , Eagle Rock Brewery, Eel River, Firestone Walker, Hangar 24, Golden Road Brewing, Lost Abbey, New Belgium, Oskar Blues, Russian River, Sierra Nevada, Smog City, Stone, TAPS and many more.

Food will be available onsite.

Limited-edition Winter Fest Steins are $15 while supplies last. Any 2011 ColLAb glasses can be used for admission; most beers will be $5 to $6.”

Posted on

Old Guardian 2012


The 2012 version of the classic barley wine from Stone will be hitting shelves in two days but even better, tomorrow at the World Bistro and Gardens, starting at 11am, you will have the opportunity to try this year’s model as well as the the previous 12 vintages. And that includes the VERY LAST CASE of ’99. The old century’s barley wine is almost history.