Skyscraper Brewing Anniversary Party: Saturday January 19th @ 2pm

Posted on Wednesday, January 9, 2008 by Dave

You are invited to a place where the beer flows like wine. Where beautiful women instinctively flock, like the salmon of Capistrano. No, not Aspen. I’m talking about a little place called El Monte, California. And the beer will be flowing like water, or maybe even flowing like the oil in There Will Be Blood.

Yes, it’s been a full year since Skyscraper Brewing cut the red ribbon to much fanfare (Hey, it’s El Monte Mayor Ernie Guttierez! And is that local celebrity councilwoman Pat Wallach helping Phil cut the ribbon?!) at their Grand Opening Gala Event on January 20th, 2007. Continue reading →

Anderson Valley Winter Solstice: A Love Letter

Posted on Saturday, December 22, 2007 by Dave

Anderson Valley, can you do no wrong? Ever since I tried your Summer Solstice back in July, I knew I’d found something special. That Cerveza Crema coats my gullet with velvety goodness that rivals even a snug velour jumpsuit in tactual pleasure.

I had high hopes for the Winter Solstice, and I’m happy to say my expectations were exceeded.

It has all the creamy sweetness of the Summer, but more going on for it in the spiciness department. Now, some beers have a maltiness to them that makes you think, “Hmm, this tastes like bread.” But Winter Solstice’s maltiness just makes me think about graham crackers and Whoppers (America’s Favorite Malted Milk Balls, not BK value menu you sicko).

At 7%, this guy definitely brings a bit of warmth with it. Great weight to it; not too heavy, not too light, this is the porridge that Baby Bear would eat. Highly sessionable despite the higher %, and what better evening to enjoy it than the longest night of the year.

This may just be my favorite domestic Christmas beer of the year.

Uerige Sticke Alt

Posted on Tuesday, October 16, 2007 by Dave

Today, the third Tuesday of October, is Sticke Day. So take a moment to educate yourself about this rare style of beer, courtesy of the German Beer Institute (skip down if you find this sort of thing boring, otherwise, it’s time to geek out!):

Twice a year, on the third Tuesday in January and on the third Tuesday in October, a ritual is re-enacted in the dark and smoky recesses of the hallowed halls of an old brewpub, the Uerige in Düsseldorf in the Rheinland. There, a crod of cognoscenti gathers expectantly in the taproom, as if they are members of a secret society about to witness an exclusive event—the tapping of the season’s first wooden cask of a rare, aged ale, called Sticke Alt.

Sticke is the strongest and scarcest Altbier there is! To understand its strange name, we must first delve into a bit of linguistic history: “Sticke” is a mangled version of the “plattdeutsch” (low-German) word “stickum,” which translates into English as “secret.” The origin of the Sticke, according to local lore, dates from a time when beer ingredients were still measured rather haphazardly by the bucketful. If the brewmaster made a “mistake” and mashed in too generous an amount of malt, he also had to add an extra dose of hops for balance. The finished beer from such a batch would be a strong and substantial beverage. In a sense, Sticke is to Altbier ale what Bockbier is to a regular lager. Because the Sticke started out as a mistake, it was rarely brewed the same way twice. The news of a brewmaster’s mistake, of course, normally would get around quickly among the initiated, who would pass the secret by word of mouth, behind cupped hands, in a “stickum” or “sticke” sort of way… and to be in on the secret was quite a privilege. It is said that this “stickum” hot tip, shared among the aficionados, then became the origin of the beer’s name. Nowadays, however, Sticke brewers have abandoned the secrecy surrounding the unveiling of the Sticke. Instead, they keep the Sticke tradition alive by advertising the dates of their special offerings in the media, on posters, and on their websites.

I haven’t been keeping up with the world of beer blogs recently, so I don’t know if anyone else has written about this, but you, dear reader, can now consider yourself among “the initiated.”

To be in on this secret is “quite a privilege,” so don’t say I never did nothing for ya.

You can find Uerige Sticke Alt in tiny little bottles at Wine House for around $5. I bought mine a month or two ago, so it was probably from the January batch. No matter, it was still a great beer.

The whole idea behind the beer is they brew it with more malt and hops than normal, creating a richer taste. I haven’t tried the regular Uerige altbier, so Alaskan Amber is pretty much my benchmark.

Uerige Sticke is a mellow malty fellow that I sucked down a little too fast. Smells a bit like toast and the hop flavor seemed buried behind the sweet malt.

A bit pricey for the less-than-12oz bottle, but this is definitely something I would buy again, most likely for the third Tuesday in January. Mark your calendars, and I’ll try to give you a little more advance notice next time.

Once We Got to Echo Park It Was All Downhill

Posted on Friday, August 17, 2007 by Dave

Beer Ride ‘007

Welp, the first annual Great LA Beer Run came and went and I think everyone involved agrees it was a great success.

We started off at the Highland Park Gold Line stop. After a bit of meet and greet, name tags, and sunscreen, the first place we hit was the Rock ‘n’ Roll 7-Eleven on Figueroa and Avenue 52.

I had driven right by it when I was getting off the freeway and was impressed with their banner advertising Rogue, Chimay, Duvel, Delirium and so forth. But when we got there, what really blew me away was their selection of glassware sitting behind the counter. Too bad I wasn’t in the market for any Chimay goblets or Affligem tulips.

My first purchase of the day was a bottle of this year’s Stone Vertical Epic. I had picked up a couple bottles back in June on a trip to the Wine Expo in Santa Monica, but they are still sitting in my closet and I’ve really been wanting a taste.

In today’s McWorld, it warms my heart to see this kind of selection from such an oppressive convenience store franchise. Unfortunately, Charles the manager wasn’t there to greet us, but someone definitely spent some time preparing for our arrival.

We hopped back on the bikes and cycled over to Galco’s, a mom and pop-type soda pop shop on York and Ave 57. This place was really amazing. Aisle after aisle of bottles. Tons of soda that you’ve never heard of and one of the best beer selections I’ve seen in all of LA.

Nothing is refrigerated, but this worked out well because the beers were going straight into my backpack anyways. I adopted a single St. Bernardus Abt 12 from a litter of 4, and a bottle of North Coast Old Stock 2006. And just for good measure I grabbed a miniature glass bottle of Dublin Dr. Pepper, which John, the proprietor, commented on while ringing me up.

It suffices to say that all the liquor stores on our route were incredible. Red Carpet in Glendale, the beloved Cap’n Cork in Silverlake, special guest store Vendome on Olympic, and the illustrious Wine House in Culver City.

Here’s a picture of my haul, taken outside of the Cap’n Cork:

The ride from Wine House back to Echo Park went by much quicker than I expected. I guess having all these beers waiting for us when we got home was a good motivator.

Hacker-Pschorr is a great bananay hefe, one of my favorites. Butte Creek Christmas Cranberry Ale was not Christmassy enough for me, and frankly a little watery, but I really enjoy Butte Creek’s Organic IPA and Porter. Stone Vertical Epic ’07 is fantastic, will I actually be able to save the one in my closet for 5 years? Don’t know about that. Old Stock 2006 is heavy, sweet, and great for savoring. I actually didn’t get to try the Abt 12. Loterbol Bruin hit the spot, subtle and highly sessionable. He’brew Origin Pomegranate Ale is an imperial amber. Interesting style, but a little too boozy for the pomegranate to shine through. Tasty beer though, I will definitely try some of their others.

The great thing about our tasting afterwards was all the sharing.

Highlights of the evening included the Allagash Curieux, a tripel that’s aged in old Jim Beam barrels, Flying Dog Gonzo Imperial Porter, a coffee-caramelly dark beer brewed in honor of Hunter S. Thompson, and Duchesse de Bourgogne, a deliciously sweet and sour Flemish Red Ale that I could drink all day every day.

Special thanks to Hot Knives for hosting and providing some incredible nuts, which you can now enjoy in the comfort of your own home.

Viva La Grand Crew ’007!

The Great LA Beer Run: Le Grand Crew Tour ’007

Posted on Monday, August 6, 2007 by Dave

When was the last time you rode your bike to go beer shopping? Probably been a while. Admit it, you never walk anywhere in LA. Well this Saturday, August 11th, you have the opportunity to get off your duff and visit not one, not two, but five of the best beer stores in LA, just as long as your little legs are up for it. Yes, it’s the first annual Great LA Beer Run, brought to you by Hot Knives.

I am ridiculously excited for this event since it incorporates two of my all-time favorites, bikes and beer.

See below for details. Be there or be square.

For no good reason at all Hot Knives is hosting our first (annual?) bicycle tour of L.A.’s best beer stores on Saturday, August 11. We know we’ve been eluding to this thing for months, since we first started reviewing our favorite brew purveyors for this site. But now the date is set and the details are fermenting. La Grand Crew ‘007 is here!

So, bike buddies, we invite you to tear yourselves away from watching Tour de France reruns at the Yard House and come join us and our closest alcoholics on an overly ambitious beer adventure! Hitting all five stores FEATURED HERE, we plan on traversing L.A. side streets to collect a wide array of bombers and six packs with the express purpose of throwing a tasting/swigging/gulping/retching party at the finish line. We’ll be starting at the Gold Line Metro Highland Park station and end at Echo park lake for a hot nuts & cold beer party. Maybe that’s reason enough to be doing this. In between we ask only that everyone 1) make new friends 2) buy a beer at each stop 3) drink lots of water.

Every store has generously offered to give us discounts and to not comment on our god awful August-heat stank. This event is, obviously, free. You just need some spending money for beer and a bag, sack, fanny pack or pannier. All the details are on the above flyer thanks to Meanstreetz Industries, our co-conspirator ) or contact us with other questions. If you’re down please RSVP ASAP to hotknivez@gmail.com, tell a friend and feel free to let us know if you’re a bike expert or a beer expert with any special skills you can lend to the team! We will post an estimated schedule and map next week in case anyone wants to join the ride partway, which is only very mildly frowned upon. La Grand Crew!!! Whose in?

Cast of MST3K Watches Battlefield Earth @ Stone Brewery

Posted on Friday, August 3, 2007 by Dave

Does anyone else love Mystery Science Theater 3000 as much I do? For God’s sake I have an MST3K mousepad. How’s that for geek capital?

Well apparently Mike Nelson, Crow, and Tom Servo escaped from the Satellite of Love (no word on Gypsy), and now Mike lives in San Diego and enjoys the local microbrews.

Not much has changed since his return, he still sits around with Crow and Servo and riffs on crappy movies.

Tonight at 10pm, Mike will host an evening of beer and Scientology as a part of Stone Garden’s Late Night Movie series.

For info on future movies and upcoming events at Stone, check out their newsletter archives.

Other movies being shown in August: Princess Bride, Young Frankenstein, Monty Python & The Holy Grail, and one of my all-time favorites, Pee Wee’s Big Adventure.

When Blogs Collide: H.O.T. Dog and Hot Knives

Posted on Wednesday, June 13, 2007 by Dave

Last night I went to an awesome beer tasting at Library Bar, hosted by Beer Chick Christina Perozzi. I will eventually write up a report on the night’s events, right after I finish my post on the Saint Arnold’s brewery tour.

The highlight of the evening was meeting Evan and Alex of Hot Knives, the preeminent beer bloggers of LA. They also blog about food and cooking, and occasionally work beer into their recipes. How about some Levitation flapjacks or Stone-inspired ice cream? Come to think of it, I could go for a chocolate stout float right about now.

These guys are a great inspiration for a blossoming beer blogger like myself. They tell great stories and aren’t afraid to shit all over the Beer Establishment. Ever tried a Velveeta quesadilla right after a beer bong? (Further reading: In the Busch with A-B’s Specialty Beers)

On occasion they are known to wear bucket hats and yellow shades while speaking through clenched teeth and smoking from cigarette holders as they use their press credentials to gain entry to the biggest wine convention this side of the Mississippi. (Furthur reading: Food and Wining in Los Angeles)

If you’ve clicked all these links and still haven’t got enough Knives, you will also enjoy their Reverse Sideways trip to the Stone Brewery last December.

Wörtwurst, dry your eyes. My man-crush has officially transfered. Deal with it.

Hair of the Dog Dave

Los Angeles Beer Blog

Category Archives: Events