Tag: DTLA

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First Draft

I am usually wary of self-pour beer bars. Minus Brewport in El Segundo, they are generally way too infested with big beer.

I am also wary of out of state chains heading to DTLA because I have been waiting for the Alamo Drafthouse to open since forever and it still isn’t.

Did my visit during a media night preview of First Draft. A taproom and kitchen change my mind?

It did. I knew it was a good place by the tap choices spread over their multitude of tap handles. They were primarily local. Old Stump, Sanctum, L.A.A.W., Phantom Carriage, Green Cheek, Eagle Rock plus a few taps for cider, wine and the kombucha for those who like vinegar. Even their cooler held a small selection of good choices.

The pouring system is pretty simple. Get set-up with a card, swipe in front of the First Draft logo, you see the green means go light and you pour. A little or a lot. The taps are arrayed on either side of this cooler…

…with a few taps upstairs as well. There is outdoor seating and a nice food menu.

I sampled this wide ranging set of beers to give you an idea of the choices available…
Brewery Rex Study in Subtly table beer, Wiretap Supernet Saison, Maine Beer Woods & Waters IPA and Knee Deep Breaking Bud.

The location below on Olive and 13th is away enough from the DTLA core to make parking a shade easier but still pretty close to Staples and the Mayan and the Ace Hotel if you are heading to events there.

I will check it out again to see what beers have rotated in.

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Hunt for It


Boomtown Brewery is taking advantage of being Arts District adjacent to adorn their latest DIPA release The Hunted with cool imagery. This time the artist is J. Collins and the beer is a hazy Double IPA. If you are a fan of Galaxy and Mosaic hops, then be ready on Saturday, September 22nd at 12:00PM for the sale. Four-packs are $18 and there will be food trucks, Hunted merch and music.

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How Weird?


It appears that another bottle shop has popped up without me knowing about it. Weird Beers LA is on 7th near Main and Spring.

A quick perusal of their beer menu does not scream weird but maybe they are targeting people who have yet to delve deep into #independent beer.

I will report back after visiting.

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1st Visit – Dankness Dojo

Olive is now Dank. Modern Times has opened their L.A. outpost, The Dankness Dojo.

Here is my initial take on the beer that I drank amidst the large crowd and the space, cause the MT crew rolls with big words and a lot of decor.

Don’t believe me?….

…or…

The space is thin with the coffee counter in the front and your left as you walk in. The bar is at the back with the brewing tanks partially obscured in front of you. You can get seating in the restaurant portion or try to snag a bar stool.

The menu board wasn’t the most easy to read and seemed to be the least designed part of the Dojo. Not to mention, on my visit, it was almost nearly all saison and saison variants. Not much “dank” to be had.

I visited after a visit to Boomtown Brewery and all the things that I like about that space, muted tones, couches, space to move were absent in the Dojo which felt just too constricted to me.

I will visit again and do a full beer write-up since I there was not elbow room or a table to put a taster flight on, I went for the Havnor IPA which was only so-so. Not bad, but it didn’t have a shine to it that other recent beers have had.

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Indie 2


Indie Brewing will be doing their 2nd Anniversary thing with TWO very special beers being tapped. The first beer is a throwback as their, Superfood Saison will return (and in cans no less.) Also their newest New England Style double IPA, Sophomoric Juice will be available on draft (growler fills available). Special pecial glassware available only in the tasting room as well as “3 food vendors, 2 bands and a DJ, and a pop up market with everything from pins to hot sauce.”

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Review – Vagabond Cheese + Boomtown Beer


There is a world of cheese out there. In an alternate universe, I could see an alternate Sean writing a cheese blog instead of beer.

Of course that alternate blog would touch on beer, just like I am dancing about cheese now. Vagabond Cheese is showing up everywhere independent beer is at. Don’t believe me? Check out their calendar. It is pretty damn full.

A few days back, I finally did a guided beer and cheese pairing at Boomtown and it was really good. It is the best way to try and find cheeses that you like even though they are spendy, all without breaking the bank.

Here are the four selections that were served up:
Sbrinz AOP with What Gose Around
Ombra with Bad Hombre
Ossai-Iraty AOP with Obscura Guey
Sailnois with Submission
Boomtown meets Vagabond

The Sbrinz, to me, tasted like Parmesan without the grain. The hard cheese and the sour “grated” on me though.

The second cheese was close but not quite white cheddar-y with some butter notes. The cheese outshone the simple beer which did not add much.

The third tasting had it going. A creamy texture meets darker malt which was even better with almonds added into the mix.

There was some grain to final cheese but it also more cheddar notes which here mixed well with the banana esters from the dark Belgian golden. I would have to call a favorite tie between three and four.

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Going to Extremes

Since the RateBeer fest will probably be lightly attended this year, the Beer Advocate Extreme Beer Fest® in their first foray to the West Coast and L.A. will probably take the spotlight.

The festival is sponsored by Dogfish Head. Over the course of one day and two sessions on Saturday, December 9th will have 60+ breweries and 200+ beers over at the California Market Center in DTLA.

To get tickets, go HERE.

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The River is NOW not Dry


Finally, after months of waiting, Dry River Brewing will start to have limited tap room hours! Now they won’t be the only brewery without fans inside trying the beers.

Days & Hours
Friday & Saturday 4pm to 10pm
Sunday 1pm to 6pm

Specific Days
July 1st and 2nd
July 14th, 15th and 16th
August 4th, 5th and 6th
August 18th, 19th and 20th
September 1st, 2nd and 3rd
September 15th, 16th and 17th