Before this year's Beer Week gets too far in the rear-view mirror (i.e.: I forget what I did), here's a brief rundown of the events I attended. First, a quick word about tasting notes. To be honest, I don't really do them anymore. For all the beer I've had over the years, my palate just isn't sophisticated enough. Other than vague generalities (balanced! smooth! malt … [Read more...] about SF Beer Week 2016: Firkin IPAs, Packed in a Barrel, & My Last Meal
Breweries
Masters of the Beerverse: Fal Allen
Admit it, you thought this day would never come. Truth told, neither did I. Presenting our first Master of the Beerverse: Fal Allen, Brewmaster at Anderson Valley Brewing Co., Boonville, CA Fal grew up in Hilo, Hawaii, and left the Islands to attend college in Oregon, where he first encountered Northwest craft beers. After graduation and a couple of years honing … [Read more...] about Masters of the Beerverse: Fal Allen
Back to Beerversity.
It's a new year (well, new-ish). I'm not much on resolutions, which is a cop-out way of admitting I never stick to them. Still, as I'm sure you've noticed, The Beerverse has been dark for a while. Now, I could hand you a lot of excuses, but they'd be lies. I've just been lame. For whatever reason, the thought of coming up with ideas for posts, much less actually … [Read more...] about Back to Beerversity.
The Road to Perdition. And Other Places.
Along with the boom in local breweries comes a boom in cool places that serve them. Here's a few I've checked out recently. Perdition Smokehouse, Berkeley When you're Mike O’Brien and Chuck Stilphen and you already run The Trappist in Oakland and Mikkeller in San Francisco, you've set the bar pretty high. Fortunately, they deliver. I got there right at opening time on … [Read more...] about The Road to Perdition. And Other Places.
The French Laundry and Chez Panisse, All in One. In Fairfield.
Okay, maybe I exaggerate a bit. I'll explain in a sec. I finally made it up to Heretic Brewing in Fairfield. The place was busy. A line cued up at the bar as one server tried to deliver each order. One thing I've noticed about good beer places. People will wait without complaint. This is about enjoying a well-crafted, quality beverage, not waiting in line at some … [Read more...] about The French Laundry and Chez Panisse, All in One. In Fairfield.