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Sean Suggests for July 2022

Summer might be the time for pilsners and lagers to shine but there are still a lot of IPAs out there with almost all the hops you can imagine.

Smog City Squall Line IPA – 6.4% – “the next beer in our Smog Days IPA Series. This is one bright & crushable West Coast IPA, coming in at 6.4% and featuring Azacca, Veteran’s Blend, & Simcoe hops. It’s got wonderful flavors of mango, pineapple, & stone fruit.

Fremont / Bale Breaker Cultivision Cold IPA – 7.5% – “we used Yakima Chief Hop’s 301 Mosaic Fresh Cryo Hops. Just because it’s not fresh hop season, doesn’t mean we can’t bring you a fresh hop beer. By using fresh hops it really accentuates the pine, grassy and fresh floral aromas.”

Societe Brewing Glorious Odds Hazy IPA – 7.5% – “a playful hazy with a boat load of stone fruit notes. Adorn your senses with aromas of peach, tropical fruits and lemon followed with some orange & sweet aromatics. Crafted with Idaho 7, El Dorado, Mosaic, and Azzaca hops, this spunky brew is mildly bitter with a heavy haze.”

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Sean Suggests for June 2022

This month it is easy to be green in Los Angeles as a bevy of heavily hopped beers are out there waiting for us to experience the loudest bitterness.

BIG

Ogopogo / El Segundo Hop City Express 2: Double Trouble – 8.5% WC DIPA This San Gabriel meets El Segundo collaboration is hopped with Incognito Mosaic, Incognito Chinook, Michigan Chinook, and Mosaic Cryo. 

BIGGER

Beachwood Brewing Greenshift DIPA – 10% – West Coast Double IPA from hopped with a lot of the green stuff.   Citra, Amarillo, El Dorado, Nelson Sauvin, Galaxy, and Warrior too.

JUMBO

Highland Park Brewery Jumbo Timbo IPA – 7.5% – “Timbo Style IPA hopped with Mosaic & Citra hops, just like Timbo Pils, but we bumped it up a notch or two. This crisp, clear, hoppy beer explodes with notes of dank blueberry kush, flamed orange peel, & zippy blueberry razzzz. What a crop of aromas, what a crop!”

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Sean Suggests for May 2022

This month is all California with a leaning to styles not normally seen or ingredients not as often used.

Firestone Walker / Green Cheek – Parrotphrase – 4.5% “We teamed up with Green Cheek Beer Co. to create Parrotphrase, a limited-edition Dry-Hopped Grisette with crisp flavors of passionfruit and guava. Parrotphrase will be the Welcome Beer at the Invitational Beer Festival.”

Cellador Ales – Golden Healer – 5% “an intensely aromatic, and reminds me of the perfumey quality of walking by a guava tree in Southern California in the fall. The base beer has lots of depth, with classic Farmhouse beer character, which plays well with the slightly herbal note of the guavas.”

Beachwood Brewing – Barrel Aged Full Malted Jacket Scotch Ale – 12% – “Bringing back our two-time GABF award-winning Full Malted Jacket Bourbon Barrel-Aged Scotch Ale. With its NEW partner in crime, Full Malted Jacket RYE Barrel-Aged Scotch Ale. You’ll taste accents of vanilla and toasted oak that meld seamlessly with notes of toffee and caramel.

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Sean Suggests for April 2022

Let’s dive into as many hops as humanly possible. Here are three recent lupulin releases. Two from Cali in cans and one DIPA in limited release on draft.

Three Weavers Hops There and Everywhere IPA 7.2% “Featuring the hops Talus, Simcoe and HBC586, expect notes of mango, orange zest, grapefruit, passionfruit and pine wrapped in the tight, crystal clear embrace that we know and love as West Coast IPA.”

Radiant Brewing Another Surprise IPA 7.3% “a sparkling showcase of the many faces of the beloved Citra hop! Aromas of peachy ring gummies, big tropical guava and mango, and a touch of tangerine kick off this multifaceted experience and carry through into its delicious flavor, along with notes of white peach and pina colada. Its flavor is big, while its bitterness is not. The dry finish makes for a very drinkable 100% Citra hopped IPA despite its slightly higher ABV.”

Outer Range Brewing In the Deep Steep DIPA 8.5% “Citra, Mosaic, Galaxy. creating flavors ofGrapefruit, Peach and Mango.

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Sean Suggests for March 2022

Let’s do a Belgian post (with a side trip to Van Nuys). I need to get busy buying more Belgian and I guess the IPA fans need to as well.

Gueuzerie Tilquin Gueuze Tilquin a l’Ancienne 6.0% – “Oude Gueuze Tilquin à l’Ancienne is a spontaneous fermentation beer, produced from the blending of 1, 2 and 3 years old lambics. It is unfiltered and unpasteurized, and refermented in the bottle for at least 6 months. The lambics used were fermented and oak aged in our installations. These lambics are coming from worts brewed by Boon, Lindemans, Girardin and Cantillon breweries.”

Cellador Ales Vine of the Dead 7.0% – “This beer is straight fire. So beautiful and so complex. Aged on a massive amount of Cabernet and Charbono wine grape skins for 2 months, Vine of the Dead has a complex aroma profile dominated by berries and vanilla with hints of baking spices. The mouthfeel is full and the acidity perfectly balanced, laying a pristine backdrop for flavors of blueberry, cranberry, and oak. A nearly perfect beer that can only be done justice by trying it for yourself.”

Brouwerij Het Anker Gouden Carolus Cuvee Van de Keizer Blau 11.0% – “Every year on the 24th of February, the birthday of “Charles the fifth”, the Brewery brews the Gouden Carolus “Cuvee of the Emperor” in a limited quantity and with an eye on the highest quality and tradition. This unique brewing, with only extra fine Belgian hops and with a higher alcohol level, guarantees a better evolution in the time, than the already known Gouden Carolus. This beer, as all our beers, is 100 % natural, with no preservatives, no adjuncts and no chemicals. We bottle it in bottles of 75 cl and closed with a quality cork. Excellent to store several years. Every year the public is invited to assist to the brewing process.”

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Sean Suggests for February 2022

Pour Some Space in Your Face as this month choices hail from Ecliptic Brewing of Portland. Two locations in the Rose City to serve you. Mississippi Ave. and their still kinda new Moon Room. Plus we get drops here in L.A. too.

Ecliptic Capella Porter 5.2% – “Capella Porter is named after a bright star in the constellation Auriga. Sweet dark malt aromas are followed by a nice medium body. Flavors of chocolate and caramel meld with just a touch of roast. A collection of American hops (Nugget, Chinook, Centennial and Cascade) brighten this lively porter.”

Ecliptic Pyxis Pilsner 5.5% – “Noble hops complement this balanced pilsner. Finishing crisp & refreshing, Pyxis is our spin on this classic German-style lager.”

Ecliptic Phaser IPA 6.5% – “Juicy and unfiltered, Phaser Hazy IPA stuns with a lively array of fruity hop notes. Phaser features Citra, Azacca, Mosaic and El Dorado hops.”

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Sean Suggests for January 2022

Time for the first beer shopping list for 2022! Last month, I skipped around the style wheel. This month, the arrow is pointed firmly at IPA.

LIGHT

Smog City – Frost Flower – “Frost Flower drinks soft with big punchy fruit tones. It’s medium body contrasts the dry drinkability of west coast haze. This ambrosia salad of tropical fruit steps out with big berry notes, citrus, guava and a touch of coconut while finishing with just enough bitterness to bring you in for another sip.”

MEDIUM

Firestone Walker – Hopnosis – “The Hop Ontology Project is our exploration of the ephemeral nature of the modern IPA. Hopnosis is a crisp West Coast IPA double dry-hopped with some of our favorite modern hop varieties from the USA and New Zealand.”

BIGGEST

Casa Agria – Closely Apart Hazy DIPA – “Citra and Mosaic, you just can’t keep them separated. A friendship like no other, this Hazy DIPA has everything that you need! Introducing Closely Apart Hazy Double IPA.”

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Sean Suggests for October 2021

IPA is ubiquitous. Cannot avoid it’s shadow of many sub-styles. With Halloween approaching, let’s get spooky into hops.

Indie Brewing – Powerful Arrangements IPA – 6.5% “Our new Pink Boots society West Coast IPA. This Dank, fruity, and floral IPA is citrus forward with some dank undertones for your enjoyment on any day. Don’t miss out on this Pink Boots brew!”

Kern River Brewing – Camp Nelson IPA – 7% “Tucked away in the Southern Sierras is a small enclave called Camp Nelson. Here you can ride your bike through Giant Sequoia trees, relax along the Tule River and forget about your troubles for a while. In the Fall, when things slow down, there is nothing quite like te sounds and smells of this place. We brewed this Nelson Sauvin hopped beer as a tribute to this bold, yet delicate place. Enjoy this limited release beer and make time for the simple things in life!”

Barrel House – Big Sur DIPA – 9% “Big Sur, a masterpiece of colossal redwoods, treacherous cliffs, and dangerous surf breaks. With nearly 70 miles of rugged coastline and frigid sharky waters, adventure here isn’t for the faint of heart. Introducing BIG SUR Double IPA, brewed big to stand up to life’s most rewarding adventures.”

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Sean Suggests for August 2021

This has been a hot goddamn August. Time to cool down with some pilsners and lagers. Here are three excellent California choices.

LIGHT

Faction Hipster Conformant Lager – 4..8% Simply, “Industrial lager”

MEDIUM

Artifex Czech Your Citra – 5.1% “Bright, crisp, and hoppy. Dry hopped with Citra.”

DARK

Smog City Hoppy Lager – 5.2% “Hoppy Pilsner are beautiful cans full of refreshing, crisp, & universally pleasing pilsner make the perfect weekend companion and are available in 4-pack cans & draft. Packed with just the right amount of hops to keep things interesting, Hoppy Pils is a great all day sipper.”

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Sean Suggests for July 2021

This month we ride with Belgian ales or spins on Belgian ales. Catch the other common theme as well..

LIGHT

Crooked Stave Sour Rose – 4.5% “Primary fermented with our mixed culture of wild yeast, Sour Rosé undergoes fermentation in large oak foeders on raspberries and blueberries. Showcasing bright effervescent characteristics, Sour Rosé is the perfect sour beer for all seasons and occasions. Unfiltered and naturally wild, we package each can with a small amount of yeast to maintain maximum freshness for wherever life’s adventures take you.”

MEDIUM

Drie Fonteinen Armond and Gaston Gueze– 6.5% “3 Fonteinen Oude Geuze Cuvée Armand & Gaston is a blend of one-, two-, and three-year old traditional lambics, all brewed at Brouwerij 3 Fonteinen. Spontaneous fermentation, patient maturation in oak barrels, and continued evolution in the bottle result in a distinctively complex beer. No two bottlings are alike, as there are multiple variables in the blending process, a variety of barrel sizes and shapes, differences in aged lambic proportions, etc. This cuvée, like all of our lambic, is 100% natural, authentic, spontaneously fermented, and crafted with steadfast adherence to tradition, like Armand and Gaston Debelder have always done it. This geuze has fermented in the bottle and will continue to develop its tastes and aromas over its long life when properly cellared.”

DARK

Fair Isle Jean-Michel – 6.9% “Jean-Michel is a blend of three, six, and nine month old farmhouse ales aged in oak puncheon and dry-hopped with the French hop Barb Rouge. Jean-Michel has an indubitable wild berry bouquet and oresents notes of strawberry pound cake and black currants.”