On Saturday, San Pedro’s latest production brewery opened their doors to the general public as Brouwerij West held their grand opening. To say it was well attended would be on the same level as suggesting beer is damp. When I was at Brouwerij West on Friday evening for the Founders’ Club pre-opening party I was speaking with the ever humble co-owner and head brewer, Brian Mercer, and he seemed to have concerns on whether people would show up the next day or not. When their event coordinator asked me how many people I thought would show up, I guessed that they would probably hit 1,000 with ease. The event began at noon, when I arrived a little after 3:00 I immediately knew I had severely underestimated the turnout. I had failed to take into consideration how supportive San Pedro residents are to their local businesses. I would be willing to bet they had at least 2,000 people show up throughout the course of the day.
Update: On Sunday evening Brian Mercer texted me to say that they actually had 4,500 people attend their event with a maximum of 1,500 at any point in the day. I don’t know who else around here could handle a day like that with virtually no issues other than maybe running out of a couple beers. They are definitely to be congratulated.
While most craft beer tasting rooms could not handle a group of that size, Brouwerij West has a couple advantages over the others. Their tasting room is huge and they have a large area outside that not only took care of the overflow of people, but it also held four food trucks, an auxiliary pouring station and a stage for the live entertainment. If there is any brewery around here that is built for a crowd as large as they had Saturday, Brouwerij West is the place. Continue reading
These photos are from the Founders’ Club party that was held at the Brouwerij West tasting room on Friday evening. The Founders’ Club is a yearlong membership for supporters of Brouwerij West, and one of the many perks is invitations to special events at the brewery; as their Grand Opening is Saturday, this pre-opening party was the first event for Founders’ members.
We were treated to samples of their latest releases, Buckwheat Sour and Mør Mør, as well as the seven other brews they had on tap including Sour Orange Wit, Super Orange, Bitter Blonde, Dog Ate My Homework, My First Rodeo, Tripel and Spelt Saison. Vella Pizza was also on hand providing their delicious pizza slices. There were a few hundred supporters in attendance and everyone seemed to have a great time.
The Founders’ Club is $175.00 for a year-long membership and benefits include six Brouwerij West bottle releases, 10% off Brouwerij West beer and merchandise, a growler and fill, a limited edition Founders’ Club t-shirt and glass, and other perks like VIP access to special events as well as events just for Founders’ members. Continue reading
These photos were taken Monday afternoon at the Beachwood Blendery in Long Beach, where employees and friends gathered for the drawing of the raffle tickets for Beachwood’s 5th Annual Pliny Fights Cancer Charity Raffle.
To enter the raffle, you could buy a $5.00 raffle ticket at the Seal Beach or Long Beach location; winners get a pint of Pliny, those that did not win a pint of Pliny at least knew that their donation was going to a good cause, the Melanoma Research Foundation. This year they raised more than $10,000, bringing the total raised over the past five years to over $50,000!
The event was broadcast live on the Four Brewers podcast; however, if you missed it, you can find the winning numbers at http://beachwoodbbq.com/pdf/pliny_the_younger.pdf. This year they drew 145 winners, up from 140 last year. If you are a winner, pay attention to where you must pick up your pint. 105 must get them in Seal Beach and the other 40 can get them at the Long Beach Location. You must bring your raffle ticket with you and redeem it at the location designated. Continue reading
I guess it was at The Festival 2014 put on by the Shelton Brothers back in November of 2014 that many learned that Brouwerij West was planning on opening in the warehouse next to CRAFTED at the Port of Los Angeles. As people waited in line to enter The Festival, it would have been tough to not see the notice painted on the side of Warehouse No. 9 declaring that Brouwerij West was planning on opening in the spring of 2015. Of course, anyone that has been paying attention has probably noticed that the actual opening of a brewery is rarely constant with the dreams and desires of the brewery owners. But good things come to those that wait and patience is a virtue; Brouwerij West will have their Grand Opening on Saturday, February 27, 2016 from 12:00-9:00 PM!
Brouwerij West’s owners/founders Brian Mercer and Dave Holop were kind enough to allow me to photograph the building of their brewery so these photos begin back in March of 2015 when it consisted of a huge room with an old leaky roof. As time went on I was able to be there when their brewhouse was being assembled, during one of their first brews, and ending with the Hoppy Valentine’s Dinner that was held this past weekend.
Saturday’s Grand Opening will feature brewery tours, a beer garden, live music and food trucks. The live music begins at 5:00 PM featuring three local San Pedro bands; Bombon, Crow Baby and Underground Railroad to Candyland. After experiencing their Valentine’s dinner I can say with no reservation that this is going to be a fun event; you are going to want to come out to San Pedro if you can. Continue reading
On Saturday evening we attended the Hoppy Valentine’s Dinner at Brouwerij West. The dinner was presented by Primal Alchemy Catering and featured the work of Chef Paul Buchanan. Chef Paul specializes in preparing customized menus that are farm-to-table, using locally sourced, sustainable and organic ingredients. A good number of the attendees were obviously fans of Chef Paul as many indicated that they had been to prior events he has put on. If you are a foodie, you will appreciate the menu:
For appetizers we had Rose Petal Ravioli w’ Creamy Leek & Bacon Filling (outstanding), Octopus Tartare on a wonton chip with wasabi, and Bruleed Strawberries with Balsamic Syrup & Goat Cheese. The main course had a mix of various vegetables and pasta along with steelhead trout on Parmesan Polenta and Juniper Crusted Pan Seared Duck on a Bed of Faro with Dried Cherry Chutney. For dessert there was Mason Jar Dark Chocolate Cakes with Farmer’s Market Berry Compote & Chantilly Cream. It was an interesting meal and everyone seemed to really enjoy it.
Of course, I was there for the beer which was probably not the case for many of the attendees but the Brouwerij West classic Belgian style ales definitely made some converts. I spoke to more than one person that said they came for the food, but they would definitely be back for the beer. Continue reading
On Thursday evening the Business & Beer networking group returned to The Dudes’ Brewing Company’s tasting room in Torrance. To be honest, the turnout was low but that did not stop those that did come out from enjoying some delicious beer and doing some business together. We also had the pleasure of having Master Brewer Alex Rabe join the group for a while; as he starts work at 4:00 AM we definitely appreciate him taking his time to chat with us.
I have actually had an opportunity to speak with the Head Dude Toby Humes about what has been going on with The Dudes’ and he is pretty enthusiastic about how things are going. They have a scientist on board and combined with the talents of Rabe and a new head brewer they really are turning out a lot of new, tasty brews and maintaining consistency on their flagship beers. You can expect to see lots of rotating handles featuring seasonal brews like their Hugs & Kisses, a fruit stout that tastes like chocolate covered cherries. Their Bohemian Hopsody session IPA is one of the best I have tried and the Groundhog’s Day black session IPA comes across as a big, black IPA. It will be interesting to see what happens there over the next year.
If you live or work in the Los Angeles area and networking is important to you or is part of your job description you should check out BusinessNBeer.com. This is the South Bay’s most fun and relaxed business networking group. They meet on the second Thursday of every month at a different production brewery or brewpub in the South Bay area. With all the new tasting rooms there is a good chance you have not had a chance to visit some of them; this is your chance and you might even do some business. Events are scheduled from 6:00-8:00 PM and you can bring your significant other so there is no need to rush home. There are no rules and no dues; just come have a good time, meet some good people and enjoy a beer or two. You can find the schedule of upcoming events on the front page of BusinessnBeer.com or by Liking them on Facebook. The next gathering will be March 10 at King Harbor Brewing Company.
Welcome to photo sponsor Calibrated Solutions, for your business’ voice, data and IT solutions. Cheers! Continue reading
Last night we attended the monthly beer dinner held at Jimmy’s Bar & Grill in Redondo Beach, which featured beers from Avery Brewing Company to go along with the custom dinner menu prepared by chef/partner, Marc Dix. Avery Brewing Company was represented by their regional brewery rep, Christina Roberts who was more than happy to explain the history and nuance of each brew.
I know I have said it before, and I am sure this will not be the last time I write something similar, but of all the beer dinners I have attended, no one does it better than Marc Dix and his staff at Jimmy’s Bar & Grill. The primary reason, in my opinion anyway, is that Dix does not choose something off his menu and pair it with one of the available beers; he chooses the beer then tailors the dish around it so they complement each other. Since Wednesday was Ash Wednesday, the first day of Lent, and many people do not eat meat on that day, our meal consisted of different fish variations.
Last night began with a Joe’s Pilsner as a welcome beer which was followed with our first course; a delicious salmon with a sweet chili ginger glaze that was topped with a pineapple mango salsa. This was paired with a Raja Double IPA. The tropical nose of the Raja made perfect sense when paired with the salsa. Continue reading
One of the greatest challenges I face in promoting the local craft beer scene is finding time to go to as many events as possible. On Saturday I started off with Laughs by Volume which meant I was going to be late for Smog City Brewing Company’s 2016 Infinite Wishes bottle release; but better late than never, right?
It was early evening by the time I arrived at Smog City and it was pretty obvious people were having a great time, no matter what brew they were drinking.
Smog City had done a pre-sale of bottles of the barrel-aged goodness, so people that had ordered online were able to pick up their bottles. The rest of us were able to enjoy the 2015 and 2016 versions of Infinite Wishes on tap, as well as The Nothing; Infinite Wishes is the barrel-aged version of The Nothing. Whatever bottles were not sold online were made available Sunday, but if you were not at Smog City on Sunday, I am sure they are all gone by now. Continue reading
These photos were taken at The Dudes’ Brewing Company’s release of Bohemian Hopsody that was held at The Dudes’ tasting room on Friday evening. While the release of a session IPA might not usually be very newsworthy, Bohemian Hopsody was done in collaboration with KLOS 95.5 radio, in that it was named the “Official beer of KLOS” so the release definitely became an event. Heidi Hamilton and Frank Kramer of The Heidi and Frank morning show on KLOS were in attendance so The Dudes’ was packed with fans of craft beer and Heidi and Frank.
To me the star of the evening was Alex Rabe, the new Master Brewer at The Dudes’ and his Bohemian Hopsody. I will be honest with you, when I first heard about the beer with its blend of Mosaic, Simcoe and Citra hops I was interested but so many session IPA’s seem to try to make up for the lack of ABV by smacking you in the face with bitterness, I was not really expecting a lot. The reality is that The Dudes’ had a session IPA that did just that. Continue reading
The other day I got a phone call from “Joseph” telling me that he had just gotten involved with a pizzeria and that they had an outstanding tap list that I really should try. In the course of discussion he mentioned that he and his business partner were the new owners of Old Orange Brewing Company. Oh yeah, he did mention that his partner was one of the founders of Shelton Brothers; the importers that bring you great beer and outstanding beer festivals. My interest was slightly piqued; but as I told Joseph, Reseda is kind of a drive from the South Bay. I would “try” to make it out but in my heart, I had a feeling it wasn’t happening because pizza and beer is rarely worth a 60 mile round trip drive in LA traffic. That’s just reality.
Joseph had followed up the telephone call with an email containing a PDF of the craft brews they had on tap. The only ones I was readily familiar with came from Old Orange, and I probably knew more about the brewery than the beer. But I was definitely intrigued, the fact that I would have to look up every beer made me very interested.
I perused the Flame Pizzeria website that listed none of the beers I had been presented but it spoke highly of their chef, Chef Richard Florczak. Chef Richard has been a personal chef for such local celebrities as Tom Cruise, Mel Gibson, Leonardo DiCaprio, Tyson Chandler and Kevin Nealon. Continue reading