Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
A concise brewery bio
West Seattle Brewing is still fermenting, so there is not much information to cut and paste but all that means is that you need to put this on your near future radar because I have a feeling this one might be worth a visit to try a sampler of the pale ale, porter and the intriguing bourbon barrel bitter.
Our tour of Seattle begins with Justice Brewing. AKA, the “nanobrewery your mom warned you about”. They (well, he) are based in Everett, a suburb of Seattle.
They still have some red tape to cut to get a tap room open but they are brewing Belgian style beers like my following choices:
White & Nerdy – Belgian White with an American Twist – Brewed with Pilsner Malt, Wheat, Sweet Orange Peel, Citra Hops, and Traditional Belgian Yeast. Hoppier than traditional Belgian Wit beers but keeping the traditional character intact.
13 Questions Pale Ale – Single Hop American Pale Ale – Traditional American Pale Ale, brewed with a rotating selection of hops. Premium 2-Row Pale Malt and Munich malt with a touch of Wheat followed by 40 IBUs of hops and finished in the fermenter with even more hops for aroma. We strive to make this a well balanced pale ale. Hop variety varies on availability. Currently brewed with Bravo Hops.
It may take some searching to find their beers but that is what craft beer geeks do, search high and low.
The fastest growing brewery in Arizona? According to some it is SanTan Brewing based in a historic bank building in Chandler.
Since 2007, they have been pairing craft beer with craft food and if you are a better talker than I, conversation too.
Their Brewmaster is Anthony Canecchia who releases “specialty seasonal beers, small batch specialty beers, a weekly Cask Conditioned Ale as well as guest beers from brewers both local and around the nation.”
And these beers caught my attention…..
Mr. Pineapple
“Winner of a silver medal at the 2011 Great American Beer Festival competition, Mr. Pineapple was originally conceived for SanTan Brewing Company’s annual Luau Day. Hazy straw gold in color, we add natural pineapple juice to a traditional wheat beer creating a refreshing tropical flavor. The pineapple is balanced with a firm malt character and a slightl hint of clove. Mr. Pineapple is the perfect way to beat the heat on a warm summer day!”
Railslide
“RailSlide Imperial Spiced Ale is based on a traditional English Strong Ale and brewed with Winter flavors, including fresh ginger, cinnamon and licorice that add an edge to this smoothly spiced ale. Deep Autumn Brown in color, SanTan celebrates the pioneering punk spirit of the American Craft Brewer with this delicious brew.”
Negro Nitron IPA
“Negro Nitron Black IPA Arizona’s first Nitrogenated Black I.P.A.!!! Midnight Wheat gives this beer its deep garnet black hue without the sharp burnt flavor of traditional roasted malts. Negro Nitron is a clean, crisp & hoppy Black IPA. Nitrogen gives this beer a soft velvety mouth feel & the bold American hops on center stage.”
A “small batch barley and hop project” is open down the road from Firestone-Walker in Paso Robles…say hello to BarrelHouse Brewing Co.
Here is the current list of beers being brewed:
Templeton Ale – Kolsch style blonde ale brewed with American hops
Belgian Wit – Belgian style wheat ale brewed with chamomile, coriander and orange peel
Pale Ale – American style pale that combines West Coast hoppiness and East Coast maltiness
India Pale Ale (IPA) – Our everyday IPA…drinkable and hoppy
Milk Stout – Dark and delicious bitter, sweet stout
They are open from Wednesday through Sunday.
Our next stop in Arizona takes us to Dragoon Brewing Company was founded by Bruce Greene and his son Eric “with a simple goal in mind: to increase the quantity and quality of local beer in the Arizona market.” And I say kudos to anyone who is brave enough to take the leap from home brewing to the pro ranks. It is hard leap and sometimes people who write about it forget that.
After Eric founded a homebrew club (Northern Arizona Homebrewers) and studied at the American Brewer’s Guild and Harpoon Brewing, he returned to Tucson and with Tristan White, another home brew member created Dragoon.
Stronghold Session Ale
This beer starts at a relatively low gravity, and thus finishes with a low alcohol content (about 4.8%). Make no mistake though, it is by no means a light beer. It is rich with roasted malt, bittersweet chocolate, and a touch of herbal hop flavors. It is made from a blend North American and British base malts with rolled oats, chocolate, brown and caramel malts. We finish it with a great big dose of earthy American hops (Sterling, Willamette, and Northern Brewer).
The Dudes‘ have been barnstorming across the southland. Taking their new beers to bars far and wide. I finally caught up with them at 38 Degrees in Alhambra and was finally able to try 5 of their offerings. I will detail that all tomorrow on FoodGPS but for now a couple photos from the night…..
Our first brewery stop in Arizona is Fate Brewing whose “beer philosophy is to make a little bit of great beer, a lot. With a small-batch, 7 bbl system we’re afforded the opportunity to brew often and consistently rotate what’s on tap.”
They have traditional and modern favorites (hefeweizen and pale ale), seasonal, experimental and cask conditioned ales (Black IPA and a root beer too).
And coming soon are an Imperial IPA, American Brown Ale, Irish Red and an Imperial Irish Red
Plus, I love their tagline, you will be “pleasantly surprised by what Fate has in store.”
From Lowestoft, UK, comes the easternmost British brewery, Green Jack.
Here is what the importer Vanberg & DeWulf have to say about them, “All Green Jack beers are brewed with Flagon winter barley, all grown and malted in Norfolk (which Dunford says is in most growing seasons the best barley in the world.) Moreover all are fermented with the same four strains of English ale yeast which can be traced back over 100 years and use whole flower hops. 90 percent of production is cask, 10% in swing top bottles”
I will be on the look-out for these two offerings:
Trawlerboys
“A Full-bodied and a copper-coloured premium bitter brewed with English whole cone hops, rich and malty with fruity hop flavours. This Best Bitter has been named after the nickname of Lowestoft Town Football Club as Green Jacks new flagship brewery is opposite Lowestoft’s Crown Meadow stadium. The pump clip features the Lowestoft-built (1978) stern trawler the Boston Sea Stallion launched by none other than Mrs. Thatcher.”
Green Jack Rippa
“This 8.5% ABV English triple was named Supreme Champion Winter Beer of the UK by CAMRA in 2007, this is an amber ale redolent of peach and grape with an herbal, tropical bittersweet taste and a fruity bitter finish. RIPPA is brewed with pale ale malt, caramalt, maize, wheat, and sugar. UK Challenger hops lend a black pepper spice aroma, and Slovenian Celeia hops add bitterness.”
Smoky Mountain Brewery currently has four locations around east Tennessee; Knoxville (Turkey Creek), Maryville, Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. Setting aside that Turkey Creek and Pigeon Forge are awesome names for towns. It is good to see that Smoky Mountain is spreading good beer around the Volunteer State.
And these are the brews that caught my eye and would probably catch my palate as well…
Thunder Road Pilsner
“Honey colored lager infused with the famous Czech Saaz hops. Full hop flavor and aroma while maintaining a balanced hop bitterness.”
Tuckaleechee Porter
“Dark ale with a chewy, roasty character derived from the use of caramel and dark roasted malts.”
Harvest Fest Lager (Autumn)
“Amber lager modeled after the famous beer of the Munich Oktoberfest. Balanced with Bavarian hops and extremely drinkable.”
Tall Ship IPA
“Complex, hoppy British style pale ale. Unfiltered and dry-hopped for a cask-like flavor.”
Our first stop in the Volunteer state is Saw Works Brewing Company of Knoxville. Saw Works started life as Marble City in 2010 but has, as they put it, “hit the re-set button” and are now under a new name and housed in old Wallace Saw Works building.
Their current rotation includes a brown ale in an English style that, “reflects the chocolate malts as it first rolls across your tongue. This quickly changes as the dark toffee flavors begin to play with the spicy and earthy hop characteristics.”
Second up is their English Pale Ale with enough hops to satisfy an American palate. It has a malty profile and just enough woody or lightly floral hops for balance.
You can take a brewery tour and if you are a member of the Century Harvest Farm you can pick up your grass fed, hormone free beef and then get a beer. (Beer makes strange and wonderful bedfellows).