On tap at Ambulance, amiable medium-bodied collaboration with local Cali brewer, Alpine, surges forth with pink and yellow grapefruit tang as well as lemon-pitted navel orange dryness. Pronounced Citra hop briskness outpaces piney Simcoe and tropical Mosaic hop influence as juicy mango, peach and pineapple undertones reinforce floral-bound grapefruit prominence.
FLAGSHIP LICENSE TO ILL’O
On tap at Ambulance, easygoing Imperial IPA retains crisp citric intrigue as grapefruit, orange, tangerine and clementine overtones pick up sugar-spiced pale malting and pine-needled tingle to contrast astringent herbal hop splotch.
STEEL TOE DISSENT DARK ALE
Consistent dark-roasted full body offers assertive black-malted dark chocolate fudging, coffee-beaned cocoa bittering and tarry hop char to brown-sugared molasses oatmeal base. Mighty mocha insurgence picks up tertiary black cherry, blackberry and black licorice illusions over time.
STEEL TOE SIZE 7 IPA
Soft-toned tropical fruiting encounters cookie dough malts and spiced caramel sweetness before harsh alcohol ethers detract from easygoing nature of Northwest-styled India Pale Ale in the lingered aftertaste. Red ruby grapefruit, Valencia orange, peach, pineapple, nectarine and mango tang provides undeniable fruit splendor over pleasant resinous-pined grassy hop setting.
STEEL TOE RAINMAKER INDIA RED ALE
Musty earthen dankness downplays floral-dusted stone fruiting, mildly pine-hopped citric smudge and light molasses rye breading as dark-roasted caramel malt continuance slowly subsides. Tart apple-cherry-pear musk and recessive orange-pineapple-grapefruit drizzle lightly penetrate the surface.
BENT PADDLE BLACK ALE
Distinct Black Ale (in a can) utilizes freshly ground coffee steeped in cold water to increase dark-roasted black chocolate nuttiness. Sweet cold-pressed ice coffee affluence picks up distant cream-sugared fudging, boldly contrasting oily-hopped black coffee spell and cola-nutty earthen char.
BENT PADDLE HARNESS IPA
Bold winter-seasoned India Pale Ale (in a can) offers moderate piney grapefruit bittering and sweet orange juicing to husky oats-dried rye malting. Sweet rye toasting deepens citric spicing at finish, picking up light pine nut smidge along the way.
INDEED OLD FRIEND HOLIDAY ALE (2015)
Uniquely designed holiday ale brings honey and ginger root adjuncts to spruce-tipped hop freshener, toasted caramel malting and dank cellar musk. Sweet orange peel briskness emerges alongside tertiary black cherry, raisin and fig illusions as well as wintry cinnamon-clove-nutmeg adjuncts at the busy eucalyptus-honeyed citrus finish.
INDEED MEXICAN HONEY IMPERIAL LAGER
Incongruent ‘Imperial Mexican lager’ brings raw-honeyed orange flowering to pastry-like buckwheat malting and complacent floral-citric Amarillo hops. Bordering on cloy due to its cloying sorghum, aspartame and butternut nuances. Subtle lemony orange tartness seems lost.
TIGHTHEAD BOXCAR PORTER
Thin English-styled porter pleats black patent-malted chocolate bittering with sour-milked lactose acidity, molasses-burnt wood char and dried cocoa powdering, retaining peaty soy saucing for better or worse. Light wood char sears latent walnut and cola nuances.
BARLEY JOHN’S OLD 8 PORTER
Gunky Baltic porter pours like coke syrup and maintains smoky dark-roasted mocha malting. Rich burnt molasses muddiness thickens black chocolate, dark cocoa and creamed coffee tones that register above ashen hemp-oiled hop bittering.
BARLEY JOHN’S WILD BRUNETTE WILD RICE BROWN ALE
Confounding wild-riced flagship nut brown brings soggy grain-roasted nuttiness and curious blood-soured mocha opulence to recessive rye malting and mild browned fruiting (desiccated fig, bosc pear, roasted grape, apple rot). Brown rice adjunct sweetens the fruitier aspects and maca-rooted chestnut roast.