Follow Sean Inman to the best in craft beer
Mergers and acquisitions news from South and South of us in Los Angeles. The 3 Local Brothers restaurant group, which includes beer properties Urge American Gastropub, Mason Ale Works, Beer Zombies Brewing and Ferrous Falcon is teaming will combine with TAPS Fish House & Brewery AND Newtopia Cyder. The usual greater buying power and other merger talking points were alluded to but the bigger news is they plan to have a new brewery in the Midwest.
Mixing the mundane with the outer space is this cool label from Mason Ale Works. I really like it when breweries use equipment in their beer names over ingredients because the latter always tends to end up as a bad pun. Adding a moon mango is a great little design touch too.
This new Deschutes beer has just the right antidote for the depressing times. Beer as hug therapy. Very cool.
Unless you are an avid online beer buyer and you loved driving to Orange County to pick up cans, then you may not have been trying many beers from The Bruery’s IPA arm, Offshoot Beer Co. The most known and available is their Relax Hazy IPA which I view favorably. Now there is another one that you might be able to find at your local L.A. bottle shop since it is a collaboration with Mason Ale Works from San Marcos and we seem to get a good supply of their 12oz cans.
Heading down south again and this time for a collaboration between Mason Ale Works and Horus Aged Ales (of which this is my first 1/2 of beer from)
Really detailed can design with Horus and their logo on one side and Mason on the flip side, plus little logos in the background. This DIPA poured a clear orange color. Orange rind and malt aroma duking it out. Getting some grapefruit notes as well. This comes across really strong. Much more alcohol hit from this than an earlier beer drunk with ABV close to it. More triple than double to me. Sticky on the tongue. This is a sipper.
Recommend? Take a flyer. One can will only be about $3 so go for it.
This month I am suggesting that you try a little bit of everything starting with a 3-Way Collaboration and ending in a super big and burly barleywine. A little America, Belgium and England this month.
~LIGHT
Mason Aleworks / Kern River / Eagle Rock/ Gutterball Trio5.3% ABV
“We got together with our friends at Mason Ale Work (San Diego) & Eagle Rock Brewery (Los Angeles) to make this light, refreshing Mosiac, Idaho 7 & Denali hopped IPA.”
~MEDIUM
Green Flash/ Baroque Belgique7.0% ABV
“If Green Flash were founded in historical Belgium, Baroque Belgique would have been our flagship brew. A bold and complex layering of herbal hops finds delicate balance from traditional malts. Bottle conditioning with fresh ale yeast and Brettanomyces adds a funky finishing touch, creating a delightfully bright effervescence, dryness, and continuously evolving character.”
~DARK
Dogfish Head/ Olde School Barleywine15.0% ABV
“Inspired by a tale of a cask doctor who brought sluggish ales back to life by suspending a fig in them. Brewed from 100% Maris Otter pale ale malt, a blend of fine hops and conditioned on dates and figs. User Instructions: open bottle, pour contents into two snifters. Enjoy. ALTERNATIVELY: Walk hand-in-neck with bottle into the middle of the woods. Use shovel to dig 2×2 hole three feet deep. Seal bottle in plastic bag. Place in hole and pack with dirt. Memorize location and leave. Return exactly one year later. Dig up bottle, open and enjoy.”
All of these beers can be found at Sunset Beer Co. (unless they got bought up real quick)