The Haze Way

Some breweries tend to go with hazy and others go with juicy when they are labeling their non West Coast IPAs.  Los Angeles Ale Works uses the latter and have a new one you should check or or more appropriately check in to, Hotel Hazeway Juicy DIPA with “hoppy notes of peach, passionfruit, white grape and red currant.”

Review – 7-ish from Los Angeles Ale Works

It is still close enough to L.A. Beer Week to sneak in another L.A. beer review so here we go with 7-ish from Los Angeles Ale Works

This special anniversary IPA pours a dark orange color with yellow highlights at the bottom of the glass. The aroma is a little spicy and little orange. Getting a bit of a dankness and citrus on the first sip. The juiciness does linger if it is not super strong. It also lands a bit heavier on the palate which I kinda expected since I am tasting this not super fresh and some of the early vivaciousness might have worn off.

Review – Wheater Melon from Los Angeles Ale Works

Even though one can buy watermelon practically all year round, it still remains, stubbornly, a summertime fruit to me and with summer just a few June Gloom days away, it was time to taste Wheater Melon from Los Angeles Ale Works.

Right off the bat, back in childhood with a watermelon Jolly Rancher. The beer is light orange in color. That candy blast comes in strong and then leaves just as strongly, leaving a watery and light finish. Was hoping for a bit of wheat backbone here. Would be quite enjoyable on a hot day by the pool but I fear it would clash or be drowned out by most summer BBQ foods.

Sean Suggests for July 2023

Los Angeles Ale Works Leisureland Lager – 4.7% – “Classic, crisp and clean at 4.7% ABV, you could say that this is “beer flavored beer” featuring subtle cracker flavors, floral aromas and minimal (but lingering) bitterness.”

MadeWest TRZ Flip Pale Ale – 6% – “X Games are coming to town and have inspired this brand new West Coast Extra Pale Ale hopped with Mosaic and HBC 586 from @yakimachief! This epic duo delivers bright citrus and ripe tropical fruit with notes of passion fruit and papaya.”

Trademark Brewing Neon Enigma DDH West Coast IPA – ??% – “A bright, flashy can bursts open – popping aromas of raspberry and white wine – while a dazzling trio of Enigma, Simcoe, and Cashmere dance with nuanced flavors of mango, tangerine and a touch of stone fruit.”

As a summer bonus, be on the lookout for this anniversary beer from Beachwood….

Sean Suggests for June 2023

We are going full on L.A. Beer Week beers for this month’s shopping list. From two Freaky Friday South Bay friends to a Crenshaw collaboration.

El Segundo Squirrel-Toothed Tiger – 6.7% – “We went hoppier, Americanier, and, dare we say, downright more majestic than a pre-historic squirrel on their best day. Sure, the tiger may look friendly, albeit a little funny, but it remains a tiger with an inherent instinct to kill nonetheless!”

Crowns & Hops / Los Angeles Ale Works Down Crenshaw IPA – 7% – Mosaic, Nelson and Enigma hops headline this dank West Coast IPA Boulevard.

Smog City Smogberry IPA – 7.2% – Smog City re-imagines the iconic Mayberry IPA.

LA Beer Week 2023 Picks

Time to make my humble suggestions as to which L.A. Beer Week events merit your attention this year.  Here are my top 5 picks…

June 11th – Drag Brunch at Frogtown Brewery

“Join Frogtown Brewing  for their first ever Drag Brunch! We will have 4 performers, a booth with raffle from Nova Community Arts, a limited edition Beer Slushee and some brunch items from Heritage Kitchen LA! This event is free and open to the public.”

June 14th – Beer Side Talks

“Ambitious Ales joins Beachwood Brewing for an educational panel speaking event to discuss the impact of breweries collaborating, how it brings together community, learning experiences, and more. Coinciding with the event, the two breweries are both releasing a West Coast IPA, Neighborhood Pals. The event ticket includes a 10 oz pour of each of the collaboration beers. Help us celebrate LA Beer Week and independently-owned craft breweries strengthening the craft beer industry.”

June 16th – Hawthorne Block Party

“BBQ, Beer Releases, Bands/DJ’s, Games and Food. 2pm-12am at both L.A. Ale Works and Common Space Brewing.”

June 17th – Clean and Crispy

At Long Beach Beer Lab, “Over 20 curated breweries! Exclusive taster glass + unlimited samples. Marketplace, food vendors and more.”

June 18th – King of the Kolsch

Arts District Brewing hosts your favorite beer style from Cologne, Germany with many different Kolsch variations from LA breweries.

You can see the full event guide HERE

Triple Tiki

The triple IPA deluge is continuing with a Thor Heyerdahl entrant from Los Angeles Ale Works, Kon Tiki.

“We took a different approach with this beer, using our hazy IPA yeast before spinning through the centrifuge. This preserves the complex, yeast-driven tropical aromas while keeping the body closer to more traditional IPAs.  On the nose, Kon Tiki has loads of pineapple and mango, followed by subtle sweet notes of passionfruit, mango and ripe citrus.”