Category Archives: brewery

by | August 21, 2012 · 9:38 pm

Brewery Hecticity

Life has been crazy busy lately. In addition to working at Wolf Creek Brewery, I’m also doing social media and writing their blog.
You can check out the purpose of this crazy photo over at the Wolf Creek blog. On top of real work, I also volunteer at Enegren Brewing Friday through Sunday.
I got a little refresher from Red Mango on my way over to Moorpark Friday afternoon.
And then I got another little refresher at Ladyface on the way. Sweet Cherry Porter on cask? How could I not?
Definitely glad I treated myself before this huge pallet arrived! Those would be 356 two liter growlers from Italy. The caps were in the same shipment. That’s right – caps were not attached to the bottles.
I spent Friday afternoon and all of Saturday assembling the tops and attaching them to the bottles – this time with help from the EBC crew. My hands and wrists still ache.
While I was there on Friday, the owner/brewmaster from Hangar 24 happened to swing by with about seven other employees/sales reps. Ben Cook recently had an article written about him in the New Brewer magazine which his coworkers made sure to point out, much to Ben’s dismay. I immediately jumped on the bandwagon and insisted on a personalized autograph and cheesy picture just to humiliate him a little more. The entire group of guys were a much needed fun breath of fresh air in between unloading and assembling growlers. Now I need to get to the Redlands and visit the brewery!

Friday night was brew night – Chris and Matt mashed in and brewed overnight and then Joe and I came in the morning to relieve them and finish up the brew. Saturday was a long one full of pain and growlers and cursing at growlers that created pain, but with this schedule we had all of Sunday free!
ADVENTURE TEAM!
We went on a 16.7 mile mountain bike ride on Sunday morning then ate back all of the calories we’d burned at the local greasy diner, Cactus Patch, before heading back to work.

And then the week started again. Normally this would be tragic (or at least it would be if I had a normal job and didn’t brew beer for a living), but I had the fifteenth gathering of Ladies at Ladyface: The Fermentables and Comestibles Education and Tippling Society to look forward to on Monday night!
We went “back to the basics” and had a brewery tour where we were walked through the brew process and got to munch on milled malts and sip Blind Ambition straight from the fermentor. There were many new faces, all eager to learn and imbibe and get tippled in the necessary fashion it takes to be a L@L.
We had a nice big group of ladies attending – not a single keg was left un-sat-upon. We spent the evening sipping homebrews and socializing before grabbing some foods to ward off the dizzying effects of beer on empty stomachs.
Sweet potato fries – suicide style. Could you need anything more in life?

For recaps of our past Ladies at Ladyface meetings, check out the links below:
Ladies at Ladyface: 1
Ladies at Ladyface: 2
Ladies at Ladyface: 3
Ladies at Ladyface: 4
Ladies at Ladyface: 5
Ladies at Ladyface: 6
Ladies at Ladyface: 7
Ladies at Ladyface: 8
Ladies at Ladyface: 9
Ladies at Ladyface: 10
Ladies at Ladyface: 11
Ladies at Ladyface: 12
Ladies at Ladyface: 13
Ladies at Ladyface: 14

2 Comments

Filed under brewery

Tagged as , , , , , ,

by | August 6, 2012 · 4:43 pm

Coronado Brewing Company

During the San Diego trip, we hit up Coronado Brewing Company on Coronado Island before heading to an outdoor concert.
We were lucky enough to snag a parking spot directly out front and emerged into air heavily scented with the delicious aroma of hops that had just been added to the boil. It permeated the atmosphere. I melted with happiness.
The building is only a block away from the water and shrouded in lush greenery and aromatic flowers.
Not a terrible view to have to deal with. I could probably live there and be happy. Completely broke, but happy.
After perusing the shores, we headed inside and got down to business.
I ordered my typical choice at any brewery – the taster flight. Out of the five I walked away with a mini growler of the Idiot IPA – extremely citrusy on the nose, sweet grapefruit flavor ending with a brutal kick of hop bitterness that almost immediately fades into a whisper. Dangerously drinkable at 8.5% ABV!
Absorption was also necessary. Nachos covered in spicy filet mignon chili, real cheese and generous towers of guacamole and sour cream. I barely finished a quarter of this monster.
I poked my head into the brewery to have a look around and saw what looked like the same system as Wolf Creek! I asked the assistant brewer who was in the middle of the boil if it was a 10bbl system and was immediately invited in to take some pictures and got a small tour of the place. Using key phrases like barrel and parts per million will get you invited into any brewery, I’ve found.Coronado is in the midst of setting up their 30bbl system over on the mainland, so the brewpub functions as a small batch experimental system on the side of regular production. They brew in a separate building and then transfer the multiple brews all the way into the fermentation area about 200 feet away.
I also checked out their bottling system to get some ideas for Wolf Creek’s upcoming expansion. I think we’ll need more than a six-up bottler, however…
After the tour I grabbed my growler and headed out with the family to the outdoor concert in the middle of the island. People started arriving four hours early in order to get good seats! Luckily, we had a team of people who’d set up in advance so we could fully enjoy the brewery beforehand.
We spent the night drinking craft brews, eating an assortment of random deliciousness procured by each individual who chipped in a dish for the picnic and danced the night away.
A good time was had by all.And then more beer was consumed, as is tradition in my life.

1 Comment

Filed under brewery

Tagged as , , ,

by | July 30, 2012 · 10:19 pm

Pantless Prom?

My second morning in San Diego was devoured after an hour scouring Yelp for the best review. By “best” I don’t mean the top rated. I mean the most interesting, awkward review available.Four stars after a Pantless Prom? Okay, Mitch. You’ve hooked me.
An adorable little cottage on the sea transformed into a delicious restaurant. I’m seeing a theme in La Jolla…
With a view to die for. Already this place was a winner in my mind. Now on to the most important part – the food!
When I go for breakfast, I will almost always order either the corned beef hash or the eggs benedict. The Brockton Villa had a beer braised corned beef hash. Immediate yes. Strangely enough, I prefer the hash that comes out of a can, but for housemade, this ale-marinated, shredded deliciousness topped with yet another perfectly poached egg did the job.
COAST TOAST. I have no idea what wizard came up with this recipe, but it is To. Die. For. More like a heavenly souffle/custard spiked with orange zest, this french toast is absolutely out of this world. Unfortunately I’m not talented enough to describe what this is like. If anyone is in La Jolla and wants to invite me here to enjoy this dish, I will sing you a serenade at the table to explain my true feelings about Coast Toast. It’s that awesome.
After your exquisite brunch, you can waddle across the street and gaze at the La Jolla Cave. The cliff is adorned with pelicans, and the smell is quite potent. (Side note: This odor is completely unnoticeable from the Brockton Villa, at least in my experience, contrary to many Yelpers reviews.)
The view more than makes up for the aroma.

After yet another delicious breakfast, we made our way back to the hotel and stumbled across another wedding.
Okey, Jenn and Dan, I’m really happy for you, but where was your elephant??
All of the brunch and elephants got us thirsty, so we wandered over to Iron Fist for the grand opening of their new tasting room. They recently busted through the wall to the unit next door and expanded the size of both the brewery and the brewery-imbing-enjoyment center.
The space was beyond packed. Doe-eyes were given in order to obtain a third stool for our group.
Luckily everyone had plenty of beer and were in wonderfully joyful moods.
The amazing offerings of food may have had something to do with it. Brisket and fries from Mr. Pig’s BBQ. Tender, perfectly seasoned, wonderfully soft bun and perfect for an afternoon with beer.
Sushi Bus was also there. I honestly have no idea what this roll was called. I asked for painfully spicy and the two awesomely tatted guys running the place surprised me with this nose-running, eye-watering roll of perfection. Whatever sauce on top of the spicy tuna is God-given and needs to be used even more liberally for an even more intense and wonderful spicy pain.
And now I’m just showing off with another gift I got in exchange for beer. I give you (minus the brew chief) the Enegren Brewing Company, Keeping Calm and Chiving On.
We keep it real.

And then we ran caustic and phosphoric acid through the entire system after this picture. Totally worth it.

5 Comments

Filed under brewery, Travel

Tagged as , , ,

by | July 17, 2012 · 8:43 pm

Ladies at Ladyface: 14

Last night was our fourteenth meeting of Ladies at Ladyface: The Fermentables and Comestibles Education and Tippling Society! Time really flies! Meetings ten, eleven, twelve and thirteen on the links!
My craft beer girl Janelle (picture from our first visit ever to Enegren Brewing Company) brought something extra special to last night’s meeting.
World, meet little Avery – Janelle and Andrew’s five day old, perfectly adorable creation.
Everyone else just brought food for the potluck. Not as adorable, but quite delicious. Our meeting was a field trip to Enegren Brewing Company to try all the beers, get a brewery tour and do the usual socializing and eating. Enegren’s four taster limit was recently lifted, so we took full advantage (everyone had designated drivers). I love these meetings!
One liter growlers gracing the shelves.
Taps in the sunset. Such a beautiful sight.
We had a great showing and demolished almost all of the comestibles. I failed at food blogging and consumed everything before I remembered that pictures would’ve been a nice addition… Yum. Oops.
Cyrena brought dessert – Blue Belly Barleywine! Wonderfully rich, sweet and full of subtle vanilla notes from the whiskey barrels it’s aged in. There was some leftover at the end of the night. I may or may not have snuck it home with me and polished it off last night (I did).

Next meeting we’ll be going “back to the basics”. Our group has come quite a long way in the year and two months we’ve been up and running, and unfortunately that has become intimidating to potential new craft beer lovers. No need to be scared, ladies! Come drink wonderful craft beer, learn about why it’s so delectable, eat delicious foods and socialize! That’s what the root of the group is truly about.

1 Comment

Filed under beer, beer tasting, brewery

Tagged as , , ,

by | July 5, 2012 · 9:31 pm

Bravery Brewing

Bravery Brewing had its grand opening in Lancaster on Independence Day. After working the taproom at Enegren, we all headed over to check it out.
I was able to see the space a few months ago before they’d even begun brewing. It’s come quite a long way.
They’re a 3bbl system with two 3bbl fermentors and two 7bbls.
Instead of being hardpiped, the entire system is run with removable hoses for transferring and easy cleanup.
In the middle of the paint job back in April…
And during the grand opening. It’s too bad the turnout was so small…
The line for beer wrapped around the room, outside and around to the end of the building. Every single table was packed, as was the bar.
Luckily there were some cool hop plants to look at as we waited outside at the very end of the line.
And luckily since Enegren helped out with a lot of consulting with Bravery while they prepped to open, the owners brought some brews to tide us over during the long wait in line. Brighton ESB – a nice malty ESB, dry finish with just a hint of chocolate and toffee.
Randall: Citrus Bitter – their flagship bitter is run through a type of filter that contains freshly grated orange zest. This one was light and sweet with a heavy perfume of orange and a nice touch of sour rounding out the end.
Once we finally made it indoors, we got to enjoy the view of Gunnery SGT. R. Lee Ermey’s chopper. R. Lee Ermey is a co-owner of Bravery Brewing.
I also found a Chiver in the midst of the chaos! Bill Effin Murray! (Whoever can score me one of these would be the love of my life. Just sayin’)…
Once we finally made it to the bar (conveniently we had also just finished our “waiting in line” beers), Brewmaster Brian Avery served us up an array of tasters.
Ginger Witbier – thick wheat beer with a soft ginger aroma but a spicy kick of it at the end. Korova Sweet Stout – chocolatey stout that’s rich, but very light in ABV (5.6%). Honey Saison – a dry, crisp Saison brewed with honey, and Pineapple Boo (not pictured) – a wheat beer brewed with pineapple that has a surprisingly pleasant tropical aroma and flavor that ends with a noticeable pineapple zing.
No one was enjoying themselves at all. Especially while being encompassed by the soft leather couches with a perfect view of the brewery and tasting room in the “Brave Cave”. Try to sit on one of these couches and then try to get up. It’s nearly impossible except for the necessity of needing to refill your beer.
With 5,000 square feet, this place is spacious and airy, even with the masses of people that showed up for the opening.
The lights came on over the beer lists that were slowly dwindling as each beer was gulped into oblivion by the thirsty patrons.
And then R. Lee Ermey showed up. I was just trying to get a picture of the chalkboards but he kept getting in the way. Oh well. Creeper photo it is!
It was a perfect day for the opening and we had a delicious time! We grabbed a growler to go and headed back to Moorpark to enjoy the festivities.
I hope you all had a wonderful Independence Day! God bless America and craft beer!

3 Comments

Filed under brewery

Tagged as , , , , , , , , , , , ,

by | June 27, 2012 · 8:49 pm

Typical Insanity

It’s been an insane week. Even more than usual. I was up bright and early Saturday morning to do my shift brew for Enegren Brewing with Brew Chief Joe.
In between pH testing and hop additions, we found the time to do a little photo shoot for Captain’s Summer Session blonde ale. Joe was the designated “fluffer” of the beer…
I think it turned out pretty well. We had to drink the beer(s) at 7:30am after we’d poured it, but since it’s only 4.9% we fared well for the rest of the day.
Saturday night after brew day was spent grilling, drinking delicious beer and eating candy malt samples from the CBC.
I’ll eat malt plain, but when it’s covered in sugar, I’ll eat even MORE of it.
Yes, please!
Sunday ended with this deliciousness. That would be “The Mack” (mac and cheese in a grilled cheese sammich) from Custom Melt in Moorpark – a gourmet grilled cheese restaurant that recently opened. I have eaten there every weekend. I will continue to do so every weekend I am in town.
The Green-Go – roasted turkey, bacon, avocado and pesto wrapped up in a cheesy embrace. There will definitely be a blog about this place coming in the near future.
Sunday night puppies were played with, the movie Kick Ass was watched and I was prepared to face the oncoming week. Monday was spent cleaning kegs and Tuesday was a surprise day off. I got an oil change. I was told that my tires didn’t look so good. I went to the tire place. I replaced All. Four. Tires.
My wallet is weeping silent tears as I type.
I do have a PLANNED day off on Friday, though! I’ll be camping up in Kern Valley through the weekend: a much needed extended weekend spent mountain biking, hiking, exploring and drinking mass quantities of instant coffee from my Jetboil.
I think I’m all prepared. Only thing left to do is pick up some brews from Kern River Brewing before we head out into the wilderness!
That and somehow bid farewell to those beautiful eyes for three days. Once I do THAT I’ll be fully prepared.

Tomorrey is brew day, then getting in the car immediately after to head out for camping! Follow my brew day updates on my Facebook or my Twitter, OR on Wolf Creek Brewery’s Facebook and Twitter (I run all of the above)! Have a wonderful extended weekend!

1 Comment

Filed under brewery, brewing

Tagged as , , ,

by | June 14, 2012 · 7:16 pm

Submersed in Beer

If you’d asked me three years ago if I would ever imagine myself completely submersed in the world of beer, I would’ve laughed my ass off as I popped the top off of a Fat Tire or Blue Moon and drank it straight from the bottle.
My goodness how things change. This entire week has been nothing but brewing, beer, cleaning and more brewing. And beer.
Scrubbed out faucets and cleaned tap lines in the beginning of the week. My hands have healed from the scrub brushes just in time to scrub out some more tomorrey!
Keg delivery is tomorrey as well! Gotta replenish those taps with fresh brews! And hopefully replenish myself with a new experiment by head chef, Chuy? Hint hint, Chuy, if you’re reading this, hehe. We’ll also be dropping off kegs at The LAB Brewing for a local tap takeover for Father’s Day! If you’re in town, head over there on Saturday and sample some of the amazing brews the Agoura Hills/Moorpark/Ventura County has!
The brew days have only contained slight injuries. Tuesday’s consisted of 175 degree spent grain falling into my boot. Today, I somehow have bruised lines across the tops of my knees as well as a blister on my finger from a hot water burn. Not bad for a double brew week!
Today, the grain mill jammed on our last 20lbs of malted wheat. Luckily it was an easy fix – scoop everything out, find the small stone that had gotten lodged between the gears, then reassemble and finish milling.
Once in a while we get spoiled during these early mornings and are surprised with bacon from the kitchen. These mornings are my favorite.
This morning, unfortunately, was not one of those mornings. Three cups of coffee and crunching on the grain before we mashed in made do.
We also had some quality control to do – Surfin’ Monks was transferred yesterday and carbonated today. It passed the test.
Luckily, I won’t be doing what I was last weekend – an overnight brew at Enegren. We mashed in at 7:30pm and worked until 6am. Not that there’s anything wrong with that…
…Unless your 3am meal consists of flamin’ hot Cheetos, M&Ms and Gatorade from a late run to 7-11. Sometimes you just get desperate.
Luckily, coffee heals all. Apparently it works faster when you snort it.

1 Comment

Filed under brewery, brewing

Tagged as , ,

by | June 11, 2012 · 8:14 pm

Working for the Weekend

Side note – I thought for 25 years that “working for the weekend” meant working ON the weekend. I was enlightened a month ago. This blog title is based on my previous assumption.

My weekend:
Commander Matt and I brewed at Enegren Brewing from 7:30pm on Friday night until we were relieved by Joe and Chris at 6am on Saturday morning. Then I was able to sleep for three hours before heading back to work the tasting room. Zombie Saturday.
Plenty of caffeine was consumed. Beer may also have been consumed…
During the short breaks in between customers, I played with settings on my camera.
Oh, I fancy, huh?
More photography as I tried not to fall asleep whilst holding my camera.
The EBC crew kegged their Golden Spur Saison that’s been aging in a Syrah barrel for three months.
We sampled it, just to make sure it was up to par. Heavenly with hints of vanilla, Syrah and a bold touch of oak.
Kegging for the tasting room!
Christoph takes his job of blanketing the keg with CO2 seriously.
Very seriously, as you can see.

After the long weekend, Commander Matt helped me move to a new place that’s within biking distance of Wolf Creek Brewery. After returning, we picked up the most amazing, delicious dinner known to wo/man. At least for this week.
That would be chili over mac ‘n cheese. I could tell you where we got this from… but then I would actually have to kill you.

Comments Off on Working for the Weekend

Filed under brewery, brewing

Tagged as , , , , ,

by | May 29, 2012 · 7:48 pm

Beer + Guns = Colorado

I had an amazing, ridiculously fast three day vacation in Colorado this weekend!
Commander Matt and I took an evening flight to Denver to hang with my parentals and attend the Odell Small Batch Revival. It was a painlessly quick flight. My parental unit picked us up at DIA and we headed back to their house to have some Enegren brews we’d brought as gifts, and then to pass out.
The views from their place are absolutely hideous. What’s with all the open space? It’s also incredibly noisy – that little creek below their porch makes quite a ruckus as it burbles over the rocks with the trout darting through.
They also have these rude deer that traipse through their yard whenever they please. Ugh.
We got all fancy and made breakfast – chocolate chip pancakes and grilled bacon!
These pancakes are made with almond milk and vinegar as a buttermilk substitute, and OUT OF THIS WORLD DELICIOUS.
After fooding, we met up with my brother and his wife and headed over to the Odell Small Batch Revival. It was HOT and packed!
We waited in exceptionally long lines for our beers and then found the small amount of shade that was available.
So. Many. People! This was taken right before the swarms of people arrived.
Ah, yet another perfect capture of how much we enjoy each other’s company.
I had the Totes McGotes Pale Ale Wheat – funky and sour with a strong Reisling flavor from the barrel, and the Extra Special Red. I was saving the Mash of the Titans for last, but they ran out right as I got to the front of the line. Heartbroken.

The next day we had a full schedule as well. First thing on the list:
Smith & Wesson 686 revolver. 357 magnum! I have no idea what all this means, but firing it is fun.
My bro firing his Glock. I preferred the .22 for accuracy, but this one was enjoyable too!
And back to the revolver!
Those holes in the head? All courtesy of me via the 686, before I started switching guns and throwing off my aim.
Can I have it? Christmas is coming up in only seven months. A Ruger Mark 3 would be lovely, thanks!
After shooting, we moseyed about twenty feet through the parking lot to the brewery. Grimm Brothers Brewhouse – it was nice to be able to taste and smell the beers, unlike last year!
I got a flight of eight. Had to try them all since I really hadn’t been able to before.
Shockingly enough, the Snow Drop was my favorite. The honey and molasses aroma were subtle but noticeable, with a sweet, almost mead-like honey flavor. This was an easy light sipper, but still came through at 7.1%ABV!
I also loved the Little Red Cap Altbier. Nice and malty and clean with a pleasant American hop bitterness.
My brother, Matt and I continued on to Funkwerks – a brewery that brews only Saisons!
The interior of this place is cozy and well lit, and full of craft beer enthusiasts.
I had to get a taster flight, of course. I was on vacation!
My favorite was the Codename: Farmhouse – roasted candied apricot and a bready finish with a hint of tartness.
To wrap up the evening, we swung by my brother’s work and he showed us some of the planes he’s rewired.
The new Garmin system is almost exactly like a video game! I’m fairly certain I played this game when I was twelve… The graphics are slightly better though, I must admit.

The next day was Memorial Day, and I was completely exhausted. We decided to have a slow day and regenerate on the lake.
Carter Lake was pretty quiet considering it was Memorial Day. We sat down on the dock and enjoyed the warm breeze.
Peaceful. Until he tried to throw me in.
Our flight out was at 9pm that night. It was tough to say goodbye to the parentals and the beauty of Colorado, but the bagpiper TSA agent helped ease the pain.
It was a wonderful, albeit far too short, weekend. I’m counting down the days until my next trip out.

18 Comments

Filed under beer, beer sampler, beer tasting, brewery, Travel

Tagged as , , , , ,

by | May 24, 2012 · 10:56 pm

WCU: Kegging

Today was an extremely simple day in the brewery: kegging. Previous posts can be found here!
We get the keg order from Calabasas, fill all the kegs they need with all the beer they need, then prep to do deliveries tomorrey.
I also get my tap line/faucet cleaning supplies ready so I can rip everything apart as soon as we arrive.
Then we fill more kegs. Honestly, our weeks are normally busier, but it’s graduation week for Rob’s daughter and we’ve got a bunch of beer festivals to prep for. Today, I was all right with the easy schedule.
I had an extremely light lunch so that I could go out to Ventura with the beautiful Allie to celebrate her 25th birthday!!! Happy birthday, Allie!!!
We’ll have an entire post on the birthday later, but here’s a quick preview of what we may or may not have done…
Tattoos????
No big deal!
Or is it…?

Anyone want to see the after pictures of what we may or may not have gotten? Stay tuned… DUN DUN DUNNNNN!

Comments Off on WCU: Kegging

Filed under brewery, Daily Life

Tagged as , , , , ,