Category: Brewery Tour

A concise brewery bio

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Last 1st Visits of 2023

So, I traveled over to El Segundo to check out two new breweries that I have posted about before. One The Boardroom was shut for a private party.

But I did get to taste the beers of nearby Five Point Five Brewing which has taken over the former Surfridge Brewing space.

The space remains the same. No drastic changes inside. The change is outside with a bright big paint job with the brewery name in big letters.

The beers were surprisingly good but in styles that I was a bit surprised by. In my sampler tray were two IPA’s, a hoppy blonde, a Nitro Red Ale and a big stout. The Hoppy Blonde, I Love That for You was my top choice. Light yellow in color. Nice flavor with a little hoppy burst that came through well.

The Proud Mary Irish Red on Nitro highlighted the creamy dispense very well and when that flavor dissipated, the malt flavors took over for a second round.

A promising start for sure that I might re-check.

To make this last 1st Visits post of 2023 factually plural, I tacked on a visit to Long Beach and the former promenade home of Beachwood Brewing that is now ISM Brewing. Ian McCall who brewed at this very location is back with his eponymous initials brewery and the word is good.

I had five tasters covering a bit of their beer menu and came away very impressed. Especially with their New Zealand hopped beers. A pilsner, Lag Rope and an IPA, Kiwi Fingers. Both really let that Nelson hop shine. Also quite impressive was a simple ale called Peaches for Days that harmed no peaches but the aroma and taste was 100% stonefruit. A hop magic trick for sure.

ISM is only a month old but they are already firing out hits so mark it as your first to visit next year.

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Best of… Brewery Tour # 3 – Incendiary Brewing

Each year Craft Beer & Brewing magazine publishes their Best of Issue. I have gone through it and plucked three breweries out of it to highlight this month, the third and final brewery is Incendiary Brewing.

Two college friends and long time Home Brewers opened this North Carolina brewery in 2018 and must be doing the right things to get noticed. And here are the beers I noticed from their taplist.

Cold Pizza – “West Coast Style Pilsner with Anchovy hops in collaboration with Hollingbery & Sons.”

Hop Loaf – “New England IPA Experimental Hop HBC-836 in collaboration with Yakima Chief Hops.”

Brandon Hates Black IPAs – “Wet-hopped Black IPA with Wet Citra, Wet Azzaca, Mosaic hops.”

Dulce Muerte – “Imperial Stout with cocoa, pepper skins, cinnamon, and vanilla.”

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Best of … Brewery Tour # 2 – Strong Rope

Each year Craft Beer & Brewing magazine publishes their Best of Issue. I have gone through it and plucked three breweries out of it to highlight this month, the second brewery is Strong Rope

They are all in on NY too, stating, “Strong Rope Brewery® was created in 2015 with the purpose of showcasing New York ingredients and to make truly regional beers.”

Here are my picks from recent-ish beers…

Road to Deliration American Mild Ale – “Our new take on a classic style, Road To Deliration packs large flavors in a small package with complex layering of pale, crystal, and chocolate malts held up by Cascade and Chinook.”

Grain Head Golden Ale – “Fresh baked bread with notes of honey and apricot, full bodied, herbal hop finish.”

NY Classic Pale Ale – “Floral hop with notes of lemon rind and fresh pine needle on pale, bready malt, satisfying bitter finish.”

Blood of Gods Red Ale – “Malty nose of caramel, toffee, and toast with crisp pine and citrus finish.”

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Best of … Brewery Tour # 1 – Templin Family Brewing

Each year Craft Beer & Brewing magazine publishes their Best of Issue. I have gone through it and plucked three breweries out of it to highlight this month, starting in Utah with Templin Family Brewing.

Here are my taster tray choices….

Natürlich Pilsner – “A tale as old as time. The malt bill presents subtle notes of crisp bread and peanut brittle. The hops pop with notes of grassy, white peach. 10 Weeks in the foeder give this a substantial oak presence.”

Beechwood Rauch Bier – “This Bamberg specialty is made with beechwood Rauch malts and Bavarian lager yeast. A silver medalist from the 2019 GABF, this beer balances sweet and savory malt finishes.”

Lingonberry Berliner Weisse – “American-style kettle-sour with lingonberry puree. Sour, tart, slightly sweet finish. (What does a lingonberry taste like, you ask? Think Cranberry, but slightly more bitter.”

Cold Foam Nitro Oat Stout – “Double oat dry stout. Creamy texture. Subtle roast character. Named after the brewers favorite pick me up in the morning. Cold Foam Fridays are a weekly ritual.”

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NBA City Brewery Tour # 3 – Ope! Brewing in Milwaukee

Our third quarter stop around NBA cities is the new home of famed and former Blazer Damian Lillard, the Milwaukee Bucks so let’s head to a brewery in town before a Giannis and Dame game., Ope! Brewing.

But Is It Traditional? Kölsch

“This traditional style is clean, crisp, and delicate, using traditional Kolsch yeast and traditional German hops. Enjoy it anywhere you want to feel traditional, or not…”

Laaager

“This here is our American laaager don’tcha know. Crafted from only the finest of ingredients and whole lotta love. Crisp, light, and refreshing, perfect for a day on the boat fishing, or sitting on the beach.”

Jeez Louise IPA

“With Galaxy, Nelson Sauvin and Amarillo Hops, this brew has the perfect combo of juicy, fruit forward hop flavors to satisfy any craving!”

A Stop and a Score Oatmeal Porter with Almond

“This Oatmeal Porter has the right combo of flavors to get you back in the game! With Almond and Vanilla chiming in to help seal the deal. Just like Bucks Legend Johnny Mac used to say on the broadcast – All we need is A Stop and A Score and we’ll be back in the game!”

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NBA City Brewery Tour # 2 – Portland Labyrinth Forge Brewing

You knew I was going to make a stop in Portland for my Blazers who are not doing too bad despite the youth and the injury bug that has hit them with Simons, Henderson and a freakin’ Time Lord getting hurt.

And as the Blazers remake a roster so too has Labyrinth Forge Brewing has taken the former Hair of the Dog space on the Eastside over.

Here is what I would pick for a taster flight…

Heinzelmänn Kölsch-style ale – “In northern German folklore, Heinzelmänn was a lucky household spirit… so long as he was appeased. This is our take on the traditional kölsch .”

Noble Citizens Pale Lager – “In honor of the 14 noble citizens of Athens that were sacrificed to the minotaur in the Greek myth when King Minos’ son died, we brewed this limited edition, tasty beer. It was brewed with Imperial Yeast’s Cable Car, all pilsner malt and the noble Styrian Celeia and Northern Brewer hops.”

Hoptaur PNW IPA – “Deep in the heart of Labyrinth Forge resides our hero and inspiration, the Hoptaur. This fearless Northwest IPA is the spawn of locally sourced craft malt and heroic amounts of Bravo and Centennial hops to add classical citrus and pine flavors and aromas. Dare to get lost with Hoptaur, and tell your tale at #getlostwithyourbeer! Watch out for the Fresh Hop versions of this every fall!”

Juløl Winter Ale – “

Collaboration with Ridgewalker brewing in 2022 for the Scandanavian Fest.

In 1075, the King of Norway decreed that all farmsteads must supply their employees and slaves with Christmas beer. In that tradition this beer does not fail. Dark malts combined with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves. All the ingredients to warm you up.”

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NBA City Brewery Tour # 1 – San Antonio – Künstler Brewing

You cannot talk hoops without talking about the French phenom, Victor Wembanyana. Rail thin with a wing span that you have to see to believe, Spurs fans are going to enjoy watching him play.

I could not a Saison brewery in San Antonio but there is an artistic brewery, Künstler Brewing that is Tex-Deutsch that is a good stand-in. So, let’s get a flight….

Behind the Couch – “My first Bière De Garde, was in collaboration with another homebrewer, Jeremy Banas a local beer historian and author. We brewed it in 2013, on a system unfamiliar to us, and let’s just say all kinds of things went wrong, producing lots of sweat, cursing, (maybe some tears) and a scorched wort. We bottled it anyway, and I literally stashed my share behind the couch, hoping I could forget the failed brew day. A year later, while drinking with friends, we tasted through everything I had on tap, and I was asked: “What else do you have?” Somehow I remembered the “behind the couch beer” and thought it would be good to at least try, maybe laugh about it, and then finally dump it. Long story short: I was almost sad that I had to share such a fine brew with anyone!”

Rosemary’s Honey Oats – “Rosemary pours in a luscious shade of orange. Aromas of rosemary that can be mistaken for an exotic, piney hop character greet the nose. On the palette there is an interesting floral play created by the hops and the rosemary. The oats supply a rich, full texture. Everything is underscored with hints of honey which lightens up the body, and adds a touch of mystery. This one drinks extremely refreshing.”

Tejano Coffee Porter – “This is a Robust Porter base with lots of malty, chocolate undertones, perfect for the 15 lbs of coffee we added to 3 BBLs. We try to support local business if at all possible. For this brew we wanted to highlight Quantum Coffee Company for their amazing coffee roasting abilities. They are also teachers of physics and math.”

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Richmond Brewery Tour # 3 – Bingo Beer Co.

Our last Richmond stop is a winner, if you have G33. It is Bingo Beer Co. and they even have a Chelsea FC looking beer…

….but let’s pick out a few other beers for a taster tray.

Fest Friends German-Style Fest Lager – “Brewed in the modern pale Festbier style, our collaboration with Richmond’s beloved Maymont Foundation is medium-light bodied & smooth with a lil crusty-bread and spicy Tettnang Noble hop character. A decoction mash regimine provides profound malt depth while still keeping this one highly drinkable, and our house lager yeast ties it all together for a rich yet still crispy drinking experience.”

Smoked Bock Bamberg-Style Rauchbier – “Ready to go for autumn, we brew our traditional Bock-style Lager with BEECHWOOD-SMOKED BARLEY. Munich & Vienna malts give it a classic toasty-toffeed profile while RAUCHMALZ lends smokey campfire-like depth. All of this is balanced by juuuust the right amount of Noble Hops. “

Patio Vibes Grissette – “Our multi-grain Grisette-style Ale pairs brilliantly with the haze of Summer. With its low ABV, medium-light body, zippy carbonation, and a dazzling yeast and hop interplay, this refresher is poised to become your go-to for hot afternoons that fade into long nights. Patio Vibes is so cool, it’ll leave you tempted to turn off the AC and open your windows to the warmth outside. Belgian style.”

McMansion Hazy DIPA – “We’re talking about the massive juicy, tropical hop flavor and aroma bursting forth from McMansion, our 100% Citra hopped hazy DIPA. Brewed with generous amounts of wheat, McMansion’s foundation is a soft, smooth body supporting multiple stories of passionfruit, ripe melon, citrus, and berry hop character.”

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Richmond Brewery Tour # 2 – Triple Crossing

The second Richmond brewery is Triple Crossing Brewery. They have three locations but I am going to focus on and pull from the Downtown location for this super sized taster tray…

Starting light with their German Tiny Pils and then an Oak Aged lager, Bohem and finishing the light trifecta with a sour ale, Off the Beaten Path with Pink Lemons.

Moving up in weight to IPA’s, I would pick the trio of Pocket Knife, Mosaic triangles and Tropical Falcon and then finish big with DIPA’s Interstellar Burst and Nectar & Knife before finishing the trilogy with a barleywine, Summer Jetlag.

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Richmond Brewery Tour # 1 – Benchtop Brewing

I read a really great emotional piece of beer writing by Em Sauter that was set in Richmond (read it HERE) and that led me to look at that beer scene for October. Starting at Benchtop Brewing, founded by Eric Tennant.

Let’s check out their tap list ….

Polotmavy 12° Czech Ruby Lager for starters then move onto Crimson Gaze a hoppy red ale because I always want to check out the less seen style then a sour Jam Pact with Cherry / Strawberry / Blueberry. Then I would finish with Walter’s Brunch a coffee porter with cacao nibs and maple syrup.