Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
In my mind, I think these new Brite beers from Terreux (The Bruery) are arriving at the right time. I believe that beer consumers (minus me) have experimented with the “hard” seltzer and the “hard” kombucha and are probably leaning back towards wanting something light in alcohol and calories and that these sparkling sours might be where they land. Especially in the summer.
Smog City has (2) collaborations on shelves……
“We teamed up with the awesome people at The Bruery and the result is “Atomic Kangarue”: a dry-hopped sour ale brewed with 2 types of grape must and fermented with Brett.”
….and on tap is “the North vs. South “California Love” Collaboration with 21st Amendment Brewery in San Francisco. This Imperial Red brewed with citrus and Pinot Noir grapes will be making a simultaneous return on September 9th (to celebrate the day California became a state!) at both our taproom and the 21 Amendment pub in San Francisco.”
Sam Adams Longshot 2013 Beer Flower Wheat 5.8% abv
“With the hot summer months and fun gatherings in mind, James brewed a refreshing wheat beer with an exotic kick. This beer is smooth and light bodied with the delicate flavors of hibiscus.”
Golden Road / Heal the Bay IPA 6.8% abv
“The two-row pale malt body takes a back seat to the Citra, Centennial, and New Zealand hops for a bright, citrus forward, summertime drinking IPA. Part of the proceeds from this beer will be donated to our hardworking friends at Heal the Bay – an organization committed to restoring and protecting the Southern California coastal waters and watershed.”
The Bruery Beer 15.5%
“Bois, our fifth anniversary ale..is brewed in the English-style Old Ale tradition using our house Belgian yeast strain and then blended using the solera method, where a portion of each of our anniversary ales is saved in our barrels and blended in with the next year’s production, providing more complexity and depth of character that comes with age.”
For Christmas, I received the luxurious gift of membership in The Bruery Reserve Society. I feel like a humblebragger just mentioning it.
Driven by beer buddy Richard down to the excellent provisions store in Old Town Orange, I entered to receive my “initiation package”
Not only did I get a membership card but I also got a hoodie with the 2012 Reserve Society logo and three beers!
Two of which went directly to my cellar which will be 60% Bruery related for the near future and then we headed up to the tap room to try (4) different versions of Saison de Lente. 2010. 2011. 0% Brett and 100% Brett. I don’t know if I should have started with 0% first and moved from there but starting at 2010 gave me the impression at 2011 was the best of the bunch. Still sparkly with the barnyardy-ness mellowed a skosh. It hit my palate the best.
Stay tuned for more visits. Next time, I pick up some new beers including a collaboration with Bootlegger’s.
I and my intrepid beer buddy/connoisseur traveled into Hollywood for the Blue Palms “The Bruery Night” They had 8 of their beers available for small tastes or large ones. Patrick Rue and his cohorts from The Bruery were there to mingle and talk to people about the beer. Tomm Carroll from the Celebrator was there as well. A great way to spend a Wednesday evening. I did not try all of their beers. I just tasted the ones that I had not had before.
white zin
Reddish/pinkish. Not the usual beer color for sure. A
combination of the cuvee jeune and lots of grapes. Very light
and soda pop-py. You could drink a lot of this. Refreshing
humulus blonde
favorite beer of the night. Solid hop presence mixed with a
Belgian golden ale. Another gorgeous looking beer. Gold and hazy.
humulus amber
probably my second favorite of the night. I am not a big amber
fan but this one had great hop taste but was very smooth.
melange # 3
you could certainly tell this had been aged in bourbon barrels.
You could smell it from a mile away. Not a lot of beer flavor.
A slow sipping beer for sure. Great beside the fire on a long, cold
winter night.
cuvee jeune
I got quite the barnyard aroma and taste off of this. A little
sour and quite funky. To me this is another beer to sip.
A beautiful Southern California day to have beer…
…Culver City to be exact on the Sony Studios lot.
The Los Angeles Beer Fest!!
A very smoothly run event I must say. Free parking which is a plus on the west side. Check-in was smooth and kept separate from the entry line. A very nice selection of quality brews on hand.
On the down side, a sizable portion of the crowd was ex-frat party boys. Lagunitas only brought bottles no kegs and Bud and Michelob were on hand. But to be fair, no one seemed shy about trying something new and even Anheuser had Hoegarden Wit on tap so effort was being made.
On to what I had before I had to call it quits.
The Bruery – Saison de Lente
Excellent beer that seemed a little toned down from a bottled version that I had before. Light and refreshing though.
Left Coast Brewing – Hop Juice
Not the hop bomb I was hoping for so I would have to rank this as a middle of the road IPA
Alaskan Brewing – Summer Ale
Only so, so to me. I don’t know why but I much prefer their darker beers.
Pyramid – Rollick Amber
Very nice malty taste. One of the better Ambers that I have had and one of the best that I tasted.
Angel City Brewing – Che
Also very nice. Balanced. Not too malty and not to hoppy but with a bit of spice to it.
Dale Brothers – Black Beer
Sort of bland to me. Not bad but did not compete with the others.
Skyscraper Brewing – Sancha Lager
Excellent. In the top three. Light and refreshing lager. Would make a good session beer.
Dean Brothers – IPA
Unfortunately, did not taste right. Acidic and not hoppy.
Widmer – Drifter Pale Ale
I really like this beer. Spicy and fruity and great on a summer day.
Bootleggers Brewery – Hefeweizen
Plain. No banana or cloves. Below average to me.
The Bruery – Orchard White
You can’t go wrong with their beers. Complex but not overpowering. I wish they had brought more than two beers.
Coronado Brewing – Orange
Fair. Drifter from Widmer blows it away though.
If I had more tolerance I would have had more from the large selection that Angel City had brought and I would have tried Shipyard and Deschutes and Kona but my limit was reached.
Overall, I give the event an A.