Category Archives: City

The Great American Beer Festival is Decadent and Delicious

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gabf lineA human shield surrounds the Colorado Convention Center as if to protect the building’s precious liquid contents. 2,700 beers sit inside; cold, vulnerable and perhaps a bit nervous to be percolated into their final transformation: Pee.

The Great American Beer Festival’s landscape sits before us like the Grand Canyon. In true American fashion, Scottish Bag Pipers squeeze their bags and blow to commence this epic three-day beer festival. I wipe the sheen of sweat from my brow and clench my butt cheeks in anticipation. What the hell am I going to drink first?

Goldilocks better not be drinkin’ my beer in there!

The parade of festival goers is as diverse as the beers inside. There’s the sportos, motorheads, geeks, sluts, bloods, wastoids, dweebes, and the dickheads* – all here for one reason: Craft Beer. Mini-Pilsner plastic cups in hand, people prance in to find the perfect beer to wet their fest-whistles. Most have a plan in mind, but fuck all that. I choose to bounce around the festival like a shiny pinball, letting the occasional flipper bounce me back into action. With more than a quarter of all American breweries in this titanic-sized room, I like my odds!

Noble Ale Works head brewer Evan Price busts me taking an incognito shot.

A hundred people make a bee-line for Russian River Brewing Co’s booth. “It’s all about the Pliny”, says the guy next to me, sheepishly. Many people in the long line scope out breweries nearby like magazines in the grocery store checkout. My hometown brewery Noble Ale Works benefits from this as a number of people duck out of line for a pre-emptive strike.

Finally up front at Russian River, “I’ll take a number two, extra pickles” I say. The volunteer rolls her eyes. I clear my throat and ask for a Toronado 25th Anniversary (American Wild Ale) for my first beer. Despite my lame humor attempt, she levels my sample dead-even on the 1oz mark while squinting. My first sip makes me smile and sigh. I close my eyes and thank my Fairy Beer Mother. “Bippity, Beerpity, BOO!”, I say to Pliny guy. We tap our plastic festival glasses and part in different directions, thankfully. There’s nothing worse than a Pliny fanboy at a beer festival. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great beer…FOR ME TO POOP ON! JK OMG, calm down. You’re such a touchy reader, geez.

Credit Cambria Griffith, Golden Road Brewing

Kendra isn’t a fan of head. (thanks for the awesome pic, Cambria of Golden Road Brewing)

My first drinking buddy of the fest is Kendra Birdwell, GM and Cheesemonger of the Bruery Provisions in Orange. We graze over to the American Cheese Society’s booth and she vouches for the lineup. Feedin’ time at the cheese booth is slow like a bunch of heifers chewing cud. With fifty people in line, we move three feet in five minutes. “Ever milk a bull?” I ask. Thankfully it’s so loud she replies, “What?” while batting her alluring Zooey Desschanel-like eyes. “This line is nuts! Let’s drink some beer”. Indeed. We bolt like a bulls at a rodeo, aiming for the annoying clowns.

I thought for sure the line for Dogfish Head would be crooked, zig-zaggy, or shaped like an infinity symbol, considering their ales are for off-centered people. Nope. It was military straight. Sam Calagione is up front, high fiving, hand-shaking, kissing babies and posing for pics. Garrett Oliver at Brooklyn Brewery is doing the same! My new strategy while out of my region: skip the booth if it’s manned by all volunteers (unless they’re hot). If the brewers are there, stop in for a chat and a beer. If I like the first beer, get another. Repeat. If there’s a line > 10 people, hop in it and get whatever looks good.(Skipping ahead a blog post: this strategy worked out great! Many of the beers I sampled this way ended up winning awards!)

Golden Road’s Kissing Booth

My tasting strategy: With a 1oz pour, beer evaluation is basic. After a complete glass-rinse, I drink the rinse water to refresh my palate and to hydrate on a 2:1 water/beer ratio. I then take a whiff and a small sip to evaluate aroma, then swish the rest in my mouth to evaluate flavor and mouthfeel. I ask for a second pour if something gives me chub! I front load my non-hoppy beers for the first couple hours, then increase IBU’s as the session wears on; although palate fatigue didn’t seem to be an issue with 1oz pours.

Like a crazy man, I attend all four sessions of GABF. Here’s notes on each:

Joslyn Ellstrom opens her throat for Goose Island’s White Truffle Sour, a beer that turned my palate upside down.

Thursday: Great session! Not crowded, lots of rare stuff. Brewers linger at their booths and answer questions. Note to self: Go for lower ABV and IBU on the first day due to elevation change. You got shitcanned! Eat food before leaving for after-parties! Don’t choose a drinking buddy that will be there for only one day. They are running a 5K and you’re doing a marathon!

Nico and Shaun of 21st Amendment tidy up for the session.

 

Friday: Same as Thursday, but SUPER crowded. I had two drinking buddies tonight! The lovely LeAnn Hubbard (Selmas Pizzaria & Taproom Manager RSM) and beer blogger friend Joslyn Ellstrom (pic above). Note to self: Hit the cheese first. Ramp up ABV and hoppy beers here, or don’t, you charming, sexy man.

Saturday Afternoon: This is the members only session where they have real glassware. Pours get a little looser. Brewers are at the awards show and grabbing lunch during the first half, so expect a lot of volunteers. After the awards show, look for award winning beers to sample!

No happy endings at the DD lounge.

Saturday Night: Holy shit. Even the volunteers are drunk at this session! People are dropping glassware at a rate of three a minute. Full pours on whatever is left! Most of the good stuff is gone. On the way out, I ask a girl dressed like Nintendo’s Mario if she wants to jump on my mushroom.  She hums the Super Mario theme as I walk away into Denver’s cold, crisp night.

Overall: If you had to choose one session: go Thursday. If you want two, add Saturday afternoon. If you want to get barfed on, go Saturday night. With so much going on around town, there’s no way you will be disappointed.

Family Feud: “What smell is most likely after 3 hours at GABF?”

Other stuff! This festival is the biggest and best out there. Where else can you say, “I’d like to sample Berliner Weiss’ from all over the country, then DO IT in one hour? I did! Where else can you sample Pliny the Elder, Bootleggers Knuckle Sandwich, Stone Brewing Co Enjoy By 11.09.12, Alpine Duet, and other beers back to back? I did! Where else can you discover Gruits, Cheecha, and a bulls balls Stout under one roof? Nowhere but the MF GABF. I went on a brett bender. I went on a sour bender. I went on a hop bender. I went on a barrel aged bender. I came and I conquered the Great American Beer Festival.

Gripes: The lighting. It’s bad enough you’re in a room with heavy drinkers with possible liver problems…the lighting made everyone look like stage three Jaundice. On Thursday, the lighting spiked up for a minute to normal levels showing it was option to dim them horribly. Environment Shmenvironment. Give us some light so we don’t look like Oompa Loompas!

Presentation on how not to drop one’s cup.

The cup droppers. Every time someone dropped a cup, a hundred Andrew Dice Clay’s pop out of nowhere and yell, “OHHHhhhhhhh”. I heard someone drop their cup on purpose and yelled “Ohhhh” on his own! Joslynn said a girl dropped her cup in the restroom! Ewww. Put the damn cup in your cleavage, you butterfingered dingus!

Overall: This was my first time at GABF and won’t be my last! I can’t wait for the next one! Denver (and Colorado) is a craft beer utopia! So many great food options, gastropubs, and beer loving locals. “Craft Beer has changed how beer is perceived and America’s role as a brewing nation.” – Julia Herz, Brewers Association.

I caught the Brothers Allstrom straightening their magazines.

 

Dave and Don of Haven Brewing, Natalie and Vinnie of Russian River and Patrick of the Bruery.

 

Ladyface Ale Companie’s GM Cyrena Nouzille! Such a pretty lady, too.

Get up off that arm butt! Social Spitfire Cambria Griffith of Golden Road has super human arm strength, btw.

I asked if they “tea bag” the bull testes in each keg, or how that worked.

Any now, sleeping old dudes at GABF:

*quote from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off; John Hughes (There’s the sportos, motorheads, geeks, sluts, bloods, wastoids, dweebes, and the dickheads) CHEERS. Thanks for reading. In case you missed it, here’s my pre-GABF post that is so raunchy my work’s net-nanny blocks it.

LA Beer Week Goes Out with LA BANG!

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Even Emma Watson gets the beer farts in her cute British tushy.

Hopping a train for LA Beer Week’s festival makes me feel a tad “Harry Potterish”. L.A.’s Union Station is set to be full of magic potions, beer goggles, and hopefully a hundred Emma Watson lookalikes simultaneously casting the “Dongus Penetratio” spell at my crotchal region. My train is pregnant with pretzel-necklace wearing beer types, pre-lubing their gastrointestinal tracts with Gatorade.

Squeeking into Union Station an hour early gives me the chance to romanticize about this building’s past. The pre-WW2 architecture seduces me into absorbing the ambience and to snap a few shots. A young lady in 4″ heels walks nearby on the travertine marble floors. As her walk echos, every man and woman near me watches the show. Being inside this space feels dramatic and perhaps a bit historically glamorous.copyright 2012 OCBeerBlog.com

Briefly continuing my self guided tour, a homeless man having a nap in the wooden throne-bench style chairs looks like a work of art. The only thing corrupting the space is the wafting aroma of Subway Sandwiches and Wetzles Pretzels bread ovens. I check my watch as hot sunlight pours through the windows and warms the station. Outside, festival goers ripen in the hot high noon sun, ready to be revived with revelry and perhaps a cold craft beer or two twenty.

The clock strikes twelve as festival goers head to the nearest jockey box. My main goal of the day is to sample as many of the LA Beer Week themed-beers as possible. I can’t say that I’ve ever had Prickly Pear in a beer, but I’m sure the odd fruit will lend some earthyness and a beautiful violet hue. With a Noble Ale Works Tall Dark & Handsome in hand, I head out for a little beer-fest cartography.

The Fest is laid out into two sections, blazing hot sun and a covered hall. Outside, most people cram into the shady area, only running out to get a beer like a Meerkat at the zoo running to fetch a peanut. Bravery Brewing, despite the name, is stationed in the cool comforts of the covered area; whereas most Orange County breweries were sentenced to the confines of the sun’s evil death rays. Anthony of Coronado Brewing Co. may break out the Geneva Convention next year if he doesn’t get an umbrella! Poor fellah!

Anthony Levas of Coronado Brewing Co. trying his best not to melt.

Among all the Prickly Pear beers offered, the festival’s flagship beer, UNITY, (Rye Berliner Weisse brewed with the cactus fruit) was one of the most interesting of the dozen or so offered. Not knowing anything about it before I took a drink, I had a full on shart face trying to figure it out. For a 3%ish beer, there’s a lot going on in terms of yeast/bready/fruityness. It’s tart, super pale and a light, yet bubbly effervescence that makes it super drinkable.

Local OC guys from Cismontane Brewing Co. brought up Nopal de Trigo (Hef brewed with hand-pressed prickly pear juice). I’m impressed how many breweries brought a theme beer! I was shocked the Bruery didn’t have something, it seems right up their alley. I was surprised there were no porters or stouts done with the pear. To test the theory, I got a 1″ pour of Deschuttes Black Butte XXIV and topped it off with Haven Brewing’s Hef with Prickly Pear. To my surprise, it tasted like a watermelon Now-N-Later!

The Weinberg Quartet. Bourbon Barrel Aged ‘Blacks Nocturne’ is Heaven in a glass.

Aside from all the Prickly Pear business, nobody held back with their standard lineup. I had beer after beer on my wish list, Untapping each on my quest for the Legendary badge. New Belgium/Alpine Beer Co’s Super IPA, Bootleggers Brewing Co. Knuckle Sandwich, Beachwood BBQ & Brewing Co’s System of a Stout with Portola Coffee, Cismontane’s Black’s Nocturne, four solid beers from Logsdon, Hangar 24’s Fresh Hop IPA, Stone Brewing Co’s Suitable for Cave Aging and many more were savored in the hot sun!

Bootleggers pouring Knuckle Sandwich, right in the kisser, you sorry son of a bitch.

Food Options are a little thin without a long wait in the hot sun. Sticking with a liquid lunch in this heat isn’t a great idea, so I insta-chug three Coconut Waters (free) and an Iced Coffee from Portola Coffee Lab’s table. Their coffee totally ruins all other coffee! I can see why many brewers prefer their beans. Revived, I stalk Hallie Beaune of the Beer Chicks to say hello. She’s the only person wise enough to bring an umbrella to this hootenanny. I also run into David Logsdon and rave in his ear for several minutes. His Saezon Bretta is hands down my favorite beer of this summer. His Wit? Yeah, he’s pretty witty.

Beachwood BBQ & Brewing’s System of a Stout is brewed with Portola Coffee Lab’s beans.

Late in the day I use my fest-cartography skills and touch upon some breweries I’ve never sampled. Ritual Brewing, Kinetic Brewing Co, Monkish Brewing Co, Smog City Brewing Co, Figueroa Brewing, and Surf Brewery all have some nice unique beers. Smog City’s Weird Beer and Quercus Circus with Citra Hops floored me…How do I get this again? I look forward to trying more from this crop of brewers!

Overall, everyone I spoke with said they were loving it! LA Beer Week is on the map and should be treated seriously. The festival to cap the week off is super classy! Having a beer festival in a historic train station is even classier.

As LA Beer Week claims OC as part of it, I’d like to see way more participation from restaurants and Gastropubs in my neck of the woods. Haven Gastropub and Beachwood BBQ were on board with special nights, whereas most breweries displayed their wizardry well out of Orange County. Why not have some LA Breweries come down to OC for some special events? If we’re all in the same family, we should act like it.

Yams? Yep. Prickly Pair? Nope. – with the Bruery (but still awesome)

So, I head back home…perhaps a bit ripe from the festivities. Lady next to me offers a squirt of her body butter and gladly accept.  Now feeling a bit “Buffalo Billish” ala Silence of the Lambs, I had a great time! See you next year, LA Beer Week!

Shout outs! Great to meet ‘Social Spitfire’ Cambria Griffith at Golden Road Brewing, Anthony Levas from Coronado Brewing Co, David Logsdon from Logsdon and Kevin Kansy from Artisan Ales, Jeff Clinard and Jeff Duggan from Portola Coffee Lab, Serena Montenegro, and the always lovely Randy Clemens. Stay classy, you sexy sons of bitches.

Imagine if the airport was this classy.

 

How to Throw a Beer Festival – OC Fest of Ales, Anaheim

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“Great Success!” Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait taps the 1st keg at Anaheim Brewery

Sometime last year, Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait asked, “How do we get Anaheim on the beer map?”, “THROW A BEER FEST, MR. MAYOR!” I said while spraying beer accidentally on his forehead. Little did I know, I would be on the planning committee for the event, going so far as to naming it, picking the glassware, signing up breweries and restaurants and picking the beers for the VIP food pairings.

I had grandiose visions of places like BRÜ, Stone Catering, The Side Door, Beachwood BBQ, Newport Beach BrewCo, The Playground, Haven Gastropub and Taco Asylum serving up bite size morsels with perfectly paired local craft beer. I imagined Dr. Bill Sysak sauntering from tent to tent proclaiming “PERFECTION” with each taste. I had a naughtier fantasy featuring Laurie Delk from 100 Beers 30 Days frolicking in a nearby fountain, pouring a Cantillon Gueuze down her chest moaning “y’all want a sip” in her delightful southern drawl. (Only true craft beer geeks fantasize about Laurie Delk, ya’ know.)

I thought simply emailing breweries would get answers like “Shit yeah! What time and what do we bring?”. Oh how wrong I was. “Not another goddamn festival!”, and “Not this year, dude” were typical replies. Some breweries were 100% behind it! Hangar 24 was like, “Hell yeah, even though that’s our annual Oktoberfest that day”. Bravery Brewing in Lancaster thought this would be the perfect fest to pop their festival cherry, driving 3 hours and bringing four great beers. Golden Road even helped out despite it being their 1st anniversary the same day!

Here’s some notes from our brainstorm session back in July, followed by notes from the event:

Step 1: Be Different. There’s tons of beer festivals and the focus should always be about the beer. How do you make it fun and different? Offering a 5K Beer Run is critical.

Here bright and early for the 5K Beer Run, joints crack as runners fix their leotards, neon wigs,  and Super Mario Bros costumes. My favorite team of the day is the Presidential podium being pushed by federal agents! Driving up to the parking garage, I was surprised to see actual runners doing sprints before the run. Beer Runs are SERIOUS BUSINESS, apparently. I didn’t run, but heard it had some issues that will be corrected next year. The beer-batter pancakes at the end were super fluffy and delicious, just like some of the runners. The beer song was awful, though.

Step 2: Have a real VIP experience. 

These are Very Important People next to the Oggi’s VIP tent.

I’ve been to numerous beer festivals where being VIP means getting in early and getting more tasters. The OC Fest of Ales VIP ticket included food pairings from local chef’s and restaurants! It had seating, an actual bathroom, entrance to the Muzeo‘s current show, a gift bag with upgraded glassware and other chochkies, and more taste tickets!

The VIP area smells like Bacon, and not because the cops are are here! Slaters 50/50 is cooking up 1/4 burger wedges oozing their 50% bacon, 50% beef grind paired with Lagunitas IPA. It’s an intense flavor combo! Their station is a virtual mini-meth lab!

 

New BBQ caterers Brew Hawg BBQ and Brewing Co, and renouned local chef Katie Averill-Martin of Eat Street Culinary win my heart with some perfectly paired dishes. Eat Street’s Asian Chicken Spring Roll paired with Julius Echter Hefe-Weissbier is my favorite of the day! It’s light, delicate and full of flavor, just like the beer paired with it.

 

Brewhawg is serving a mini-meal with their smoked beef rib, baked beans and tater salad. They’re also serving homebrewed Root Beer floats! So incredible! From Brew Hawg: “We blew through 40 racks of ribs in 2 hours flat! Each vendor brought 500 portions to serve and Brew Hawg was the 1st one to run out. We spent the rest of the time serving our homemade root beer floats and plopping ice cream into glasses of chocolate stout that people were bringing over from one of the other booths.”

Dan from Out of the Park Pizza really knocks it out of the park with bacon wrapped maple wings. The wings paired with Corsendonk Abbey Dubbel is a total home run!

Nine total pairings are available in the VIP section: Brewcakes, Tandoori Garden, Roy’s, Ralph Brennan’s Jazz Kitchen, and Oggi’s all have some solid morsels. I overheard several guests say the VIP area rivalls Taste of Anaheim on a small scale! Next year the focus will be on Locally brewed beer.

Bill from Hopparazi Brewing Co, Dave from Haven Brewing and Evan from Noble Ale Works chat about yeast cake.

Step 3. Have Good Beer! This should be Step 1, really.

Brewer participation is a solid mix of OC, LA and Inland Empire, dusted with a couple from SD. From OC: Anaheim Brewery, Noble Ale Works, The Bruery, Bootleggers Brewery, Old Orange Brewing and Oggi’s Pizza & Brewing Co. From IE, Hangar 24 Brewery, Craft Brewing, Packing House Brewery, Bravery Brewing and of course Inland Empire Brewing Co. From LA: Eagle Rock, Haven Brewing, and Golden Road. Karl Strauss and Stone Brewing Co were the only SD brewers on hand. Filling in the mix were beers from Firestone Walker, Lost Coast, Beer Valley and others from local distributors to bring the count up to 100 beers – EVEN. Well, there was one no-show so it was like 98. A few faux craft snuck in as well, something I hope to avoid next year.

My favorites of the day: Bravery Brewing’s Sweet Stout, Packinghouse IPA, Anaheim Brewery Oktoberfest, Noble Ale Works ESB and Haven Brewing’s UpRYEsing. Craft Brewing Co’s blend of Stout and Raspberry Wheat is one of the best things ever! Congrats to Hangar 24 for taking home the people’s choice award! Not seen by the crowd, it’s a super rad mini-conical fermenter trophy!

 Step 4. Entice the Food Trucks to cook with beer. To make it interesting, we came up with a Food Truck Challenge, offering a level of competition for the trucks to prepare items with beer and sell them to the crowd.

I fly over to Seabirds for my favorite beer battered Avocado tacos and an Oatmeal Stout cupcake. Jessica Rice from Beer and Baking shares her Viking Truck corndog with me. That truck always finds a way to pillage my pretty little mouth! It was nice to see them win the Food Truck Challenge as everything on the truck is beer infused, boiled or flambéed in some way in beer. The voting system for this event is flawed as people had to give up taster tickets to vote. Needless to say we will be address this next year. Chomp Chomp, Rolling Sushi Van, Garlicscapes, and the Lime Truck also have some mouthwatering beer infused gourmet food happening as well. It was hard to pick!

Proper corn dog technique: Never hold the stick!

Step 5. Have a Home Brew Contest. Goal? 50 entries. Achieved? 150.

I submitted my Organic IPA, OPA! and my Rye Saison, Yellow Submarine. I was having such a good time I missed the results being called out, but damn...the Saison placed! I also missed the Home Brewer Bottle Share event, dammit! I really wanted to meet the winner Jon Silvertooth who happened to win the OC Fair with the same Dopplebock! Good news for beer geeks, his beer will be brewed by Anaheim Brewery and will be available at Downtown Anaheim events! I’ll tweet/FB when I hear something.

Next year: Battle of the Beards! Brian of Bravery and Jonas of the Bruery show off their facial hair

Step 6: Try not to suck. 

For a first year festival, with 99% volunteers planning and working the thing, I am completely blown away by the event. I personally had a blast! I did hear from multiple random people how shocked they were at the value of the VIP. Next year we hope to expand it and streamline the event as a whole. Many of the volunteers knew about the beers being poured. I played dumb with several and they all nailed it! The Bruery’s volunteer told me everything about Loakal Red…I was shocked!

Gripes: There were some serious oversights in set up and break down which wasn’t seen by guests. An Emcee would have been great to announce the run and side events. My arm looked like Madonna in Lucky Star with six wristbands! Two tickets per taste was dumb. I also heard the 5K challenges were crap. They should be more “mud-runnish”. Water became scarse near the end/dump buckets were full.

The Goal: Put Anaheim on the Beer Map. Achieved? Over 1,000 runners clocked in and over 3,000 total people bought tickets. As I live down the street, this is the most people I’ve ever seen at a Downtown Anaheim event! I consider it a success, but there’s tons to work on to make it better for next year. Here’s the results of all the contests!

Huge Shout Outs! @epicbeergirl, @bottomofthemug and Helen Myers for help on my committee! Dan from Out of the Park Pizza for saving our asses with weird taps for Belgium and German kegs! Bradley and Daira Daniels for setting up the kegs! Neighbor friend Helen Myers for doing a stellar job getting volunteers! They were awesome! Peter, the man who made it happen! Downtown Anaheim Association divas Shelly and Devon Reeves! Jamie Wood from the Packinghouse! Shaheen for being awesome! Spence Coleman for helping the Homebrew contest! Oh, Tom Tait, Mr. Mayor, Thanks!

Other Pics: (panoramics ©ocbeerblog 2012 / Shot with Russian Horizon 202)

Bootleggers: Slow like real turtles!

“GRAINS”

View from the People’s Choice Hangar24 Truck

anaheim’s own: Noble Ale Works

Viking truck pillages another mouth.

Hoparazzi Brewing Co!

The check-in

Brian from Bravery serves it up!

Derek Bougie from Newport Beach Brewing Co.

Super Bootlegger Bros.

Keith and Kevin hold down the Anaheim Brewery tent.

Haven Brewing debuts in Orange for their 3rd Anniversary!

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courtesy Anne Watson Photography www.annewatsonphoto.comUpdate, as of 2014, Haven no longer brews.

It’s 5:00 P.M. on a balmy Monday night, nerves shot from an emotional day sending my kid to Kindergarten. At Haven Gastropub in Orange, I bet brewmaster Dave Larsen is having the same feelings. Debuting his beers for the first time in his native Orange, I’m sure It feels like an artist’s first show or the first time a stripper shows her junk on stage. Making the jump from a homebrewer/sou chef at Haven to brewmaster is astonishing. Tapping ten beers in five months is equally ambitious! Although the beer isn’t brewed in OC, this event is essentially the welcoming of yet another craft brewer to our growing list in Orange County. Are the beers good? We shall see. (Pretty photos courtesy of blog collaborator Anne Watson Photography www.annewatsonphoto.com)

courtesy Anne Watson Photography www.annewatsonphoto.comI pull in a bit early, drop anchor on a stool and snap a few shots. At the stroke of six, Haven’s front door looks like the tube of an arriving flight. A constant flow of people attack the tables and bar area like an army of well dressed ants. My goal for the evening? Sample every beer and have fun! Sampling every beer is not an easy task given brewmaster Dave Larsen’s average ABV with ten beers is 8%.

courtesy Anne Watson Photography www.annewatsonphoto.comAlong with ten Haven beers, the special 3rd Anniversary menu is an ode to Haven Gastropub and spinoffs.  Taco Asylum, Burger Haven and special gatropubish offerings are layed out in a proper celebratory fashion. The thing I’m most excited about are menu items in the $5-10 range for small plate foods. I would love to see more of these items in regular rotation! Thirstier than a beerblogger at a bar, I get hit with a paddle of Gross National Happyness (cream ale), Hafen Hef, upRYEsing (rye IPA) and Diana Brown with a side of Taco Asylum Wild Mushroom Taco. My flip flops rhythmically clap my heels to the beat of Fiona Apple’s ‘Fast As You Can’ playing obliviously over the heads of this full house.

courtesy Anne Watson Photography www.annewatsonphoto.com

Brewmaster Dave Larsen gingerly watches like a lifeguard at a pool. No splashing Dammit!

The last time I saw Haven this busy was a month after they opened! The tiny alcove window seats are sealed thick with bodies chomping at the bit for a beer. Jeremy the bartender scans the bar left and right like he’s watching a tennis match with two Russian gals playing. Dave Larsen stands nervously near the bar, scratching his red beard, like he’s about to be married. Lets get down to business!

Diving into the flight:

GNH Cream Ale is a light and herbal beer with low bitterness and a dry finish. Notes of sage, honey and spearmint ring the nose. I’d recommend this for someone that doesn’t like dark beer or the bitterness of an IPA. Fun fact: It’s brewed with some special heirloom red rice. Bitches love heirloom red rice.

courtesy Anne Watson Photography www.annewatsonphoto.comHafen Hef is just that, a traditional Bafarian Hefeweizen. It has some nice bubble gum flafor up front, yet mild banana and clofe. [Geek note – Drinking a hef in a 4oz taster on draft is not ideal. Most of my excitement drinking a trad Hef is how pretty it looks when poured in proper glassware. The bright golden-orange beer topped with a frothy meringue-like head is a necessity!] Bottom line: If you like Hef’s you’ll like Hafen’s version. It is heafenly. Skip the lemon, you heathen. (v’s replaced with f’s on purpose you feluptuous fagina fulture.)

* Fave of the evening! upRYEsing – I loves me some rye malt all up in my beers! Up front this is still a hoppy IPA with some juicy grapefruit and tropical notes chased with a slick pepper spice on the finish. It goes perfectly with my Wild Mushroom Taco! Each bite and sip found heat in the taco and complements the huge umami/parsley/garbonzo flavors going on. If Taco Asylum carries upRYEsing, I highly recommend this pairing. I can only imagine how the Ghost Chili Pork taco would fare with this beer. I’m salivating and clenching thinking about it.

Diana Brown – Sadly, my flight was mis-poured and I didn’t get a chance to sample this beer.  I got two Hef’s on my paddle. Dammit.

courtesy Anne Watson Photography www.annewatsonphoto.comOn to bigger and better things, I sample the oaked and non-oaked versions of Bremasters Breakfast Oatmeal Stout. Whoa there cowboy! This is a monster! Wait… what? This is damn near Old Rasputin Imperial Stout! An Oatmeal Stout shouldn’t be this big, bold, dry and boozy. When I think Oatmeal Stout, I think smooth, creamy roasty-roastyness!. I assume this is a mis-poured 100 Rubles, Haven’s Russian Imperial Stout. The oaked version, assuming it is also the 100 Rubles on Oak, really mellows out the mouthfeel, adding in some pleasant oak tannins and booze while boosting the dark fruit notes.

 

Sosigenes Double IPA is a huge hit with the crowd around me. The draft board is numbered and people order fast-food style. I overhear, “I’d like a number 6” many times. Haven’s bartenders, despite standing next to the draft board force people to say the name, causing some pretty hilarious mispronunciations.  Winner of the night: “I’D LIKE A SNAUSAGES PLEASE!” Haha! I personally thought it was soh-sih-JUH-knees, but I heard Wil Dee (Haven’s Bev Mgr) say it as soh-sih-jen-nis. Potato, Potato. It’s a damn tasty DIPA with tons of hops sitting on an easy drinking malt backbone. Paired with the Taco Asylum Short Rib Taco doesn’t do the taco any favors. The ‘salsa verdi’ in the taco is reminiscent of Italian salad dressing, perhaps a mis-douse? it was weird, although I still inhaled it.

damn auto correct

Changing my luck, I grab a sure-fire pint of Hello World Pale Ale to cap off the evening. I lift anchor on my bar stool and chat with Dave for a bit. “I need a beer” he says wiping sweat off his brow. “This tastes exactly like my Organic Pale Ale homebrew, which I love” I say. We both stare awkwardly at Greer Wylder nearby. “Welp, have a good night!”. “You too”. I’m like the Ryan Seacrest of beer blog interviewers. I was going to ask about growler fills, kegs, bottles, what’s coming up through the end of the year, why rice in a cream ale, what other fun adjuncts are you brewing with, is the moon made of swiss cheese, who trims your beard, etc. I drew a blank. Sorry readers!

I’m mildly annoyed Kate Upton has a tiger.

Overall:

Despite the mis-steps, Haven is still Haven. She’s like a beautiful girl that slightly annoys you from time to time, but you keep coming back because she’s super hot, ready for action and delicious. I’d like to see some more session beers to round out the beer repertoire; a 3-4% English Bitter, Porter or Mild might be pub friendly. I’m still impressed with this initial public offering after five short months. If they keep it up, they will surely increase my gross national happiness!

 

Hours of operation are 11 a.m. – 2 a.m. daily. Walk-ins welcome. For more information, including address and phone number, visit http://www.havengastropub.com (on Facebook,http://www.facebook.com/HavenGastropub).

Haven Gastropub on Urbanspoon

Stone Brewing Co. 16th Anniversary IPA

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A blog post about a beer you will most likely purchase and consume is pointless. Instead of boring you with yet another beer review, I think an anniversary is great time to reflect on a brewery, its accomplishments and how they have grown.

WHOA, Hold on a second there mister…this beer has lemon verbena in it? I never thought I would see ingredients commonly found in my wife’s Bath & Body Works lotion in a beer. After a recent ball surgery, I used that lotion to assist with determining my ball swimmer count.  The “Complete Aromatherapy Handbook,” likens the scent of Lemon Verbena to “morning, when everything seems fresh, new and promising.” Exactly what I want my genitals to smell like!

The sun sets as I crack my Stone 16th Anniversary IPA for a tasting. Another balmy 95 degree day comes to a close…not a minute too soon. The fountain outside gurgles and drips. The fire pit crackles and roars as I stare in a daze. While pouring this beer I feel the same nervous excitement when I cracked my first Arrogant Bastard Ale. Thoughts of “How buzzed will I be after drinking this?” and “what if I’m not worthy?” dance around my head. 10% beers drunk alone sometimes push my boundaries.

On the pour, a deep gold molten core is topped with a swiss-cheese cratered moon crust of head. I swirl it and sniff. My eyes pop…Stone has done it again! This time letting some herbs ride shotgun over my palate’s proverbial State Line. Mud flaps are flappin’, truckloads of malt and hops CB each other in a convoy down to my belly. 10-4 good buddy! Notes of clover honey, lemon verbena and salvia on the nose. My first sip is herbal sweet and spicy clover honey, citrus zest, followed by a low scoville hop heat. Salt and pepper even make a cameo appearance; perhaps Rye malt? Interesting. Balanced. Delicious.

Steve Wagner, parties like its 1999 IBU’s

I get the feeling the addition of Stone Farms will continue to play a part in the “Farm to Kettle” movement as seen with Saison du BUFF and GK and LU’s Mixtape beer seen around town. Bottom line, this is still a Stone beer with much of the same mouthfeel and bitterness characteristics fans should expect. At 10%, there’s some heat; somewhere around what the Stone Ruination 10 Year Anniversary beer has. As the temp rises, this beer does not fare well. Split a bottle with friends or keep in the fridge between pours.

Overall, I set out to do a reflection post on Stone Brewing Company but was derailed by a nice imperial herb IPA. Reflections are only good when someone’s dead right? Pick up a bottle, and if you don’t already have tickets to the huge Anniversary Bash on August 18th, I suggest you do so quickly, like NOW.

San Diego Brewery Tour!

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credit Dor & Bob on flikr

Snowblinding Noble Ale Works                    credit http://www.dorandbob.com/

I’m a sucker for San Diego brewery tours. When I heard there was a tour departing from Noble Ale Works in Anaheim, I instantly registered and X’d off my calendar  until the big day came. It’s been at least a year since I’ve been down there which is WAY too long. That’s like 30 fortnight in brewery terms.

The day is finally here, and frankly, I’m frilled! Visiting Noble Ale Works at 1 in the Afternoon is something I’m not a stranger of.  “Any cask left?” I say, referring to the cask of Citra hopped Nobility DIPA from the night before. As I sit and sip, the bar seat hisses like a pissed-off anaconda. The remnant of this cask is slightly carbed, grassy, pissy, and monster mango delicious! As a few couples funnel in and order beers, I get the feeling I’m the only loner of the group. Great!

The tour coach, rented by LA Craft Beer Tours is bright yellow and looks like a big Nuprin. It’s clean inside, has AC and there’s more than enough room for everyone. Pat and Dale run the tour and pack enough beer fuel for the long trip down to San Marcos and abroad. For starters, they brought a keg of Old Orange Brewing Co. Rookie Red which was sucked down by the time we hit San Clemente! The cooler is packed solid with random singles from Lagunitas, Oskar Blues, Rogue and a few Arrowhead waters for the trip back. Protip: If you don’t care for red solo cups, bring your own glass!

First stop is Lost Abbey/Port Brewing in San Marcos. Kevin at Lost Abbey is quick to give us five taster wrist bands and we’re off! I make a quick run of some Lost Abbey Seasonals, starting with 10 Commandments. Thou shalt not put blacked raisins in a beer? Do not covet thy neighbors Rosemary? Lost Abbey does not obey. This is insanely tasty and complex. “Can I order two at a time?”, “Hell yeah!”, “Let me do a side by side of the Saisons.” Saison Blanc and Red Barn. I prefer Red Barn based on the body; Saison Blanc is a tad chewy for my taste; especially on a hot day. I’m almost tempted to buy a few bottles but lets face it: buying a bottle or two at the first stop of a brewery tour wouldn’t last five minutes on the bus.

“It’s all ball bearings these days.” – Fletch

My last two tastes I hit some Port Brewing Mongo DIPA and Summer Pale Ale (SPA) while hitting the brewery tour. After the Belgiany goodness, a nice hopload goes perfect with my beet-pizza I scored out front. SPA wins my visit to Lost Abbey/Port Brewing with a decent body, crisp bready malt and a shit-ton of hops. This beer would work well with any Summertime BBQ. I highly recommend doing the tour as it is full of great brewing info for all levels of beer knowledge. I’m glad we found Lost Abbey.

Second Stop: Ballast Point Brewing & Spirits. Despite having just opened a sizable patio, BP is still quite cozy. As the sun sets, I hit the beers I haven’t tried yet; first up is Indra Kunindra Curry Stout. Yo momma quero, mama! This beer is a party my mouth! Big notes of coconut, curried graham cracker and some other tasty eastern spices. Indra would go great with Yellow Thai Curry, some Kimchee or a coconut macaroon.

It’s no secret among friends that I really like Ballast Point’s Wahoo Wheat. When I saw a Thai Chili Ginger Lime Wahoo Wheat, I was like, “Wha-hhhhweeet” and order it. I love that Ballast Point was born from a Homebrew Mart and still keeps that spirit alive by tweaking their proven base beers. It’s also no secret among friends that Sculpin IPA is not only my favorite IPA, but one of my top ten favorite beers of all time. When I saw Dorado DIPA, my boxer-bound boner pushed me a few inches from the counter, trustfalling backwards into a complete stranger. Honestly my palate is shot at this point, but this beer is one tasty guy. Tons of bright tropical fruits, earthy hops, backed up with caramel malts. I’d like to try this beer on a fresh palate, without a boner, even though palates are made out of wood.

I managed to get a shot of an actual Green Flash. What are the odds?

Last Stop: Green Flash. We’re here with an hour to spare at 8PM. The bus is rowdy, loud and ready to party. $1 tasters? $2 half pints? Craft beer on a college student budget here! The tasting area has an ample tasting “pen” inside the size of a Rodeo and a picnic area on the side of the building. I work my way through their San Diego series consisting of East Village Pilsner, Park West Porter, and 30th Street Pale Ale. All are sessionable at ABV’s less than 6%. 30th Street Pale Ale is remarkably hopped and will be on my radar when down in SD. For my nightcap, I grab Le Freak, then a Tripel before pounding some serious water. Did I mention $2 half pints?

Last Last Stop? Home. I fall asleep before the bus is out of the parking lot and wake up near home. I love when that happens! Magically, nobody barfed that I was aware of, although the nice smell from when we first got on the bus has turned into 31 flavors of ass.

A color for each brewery.

The tour was a complete success! Pat and Dale of LA Craft Beer Tours know how to run a tour and highly suggest you check them out. Check their website calendar for future tours! I look forward to hitting an LA tour soon.

Pat and Dale  of Craft Brewery Tours.

Beer Bloggers Conference | Indianapolis 500 (Beers)

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My red-roped Beer Bloggers Conference nametag sits backwards and twisted around my neck as I rush to visit the loo for the first of many trips. I practice saying hello to Julia Herz of the Brewers Association in the bathroom mirror. “Hi Julia, I’m with OCBeerBlog….no no no…Hi Miss Herz, I write about beer and sometimes cheese….AHHHH!! [punches head several times] She’s going to think you’re an idiot!” yelling at myself. Back at the table, crack the laptop and applaud as the conference commences. The sound of keyboard keys seem to follow every spoken word like high school typing class. I hammer my keyboard and type “the quick brown fox jumps over the flying dog raging bitch” a few times as to not look like a slacker.

Not Julia Herz in the 80’s.

Julia Herz is a petite and spunky gal looking mildly like actor/comedienne Tracey Ullman in her prime. As the Brewer’s Association Craft Beer Director, she instantly captivates the room with stats and fun buzzwords like “SOS=Share of Stomach”. In the quick fifteen minutes she is given to open the conference, I get the warm fuzzy feeling that I’m doing something great. I could listen to her talk all day! “Wine? $40B a year in America. Spirits? $65B. Beer? $95.5B, with $8.7B in craft beer & growing” – Julia Herz

Julia’s intro is topped by none other than Garrett Oliver, writer and brewmaster at Brooklyn Brewery. I agree with many of Garrett’s points which are employed here at this blog. “Gravity and IBU’s don’t tell stories.” and, “The more I understand about beer the more beautiful and the more mysterious it actually becomes”. Garret is such a crooner of the craft beer world! Again, his words make me feel like I’m part of a special universe, on a winning team, and we’re all going to make it. We toast, getting the perfect clank to ring in the conference.

Next up? Beer Speed Dating (aka Live Blogging). Ten breweries of varying beauty and sophistication get a few minutes of our time. Bloggers are encouraged to tweet, log the beer in untappd, and blog about the beers. Only two of the ten are available in SoCal. Here were my notes:

Karl Strauss Wreck Alley Imperial Stout, Nice summery Imperial Stout, light in body, drinks like a carbonated Iced Coffee. Cacao nibs and locally grown Ethiopian coffee beans give a chocolate covered fruit note that would pair easily with any dessert without overpowering. Nice date night beverage for an evening cruise around the harbor.

New Belgium brought cans of Shift. “I just mowed two acres of grass on a riding lawnmower and I’m enjoying a @newbelgium #shift”. There ya go. Decent beer. Shotgunable. Great lawnmower beer.

3 Floyds brought Arctic Panzer Wolf. “Hi, I’m here to wreck your palates!” Fun fact, this is the first 3Floyds beer I’ve ever had. I’m so impressed that I rip the label off our bottle and adhere it to my laptop. It’s a massive IPA, after all. Similar to Green Flash Palate Wrecker.

After an hour of Live Beer Blogging on an empty stomach, I feel a bit of the roasty roastyness. The conference takes to the streets and walks Downtown Indy to Tomlinson Tap Room for some MORE GODDAMN BEER. That’s right chuckleheads! Downtown Indy is probably the cleanest, well maintained, historically preserved, drowned in public art, and fun-packed downtowns I’ve been to. It’s quite lovely!

Arriving at Tomlinson Tap Room, I’m surprised it’s not a room. The name is kind of a misnomer as it sits on a mezzanine inside a large brick encrusted indoor city market. What’s special about it? They only pour craft beer brewed on Indiana soil, plus, the marketplace is a one-stop-shop to grab local food at the same time. TomTap, as it’s called, isn’t fully prepared for the onslaught of 150 extremely buzzed and hungry beer blogger types. The 4×6’ food kiosk is reminiscent of a group of hyenas trying to steal a lion’s kill. I manage to suck down some kielbasa and artichoke salad before heading out on the town, hooting and hollering like a hyena, of course.

The Bru Crew

The lovely gals at Girls Pint Out arranged a pub crawl map of great local craft beer joints in downtown Indy. Like a dick, I do none of this and hit Bru Burger Bar with a fun group that included the mutton-chopped Randy Clemens of Stone Brewing Co., fuzzy-headed Win Basset of All About Beer Magazine, smiley AJ from Wort & Yeast and the sultry voiced Lindsay from adventuresinbeerland. The Stone Tap takeover at Bru Burger is better than any I’ve seen. I sip a flight of Double Bastard Ale, years ’07, ’09, and ’11, Stone Mixtape, as well as Stone Brewing’s 10th Anniversary Ruination; a beer that is super easy drinking for 10+%. All paired well with spicy Ceviche and mini-Bru Burger!

Back at the hotel, the “Bru Crew” (minus Win B.) and 3/4 members of #teamfuckyeah invade my room with some more beers and fun stories. I’m going to need a stunt liver. Day one is in the books! Thanks for bearing with the huge post.

Up next: Day 2 BBC | I got bored of typing and never recapped it. In short, it included some conference panels, one of the biggest beer festivals I’ve ever been to, and a tour of one of the largest beer distribution centers in america. It had robots. 

Beef Bus to Indy Town

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Lindsay Lohan with a hangover

Waking up with one sock on is always an adventure in confusion. Downtown Chicago Howard Johnson has treated me like a king because A) I wasn’t murdered in my sleep and B) I could sit on this 1970’s beige toilet with my laptop plugged in. I’m hungover, kids. BAD. This must be what Lindsay Lohan feels like all the time. Dragging my zombie ass down to the bus appears I’m not the only one that’s hurting. Ironically the bus is provided by Goose Island, partial creator of said hangover. Thanks again, Goose Island! I pass out instantly, missing hours of corn and soy, waking only for some Pepto. This must be what rock stars feel like.

Visit @lgraceburton by clicking here!

Arriving at our mid-stop lunch destination in quaint LaFayette Indiana, bones crack as I stretch like a stripper past her prime. Main street LaFayette has a soda fountain, knick-knacks, hipster bike shop, theatre and a local Pride community center. Being a proud supporter of all things gay (I am not, however) this is great! Researching their website, it’s heartwarming to see so much local support from the community in mid-size town Indiana.  Pulling through town, I had a whole “Twilight Zone” vibe; seeing this turned it all around.

A different kind of LBC

LaFayette Brewing Co. (LBC) resides in a gorgeous turn of the (20th) century building like something out of a movie. Recently renovated back to its historical nature thanks to a grant from the city, redwood stairs and the upper wooden floor creak with character. Ceiling fans and a fresh beer are sure to exorcize the thick humid air crabbiness from your soul. Aside from the bar upstairs, billiards, darts, foosball and a stage round out the entertainment options. Having a chance to sample all of their beers, I was impressed with their Tippecanoe Common Ale, the first hop-forward Steam beer I’ve tried. This beer inspired me to formulate a India Pale Common recipe I hope to brew soon. The food and beer at LBC are satisfying, however nothing in the world sounds better than an iced coffee!

Upstairs at LaFayette Brewing Company. Picture the people dancing, okay

What day is it? Oh yeah, still Friday the 13th. Finally arriving in Indianapolis the bus is buzzing with excitement. My ears pop in the elevator as I hit my floor, a nice corner room with a foyer and a perfect view of Lucas Oil Stadium in downtown Indy. Rocking a serious case of road boner, I hit the shower to squeeze one off and head down to registration.

The Bruery’s Black Tuesday and Cismontane’s The Citizen aged in Chardonnay Barrels overlook Lucas Oil Stadium.

3PM: Registration and “Tradeshow” notes:

  • Upland Brewing Their wheat beer tasted like a brett fermentation, I freaked the brewer out who cracked a bottle to be sure there wasn’t a wild yeast contamination. Nope, just me. I still say it tasted like a bretty beer. Their lambic was also stellar.
  • Samuel Adams: Got to taste my first Pumpkin beer of the year thanks to Samuel Adams. It’s a nicely balanced Imperial offering that was not too spicy and refreshing. Also tried a BOSTON ALE. Totally different from the famous Boston Lager. I didn’t jot anything down but recall it was quaffable. From their Barrel Room Collection: Tried 13th Hour. The rep told me the beer was aged in Hungarian wood. Lots of big flavors in this guy, nice to see the big guy geek out.
Next Post: Like a Peyton Manning Concussion | Friday in Indianapolis

Friday, July 13, 2012
4:30 PM            Introduction by Julia Herz of the Brewers Association
5:00 PM            Keynote Speech – Garrett Oliver of Brooklyn Brewery
5:45 PM            Live Beer Blogging
7:00 PM            Walk to dinner at the Tomlinson Tap Room
9:00 PM            Indy Pub Crawl (click here for the map, compiled by Girls Pint Out)

Next Post – http://ocbeerblog.com/2012/07/26/beer-bloggers-conference-indianapolis-500-beers/

Beercation Chicago Part 2 | Party Bus Edition

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Oh dear.

Leaving Goose Island Clybourn, a party bus is waiting for the now loud and raucous beer bloggers. Chitown Party Bus, basically a converted school bus is complete with two stripper poles, ice chest, barf bucket and disco lights. I sit down near the front and wave my two index fingers around in circles near my nipples and howl. “Things are gonna get weird tonight!” someone yells as @brewdad works the stripper pole like a seasoned pro, gyrating his all-encompassing rump to the beat. The bus roars wildly. (read part 1 of 2 of the Chicago trip here)

Piece Brewery & Pizzeria

First stop of the night is Piece Brewery & Pizzeria, a pizza brewpub with a good selection of award winning beers. The interior is a vast open styled warehouse building with exposed beams similar to the inside of a big boat being built. The exterior windows are wide open, allowing the smell of fresh Chicago pizza and roasted garlic to waft through the air, slightly improving the city’s funk like a cheap perfume. Craving a load of hops in my supple, young mouth after Goose Island’s myriad of Brett/Lacto/Pedio/Oak beers I opt for Wingnut, their Double IPA.

Wingnut is a simple hop delivery system in liquid form; somewhat murky golden hay colored, not complex, kind of lip-smacking sweet. Other bloggers threw darts at the draft board and lucked out. Instead of samples, we all opted to steal  tastes from each other, which is fine, because we’re all clean and free of STD’s (I hope). I stop and play their Soprano’s Pinball machine for a bit, the only real Chicagoland gangster moment of the trip thus far. As our stop is only 45 minutes, it’s time to say “Piece out, bitches!”

Revolution Brewing

credit: heinemanbarcoAfter Peace what comes next? Revolution. Wait…what? Revolution Brewing is our next stop. I hate when I get off on the wrong foot with a bartender, which is what happened at Revolution. I order a Three Floyd’s beer, only to cancel it (pre-cap) because the house Rye Stout, Repo Man struck my fancy. She complied, only to pour me an Anti-Hero IPA, which I whiffed and sent back. I really wanted a Repo Man, dammit. I tip her an extra buck for my silly California-boy fiasco.

Remove all jewelry first

Happy as a clam with my intended beer in hand, I sip and love. There is nothing better in life than a full bodied stout that is easy to drink! I’m alarmed that the Revbrew’s tap handles look like a super kinky sex toy. NOT MY SEX TOY OKAY WISE ASS! I bet you’re thinking “MORE LIKE WIDE ASS LOL”. Whatever. I was charmed to meet and talk with local Chicago beer blogger Kristen Stroud of beerrunninghappiness.blogspot.com, so much so I was bummed she wasn’t on the bus the next day. She instantly reminded me of a good friend, Shev, who loves beer, running, and other shenanigans.  From Revbrew’s website: “Just a few years ago, we turned a dark, dusty warehouse into a welcoming destination for great craft beer. Barrel wood walls and benches made from 100-year old beams salvaged during construction make our space warm and cozy as do our two hardwood bars.” Revolution Brewing should not be missed. It has wood, beer, and good food.

Haymarket Pub & Brewery

Photo by Michael Jarecki

Pete’s wicked ale? Pete Crowley of Haymarket

Last stop: Haymarket Pub & Brewery. In my opinion these are the brightest, cleanest, balanced hop friendly beers I’ve had in a while. Rivaling many of SoCal’s West Coast IPA style, Haymarket stands tall with the big boys. Their brewer, Pete Crowley stuck around to address the crowd while standing on a bar seat. Buzzing nicely at this point but not stumbling or slurring, I order a pint of Angry Birds Belgian IPA and am not disappointed.

As a homebrewer, this Belgian IPA is my default IPA style. I like some rye spice and fruity esthers to balance out the hops and base malt. This beer floored me; bubblegum and lemon zest on the nose, followed some phenolic clove. I could drink this all day. Can you shoot me one across the country with a slingshot? I’d give you 1000 points and hum the Angry Birds song! I also sample the DIPA, Simcoe IPA, and Bourbon Barrel Aged Stout. Super Win, very win, and win. Sorry for getting the Angry Birds song stuck in your head. Next time I’m in Chicago, Haymarket will be my first stop.

I feel wobbly in the knees at last call. The disco lights on the bus taunt me like a cat with a laser beam. My room back at the Howard Johnson looks so much nicer from my earlier arrival. I never thought beer goggles would improve a hotel star rating! I lift the mattress, no dead hookers. G’nite Chicago.

Next post: Beef Bus to Indy Town

Beercation Two Parter! Chicago | Goose Island Clybourne

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Howard fucking Johnson, here I come!

Chicago is curiously not windy at this moment in time. Curious, because my flight was a fucking rock polisher. I’m in rush hour traffic, seatbeltless, in a shuttle van that smells vaguely like a freshly returned Wookie costume. As we bounce around side streets like a bowling ball at a four year old birthday party, the driver, a middle eastern Kenny Powers, yells questions at us, “where you stay!” without a question mark. “Howard Johnson!” I say talking out of the side of my mouth so others won’t hear.  The lady next to me raises an eyebrow and checks her google navigation; 45 minutes away from downtown. Fuck. I’m going to miss the group meetup with the Beer Bloggers Conference. “Hey driver, what all the odds I’ll make it there by five?” He shakes his greasy mullet and sighs.

Fact: Kenny Powers is great fucking driver! Shockingly, we screech in front of the circa 1959 HoJo with ten minutes to spare. I check in, freshen up the pits, chonies, and batteries and head down to meet the absolute cream of beer bloggers. As is always my policy, befriend the blonde girls first. There’s a method to this theory, which boils down to them having more fun. I like to have fun too.

Wonder Woman!

The first blonde gal I spot is Amber Jansen, a bright-eyed and bushy-tailed beer blogger out of Massachusetts. Dipped in fresh pink Chuck Tailors and matching sunglasses,  shorts and a noticeable lack of a wicked accent, she’s been to the beer blogger conference before and is super friendly. Still woozy from the flight and no food for eight hours, we chat about a nearby ‘Foot Massage’ sign. “Are they really foot massage parlors? Is “foot” slang for “penis” in Asia?” I ask. Perhaps an investigation for a different blog.  “I’m part of 2beerguys.com, but obviously I’m not a guy, my husband is”. Relieved, I chug some water, then belch apologetically.

I must break you, American Beer Blogger.

We set out for Goose Island’s Brewpub in Clybourn via Subway, a method of transportation that has eluded me until today. I thought I was being rude by pushing myself in the crowded door, only to be ass-pumped by three well-built Russian guys before the doors finally shut. I reach back to migrate my wallet to the front pocket and man-graze the teen version of Ivan Drago’s junk. The only Russian I know is “dasvidonya” (until next time), which would have been awkward, so I simply say “excusé moi” in my best French accent. I must be glazed. Food and beer has eluded me. On the walk, I befriend the other blonde girl of the group, Elle from FAME, a PR firm that handles the Leinenkugel Brewery account. Based out of Minneapolis, I ask “ever run into Prince?”, “what do you think of the Zack Parise trade?”, also “how has Leiny been affected by the big guys purchasing them?” and other gems of a tired mind. Such a nice gal, I’m really looking forward to the Leinenkugel lunch just based on chatting with her. Plus, she is wearing white pants.

Beer Pairing Dinner | Goose Island Clybourn

Goose Island’s Brewpub in Clybourn is enchanting for any beer fan. A large wood crafted island bar resembling the one on the TV show Cheers (but nicer) is surrounded with tables, booths and side bars. The 10 barrel brewhouse is camped off to the side, down a small set of brick steps and plexied safely from the pub area. There’s also an overflow area, a banquet area and a place to purchase collectibles. Brewery tours are given by a well informed and passionate bunch and are highly recommended.

Here as part of the Pre-BeerBloggers Conference 2012, we are being treated to a four course beer pairing which is totally unexpected. Brett Porter (best master brewer name ever) welcomes us as we raise a pint of slightly warm and headless Sofie, their Farmhouse Saison. Being my first beer of the day after travelling 2,000 miles, anything is welcome.

The first pairing:  Trout and Tomatoes paired with Lolita was neither complimenting or contrasting. I tried different combinations of trout/tomato/balsamic with this American Wild Ale and simply didn’t get a relation. The complexity of the beer shines a light on the balsamic reduction with the acidity, yet over powers the rest of the dish. Lolita is a pretty beer, pinkish blushing rose, perhaps blushing for not working well with the pairing. I would be curious to try this delicate dish with Pepe Nero, offering some nutty/roasty notes without overpowering.

Second pairing: Pork Belly and Pasta with Matilda. Again, a beer that doesn’t play with the dish. Both on their own are spectacular, however Matilda’s Belgian spiciness argues with the Jus (gravy).  I was able to find it compliments the Camembert foam as cheese and Belgian style beer often do. Mixing the foam and gravy to get a relation with the beer only caused the Jus to overpower the foam. I would like to try this pairing with Goose Island’s Nut Brown Ale, which may play off of the gravy and have solid enough body and bitterness to cleanse the palate from this rich dish.

Third pairing: Leg of Lamb with Juliet. This pairing again, is not heightened by consuming together. The Lamb and Juliet are easily my favorite of the night yet she fails to make me a star-crossed lover when paired. Where for art thou food pairing skills, Goose Island? I savor Juliet, sip by sip. Inhale and exhale. The tart blackberry essence followed by smooth oak seduces me as I roll my eyes until she’s gone. Luckily I got her digits! As for the pairing, Lamb usually goes great with a nice Porter, but in this case I would have liked to contrast the dish with Goose Island’s Summertime Kolsch or IPA.

Dessert: Chocolate and Cherries – Flourless chocolate cake, seedling Cherries, and Black Dog Malted Gellato paired with Madame Rose. This worked stunningly well, as the cherry in the beer really brought the chocolate and cherry in the dessert to a whole new level. Alone, they were half-chub; together, full salute chub with finish. A shower might be necessary.

Overall I’m humbled and grateful for the opportunity to try the pairing. I’ve heard so much about Goose Island from the west coast and admire their line up of award winning beers. I’m a bit confused as they said multiple times that the food is developed around the beers. I simply didn’t get it. Perhaps they are eager to show off their vintage style Sister beers to a well informed bunch. Whatever the reason, I’d be more than willing to go back the next time I’m in town and try some standard menu items with them. Sofie with a cheese and charcuterie plate? Lolita with the Black Earth Short Rib Sandwich? Matilda with the Oyster Po’ Boy? Juliet with the Duck Reuben? My mouth is watering thinking about it, and I’m sure yours is too! I can’t wait to go back!

Many thanks to Goose Island and Zephyr Adventures for organizing this pre-conference excursion! Not so fine print: Goose Island was kind enough to cover the dinner for fifty or so bloggers and give us direct access to the brewer for questions and photos. They provided swag bags that included beer samples, mugs, a hat and a bottle opener. Bloggers paid a nominal fee for the side excursion and Goose Island is a sponsor of the conference. Contrary to popular belief, the brewpub isn’t owned by the big guys. The brewpub operates independently of the big guys. Cheers!

Coming soon: Part 2, the Beer Blogger Chitown Party Bus hits Piece Brews, Revolution and Haymarket.