What's Brewing? Local Edition

Here's what's on tap at some of my favorite Long Beach watering holes. Get out there and support local craft beer. 

Timeless Pints, a new brewery that recently opened their doors and their taps to the public is located just behind the Long Beach Airport on the border of Long Beach and Lakewood. The brewery and tasting room is simple, clean, comfortable and inviting. Guests sit in an area within view of the 5BBL system and their four fermenters. The staff was knowledgeable and they were quite happy to talk about the beer with their guests. Their inaugural lineup has some typical and not so typical start up beers.

1) "The Bear Reader" (Huckleberry Oatmeal Stout) This one surprised me; I generally don't like fruit ales especially berry ones, but this stout is actually pretty good. The fruit adds a winey compliment to the dark, bitter chocolate malts and to my palate doesn't come across as fruity at all. My drinking companions were mixed however, one loved it and the other a stout/brown/porter lover found the fruit too overpowering. 

2) "The Expeditious Guest" (Indian Pale Ale).  A well balanced IPA that doesn't challenge the drinker. This IPA would be a great introduction to IPA for those friends who don't like hops. 

3) "A Precarious Proposal" (Amber Ale). Not my kind of beer. I found this one a bit boring and there was something slightly off about it to my palate. But there were plenty of others in the tasting room ordering pints and enjoying it. Try it yourself; I'll save my opinions for another tasting.  

4)  "A Swarm and a Hatter" (Honey Blonde Ale). A clean, refreshing beer, malty and sweet with a bit of hop bitterness. I'd market this as a summer seasonal or a gateway beer for the Bud, Miller, Coors drinkers.

5) "The Good Mannered Belgian" (Belgian Wit) this is their actual Summer Seasonal. An very light wit where the yeast plays the starring role. This was a good beer, but I'd like it a little more dry and tart/sour. Their interpretation was a bit too malty for my tastes and could have benefitted from a bit less base malt and more wheat in the grain bill.    

6) "Timeless Tale" (Pale Ale) Here the brewers shine, this is their best offering. A balanced and tasty pale ale.

I generally don't make up my mind about a brewery or their beers until I've tasted them at least a couple of times. So I'll be visiting Timeless Pints a few more times before I formally review their beer. Unfortunately, Timeless Tale Pale Ale is no longer on tap. It's been replaced with "A Taste of Fate" Red IPA. Something to drink on my next visit.

Beachwood is featuring a great lineup of their house beers right now, including some of my favorites.

1) "Tart Simpson," is back! Delicious, refreshing and slightly sour. A favorite since its first brewing.

2) "James Brown" has been on tap for most of the summer. A malty brown with a surprisingly good hop balance from American hops.   

3) "El Verano" One of my favorite beers this summer. Julian's interpretation of a saison is fantastic. This one has a delicate bit of belgian/farmhouse funk, some wheat, spelt and rye in the malt profile to add body and an herby/spiciness. Plus, the addition of honey helps round out the sweetness without over powering German hops schedule. 

4 )"Breaker"  Beachwood's American/Northwest style pale ale. Heavy dose of Northwest hops and an aggressive drop hop schedule lead to an aromatic and tasty pale ale for those that want something a bit lighter than an IPA.

5) "Hop Tub IPA" this is a West Coast IPA that's designed for hop lovers. The malt sits in the back seat and lets the American hop schedule drive.   

6) "Laurel IPA" another heavily hopped IPA, but this one is more well balanced than the Hop Tub, here the West Coast hops are balanced nicely with a malty sweetness and makes this beer my favorite IPA of the curent line up.  

Along with these they are also pouring 3rd Dimension (Belgian Triple), Oatmonster (Oatmeal Stout), Udder Love (Milk Stout), Kilgore (an American Stout), Knucklehead Red (A Red, Obviously), Glenolongbeach (Scottish 80) and their impressive guest tap list which you can see on their hop cam.