Now that you have seen some photos, here are my impressions of the beers and the trip north to Ventura from Los Angeles.
The weekend trip was split between Ventura and then
breweries on the way back to Los Angeles.
After pizza and a beer at the wonderful Fluid State on Main Street it
was time to walk the streets.
Topa Topa is at the far edge of the Downtown area
near the Patagonia compound and this trip was much like the last. I love the little space and the beers were
solid. In fact, my favorite beer of the
trip was their dark lager, Dozer Line.
It had a snap to it and a mix of malt tastes with a little spice touch
that maybe only I noticed. The Tux Nitro
Milk Stout was a beauty even in a taster glass.
It was good to learn that they are canning now too with distribution to
Los Angeles part of the plan.
Second up was Ventura Coast Brewing. On a corner of Santa Clara, this is a lovely
space separated out into outdoor patio and indoor spaces. While the servers had a skosh bit of attitude
and were a bit free in their banter in front of customers, the space was still
welcoming. Dominated by white with a
splash of indoor plant greenery and a “barrel room” to reserve for
parties. The beers sampled were a little
disappointing. Alphabet DIPA was strong
but the hops were a bit muddled. The
Saazbier was nice and bright but the finish was a little metallic. Their Mexican amber, Cinco de Quatro was fine
and probably my overall favorite but it didn’t have the pizazz of the earlier
Topa Topa beer.
On the next day, first stop was MadeWest. It was a bit déjà vu with Ventura Coast. White building with big pieces of wall
art. There were empty cans aplenty
waiting for their Standard beer. A great
big image of a can on one wall and a really cool menu board. The taster tray had one dud. A Red IPA that was bland but the Brut IPA,
effervescent was bone dry and really champagne like but with a big fruity
taste. The Short Lived Hazy IPA with
Fieldwork was excellent as well. I was
impressed enough that I bought a 4-pack of their Ventura Light to compare with
the other beers that I tasted.
Next up was Oxnard and Casa Agria. They had been on my list for years. My high expectations left me a little disappointed
here. There was no taster flight which
is not good for acid averse people like myself.
I ended up with three half pours and though the Tres Casas honey meets
sour was my 2nd favorite beer of the trip the Gose was a touch too
acidic for me though blessedly free of fruit.
The Saison de la Casa was supposed to be a balance but it was way sour
for what I expected. The tap room was
weirdly mixed with old-school video games and barrels. Conflicting ideas to me.
I would write about the quick stop at Institution
Ales in Camarillo but I think I need to do a full regular visit there to get a
better handle on the beers they make.
