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.

I escaped the heat and smoke last week with a couple trips west. First was a trip to Santa Rosa for a wedding, which included a side trip to Bodega Bay. We hit up two breweries on this trip.

Third Street AleWorks – Santa Rosa
Food: Good. Favorite was the parmesan garlic fries.
Atmosphere: Good. Downtown Santa Rosa is pretty groovy…view is of a big ugly building though. Inside of brewpub is nice.
Beer: Good. We tried the Pale Ale and the IPA. Both were good; nothing mind-blowing though.

We took the long way home and swung through Sacramento for dinner.

Rubicon Brewing Company – Sacramento
Food: Good. Favorite was the spicy BBQ sauce on the Rubi—Q Burger.
Atmosphere: Good. Seating was cramped. Enthusiastic sports fans at the bar. Helpful waitress answered questions about local night life.
Beer: Excellent. We tried the Monkey Knife Fight Pale Ale, their IPA, and the Hop Sauce. I had their IPA at the Brewfest in Chico and it was at least as good at the brewery. The Pale Ale was good as well. The highlight of the trip was the Hop Sauce, a strong ale with a huge variety of hops. It was delicious.

After a couple days at home we headed Northwest to Humboldt County where we visited three more breweries.

Lost Coast Brewery – Eureka
Food: Meh. Nothing really stood out here, nothing was bad but it was all a little boring.
Atmosphere: Great. Cool artwork.
Beer: Good. We tried their wheat, apricot wheat, tangerine wheat, rasberry brown, and the Alleycat (Amber). I usually don’t like fruity beers but I enjoyed their apricot wheat. I would even dare say that I like it better than Pyramid’s apricot brew. The other beers were good as well, though I wasn’t crazy about the other fruity beers. If you haven’t had Lost Coast’s brews before don’t miss the Downtown Brown or the Indica (IPA).

Six Rivers Brewery – McKinleyville
Food: Good. Favorite was the cheese burger. I’m not sure what they spiced it with but it was tasty.
Atmosphere: Good. This seemed to be the townie hangout. The large bar was packed with locals making for a noisy atmosphere. I definitely dug the local vibe.
Beer: Excellent. We tried the IPA, the Raspberry Lamblic, and their strong ale Sasquatch. The IPA was good, nothing too exciting though. The Raspberry Lamblic was a little sweet for me, kinda tasted like Kool-Aid. The Sasquatch was superb. Being from Chico I “accidentally” called it Bigfoot when I ordered it. It is a fairly good comparison though. Although not as aggressively hopped or flavorful as Bigfoot the Sasquatch is just as strong and much smoother. Dangerously smooth for such a strong brew.

Eel River Brewing – Fortuna
Food: Good. Salad and fish were good. Garlic cheese fries were kinda ruined by the mounds of cold shredded cheese.
Athmosphere: Great. Lost of cool old stuff on the walls. Large outdoor garden and dining area. Friendly cats (organic pest control) roamed the grounds. Cool motto: “Be Natural – Drink Naked”
Beer: Only had the chance to try one of their beers, the organic IPA. It was good, nothing too exciting though. Most of their beers are organic.

Mmmmm beer, originally uploaded by dirvish.

Still messing with flickr.