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Los Angeles gets a little bit of pFriem Family beers and maybe we will get this Earth Day appreciation IPA. The beer “combines Salmon-Safe hops from Coleman Agriculture with malt from Admiral Maltings using Western Rivers Conservancy’s eco-driven barley…”
Firestone Walker has a new Primal Elements sour ale out now. This time around it is filled with pineapple, passionfruit, orange and guava that is aged in french oak barrels. As a fan of passion fruit, this sounds delicious.
Earlier this month, Untappd unveiled its best of the best. There were lots of individual beer winners like this…
…which show that stout life is still bankable for high scores but for me the breweries with most medals is of more interest because it shows a wider breadth of admiration.
Picked up a crowler of She’s the Brewer, the new Stone Brewing IPA since I both hadn’t had a crowler in a bit and because of the Pink Boots connection.
This is the 8th year of a Pink Boots hop blend and when I popped the tab, instantly pine scents sprung out. It is labeled a West Coast IPA but it is a DIPA for sure. Pine and tropical notes are the first to show but they yield the stage to a heavier alcohol and woodsy bitterness. There is still some tropical hanging around but it moves more towards papaya than the lighter, brighter fruits.
Ommegang has reached out to Belgium and Italy for their new Passport Royale a collaboration with Liefmans and Birrificio Del Ducato. It is a blended sour ale that is a somewhat high 7.5%-ABV.
The Belgian Brouwerij der Trappisten van Westmalle is releasing a limited new blend combining their Westmalle Tripel and Extra 4. Duo is a blend of 60% Tripel and 40% of the Extra. No bottles, just kegs but one can hope that if it is a success, that more will be released.
Green Cheek Beer Co. has a message for you, Salty Message is a new release German-Style Sour with both Pink Salt & Magnolia Scented Tea coming in at a light 4.5% ABV.
Here is the info from the brewery, “Our new school approach to this classic Leipzig Gose style, uses a mash of unmalted wheat and pilsner malt, as well a natural souring process, to create the perfect base to steep lots of rolled oolong tea that has been scented with magnolia flowers. It’s refreshingly sour and salty, with all the vibes of magnolia flowers and a jasmine-like character from sniff to sip.”
Highland Park Brewery doesn’t do just one anniversary beer, they do multiple. For 2025, they have three High Elevens. One hazy, one west coast and one pils.
Knowing how well HPB hops a pilsner, I would start there.
There has been such a fantastic outpouring of support for Los Angeles by breweries far and wide in the wake of the devastating wildfires of this past January.
The charity program spearheaded by Common Space Brewery has garnered quite a bit of support from California and the rest of the Fractures States of America.
Here are my thoughts on the latest beers that I have had, let’s get going….
Stone Brewing – Pasadena has a proper orange juice looking hazy. Very lemony mixed with tangerine too. Hops scrape the tongue.
Long Beach Beer Lab is a combo of dank meets citrus. Nice strong hit of bitterness. Flavors mute as it warms though.
Frogtown pours a darker amber color. Getting lime and malt. Earthy hop note. Almost a British IPA.
Common Space the organizer of this endeavor went the hoppy lager route. More on the lager side than the hoppy. Little orange mixing with the malt.
The new Short-Lived IPA is out in distribution.
Shred Beer joins MadeWest for a West Coast IPA that “has a vibrant hop character loaded with berries, stone fruit and a rich resinous finish” and a real long list of hop products, including Simcoe, Simcoe Cryo, Strata, Strata Hyperboost, Mosaic, Mosaic Cryo, Krush, Krush Cryo.