Category: Brewery Tour

A concise brewery bio

Posted on

Check-Up – Lincoln Beer Co.

Given a head start on the Labor Day weekend last Friday, I made a quick 3rd stop at LBC in Burbank to give the brewery another look and to grab a crowler to-go to see how the brewery was doing now.

Considering it was a holiday weekend at 4pm, there were a decent amount of people in the taproom. I ordered a crowler of their 1861 lager. I also ordered up a mini-pour of their Hollywood Way IPA. There are a LOT of IPA’s out there. Most occupy that vast middle ground. This one was a notch below middle. Maybe two notches. In the small amount I had, I could not put my finger on one precise issue but it reinforced my not positive impression of their hoppy beers.

1861 was ….

Pours a weird almost absinthe tinted green. After pouring the foam head dissipates to weird white globules. The beer is a little sweet on the nose and in the taste. Grain tasting all the way through. Light and a little slick on the tongue. Not super bubbly either. Finishes with a stronger taste than the ABV would lead you to believe. It is fine but not a still hot summer in L.A. type of beer.

So two below average beers. I am sensing a trend.

Posted on

New York Brewery Tour # 3 – Torch & Crown Brewing


Our final August stop in New York is at Torch & Crown. Say hello Lady Liberty and let’s see what beers I would order from this Vandam Street brewery.

Tenement IPA – “The “haze craze” of NE-style IPAs has already gotten pretty played out and just plain tired. But we’re in the city that never sleeps, god dammit, and it’s time for an energetic new take! This beer hits you with a buzzing aroma of fresh melon, and full flavors of citrus and stonefruit. It finishes with a crisp bitterness but adds a slight hint of acidity to accentuate those deep fruit flavors. (And yes, it’s still hazy.)”

…and that is it for now, except for another hopped beer, Darts on the Line.

Maybe this up and comer will make waves in 2019.

Posted on

Two 1st Visits


To keep up withe L.A. beer scene, you sometimes have to hit two unvisited breweries in one day. I pointed south and hit a pair in Carson and Gardena recently and here is the 1st Visit report….

On Main Street near Honest Abe’s cider (more on that later) is Hōkūle’a which is the third brewery that Jeff Parker has helped to found in L.A. First was Strand Brewing and then The “Dude’s” Brewery.

#3 is in a nice big surfboard adorned industrial park neighborhood. Big windows look out onto a busy street which negates a bit of the island vibe on the inside. There are two ginormous tanks which you don’t normally see in a start-up brewery. Alas, they are for production of a new line of Honest Abe ciders.

There were three beers on tap on their soft open weekend. Gremmie’s Pilsner had a rough entry into the world with a glycol chiller that iced the beer. Parker had to go back and reverse engineer the now much higher ABV beer back to regular strength. It still tasted strong to me but wasn’t bad. Had an Imperial Pilsner feel to it which was fine.

The Key Lime Pai had both lime and lactose forward. There was a good tartness to cream balance. But the lime sort of loses out to the creamsicle aspect. I can see this being a favorite though. Lastly was the Keiki IPA which was grassy, green and dank. Classic West-Coast style IPA.

Parker is looking to add Hawaiian fruit focused Cerveza Frescas as well as a Kona coffee IPA in the future. Also upcoming is food service and the opening of the second level seating area.


Next stop, Gardena and Ximix Craft Exploration. Bit of a long name but the logo and branding seems retro space cool.

Ximix is near-ish to State Brewing but without the personality. It was dark and everything seemed gray from the tabletops to the stools. On the far end was an open window with bars which gave off a bit of a correctional feel. And there was not much in the way of continuing the theme on the inside. Unless you count multiple TV’s as a space theme.

The menu board had the “Big Batch” side and the “Small Batch” side. I went with the weirdly named Crangis McBasketball hazy IPA. There was some pineapple notes but it was not super juicy and probably too hoppy for the style and too clear.

Maybe this was just a slow Sunday and I will need to re-visit when crowds are there.

Posted on

New York Brewery Tour # 2 – Wild East Brewing


Our second NY stop is pretty wild. Wild East Brewing are producing Belgians, IPA’s as well as going more complex with some barrels and aging and using local ingredients and Brooklyn microbes too. The brewery was founded by Brett Taylor, Tyler March and Lindsay Steen.

Here are the initial beers that I would add to my tasting tray…

Wild East IPA – “Our signature IPA, fermented with a farmhouse blend of yeasts and loaded with Mosaic, Amarillo & Citra hops. Luscious tropical fruit and citrus flavors with a slight hint of tartness. Subtly earthy, lightly funky, wildly juicy and complex from start to finish.”

Urban Farmhouse Pale – “A balanced, sessionable and clean American pale ale. Heavy doses of oats and wheat for a smooth, creamy mouthfeel. Heavy doses of American and NY state hops for a unique medley of bright, floral and citrusy flavors.”

Debaser – “Our award-winning hazy, unfiltered double IPA. Dank pine, tangy citrus with notes of stone fruits and melon. High on juicy hop flavor with soft bitterness and plenty of IBUs to temporarily degrade your tastebuds.”

Boring Planet – “Our unfiltered take on a traditional European pilsner, brewed to almost-classic style. Super clean fermentation, grainy-sweet malt backbone and assertive notes of spicy, herbal hops. Crisp, balanced and unrelentingly crushable.”

Shadyside – “A sessionable farmhouse black ale made with locally-sourced New York state malt and hops. Crisp, light-bodied and decidingly dry. Mellow roasty notes of coffee and chocolate set the stage fir bold citrusy hops and the unique yeast character steals the show.”

Brooklambic – “A truly locally-inspired sour ale, brewed with pilsner malt, aged hops and spontaneously fermented with native Brooklyn microbes and aged in wine barrels for 12-18 months.”

Posted on

New York Brewery Tour # 1 – Lineup Brewing


The first NYC stop is to Lineup Brewing which is based in Sunset Park.

Katarina Martinez, the owner has said that the brewery doesn’t “want to embrace people drinking things because they feel like they have to…” I particulary like that one of the beer names used in the past was a session IPA, In Defense of Ghosting.

Here are some others beers (with some of the better names that I have seen lately) that I would want to taste first…

11:11 American Pale Ale
Fantastic, Brilliant American IPA
Football Beer Cream Ale
Tami 1 American IPA
That’s Not Amore Milk / Sweet Stout

Posted on

Re-Visit – Progress Brewing

You will have noticed a mini-flurry of 1st Visit posts of late. It is always fun to visit a taproom for the first time. But I have let other breweries go a bit un-noticed and so, back to Progress Brewing for a long overdue re-visit.

It has been so long that I haven’t been in the second building at all. I had only tasted their beers in the original space. I almost was going to walk around the corner and look for the entrance when I heard the clinking of glassware. The taproom is a nice large space. Video games to one side. Nice sunny patio for the not extra hot days. The beer list is broken up between classics, Belgians/Saisons, hoppy, sours and new releases. They also had a winter seasonal group. In August. It confused me. Maybe a “Christmas in July” party had just happened? This day had 20+ Beers on tap. Slow trickle of customers came and went during my visit as there were more growlers than I have seen in quite awhile despite a crowler machine being at the ready. The bartenders were friendly and knew the beers.

Speaking of,
Von Linde Oatmeal Pilsner
A little to thick for what I was expecting. OK but not a good start

Lemon Drop Session IPA
Really hits the spot. Nice bright lemon hops and bright carbonation.

Mt. Wilson IPA
Not great. Ok in a pinch. A little dank but not much of the sparkle. A bit flat not much there.

Santa Muerte Gose
Nice sour tang to it. The salt comes through as well. Simple and well done.

Grechka buckwheat Saison
Tastes like a leather barn jumped into my mouth. One of the worst beers I have had in awhile. No malt presence that I could find.

Posted on

Wyoming Brewery # 3 – Black Tooth Brewing


Our final stop on the Wyoming Ale Trail is in Sheridan at Black Tooth Brewing.

The brewery began in November of 2010 with a 10 BBL brew house. Co-owner Travis Zeilstra is also the brewer and graduate of the Western Culinary Institute. He was awarded “brewer of the year” award at GABF in 2007.

Here is what I would put in my initial taster tray:

Bomber Mountain Amber
“An Irish-style red ale with a complex malt profile of biscuits, caramel and cotton candy. A well rounded and balanced amber with a dry, crisp, finish.”

Hot Streak IPA
“An American Style India Pale Ale, copper in color and accentuated with American Hops. This beer imparts both pine and citrus flavors, while maintaining an ever present floral aroma.”

Cowboy Joe
“This is a robust style porter characterized by a malty dark ale with a complex caramel, toffee, bitter chocolate and flavorful roasty character. We infused this porter with a variety of coffee from City Brew. The coffee infusion gives this porter a distinctive yet complimentary coffee aroma and flavor.”

Sheridan Pilsner
“A German style Pilsner brewed with a classic German Pilsner lager yeast. Pilsners are straw colored lagers with noble hoppy bite that gives a light crisp finish.”

Posted on

1st Visit – Ogopogo Brewing

Since my last 1st visit blog post was on the Westside, I thought I would head East this time around and check out Ogopogo Brewing in San Gabriel.

I ordered up a taster tray and sampled the first two “mythical” creature names that the beers are bestowed with, Anjana Mexican Lager was solid. Good to see so many breweries adding this style. Super light but the malt was there to add heft to it. The Boeman Wit had a big menthol taste to me with an assist from a spice profile. I dug it but it might be a little too much for others

Of the two IPA’s (a third was tapped out), the Bheki was my favorite. Though 6.3% it came across quite light, almost to Session strength but it was well balanced. The Jinn IPA was much more in the traditional wheelhouse.

I also tasted the Taniwha Imperial Saison which tasted big and was quite good. A bit leathery and barnyardy with a nice use of yeast to bring it back to Belgian territory.

The space is open and bright and I really like the highly polished, almost mirror like backing on the taps and glasses. For a brewery only a week or so in, they have got off on the right foot.

Posted on

In the Last Week


A couple days ago, the TAPS Brewery & Barrel Room opened. Instead of a brewery as part of a restaurant now the brewers have their own “tasting room and full-scale production brewery in a 19,000-square-foot space.”

Of course there will be food too, and not just random food trucks, it will be a TAPS food truck. Serving up “dishes as bulgogi beef masa fries, bánh mì bacon-wrapped hot dogs, and a hippie burger.”

Under the direction of Kyle Manns, “the brewery will begin by producing 5,000 barrels the first year, with a capacity of 25,000 barrels annually. TAPS’ barrel-aged beer program will have its own dedicated, 350-capacity barrel room.”

Another benefit, more to-go options as well with 12oz bottles, 32-oz “crowlers” and 64oz growlers as well as barrel-aged brews (in the future) in 500ml format bottles.

More details below:

“The opening line-up for TAPS award-winning brews may include The American Cream (formerly Cream Ale), Irish Red, Flex IPA, Amend This!, Keller Pils, The Velvet Hog, West Coast Pilsner, Hefeweizen, Ponderosa Pale, Hopsteppa, Hiya! and barrel-aged Silent Warrior available in draft and bottles, as well as other rotating, small batch, barrel-aged beers.”

The taproom is located at 15501 Red Hill Ave. near the Tustin Legacy and the hours will be Monday-Thursday 3 p.m. – 10 p.m.; Friday 3 p.m. – midnight; Saturday 11 a.m. – midnight; Sunday 11 a.m. – 8 p.m.

Posted on

1st Visit – Tortugo Brewing


Just off Florence and over the coming Metro tracks is the hard-to-miss building that houses Tortugo Brewing. One of the newest additions to the L.A. brewery tally.

The build-out has given the space a chill, beach cabana feel. There is an even divide of shaded seating and in the sun seating arranged around the L shaped bar. This is a great game hangout or lazy Sunday stop too. When the new stadium comes online, this may well become a tailgator stop for crowlers.

There were five beers (plus michelada) on tap from brewer/delivery driver/tortoise wrangler Joe Kovach. My favorite of the group was the Cristobal Lager that was simple, clear and crisp. On the other end of the spectrum, the Porter could have used a bit of burly-ness or chocolate malt to add to it. The pale and IPA were both solid starts with my nod going to the Pale. The Witbier was nice in the summer heat as well.

They have tanks set up to do more wild things though a hefe will be brewed up before then but the large space looks to have the room to add both tanks and barrels whichever styles get pursued. And though the bright orange and blue was a bit strong on the eyes, Kovach has certainly created an un-missable spot.