Category: Brewery Tour

A concise brewery bio

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Snowy Western NY Brewery # 3 – Britesmith Brewing

We end our month in New York State in the hamlet of Williamsville at Britesmith Brewing.

Creekside Cream Ale – “Clean light bodied with a dry finish, brewed with centennial and mandrina hops.”

Briter Daze Pale Ale – “Moderate bitterness, hints of floral, citrus, and pine from Centennial, Columbus, and Cascade hops.”

Blind Squirrel Brown Ale – “Hazelnut, cascara cherry, & coffee.”

Iron Horse Irish Red Ale – “Ale brewed for the season bringing out biscuity malt flavors with a dry finish.”

Watching Waterfalls Hazy IPA – “Smooth, citrus, unfiltered New England IPA.”

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1st Visit – Native Son DTLA

I made a pre-Christmas trip Downtown to see what was up with the beers and the former Dankness Dojo now Native Son.

As I mentioned in a previous post, the former Modern Times Dankness Dojo hasn’t been really changed / updated all that much. So it was weird to walk in and have it be not a new vibe.

That said, here for the beer and on that front all seems good to start. There were multiple collaboration beers on tap with the L.A. likes of Mumford, Three Weavers, Common Space and even a Pizza Port DIPA collaboration.

I sampled two straight up Native Son beers and was more taken with the the cleverly named Sta-Pils. It had quite a punchy herbal flavor to it. Could have been a touch crisper but thatvis a minor quibble. The Circle Boy IPA was fine. Typical early days of a brewery type. Hoppy but not bright enough for me.

The bartender was very helpful and attentive without being up in your grill and he seemed to be at the ready to explain the Native Son beers and to help you find the right beer for you.

Good to have brewing back in the space and I hope the brewing keeps growing.

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Snowy Western NY Brewery # 2 – New York Beer Project

Next stop is Lockport and the New York Beer Project which has two New York locations and one in Orlando, Florida too, for when you need to escape the snow.

Let’s check out some beers…

Victor Lager – “A true classic beer for the light lager lover, this beer style is what German Immigrants introduced to the first Beer Halls in 19th century NYC. Years later, let’s raise a glass to tradition with this authentic, delicious, and timeless Lager.”

Buckleberry Wheat – “we had a great time finding that PERFECT blend of three delicious berries to create our unique Buckleberry Wheat. We’ve combined Blueberries and Boysenberries, and then added exotic wild huckleberries (which are pretty impossible to get…but we think the people that drink our beer only deserve the best!)”

Red Hop Monster – “This Red IPA is a beautiful blend of the American IPA and Amber Ale. This beer is all about balance: caramelized sugar and dark fruit malt sweetness up front, balanced out by a hoppy bitterness and strong resiny and piney hop flavors.”

Hibeernation – “Brewed with Cassia Cinnamon Powder, Fresh Ginger, Sweet Orange Peel and Cinnamon Sticks, this Winter Warmer will remind you of freshly baked gingerbread cookies. This is the perfect beer to warm you up on a cold winter’s night!”

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Ring it Up

If Ventura isn’t one of the leading California beer cities, well I don’t know what to say, Topa Topa / MadeWest / Ventura Brewing Co. / Bright Spark / Fluid State. And coming….

…follow on the ‘Gram to see their progress.

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Snowy Western NY Brewery # 1 – Pressure Drop Brewing

Our first stop is Allentown, aka Buffalo. Home of the Bills and QB1 Josh Allen. Pressure Drop Brewing is the place.

Here is what I would put into a snowy taster tray….

Not a Football Beer – “An ultra-crushable beer that’s great for not tailgating, not gathering with friends to watch the game at home, and not sitting in your favorite barstool to root for your team.”

Sticky Trees West Coast IPA – “Sticky Trees offers craft beer drinkers a well-balanced IPA with a moderate ABV and low IBU. We brew this IPA with Mosaic hops and malts typical of an IPA. The flavor is inspired by the variety of flavors a brewer can extract from Mosaic hops.”

Mochi House Hazy IPA – “Our first collab with Brazen Brewing!!! All the beautiful tropical notes of a New England IPA with a super soft feel to it, and the tiniest hint of bitter on the finish.”

Greetings from the North Pole – “This insanely delicious Milk Stout is brewed with a TON of chocolate roasted malts
and lactose for rich flavor and a sweet, creamy mouthfeel.”

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Brewseum Brewery # 3 – Moor’s Brewing Company

Our final stop is at Moor’s Brewing Company. The brewery was founded by Jamhal Johnson, Damon Patton and Anthony Bell. Starting as a contract brewer with big growth plans.

Let’s dig into some of the beers from this new brewery….

Session Ale – “Moor’s Session Ale packs a light but flavorful balance of green papaya and a hint of key lime with a smooth lemongrass finish.”

Helles Lager – “Our full bodied pale lager leads with a hint of honeydew melon, harmonizing with subtly spicy and bright German hop flavors for a refreshing finish that is soft, clean and crisp.”

IPA – “Moor’s IPA is crisp, providing a subtle grapefruit quality on the front, flavors of pretzel dough and rounds out smoothly with fresh honey malt notes.”

Imperial Porter – “Moor’s Imperial Porter is a rich, textured beer with a hoppy nose complimented by the scent of lavender and blueberry. The palate brings home the flavors of roasted chocolate and ground coffee.”

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Brewseum Brewery # 2 – Black Horizon Brewing Company

The Chicago Brewseum is having their Beer Culture Summit this month so I thought we should visit some of the breweries connected with that education this month, the second stop is…

…Black Horizon Brewing Company.

Let’s get some beers then…

Three Putt for Par Kolsch – “A hoppy Kolsch hopped and dry hopped with fresh Citra hops for a light citrus aroma with a great crisp, hoppy and easy drinking finish.”

Endless Brilliance Blonde Ale – “Aged on over 80lbs of toasted coconut, buckets of marshmallows, a huge drizzle of salted caramel and plenty of vanilla this is the perfect Fall/bonfire beer. Rich and sticky with plenty of balanced sweet notes from real adjuncts, this beer reminds us of Dutch stroopwafles or a s’mores without the chocolate.”

Peach Fist Fight Hazy IPA – “One of the taprooms most popular variations of our house hazy IPA is finally in cans for the first time! This 100% Citra hopped hazy IPA was aged on a massive amount of fresh peach puree that accents the delicate tropical and citrus fruit notes of the hops while bringing waves of stone fruit and peach with each sip.’

Frozen Dimension Cold IPA – “Cold IPA is best described as a strong California lager foundation with a beautiful West Coast IPA hopping and dry hopping. A delicate malt base of pilsner and flaked corn create a soft backbone in which tropical citrus, white grapefruit and sweet sappy bitterness blend for a super crisp and refreshing new school IPA twist.”

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Brewseum Brewery # 1 – Funkytown Brewery

The Chicago Brewseum is having their Beer Culture Summit this month so I thought we should visit some of the breweries connected with that education this month, starting with….

…Funkytown Brewery. Founded by Richard Bloomfield, Zachary Day and Gregory Williams who won a Brewbound Pitch Slam for their brewery plan.

Here are a list of their beers:

  • Summertime Chi Witbier
  • Gym Shoe Weather Belgian Pale Ale
  • Hip-Hops and R&Brew Pale Ale
  • It Is What It Is Smoke Beer
  • New Year, Who Dis? Oatmeal Stout
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CA Brewery Tour # 3 – Hella Coastal Brewing

We head to Oakland and one of the rare but fingers crossed growing number of black-owned breweries, Hella Coastal.

Hella Coastal Lager – “Lightly hopped, easy drinking Lager Style Ale featuring Tettnang and Strata Hops.”

Hop On It Pale Ale – a new release using Centennial, El Dorado and Citra hops.

Oakland Haze – “West Coast Hazy IPA Featuring Nelson and Cascade hops with notes of Pineapple, Guava, Grapefruit and a hint of diesel.”

Bomba Nights – “We linked up with Federation Brewing to create this bomb coconut Stout inspired by the age-old Puerto Rican holiday drink coquito. Brewed with heaping amounts of hand-toasted coconut flakes, whole cinnamon sticks, lactose and Madagascar vanilla beans.”

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CA Brewery Tour # 2 – Farmers Brewing Company

Our next CA stop is in Princeton, or you can go to their Chico taproom, it is Farmers Brewing Company.

Let us see what is farm to tap…

530 Unfiltered Wheat Ale – “A very refreshing, easy drinking beer. Along with U.S. grown barley, the grain bill consists of medium grain sushi rice and soft white winter wheat grown and harvested on the fields of our family farm. 530 is late hopped during the brewing process, producing a slight citrus/floral aroma and flavor. The residual yeast produces a subtle, yet complex flavor.”

Sunup till Sundown Session IPA – “Inspired by and named after a farmer’s work ethic, this session-style IPA is easy drinking, sun up ‘til sun down. Estate grown rice and wheat, a golden sunset color, orange blossom aroma, and fresh lemon zest combine into a burst of tartness, dissipating into a smooth finish.”

Fall Harvest – “Fall is the time of year when we are busy in the fields and an Oktoberfest style beer couldn’t be more fitting for us to celebrate with. By toasting our estate grown rice and using our wheat, we have added an American twist to the traditional German style of beer.”

Stubborn Mule – “This loaded liquid is made from 100% estate grown rice and fermented with sake yeast. Brewed with blueberry, ginger, and lemon, this gluten-free beverage is crisp and delicious.”