Solaris Beer & Blending | Pink Flowers (Rose Petals)

In the face of adversity and trying times, it is always an encouraging sight to witness those who press forward and beat the odds. Solaris Beer & Blending in Murrieta, California, is one of such stories. Though they have no tasting room and are still under construction, the brewery was able to put the proper licensing in place in the midst of a pandemic. And despite having limited weekly releases as their sole income, the quality of Solaris’s offerings are nearly unparalleled, especially given the size of their operation.

One of the first beers Solaris released was Pink Flowers – Rose Petals, part of their Sour & Flower series. This sour golden ale was brewed with rose petals, Turkish apricots, kumquats and conditioned on French oak.
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Brewbies Oceanside 2020 | Event Recap

February 8 marked the much anticipated Brewbies Festival at Bagby Beer in Oceanside, CA. For 11 years, the Brewbies organization has worked to bring breweries and the public together in support of breast cancer awareness. Working with the Keep a Breast Foundation, the festival has donated more than $540,000 to breast cancer research to date.

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Karl Strauss Changing of the Barrels | Event Recap

Every year that a brewery makes a thriving success of brewing more amazing beers, it is an accomplishment not only for themselves, but also for the industry and their patrons. Karl Strauss Brewing Co in San Diego, California, celebrated its 31st anniversary with their Changing of the Barrels event. This anniversary party not only features their flagship lineup but of course also highlights some superb beers that have been sleeping in barrels, awakened specifically for this moment

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Event Preview | 2020 Brewbies Festival

Of all of the beer events that are out there today, only a handful are as important and meaningful and well as educational as Brewbies. Started just about 11 years ago by Melanie (Mel) Pierce, it was the idea to help the community become more educated about breast cancer and checking for early signs while you get to support research foundations fight against the big C. (while of course drinking some rad brews!)

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Karl Strauss & Pure Project Brewing | Murky Poetry

When it comes to beer collaborations, Karl Strauss Brewing has been killing it in the past year. With collaborations like Russian River and Alesmith, not to mention the many others, Pure Project was a welcome addition to their Collaboration Line up with Murky Poetry, a Hazy IPA.

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Dogfish Head | 120 Minute IPA

120 Minute IPA has been on my white whale beer list for a while, up there with Utopias and Pliny the Younger. So when I happened to find a bottle at random in a liquor store near my house, I was extremely surprised and needless to say I bought it immediately. Being I’m on the opposite side of the country from where its made, it’s a rare find for me at least.

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OpenTap | A Beer App That Breaks the Mold

For nearly every beer nerd or active barhopper, they have at least one type of beer-based application on their phone. In most cases, it’s Uptappd, as it’s easily the most downloaded and widely used beer application. But there are others worth taking note of, including another big name, Taphunter. And with the influx of so many craft breweries, it’s hard to keep track of everything. This is where the OpenTap app is trying to change the game a bit. This particular application focuses on only California breweries, so we reached out to the founder to learn more about his unique perspective.

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PorchDrinking’s Best in Beer 2019 | Pacific Region

With the enormous multitude of breweries in California, not including some of our other states in the Pacific region, it comes as no surprise this was a hard list to … Read More

Anchor Brewing | Christmas Ale 2019

Few breweries have the storied past of Anchor Brewing in San Francisco, California. Brewing beer since 1896 and bought by Fritz Maytag in 1969, Anchor has been a staple in brewing history for more than a century. One of their longest-running beers is the seasonal Christmas Ale, available from November to early January.

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The End of San Diego Beer Week 2019

Sunday November 10th’s festivities at Arroyo Terrace of the Lodge at Torrey Pines were the close of this year’s San Diego Beer Week. There were a variety of events at breweries across San Diego to celebrate this year’s event, as well.

The beer scene has changed in San Diego, but the local guild tries to make sure to maintain a “we’re all in this together” community. I discussed some of the reasons why guilds are important to the local brewing scene with San Diego Guild President Matthew Zirpolo.

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The Difference Between Gluten-Free vs Gluten-Reduced Beer

“If someone with a peanut allergy walked into a restaurant and told the chef she/he couldn’t have peanut oil, you wouldn’t hear the chef tell her/him that it’s peanut-reduced and … Read More

Event Recap | Stone DRK Beer Fest

The Stone DRK Beer Fest was set to kick off right at 6 p.m. The grounds of the Stone gardens is beautiful, tranquil and primal. Rocks and boulders are everywhere with the natural landscape coming through between the ponds and small brooks. On the site there are multiple tasting booths, some serving straight from bottles, other serving from keezers and kegerators, and of course one of the bars.

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SDBW Event | Ladies Arm Wrestling at Kairoa Brewing

Entering Kairoa Brewing a bit early, there is a full stage and decorations for the special Pink Boot Society fundraising event. Brewer still on deck from a long BrewDay the … Read More

Ultimate 6er | Goses & Other Lip Puckering Treats

While searching the aisles of my local beer store, I thought about what types of beers do people want to hear about? Stout season is coming, and so is porters, browns and the big guns like barleywines and barrel-aged everything. But, not everyone likes those types of beers. So what are some easy drinkers that many people will enjoy but don’t see this time of year? The selection of sours I tried was on point, and I quickly realized how many interesting smaller sours are not that tart, but people will set it aside for the simple reason of what section it is. So here’s a list of delicious brews that only have a little acidic bite, but pack a great amount of flavor!

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Event Preview | Stone Brewing DRK Beer Festival

Friday November 8th, Stone Brewing Headquarters in Escondido, CA will be hosting the DRK Beer Festival. Over the years this festival has gone by different names including Oakquinox … Read More

Resident & Moksa Brewing | Baby Sips Pastry Stout

Baby Sips, a “pastry stout,” is a new Imperial Stout from Resident Brewing, in collaboration with Moksa Brewing and Mostra Coffee. This is a very limited release of only about 350 bottles. There will also be a release party on Friday, November 1st where the collaboration will be on tap for patrons to try out!

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Event Preview | San Diego Beer Week

There is nothing better for the local community of beer lovers in San Diego than San Diego Beer week! Although advertised as a “week,” this year it will take place over the course of 10 days, November 1-10, all throughout San Diego. For the most comprehensive list of events, pairings, beer releases and dinners, go to the SDBW website, but here we’re going to be talking about some of the cool events happening, where they will be and then you can decide which ones you are going to try and make! Be sure to check if events are ticketed, shown by 🎫 Read More

Learn to Homebrew Day is November 2

In 1999, Learn To Homebrew Day was established by the American Homebrewers Association to promote the most rewarding, and delicious activity of all time — homebrewing. This is what is written on the AHA’s website about this event. It is a day that many homebrewers the world around have come to their local homebrew stores or friends or even the internet to learn the hobby that you can literally drink to! 

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Beer Event | Collabapalooza Recap

This past weekend was one of the most highly rated beer festivals in Southern California: Collabapalooza. The ethos of the beer festival is a sense of community within the beer industry–in most cases, all of the breweries involved were friends with each other and the brewers were all trying each other’s beer while talking shop. As we got to talk to several breweries in the preview article on the beers they were bringing, we got to experience the selection of a ridiculous tap list contributed by all the breweries. Here are some standouts.

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Collabapalooza Beer Fest Returns to San Diego

Collabapalooza is one of the top-rated beer festivals in southern California. On Saturday, October 19, more than 30 breweries will overtake the backlot of NorthPark Observatory to showcase a plethora … Read More