The Propagator outpost of Firestone Walker is up to their 9th generation with their latest DIPA….
…coming from the recipe minds of the Venice location.
Gen-9
Half a Villain
Looks like Anaheim based Villains Brewing is taking over another San Diego brewery space, this time in the East Village.
You can read all about the news HERE at San Diego Beer News who broke the story last month. We might be in for moves like this as some breweries falter but leave behind a built out space.
To Remember
The Bruery has another real big beer on the way aged in an uncommon barrel. The Madeira Affair is exactly that, a “Madeira barrel-aged imperial stout that will float in at the way high 18.1% ABV.”
“This imperial stout, imbued with the spirit of the Madeira Islands, erupts with aromas of dark red berries, oak, and chocolate.Embark on a flavor expedition with notes of jammy fruit, dark chocolate, and vanilla, leading to a robust, bold, and dry finish.”
Would Love to Taste for March 2025
Drogone Lambic is brewed and aged by Brasserie Cantillon. It is a collaboration between Cantillon and Cantina Giardino. It is a blend of old Lambic and the pomace of Aglianco grapes. Sounds like a great and old fashioned beer. Cross country collaborations often yield intriguing results. Plus the label is very cool.
In the Tap Lines for March 2025
Spring sprang into summer in February so lighter, crisper beers are already in season as it were. Also in season is basketball and soccer plus….
~ e-visits to (3) breweries that will be pouring at the Firestone Walker Invitational Beer Festival
~ special featured reviews
~Heads-Up on Los Angeles Beer Events
~ Three suggested beers to buy this month. One light, one medium and one dark
~ A Book & A Beer reads Watford Forever
~ A Podcast & A Beer listens to Good Hang with Amy Poehler
~ Sports & A Beer returns with Why does March Madness not seem a sell-out but College football does?
~ New Beer Releases and Best Beers of the Month
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world.
The Firkin for February 2025
Beer is highly dependent on agriculture. But agriculture is tied to beer as well and nowhere is that seen as much as with hops.
Dave Infante from Vinepair recently delved into that connection with his rhetorical flourishes HERE but I want to add my two cents as well.
What struck me was that hop production was only down 16% in 2024. I expected much more than that. It does take a while to reduce, it is a big boat to steer after all, but it has been three down trending years already so I thought the number would be in the low 20’s.
My question is how will craft breweries rebound? Will it be with a hard thud onto a plateau? Or will there be some bounce to it as new breweries seize on opportunities of used equipment or turnkey operations.
If it is the latter, I hope that farmers prepare for the former so that they can re-calibrate acreage from a position of too little rather than oversupply. That may sound odd but brewers can steer to lower hop usage styles better than hop growers can control hop growth.
Whatever happens, this is more economic uncertainty and business does not handle that very well so there is probably more shifting ahead.
Best Beers of February 2025
Since February is a short month, there is only a top three but they are a good selection for sure.
With the bronze medal is the collaboration between Societe Brewing and Urban Roots. San Diego to Sacramento on a Fun Fare IPA. The label looks like a boarding pass and in a crowded IPA field, this one stood out.
Silver is the Smog City Infinite Wishes variant, German Chocolate Cake. Lots of pecan and coconut simply expressed onto a barrel-aged base.
First, primarily for charitable reasons, is the first canned We Love LA beer that I had from Ambitious Ales, their take on a hazy pale ale.
The Beer Search Party reviews We Love LA beers
There has been such a fantastic outpouring of support for Los Angeles by breweries far and wide in the wake of the devastating wildfires of this past January.
There are so many beers out and still coming out from the program spearheaded by Common Space Brewery that it is now time to tell you what beers I have sampled so far.
Here are the first three that I have had, let’s get going….
HopSaint Brewing – Blonde Ale – Light yellow. Malty touch of citrus. easy drinker
HPB – Hello LA DDHd with Nelson Sauvin. Quite a hop pellet kick with grapes following.
Ambitious Ales – hazy pale ale. proper hazy this. nice pillowy mouthfeel. good sharp bitterness.
New Oregon Brewery # 3 – Lala Brewery
Our last stop is in Boring, Oregon but their non-alcoholic beers will probably prove the opposite. LaLa Brewery is owned by Timothy Devlaeminck, a home brewer making the leap up into the N/A space.
You can read more about him where I got the lead for this HERE. But here are the possible beers, “Some of the house beers include: Red Kite, an Irish style Red ale brewed with Falconers hop blend. Super Monk, brewed with Monk Fruit to give a little sweetness and bermented with Belgian Yeast. And, Malt Root Beer, a malted root beer based off a prohibition recipe.”
Review – MadeWest 9th Anniversary
Hazy IIPA conjures up a double digit ABV beer. For MadeWest Brewing, their 9th Anniversary beer is down the scale a skosh at 8%. More DIPA range to me.
Boy, oh boy, there is some pineapple flying off this in the aroma and in the first sips. You can taste the strength as well. A bit fluffy in the mouthfeel. Some other tropical notes come into play as you drink it.