Category: Food Pairing

Old Guardian – New Love

Stone Brewing Old Guardian Barley Wine is an ale that weighs in at 11.6%ABV and 80 IBU’s. With every sip I am thinking about saving this for winter. I picture myself sitting around a fire pit or in front of the fireplace trying to get warm inside and out. This is a big, high octane beer, so enjoy in moderation…or …Read more »

Hangar 24 Orange Wheat

Redlands, CA is home to Hangar 24 Craft Brewery. A great venue and a cool vibe. The brewery is located at the Redlands Airport inside a converted hangar…hangar 24. They have 20+ beers on tap. A huge outside beer garden to enjoy your flight alfresco. Hangar 24 is best known for their Orange Wheat. 100% locally grown oranges are used …Read more »

Hero or Zero?

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 …Read more »

Lagunitas DayTime…Anytime

I took the midday Session IPA (4.65% abv) challenge made by the Lagunitas website and poured a DayTime with lunch. I still had a ton of crap to do. The pour was a bright straw color with a huge, long-lasting, white head. As the head subsided Belgian lace clung to the side of the glass as though refusing to leave. …Read more »

Hobgoblin – Trick or Treat ?

Hobgoblin was a surprise for me. I was expecting a trick of cloyingly sweet treacle flavored old ale and instead sipped a refreshing ESB. Hobgoblin pours a beautiful ruby-brown with a big creamy tan head. Dark fruit, caramel malt, toffee and chocolate pervade the nose. A faint earthy, nutty, grassiness, hop aroma and even a whiff of Fall fireplace smoke …Read more »

Homebrew-Imperial Red Rye

Oh such sweet sorrow… The last glass of my homebrewed Imperial Red Rye. Big, bold, malty and hoppy. This guy weighed in at 8.5% abv and 80 IBUs. The aroma is big with citrus and pine immediately followed by a malty almost roasty nose. The flavor strikes the palate as malty sweet at the start and immediately shows the character …Read more »

Sierra Nevada’s 30th Anniversary Ale

It was difficult to part with any of this Sierra Nevada 30th Anniversary Black Barleywine Ale for my 4th of July brine. At 10.2% abv and as big and rich and hoppy as it was, 22oz was more than I needed. Happy 4th of July!!!

Unexpected Summertime Pairing

Wow, what a pleasant surprise! A little out of character I ordered dessert after dinner tonight. I usually save the calories for an after dinner barley wine or some kind of big, imperial deliciousness. I went for the Key Lime pie. I love the tart bite and balanced sweetness the lime delivers to the palate. I had just ordered a …Read more »

BĂșn and Ba Ba

While exploring new restaurants in Oakland California we stopped in at Le Cheval. A great restaurant with a large and varied menu specializing in Vietnamese cuisine. Excellent food. Saigon Export and Saigon “33” Export (Sometimes called “ba ba”. Ba is three in Vietnamese) seemed like the making for a perfect Vietnamese pairing. I have to say that both were not …Read more »

Thai Food and Beerlao

Beerlao is the national beer of Laos. Thai food and beer from Laos. The pairing worked pretty well, but I prefer Singha with my Thai food. The 5% abv Beerlao lager is a light golden color with a frothy white head. I noted a faint buttery nose with no hop aroma. I detected a grainy flavor that detracted from an …Read more »

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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