Long Beach Taste of Brews

What’s better than a brewfest (other than a great tap room)?  How about a brewfest, held on a beautiful, sunny southern California afternoon, within walking distance of your house!  That was the treat that I was in for this past Saturday as the Long Beach Taste of Brews was held at Lighthouse Park on the beautiful Long Beach waterfront.  Although there were a few logistical glitches along the way – see a last minute email to ticket holders announcing that the event was not an “all you can taste event” but rather “a taste-for-ticket” event – once the festivities kicked-off and the beer began flowing, the Long Beach Taste of Brews turned out to be a great event.

With the plethora of craft breweries that call southern California home, as residents and beer lovers, it is never too difficult to find a great hand-crafted beer.   However, it is more difficult to find beers from some of the smaller, up and coming breweries located across LA and Orange Counties.  The Long Beach Taste of Brews offered a venue for a number of these up and coming breweries to showcase their beers to the ever-expanding legion of craft-beer lover’s at an equal distance between LA and Anaheim.

The Taste featured quite a few of breweries,  such as Golden Road, El Sugundo, Left Coast, Black Market and Strand  that I have been looking forward to try, as well as favorites such as Old Orange, Karl Strauss and Hanger 24.  With the exception of a few out of place “micros” such as Shock Top, Blue Moon and Sam Adams, the selection at the Long Beach Taste of Brews was great.  Stone certainly did not bring their heavy hitters and even Karl Strauss and Lagunitas didn’t left their A-games at home, overall the selection was great, the sun was shining, and in the end the ticket for a taste rule was ignored.

I was able to try every beer on my pre-festival agenda, and even found a few unexpected favorites, below is a list of some of the highlights from day at the Long Beach Taste of Brew:

Golden Road Point the Way IPA:

A highly sessionable, (5.2% abv) crisp and smooth IPA that pours golden and features an assertive, citrus hop profile.  I was blown away by the amount of hops and pop that this beer delivers at such a low abv, making this perhaps the best beer for a bbq or post-surf or bike ride drink.

Old Orange Brewing Cannonball IPA:

A slightly sweet, orange hewed IPA that is loaded with notes of citrus and grapefruit and finishes with a strong hop kick.  A very smooth and drinkable beer, with great balance at 10% abv.

Left Coast Special K Pilsner.

A crisp, clean and refreshing pilsner, with a nice hop profile makes this beer delicious and appropriate for any occasion.  Special K is what a pilsner should be – imagine one of those “triple-hopped brewed” pilsner s– with an undeniable handcrafted taste. 

El Sugendo Hyperion’s Double Stout.

A dark, smooth and slightly sweet stout with hints of dark chocolate that is balanced by a slightly bitter, roasted finish.   Maybe not the best beer on a hot summer afternoon, but definitely a great one to enjoy with football season just around the corner.

Old Orange Brewing Company

What can I say about Old Orange Brewing Company – the beer is really good, the tap room is modern without being annoying and the people are friendly, knowledgeable and excited to be part of the OC craft beer scene.

First things first, the beer – Old Orange may be just over a year old – but they have mastered a variety of great tasting beers from heavy hitting, high abv sippers to smooth session beers.  The Old Dummy American Strong Ale was quite simply the best, balanced and complete strong ale I have tasted in California.  The straw hewed beer is a perfect balance of hops and sweet malt, with a crisp, dry finish.  Thumbmaster DIPA, a well balanced brew that is a bit sweet and not overpowering is another standout in the Old Orange lineup.  Cannonball IPA is a good beer, but could use some additional hop punch for my taste.   The Streetfair Summer Ale and Backseat Blonde are excellent session beers, perfect for any summertime activity.  The lower ABV of these beers make them ideal session brews.

Like many breweries in Orange County, Old Orange is located in a small, tucked away industrial park.  The outdoor space is non-existent, but the interior of the tap room certainly makes up for the lack of outdoor space.  I am not typically a fan of modern design – especially in a brewery – but Old Orange makes it work.  The bar, which transported from a sushi joint in Hollywood, glows a neon orange and provides seating for ten or so.  In addition to bar seating, there are a variety of tables to choose from – from high tops to picnic tables.  Tasters are offered for $1, but they are two-ounce tasters, so it really isn’t a bad deal.  Ordering four or five tasters is similar in price and quantity to ordering a sampler other places.  The staff was very friendly and provided great recommendations on beers and information about each.  We were fortunate enough to meet Old Orange’s brewmaster, who stopped by our table to talk about the brewery’s history and their beers – he even let us taste a new IPA straight from the fermenter.   The tap room is family and dog friendly, and provides snacks for a donation that goes to charity.  Old Orange may be the new kid on the block, but the quality of the beer and the cool and comfortable tap room will keep them around for years to come.

Score 3 pints

Noble Ale Works

I really wanted to start this post with something like “Noble Ale Works, beer fit for a king.”  Two things really prevented me from opening this way: first, that is more than a little cliché and might destroy any credibility that this blog may have, and second it just isn’t accurate, the beer is simply not fit for a king.

 Noble Ale Works offers beers of various styles and strengths, dark to light, malty to hoppy.  After wading through a throng of pre-gamming Angels fans on a recent Saturday, I made my way to the bar to give a few beers a try.  At bat, Dark Sybian IPA, a dark IPA that starts out with a nice dry citrusy hop taste that is washed out by the roasted malt flavor.  This beer certainly is not bad, but I would prefer a bit more balance between the malt and hops.  On deck, Noble IPA a solid beer, that just did not stand out as great.  The golden hewed IPA has a slightly sweet and bitter hop profile with a crisp, clean finish.  Much like the Dark Sybian, the IPA is above average, but not the best IPA one can find in Orange County.  Finally, the Knight Charger Imperial Stout and Nobility Imperial IPA are both bold, aggressive high abv beers that are tasty and pack a nice punch, but just aren’t quite as balanced and nuanced as other beers of this style.  Kind of like say a young stallion waiting to be tamed for all of my Colorado and Montana friends out there.

The Noble Ale Works tap room is conveniently located near Angels Stadium, in a…you guessed it…small industrial park.  The tap room does however, offer a nice outdoor space for standing, sitting, or grabbing a bite from one of the food trucks that frequent the establishment.  The indoor space is spacious, with an industrial feel where customers can drink at fold up tables in the brewing area or in a more traditional space that offers bar seating and high top tables.  Perhaps it was the hot weather or the stress of serving the entire right-field section of Angels Stadium for the past two hours, but the staff was not overly friendly and not especially knowledgeable about the beer selection.  Children were welcome in the establishment and a few people were enjoying a pre-season NFL game on the T.V.  Noble Ale Works definitely feels like a tap room should.  The indoor and outdoor spaces are both very comfortable and provide a number of seating and standing options.   The beer is good but not great, the staff is not mean, but not overly friendly, but it’s still craft beer in the sun.

SCORE 2.5 pints

Bootlegger's Brewery

When it comes to beer, Bootlegger's Brewery doesn’t disappoint in variety or innovation.  Nearly every selection on the board was a modification of a traditional style.  Black Phoenix Stout – a chipotle infused coffee stout that was smooth and balanced with a sweet and spicy finish – was definitely the standout of the lineup.  Rustic Rye IPA was a nice, refreshing and slightly spicy IPA that achieved a nice balance of malt and hops.  Golden Chaos, a Belgian Strong Ale with hints of fruit had a very nice dry finish, but tasted a little unbalanced on the tongue.  Now for the bad news, Tropic Thunder IPA, yikes.  This pineapple infused IPA is really strong on pineapple and really week on everything else.  I can’t blame a brewery for pushing the envelope.  Patrons can choose a 5 beer sampler for $4.5, a pint for $5-6 or even a half pint for a bit less.  Tasters are offered for free and with a smile, not the “are you kidding me look” that you might find at other spots.  If you are looking for a wide range of styles with an innovative twist, Bootleggers is your spot.  

The tap room is tucked into a small industrial area that also features a church, near downtown Fullerton.  There isn’t much to speak of in terms of outdoor space, but the indoor space is pretty cozy and kind of feels like drinking in a friend’s garage.  The folding chairs and tables may not be the most comfortable, and the 90 degree outside temperature led to absurdly hot temps inside, but the staff was very friendly and knowledgeable and willing to recommend other breweries in the area.  Bootleggers has a few unique surprises that enhances the quant feeling of the tap room, such as beer served in mason jars and that fact that you can BYOF – bring your own food...hashtag awesome!  Overall the Bootleggers tap room provides good beer, served up by nice people in an interesting and cozy environment.

Score 2.5 pints

Craft Beer in the OC

Tapped In – taps into Orange County – this weekend with visits to three local breweries on a bright, sunny, classic So Cal Saturday.  While Orange County hasn’t yet reached San Diego status, the area is quickly emerging as a must visit for beer lovers throughout California.  In the OC you will find a whole range of breweries and tap rooms, from the well established and recently expanded Bruery, to the new guys, Old Orange Brewing.  At Tapped In, we have a real simple philosophy; a great tap room must have great beer.  Sure there are other elements that go into a great tap room, as you will see below, but the quality of the beer is what separates the men from the boys, the contenders from the pretenders.  Does Bootlegger's Brewery, Old Orange Brewing Company and Noble Ale Works have what it takes?

Welcome

Welcome to Tapped In - your inside look at Southern California's craft beer tap room scene.  We travel to tap rooms across SoCal, taste their beer, check out the vibe, chat with brewers, and wrap it all up with an unbiased evaluation of the whole experience.  

Why tap rooms?  It's simple - tap rooms embody everything that is great about the craft beer culture - great beer, good people, and the "third place" type of community vibe that you can't find anywhere else.  

Our evaluations are based on a 4 pint scale.  A score of 1 pint you would be better off grabbing an "ice-cold Brutus-sized micro" from Applebees - 4 pints, you might want to consider moving within walking distance ASAP.  The ratings consider beer and the overall environment and includes variables such as taste, variety, price, location and access, interior design and set-up, outdoor space, staff friendliness and knowledge, snacks and much more.  So follow us and get Tapped In to the SoCal tap room scene.

Cheers!