* DISCLAIMER*
Grab yourself a good craft brew cause continuing further without one may cause extreme thirst.
A little hungover from the previous night's escapades, however only slightly because we ended up laying our heads down nice and early around 10PM. (We had two more breweries we could have visited the night before.) However, last time in San Diego we discovered that Old Town has the cure for a mean hangover. That place is called Casa Guadalajara. Their homemade tortillas and to-die-for Machaca, which is a heavenly blend of generous amounts of carne asada, egg, onions and peppers. The spice and substance of a breakfast here cure any ails your stomach may have left over from the previous evening. Breakfast options aside, we needed to find ourselves a sampler set to enjoy!
It was a bright and early 9 AM and the first brewery up to bat was the La Jolla BrewHouse. As we exited our car the rain began to come down, more on that later. Entering the tiny BrewHouse we noticed that we were now customers #2 & #3 for the day. Still warming up to the cool air that blew in overnight we snuggled up to the bar and began sampling five more of San Diego's famous beers. La Jolla BrewHouse, which gets our vote for best brewery logo, was one of the smaller locations we visited throughout San Diego. The first beer we sampled was their Blond, a very light refreshing beer was a nice kickoff to the day. Following were the Mr. Brown and Stout, both were heavy in the malt department but not so much to make them not drinkable. The next two proved to be our favorite beers at La Jolla. First was their Kahlua Stout, providing the backdrop was their previously sample Stout but this time with a little kick care of the popular coffee liquor Kahlúa. My favorite was their Holiday Trippel they had available. While in (usually) beautiful La Jolla, we decided to head down the street to take in the beaches and Pacific shores in this fabled town.
The aftermentioned rain had now subdued to a light drizzle so we forced ourselves out into the cold windy Children's Pool area of La Jolla, known for their harbor seal reserve. We took a walk out on their seawall to take this picture you see on the right. However, the seas were a bit rough that day (as documented by this picture).While all the way out on the seawall we snapped a couple pictures including both those shown, then we noticed the seas were starting to slam the wall with water beginning to splash onto its walkway. Quickly trying to put the camera safely back into its case a wall of water creeps over our backs, overhead and the moment we get the camera back in the case fills halfway with ocean water and we become drenched head to toe. Thankfully we had been wearing several layers of clothing to deal with the stifling winds and we could cope on our walk back to the car for a change of clothes. Needless to say we were ready for another round on our way back to Los Angeles.
Next up ... this year's Great American Beer Festival winner for "Large Brewpub and Large Brewpub Brewer of the Year," Pizza Port Carlsbad. While I was slightly underwhelmed by their location and internal setup their beer did anything but disappoint. While in an atmosphere akin to a bingo hall with numbers and names being called out every minute, we sat up at the bar and tried out five of their fine offerings. While sampling a some of their Beer Buddies and a pint of their aptly named Carlsbad Chronic Amber Ale, a beer that used to feature hemp seeds, we began sampling four other Pizza Port beers. We enjoyed their Shark-Bite Red Ale, Nightrider Imperial Stout, Carlsbad Creme Ale, and our favorite Plant-to-Pint Wet Hop Pale Ale. We loved the beers at Pizza Port but the atmosphere was more appropriate for a soccer team than a couple looking for craft brew and smart conversation. Pizza Port Carlsbad were very successful at this year's Great American Beer Festival. Check out the awards that they brought home to North County San Diego:
| Brewery | Beer | State | Medals | Category |
| Pizza Port Carlsbad | Beech Street Bitter | CA | Gold | English-Style India Pale Ale |
| Pizza Port Carlsbad | Revelations | CA | Gold | Belgian Style Strong Specialty Ale |
| Pizza Port Carlsbad | Cow Stout | CA | Gold | Sweet Stout |
| Pizza Port Carlsbad | Reed's Wee Heavy | CA | Gold | Scotch Ale |
| Pizza Port Carlsbad | 547 Haight - The Toronado San Francisco's 20th Anniversary Imperial Red Ale | CA | Silver | Imperial Red Ale |
| Pizza Port Carlsbad | Good Grief Brown | CA | Bronze | English Style Brown Ale |
| Pizza Port Carlsbad | Great American Brown | CA | Bronze | American Style Brown Ale |
We considered making this the last stop but after sampling so many beers we had to keep going if we could. We had the option of two additional Pizza Port locations or Breakwater Brewing Company in Oceanside. Having experienced some of what Pizza Port had to offer we decided it was best to visit a new brewery altogether and visit Breakwater. While at most breweries you'll notice that their brewmaster tends to sway towards specifics styles, flavors or ingredients to steer their family of beers. Usually those are hops, malts or occasionally spices that only hint towards a deeper flavor. Well, that's not the case at Breakwater Brewing Co. here their brewmaster has a love affair with ... wait for it ... honey. Yes, honey. While well known in particular styles and has been used as a brewing additive for centuries, honey is by no means new in beer. However what is new is the fact that at Breakwater honey isn't used slightly or in one style but in every single one of their beers. Those brews are: Hibiscus Hefe, Hill Street Honey, Breakwater Braggot, Redtide Honey, Seagaze Golden Creme, Mick Irish Stout, Brussels Belgian Gold, Homegrown Strong Ale and our favorite Cascade Pale Ale. We enjoyed some and most of their beers but we were a little offput by the prevalence of honey in every beer there.
So if you've been keeping track between the two articles that is 48 beers in about 28 hours. Please don't think that we drastically over-indulged on our trip. Almost all but three beers were three to four ounce samplers that were split between two full-grown adults. Spread across two days, six square meals featured a full night's rest and brewery visits usually spaced at least an hour apart our booze-filled adventure was actually not all that intoxicating. What the uninitiated do not understand about craft brew is that those who enjoy it seek not the intoxication but the appreciation of an artisans fine work on the palate. More and more craft breweries are being accepted as members of the fine food universe as seen by Stone Brewing Co.'s involvement in the three Beer vs. Wine dinners proving that beer can pair with food just as well, if not better than wine can. Beer has won two of three dinners. Please stay tuned as I chronicle our Vegas Brew Tour recently experienced with an out of town friend. For more on the breweries featured in both articles and the other breweries of San Diego County visit the San Diego Brewers Guild website.
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