Category: Brewery Tour

A concise brewery bio

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Golden Road Brewing

As if running a successful bar in Burbank wasn’t enough.

As if partnering on the ColLAboration events wasn’t enough.

As if opening a huge 65 tap bar wasn’t enough.

Well now Tony Yanow is really going big. And this will be huge for the LA craft beer community. Last night, I along with other craft beer writers got the sneak peak at the facility and more importantly the team behind Golden Road Brewing.

Jon, Meg and Tony

Jon Carpenter (brewmaster) is originally from San Diego but you may recognize him from the late lamented Brewmasters show because he was most recently at Dogfish Head.

Meg Gill (co-founder and Presidnet) comes from two brewing hot spots Boulder and Oskar Blue’s and San Francisco and Speakeasy Ales and Lagers. Combined with Tony they have taken over three distinctively colored buildings next to the train tracks in Atwater Village (on the dividing line of LA and Glendale).

There will be a pub in the yellow building. A barrel aging facility in the red and the blue building will hold the brewing operations.

The styles are yet to be determined. Too early in the development stage for that but don’t be surprised to see a hoppy California style brew. And it will be canned! The line has been purchased. Obviously with a barrel room their will be aged beers done but again too early to give definitive answers as to what kind though the word sour was bandied about.

If I can be corny for a moment, craft beer in LA looks golden right now.

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El Segundo Brewing – Home of Blue House Ales

I got the chance to talk to Rob Croxall from the newly debuted El Segundo Brewing recently and just wanted to tease you in advance about the interview which will be posted on FoodGPS this coming Thursday.

Rob talked about his homebrewing start, his time at UC-Davis as well as the craft beer community in LA while a batch of IPA and Pale Ale were waiting for the perfect time to be kegged.

He is already getting praise for his citra pale and I can imagine that the IPA will be received as warmly as the pale has been already.

You can try the Blue House line at Rock ‘N’ Brews which is literally across the street from the future tap room as well as other fine craft beer bars in Los Angeles. It looks like we have another brewery who will be as in demand as Eagle Rock has become.

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Solvang Brewing Company

I haven’t even had any Figueroa Mountain beer and now another entrant nearby is brewing.

The Solvang Brewing Company crafting beers to fit the Danish tourist attraction. Windmill Wheat ale, 1547 Porter and Valhalla IPA among others.

So if you find yourself with some ableskiver, you can now have a beer to go with.

“In the spirit of tradition let’s “Øl” have some ALE!! Skál or in English, cheers!”

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L.A. is brewing

For those of you playing at home, here is the current brewery list for LA. My list expands to include a larger slice of the Los Angeles area.

Up and Running
Eagle Rock
Ladyface
Nibble Bit Tabby
Skyscraper
Angel City
El Segundo
Strand

in the mash tun (so to speak)
Henson
Ohana
Pipe Dream
Pilot Brewhouse
Kinetic

And check out this L.A. Times article about the up and comers.

When the newbies come on line, LA will be in double digits.

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Indiana Brewery # 3 – Upland Brewing

Our third stop on the Indian brewery tours is Upland. I have featured their beers a few times on this blog so it’s about time that I talked about the whole place.

They are famous for their sour beers with odd fruits as well as this big beer….
A dark and robust beer brewed in the traditional stout method. Teddy Bear Kisses features an abundance of dark malts and high alpha hops for a powerful impact of roast, chocolate, and sweet bitterness. The lucky few who cuddle up to a warming session with Teddy Bear Kisses sense the velvety malt character, balanced bitter intensity, and soothing chocolate notes created by long aging on fair trade cocoa nibs. Teddy Bear Kisses will make you feel warm and happy inside, but it’s definitely not your childhood cuddle toy.

Baltic Porters are an Eastern European take on classic English Porters. Influenced by Russian Imperial Stouts, Baltics are higher in strength than traditional Porters, and feature multiple layers of flavors and aromas. Badder Elmer’s is a meaty dark lager, utilizing cold fermentation temperatures to achieve a quaffable and clean brew, with malty highlights ranging from nutty to licorice and candy caramels. Fruity aromas lead to a complex malt character and supportive continental hop bitterness.

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Indiana Brewery # 2 – People’s Brewing Company

Our second Indiana stop is People’s Brewing of Lafayette. Like most medium to large cities. Lafayette had a thriving beer scene and it looks ready to revive thanks to beers like these….

Layflatter Lager
German Lager beer… Light and refreshing lager made for ball games and yard work. We used our Midwest malted Harrington malt and Centennial hops. This beer is brewed for the people of Lafayette, also known as “LayFlatters”.

Aberrant Amber
American Style Amber with an twist. We started with a classic American Amber, 22% Caramalt giving it an Amber hue. Then added a large addition of Amarillo and Centennial hops for the bittering and dry hoped with Amarillo, giving it notes of grapefruit and tangerine. The complexity of the malts and hops in this beer make it a great ale for anyone who loves flavor.

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Indiana Brewery # 1- Bee Creek

Our tour of selected Indiana breweries begins at Bee Creek. And their 3 signature brews…..

Hoosier Honey Wheat
“Our signature brew. This beer is brewed with the addition of Clover Honey from Hunter’s Honey Farm located in Martinsville, Indiana.

The use of Weihenstephan Weizen yeast gives this wheat beer a hint of clover, orange, and banana flavors that blends well with the added wheat malt to produce a crisp, refreshing ale perfect for any time of year.”

Clay County Coffee Stout
“A dark, rich beer brewed with roasted malts and combined with Brazil Santos Coffee (from Jameson in Greencastle). Expect a full-bodied beer with a sumptuous coffee aroma topped only by it’s opulent flavor.”

Blond Ale
“A clear, crisp, cold filtered Blond Ale carefully hopped to reveal a mild flavor and aroma. The lightness of the hops makes this Blonde Ale perfect for those familiar with mass-marketed beer; but with a major exception, this one is made right here…..in Indiana.”

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Venice Beach Brewing

As I was patiently waiting to see beer handles for El Segundo Brewing, another beach brewery was also bubbling away.


Venice Beach Brewing is headed by brewer Kerr Smith and has two beers ready….
Venice Ale
Our signature Amber Ale which we created right out of the gate. A unique blend of malt and hops crafted to perfection with love and lust. Not to mention a little help from the mighty Summit Hop.

June Gloom
Cloudy, like its namesake month, this superb Belgian White, a mix of half wheat and half barley, with a touch of coriander, makes this the perfect beer to chase those clouds away.

…..with two more (Dirty Blonde and Ink Chocolate Oatmeal Stout) in the pipeline.

There will be a release party sometime this month.

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E-Tour of Whitstran Brewing

The last Washington state brewery to visit is Whitstran in Prosser. And they have a unique brand style that works for me. A little sci-fi’ish but cool. Compare that to their Friar Series of beers…

Friar’s Blessing Raspberry Lambic
“The essence of raspberries sweetens this lambic for a refreshing brew with little hop presence.”

Friar’s Decadence Chocolate Chocolate Imperial Stout
“This is a sweet robust dark ale, with just a hint of chocolate from the baker’s cocoa added to the boil.”

Friar Lawrence Belgium-Style Ale
“The use of caramel and honey malts gives the sweetness, Goldings hops provide the balance and Abbey-style yeast introduces a unique spice character.”

Friar’s Penance Barley Wine Ale
“Fermenting for 9 – 10 months allows the complex flavors to blend to produce a unique brew that is available for a limited time each year.”