There are few better ways to shed the worries of a long work day than heading to your local brewery’s tasting room to enjoy a pint or two and get a meal from the food truck parked outside. While I am far away from the Pacific Northwest working in Orange County, California, my definition of local brewery has to be a bit malleable, but the point is still valid. After putting in a full day at the office, my friend Robert and I headed over to Placentia to experience The Bruery firsthand.
I have only been able to find Hottenroth and Orchard White in bottles in Spokane, but I was happily impressed with each sample. When the opportunity arose to visit the location from which these great beers emanated whilst putting my lips to a pint (this case, goblet) of some of their rarer, tasting room-only selections, I jumped at the chance.
We arrived to a pretty full house, but a discussion with a local revealed that it was actually a tame night. A phenomenon unfamiliar to me but it is starting to catch on, even in Spokane: individual food trucks have a following. The Bruery never hurts for customers, but I was told that adding a first-rate food truck outside will get the place absolutely hopping. Robert and I shimmed our way through the queue while discussing the different styles on tap that evening and by the time we reached the bar, I had settled on the pilot batch of Iniquitous Belgian Golden Strong.
With nary a place to sit, we found a purchase of floor to stand on and I raised glass to mouth. Upon the heavenly liquid hitting my tongue, I was immediately overcome with euphoria and awe while being forced to admire this fine beverage at arm’s length. Being a few years into appreciating full and unique flavored craft beers, a reaction such as that is becoming exceedingly rare, so I am all the more appreciative when I am struck in such a way.
One aspect of the tasting room I really enjoyed was that it was situated essentially in the middle of the production floor of the brewery. Beer aging in barrels on one side and a full view of the brewing floor on the other made for an enjoyable evening. The Argentinean food truck with tofu tacos was fantastic as well, but in short order, I was in need of a second beer. I decided to compare oranges to oranges and tried the Mischief production run Belgian Golden Strong. Amazingly tasty, but the Iniquitous had stolen my heart. Just before 10pm (it is just a tasting room), the bartenders yelled out last call, so we decided to call it a night.
Saturday afternoon found me with a couple hours to kill, so I decided to head over to Cismontane Brewing just a couple of blocks from my sister’s house in Rancho Santa Margarita. Having just opened in April and being located in one of the countless strip malls in the OC, I had set my expectations slightly lower than The Bruery, but that cynical hedging of bets was not warranted. Although humble in their surroundings, Cismontane makes some solid brews. Highlights for me included Blacks Dawn, its little brother Small Palm Coconut Small Beer (brewed from the second runnings of the Blacks Dawn), the California Common brewed with German yeast and El Modena Mild, which I had to get a pint of after the flight of tasters.
Owner/brewer Ross was manning the taps behind the bar and with just a couple regulars on hand providing interspersed and only momentary distractions, we ended up having a lengthy, nerdy conversation about beer styles, trends, marketing, brewing techniques, etc. Ross was even kind enough to pour me tasters of a couple pilot batches and give me a short tour of the brew floor. Cismontane is utilizing open fermentation, so it was cool to climb the step ladder and lift the lid, even if it was empty.
After I finished the line of tasters, I needed a glass of water but all too soon I was heading back to my sister’s house and my Orange County beer adventures drew to a close. I purchased a shirt from both establishments and I will be excited to don them as I travel cross country to South Dakota over the next week. I have taken the time to write down every brewery between Spokane and South Dakota that we could possibly nip in for a pint, so my nation-wide local brewery exploration will continue soon.
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