Don’t Be a Taildragger, Flyby Hangar 24
Update-6/23/15 – This just in:
YELP just named Hangar 24 the 8th best place to day drink in the USA!
If you find yourself in Redlands CA, make a point to flyby the Redlands airport and land at Hangar 24. You won’t regret the flightplan. The brewery is in a big converted hangar at the Redlands airport. Despite a remote location the brewery is big and bustling. Lots of visitors and tons of beer.
Hangar 24 supports local growers by brewing various styles of beer with locally grown fruits and vegetables.
Local Field Series:
~Kirschen-Berliner Weiss with Bing cherries
~Polycot-Wheat wine with apricot
~Vinaceous-Old Ale with red wine grapes aged in French oak
~Gourdgeous-Strong Porter with pumpkin
Wednesday night is “Happy Humpday” at Hangar 24 and it is rockin’. We expected a slow afternoon, but found people arriving early to catch the humpday entertainment. This week Naked Walrus was featured. FYI, they were fully clothed.
Standouts for the this round:
~Alt Bier Ale-A 6.0% Anchor Steam (California Common) like style. Good, clean and refreshing.
~Amarillo Pale Ale-5.5% the Amarillo hops popped more than I expected weighing in at 35 IBUs. The first sip kind of snapped at me, but after the initial bite it was quite tasty.
~Essence-8.5% citrus ale that includes locally grown: navel orange, grapefruit and blood orange. The blood orange actually adds a detectable red tint to the beer. Very refreshing for a big 8.5% beer.
~Kirschen-Berliner Weiss with Bing cherries. I love a sour Berliner Weiss and the cherries bring an extra tartness that makes this beer quite quaffable.
~Orange Wheat-This is the beer Hangar 24 is really known for and in the Central Valley the only Hangar 24 we can find. It’s a thirst quenching 17 IBUs and 4.6% abv.
Biggest Surprises:
~An oasis at the end of a remote location at the end of a seemingly deserted dirt road.
~The number of people at the brewery on a Wednesday night. It’s good to see them doing well.
A definite landing spot I’ll include on my flight plan next time I flyby.
Cheers!