Yesterday, I moseyed down to Redondo Beach to try the Endless Rant IPA, a collaboration between King Harbor Brewing and radio/podcast personality, Adam Carolla.
When I first moved to L.A. from Portland, I would listen to radio station KROQ and listen to Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel horsing around with Kevin & Bean so it is a bit hard to separate that memory from the radio voice and branding a beer. But it is comforting to see that the voice I heard in the mornings on the way to work hasn’t really changed all that much. I just had to see the bottles of “Mangria” floating through the taproom to see that testosterone humor still was being mined.
But I wasn’t at King Harbor to talk humor. I was there to try the beer and Endless Rant straddles two hop worlds. One is lighter based on the honey malt while the other delivers a stern kick of hops. It’s as if a Session IPA merged with a super dry and piney DIPA. The beer tastes and hits higher than its advertised ABV. As I commented to the other beer folk in attendance, it is certainly different from the IPA pack in that regard. It is decidedly un-fruited and more old school hoppy.
Some on intolerant Reddit or Beer Advocate forums may decry the celebrity beer angle, it is not, in and of itself a bad thing, Carolla has a taste that is different from mine in some respects but the fact that he podcasts shouldn’t bar him from working with a brewery to create a beer. He can bring attention to craft beer to a segment of people who might not be aware of it, yet. And true beer fans should not discourage people but rather encourage them. You never know, creativity can feed from one discipline (podcasting) to another (beer).
The Endless Rant is a fine beer. King Harbor is a damn fine brewery, so no surprise. But maybe, the next podcast beer is even better. Maybe a Dr. Drew – Carolla Loveline Gratzer? Or they could do a podcast about beer, wind and spirits.
You can get the beer at King Harbor in 22oz bombers or online via Carolla Drinks.