Best Beers of June 2021 + IPA Standings

Time to unveil MY best beers of the month…

Honorable Mention goes to all of the New Zealand hopped beers that I tried from Firestone Walker’s Propagator. All were quite unique and showcased each different hop well.

Runner Up was High Water Brewing and their Break Apart Cream Ale which was just so different than most of the other beers tasted. That creamsicle orange flavor was great.

The Grand Winner came from Radiant Brewing in Anaheim. Mind Gardens Pilsner was made with Riwaja hops and it was both hoppy without taking anything away from the pilsner aspects of the beer.


The IPA standings remain unchanged for the second straight month.

Third – Crooked Stave Idaho 7 IPA

Second – Indie Brewing Quintette IPA

First – Offshoot Beer Co. DDH Visions

High Water Brewing

Thanks to the Beer Wench for alerting me to this bit of Northern Cali beer news…..

“After a short absence, brewmaster Steve Altimari and John Anthony burst back onto the craft brewing scene with the launch of a new brewery called High Water Brewing and the promise of some “seriously good beers.”

Award-winning brewmaster Steve Altimari has begun production on the flagship product for his new venture, an artisanal craft brewery, High Water Brewing.

The flagship brew – dubbed “Hop Riot IPA” and described as an “American IPA with a definitive ‘Left Coast’ attitude” – will be among the first offerings from High Water Brewing. It will be joined by “Retribution Imperial IPA” and “Old and In the Way Barley Wine”.

“Our goal is to pour High Water’s first beers, Hop Riot and Retribution, at the San Francisco Beer Week’s Gala opener on February 11,” said Altimari.

He promises the initial offerings “will be followed by other innovative and exciting brews.” Beer fans can expect that promise to be fulfilled because creatively brewed beers with playful flavor surprises are hallmarks of Altimari’s style.”

“Altimari will craft High Water beers at Drake’s Brewhouse in San Leandro, CA, and fermentation will occur in High Water tanks at the same location. High Water beers will be available in 5.0 and 15.5 gallon kegs and also bottled in 22 oz bombers.

Building on a relationship that Altimari and the Anthonys have developed over a number of years with that brewery, “Drakes seemed a natural fit for us because each of us has worked with them in one capacity or another, from distribution to collaborative brewing,” said John Anthony. “When Drakes owner John Martin agreed, we were ecstatic.”