Tag: DTLA

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Review – DTLA Craft Beer Crawl

Talking about the California drought and the seeming non-stop heat is getting old but it does play into beer festivals because most are held out of doors and it can dampen the fun like sweat on a shirt.

The 2015 version of the LA Craft Beer Crawl had the blazing sun to contend with more than most because it’s strongest and best attribute (other than the beer, of course) is the walking the streets of Downtown LA.  Seeing new condos and new business but also seeing the old side of the city from street level and not just the 110 freeway.

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The check-in process this year was notably smoother (and on time) and in a new spot near Cole’s and Las Perlas.  From there me and beer buddy Rich headed to the Golden Gopher to have Return of Sassy and then Even Sassier.  Starting the day off with a rye bang.  Then through the heat to Seven Grand to partake of two new Highland Park beers, Hammered Satin an Oatmeal Stout and then Dank You Very Much which was my pick for beer of the day.  A lovely IPA that I could have had all day long.

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From there we snuck into The Varnish with our press passes to try another HPB beer, Uncultured.  A wine barrel aged bottle offering that then faded into having Mattina Rossa from Allagash.  In between we chatted with Bob from HPB, Omar from Three Weavers, Jon Carpenter from Angel City and David Munro from Bell’s.

Our stamina fading we went back across 6th Street to Casey’s and grabbed a Phantom Carriage saison before calling it a day.

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As usual, this is one of the better fests for beers.  A wide swath of breweries are involved.  Locals and non-locals are welcomed.  It is a great activity for newbies to beer because you have choices that aren’t whale driven.  Yes, there are rarities but anyone can get get a taste of a special beer like Golden Brett from Allagash next to a lager from Ninkasi.

As I mentioned, I loved the aspect of walking because it cuts down on the bro’ness that other festivals have to deal with.  The annoying aspects are contained in just one space.  This year the signage at each entrance was great.  But inside each space, especially Casey’s, finding the brewery you wanted was made more difficult because the signs inside were in matte black with dark grey writing and even the most eagle eyed could barely make out the words.  (My press pass was inches from my face before I could read the word “Press”) This was in stark contrast to the blinding yellow volunteer shirts that were in abundance.  It would also have been better to have the check-in not so near to two of the stops.  It made those two hard to get into and out of.  I liked that no beer was being served at the check-in but it would be great to have it in a central spot in the city to subtly force people to scatter in all directions.

Those are little tweaks to make an already great LA institution better.  Kudos to Christina / Hallie and the 213 group for another job well done.

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First Look – Boomtown Brewery

I had the chance to sample a pair of Boomtown Brewery beers during the L.A. Beer Week bash and came away encouraged.  Did they blow me away?  No.  But they tasted further ahead then some breweries at that point in the process so when Josh from Food GPS alerted me to a soft opening at their downtown LA location, I jumped at the chance to see the place.
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Despite the oppressive heat and impressive crowd was on hand as I rolled in at 7pm. The space is not taproom ready at this point but if they and Angel City and Mumford can coordinate walking tours, you could easily walk all three on an afternoon of craft beer drinking.
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I ordered up a Nose Job IPA since that will eventually be a line-up regular and was semi-pleased. Pretty dank to me but not heavy or over bitter. It doesn’t break new ground but is solid. I followed that up with B-Side a hoppy red that started off to sweet but started tasting better as the full set of flavors started working together.
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I am glad to see that they are doing a mix of Belgian and American styles and I think that this could be a solid player in the industry.
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Crawling in DTLA

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It is time to plan your beer time around the 6th annual LA Craft Beer Crawl which will take place (where?) in downtown LA on Saturday, August 29th.

This is a heckuva event.  One of the better on the LA Beer Calendar and it is because of the fact that “Attendees will have over 100 craft beers to sample across 7 unique downtown LA bars & restaurants, all within walking distance.  The event is a collaboration between 213 and The Beer Chicks, Hallie Beaune and Christina Perozzi.  As always, the beer selection will be curated by The Beer Chicks and will feature the top craft and artisanal brewers in the country!”

And a helpful hint, the VIP tickets are well worth it.

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LABW7 – Angel City

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We are one day into L.A. Beer Week but there are still events that need to be talked about. Angel City has a full slate of fun parties. 

June 22nd, 7pm – Ale Academy: Beer + Cheese Edition

Beer and cheese are two of the best things on earth. Join Angel City for an educational evening about the basic principles of pairings. Attendees will be walked through a curated flight of five Angel City beers and five cheeses from Vagabond Co.

June 24th, 7pm – Desert Dreams Beer Release

New brew alert! Angel City is releasing limited-time Desert Dreams, a one-of-a-kind beer brewed with organic black Mission figs, buckwheat honey, orange peel, prickly pear cactus juice and dry spiced with just a touch of desert sage. The beer was the brainchild of Lori Newman, the winner of Angel City Brewery’s ‘What Would You Brew?’ contest. Brewers will be on hand to talk about the making of the beer and lead guests through a tasting. Tickets can be purchased here.

June 25th, 7pm – Employee Battle of the Beers

Which Angel City staff member’s beer recipe reigns supreme? That’s for the fans to determine. It’s all part of Angel City’s first ever employee brewing contest, ‘Employee Battle of the Beers.’ The three beers will go head-to-head as fans vote for their favorite after sipping a flight that includes a sample of each.

The contenders are:

– Raspbanero, an ale brewed with raspberries and habanero

–Citra IPA, a single hop IPA featuring strong citrus and tropical fruit aromatic notes

–Rosemary Honey Amber Ale, a classic American Amber accented with notes of honey and fresh rosemary

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In the Tap Lines for June 2015

header_attractionsThis is L.A. Beer Week month. From the 20th to the 28th, the City of Angels becomes a beer destination for all comers starting with a blowout local brewery bash at Exposition Park near USC.  Plus…..

~ e-visits to three breweries who were at the recent Firestone Walker Invitational
~ special reviews of beers from new to L.A. 21st Amendment
~ 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, goes scientific with Beervana
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world
~ … and Session # 100 will converge bloggers onto a single topic, this month it is Resurrecting Lost Beer Styles

Here are two events to get your June started in the Los Angeles craft beer world:
1) June 1st – Burger Week at both of the Oinkster locations with Red Tick Ale from Highland Park Brewery
2) June (anytime) – Check out the new DTLA gastropub and homebrewer space of BarrelDown.

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GRB @ GCM

If you thought that Golden Road OC would be the second outpost then you have bet wrong.  Your next Hefeweizen / Wolf Among Weeds/ Point the Way spot will be downtown at the Grand Central Market.

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The market has really undergone a gentrification transformation in a microcosm with gourmet coffee, cheeses, kombucha and BBQ taking over stalls and now barstools will be part of the equation.  Maybe even a special beer for the location to go along with taps, growler fills and cans to go.

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Review – Heritage Festival at Angel City

This is the third Heritage Festival for Angel City Brewery and the first visit for me.
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Say what you want about the sometimes uneven beers from the DTLA brewery but they have an ideal party space. Whereas noise at most festivals is a cacophony of conversation, street noise and music, the cavernous ACBC space diffuses sound so that conversations can take place plus I love the art on the walls which is of the edgy graffiti-esque variety. It is a pleasant change from the big screen TV usual in some bars and taprooms.
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But what about the beer?  I tasted one of my favorites Marilyn along with a flight of darker beers that included the new Orange Cocoa, Dark Rye Lager aged in Brandy barrels and the Imperial Chai Stout.  Despite the heat of the day, the stout was quite good. There was a progression of flavors from stout to orange to chocolate.  I had a bottled version of the chai before and it had more  of the tea character on draft. It is hard to balance spice in a beer and this was a skosh too heavy but not egregiously so. The Rye Brandy though was far too spirited for me. The beer was overwhelmed by the brandy. That being said, if you like brandy, than this beer might be for you.

Also on the plus side of the ledger was the food.  Two L.A. institutions were in attendance.  Kogi and Phillipe’s Original.  Can’t beat that for food choices.  Plenty of seating both inside and out and little to no lines either.  That is a recipe for a fun Sunday afternoon.

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Dragons & Gold Lines

Occasionally, beer events come in pairs and this past couple days was no exception.

Sunday, Ommegang debuted their third installment from the Game of Thrones beer, Fire and Blood. Atop the Fonda and Blue Palms Brewhouse, I sipped the new beer whilst sitting in my rightful place. Well almost. The line for the Iron Throne was longer than the beer line.

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The dragon themed red ale is my favorite of the three Game of Thrones offerings very Belgian Lots of esters here. Nice amount of hops as well. Well done. Some grape notes as well. According to the Ommegang folks in attendance the fire and blood is is a combo of spelt and rye and de-seeded ancho chiles.

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As usual Brian and his crew had the show running smoothly satisfying beer nerds, Westeros fans and fans of really big turkey kegs.

Then the very next night, I headed into DTLA and Angel City Brewery to sample two of their newer offerings.  I have had more beers from this new incarnation of Angel City that fall into the OK category than “Wow!” (and I am one of the few non-fans of the Avocado beer and their French Sip) but on the other hand I do like their pilsner and their Session IPA (which was one of the first I had seen before the 2014 explosion of SIPA’s) so my enthusiasm was both lowered and raised for their new Summer Wheat.

Re-tasting the newly christened Gold Line pilsner, it holds it’s place as a go-to beer for an L.A. summer. Slight minerality/metal note. But crisp with a note of wheat and grain to it. Simple and well done.

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The new Summer Wheat is similar in composition but has a slight off note with a bit of citrus to it and a slight but strange tart note to it. The wheat taste isn’t there for me and it has a bitter finish that doesn’t work with the rest of the beer.

The winner of the night is a beer going on tap tonight that I got a sneak preview of.  It is the winner of “What Would You Brew” contest.  Emily Finch has created a blueprint that brewer Dieter Foerstner has taken to create a really complex beer.  It is a Mexican Cola beer.  It also has citrus and tamarind and it is flat out good.  Certainly in the top 3 AC DC beers.  And their will be a rum barrel version coming down the pike later this year.

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