Tag: August

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In the Tap Lines for August 2019

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~ e-visits to three breweries with “bear” in the name
~ special featured reviews of beers for super hot weather, from Angel City
~ 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 The Porpoise by Mark Haddon
~ A Podcast & A Beer listens to Noble Blood
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world.

Here are two events to get your August started in the Los Angeles craft beer world:
1) August 2nd – Brew at the L.A. Zoo
2) August 4th – New Original Breweries Beer Tour

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Sean Suggests for August 2018

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Let’s stray from the IP-Yeah! and head to Belgium for this month’s three picks. Let’s get some tartness and blending going.

~LIGHT
Drie Fonteinen / Cuvee Armand & Gaston5.50% ABV
Assembly of young, half-old and old lambics, brewed by 3 fountains. One hundred one hundred natural and authentic, spontaneous and somewhat stubborn, but always elegant and full of character. Pure passion as Armand and Gaston have always done.

~MEDIUM
Crooked Stave / Surette6.20% ABV
Provisional saison, Artisan ale aged in oak barrels In a particular region of southern Belgium, the reserve or provision saison was called surette, meaning tart. Using time-honored techniques, our saisons employ old-world methods to restore complexity and the classical rustic character lost in modern day saison. Brewed with local Colorado floor malted barley, traditional harvest grains, and noble hops, Surette embodies old-world saison brewing traditions. Each batch of Surette is an expression of the large oak foeders it matures in while taking on an aged vinous quality and a complex tartness. Showcasing citrusy ripe fruits, a light zesty spice, and earthy undertones, Surette’s character exemplifies our mixed culture of Brettanomyces and souring bacteria.

~BIG
De Proef / Surly / Zwart Star8.00% ABV
Old Ale w/ Star Anise aged on wood w/ Brettanomyces.

All of these beers can be found at Sunset Beer Co. (unless they got bought up real quick)

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In the Tap Lines for August 2018

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August. The end of the silly festival season is in sight and maybe we will see an early slide into fall so that we can slide from lighter pilsners over to heavier malty options. Unfortunately, I do not control the weather but I do control the contents of the blog where we will be covering…

~ e-visits to three breweries from New York
~ special featured reviews of a TBD style
~ 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 Bonfire by Krysten Ritter
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world.

Here are two events to get your August started in the Los Angeles craft beer world:
1) August 4th – SoCal Mead Fest at Great Society
2) August 11th – Chapman Crafted 2nd Anniversary

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Sean Suggests for August 2017

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Light and dark from Oregon way with the middle being the can release from Arts District Brewing. Always make sure that you are drinking more than just IPA’s.

~LIGHT
Upright Brewing/ Saison Vert6.5% ABV
“Saison Vert is an open fermented wheat based brew made with black limes, giving the otherwise bright beer a darker flavor profile. Layered with spice, citrus, earth, and even walnut notes, Saison Vert goes down easily with tremendous nuance. Several kegs will see out of state distribution, so look for both locally and across the country.”

~MEDIUM
Arts District Brewing/ Traction IPA7.8% ABV
“A vibrant and luscious IPA layered with ripe papaya, mango, citrus, and fresh cut grass. Finishes clean and dry. Hop forward to a spotlight on the Mosaic varietal.”

~DARK
Deschutes Brewery/ Black Butte Anniversary XXIX12% ABV
“Every year, we celebrate our anniversary with an imperial, barrel-aged version of our flagship Black Butte Porter. This year, to celebrate 29 years, of brewing, we’ve added Chocolate Malt, cocoa and cinnamon for another multi-layered flavor experience.”

All of these beers can be found at Sunset Beer Co. (unless they got bought up real quick)

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In the Tap Lines for August 2017

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The second half of the L.A. summer season is here, time to load up the ‘fridge with warm weather beers and start to be amazed at how early the fall seasonals are on shelves.

~ e-visits to three breweries from with the Beer Bloggers Conference landing in Milwaukee, we visit three Wisconsin breweries.
~ special featured reviews of Unibroue beers
~ 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 Dodge City by Tom Clavin
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world.

Here are two events to get your August started in the Los Angeles craft beer world:
1) August 1st – All Your Oats Can release at Eagle Rock Brewery
2) August 3rd – Russian River Tap Take-Over at Lucky Baldwin’s Trappiste Pub location.

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Sean Suggests for August 2016

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At halftime of every soccer game that I played as a youngster, there were quartered oranges to suck on. Primeval Gatorade as it were. To this day, too much orange in the diet causes me grief but in beer it is a different story. Hence the theme of this month.

~LIGHT
Libertine/ Soccer Mom 6.0% ABV
“A great summer sipper bursting with tangerines and oranges sourced from our friends at Stepladder Ranch. We took our Gouden Foeder base and aged it on freshly picked oranges and tangerines giving our tart funky golden ale a huge citrus burst! This screams summer on the soccer field.”

~MEDIUM
BAIRD/ The Carpenter’s Mikan 6.1% ABV
“This special fruit beer originated unexpectedly, but naturally, from the earnest and genuine friendship forged between a Carpenter and a Brewer. The Brewer never intended to embark on the path of fruit ale production but was led there by the creative inspiration of the Carpenter as well as by the Carpenter’s wonderful orchard that was teeming with delicious citrus fruit. This fruit ale is inspired by the rich tradition of craftmanship in Japan – the ‘Shokunin’ spirit – which is embodied in the Carpenter.

The mikans used in this brew are fresh, succulent, and local — harvested on the land and by the hand of the Carpenter. The Baird brewers hand-process the harvested mikans, shaving off the outer skin of the peel and pressing the juice. Both peel shavings and juice are combined with wholesome, traditional and minimally processed malt and hops (characteristic of Baird Beer). The result is a product greater than the sum of its parts — as is true in the case of great human friendship.”

~DARK
Mikkeller/ SpontanOrange 7.7% ABV
“A Spontaneously fermented limbic style ale, Brewed and barrel aged on oranges at De Proef in Belgium. “

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Sean Suggests for August 2015

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We leave the state of California behind in this month’s shopping list as we hit up three very different styles and ABVS.

~LIGHT
Boulevard Brewing/ Pop-Up Session IPA 4.30% ABV
“Boulevard Pop-Up Session I.P.A. joins its big brothers Single-Wide and Double-Wide in our trailer park of hop-centric beers. This “session” model is built for frequent excursions, with a very drinkable character and relatively low bitterness tucked behind a big, fruity hop aroma”

~MEDIUM
Left Hand Brewing/ Oktoberfest 6.60% ABV
“This is no festivus for the restuvus – on the contrary – we start brewing in the Spring and it takes a full two months to reach lagered perfection. Biscuity, malty goodness dominates upfront while the noble pedigree hops lend a properly spicy, dry finis”

~DARK
Sound Brewery/ Tripel Entendre 9.90% ABV
“Complexity and balance from a simple recipe of the finest ingredients obtainable. Clear and light in color, this strong Belgian ale drinks smooth and easy but has the complexity to complement the finest meals or to savor alone at the end of the evening.”

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In the Tap Lines for August 2015

header_attractionsWe got a bit of rain here in L.A.  Enough to tamp down one fire but boy we could use a respite from the humidity and heat so that the wider spectrum of beer can be enjoyed instead of just lawnmower beers.  But enough gloomy weather talk, a new brewery opened in San Fernando at the tail end of July and it will be reviewed this month along with….

~ e-visits to three breweries in Idaho.  No potato beers here. Just Payette, Sawtooth and Portneuf beer.
~ special reviews of beers from just outside L.A. from places like Santa Barbara, Claremont and Temecula
~ Heads-Up on Los Angeles Beer Events
~ Three suggested beers to buy this month. One light, one medium and one dark
~ Beer-centric podcast review, Strange Brews from WBEZ in Chicago, (also home to This American Life)
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world
~ … and Session # 102 will converge bloggers onto a single topic, this month it is the future landscape of beer

Here are two events to get your August started in the Los Angeles craft beer world:
1) August 7th – Brew at the Zoo
2) August 19th – Phantom Carriage One Night Stand at Beer Belly

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Sean Suggests for August 2014

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The August selections are all California brewed but that is where the similarities end. All three breweries have wildly different cultures and I assume yeast cultures as well.

~LIGHT

Firestone Walker / Oaktoberfest 5.00% ABV

“A proper German Märzen bier. Traditional imported malts offer subtle honey-like aromas with hints of Noble hop spice. The stars of this brew are the imported Pilsner and Vienna malts that offer malty sweetness that carry through to the end. German Hallertau hops add rich Noble hop character to balance this exceptional Marzen.”

~MEDIUM

Modern Times/ Phalanx 7.50% ABV

“At 7.5% ABV & 100 IBUs, Phalanx is somewhere between a single IPA & a double IPA. It prominently features Australian Summer hops, which bring a very distinctive peach/melon character to the beer. That awesome fruit character is balanced by some citrusy Chinook hops & a touch of dankness from Horizon.”

~DARK

Lagunitas/ Imperial Red  7.80% ABV

“This Special Ale is In Reality, the Exhumation of the Very First Ale We Ever Brewed Way, Way Back, in 1993. Brewed With a Big Head, a Muscular Malty Thorax, a Silky Texture & All Strung Together With a Hoppy Sweet Nerve Sack… Ick. A dank and roasty treat.”

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In the Tap Lines for August 2013

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Now it gets really hot here in Los Angeles. So expect even more talk about my love of lagers and pilsners plus re-caps of the Downtown LA Beer Crawl and the blowout bash for Blue Palms anniversary and maybe some peeks into what is going to happen for LA Beer Week next month

~ e-visits to three breweries from Iowa including Confluence Brewing Company, Okiboji Brewing Company and Exile Brewing Company
~ video reviews samples two new Gigantic beers plus more beer reviews minus the videos
~ Heads-Up on Los Angeles Beer Events
~ Three suggested beers to buy this month
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world
~ … and Session # 78 will converge bloggers onto a single topic, this month the IPA Boom
~ plus many more posts about new beers, beer products and breweries

Here are two events to get your August started in the Los Angeles craft beer world:
1) August 1st – Belgian Beer Night at Story Tavern in Burbank
2) August 12th – Hangar 24 Local Fields beers at Public School 310 in Culver City.