Tag: Firestone Walker

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FW Invitational – 1 Week Out

Now, let’s talk about this year’s collaboration beer for the fest….

This year’s beer started at the festival, last year as Creature Comforts and Firestone Walker came together to brew up what would become Mother’s Milk, a barrel-aged imperial milk porter.

Mother’s Milk is a bigger beer at 11.6% ABV. It was “aged for nearly a year in rye whiskey barrels inherited from a premium spirits producer” with added oats, lactose sugar and sea salt.

12-ounce bottles ($10.99) will also be available for a limited time at all Firestone Walker locations starting on June 2. A mere 300 cases (12 x 12-oz bottles) were produced.

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Review – Lion Claaws from Los Angeles Ale Works and Firestone Walker


This milkshake collab between Los Angeles Ale Works and the Firestone Walker – Propagator pours like a grapefruit juice. The aroma is pineapple mixed with coconut. First taste unveils a lot of lactose. A lot. This is sugary. Only little over a week old and the hops of a DIPA are just not to be found. There is some orange juice but that just creates a creamsicle effect.

As it warms some of the bitterness starts to peek through but by then the battle has been won by the lactose. Strong fun flavors but the balance is off to me.

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Love Me Some Pils


There are few beers that I will bypass new or hyped beers for but the Pils from Birrificio Italiano, Tipopils is one of them and now they have teamed up with Firestone Walker at the Propagator for the Pils & Love event on July 28th.

From 11am – 4pm, over 40 breweries from around the world will be pouring Pilsner. Nothing but Pils. Brewery list to come.

Tickets on sale Tuesday, April 24th at 9am and will cost $65 per person with “food plates from Chef Justin Lewis available during the event for additional purchase.”

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#FWIBF18 – The Breweries

Firestone Walker chose April Fool’s Day to announce their brewery line-up for their 2018 Invitational Beer Fest and SURPRISE!, the list is great…

For those lucky enough to snare tickets to this sought after event, here are my recommendations of booths to visit….

Fonta Flora was my favorite last year and got a lot of positive press, so hit them up early. New this year are Jack’s Abby from the East Coast and there beers will be perfect for the summer sun of Paso Robles.

WeldWerks had a hella’ long line at the Beer Advocate fest so I would head to another newcomer, Oxbow instead.

The foreign tent has some big names. Thornbridge being the one that I would run to. (Oh how I love to watch the beer snobs run) Also hit Beavertown and Garage Project before their lines grow.

Lastly The Rare Barrel and Sante Adairius should be on your must visit list for at least one beer.

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F-Wow

On top of the Firestone Walker Lager news, there are two other big tidbits that you might not have heard of from their Buellton based Barrelworks.

1. Barrelworks has been draft and bottles only but is hoping to roll out cans in 2018.

2. A coolship is being assembled at Firestone co-founder David Walker’s vineyard in the Santa Ynez Valley. Imagine the yeasts and microbes that are in the air in that area!

Kudos to San Luis Obispo.com for the news.

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Lup9


We are coming up on double digits for Luponic Distortion from Firestone Walker and 009 will feature a blend of six “public domain” hop varieties from the Pacific Northwest and Germany.

Here is the press release info of import: “The lead hops in Revolution No. 009 include two public domain varieties from the Pacific Northwest—one that provides exotic tropical fruit and coconut notes, and another that offers a balance of earthy pine and citrus qualities. The German hops round out the blend with a dimension of bright fruitiness.”

I like that FW has found new and different themes. Not just Australian hops or NW hops but also deeper cuts of the bine.

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Magical Merlin

There is so much science and engineering when it comes to beer that beer seems almost the tip of the iceberg above water while underwater is vast machinery that gets a beer to you the best way possible.

Case in point….

…Firestone Walker and their new Nitro Merlin.

Instead of a widget inside the can as is often used, FW went with drips and drops utilizing a liquid Nitrogen drip machine to release a drop of nitrogen into each can.

The rest is up to you. You will need to “Surge Pour” this Merlin by inverting the can three times to “wake up” the nitrogen then pour that beer hard and true in the center of your glass.

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Review – XVI Anniversary from Firestone Walker

My goal is not to have more than five years worth of the Anniversary beers from Firestone Walker. So each year, I open the oldest bottle and do a review. Here are my thoughts on XVI….

16 is so smooth. There is quite a lot of sugar which feeds into the Christmas theme for sure. Silky in texture with lots of mellow bourbon notes to it. I am getting chocolate covered caramel. Maybe Creme Brulee. Way too easy to drink. I have to pace the sips to make sure that I try some warmed up. Not very sharp or carbonated. Actually pairs quite well with some Kahlua infused cookies from the neighbors.

As a bonus, here is a mini-review of the 2017 blend…
It pours a pitch black and really smells sugary. I would say more bourbon glaze than spirited ABV. It is almost rum-like in character. It is pretty one dimensional but it is a really tasty dimension to be sure. The 11.8% alcohol is well masked here.

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The Wookie to Wookus


I know that there is only a passing familial resemblance between Wookie Jack and the upcoming Leo V Ursus – Wookus but it is good to welcome a beer back that has been absent for a while. Even if the recipe is updated for the times.

And I am even more excited to hear that a Firestone Walker canned lager will be coming in 2018. And the next Leo v Ursus has also been announced, Doublis.