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The Session – April 2025

For the April 2025 edition of The Session (#146), Ding’s Beer Blog asks us where we find the greatest value in beer.

For me, value has been an evolution. As my beer education has continued, I have learned the how’s and why’s behind the price of a sour or a pastry stout. I have taken in the economics of where I live (Los Angeles) and how it affects the price of a can here versus the price somewhere else in the world. Now, I can make better value judgements / guesses.

And that leads me to being even more picky now than I ever have been. I will take a flyer on a beer but usually only one can or bottle not a four or six-pack. I will stop at one beer if the price is higher than average or I will opt for a taster flight instead. I do not give out trust to a brewery as fast or hold onto it for as long if quality dips.

Boiling it down, I value the recipe and its ingredients the most. I want to find a beer drinking experience that stops the world for a moment and becomes something more. There are plenty of great beers that I can easily drink without noticing a sip but an IPA that has an aroma that reminds me of a farmer’s market or a barrel-aged stout that takes me back to a moment in a Kentucky rickhouse holds more to me than the a brewery origin story or a piece of label artwork or frankly, for that matter the price.

A four dollar can might be seen as value in quantity but, for me, one sixteen dollar can will be more valuable in quality and if I can be transported by that one can, I will pay (up to a point since I do not descend from royalty) and I will be satisfied.

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Needed or Not? – Anchovy Vermouth

I will admit up front that I had to look at the bottle a few times before I could accept that this fish based Vermouth wasn’t really, yet another, weird ass vodka.

And of course, it sold out. The spirit was made with “Cantabrian Anchovies from Spain. Those were infused (alongside some carefully chosen botanicals) into this vermouth for one of the most unique flavor profiles you’ve probably ever tasted.”

Needed ? – I do like a solid and authentic oyster stout but tinned fish is not my thing and briny vs botanical does not sound like a battle that could be won.

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30 Years of Labs

If you could go back in craft beer time to see today’s brewing legends, you would probably be parking the Tardis near White Labs. They were integral to the growth of San Diego beer and from there all over the U.S. and now they are celebrating 30 years.

To catch up on their journey, I strongly suggest reading this piece from the San Diego Beer News HERE. Then maybe plan a visit to their HQ and sample some of their beers, it is worth the trip.

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115.2

I have not been a fan of the 19.2oz can format.  The “stovepipe” cans are popular but trend towards double IPAs and / or high ABV which gives me the malt liquor vibes from the ’70s.  

Now Gigantic Brewing from Portland has announced 6-Packs featuring six huge 19.2oz cans of their Imperial IPA, Ginormous. For the math folks, that is 115.2 ounces of hoppiness.

It is a limited time, brewery only offering but if it is popular, I would not rule out a return.

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1st Visit – Trademark Brewing at Enclave

I posted earlier about Trademark Brewing opening an outpost in Torrance, further filling that suburb into the craft beer place to be, now here is what I found at The Enclave.

Trademark is tucked into a small corner of this mostly open air food hall that was hopping on a recent sunny Sunday, especially the coffee shop Nook which never has a line less than then people. There is lots of different seating areas and environments at the Enclave but one of the best is a stool at Trademark’s bar counter where you can do some serious people watching.

You can buy four-packs to go from their selection of beers or get a draft from the basic / popular choices that Trademark brews such as the Viking Blonde or A La Playa Mexican lager.

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Vinepair Brewery to Watch # 2 – Pivotal Brewing Company

The second stop recommended by the Vinepair website is in Rhode Island, Bristol specifically and Pivotal Brewing.

Time to order up a taster flight…

PIVO-tal – “Pivo-tal Czech-style Pilsner. An homage to the Czech word for beer–pivo–this pale golden lager was brewed with 100% Czech Pilsner malt, lending nuanced flavors of bread dough and malt sweetness. We used an exceptional lot of Hallertau Blanc hops, and a generous amount of Czech Saaz to create a soft and floral nose that blends beautifully with the subtle sourdough aromas created by our house lager yeast. Pivo-tal was lagered for over 7 weeks to showcase the expression of the Czech yeast strain and naturally carbonated for a silky and smooth mouthfeel.”

Midnight Bryter – “This Czech-style dark lager is a showcase of some of our favorite European malts, brewed with a blend of Munich, Caramunich, Vienna and Pilsner. Midnight Bryter pours a light black hue with ruby at the edges of the glass and a latte-colored head. It’s bright with flavors of mocha, dark chocolate candy bar and has layered aromas of dark caramel, espresso roast, and doughy bread. The finish has the refreshing spiciness of Czech Saaz and subtle floral notes of French Strisselspalt hops. Like most of our lagers, Midnight Bryter was lagered for 6 weeks at near-freezing temperatures and naturally carbonated through our spunding process for a clean and fully-mature lager profile.”

Hello Again, My Name is Pivotal DIPA – “Our latest hazy Double IPA release is a celebration of our favorite hop lots right now. This DIPA was brewed and dry hopped with Nelson Sauvin from family-owned Garston Hops in New Zealand, Citra, Citra Cryo and experimental hop HBC 1019. This DDH DIPA pours a slight neon yellow color with opaque haze and aromas of creamsicle soda, tangy gooseberry and a hint o’ cannabis. The body is smooth and creamy with tropical notes of guava, lychee and cantaloupe. Maybe the coolest thing we’ve noticed with this beer is that the flavors and aromas change and evolve throughout the experience of drinking a glass.”

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Dad Strength

I am not a dad, nor have I ever cared to be one but I can understand that if you are on toddler patrol or ferrying a teenager to the mall (do parents still do that?) that it doesn’t leave time to enjoy a 9% DIPA which is where Dad Strength beer comes in to fix “a classic dad problem that needed a dad solution.”

Enter sub 3% beer contract brewed at Atlas Brew Works in Washington DC. And the first two beers are IPA’s and not as one might guess, a pilsner or light lager.  

They are supposed to be in distribution at Trader Joe’s so I will see if mine has this and see if it is a better solution than the N/A beers which are only OK at their best.

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Sports & A Beer – Tanking in 2025

My beloved Portland Trailblazers had a game in March against the Raptors of Toronto.  It was a close game in the fourth quarter in a game that Portland needed to stat involved in the chase for the tenth and final playoff spot.  Portland got the W but not really due to their play, it was more that the Raptors best players were at the far end of the bench and not on the court.

Ever since the Philadelphia 76ers spent years tanking and getting not so much more than Joel Embid and Tyrese Maxey for their troubles, the NBA has been playin whack-a-mole with teams gunning for a number one pick in the draft.  Fining teams for sitting star players, flattening out lottery odds so losing doesn’t guarantee a top college prospect. Each year teams loophole their way to the end of the season.

This year, the tactic is to start your best players but then come crunch time, they are already on their way out of the arena.  But my favorite sports website the Ringer had a different take on tanking, see HERE.

And I tend to agree, the NBA has done enough short of installing relegation to the G League and does not need to levy more fines.  If the best players are playing at least in the first through third quarters, especially in road games, I am cool with that. Tankers are going to lose their own fans and concession revenue so no need to penalize further.  And besides that, the tank race is kinda fun too.  The draft has been built up to this pivotal NBA event and asking people to not go all in is kind of silly.

For beer, instead of a style, how about a drinking game.  Pick your tanking team and each time they lose, you get a real good craft beer.  But if they win, you get that old skunky beer that you have been avoiding. Fun, right?