Vindicator

Vindicator as an IPA brewed by the Loomis Basin Brewing Company of Loomis, CA.

I bought this at Capitol Beer and Taproom.

The aroma has light citrus hops. The flavor is all over the place, mostly muted citrus, both fruit and bitter. The finish has light bitter citrus rind, that lingers for a bit. Not much malt flavor. Flat, light/medium bodied.

 

 Not much else to say - Skip It. Boring, faint flavors.

Bison Organic IPA

This Organic IPA is brewed by the Bison Brewing Company of Berkeley, CA.

Apparently, this beer has been retired for several months now. The Bison website doesn't even mention this. So, I have to ask myself how long has the bottle I just bought been sitting on the shelf? I can't tell because there's no date on the bottle.

The bottle also says that each IPA uses a single hop and to check the neck for which hop is in this batch. Nothing there. The bottle also says that the beer is bottled by Bison Brewing of Ukiah, CA. Well, that's BS. Mendocino Brewing Company has the contract to brew their beers and has done so for almost 4 years now - probably the same time this bottle hit the shelf. Mendocino doesn't do a particularly good job within their own beers, so I'm not sure why they'd contract with them.

The beer has zero hop flavor, unless the hops they used produce diacetyl.

Skip It!

Mendocino's 30th Anniversary Single Hop Pale Ale

The 30th Anniversary Single Hop Pale Ale is an American Pale Ale by the Mendocino Brewing Company. As its name suggests this ale celebrates the 30 years of Mendocino being in operation by using the hop that has sustained it - cascade. I found it at Costco.

Mendocino has a close connection to California craft brew history. Two of its early operation managers were the founders of the first modern craft brewery in the United States. Some of my earliest encounters with craft brew included Red Tail Ale, the brewery's flagship beer. Between Red Tail and Sierra Nevada, I got a little preview of what beer could be. If we were lucky Eye of the Hawk could be found. My first homebrew experience was actually based on a Red Tail clone. Unfortunately, in the late 1990's the United Breweries Group bought a majority in Mendocino. The UB Group owns Kingfisher beers.

What changed? I'm not exactly sure, but this post about this 30th anniversary ale says a lot:"Mendocino’s brewery in Saratoga Springs, New York." Glad to see they are keeping it local.

The aroma is mild with slight hints of floral hops and fruit. The taste has pale malts, slight grapefruit hops, and a piney finish. The mouthfeel can be sticky and the body is medium to light.

Overall, its a decent pale ale. However, its a bit disappointing for a brewery that's been around so long. I've heard jokes from brewers about the state of the Mendocino brewing and this beer backs it up. This is a standard pale ale. If you're going to put out a milestone ale focused on one hop, it better be damn good. It better showcase the full flavor profile of the hop. This fails to do so.

Hoppy Ending

 Hoppy Ending is an American Pale Ale by the Palo Alto Brewing Company (PABC). This brewery has varied layers of history and production. Beer Advocate ties PABC to the Fire House Grill & Brewery, but that doesn't reflect the current reality.

The Fire House used to be Stoddard's Brewhouse. Before that it used to be known as the Palo Alto Brewing Company in the mid 1980's. Oddly, the PABC of the 1980's brewed Pete's Wicked Ales for a short time. However, I cannot find a direct connection today between the Fire House and the current PABC other than that history. To complicate the situation, PABC contracts with Hermitage Brewing Company of San Jose to brew their beers.

Essentially, PABC is what is known as a gypsy brewery. They are becoming more common. Labels like Mikkeler and Evil Twin are gypsy breweries. Although I do find it odd that as a gypsy Palo Alto Brewing is named after a static location.

I found this one at the Curtis Park Market in Sacramento. It has an ABV of 5.5%.

The aroma has light pale malts and light stone fruit, The taste has light caramel malt, and a light, bitter citrus rind finish. A swirl in the mouth can coax out some of the stone fruit flavor. The mouthfeel is effervescent with a light medium body.

There's not much flavor to grab on to, but there are no off flavors. The body is where it needs to be for an APA, but nothing stands out. The brewing technique is good, but without a lot of flavor and nothing really unique, I would recommend Skipping It. There's too many pale ales and too many breweries now to put out a flavorless APA.

Dark Night

Dark Night is an Oatmeal Stout by the Santa Cruz Ale Works of Santa Cruz, CA.

I picked this up at Total Wine and More on Arden in Sacramento. It has an ABV of 6%.

The aroma roasted coffee and chocolate. The taste has the roasted, coffee upfront followed by a bitter coffee finish followed by sour note and a metallic, coppery taste. The body is watery for a stout.


Blah, not good. Skip It.

Juggernaut

Juggernaut is a Amber/Red Ale brewed by the Pyramid Brewing, Inc.

I got this in a mixed 12-pack. It has an ABV of 5.6%

The beer pours a deep red color with no head and very little lacings. The aroma has sweet caramel and toffee malts with a hint of muddled citrus hops. The taste has caramel malts and a finish of the muddled hop flavor. It's medium bodied with average carbonation.

Mission Street Hefeweizen

One of my missions on this blog is to find good beer that is inexpensive. They do exist, but can be extremely hard to find, and often you go wrong. But that is why I am here slumming it for you, so you can avoid mistakes like this beer.

Brewed by Steinhaus Brewing Co. (for Trader Joe's, I assume) this beer is from a vagabond label brewed under contract at various breweries. It costs only $1.99 for a 22 oz., so considering it is in the price range of Tecate and Mickey's, it is a decent buy (and much superior to those).

Son of Wrath

Son of Wrath is a Double IPA from the Dust Bowl Brewing Company of Turlock, CA.

I picked this up in a growler from the brewery. It has an ABV of 9.2%

The beer pours a deep amber color with a thin white head that leaves a nice ring and lacings. The aroma has assertive pine and tart citrus with notes of sweet malts. The hops start off subtle, with a balanced hop/malt start followed by a burst of grapefruit, and bitter citrus rind hops. The bitter lingers for a bit.

Overall, it's an okay DIPA. The lingering bitterness could be toned down and the malt backbone strengthened. It's not a unique DIPA, but not a bad one either. For those who really like the bitter bite, you might enjoy Son of Wrath a.k.a. you 395 lovers. If I were at the brewery again, I would Skip It and try another.

Hoptologist

Hoptologist is a Double IPA from the Knee Deep Brewing Company of Lincoln, CA. This is a new brew from Knee Deep it was release in September 2011. Rate Beer and Beer Advocate do not have any reviews for it yet.

I got this on Tap at Dad's Kitchen. It has an ABV of 9%.

Double Nut Brown

Double Nut Brown is an American Brown Ale by the Mammoth Brewing Company of Mammoth Lakes, California.

I bought this at Tower Liquor for $4.99 for a 22oz bottle. It has an ABV of 5.0%

Black Eye Black and Tan Ale

Black Eye Ale is a blended beer in the spirit of a Black & Tan by the Mendocino Brewing Company. It's a blend of their Eye of the Hawk Select and Black Hawk Stout.

Black and Tans were former soldiers brought into Ireland by the government in London after 1918 to assist the Royal Irish Constabulary (They fought the Irish) in their work. They were Irish traitors!

Hoptopia

Hoptopia is a Double IPA from the Hermitage Brewing Company of San Jose. Hermitage is not your normal brewery. They make beers and sodas. They have no physical sit down location. Most of their beers are only available through BevMo. Lastly, Hermitage is a contract brewery - they can make beers for other people.

Cable Car Lager and the Brewery with No Name

Cable Car Lager is an American Adjunct Lager by the Cable Car Brewing Company of somewhere. I say somewhere because its actually hard to track down where this beer is from.

From what I can find, Cable Car use to brew through a contract brewery called City Brewing of LaCrosse, Wisconsin but then changed contractors to Genesee Brewing Company of Rochester, New York. However, the company that contracts with these breweries to make the beers is the Wine Exchange of Novato, California, but they are a distributor. Confused? I am too.

Old Speckled Hen and the Fight for Real Ale

Old Speckled Hen is an English Pale Ale brewed originally by Morland Brewery before being bought out by Greene King. In a certain sense, Greene King is England's version of Budweiser/InBev. Greene King is known for buying out many local breweries, changing recipes and then trying to push out the remaining local brewers from the market.

Wilco Tango Fox Ale

Wilco Tango Fox Ale (WTF) is an American Strong Ale (Although BJCP puts it in the Barley Wine guidelines) by the Lagunitas Brewing Company of Petaluma, California. You may wonder why it's Wilco and not Whiskey. Well, California's Alcohol Beverage Control (ABC) is picky about what can have the word whiskey.

Allagash Dubbel Ale

Allagash Dubbel Ale is a  Belgium Dubbel brewed by the Allagash Brewing Company of Portland, Maine. Allagash was one of the early craft brewers of Belgium-style beers in the US. The Dubbel was their second brew, the first being the Allagash White. All of Allagash's beer are bottle conditioned.

Beautiful Blonde Ale

Beautiful Blonde Ale is an American Blonde Ale by the Knee Deep Brewing Company in Lincoln, California.

I bought this Taylor's Market for $4.99 for a 22oz bottle. It has an ABV of 4.2%

Fool's Gold

Fool's Gold is an American India Pale Ale from the Auburn Alehouse in Auburn, California. The bottle advertises it as a Pale Ale, but this is definitely an IPA or Strong Ale. The tagline for the beer is "The Pale That Packs A Punch" - which stands true with the 7.8% ABV although not necessarily the flavor.