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Tasting Room

Brooklyn Breweries – Folksbier and KCBC

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Folksbier

I had not heard of Folksbier before the day I visited Other Half. I had planned to meet up with another beer fan. While things didn’t work out, he suggested Folksbier for after Other Half. Since it was just a short walk down the street and not as hyped, I happily stopped by after leaving Other Half.
Folksbier serves food and has more of an upscale vibe to it than Other Half. I immediately ordered the Berliner Weisse, as I have been craving a satisfying version for some time. This particular version was made with a blend of multiple citrus fruits. The citrus gave it a lovely tart flavor but didn’t overpower the complex base beer, which was a nice mix of funky and tart. I enjoyed this beer so much that I ordered two pours before I left.
After the first beer I was ready for a lager and trusted the Helles would be excellent. The helles was so good my only disappointment is I didn’t immediately order a full 14 ounce pour. The beer was soft and delicious with notes of hay and citrus. The only other beer that came close in flavor during this trip was the Foeder aged pilsner from Threes brewing.
Since I didn’t get to try their IPAs during my stop, I don’t know if they were any good but I would especially recommend this spot to those looking to try traditional styles, the opposite of Other Half’s hyped hazy IPAs and pastry stouts.
Known For: Come to Folksbier for classic German styles done well. They also have a few hoppy beers.

KCBC

KCBC is short for Kings County Brewers Collective. I made the trek out because they came highly recommended by a friend and were not far from Grimm. (It is about a mile walk between the two). I started with their lager, which was fairly standard but good enough. The beer had a nice soft body but didn’t have the same level of flavor as the helles the previous day, perhaps due to a lower amount of hops used.
I next ordered their beer called Iceberg Zombie, a Berliner Weisse with tons of berry character. I found this the more impressive of the two. The beer had prominent berry acidity and a nice dry finish. It had just the right amount of fruit so as to not overpower the base beer but also not so subtle you barely notice it.
I liked the fairly open tasting room though even at half capacity it got quite noisy. They had a wide variety of cans available. Though I could have gotten a crowler of Iceberg Zombie, I’m glad I didn’t because I had quite a bit of walking ahead of me.
Known for:
KCBC is known for their big double IPAs but they also can make an excellent fruited Berliner weisse.

Paul McGuire

Paul McGuire is a craft beer enthusiast. He likes to travel with his husband and enjoy the great outdoors. In his day job, Paul is a divorce attorney serving clients in San Diego California.

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Other Half Brewing Revisited 2019

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I previously visited Other Half during a visit to NYC during June of 2017 in which I also visited Kane and LIC Beer Company. Since that visit I have had Other Half beer at a few beer festivals. I have been impressed every time both by the incredible triple IPAs and barrel aged stouts. Most recently I enjoyed Other Half’s beers at a festival organized by Horus Aged Ales and Hop Culture. This introduced me to the triple daydream series, which I did not realize at the time meant they added lactose to the beer. It was much more subtle than the usual addition.
I was glad to see that during the time I was going to be in Brooklyn this year Other Half was likely to have cans available of Triple Mosaic Daydream and DDH Citra Daydream. I was not surprised one bit when the tasing room was packed on a Friday night. It seems to be packed most nights but especially around the weekends. Prepared for that, I ordered tasters of two triple daydreams that I did not plan to pick up in cans (Nelson and Citra) and enjoyed those tasters before leaving with my four packs of cans. Though I generally avoid tasters at breweries now, Other Half is one of the few spots where the triple IPAs are priced the same per ounce for tasters as for half pours.
Both Nelson and Citra triple daydreams were incredible and burst with hop flavors that I expect when I hear of those two hops. Triple Nelson Daydream reminded me of some recent Nelson hop beers from Cellarmaker. Triple Citra Daydream was similar with a slightly more citrus forward character. Both beers were thick and creamy with just a hint of sweetness from the lactose. Note: from rumors I have read, it is difficult to tell if the lactose used in beers is from actual cow milk or simply synthetic sweetener. The amount used in these beers is fairly minimal compared to other big stouts that use the same type of lactose. If the addition of any amount of lactose bothers you, then you might want to avoid visiting Other Half.
Though Other Half had a few stouts available, none of them were barrel aged so I stuck to the two daydreams I ordered and left shortly after that to another nearby brewery. I could only stand so much of the boisterous and somewhat claustrophobic atmosphere. Despite the crowds, I was glad to see that the limits of the cans had gone up since my last visit, though I would be unlikely to leave with more than 4 four packs from a spot unless I planned to uber back.
After leaving the brewery, I have enjoyed cans of both of the beers I picked up. I also shared a few cans with friends, including one who resisted the idea of wanting to try a triple IPA. Both beers lived up to my expectations. This is the one brewery whose triple IPAs I crave and jump at the chance to try. The triple mosaic daydream was similar from the can to the other two mentioned above but tended more towards notes of ripe melon.
Other Half remains one of my top 5 hazy IPA breweries in the country years after my previous trip. It is no wonder that their beers are still regularly traded. Their beers deftly highlight the flavors of hops that drew most people into the hazy/juicy IPA style in the first place.
Known for: Come to Other Half if you love hazy IPAs or big pastry stouts. Those are the two styles they excel at the most.

Paul McGuire

Paul McGuire is a craft beer enthusiast. He likes to travel with his husband and enjoy the great outdoors. In his day job, Paul is a divorce attorney serving clients in San Diego California.

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Portland Oregon Breweries – Von Ebert and Little Beast

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Von Ebert

Thanks to a tip from Jeff Alworth (known on Twitter and elsewhere as Beervana) I had Von Ebert on my list of spots to visit while in Portland. Since I had a day in Portland, I decided to visit a few Portland breweries after Pfriem rather than exploring other Hood River spots. Von Ebert has a massive indoor spot with tons of seating. As one might expect from the size, it gets loud quickly and can be a bit chaotic.
I ordered a very interesting sounding beer first, a smoked rye beer aged on coffee. In the wrong hands this beer could be overly smoky, have prominent rye character, or too much coffee. The beer was perfectly balanced with subtle notes of smoke, a mild rye bite, and light nutty coffee on the finish. I would have ordered a crowler of this beer to go but they ran out shortly after I finished my pint.
I finished with their dark lager, a traditional German style beer that I love when it is done well. The beer was a bit thicker and more chocolate forward than the traditional style but quite delicious; It had prominent notes of dark chocolate and raisins. I hope to visit Von Ebert again on a future trip. The two beers I tried indicated that the brewers are quite talented.

Little Beast

I decided to leave Von Ebert after two pints and made my way to Little Beast, where they had a variety of delicious sour and wild ales on draft. Little Beast is much smaller than Von Ebert, and has a more intimate vibe with a small bar area and some surrounding seating.
I started with a full pour of Field Folk, a brett saison. The beer was dry and balanced, with prominent brett funk and mild citrus notes. I then got a few half pours so I could try more styles. The Ferme Rouge was lovely with notes of cherry, mildly tart, with low acidity. It was nicely balanced and easy drinking. The Dutchy was a lovely restrained aged sour with notes of cherry and dark chocolate. My husband surprisingly enjoyed this one. The Belgian dark strong was thick with notes of chocolate. I would have preferred this to be less dry, but it was solid.
I really enjoyed tasting the beers at Little Beast and was glad to see how restrained in acidity some of the sours were. They are worth checking out for fans of Belgian styles and sours.

Paul McGuire

Paul McGuire is a craft beer enthusiast. He likes to travel with his husband and enjoy the great outdoors. In his day job, Paul is a divorce attorney serving clients in San Diego California.

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Bow and Arrow Brewing Company – Albuquerque New Mexico

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I first heard about Bow and Arrow thanks to an article about diversity in beer in the New York Times. I was impressed by their story and also their commitment to quality barrel aged sours. I visited the brewery in chilly February and it had snowed just a few days before we arrived, leaving snow on the ground. The tasting room is a fairly standard mid-sized tasting room, complete with a loud echo and communal tables.
I started with a full pour of their brett saison. It was super dry with notes of dry white wine, mild funk, and nicely balanced. They also had a brett IPA that I didn’t try as you had to buy a bottle to taste it. I moved on to Desert Revival, their raspberry barrel-aged sour. My friend already had a pour before I arrived but I wanted to enjoy a full pour myself. The beer was super dry with mild oak, medium raspberry and a mild bitter finish. It was an excellent example of what I would expect of the style and better than most newer breweries tend to release.
I tried taster of their churro stout, made with actual churros and spices. My husband drank most of it but from what I tasted it was solid. The beer was prominently sweet with a medium body and a nice balance of spices. It has been a while since I had a churro but it reminded me of the flavor including some of the dough flavors. I ended with the house amber. It was mildly hopped with a crisp dry finish and a mild bitterness. Hops were used primarily as bittering instead of aroma, letting the malts shine.
Overall Bow and Arrow was quite impressive and well worth the visit if you are in the Albuquerque area. I didn’t try their IPAs so if you are looking more for that style you might find more to love at La Cumbre or Bosque.
Top 2: 
Brett Saison
raspberry sour

Paul McGuire

Paul McGuire is a craft beer enthusiast. He likes to travel with his husband and enjoy the great outdoors. In his day job, Paul is a divorce attorney serving clients in San Diego California.

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San Jose Breweries – Hermitage and Lazy Duck

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I have been through San Jose a few times before but every time I end up drinking beers from breweries outside the area. I go for breweries that are worth taking a separate trip to visit. On my most recent trip, I had planned to visit Lazy Duck as a stop on the way to the airport but due to some changes, I ended up visiting both Hermitage and Lazy Duck in the same day. Both breweries are considered by the locals I have spoken with to be the best in the area.

Hermitage

I started at Hermitage mostly because it was further South and I had lunch South of San Jose that day. I was the first visitor of the day, which is not surprising for a Sunday especially on a chilly day where rain was forecast. The place filled up over time as people came by to drink and fill growlers. The tasting room space is fairly standard open warehouse style. They had a wide variety of beer styles but I had heard of them mostly for their sours, so I tried two of those before moving on to the next spot.
The Cherry Rocinante was an excellent delicious Flanders style red with cherry. This is a traditional Belgian style sour red ale that is common to see at breweries. This version was a cloudy dark reddish brown with prominent cherry and a dry tart finish. The beer had mild notes of vinegar and hints of caramel. Many of the other sours served at Hermitage were high alcohol, over 9%. I decided to stick to a 5oz pour of Eurynome, sour stout, which clocked in at over 11% alcohol.
Euronome was a delicious dark sour with tons of dark chocolate, notes of dried cherries and currants and a mildly tart finish. I would not have guessed from drinking this beer that it was so strong. It hides the alcohol quite well. Based on my short visit to Hermitage, I expect I will return when I am next in the area. The two sours I had suggest to me that they know how to make a quality barrel aged sour.
Known for:
Though Hermitage had a variety of beers, they are best known for their barrel aged sours. I didn’t try their other styles.

Lazy Duck

When I walked into Lazy Duck, I was surprised by the appearance of the brewery. It was by far one of the roughest looking tasting rooms I have visited including back when Alesmith hadn’t put much money into their old tasting room some 7 or 8 years ago, and even more so than my first visit to Lightning before they had a tasting room. Lazy Duck had sheets and cardboard paneling blocking off the tasting room from the brewing area. Also, when we approached the brewery, my husband pointed out that the area we had entered did not appear as if it was very well maintained. Despite all that, I followed the advice of my fellow beer enthusiasts and ordered some of their beer.
The first question I asked the beer tender was whether any of the sours were barrel aged. I was told that they are not barrel aged but are also not kettle sours. They are quick fermented in the stainless steel tanks. After having visited Hermitage and reading that the sours here were the best in town, I had to give them a taste.
I started with the strawberry sour, which to me didn’t taste much like strawberry. It was nicely balanced with prominent acidic tart and a soft carbonation. If this was the only sour I had of the day, I would have left disappointed. On the recommendation of someone sitting at my table, I tried the raspberry sour next. This was much closer to what I would have expected, with tons of acidic raspberry flavor and a nice underlying funk. I can see why this beer would get people to come visit such a small tasting room.
My husband had the imperial stout with maple and coffee. He initially noted how it seemed quite boozy, reminding him of a barrel aged stout. After some of the Strawberry sour, I gave the stout a taste and found it to be below average. The beer had prominent notes of dark cherry and overall tasted more like Dr. Pepper with a hint of licorice at the finish. I wouldn’t have expected the sour cherry flavor or licorice flavor in a maple coffee stout. I suspect some of their sour yeast got into the stout and it got sour over time.
While Lazy Duck made some decent sours, I personally would sooner return to Hermitage.
Known for: Come if you like quick sours with lots of fruit flavor. None so far are barrel aged.

Paul McGuire

Paul McGuire is a craft beer enthusiast. He likes to travel with his husband and enjoy the great outdoors. In his day job, Paul is a divorce attorney serving clients in San Diego California.

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