Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
Institution Ales Fall Seasonal is back with a Black IPA. It is “brewed with Citra, Simcoe and Amarillo hops. Deceptively dark in appearance, this beer drinks similarly to a piney, citrusy West Coast IPA with only small hints of toasty and chocolate malts.”
The Georgia based Creature Comforts Brewing has reached the one year mark for their south of downtown, Fashion District L.A. outpost and will spend the first weekend of November celebrating. Maybe they will have a few autumnal beers on tap to ease into the holiday season with.
I posted about Slice & Pint from El Segundo Brewing expanding to a second location down the road in Redondo Beach, well in no time flat, they already have a special beer for it.
Naturally, it is an IPA. Now to find the right pizza for it.
L.A. Beer Week is underway and here are the photographic receipts to prove it…
Brewing history is important and that history includes both the knowledge and the equipment. And earlier this month there was some positive news on that front as Carlsberg Marston’s Brewing Company has announced that they are taking some old Burton Unions and given them to Thornbridge Brewery and will also help with the set-up to get them going.
Burton-on-Trent was the Portland / San Diego and Asheville of its time. Basically the brewing town. You can go HERE to read all about Burton Unions. (Firestone Walker used a modified tiny version up in Paso Robles.) Like most bespoke items, it was not modern day efficient and thus not being used by Carlsberg.
I have a feeling that Thornbridge will be able to make good use of the Unions.
New breweries are a tiny bit easier to track now, but even I can fall behind on the news. Ikasu Brewing helmed by Masahiro (Masa) Kitano is in the planning stages and certainly has a different look from other L.A. breweries but has a renowned home brew club education (SoCal Cerveceros).
Follow on the social media and hopefully more news about this in process brewery will emerge.
Pints for Prostates will be holding an online beer auction until 3/17 (aka St. Padraig’s Day) There are some interesting beers to bid on as well as experiences and merchyswag. Take a look right HERE
Our third and final Washinton State brewery is Recluse Brewing in the town of Washougal. The brewery which opened in December of last year, is helmed by Gus Everson, former Lead Brewer at Wayfinder Brewing in Portland.
Here is my thoughts on a good opening taster tray…
SPECIÁLNÍ 13 Czech-Style Amber Lager – Smooth. Balanced. Bohemian.
BED DENIM Extra Pale Ale – Classic. Pine. Fruit.
RBW EXPORT LAGER – Simple. Gold. Lager
MOOSE MAN Porter – Chocolate. Roast. Cryptic
We start with a memoir, which are not usually a style I delve into but Roughhouse Friday covers the topic of growing up and understanding your parents in a fresh way.
Part of that is due to the narrative thrust that is learning about yourself through boxing, also not normally a topic I choose to read about, and the setting in Alaska, which makes me shiver in cold just thinking about it.
Coffin made a few young man mistakes, some I recognize that I made, but he does not stray into “Lad” territory where you cringe at the worse aspects of masculinity. You can see as he gains boxing experience, he is gaining life experience outside the ring.
Alaska looms large in this book and the main beer that the “south” will know of and have tasted would be Alaskan Brewing Co. and might as well start with Juneau Juice Hazy IPA or Icy Bay IPA to get the bitterness of youth rolling. You could also pay homage to his mother’s Thai heritage with a Singha, Chang or BeerLao, whichever you can find. Those might be good to quaff after hitting the punching bag.
Who among us has not bought themselves a late Christmas gift after looking at our haul from Santa and found it a bit wanting?
An Enegren Lager sweatshirt, would be perfect for that small window of kinda but not really cold SoCal January when you want to sip your lager outside and enjoy the slightly crisp weather.
