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One of the most highly regarded of the British styled breweries is Machine House Brewery in Washington State and they have a seasonal that I wish I could get my hands on here in SoCal…
“This lovely full-bodied ale was brewed with lots of Rye and Crystal Rye Malt for a rich, boozy sweetness and a complex, tasty finish.”
North Bank Brewers have combined to have you Look for the Helpers on the can and then hopefully widen that out to look for the helpers out there in the world. Mr. Rogers always comes through for inspiration.
With the recent release of the not surprising / horror movie scary book Fire and Fury that details the shitstorm that is the current White House, maybe it is better to be more optimistic.
That is where Beer Trumps Hate comes in. This series of charity beers was started by Rooftop Brew Co to take action by showing how to not act like a disgruntled toddler.
Each month a different Washington State Brewery brews a beer where the proceeds will benefit a charity of their choosing. Here are the first two beers of the 2018 agenda….
January 2018
Rooftop Brew Co. created the Beer Trumps Hate Imp. Peach Mint IPA, and all proceeds will be donated to Washington Wild.
February 2018
Stoup Brewing is donating the proceeds of their BTH brew to the Refugee Women’s Alliance (ReWA).
We may not be able to drink the beer but they also have a store with stickers and shirts you can buy.
Welcome a new Washington State brewery to SoCal….
Seattle has come to SoCal as Fremont Brewing beer is now available via Stone Distributing.
To kick off this occasion, Fremont Brewing and Stone Distributing will be heading to my neighborhood to host a launch party at 6:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 7th at Glendale Tap. Six never before seen in LA Fremont brews (including their award-winning, barrel-aged Bourbon Abominable) will be on tap. Reps from Fremont and Stone will be on hand to talk about the new beers.
If you can’t make that date then there are some other L.A. parties to attend:
· Wednesday, March 8, 6:00 pm: 38 Degrees
· Wednesday, March 8, 5:00 pm: Sunset Beer
· Thursday, March 9, 7:00 pm: Local Peasant
The winter ale from Two Beers Brewing in Washington State is named for a piece of winter gear that you probably need your wits about to work.
“Dark and toasty, this warming winter ale offers notes of chocolate, date, plum, and orange with a dash of hops. The deep dark color and full flavored finish pair perfectly with winter nights, outdoor adventures, and holiday celebrations.”
Last month, I visited (through the magic of the interwebs) breweries in Idaho and lo and behold, I received a bottle of Idaho beers from one of the featured breweries, Sawtooth. This month’s tour stuck in the NW and lo and behold, one of the breweries I chose to feature, Doomsday scheduled up a tasting right here in LA! I feel the power of my blogging is growing stronger like Darth Vader.
Instead of a virtual taster tray, I was able to try the Solar Flare Citrus Wheat, Agent Orange IPA and the Ender Vanilla Porter. All but the IPA suffered from a slight sour-tart taste that signaled an over-aged beer. The Wheat beer could be sold as a slight tart wheat but the porter fell flat to me. The acidity cancelled out the vanilla and left the beer tasting funny. The IPA was fine. Nothing that set my taste buds aflame but solid. Their beers are available in bottle at Sunset Beer for you to decide your feeling on them.
Other beers to try include:
“The pink beer, A unique experiment gone horribly right. We started with a blend of pale and wheat grains for the backbone, added some mild bittering hops for balance, then we went ahead and threw in a crate of beets for sugars, flavor, and of course, color. No artificial dyes here. The beety/earthy flavors hit hard on the nose and slowly fizz off of the tongue, leaving behind a manageable bitterness. This brew is a very light and crisp easy drinker.”
“The Undead Chihuahua thinks its bigger than it actually is. The 2-row base is blended with caramel malts and specialty grains to give a light and very drinkable texture. Light saaz and mt hood hop additions in the boil present a malty nose with a slightly bitter tail. This beer is all bark with no bite. Unless it’s chewing up your pant leg.”
Portland may get all the Beervana Buzz but there is a city right over the river that could use some exploring. And I am telling myself that more than you because I find it hard to pass by Portland and head to Washington State. So today we head to Loowit Brewing Company to see what we could put into a taster tray.
Let’s start with…
Gaiabolical Organic Pale Ale
“A refreshingly light, yet full-bodied pale ale accompanied with wonderfully balanced hops. Gaiabolical is made with all organic malts.”
Silver Star Saison
“A generously hopped northwest-style Saison exhibiting the subtle spice of rye malt and the citrusy esters that are the hallmark of the Saison style.”
Shadow Ninja IPA
“Swift and silent, full of flavor. This skilled, shadowy master of IPAs will take you by surprise yet honorably leave your palate intact. Aggressive late hop additions tempered with a stealthy, fleeting bitterness make Shadow Ninja IPA a formidable and respectable beer.”
Storm Shadow Imperial IPA
“Weak and uninspiring beers fall before this imperial master. Striding forth with intense hops and full malt body deftly intertwined in a deadly dance. Disciplined, unwavering and focused.”
While most breweries seem to be shying away from sending their beer in the mail due to legal hassles on a state and Federal level. It looks like a brewery from Kent, Washington is bucking that trend!
Airways Brewing is shipping bottles and eventually cans of their beers including an anniversary ale (as I type this). Now you can get their stuff online via Let’s Pour too but maybe this will make other breweries think about selling via the interwebs.
Up in Washington state on in one week is their 2012 Cask Festival.
I sure wish there were more examples of this in SoCal (heck anywhere). Cask beer is is something that I have had very little exposure to simply because it is more work and more expense and if it is hard to get people to drink carbonated and cold craft beer then imagine having to sell a skeptic on a slightly warmish ale without the fizz.
On a positive note, because their isn’t a huge market cask a festival like this one in Washington allows for mucho experimentation. When the beers are added to the website you will see what I mean.
Olympia Washington was a great beer town. A certain roly-poly cartoon bear made sure of it. Now it is building back up again and a great place to visit is Skep n Skein.
A beer bar with a side focus on mead. Mead that they make! Hence the technical term in the first half of the name. A skep is a vital part of the mead making process. Skein, well that’s a knitting thing. (I think)