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Hero or Zero?

Posted on November 4, 2014 by Cam Ireland

I recently made a trip to southern California and While in Riverside I visited Heroes Restaurant and Brewery a local brewpub. It is a nice big restaurant and brewery. After entering the building you are facing the keg room behind glass. You can turn left to enter an open dining and huge bar, or choose to turn right and enter an even larger dining room and very long bar. I turned right and pulled up a seat at the bar. As always I ordered a flight of everything Heroes brews and has available on tap.

Keg Cooler-Stainless Steel Nirvana

Keg Cooler-Stainless Steel Nirvana

Heroes Tasters 1My tasting note highlights:

Most Memorable:
~Hopdrama India Pale Ale-Standout-Very nice IPA. Not over the top as some can be, but enough hops to balance the malt.
~Red Tractor Ale-Very nice red with nice caramel sweetness balanced by hop bitterness and flavor.
~Sidewinder Oatmeal Stout-Roasty and smooth. Very nice rich stout with a sliky, dry finish. Very nice.

Good, But Not Unforgettable:
~Boxcar Blonde-Clean, light and refreshing, but not memorable
~Krystal Weizen-Clean, light and a touch of wheat malt in the flavor. Some hops for balance. Good beer.
~Populous American Pale Ale-Good pale ale. A little towards the English side of the style rather than the American with light hop aroma and flavor and a bigger malt backbone.
~Oktoberfest-Malty and clean. Fairly smooth with some caramel maltiness and slightly bitter, dry finish.

Biggest Surprise:
In my opinion the food at Heroes is the highlight. They offer a huge selection and incredible portions. This may be the best pub grub I’ve ever ordered. I guarantee you won’t leave Heroes hungry. I ordered Nick’s Godfather Italian sandwich (Hot and spicy Italian capicola, prosciutto, salami and pepperoni with roasted bell peppers, provolone cheese on a warm French roll) on my first visit. The Hopdrama IPA paired really well with this spicy Italian sandwich. The next day I ordered the Chorizo Burger (50/50 blend of homemade chorizo and ground beef, two fried eggs, imported Spanish ham, pepper jack cheese and chipotle mayo on a potato roll). Oh man that was so good and was the perfect accompaniment to the Red Tractor Ale. FYI, the curly fries are amazing!Heroes Tasters 2

After two visits the verdict is in: the beer was not a zero and the food was the real hero.

Cheers!

Category: Beer Style, Brewery, Brewpubs, Food Pairing |

Cam Ireland

I am a BJCP (Beer Judge Certification Program) National judge. I am also a homebrewer. I love to taste classic styled and outside-the-box beer from around the world, explore craft beer breweries, cook and pair meals with beer and share all of these with anybody that has the same interests.

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Handcrafted Beer Cap Neckwear

32,10,0,70,1
600,600,60,1,3000,5000,25,800
90,150,1,70,12,30,50,1,70,12,1,50,1,1,1,5000
Stone Brewing is located in Escondido, California and is known for hugely hoppy and high octane, malt-rich beers. Stone Brewing Co. was founded in 1996 in San Marcos, CA. The Double Bastard this cap sealed uses huge amounts of hops, but the type of hops used is not released. The necklace shown here was previously crimped on a bottle of Double Bastard Ale. The beer is orange-light brown in color and has a hoppy and malty nose. A mouth full of hop flavor and a rich malt and bitter/dry and finish. The hop types and IBU\'s are \"Classified\" according to Stone Brewing, but the alcohol is plentiful at 11% abv! This artisan piece was handmade using that recycled bottle cap. The cap was domed and filled with 2-row malted barley and caramel malt similar to that malt commonly used in similar beer styles. The malt is set in resin and helps add weight. This is a must have item for beer enthusiasts, craftbeer enthusiasts, Stone Brewing fans, IPA, DIPA fanatics, San Diego beer lovers or anybody that enjoys truly unique, handmade jewelry. Each piece is different as each cap has been treated differently through their travels to my beer fridge. Additionally, each cap reacts differently to the doming process. Cracks and chips may result naturally and add to the unique, unduplicated, rustic character of the finished product. The cap artwork represents the Stone gargoyle logo.
Stone-Double Arrogant Bastard
The beer cap shown here was previously crimped on a bottle of West Coast Double India Pale Ale (DIPA). The beer is orange-copper in color and has a hoppy and malty nose. A mouth full of hop flavor and a bitter/dry and finish. Clean and refreshing even though this beer weighs in at 95 IBUs and 8.1% abv!
Green Flash West Coast Double IPA
The necklace shown here was previously crimped on the bottle of Blue Moon Belgian White. Blue moon uses 2 row barley, white wheat and oats in their grain bill. They also use Valenica orange peel and coriander to give the beer the signature aroma and flavor profile of a traditional Belgian white. The specific gravity is 1.053, IBUs-9 and weighs in at a moderate 5.4% abv. The aroma is malty with a bit of orange. The flavor has a sweet start with a bit of spicy orange flavor and a nicely balanced finish from the hops. The addition of oats provide a smooth, creamy mouthfeel.
Blue Moon Front
This artisan piece was handmade using that recycled bottle cap. The cap was domed and filled with real 2-row malted barley and white wheat used this beer style. The barley and wheat is set with casting epoxy to hold the grain in place and add weight.
Blue Moon Back
Blue Moon beer cap from the side
Blue Moon Side View
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