SteveC32
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- Oct 5, 2013
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I just got back from my honeymoon in California and since I got a lot of great info from this forum that helped me plan where to I figured I share my thought on the breweries I visited and beer I had.
I want to point out that although my wife enjoys beer this was not a beer trip and I know I missed a lot of highly recommended breweries and bars. With that said here it goes
San Francisco
Mikkeller Bar - After our flight landed and we checked into the hotel we headed to Mikkeller Bar for a beer and lunch. I liked the vibe at Mikkeller, much more than I like Torst in NYC but the beer selection didn't blow me away. Me and the wife both really enjoyed the food though. Overall it was worth the stop.
City Beer Store - This place is really cool. Half bar and half bottleshop. Pretty good beer selection and a very knowledgeable, energetic bartender. Only knock I have on them is that the place closed at 10pm when the bar was packed. The bartender did however send advise us to check out Cellarmaker which was right around the corner.
Cellarmaker - Nice little tasting room. I had I See Dankness which was very good and Saison Francisco which was a pretty solid. I was impressed and the wife really enjoyed her beers as well.
Toronado - What a ****ing drive, I loved it. Pints of Pliny for $6, Blind Pig for $5. Of course I also dropped $60 on a bottle of Cable Car but what the hell. Oh and I read things about the bartenders there being rude but ours was great, It came up that we were on our honeymoon and she gave us a round on the house. If I ever make it back to San Francisco I will most certainly go back to Toronado.
We also went to a bunch of restaurants and bars while in San Francisco but other than the places I listed above I was very unimpressed by the beer selection. Which I'm sure is completely based on my stupidity in thinking that great IPA's were just going to be everywhere I looked in California.
Santa Cruz
Sante Adairius Rustic Ales - This was one of the places that I really made a priority to get to. Tiny little joint in this weird industrial park or something. Inside it is nice and the beers were enjoyable. Nothing crazy on draft and no bottle available but had and IPA that I don't remember the name of and Farmhouse Noir which were both very enjoyable.
Monterey
Alvarado Street Brewery - Decent brewpub, nothing that exciting. The beers we had were very average and we didn't have any food but I think its kind of the only show it town.
Cannery Row Brewing Company - Despite the name this is not a brewery just a bar/restaurant, that said the selection was pretty good. One of the Lost Abbey track beers, Framboise de Amorosa, and Alpine Hoppy Birthday. Was pretty happy we wandered into this place.
Anaheim
Noble Ale Works - This place was the surprise of the trip for me. Stopped in for a beer before going to an Angels game. Pretty decent size space but it was ****ing packed. Started off with Citra Showers and it was fantastic, moved on to Big Whig which was fine but didn't blow my mind. The place was starting to clear out for the game but since we are not Angels fans we decided to try a few more beers before we went. Had Nelson Showers, Equinox Showers, Gosebusters, and Naughty Sauce. The IPA's were both stellar, the gose was nice and refreshing and the stout was enjoyable but slightly too bitter for my liking. We ended up getting to the game in the middle of the second inning but it was def worth it. I would have gone back to Noble the next day if we didn't need to continue to San Diego.
San Diego
Stone Brewing Escondido - Went here for Dinner, most of the beers on draft were things the get widely distributed but there were a few test batches. The food was pretty good but it was really the scenery that stole the show. The outdoor seat was very nice and the gardens were an awesome place to sit and have a beer.
Rip Current Brewing - Did a little bar hopping in the area so we popped in not know anything about this place. It was reasonably busy but there were seats at the bar so we plopped down. Waited about 5 to 10 minutes and neither of the bartenders came down our way. At that time a guy who I assume was a bar back came over and said that he would take our order but that we need to go stand in line at the service station when they our busy. Kind of weird, I have been to a lot of bars that have service stations for the customers who are not sitting at the bar so the don't have to reach over the ones who are, but I've never seen one that didn't serve the people sitting at the bar without them getting up. Not the end of the world but a sign would have been nice. Anyway we each had a taster, I don't remember the beers but they were average at very best so we moved on.
Toronado - Not as divey as the one in San Francisco and slightly more expensive but the bar tenders were very knowledgeable and I got to drink a few beers from Societe Brewing which was awesome since we didn't make it there.
Tiger! Tiger! - I had heard this was one of the big beer bars in the area so we decided to check it out. This might be my most unpopular opinion so feel free to bash me for it but I really wasn't a fan of this place. I thought the beer menu was pretty average and generic, not bad or anything, they had plenty of good beers to drink but It didn't compare to Toronado for me. I also wasn't into the vibe of the place, too hipster for me maybe I don't know.
Pizza Port Ocean Beach - Really cool laid back bar and pizza joint. Order at the bar then sit at a picnic table and they will call your name when it ready, awesome. Had Kook, Get Wet and a Pizza with Pork and some other random toppings all of which were a pleasant surprise. One of my favorite stops.
Alpine - Great beer, good BBQ. Worth the drive from San Diego
Overall I had a great time in California and drank a metric **** ton of good beer. I hope that someone will read this and it will help them plan their trip in some small way. If not the locals can just tell me that I'm out of my mind and they are glad I'm back in New York.
I want to point out that although my wife enjoys beer this was not a beer trip and I know I missed a lot of highly recommended breweries and bars. With that said here it goes
San Francisco
Mikkeller Bar - After our flight landed and we checked into the hotel we headed to Mikkeller Bar for a beer and lunch. I liked the vibe at Mikkeller, much more than I like Torst in NYC but the beer selection didn't blow me away. Me and the wife both really enjoyed the food though. Overall it was worth the stop.
City Beer Store - This place is really cool. Half bar and half bottleshop. Pretty good beer selection and a very knowledgeable, energetic bartender. Only knock I have on them is that the place closed at 10pm when the bar was packed. The bartender did however send advise us to check out Cellarmaker which was right around the corner.
Cellarmaker - Nice little tasting room. I had I See Dankness which was very good and Saison Francisco which was a pretty solid. I was impressed and the wife really enjoyed her beers as well.
Toronado - What a ****ing drive, I loved it. Pints of Pliny for $6, Blind Pig for $5. Of course I also dropped $60 on a bottle of Cable Car but what the hell. Oh and I read things about the bartenders there being rude but ours was great, It came up that we were on our honeymoon and she gave us a round on the house. If I ever make it back to San Francisco I will most certainly go back to Toronado.
We also went to a bunch of restaurants and bars while in San Francisco but other than the places I listed above I was very unimpressed by the beer selection. Which I'm sure is completely based on my stupidity in thinking that great IPA's were just going to be everywhere I looked in California.
Santa Cruz
Sante Adairius Rustic Ales - This was one of the places that I really made a priority to get to. Tiny little joint in this weird industrial park or something. Inside it is nice and the beers were enjoyable. Nothing crazy on draft and no bottle available but had and IPA that I don't remember the name of and Farmhouse Noir which were both very enjoyable.
Monterey
Alvarado Street Brewery - Decent brewpub, nothing that exciting. The beers we had were very average and we didn't have any food but I think its kind of the only show it town.
Cannery Row Brewing Company - Despite the name this is not a brewery just a bar/restaurant, that said the selection was pretty good. One of the Lost Abbey track beers, Framboise de Amorosa, and Alpine Hoppy Birthday. Was pretty happy we wandered into this place.
Anaheim
Noble Ale Works - This place was the surprise of the trip for me. Stopped in for a beer before going to an Angels game. Pretty decent size space but it was ****ing packed. Started off with Citra Showers and it was fantastic, moved on to Big Whig which was fine but didn't blow my mind. The place was starting to clear out for the game but since we are not Angels fans we decided to try a few more beers before we went. Had Nelson Showers, Equinox Showers, Gosebusters, and Naughty Sauce. The IPA's were both stellar, the gose was nice and refreshing and the stout was enjoyable but slightly too bitter for my liking. We ended up getting to the game in the middle of the second inning but it was def worth it. I would have gone back to Noble the next day if we didn't need to continue to San Diego.
San Diego
Stone Brewing Escondido - Went here for Dinner, most of the beers on draft were things the get widely distributed but there were a few test batches. The food was pretty good but it was really the scenery that stole the show. The outdoor seat was very nice and the gardens were an awesome place to sit and have a beer.
Rip Current Brewing - Did a little bar hopping in the area so we popped in not know anything about this place. It was reasonably busy but there were seats at the bar so we plopped down. Waited about 5 to 10 minutes and neither of the bartenders came down our way. At that time a guy who I assume was a bar back came over and said that he would take our order but that we need to go stand in line at the service station when they our busy. Kind of weird, I have been to a lot of bars that have service stations for the customers who are not sitting at the bar so the don't have to reach over the ones who are, but I've never seen one that didn't serve the people sitting at the bar without them getting up. Not the end of the world but a sign would have been nice. Anyway we each had a taster, I don't remember the beers but they were average at very best so we moved on.
Toronado - Not as divey as the one in San Francisco and slightly more expensive but the bar tenders were very knowledgeable and I got to drink a few beers from Societe Brewing which was awesome since we didn't make it there.
Tiger! Tiger! - I had heard this was one of the big beer bars in the area so we decided to check it out. This might be my most unpopular opinion so feel free to bash me for it but I really wasn't a fan of this place. I thought the beer menu was pretty average and generic, not bad or anything, they had plenty of good beers to drink but It didn't compare to Toronado for me. I also wasn't into the vibe of the place, too hipster for me maybe I don't know.
Pizza Port Ocean Beach - Really cool laid back bar and pizza joint. Order at the bar then sit at a picnic table and they will call your name when it ready, awesome. Had Kook, Get Wet and a Pizza with Pork and some other random toppings all of which were a pleasant surprise. One of my favorite stops.
Alpine - Great beer, good BBQ. Worth the drive from San Diego
Overall I had a great time in California and drank a metric **** ton of good beer. I hope that someone will read this and it will help them plan their trip in some small way. If not the locals can just tell me that I'm out of my mind and they are glad I'm back in New York.
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