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my humble and correct opinion
Party Beer Co. is on the move and it is for typical reasons for an L.A. brewery. The landlord.
But do not fret. The beer will continue, brewed at Eagle Rock Brewery until they can find a new forever home. The beer will also be on tap at what will be a combo Eagle Rock – Party Beer taprrom.
It is a shame that West Adams is losing a spot for craft beer because the area is under beer-ed.
One last kvetch for 2023 before the craft beer world moves into 2024.
Hours of Operation. Why do I have to be Sherlock Holmes or an investigative journalist to find them and once found, why am I wary that they don’t really reflect the actual open hours?
A little backtrack first. My father was an inveterate gambler when it came to going out to a restaurant. He barely checked the address, let alone if the darn place would be open. God forbid he call the establishment.
My genome carried some of that devil may care attitude but it has been slowly and surely burned out of me. In my last road trip, I read and re-read the hours of one spot that I wanted to visit. It seemed clear but it was clearly at odds with the sign on the closed door that said different.
Another brewery that I checked and re-checked was closed for a staff event. No where was that mentioned. Guess it was expected that people would find out when they drove their and saw a darkened taproom. Another brewery was lit up and an employee was inside but that employee was apparently the only one who showed up and so the brewery was staying locked.
If I had called the brewery with the staff event, would the message said that? If I had called the one employee brewery, would the phone have been answered. I suspect no in both instances.
Why can’t hours be easy and clear? Are they changing with such frequency that social media cannot be updated quickly enough? Does no one have that job?
The fix is simple. Check your hours on your website and social media pages. Then fix if needed. If hours for a certain week, like Christmas or New Year’s is different, then post that.
Of the three places where I traveled and met with no welcome, I did not go back to two of them. That should say something.
The November issue of Beer Paper featuring a German theme may prove to be the final issue of the monthly paper.
I have seen a few other newsletters call it quits as well and it seems to be not only due to financial considerations but also to time spent that could be spent elsewhere for better gain.
I think that another consideration is that the craft beer missionaries have decreased in number. Factor that in along with the steady change in how we get our news now favoring Tik Tok means that beer fans not only have to keep their enthusiasm up, they also have to keep changing technology.
It is tiring if you want to make a living at it. Or at least not bleed money.
Which gets us back to Beer Paper which has plugged along month to month covering a wide range of stories from around the Los Angeles area. They have allowed me to write about beer books which is doubly against the grain of the times.
It must be said that the news is not yet final but I would expect changes at the very least. Perhaps quarterly. Perhaps online only. Either way, it was a great run and I am glad to have been a small contributor to it.
Yakima Chief Hops is launching a new program named FWD, to drill down on both on data and the brewing community.
Here are a couple of snippets from the press release, “Participating brewers will be granted access to the newest, not-yet-commercialized HBC varieties and products in Yakima Chief Hop’s innovation pipeline. Application registration is open for breweries interested in trialing cutting-edge hop products and promising experimental hop varieties. In its inaugural year, FWD will be welcoming a limited number of enthusiastic participants. Through brewing trials, questionnaires, conversation and sensory analysis, brewers will have the opportunity to guide these products through their final stage of development, assuring YCH is working on the most useful and exciting products in the industry.”
“The ultimate goal of FWD is to have a circular, growing community of brewers working with Yakima Chief Hops to identify and curate the products that keep beer moving forward.”
More information can be found at HopFWD.com .
There has been a wee bit of gnashing of teeth as noteworthy breweries have changed hands. Ecliptic into the Ninkasi portfolio. Many breweries huddled newly under the Tilray banner. Anchor in a weird limbo.
Beer fans can ponder the economics of it all but I would say that we also need to learn how to let go. There was a run on Anchor beers only when supplies became limited. The only other notable press they received was for their design change that no one liked.
My question becomes, if Anchor or Ecliptic or pick a brewery in trouble were to be lifted magically to in the black and not red, would that amount of beer be sold? I doubt it.
As SoCal belatedly settles into fall, we should all understand that seasons change. Your favorite brewery, my favorite beer, that great taproom you traveled to will most likely all be gone and that is OK. Not great. A bummer for sure but it opens the door for a new wave to try their hands at this crazy brewing game.
In this era of streaming where there is even a show about foot surgery. Yes, it is gross. Why is there no beer content?
The closest I have seen recently was yet another kitchen challenge show in the same format as all the others but swapping in cocktails as the main theme.
There could be a show about the whole process. More science, more PBS with some history thrown in. It could be a travel show. Going from craft beer town to craft beer town with a jovial Huell Howser type host. I am not big on competition shows but there is probably a documentary series that could be done on getting the top level of Cicerone certification.
There does not seem to be much, if any, about most beverages so maybe it is a liquid thing. But I wish there was more out there for us fans. Even if it is just 9 minute videos on a dedicated YouTube channel but that is for the next post.
A great Thanksgiving for me is an unstressed Thanksgiving. No worries about cooking a turkey, no who to invite or not, no traveling through a packed airport.
Give me a turkey sandwich and a side and I am good.
And a few beers too.
However you best enjoy the day, enjoy it. Give thanks for the last 11 months and thanks for the next 11. We all need it.
Cheers!
I know that the glitter beer trend has come and gone and also gotten a bit of shade thrown at it in the process but if you are still looking to fancy up your beer then you can look into well, Fancy Edible Glitter. It is an edible glitter that has been “formulated for both food and drink”.
It is crazy to think that this upcoming year will only be the 7th anniversary of the now annual Pink Boots Blend of hops. The partnership with Yakima Chief Hops creates a new “blend each year with a portion of the proceeds benefitting Pink Boots Society, the non-profit organization whose mission is to assist, inspire, and encourage women and non-binary individuals in the fermented/alcoholic beverage industry to advance their careers through education. YCH will donate $3 from each pound sold of the Pink Boots Blend directly to PBS, helping them to further their mission.”
This year, “the hop varieties in the 7th Annual Pink Boots Blend were collaboratively selected by PBS members through a combination of mailed kits and in-person voting during the Great American Beer Festival. This year’s distinctive combination features a harmonious melody of HBC 638, El Dorado®, Ahtanum®, and Idaho 7®.”
Next year, you will start seeing Pink Boots beers and I highly suggest tasting as many as you can.
America has a sweet tooth. And boy, howdy, it is a big one. That craving for sugar is well ensconced in craft beer just like the rest of the U.S. foodways.
Yes, I am calling for at least a moratorium on the hyper sweetened beers. As I have said before and will say again, creativity and boundary pushing is fantastic but we have reached the boundary and it is time to proceed in a new direction.
I am hoping that a new path is already being charted by intrepid brewers and breweries and it will only be a matter of time before that path becomes a clear trend.
But in the meantime, let’s pause it with pancake stouts, stop the sugary seltzers, cancel cacao coffee and eliminate excess eclair beers. We get it. Or at least I do. I want to see what else you can brew.