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The Best Beers of May 2021 + IPA Standings

Time to check in on the best beers that I had this month. First off is Pally Pils from Green Cheek in Anaheim, I went to try their cold IPA but was taken by their Italian Pilsner instead. Then traveling to Belgium via El Segundo, the noted IPA house has a Belgian Strong Ale, Gouden Arm which was strong indeed and just an excellent departure for the brewery.

But the winner was the collaboration between Long Beach Beer Lab and Ambitious Ales called Affogat-oats. A triple IPA with oats and lactose and coffee. I would have added it to my IPA best but it was such a style mash -up. Coffee and cream and then sweetness and a touch of bitterness

Two beers that Three Weavers made almost cracked the top three of the IPA list. The latest batch of Light Trails was bright and grape-y and the Crowns and Knots collab with Crowns & Hops was winner was well. The top remains unchanged.

3. Crooked Stave Idaho 7 IPA

2. Indie Brewing Quintette IPA

  1. Offshoot Beer Co. DDH Visions
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Not A Coffee IPA?

from the Hop Merchants social media feed

Long Beach Beer Lab and Ambitious Ales are only separated by a mile or two and now they are even closer on the label for a new beer that is A) hazy B) over 10% and C) made with oat cream.

So more latte than coffee IPA it seems.

PS – I recently opened a can and it is fantastic. Big coffee. Big latte and still the hops show through too. Pick one up.

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2 Ambitious

Long Beach (specifically Bixby Knolls) is an L.A. beer hub and one of its members is turning 2. Now, there will not be a big ol’ party but there will be special can releases so check out the Ambitious Ales social media to stay in the loop.

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Footie

Bundesliga is all but done, the Premier League is winding down with some important spots still in play, and MLS is back and you will need to drink something when watching from your couch. And Ambitious Ales has DDH Hazy for you. AND a cheeky Spanish football referenced beer….
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Tiki Taka – Tiki Sour with Pineapple, Peach, Toasted Coconut and Vanilla

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Fun Labels for a July 2020


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I am staying local for the July edition of fun beer labels, starting with Professional Human Being a Hazy IPA Double Dry Hopped with Nelson, Citra and Wai iti from Ambitious Ales in Long Beach.
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I like the simple color stripes and the brainiac / scientist and the name is fun and ironic considering how inhuman some people are acting like.

Nearby-ish, Burnin Daylight has a beer from somewhere else…

…which is appropriately hopped with Galaxy (and Simcoe). What I like is the Cosmos colors and mirrored names. It works really well and as a Sci-Fi nerd, anything about parallel universes is fun.
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February 2020 – Anniversaries

Here are your lucky numbers for February….

1st Anniversary – Wingwalker in Monrovia on 2/8

3rd Anniversary – Los Angeles Ale Works in Hawthorne on 2/15

2nd Anniversary – State Brewing in Gardena on 2/22

1st Anniversary – Ambitious Ales in Long Beach on 2/29

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1st Visit – Ambitious Ales

Feel like I am close to knocking out all the new Long Beach breweries as I visited Ambitious Ales recently.

Ambitious Ales is located in the former home of Tuttle Cameras. The concrete floor is offset by the wood striped chairs and bar and the beams high above in the ceiling. Good use of a cool splash of primary colors opposite the taps. There are quirky signage touches and the requisite barrel display.

The beer menu signs are classy and simple if a skosh too small. Would have been good to have some paper menus around to use. I like the bright white backdrop for the unadorned taps and the wordless logo on the glassware as well.

Fleurs
Heavy on the chamomile but real nice. The lavender pokes through but not so much the strawberry. Mocktail adjacent

I Like Tuttles
Simple Saison with California grown wheat. Has the Belgian character right. Clove and tiny banana note.

Hopped on Phonics
Big grapefruit notes. Real nice aroma. Quite hoppy for a session IPA

I have 1st visited a few new breweries this year but this is the first one that has really impressed me. All three beers were excellent, the staff were helpful and they had cold brew coffee and a soda option as well.