Category: Brewery Tour

A concise brewery bio

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The LAB in Agoura Hills

I and beer buddy Richard had the opportunity to get a tour of one of the newest breweries to open up in the LA area today, The LAB Brewing Company. Big thanks to Roger Bott for taking the time out of his busy brewing schedule to sit down and chat with us about the brewery.

We got to sample 5 of the beers (primarily 1st batches), including the still not quite done Kona coffee beer. And better than that, we got to hear the stories behind the beer and about Roger himself. He has been homebrewing and dreaming of opening a restaurant for a long time and now he is living the dream and creating a great beer destination in Agoura Hills just a few miles away from Ladyface Brewing.

Roger has been brave enough to put the first batches on display of the initial three brews:
Big Ass Red — Amber Ale
LAB XPA — IPAs baby brother
Take Her Home — Belgian style tripel
And we tasted the Wit and coffee beers too. I liked the XPA which was strongly bitter and vegetal and stronger hop-wise than intended due primarily to mechanical issues and Richard enjoyed the coffee stout the best which had a really great aroma and strong with a velvety taste. Probably due to the whole beans used in the brewing process.

I like the lab concept (water comes in beakers) which meshes well with Roger’s Amgen work background and it will be interesting to see where these beers go and how his other ideas pan out. It is so fun to see the growth of a brewery from the start. I will certainly try the coffee beer again and I am looking forward to the IPA and other creations too.

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Cannery # 2 – Mammoth Brewing


Since this is CanFest month, my featured breweries don’t come from just one state or region but share the commonality of canning!

Mammoth has shown up in L.A. markets on occasion and their IPA 395 is a spicy and bitter treat.

They are part of the trend of brewers who do both bottles and cans.

Grab a can or bottle when you see their stuff. Both the Epic IPA and the pilsner were tasting good at Canfest this year.

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Cannery # 1 – Golden Road

Since this is CanFest month, my featured breweries don’t come from just one state or region but share the commonality of canning!

And I will start with the one that is literally a 25 minute walk from my home…Golden Road Brewing.

They will be canning their Point the Way IPA (see above) as well as their Hefeweizen to start. You can also get two different sizes of growlers filled as of now and their tasting room will be open sometime in the near future and you will be able to watch the trains zip by as you sip your ale.

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Australian Brewery # 3 – Little Creatures

Our third and final stop on our tour of Australian craft breweries takes us to Little Creatures.

As was the case with the previous two breweries on this itinerary, the details are courtesy of the Crafty Pint. THE place to go for Australian craft beer information.

I am most intrigued by their single batch beers and the choices for them. Single hop beers tend to be the bigger hops. And by bigger, I mean your Centennial or Cascade or Nelson. But they do a East Kent Goldings. Then they do a batch of marzen. Very cool.

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Help out Short Snout

All right beer lovers. Time to pony up some cash so we can bring another craft brewery into the world. Mystery Brewing and Wilderness Brewing got funded and now it is time to help out Short Snout. With the other two being in the midwest, my chances of sampling their beers is small but Short Snout will be based in Milwaukie (my hometown!) I hope to sample their beers in the future!

Head over to Kickstarter and make a pledge!

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Australian Brewery # 2 – Moo Brew

Our middle stop on our tour of Australian craft breweries takes us to the alliteratively named Moo Brew.

As was the case with the previous two breweries on this itinerary, the details are courtesy of the Crafty Pint. THE place to go for Australian craft beer information.

What caught my fancy, beer-wise was the Hop Harvest a twist on their pale ale. But I really like the label art. Goofy and fun.

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Australian Brewery # 1 – Feral Brewing

Our initial stop on our tour of Australian craft breweries takes us to the alliteratively named Feral Brewing Company.

As was the case with the previous two breweries on this itinerary, the details are courtesy of the Crafty Pint. THE place to go for Australian craft beer information.

What jumped out at me other than the marvelous name was the barrel aged Hop Hog beer. Just sounds like a grand experiment. Though the Runt beer sounds good too.

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Chicago – New Chicago Brewing Co.

Strong Artisan Ales are whats promised from New Chicago Brewing Co.

Now they aren’t planning on opening until spring of next year but their plans look really cool and forward thinking. Read this from their website: “Brothers Jesse Edwin Evans and Samuel Evans are opening a production brewery in the Whiskey Point section of the Back of the Yards neighborhood in Chicago, producing and bottling big, bold, strong ales. It will be a collaboration with insanely creative people in a 100% sustainable environment.

New Chicago Brewing Company’s planned launch date is March 4th, 2012, the 175th anniversary of the incorporation of Chicago. We are a socially conscious company partnering with- and located inside- a revolutionary food manufacturing facility called The Plant. It’s the first vertical farm facility of its kind. The Plant is a closed ecosystem that can handle its own waste and generate its own power. Every one of New Chicago Brewing Company’s byproducts will be fed back into a system that raises tilapia, grows microgreens and mushrooms and nurtures aquaponics gardens. View a diagram that helps to explain the ecosystem. It will become a culinary destination. One of the brewery’s main ingredients will be to give back by using our resources to benefit the positive things that are happening in the city of Chicago.”

Chicago is rising fast on the brewery front.

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Heist Brewing

South Dakota has another brewery to slake the thirst of the state.

Banking on the colorful history of the gangster, Heist Brewing in Brookings have some brews that have certainly piqued my interest.

“Tea Off is a light bodied, full flavored wheat ale with a rich copper color. Green tea, orange peel, and coriander are incorporated in this wheat ale making it a refreshing choice on a hot day or night. Tea Off Ale beer that can truly be enjoyed by all.”

“Black Lotus is a heavy-bodied, chocolaty black ale with a malty roast flavor. Lotus is sure to tempt the palate of any beer coinsure. Black Lotus has the perfect amount of bittering hops to balance the intense malt profile.”