Tag: March

Posted on

Sean Suggests for March 2018

header_beer_shopping_list
Time to head back to the legacy breweries and try some of their new (and new-ish) offerings.

~LIGHT
Anchor/ Brewer’s Pale Ale5.3% ABV
“Brewers’ Pale Ale is a bright and fruity American Pale Ale bursting with hop aroma and flavor. Its appearance is straw colored with a creamy, white head and nice lacing. The ale has aromas of grapefruit, passion fruit, citrus peels and dank piney hops. It’s a crisp and quaffable Pale Ale packed with complex hop flavor, finishing fairly dry with a nice balanced drinkability.”>

~MEDIUM
Allagash/ Map 407.5% ABV
“Map 40 is a Belgian-style stout blended with cold-brewed coffee from Speckled Ax. Black in body with a tan, reddish-tinged head, this beer’s aroma is strong in coffee and light in roasted grain. Brewed with dark chocolate malt, chocolate malt, roasted barley, and brown malt. A light nuttiness accompanies tastes of chocolate, raisin, and a resounding coffee note that weaves its way throughout. This is a rich, creamy stout with a clean finish.”>

~DARK
Pizza Port/ Bacon and Eggs8.0% ABV
“With award-winning cold-pressed coffee from Bird Rock Roasters of La Jolla, this Coffee Porter is black in color with a khaki tan head. Strong coffee flavors with rich chocolate and roasted malts. ”>

All of these beers can be found at Sunset Beer Co. (unless they got bought up real quick)

Posted on

In the Tap Lines for March 2018

header_attractions
Even when L.A. gets cold weather, it isn’t nearly as cold as other parts of the country. But that should not stop you from trying a wide variety of beers

~ e-visits to three breweries from the South.
~ special featured reviews of Special Warehouse Collection beers from Angel City
~ Heads-Up on Los Angeles Beer Events
~ Three suggested beers to buy this month. One light, one medium and one dark
~ A Book & A Beer reads You Don’t Have to Say You Love Me by Sherman Alexie
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world.

Here are two events to get your March started in the Los Angeles craft beer world:
1) March 2nd – Dope & Dank & El Segundo IPA Release
2) March 17th – Enegren Irish Fest

Posted on

Sean Suggests for March 2017

header_beer_shopping_list
Time really does fly. It seems like yesterday, it was my birthday month and now I gots to be buying gifts for others. Selfish. I know. But maybe I will get the next round of b-day people some beer. Like these…

~LIGHT
Kern River/ Gravity Check SIPA 4.0% ABV
“Session IPA with Mosaic. Do you like doing stuff? Yeah, we do too. We designed this beer for people like us who don’t want their beer to get in the way of a good time; people who drink beer for the taste. This Session IPA blends the lightness of Pilsner malts with enough Mosaic hops to satisfy even the biggest hop head.”

~MEDIUM
Fremont Brewing/ Lush IPA 7.0% ABV
“We bring this tropical treat to you as a reminder of Spring’s coming, its rebirth and promise of sunny days forever. Lush is made with a hand-selected blend of malts and lush, tropical hops to help you bridge the last days of Winter and the coming of the Spring fever. “

~DARK
Scaldis/ Prestigue de Nuits Oak Aged 13.0% ABV
“Like the Brasserie Dubuisson’s renowned Scaldis Prestige, Scaldis Prestige de Nuits is aged in oak barrels for six months. But Prestige de Nuits is made of Scaldis Noel aged in Bourgogne barrels from the world famous “Nuits St. Georges” vineyard. The result is an ale of extraordinary complexity and depth. “

All of these beers can be found at Sunset Beer Co. (unless they got bought up real quick)

Posted on

In the Tap Lines for March 2017

header_attractions
March, when the PtY madness has passed and the weather is still cool enough to drink a variety of beers. So get out and visit some of the more far-flung breweries in the L.A. area.

~ e-visits to three breweries “ignited” in San Diego such as Pariah Brewing, Rouleur Brewing and Wiseguy Brewing.
~ special featured reviews of sour beers
~ Heads-Up on Los Angeles Beer Events
~ Three suggested beers to buy this month. One light, one medium and one dark
~ A Book & A Beer reads The Undoing Project by Michael Lewis
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world.

Here are two events to get your March started in the Los Angeles craft beer world:
1) March 3rd – Solidarity returns to Eagle Rock Brewery
2) March 12th – Beer and Girl Scout Cookie Pairing at Craft Beer Cellar – Eagle Rock

Posted on

Sean Suggests for March 2016

header_beer_shopping_list
Has spring sprung? Hard to tell in Los Angeles where the sun is always in the sky. Even when it is raining. But here are three fruit tinged beers with enough alcohol heft to make them good selections for cool and windy days.

~LIGHT
Almanac/ Apricot de Brettaville 6.50% ABV
For this special release, we set out with the goal of making a beer where every ingredient and process contributed to one ambition: creating layers of apricot flavor. The natural flavors of the brett yeast create tropical and stone fruit flavors in the barrel, which we matched with a small mountain of San Joaquin Valley apricots and finish with a delicate dry hop of aromatic hops. The result is every aspect of the beer, from the yeast, to the fruit to the hops add apricot flavor and aroma – resulting in a delicious wild ale.

~MEDIUM
King Harbor/ Coconut IPA 6.70% ABV
If a tropical beach vacation could be captured in a beer, this would be it. the pineapple, mango, and citrus hop character of our flagship IPA blended with lightly toasted coconut creates a tropical party on your palate. Go ahead, drink it out of a coconut with a mini umbrealla. We won’t judge you.

~DARK
Allagash/ Evora 9.00% ABV
“Evora is a golden hued beer, brewed with a 2-Row and Maris Otter malt blend. It was hopped with Northern Brewer, Mt Hood and Sorachi Ace hops. The primary fermentation used a classic Belgian yeast strain. The beer was then aged for 16 months in Portuguese Brandy barrels with Brettanomyces. The finished beer exhibits notes of honey and stone fruit in the aroma. Citrus and oak dominate the flavor giving way to hints of bread crust. Evora is medium bodied with a fruity, dry finish.”

Posted on

In the Tap Lines for March 2016

header_attractions
March has blown in for another round and this month, the Portland posts start us off and will be the featured reviews. L.A. happenings and news will start to seep in though as Phantom Carriage turns one and Brouwerij West turns One day + tickets for the 8th L.A. Beer Week Kick-Off go on sale in 4 days!

~ e-visits to three cideries from Oregon such as Portland Cider Co., Cider Riot and the Apple Outlaw.
~ special featured reviews of beers from Portland
~ Heads-Up on Los Angeles Beer Events
~ Three suggested beers to buy this month. One light, one medium and one dark
~ A Book & A Beer reads the Best Food Writing of 2015
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world
~ … and Session # 109 covers the topic, “?”

Here are two events to get your March started in the Los Angeles craft beer world:
1) March 4th – The Doughroom will have (3) taps from Bend, Oregon’s Crux Fermentation on draft.
2) March 12th – Firkfest at Farmer’s Park in Anaheim

Posted on

Sean Suggests for March 2015

header_beer_shopping_list
Since last month was light and local, this month we go towards chocolate flavors and expand our reach from Pennsylvania and up the coast of California as far as Paso Robles.

~LIGHT
Surf Brewery / Surfer’s Point Amber 5.00% ABV
” Named after our local surf break by the pier, Surfer’s Point, this amber Lager is brewed in the style of a Vienna Lager. The beer brings a clean malt sweetness balanced against American noble hops. Featuring soft notes of toasted bread and hints of chocolate wrapped up with a clean lager.”

~MEDIUM
BarrelHouse Brewing / Stout 6.00% ABV
” Since the first batch, our people can’t get enough of this creamy, complex, drinkable stout. We crafted this unfiltered brew with oats for creaminess, lactose for sweetness, Belgian dark syrups for intense dark fruit notes, dark malts for a hint of chocolate and coffee roast, and just enough hops for an award winning bittersweet finish. The perfect beer made for the perfect moment. “

~DARK

Victory Brewing / Deep Cocoa 8.50 % ABV
“We’ve unlocked the mysteries and nuances of malts to deliver these luxurious and provocative flavors in this complex and satisfying porter. Raise your glass and taste the Victory of Deep Cocoa! Aromas of roasted malts blend with deep, dark chocolate in this bold and intense chocolate porter. The deceptively light body bursts with chocolate and nuttiness finishing with a lingering chocolate bitterness”

Posted on

In the Tap Lines for March

header_attractions
Here’s to hoping that the little bursts of rain that California has been getting continue into March so that we don’t have to import water from Alaska via the H20 version of Keystone. Another reason to pray for rain is that I have quite a few stouts in the ‘fridge that drink better with cold/wet weather. Anyway, here is what is coming up this month on the BSP blog….

~ e-visits to three breweries from new-ish brewers in San Diego (yet again!)
~ special reviews of beers from Beach City of Huntington Beach, CA
~ 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
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my no holds barred opinion on the craft beer world
~ … and Session # 97 will converge bloggers onto a single topic, this month it is who and where is Up & Coming

Here are two events to get your March started in the Los Angeles craft beer world:
1) March 9th BEER TALK – Cold Beer, Hot Pizza, Industry Pro
2) March 11th Crazy Harry’s taps the Maltose Falcons / Firestone Walker collaboration 

Posted on

The Firkin for March 2013

header_firkin

Beer is not wine. Seems simple enough to fathom. But for some folks, they have to be yoked together. Like some mismatched Odd Couple. Hence the reaction in the craft beer community to this article in the NY Times.

Here is the deal. Wine is great. So is beer. I like my spirits too.  But for the love of God don’t compare the three. I don’t care if you are a brewer talking to a journalist or a journalist talking to us in the craft beer community.  True, they are all alcoholic beverages but they have vastly different histories, vastly different present creative and economic situations and their trajectories will see all three in (you guessed it) different places in the future.

Beer simply cannot be the new wine or the old wine. Just because a brewery bottles in fancy big bottles does not mean they are “wine-ifying” themselves. It probably means that it was the most cost effective or it looks good on a store shelf. Hell, maybe it means a shorter bottling day.

Just because some beers are aged and cellared does not mean that a beer geek who has a spreadsheet of all his beer meticulously organized is copying a wine geek who does the same thing. People love to collect.  Hence an entire show on hoarding.

And just because a beer costs as much (or more) as a wine in some instances does not mean that beer is trying to supplant wine as the tipple of choice.  It probably means that the ingredients were costly and it took time to make. 

To believe that the craft beer industry is merely trying to mimic the wine industry means, in essence, that you want brewers to restrict themselves. Restrict themselves to what worked with wine.  Maybe they should also copy the industrial beer complex too.  Perhaps they should all make 12oz cans of an adjunct corn lager? 

I know that is an exaggeration but I firmly believe that we shouldn’t put blinders on the craft brewers of the world. Give them free reign. If they want to have vintners help pick a beer blend, do it.  If they want to bottle strictly in jereboams then fine.  Some experiments may not work. But others might.

And in the end the wallet will speak the loudest. If a beer is too expensive or in too large a container or flat out too weird, it won’t make the journey from store shelf to cash register.  In the end, the beer inside is 100% more important than the packaging outside or the pricing on the bar code.

Just like you wouldn’t put a red wine into a dimpled British bitter glass why do we insist on pouring craft beer into the wine world?

Posted on

In the Tap Lines for March 2013

My March is full of birthday’s, so it is full of occasions to crack open those beers that have been down in the cellar. What will you be cellaring or drinking during March? It is traditionally a time for bocks and more maltier offerings but in our crazy American beer culture it can be time for anything! Plus…..

~ e-visits to the newest breweries in Tennessee like The Smoky Mountain Brewery and Saw Works
~ video reviews tackles two brown ales (one canned and one not) plus more beer reviews minus the videos
~ Three suggested beers to buy this month
~ I will tap the Firkin and give my opinion on the craft beer world
~ … and Session # 73 will converge bloggers onto a single topic
~ plus many more posts about new beers, beer products and breweries

Here are two events to get your November started in the Los Angeles craft beer world:
1) March 1st Beer Appreciation Night at Far Bar with Ohana Brewing/Bierkast/LA Ale Works
2) March 28th Hangar 24 Brew with the Brewer w/ release of Pugachev’s Cobra at all (3) Congregation Alehouses