Category: Brewery Tour

A concise brewery bio

Posted on

NWSL City Brewery Tour # 3 – Level Crossing Brewing

We place a cross into the Utah Royals box by visiting our third and final NWSL themed brewery, Level Crossing Brewing Co.

Let’s check out a taster tray…

Dallas Alice Belgian-Style Blonde – “An easy-drinking Belgian ale with subtle yeast complexity giving off floral, citrus and light honey aromas. The smooth and clean pilsner malt pairs well with the honeydew melon and floral hop flavors. The beer finishes dry with a lingering lemon zest flavor.”

Look Up! Amber – “A well-balanced amber ale with toasted biscuit malt flavors complimented with subtitle earthy pine and floral hop aromas.”

Suss It Out Rye IPA – “A complex and hop-forward rye IPA with three types of rye and a blend of hops to give the beer a resinous and spicy hop bitterness and grapefruit, berry and piney aroma.”

Soul Rex DIPA – “Intense citrus, melon and dank tropical fruit hops flavors and aroma. Medium body and firm yet juicy hop bitterness.”

Posted on

NWSL City Brewery Tour # 2 – Milewide Beer Co.

We head to Louisville and the home of Racing Louisville and their team headed by Taylor Flint and Savannah DeMelo.

The brewery we are visiting is Milewide Beer Co. Let’s check into some beers…

Gish – “Black IPA w/ Simcoe, Centennial, Chinook, & Zeus hops.”

7 Sour – “American Sour Ale w/ Raspberry, Blackberry, Blueberry, Moysenberry, Marionberry, Cranberry, Plum, & Vanilla”

Phenomenon – “Hazy IPA w/ Eclipse hops”

Uncle D – “Southern Pecan Coffee Stout”

Posted on

NWSL City Brewery Tour # 1 – Bay FC and Brix Factory Brewing

We start our National Women’s Soccer League journey in the Bay Area with debutante Bay FC. Also debuting in Oakland is Brix Factory Brewing.

Let’s check out some beers to enjoy in the 2024 NWSL season….

Lemon Theory – “A lower abv Blonde ale featuring bright hop flavors reminiscent of an orange/lemon creamsicle, held together with pleasantly toasty malt flavors driven by malted wheat from Admiral malts. Citric finish.”

The Eye of Tasman – “Crisp Pilsner hopped at all stages with resinous Superdelic hops bursting with dank Sativa, bright tropical fruits and aromatic calamansi zest.”

Plunging Waves – “Our West Coast IPA features a stern dose of hops in bitterness, flavor and aroma. Classic, almost throwback West Coast aroma profile dominated by the interplay between the Comet and Simcoe hops. The malt flavor is notably light, with a bit of cracker-like snappiness from the pilsner malt.”

Coffee Siklon Stout – “Our tropical stout, infused with a Timorese coffee, kindly provided by our friends at Royal Coffee in Oakland. The whole bean addition of robusta/arabica hybrid adds an intense complexity to the sweet stout basis.”

Posted on

Washington State Brewery Tour # 3 – Recluse Brewing

Our third and final Washinton State brewery is Recluse Brewing in the town of Washougal. The brewery which opened in December of last year, is helmed by Gus Everson, former Lead Brewer at Wayfinder Brewing in Portland.

Here is my thoughts on a good opening taster tray…

SPECIÁLNÍ 13 Czech-Style Amber Lager – Smooth. Balanced. Bohemian.

BED DENIM Extra Pale Ale – Classic. Pine. Fruit.

RBW EXPORT LAGER – Simple. Gold. Lager

MOOSE MAN Porter – Chocolate. Roast. Cryptic

Posted on

Washington State Brewery Tour # 2 – Human People Beer

Our second stop in Washington State is a little town named Seattle where we will find Human People Beer. There is a Modern Times lineage and hop farm experience in the trio behind the brewery.  

Tim Kamolz and Andrew Schwartz come from Modern Times while Mallorie King has the agricultural background. 

Human People Beer will be tenants in a project called the West Canal Yards in Seattle, Washington with a hopeful summer 2024 opening.  First beers may be available before then as is often the case.

Posted on

Washington State Brewery Tour # 1 – Dalliance Beer Project

Dalliance Beer Project is a unique brewery start-up in the hop country of Yakima, Washington. Led by Andrew Pytel and Tristan Karosas of Single Hill Brewing with artist Jamaica Zoglman.  Art will be the driver and the beer will be made to match.  

There will be no core beers, everything will be one and done starting with their Tarot Project.  (beer and tarot are a trend, as will be my confusion with tarot)

First pulled from the deck will be The Fool, a German-style Pilsner, and Five of Wings, a hazy IPA. The release schedule is two beers at a time until all the cards are done.

Posted on

Canadian Brewery # 3 – Stillwell Brewing Company

Our last brewery recommended by drinks writer Stephen Beaumont is in Halifax, Stillwell Brewing Company.

For my taster tray, I would select…

Stilly Pils – “Brewed with German malt and hops in the traditional method, Stilly Pils is our idea of a great everyday beer: fresh, foamy and moreish.”

Best Bitter – “Brewed with English malt and hops in the (almost) traditional method, Best Bitter is our take on England’s great pub ale. Highly sessionable and naturally conditioned.”

13° Czech-Style Dark Lager – “Brewed with Czech Ingredients and in the traditional method, our 13° Tmavý Ležák is our take on Czechia’s magical black beer. Na zdraví!”

Cream Ale – “Brewed in the traditional method as a true hybrid beer – American hops balancing a german grist – Cream Ale is a nostalgic and highly sessionable everyday beer,”

Posted on

Canadian Brewery # 2 – Blind Enthusiasm Brewing

Our second Beaumont suggested Canadian brewery is in Edmonton, Blind Enthusiasm Brewing.

Breezy – “We’ve dug deep into our brewing repertoire to create Breezy, a beer inspired by delicate English summer ales. Breezy is light and refreshing with a shockingly low ABV considering its bold doughy malt, floral and orange-pulp aromas and flavours. Low ABV doesn’t mean you have to compromise on great flavor.”

OKT – “This bright copper lager combines bold stone-fruit notes with complex herbal hopping and balanced bitterness. It finishes dry with lingering herbal and fruit flavors.”

Extra Special Monk Ale – “Light, pale malt showcases this freshly dry-hopped ale. Extra Special Monk displays a robust tropical hop profile amplified by a crisp, dry finish and surprisingly low bitterness. Enjoy this blast from the past while we make a few extra ales for summer.”

The Business – “10 Month Brandy Barrel-Aged Dark Lager — The Business is a brandy barrel-aged dark amber lager inspired by our prior release, Working Overtime. The Business is aged in barrels for 10 months. Where Working Overtime was boldly effervescent, The Business is dark, smooth, and supported by a dark fruit foundation. It has a light alcohol warming and a clean, smooth finish.”

Posted on

Canadian Brewery # 1 – Muddy York

In the Best of 2023 edition of Craft Beer & Brewing Magazine, drinks writer Stephen Beaumont highlighted a few Canadian breweries to be aware of, it was a perfect starting point for the brewery tours for January. We begin the journey with Muddy York Brewing Co. in Toronto.

Here is my taster tray…

Major Small Best Bitter – “The Original Session Ale. Bitters were primarily served fresh under no pressure at cellar temperatures. Major Small Best Bitter is brewed using earthy English hops and biscuity malts. Major flavour, small ABV, thoroughly balanced.”

Gaslight Helles Lager – “Showcasing the flavours that come from using premium Bohemian Pilsner malt, we employ a unique yeast strain to make this thirst quenching variation of a Munich Helles more than just your ordinary lager.”

Chilly Bin NZ Pilsner – “Chilly bin — the New Zealand name for a cooler/portable ice box or chest. Chilly Bin NZ Pilsner – a tasty pils from Muddy York brewed to showcase New Zealand’s famously grown Nelson Sauvin hops. While you might not call your faithful cooler a ‘chilly bin’, you certainly need to try this crisp, light and refreshing pilsner.”

Working Hard New England IPA – “After experimenting with different hop combinations, we’ve settled on the super juicy and tropical duo of Mosaic & El Dorado. Aromas of mango, tangerine and stone fruit burst out of the can making this hazy New England IPA the perfect way to reward all of your Hard Work.”

Posted on

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.