Grand Opening day finally arrived for Brouwerij West and I ambled down to the former Navy warehouses in San Pedro to taste the beer and see the sea.
First on to beer # 1 which was Sour Orange A witbier that was redolent of wheat with a slight orange kiss to it. I wouldn’t call it sour by any stretch of the imagination. Though the sour is present in the aroma more than the taste. The Seville orange flavor (marmalade-ish) grows as it warms. Nice but mis-named.
I checked my notes and I was here basically a year ago. It is still just a cavernous space. Even with brewing equipment, tables and a crowd, it is still has plenty of elbow room. With the cargo doors opened you get rectangles of light but the interior is cold but it becomes less dark due to the strings of light in the rafters which are more than just Instagram decoration. Sorta wish there was a bit of history of the building somewhere. Some naval nod. There was a pretty big crowd outside in the sun. The grand opening was strong on organization. IDs checked at one station. Tickets at the next. Beer inside with ticket takers on one side of the table and pour volunteers on the other. Makes for fast delivery.
Next I had to go with the Super Orange – now this is tart. Sour right at the front followed by the orange. Seems a bit lighter than the regular orange. More of the peel than the regular orange.
It is a lovely space and perfect for drinking beer. I will be back to get a taster during normal hours. Have to see what the rest of the new and expanded tap list is like plus taste the old favorites that have been missing from shelves.