production brewery

Craft beers of New Orleans

Last week I spent a few days in New Orleans photographing a trade show; in my free time I decided to seek out locally brewed craft beers, preferably from New Orleans but anything brewed in Louisiana would do. For those of you familiar with the New Orleans area, I was staying by the New Orleans Convention Center which is about a mile from the French Quarter.

When I first arrived on Wednesday afternoon I met up with a couple of friends and we walked over to Crescent City Brewhouse, a brewpub that is across the street from the Jackson Brewery building. Apparently Jackson Brewery was once one of the largest breweries in the country; I did not make it inside. Crescent City Brewhouse offered five of their beers on tap; a Kölsch (my personal favorite), a pilsner, a Vienna lager, a Dunkel Munich Lager and a hefeweizen. All five were solid beers but there were no IPA’s and hoppiness was pretty much nonexistent; the ABV’s of all five were pretty low. Our server said they all range from 5% to 6% ABV; their Untappd information only lists the ABV of the Kölsch and shows it to be a 4.5%.

I had the Alligator Sausage Poboy sandwich which was pretty good. Since our server gave the impression that he was pretty knowledgeable about everything craft beer related in New Orleans I asked him for suggestions on other breweries or brewpubs in the area that I should visit. In fact, I specifically asked about NOLA Brewing and was told that they were solely a production brewery with no tasting room. I found out later that our server was pretty clueless about the craft beer scene in New Orleans or he intentionally misled me. It was hard to say. Crescent City Brewhouse is located at 527 Decatur Street in New Orleans. It is the only brewpub I found in New Orleans; the prices are fair, the food is okay and I would say that their beers represent the Louisiana style fairly well. They are open seven days a week and do have growlers to go. Continue reading

Craft breweries along the 101: From Paso Robles to Agoura Hills

Day two of our craft beer tour started where we left off, Paso Robles. We knew that Firestone Walker would be a definite stop as the visitor’s center and brewery store would provide brews that we could not obtain at the taproom the previous night. Not wanting to appear too eager, we decided to see what else was available in Paso Robles that was open and new to us. We had places we wanted to revisit, like BarrelHouse Brewing, but no one seemed to open before 2:00 and I did not have that kind of time to spend in Paso that day. Tanya found the Downtown Brewing Company brewpub on her phone, so we headed over there only to discover that they were currently in a transition as far as brewing is concerned. Apparently they were brewing off-site but are preparing to begin brewing there; but that will not happen for another three months. They appeared to have a nice tap list but the same could be said for pretty much any bar I noticed in the area. We said farewell and headed back over to Firestone Walker’s visitor’s center.

While the Paso Taproom Restaurant offers many great options; we really wanted to pick up a few bottles that were not available at the taproom, such as XVII Anniversary, Parabola and Lil Opal. We were also able to sample a couple beers that we did not have time to try the night before. I do not think you can tell just how massive the Firestone Walker operation is after dark. The taproom/restaurant and the visitor’s center is maybe half of the operation. When walking around the facility we discovered several more large buildings including their Keg Shed, a shop for equipment repairs and hidden around the back, their brewery store. The store sells things like hats, shirts and home brewing equipment; it also houses a large cold box that is like the Holy Grail of Firestone Walker. Beers you cannot find elsewhere will be found back here; I highly recommend checking it out. We grabbed a couple bottles of Bretta Rose to bring home. Continue reading

Craft beer from Buellton to Paso Robles

Earlier this week my fiancee and I decided to take an overnight craft beer trip to visit some of the breweries and brewpubs that we missed when we did our tour back in February. The reason was two-fold; one was that I had some reward points from La Quinta Inns that were going to expire and my fiancee has developed an affinity for barrel-aged beers and there were a lot at Firestone Walker that she wanted to sample and purchase. Who am I to deprive her of such deliciousness; after all, happy wife, happy life.

We started off by heading to Solvang Brewing Company, a brewpub located in downtown Solvang. It has been a couple years since I went there but at the time they were just opening and were not yet brewing their own beer. I figured it would be a good stop because we could try some new brews while getting some food at the same time. When we do these craft beer tours we rely a lot on the Internet and there is nothing that irritates me more than to discover that a brewery has ignored the importance of the Internet. Especially since California is a craft beer destination; simple matters like ensuring the correct information is listed on Google Places as well as correct information on their websites. The reason I mention this with Solvang Brewing is that Google Places said they did not open until 5:00 PM whereas the Solvang Brewing website clearly stated that they are open seven days a week from 11:00 AM until 2:00 AM. I was more than a little irritated when we arrived around 1:00 PM to discover that on Wednesdays they do not open until 4:00 PM! It will probably be a while before I give them another chance. Continue reading

American Craft beer Week 2014, Day 7: Bikes, beers & burgers

Sunday was day seven of the 9th Annual American Craft Beer Week and it was a fine ending to a fun week of some really nice craft beers. Since my theme for this year’s ACBW was local production breweries, brewpubs and locations that specialize in American craft beer and there were only two production breweries with tasting rooms in the South Bay that I had not visited yet, I decided to start off with Strand Brewing Company and Monkish Brewing Company; the first two production breweries in Torrance.

Before I left the house I saw on Facebook that there was a bicycle race going on in the industrial complex that Strand Brewing is located in. Strand Brewing fans are probably aware that co-owner and head brewer Joel Elliott is an avid cyclist, so it was not surprising that his backyard would be used for a cycling event. Unfortunately, Telo Road (the street they are located on) was blocked off and I suspect many people did not work around it as there tasting room was a little slower than normal; so there was not a lot to photograph. My girlfriend and I had our Expression Session pale ales then headed out to our next location.

You may have noticed that this past week I have been adding a little something to the end of each brewery visit, primarily advising you of any upcoming events they might want you aware of. When I asked co-owner Rich Marcello if there was anything he wanted me to make you aware of, his response was typical of Marcello; “Just that we are so thankful of the support we have received from the loyal fans. Such a big part of the fabric which makes it worth all of the hard work and effort. It makes getting up and doing what we do (7 days a week) feel worth it. Truly a humbling experience.” Anyone that has had the pleasure of knowing or talking to Rich knows that this is a very sincere attitude. Strand Brewing Company is located at 23520 Telo Avenue in Torrance. Continue reading

American Craft Beer Week 2014, Day 6: Smog City celebrates one year

Saturday was day six of the 9th Annual American Craft Beer Week and it was also the one year anniversary for Torrance production brewery, Smog City Brewing. To say that Smog City went all out on this event would be an understatement. I mean to say that Smog City’s previous events have always been well done with lots of special beers but their one year of experience combined with the experience gained by hosting large events made this one quite smooth. There were close to 700 attendees throughout the day, but with the use of three separate filling stations the lines seemed to move quickly.

The day started with a VIP session that allowed ticket holders to get a two hour head start on the general public thereby ensuring access to the small batch specials that were made available like Quercus Circus and The Tempest, two brews that tapped out fairly early. I made two visits to Smog City, so the photos begin with the VIP session and then a few hours later when I returned. Downtown Dogs provided a special menu for those that needed some food to soak up all the good beer.

Congratulations to Smog City Brewing on a great year; you are a great addition to the South Bay’s craft beer scene. I cannot wait to see what the next year brings. Speaking of which, one of the things the next year will bring is Smog City Brewing bottled beers. Tentatively scheduled for June 7, Groundwork Coffee Porter and The Nothing will be the first beers to be bottled. The only question is will the labels get there on time? We shall see. Cheers! Continue reading

American Craft Beer Week, Day 3: Visits to the new guys

Wednesday was day three of the 9th Annual American Craft Beer Week and in keeping with my theme of visiting our local production breweries, brewpubs and gastropubs I decided that I would visit the two new tasting rooms that were not even in their construction phase last year at this time. Our first stop was at Absolution Brewing Company in Torrance.

Absolution Brewing opened their doors unofficially on March 1 with the official ribbon cutting taking place on April 25. Unlike most of the production breweries around here, Absolution brews in a more European style which really translates to lower carbonation. Some people that are only accustomed to “west coast” styles of craft beer like to suggest that the beer may be flat. If they ventured out of their comfort zone they would realize this is not the case at all. I have to think that Absolution Brewing has become very welcome as they are the one tasting room I visit that seems to constantly have a large number of customers. In the short time I was there they must have sold five kegs to go! I know some people complain that Absolution ran out of too many from their selection of 10 brews on the unofficial open but they do not realize that this was due primarily to Daily Breeze writer Nick Green being unable to stick to the facts and writing an article that appeared on the front page of the Breeze announcing that Absolution was opening two hours earlier than what it should have been. This resulted in a long line of people at the Absolution doors two and a half hours early. Naturally, they opened the doors and many brews were tapped out within minutes of when the actual opening time was supposed to be. I don’t know that the Absolution team realized just how popular their beers were going to be.

For American Craft Beer Week Absolution will begin phase two of their MUG Club, R U Feelin’ Wicked division. I joined the initial Founders division of the MUG Club and I have spoken with several other MUG Club members and I have yet to meet anyone that regretted their decision. The merchandise received, including t-shirts and a custom growler, combined with discounts and special events makes this a steal. You should stop by and sign up before they all sell out as there is a limit of 125 memberships. Absolution Brewing Company is located at 2878 Columbia Street in Torrance. Continue reading

American Craft Beer Week 2014, Day 2: It was an IPA kind of day

Tuesday was day two of the 9th Annual American Craft Beer Week and I really wanted an IPA. For those not in the know, we have been enduring a pretty bad heat wave and a couple cold beers were just what the doctor ordered. An IPA and some air conditioning would be even better. I decided to start off by heading to Long Beach for a visit to the Great American Beer Festival’s 2013 Mid-Size Brewpub of the Year, Beachwood BBQ & Brewing.

While Long Beach sounds like it would be cool, it was actually 105 degrees which was 10 more than home so the beer and air conditioning were quite welcome. When it comes to IPA’s, most locals would have to admit that it is pretty tough to beat the superb options provided by award winning head brewer Julian Shrago. Like I usually do, I opted for a flight consisting of three IPAs, Laurel, Pole Position and The Falcon which are all three fine examples of the West Coast IPA style. I finished the flight off with their Onyx Imperial Stout. In addition to their own fine brews and good food, Beachwood has a pretty amazing guest tap list. This just shows the confidence they have in their own beers. I decided to try the San Clemente IPA (Artifex Collaboration) from Pizza Port San Clemente and it was great. While Beachwood is not having any planned American Craft Beer Week events (because every week is American Craft Beer Week there) they were have a special bottle release for their Jean-Quad Van Damme Bourbon Barrel Aged Belgian-Style Dark Ale that was to be held Tuesday evening. They only bottled 100 so there was a limit of one bottle per customer. While 100 bottles would not usually last very long, Beachwood only announced it on the Instagram account and I mentioned it last night on the Craft Beer Guy Facebook page so there was limited exposure. I just called and there are still some bottles left so head over and grab one; or bring a friend and grab two. Be sure to tell them Craft Beer Guy sent you. Continue reading

The Dudes’ Brewing Company approved for tasting room

Toby & Jeff The Dudes'

The Dudes’

The Dudes’ Brewing Company, the only Torrance production brewery that does not have a tasting room, is one step closer to realizing the dream of many of the South Bay’s craft beer fans. Last night, Head Dude Toby Humes and head brewer Jeff Parker appeared at the Torrance Planning Commission to be heard on CUP14-00006, Planning Commission consideration for approval of a Conditional Use Permit to allow a tasting room in association with a brewery operation on property located at 1840 208th Street in Torrance. After Humes answered a few questions from the commission audience members were given an opportunity to give their opinion (yes, I read a prepared statement in support). Afterwards, the Planning Commission voted unanimously to approve the request.

There were a couple conditions that need to be met before The Dudes’ can actually open the tasting room, but Humes seemed confident that they should be open by July at the latest. I think the commission might know how long we have been waiting as the permit is only good for one year; so it looks like Torrance will soon have another tasting room in our midst. Congrats to The Dudes’ Brewing Company and cheers!

Taking a self-guided craft beer tour of California Highway 99

This particular self-guided craft beer tour will be a five (5) part series that covers a visit to 22 production breweries and brewpubs between Los Angeles and Santa Rosa. Let there be no mistake, there are far more than 22 craft breweries in that geographical area but we had a set amount of time. It was another of those “so many beers, so little time” situations. When I set out from LA there were three basic routes to take; I could drive Interstate 5 which is definitely the fastest route but the desert is a barren wasteland when it comes to craft beer. Taking US 101 up the coast takes significantly longer than I-5, but there are barrels and barrels of beer all along the way and if time is of any importance, there are far too many distractions. The third option and the one I opted to take was California Highway 99. When I opted to take 99 I knew the drive would take a little longer, but I also know that I would be able to find some craft beer along the way. This particular route was set going northbound, but you can easily reverse the map provided below and plug in your own starting point.

The locations visited on this leg of the self-guided craft beer tour were Lengthwise Brewing in Bakersfield, Full Circle Brewing Company in Fresno and Dust Bowl Brewing Company in Turlock. You can find the photos of the three locations at http://craftbeerguy.com/lengthwise-full-circle-dust-bowl-brewing/.


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Photos of the Absolution Brewing Company Ribbon Cutting

On Friday afternoon Torrance’s newest production craft brewery, Absolution Brewing Company (ABC), held their official grand opening with a ribbon cutting ceremony. The ribbon cutting was attended by Mayor Frank Scotto and several members of the Torrance City Council as well as the Torrance Chamber of Commerce and assorted other officials. After the ribbon cutting and presentations the beer flowed with the addition of three new brews to the extensive Absolution Brewing tap list with their Holy Cow milk stout, Wanderin’ Possessed Easter Candy English porter and their Cloistered red ale. The Creative Eats food truck was on-hand with a special menu that was paired with the various ABC brews.

As you can tell from the photos, it was a very well attended event. In fact, I left after an hour or so and came back a couple hours later to what seemed to be an even larger group than before. It is probably safe to say that Absolution Brewing Company is a very welcome addition to the local craft beer scene. Absolution Brewing Company is located at 2878 Columbia Street in Torrance. Cheers! Continue reading

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