Updates/Mendocino

Well helloooo there friends, hasn't it been awhile? The last you might have heard about Taste of Brews was the event in Dana Point on August 15th. It being our second round of the game, it ran much smoother than before and, guess what, we had food trucks and vendors this time. The samples even lasted through the whole day, hallelujah! But the star of the show was of course the beer. And Dana Point people sure like their beer; it was a fun time.

For those wondering what's next for Taste of Brews, he have a few events conjuring. No official dates have been implanted but you will surely see a Long Beach location in the summer again!  Other locations we are looking at are coming from White Park in Riverside and/or a park in Costa Mesa. We will keep you posted on any further information.

Moving along: I was looking through the Los Angeles Times and to my surprise I noticed a Beer of the Month (How have I not noticed this?) Featured was our friends at Mendocino Brewing (Remember them at the Long Beach location?) with their Black Eye Ale. We picked one up at our local Bevmo because we were all a bit parched... ok we really just wanted some beer, but we were happy we picked this one. This black and tan beer poured a deep dark brown body with a light brown head that quickly shrank to a ring of lace. It smelled of coffee, dark fruit, and burnt caramel. It tasted much like smelled, roasted coffee beans, roasted caramel, bitter hops, and a tad bit of sweetness to round it out. Also it wasn’t too heavy, making it totally sippable throughout the afternoon. Can you imagine this beer being $3 for a 22-oz.? I thought it was too good to be true, but somehow it is in fact the real deal. Thank you Mendocino, thank you.

Ballast Point/33 Degrees

A few weeks ago the Taste of Brews team went around Long Beach to meet the local restaurants and pubs that are participating in our event. We stopped and had some lunch at 33 Degrees, a gastropub located in Shoreline Village.

33 Degrees offers great food and most importantly, craft beers, in a beautiful waterfront setting. The menu features healthier pub grub with influences from cities that fall near the 33rd latitudes around the world, which is where their name stems from. I ordered their trip-tip sandwich which had a great flavor and was served and a yummy brioche bun. Their beer selection features great breweries like Alesmith, Bootlegger's, Lagunitas, and The Lost Abbey.

Besides bringing samples of their food, 33 Degrees is also bringing Ballast Point brews along with them. What stand-up guys, aye? The creator of Ballast Point, Jack White, actually started with a home brewing supply store. Soon after, he joined forces with Yusseff and opened Ballast Point in the backroom of the supply shop.
Almost 15 years after its inception, Ballast Point Brewing’s dedicated team of craftsmen (and women) is still innovating, trying new methods and ingredients.

A favorite of mine is their Sea Monster Imperial Stout. For a style known to have no shortage of flavours, this one seems to have them all: smokey malt, black licorice, coffee, chocolate, caramel, molasses, vanilla and a few different dried dark fruits. The texture is thick as cream and frothy like steamed milk; just how I like my stouts.

We are looking forward to having tastes from both these guys. See you on the 20th.