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Ladyface turns 3

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Lot’s of anniversary action this month! Good to see the milestones being both reached and eclipsed. On to Agoura Hills for this post….

“To celebrate their 3rd Anniversary Week, January 21st through 27th, Ladyface Alehouse & Brasserie is planning a full week of events highlighting their award-winning ales. Monday, all taps begin pouring Ladyface creations and, over the course of the week, guests will be able to enjoy special releases, archived vintages, barrel aged brews, collaborations, brewer’s one-off creations, casks, and more.

Monday also sees the release of Ladyface’s 3rd Anniversary Ale, a Belgian Dark Strong Ale with a deep garnet hue and a dense white foam head. Aromas of soft caramel and toffee are layered between earthy spice and fruit. Hops are faint but enough presence to balance. Flavors of rum-raisin and fresh baked bread are followed quickly by warming alcohol. A strong Belgian yeast character is present and exotic Asian teas add subtle layers of vanilla and dark chocolate truffle. Limited edition 3rd Anniversary glassware, with a year-long discount program, also goes on sale.

Tuesday, January 22nd sees Ales From The Vault, on Wednesday Chef Adrian Gioia and Brewmaster David Griffiths present a reservation-only Brewmaster’s Dinner, then Thursday is Barrel-Aged Beer Night. Event details, including is music and prize drawings, can be found on the Ladyface Alehouse & Brasserie Facebook page and at their website.

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Review – Heretic Gramarye

It is time for a quick review (minus the video).

Today we tackle a Great American Beer Festival gold medal winner, Heretic Brewing’s Gramarye
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First, here is the label copy, “Gramarye is the practice of learning magic. For thousands of years, people have used a grimoire (book of magic) to cast spells and summon spirits. Of course, magic fell out of favor over the centuries, the same as brewing with rye. Interest in magic seems to be on the upswing these days, and so is the interest in brewing with rye. A coincidence? This is our take on session pale ale made with a dose of rye malt to give it that luscious feel and snappy finish. We think it is magical.”
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It pours a pretty dark orange color with plenty of bubbly action going from the bottom of the glass up. The aroma is primarily rye to me. Usually with rye beers that is a flavor that is part of the whole package and not up front and center. Here it is right on the nose. Has quite a bit of carbonation in the flavor that is followed to the tongue by the rye which is almost bready at this point and then the bitterness which really lingers at the back. I am also getting some vanilla notes as well. All of this at 4.4% abv. No wonder it won gold.

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Mission Street in 2013

One of the better beer bargains can be had (unsurprisingly to some) at Trader Joe’s. Their Mission Street brand is brewed by Firestone-Walker and they do a range of blonde to pale to IPA to bombers of brown ale and hefe but each year they put out an Anniversary beer. Now, it doesn’t touch the Firestone-Walker anniversary beers but for the price, you get a great beer. Look for it in the coming months….
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2 New from Cismontane

I haven’t spoke about Cismontane in awhile. They fell off my radar a bit but they have two beers that I am looking forward to finding and trying!
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1. “Holy Jim Falls is officially a part of our core beer lineup. A sessionable IPA weighing in at just under 5%, this beer is perfect for thirst quenching and time wasting. Expect a clean and crisp palate that will pair nicely with spicy foods. Complementing the taste graciously is a hearty dose of “herbal” dankness which overwhelms even the most seasoned of schnozes. This beer will be available for tasting, pints, growler fills and 16oz bottles. Try one, try as many as you like, Holy Jim is here to stay!”

2. “Label approval for our Whiskey Rye Barrel aged Oso has finally passed! We have been sneaking secret tastings of Oso over the last couple weeks and it is incredible. The English yeast imparted a symphony of dark fruity esters which compliment the tasty vanilla/ caramel notes, graciously donated by the Rye Whiskey barrels. This beer is super limited and will be available for tasting, ½ pint pours, and takeout 750ml bottles while supplies last.”

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Dry hopping saison

How could Saison Dupont get better?
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“After 5 years of making Belgians extremely happy with their special seasonal release a dry-hop version of SAISON DUPONT, Vanberg & DeWulf and Brasserie Dupont are now able to make American drinkers equally happy. Saison Dupont Cuvee Dry Hopping 2013 will be available this May only featuring the famous TRISKEL hop varietal from Alsace.

Triskel is bred from the French Strissespalt and English Yeoman hops. Dupont’s master brewer Oliver Dedeycker describes it as “combining the aromatic notes, mainly floral, of Strisselspalt with the fruity character of Yeoman.” The unusual name, Triskel, was apparently inspired by triskelion, the symbol of the Gauls, those beer drinking ancestors of the French, which represents the three elements: Earth, Air and Water.”

Oh, that’s how.

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Beachwood + Pliny (yes, the Younger)

Readers of this blog know that I firmly, staunchly and unabashedly cannot stand the hype around Pliny the Younger. Granted, it is a really good beer. But I can usually find Blind Pig or the Elder and I don’t have to fight a frenzied crowd and I can get a full pour.

That is why I love the way Beachwood handles it. Raffle the tickets off. Donate to charity and people who win can get a peaceful experience of the beer when they want to. This is the way to do it.
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Roll out the barrel and send it down the 101

A little organization going on at Firestone-Walker. Probably a New Year’s resolution.
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“Firestone Walker Brewing has begun the creation of its Barrelworks in Buellton, an existing facility with some room for expansion an hour south of our Paso Robles brewery

Matt Brynildson recently banished (ed. seems rather harsh to me) the rare feral (a.k.a. sour) beers from the Paso Robles brewery and they are now showing up in Buellton under the watchful eye of Jim Crooks (Sour Jim).

This is not a new brewery nor a new brewhouse…..stay tuned, it’s going to be wild and funky…”

So it looks like sour fans won’t have to drive as far north.

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FoodGPS Teaser – Smog City

Early in January as the concrete was drying at the in-progress Smog City brewery, I was treated to a tour of the facility by Porter and Laurie the hard working duo behind such beers as The Nothing and Sabre-Toothed Squirrel.

I will talk more about what I saw and what I heard but check out some photos here…..
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The “sign” that shows you that you have found Smog City
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Remember this photo when you are sitting in their taproom.

And check out the info for their event tonight at the Venice Ale House….
“Come join TapHunter at Venice Ale House as we celebrate our LA launch with 2 of LA’s most promising breweries, LadyFace Ale Companie and Smog City Brewing. No strangers to one another, brewmasters and co-founders Dave Griffiths of LadyFace and Porter of Smog City once worked together at BJ’s Brewery before parting ways to start their own breweries. Now TapHunter is reuniting this duo, that represents both the light and darkness of the LA craft beer scene. Join us for a night of fun:

– Meet the folks from TapHunter, LadyFace and Smog City
– ‘Craft Table’ for the ladies we provide the t-shirts, ribbon, scissors; you provide the creativity! prizes for the best customized shirt!
– $5 pours, door prizes, burger specials
– DJ provided for the children

First 100 RSVP’ers, show us your TapHunter App and TapHunter will buy your first pint!”

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Hop in the Saddle – book review

Over the holidays, I got my copy of Hop in the Saddle. I was one of the Kickstarters for this beery guide and was anxious to see how it turned out.
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And the answer is…. great!

This is handy for both bikers who drink (or don’t) and for drinkers who bike (or won’t). It splits Portland into manageable chunks while also finding spots that I had never even heard of.

The biking instructions are complete and the notes really show that the authors have been to these places. And they have picked solid locations to hit the bike brakes. The graphic design is a skosh cluttered in spots but is cute and consistent.
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This guide may be more useful for a year-round Beervana resident but still holds surprises for those planning a visit.