Grubulub: dirvish’s Blog

I went to Brew It Up, a brewpub in Sacramento, on Friday. The food was good, but nothing spectacular. I wasn’t too crazy about the beer I tried. I had the Captain Ron’s Imperial IPA and the Orange Blossom Blonde. Neither beer was bad…they just didn’t suit my taste.

I think the problem I had with the IPA is the strong malt flavor. When I order an imperial IPA I expect huge hops. I expect an ale that is totally out of balance in favor of hops. The Captain Ron has big malt to match the over-the-top hops and I’m not really a malt fan; I’m a hop head. This beer was way too balanced for my taste…which is an odd complaint about a beer.

The Blonde had a nice honey taste too it, but again too much malt for my taste which isn’t normally characteristic of a blonde ale.

The most interesting part of Brew It Up is the atmosphere. They have small brew kettles along one whole wall of the restaurant that they were actively using with dining tables just a few feet away. Employees were pumping beer out of one kettle and stirring another while we were there. In the middle of the restaurant they had a large table set up where they mixed ingredients for their beer. In the back, by the bar, they were filling and capping bottles. It was very interesting, if a bit noisy, to watch all this going on around you as you eat. Apparently they have a membership program you can sign up for if you want to learn how to make your own beer in their facility.

Even though the food didn’t blow my mind and I wasn’t crazy about the beers I tried, Brew It Up was still a great experience.