Microbreweries

Bourbon O.E. & Goldie Bottle Release at Smog City Brewing

These photos are from Smog City Brewing Company’s Bourbon O.E. Barleywine and Goldie Golden Ale bottle release that was held Saturday afternoon at the Smog City tasting room. I got a somewhat late start, not arriving until a couple hours after they opened, but photos I saw on my Facebook feed indicated that there was a line of Smog City fans waiting outside when they opened. By the time I got there the tasting room was still pretty crowded but the lines moved quickly for those that came for bottles to go, and for those that wanted to try the new releases.

To be honest, my main concern with my late arrival was that the bottles might be sold out; luckily, they bottled about 500 more of each than the last time and there were still bottles of both left when I left. Since Smog City is closed today, Easter Sunday, there might be some bottles available if you show up when they open their doors next Wednesday; I highly doubt they will last much longer than that.

If you do show up at Smog and they are out of bottles, do not despair as there is plenty on tap. They are not selling growlers but a bourbon barrel-aged flight would be highly recommended. They brought out last year’s Goldie to compare to the newest release and the difference is pretty noticeable right from the start with the nose revealing that the bourbon is going to be pretty forward. I believe Belgian Bourbon Candy was the phrase I heard most often. Continue reading

Absolution Brewing Company Celebrates One Year

These photos are from Absolution Brewing Company’s one year anniversary party that was held at their tasting room this past Saturday. While Absolution may have gotten off to a shaky start with their Grand Opening that found several brews tapping out before the day was over, I do not think anyone that has watched their progress over the past year can deny that Absolution Brewing has weathered the storm and have established themselves as a brewery that will be here for the long run.

When Absolution Brewing first opened the initial goal was to gain acceptance with the style of beers they brewed. Using “Old World styles and New World ingredients” their beers are not your typical “west coast” style; for example, you would never confuse any of their IPAs with any of the others brewed around here. Variety is what prevents over-saturation, so their style was welcomed by me and obviously many others as their tasting room always seems to have a nice group sampling their beers.

In November their original head brewer, Wes McCann, moved back east as his wife was transferred; so Absolution was forced to find a replacement which they did by bringing in Bart Bullington. The change in style and recipes was noticed almost immediately; Bullington’s tweaks to McCann’s recipes seemed to be just what Absolution needed to satisfy the palates of South Bay beer drinkers. Continue reading

Day One Hammerland at El Segundo Brewing Company

In early February, El Segundo Brewing Company’s Hammerland DIPA was chosen as best in show at the 15th annual Double IPA Festival at the Bistro in Hayward, California. El Segundo Brewing Company had already planned on bottling Hammerland but with the awarding of their first ever medal they decided to turn the bottle release into a party.

They opened early Friday for those that had the day off and the tasting room began filling up as soon as the doors opened. They had a big party scheduled for Friday evening, which was undoubtedly a great time but I already had other plans so I headed down there early.

There is still plenty of Hammerland DIPA available, so head on down to El Segundo Brewing Company this weekend to try some; it is delicious. Congratulations to the entire crew at El Segundo Brewing. Cheers! Continue reading

Pi Day in the South Bay & Monkish Brewing’s 3rd Anniversary

Once a century Pi Day aligns perfectly with the stars with its 3.1415926; if you missed the events commemorating it in 1915 and you missed it yesterday you probably blew it unless medical technology steps it up a little. There were several special events going on at local microbreweries in the South Bay, including Monkish Brewing Company’s 3rd Anniversary, Smog City Brewing’s Pi Beer Day and King Harbor Brewing’s Pie Day.

We started the day off at Monkish Brewing to help them celebrate their third anniversary. While Monkish is not big on throwing “parties” they were joined by hundreds of their fans that stopped by to sample some of the 16 Belgian-styled ales flowing from the Monkish taps. It seems hard to believe that it has been three years already; I recall with detail our first visit to Monkish when they had four options available; Oblate, Anomaly, Feminist and Red Table. Three years later they have 16 taps and nine bottled brews available. Owner/brewer Henry Nguyen has really stepped up his game with the addition of some delicious single-hop Belgian-style pale ales and a lot of experimenting with brett and bottle conditioning. I can honestly say that I like Monkish a lot more now than I did three years ago and I look forward to the changes that we can expect to see in the upcoming year. Congratulations again to Henry and Adriana. Continue reading

Craft Beer Guy Contest Winners at El Segundo Brewing

Back in December, El Segundo Brewing Company held their Crude, Cocoa and Donuts Christmas Party along with their Second Annual Ugly Sweater Contest; I happened to take third place, winning a tour and tasting for four. I knew I wanted to use the prize to help promote El Segundo Brewing Company; I just wasn’t sure how I would do it. Ideally, I would be able to bring four people there as first time visitors.

In January Beachwood BBQ & Brewing announced that they were going to hold their 4th Annual Pliny Fights Cancer Charity Raffle and I decided that I would add some incentive for my followers to buy a ticket. All you had to do was take a photo of your ticket(s) and then tag Craft Beer Guy on Facebook or Instagram. Two winners would be chosen and each could bring a guest. On the day that Beachwood held their raffle I utilized an online number randomizer and picked the winners to my contest. The winners were Jessica Casey of Long Beach Hopheads and Dan Parker, a homebrewer and member of the Strand Brewers Club.

These photos are of the tasting and tour that we were given last night by El Segundo Brewing Company taproom manager, Pete Crowner. As luck would have it, Jessica and her husband, while somewhat familiar with El Segundo’s beer, had never visited the tasting room before. Dan had been there once before, briefly, so I was pleased that I was able to introduce new faces to the tasting room. Continue reading

Infinite Wishes and Finite Bottles

Anyone that goes to Smog City Brewing Company on even rare occasions has noticed the oak bourbon barrels that have lined the walls for the past year or so. In them we have seen such wonders as Goldie, their bourbon barrel-aged Belgian Golden Strong Ale and today they released Infinite Wishes, a bourbon barrel-aged version of The Nothing Imperial Stout. If you got to Smog City by 2:00 PM you may have been lucky enough to purchase a bottle; if not, sorry. They sold the bottles out quickly and it really should be no surprise. The Nothing is an amazing imperial stout and to age it in bourbon barrels can only serve to make it better, and it did. While the bottles of Infinite Wishes sold out in about two hours, they still had it on tap; at least they did when I left. If you enjoy bourbon barrel-aged beers and will be in the South Bay area Sunday, I suggest stopping by Smog City and trying it before it is gone. By the way, there is a new batch of Infinite Wishes in the bourbon barrels for next year’s release.

While the Infinite Wishes was probably the main draw, they also re-released bottles of The Nothing. This is going to be a seasonal release and they still had plenty of bottles the last I saw. They have both the 2014 and 2015 versions of The Nothing on tap so you can use the opportunity to compare the difference after a year of aging. If you still have a bottle of the 2014 version of The Nothing you can start building your vertical. Unfortunately, I opened my bottle a couple months ago without realizing it was my last and not going to be replaceable; oh well.

For those that have not been to Smog City, they are located at 1901 Del Amo Boulevard in Torrance. You have a good reason to head over there this weekend with these limited release brews. Cheers! Continue reading

Lots Brewing in the Pomona Valley

Two weeks ago I was out in Covina visiting REV Brewing and Alosta Brewing companies and during my conversations with the owners of both breweries a common thought was made; there is no love shown for the breweries on the east side of town. What they were talking about was not about acceptance by the local community, but rather they did not see things like stories about their breweries and the beers tours that have become so prevalent on the west side of Los Angeles County never come out there. As I pressed for more information a couple breweries I was unfamiliar with were mentioned at both locations; Rök House Brewing Company and Dale Bros. Brewery, both located in Upland. Since Claremont Craft Ales was in the vicinity and I had not been there in over 18 months, I decided to stop by there as well. I had an event to photograph in Irwindale on Sunday evening so I decided to head out to the Pomona Valley early and make a day of it.

You should not feel too bad if you are unfamiliar with Rok House Brewery as they have only been open for six or seven months. Brewing with a 6 Bbl brew house, Rok House offered 10 different options from their taps ranging from their Kiska Blond Kölsch and Battle’s End Orange Wit to their Eric the Red Ale and Midnight Sun Black IPA with a couple IPAs, porters and brown ales for good measure.

A “Rök House” was the stone structures that Vikings brewed their beers in and co-owner/brewmeister Lars Bennett has Norse heritage so together with co-owner/brewmeister Mark Heffernan they took on the Icelandic/Norse/Viking theme in both decor and names for their tasty brews. Continue reading

Wanderin’ Star Bottle Release at Absolution Brewing

On Sunday evening, members of Absolution Brewing Company’s MUG Club were invited to Absolution’s first bottle release; the Wanderin’ Star Bourbon Barrel-Aged Imperial Porter. Muggers were treated to pours of the newly released brew along with various snacks and sweets to snack on as they enjoyed their beers.

The limited release Wanderin’ Star Bourbon Barrel-Aged Imperial Porter comes in individually numbered 750ml champagne bottles and are available at the Absolution tasting room for $18.00 each. They also have gift packages that include Absolution Brewing Company glassware for $30.00 at the tasting room. You can reserve yours by emailing nigel@absolutionbrewingcompany.com. This would make a nice Christmas gift for the beer geek in your family.

While at Absolution you might ask them about their ABC MUG Club; an exclusive membership for fans of Absolution Brewing Company and comes with many perks, including discounts and invitations to private parties like this bottle release. It really is a great deal and would make a wonderful Christmas present. Cheers! Continue reading

Photos from Crude, Cocoa and Donuts at El Segundo Brewing Company

On Sunday afternoon, El Segundo Brewing Company held their Crude, Cocoa and Donuts Christmas Party along with their Second Annual Ugly Sweater Contest. The event was held in conjunctions with the El Segundo Main Street Christmas Parade, which took place right outside the door to the tasting room.

Crude, Cocoa and Donuts featured the return of Bourbon Barrel-Aged Standard Crude, as well as Standard Crude on Cask along with all the other wonderful brews currently on the El Segundo Brewing Company tap list. For the kids there was free cocoa along with cinnamon and sugar donuts. Rumor has it that these paired well with the Standard Crude; I would not doubt it.

The Ugly Sweater Contest first place winners Matthew McIvor and Jennalee Infanto won a penny growler fill for every month of 2015, a set of glassware and an ESBC shirt and hat. Second place winner Z Dewart won a penny pint for every week of 2015. I took third place winning a tour and tasting for four; stay tuned on this as I will come up with a contest to share this prize with people that have installed the Craft Beer Guy mobile app or follow the Craft Beer Guy Facebook page. Cheers! Continue reading

Phantom Carriage readies for Grand Opening

The long awaited opening of the South Bay’s latest contribution to the craft beer scene, Phantom Carriage, is one step closer to becoming a reality. On Sunday afternoon various members of the craft beer industry gathered for a soft-open at the self-described Brewery, Blendery, Tasting Room and Cafe located in Carson. To say that Phantom Carriage is different than your typical tasting room would be an understatement. To say that Phantom Carriage is different than your typical brewpub would be just as much of an understatement, except owners Martin Svab and Simon Ford definitely do not consider Phantom Carriage to be a brewpub. It is a brewery that happens to offer food as well as wine and cocktails. I do not think you will be going to Phantom Carriage for a burger and a beer as their food menu is almost as refined as their beer offerings.

Yesterday we were able to try five of Phantom’s brews including their Oude Muis, the beer that pretty much launched the idea for commercially brewing for them, along with the Broadacres Berliner Weisse, Domingues Wild Porter, Lugosi Strong Dark Sour and Bergman Sour Blonde. As you might notice, the emphasis is on barrel aging and sours/wild ales.

The kitchen offered a Harvest Salad of arugula, baby spinach and apples as well as heartier plates including a Farmhouse Plate consisting of meats, cheeses, pate and other relishes. They also offered a Bratwurst Plate, Pulled Pork Panini, Brisket Sandwich and a Smoked Turkey Sandwich. The brisket was killer. Steve, who runs the kitchen, has a commercial smoker at home and he knows how to use it. Continue reading

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