MAXED OUT: the End of the World brewery tour

Interested in how to run a brewery tour? Then avoid making the following mistakes. We kid, we kid! Remember: you were forewarned - Max dishes the gory details on last Saturday's brewery tour. Maximus..?



What’s the good word my fans of fermentation? Welcome back to the Max Show and thanks for joining. As many of you know, this past Saturday I put together a brewery tour and today I’m here to tell ya all about it. Imma just gonna jump right in. Boom!


I’m so glad we all survived Armageddon but I honestly wouldn’t have known if the Rapture had come as I was passed out cold at 6 o’clock this past Saturday evening. Sos, every three months I put together a brewery tour in which a large group of us jump on a stretch limo bus and explore the different San Diego Breweries and, of course, get completely obliterated. This was our third attempt and, if I do say so myself, our finest showing. We started at my humble little beer bar, Hoffer’s, at 10 o’clock in the A.M. (I know, completely ridiculous) with a pizza party, beers and forty friends and strangers alike. We then piled onto the largest limo bus that San Diego had to offer, complete with our own personal bano and two stripper poles. And of course everyone came bearing gifts in the form of BEER!

We left Hoffer’s around 11:15 and headed north to Port/Lost Abbey, about a 45 minute drive away in San Marcos, which was just enough time for everyone to crush a couple more beers before noon. Hey, it was 5 o’clock somewhere!

Lost Abbey is the sister company of Port Brewing and they have a beer called Judgment Day, which is a 10.5% ABV Belgian Quad and quite tasty. So in honor of the Rapture they threw a “Judgment Day Party” complete with beer specials, free shwag, raffles throughout the day and an Armageddon costume contest. The only problem was that we showed up as the doors opened, so the festivities hadn’t really started yet. Everyone was still enjoying themselves to the plethora of beers that were on tap, and in checking out the enormous brewery (my personal favorite in San Diego.) But as the fearless leader I decided to make a last minute change of plans and add another brewery stop to our list. Onward and upward to BALLAST POINT!


Maxed Out and Beers with Demo have a good friend that recently got a job as a beertendress at Ballast Point’s primary brewing facility up in Scripps Ranch and she had asked that we make a stop by the bar on our tour.

Being the obliging, upstanding gents we are, we threw them in the mix. This brewery is not the biggest or best brewery on the planet but I have it on good authority that they are soon expanding into a much larger establishment. And they really do have some damn fine beer. Most people enjoyed a beverage or two (as of course, yours truly did) and some just hung out on the lawn out front so they didn’t get tooooooo wasted. Good call kids! I did a little of both as I felt it my duty to glad-hand a bit. But all-in-all, I felt it was a good decision to change it up a little and check out another San Diego brewery. Thanks Ballast, you guys rock! Where shall we go next? Did you say Alesmith? Ok, we can do that.


Alesmith is a short jaunt from Ballast Point and was on our original itinerary. They are also my personal favorite San Diego brewery (a discussion for another time.) So we unload 40 drunk bastards for the third time and rock the ‘Ale’ out of ‘Alesmith.’
That’s right, they are now only known as ‘Smith Brewing Co.’ This brewing facility is my second favorite to Port/Lost Abbey as the staff is friendly, the drinks are divine, and the place is just big enough to handle the masses that ascend? every Saturday afternoon.

We went there on the last tour but I felt as though it would be a nice addition for the virgins to the tour. Horney Devil was on tap and I am exactly that, so I indulged in several of the tasty libations for the hour that we were there. And at 11% ABV, let’s just say that I was feeling good when we were done with this joint. Where to next? Let’s try a change of pace, shall we?

This is the first time that I had added a beer bar to the list and what better place to go than the place with the best tap line-up in San Diego? Toronado is located in the heart of North Park, on Lincoln and 30th street and for the most part, features California brews. This is where the tour becomes a little foggy. I was so anxious and fearlessly leading that I only had one slice of pizza, which turned out to be a bit of a mistake. I did have a couple of Alpine’s Pure Hoppiness, which at 8.5% ABV might have just been a bit too much. Wudareyagunnado? So after a half hour or so half of the brewery tour contestants piled on the bus and headed back to Hoffer’s while the rest of us stayed and continued pounding beers. This was at about 4 o’clock in the P.M. and I had been drinking since 10. Nap time!

All in all I think most people had a GREAT time. You are all invited to the next tour which will be held on August 6th. Breweries to be visited have yet to be decided, and a sign up date has also yet to be decided but stay tuned on Beers with Demo and Maxed Out. I will give you all a heads up for sure. And if you do want to join, any suggestions or recommendations for the breweries that you’d like to visit would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for reading, thanks for joining in - comments below, on Facebook, or at maxamilliondollars@gmail.com. Next week I will be addressing some of the comments that you all have posted, and ya never know, I might just jump into the forth beer on my top ten favorite beers of all time!

Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me.






(ed. note: Stripper poles, beers and pizza at 10 in the morning - we don't know what dude is talking about.... Our top 3 San Diego breweries: 1) Pizza Port 2) Alpine Brewery 3) Alesmith... We would like to nominate Iron Fist Brewery up in Vista for as a stop on the next brewery tour)

MAXED OUT: Late Night

So what do the Cosby Show, chocolate stouts and terry cloth all have in common? You're about to find out.

How do you do my people? It’s late and I’m tired so I’m here to give
you a brief description of a good late night beer after a long hard
day of drinking and/or working. If my eye lids allow me to, that is.

So what does one drink after a long night of partying or working? I
have a great idea! A BEER! Some peoples out there like to indulge
with a nice glass of wine. Others with a chilled glass of scotch. I
say phewey! Do yourself a favor and go for the good stuff. Beer is
the way to go right before bedtime.

Reason numero uno that beer is the right decision: lower alcohol
content. Let’s not get all hammered right before bedie-boo. I’m not
really looking to get crunked, but sometimes I just need something to
ease the nerves before I lay my head down to sleep, ya know? A glass
of scotch and I don’t even get to “Call me Ismael.” Just sayin’.

Numero dos is the flavor. Have you ever had a nice glass of Cab
right after brushing your teeth? It tastes like the underside of cow
dung. And trust me, that ain’t good. But have you ever had a nice
chocolate stout after the brushing of one’s teeth? Delicious? Yes.
Nutritious? Sure, why not.

So what beer should you have late at night? Like I previously
stated, gimme a stout. Gimme a porter. Gimme a Maui Coconut Porter
and I’m a happy camper. I can feel good about brushing my teeth,
cozying up to the Mrs. (that’s right kiddos, Maxed Out is off of the
market. Sorry.) in my finest terry cloth linens and I am set for the
evening. Put on an old episode of Seinfeld or the Cosby Show and
bliss has been achieved.

Beers not to have before hitting the hay: Any of your Coors, Miller,
Bud, Hefs…. Anything with a lot of wheat or corn. The reason? Gives
ya the toots! Stick to the good stuff kiddos, that’s what I’ve been
saying since day one.

Ok, so this has probably been the most juvenile and LAME Maxed Out
ever. I have written you all a really good insight on the shipping of
craft beer but ran out of time due to the extensive research that I
have been doing. I have also been on the lookout for the next beer on
my top 10 but have yet to receive confirmation on its exact release
date. Stay tuned. I will, however, let you know that it is a porter
from a San Diego-based brewery and that it should be released sooner
rather than later. At least that’s what I’ve been told.

Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me.

(ed. note: did we not tell you the kid could offer up advice both practical and aesthetic?)

MAXED OUT: Airport Bars

Admit, it. You missed the kid. Max was up in San Fran with some friends and doing his thing last week so naturally he wanted to regale us with all his adventures in the city by the Bay.

So on our way to San Francisco, Steele and I stopped by the airport bar… I know, shocking. I’m sure most of you reading this have been to San Diego’s airport, but holy crap! Can you get with the times people? First off, trying to find an outlet in this joint is like
trying to find a hipster without a mustache. Mission: Impossible. So,
the charging of any electronic device is out of the question. I
digress. The bar in the airport is quite an interesting place to
visit. Doesn’t really matter which airport I’ve visited, there always
seems to be some crusty demon behind the sticks (tending bar) and the
beer is almost as big of a rip off as it is at a football game. We
elected to sit out in the “restaurant” section of ‘Bloody Mary’ and
got a hot lil’ 60 year-old Pilipino woman as our cocktail waitress.
It was unfortunate for us because there were 7 other people in her
section, so it took about a half an hour for us to get our first beer.

So the funny thing about airport bars is that they always have the
same exact beers on draft: Bud Light, Stella Artois, Blue Moon and
Sam Adams. First beer that is from a local brewery, in this case was Karl Strauss’ Tower 10 IPA, last time it was Stone Pale Ale and
in San Francisco you can almost be assured that it is Anchor Steam.
Sometimes you get another local beer, in this case it was Karl
Strauss’ Red Trolley. So for two Tower 10s and two Bud Lights
(WHAT?!?! THEY HAVE DRINKABILITY!) and a french dip sandwich we
spent $50. Holy macaroni! Oh well, I’m on vacation. Suck it.


MAXED OUT – The Arrival

So I elected not to drink on the plane ride to San Francisco which
turned out to be a good thing. We arrived in San Francisco and split
a taxi with a cute lil’ blonde from Sweden to our hotel. Good start
to the week says I! From there we met up with our cohorts and headed
directly to Visuvio, which is a bar on Columbus Avenue at the tip of North Beach also known as the Italian district. Visuvio is a bar located directly next to City Lights Book Store, which is known as the main hub of the “Beat Generation.” This bar is so old and dilapidated that it feels as if at any moment you may fall from the top floor to
the bottom. Did I mention how AWESOME this place is? It really is.
And what better beer to welcome us into the “city by the bay” than
Anchor Steam? This malty treat’s recipe “steams” back to 1896 and has
a rich history in the bay area. As the original of the steam beer
category, its rich aroma and amber color provides for a delightful
beginning of the evening beer. So between the six of us we enjoyed 2
pitchers and headed on to our next destination: TO KENNEDY’S! I’m
going to leave you all on a cliff hanger-until next time, however,
because I want to lump both experiences at Kennedy’s into one blog.
And stay tuned for my review of Toronado San Francisco in future MAXED OUT installments. Also 21st Amendment, Zeitgeist, Lucky 13 and Blackbird. That’s right, kiddos, immabouta knock yo socks off! Only getting started.

Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me.

(ed. note: Airport bars are indeed odd places. Captive audience, thirsty patrons and because of byzantine taxes (we're assuming), strange prices (86 cent change?))

MAXED OUT: 8 beers a week

Hey, what can we say - last month's time change has everything a little screwy so we're bumping MAXED OUT back to its original Thursday afty time slot. We're slaves to ratings - sue us!

A good day to you all my hop loving heroes, and what a magical day it is! I’m in a good mood and feel like sharing some delightful tales of the hop vine with you. This week, I’m going to tell you what beer to drink Monday through Sunday, and while some of you are 9-5ers and some of you have random schedules, I probably have the best/worst schedule out of everyone on this forum as I work until midnight most nights, but how I’m going to work this in on a standard 9-5, Monday thru Friday schedule. So, adjust accordingly, you crazy kids. Let’s rock this Casbah!



MONDAY

Let’s face it, Mondays suck. You just got back from Vegas, hung out with the wife and kids all weekend, partied till 3 a.m. or just did chores all weekend, but it never fails. They’re called the Mondays for a reason. For this reason, I recommend a beer that will kick you in your teeth, something with high alcohol content and one that won’t take it easy on your pallet as the day most certainly hasn’t taken it easy on your nerves. How about a Barleywine? Yes, this is a style of beer despite its name. It is a big (typically between 10 & 15% ABV) beer, often sweeter on the spectrum of beers and typically has fruity notes. Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing sweet about this beer when it comes to being a cuddly little hop friend. Typically, amberish in color and can often be cellared for years and tends to age very well. This is a beer for after dinner, after the dishes are done, the kiddies are in bed and you’re laid back in your Lay-Z-Boy, feet up and Letterman is on the boob tube. My personal favorite is Old Numbskull from Alesmith Bewery, an 11%er with caramel notes and a yeasty mouth feel. Most Barleywines pair well with most fruity desserts, so grab yourself a slice of cheesecake and enjoy this beast of a beer.



TUESDAY

Tuesdays are just those blah days that never seem to go anywhere. Nothing really amazing happens at work, you still have three more days to go before the weekend and everyone is jonesing to get home and see what’s on TV. Booooooring! So, let’s spice things up with a nice Belgian Tripel, shall we? We’ve talked about these beers before, and next week I will be talking about my favorite Tripel, but let’s just go with it. I’m going to go with one of my favorites, La Fin du Monde, a French Canadian beer (yes, the French and Canucks actually did something awesome for once) from Unibroue out of Quebec. At 9% ABV, this beer is spicy, sassy, and delicious. While it is technically a Tripel in style, I have always said that this beer is actually my favorite Blonde out there. Pairs well with a pork and chicken, so I say make yourself some kinda garlic chicken delight, perhaps even Thai. Tuesdays are so meh that I’m not even going to end this paragraph with some witty comment. MOVING ON!




WEDNESDAY

HUMP DAY! Who doesn’t love the day of hump(ing)? It’s half way through your work week and I say it’s time to celebrate with happy hour. Oh, who am I kidding? Every day is cause for happy hour in my opinion. But Wednesday especially. Wednesdays should be the day of Witte beers so you can pound em down and not wake up the next day hating your Thursday. Ommegang Witte would be my recommendation since it’s only 5.1% ABV and rather tasty. Wittes tend to have notes of clove and banana, are smooth and easy drinking. Pairs well with spicy fair so get yourself to some kind of Indian restaurant (dots not feathers) and slam a few of these bad boys while hitting up some Curry. If you live in the Bay Area do yourself a favor and look up Kennedy’s Irish Pub and Curry House as they often have a decent selection of Ommegang and some damn tasty Indian food. WITTE BEER WEDNESDAYS! I’m trade-marking that one, kids. Who’s coming with me?



THURSDAY

One more day to go till the weekend, but haven’t you heard? Thursdays are the new Fridays! Get ready to start your weekend right and knock back a couple of Pale Ales. We don’t want to ruin the rest of the weekend by over doing it, so a lighter version of the IPA is the way to go. Green Flash’s 30th Street Pale Ale is a 6% HOPPY Pale Ale brewed in a delightful San Diego native brewery and is readily available in 6 packs and on draft throughout the county. The IBUs are quite crazy for being a Pale Ale, shooting close to the 90s, which is unprecedented for a Pale Ale. Have I mentioned that this is a Pale Ale? Just take the I out of the IPA and you have yourself a Pale. Pairs well with just about anything, so go grab some din-din with the Mrs./Mr. and have a few Pales for your Thursday night brew. Just do it, don’t ask questions.



FRIDAY

HOPPY FRIDAY! It’s IPA day! Of course I’m going to pick my favorite beer style for my favorite day of the week, silly buns. Grab a Ballast Point Sculpin, Firestone Union Jack, Bear Republic Racer 5…. Just order a damn IPA for god sakes. Heck, make it a pitcher, it’s Friday!



SATURDAY

Pace yourself today, kiddos - it’s a long day and you don’t need to go too crazy too early. Pilsners/Lagers are perfect Saturday beers, whether you’re doing yard work, or down at the pub, Pilsners tend to be lighter on the ABV (3.5-6%) and are very sessionable beers. Samuel Adams Noble Pilsner is a Czech style Pilsner, light, dry crisp and refreshing, and at 4.9% ABV is a very sessionable beer, perfect for a warm summers day at a beach side bar and grill. Pilsners go with just about everything, so grab some oysters on the half shell, a couple fish tacos and take out a 6 pack of these bad boys to get your Saturday off on the right foot. Is it Saturday yet?



SUNDAY

The most bitter-sweet day of the week. Work is just around the corner as you hold on to every last minute of God’s Day, so treat yourself with something good. Just have a few, start early, go big (ABV that is) and finish it off with a night cap (A nice Manhattan up always does the trick for me.) For Sundays, I’m going to go with a Double IPA, maybe make a trip out to Alpine Brewery, get yourself a pulled pork sandwich, fill the growler with Exponential Hoppiness and treat yourself and a friend. At 10.75% ABV, this delicious brew is a perfect way to finish off the weekend in style. Exponential pairs well with ANYTHING because you won’t be able to taste your food after this F-16 bombs your mouth with flavor. But hey, it’s Sunday, God would want you to.


Well, that about wraps up this week’s edition of MAXED OUT! Sorry it’s a day late, I was slacking yesterday and didn’t get it to the Chief in time. Next week will be promptly up at 4:30pm on Thursday, so join me as I get back into my top 10 beers of all time. You guys are awesome, thanks for joining me again and as always feel free to leave a comment or suggestion for a topic I should cover on Facebook, at maxamilliondollars@gmail.com, or in the comment section below.

Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me.

(ed. note: Sunday, particularly Sunday afternoon growing up as a kid was always filled with a sense of existential dread as we faced down the reality of being sent back to the mental gulag of California's public schools the following day. Perhaps if we were allowed to hammer back a few Exponential Hoppiness bombers, it would've eased this anxiety. We're not condoning under-age drinking. We're just sayin'...

Also, re: "sessionable". We believe what Max means by that term is that you can drink a lot of them, as in, "We plowed through a twelve pack of that stuff in one session.")

MAXED OUT: Sweet 16... errr, Elite 8!

(Maximus is definetely in the seasonal spirit of things for this Wednesday's installment. Remember, to catch up with previous installments, simply enter "MAXED OUT" in the word search box provided above left)

Alright my beer-o-philes, we’re down to the sweet sixteen in the NCAA basketball tourney and in honor of the Aztecs first two tournament wins in school history I’m here to give you a little history lesson of my own. So here goes a little 101 on my Elite 8 beer styles and the beers that make them what they are. Two notes: Yes I know the Aztecs are only in the Sweet 16, but I’m feeling cocky, and if my boy Dean-o forces us to a bar where they play “We Will Rock You” while there’s still 2 minutes left in double OT then I think I’m safe. And secondly, the beers that I am listing are not necessarily the BEST of these categories, but the best examples of the style in which they are categorized. And aaaaaaawaaaaaay we go.

Hefeweizen: Light, crisp, and refreshing, with notes of banana and coriander. Typically lower in ABV, somewhere around 4.5-5%, and low on the IBUs, typically hovering around 30. This is the only beer that I would recommend serving with fruit, especially if it is a true German style hefe, so squeeze a lemon in the beer but DO NOT put the lemon inside as the rind will add too much acid to the beer. Franziskaner Hefeweizen is a perfect example of a true German style hefe as it shines with bright banana flavors. I would recommend pairing a traditional hefe with some sort of poultry or white fish dish, perhaps sushi or a chicken caesar salad. And a side note: Hefe means with yeast! I know, wicked smart.

Tripel: A spicy, crisp, and delightful Belgian style ale that tends to stay between 7-9% ABV with still mild IBUs. A common misconception is that the difference between a Belgian “simple”, dubel, tripel, and quad is how many times the beer is fermented, the amount of hops, or something else super-crazy like the amount of monks that have to be involved in the brewing process. It is simply just the amount of malt that is in each beer. A tripel doesn’t necessarily have three times the malts as a simple, but usually somewhere in that neighborhood. Delirium Tremmens is a PERFECT representation of this style, with its beautiful golden color, and the nice sharp bite that the spices provide. I would recommend going with a nice pork dish with this style, maybe even a pork shoulder with a mild molé sauce. Damn it, I should have eaten before I started writing this post!

Stout: The tall dark and handsome of the beer world is the concoction that is called a stout, I mean a porter, I mean a stout. Originally there was the stout, then the porter which was originally the lower ABV little brother to the tall dark and handsome. These days the lines are so blurred between the two that there is no real telling what is a stout and what is a porter. Speedway Stout is perhaps one of the best out there, and is a HUGE 12.6 percenter with strong notes of coffee and chocolate as you will find in many stouts and porters out there. These days they are aging stouts in bourbon barrels, mixing them with blueberries, chipotle peppers, espresso, or vanilla beans. So if you come across any of these crazy concoctions I implore you to give ‘em a try. Eat with BBQ…. Trust me. Or, drop a scoop of your favorite ice cream into the pint and make yourself a little beer float. Once again, trust me.

Lambic: There are three major categories of beers in this world…. Lager/Pilsner, Ales, and Wild beers. A lambic is in that third category, as they use spontaneous fermentation to produce them. Don’t worry, I’ll explain. So one of the most important things that you need to do when brewing is sanitize the HELL out of your equipment, but with wild ales you basically just give your tanks a little rinse and start another batch, thus allowing for bacteria to continue to grow which is why they are called wild beers! Confused? Ya, me too. Lambics tend to be a little fruity and/or a little sour. Framboise is probably the most popular type of lambic (it’s raspberry,) but there are many, many different types, fruits, and flavors. Drink with dessert, or in my case, for dessert!

California Common: Also known as Steam Beer, the California Common is an American original lager style beer. It typically has strong malt characteristics and has a stronger roasted flavor to it than your typical lagers. It is also more amber in color than a standard American lager. CCs are usually lower in the ABV category, hovering right around the 5% mark and the IBUs are often on the lower end as well. The easy choice for this category is Anchor Steam, the San Francisco original. And if I was you I’d go for a nice big rack of ribs, a mound of mashed potatoes, and some green beans to pair with this bad boy.

Saison: This style of beer is Belgian in origin and is one style of Farmhouse Ales, as they were brewed in small farming villages back in the day. They used to be brewed in the winter for consumption in the summer, so they are light both in color and in taste, with notes of coriander and banana, similar to a Hefe but you take out some of the banana and replace it with spice, thus adding alcohol…. Hooray Saison! Ommegang out of Cooperstown, NY makes a damn fine Saison called Hennepin, which is 7.7% and just a fantastic representation of what this style is. Pair this bad boy with some spicy chicken Pad-Thai and you’ll be in heaven.

Bock: One of the older styles of beer, the Bock beer goes back to medieval Germany which is no surprise if you’ve ever had one. Dark and brooding with toasted malts this Germanic delight is basically a stronger, more robust lager with a lingering finish, typically around 6-7% ABV. Doppelbocks or double-bocks are also fantastic beers and tend to have a raisiny, pruney flavor to them and are much higher in alcohol content. Shiner Bock is the standard American Bock beer, brewed in good ole’ Shiner, TX. These beers would partner well with a nice dark chocolate. Just sayin’.

Scotch Ale: This Scottish surprise also known as a “Wee Heavy” is the last on our list, and one of my favorites with its copper to medium brown color and its malty, boozy delicious aroma. They tend to be a little higher in alcohol content, coming in at around 7-9% ABV, sometimes even higher. They can be pretty bitter and are not usually for the faint hearted. Kilt Lifter is a fine example of a Scotch Style Ale from Moylans, one of my favorite breweries just outside of San Francisco and I would love nothing more than to be drinking one of those along-side breakfast for dinner, with eggs, toast, and BACON! Once again, why the heck didn’t I eat before writing this?



While these may not be my “Elite 8” styles of beer, I wanted to drop some knowledge on y’all and throw some bracket busters in there for your own personal gain. Hope you enjoyed this week’s edition of Maxed Out and as always feel free to hit me up on Facebook, at maxamilliondollars@gmail.com, or in the comment section below. Oh, and GO AZTECS!

Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me.

(ed. note: Just recently we had Firestone Walker's Parabola at an unveiling event which is one of those crazy stouts Max talks about in the stout section and which we were quiet taken with though it seemed most others thought otherwise. We mention this because, also as Max suggests, we could think of nothing else while drinking that beaut than dropping a couple of scoops of vanilla ice cream into our tulip glass.)

MAXED OUT: The coolest growlers evah!

Who's up for a little bit of a road trip? Yeah? Well, then... we'll just throw it over to Maximus.

Well hello there, my gangsters of growlers, it’s good to be seen.
Maxed Out has had a pret-ty busy week in the craft beer biz, so I had a little trouble deciding what this week’s article was going to be.
As you may know Hoffer’s had an AMAZING tap list this week, featuring
several of Port/Lost Abbey beers. Some of the highlights include
Adlib which is a combination of bourbon barrel aged Midnight
Expressions, bourbon barrel aged Judgment Day, and rye barrel-aged
Serpent Stout. The ABV is unknown and the style is unidentifiable as
the three beers are different but similar. We also had the Old &
Older Viscosity which are big and bigger stouts. The Old is 10 %
while still remaining smooth and delicious. The Older is 12%, very
rare, and over the top in this humble writer’s opinion. Bear
Republic’s Apex was also on, as well as Firestone’s Double Jack,
Maui’s Coconut Porter, Maui’s Mana Wheat (a pineapple hefeweizen…
yum,) Delerium Tremmens, North Coast’s 2009 Old Stock. Let’s just say
the line-up was boom goes the dy-no-mite!

But the big event this past week was a brewery, a new brewery called
Iron Fist. Saturday, tough guy, Dean and I made a trip up to Iron Fist
in Vista, California some 45 minutes north of San Diego. We met his
big bro and nephew up there (Yo, K, you were late upon late, I’m
calling you out.) I digress. Let me drop a little knowledge on ya’ll
about Iron Fist. They are about a year and a half old and their head
brewer just so happens to be 21 years of age. Just old enough to
legally enjoy his tasty brew and he’s making some of the most ground-breaking stuff available. What an a-hole! They take established
styles of beer and break the mold in fantastic fashion. Their most
popular beers are Gauntlet IIPA, and the Velvet Glove Imperial Oatmeal
Stout. Come again! An imperial oatmeal stout? Yes, that just
happened.

So, the service is grand to say the least. I walked up for a beer and
a beer was presented. I dropped the Hoffer’s line, the fact that I
worked there, and the operations manager (Mark?) came out to talk with
me. He even gave me a mini-tour of the facility. I know, rough life
I lead. But the beers, oh the beers! How delightful they were
indeed! I had all of their “hands” which included the Out of Hand,
Off Hand, and the Hired Hand. They are all saisons, however the Out
of and the Off are seasonals whilst the Hired is a regular on their
rotation. They are all awesome, and I got a growler (pitcher to go)
of the Off Hand. Saisons were originally brewed in the winter for
summer drinking which is what they should be, because a saison is
light crisp and refreshing. Look it up.

Did I mention the growler? Their growlers are slightly larger than a
typical growler with a hand carved handle and the most tasty of brews
inside. Thank you Ouuuuut of Hand! Trust me, it’s impressive! And
Dean and I will be returning. And a quick shout out to K and Toey!
You guys made the trip. Especially when nephew Toey decided that he,
tipsily, would challenge Mr. Tough Guy (Dean) to a B-Ball one-on-one.
Chris, I stand by my 2 to1 bet. If Dean wins by less than 5 I will
call it a draw.

So, when are we going to Iron Fist, kids? Let’s do this! So rad, from
time of conception (some 3 hours before execution) to the regulation
which was epic! If you wanna go or just tell me that I’m a drunken
who-so-ever, hit me up at maxamilliondollars@gmail.com, on facebook, or
in the comment section downstairs. You dig?

Until the next time my beer-loving brethren, have a drink for me.

(ed. note: We had not had the Apex IPA from Bear Republic in quite some time. Let's just say that it was quite nice to get re-aquainted with it last Friday at Hoffer's.... We believe Max may have understated just how cool the experience was up at Iron Fist this past Saturday. Of all the throw-open-the-aluminum-sliding-door-in-the-middle-of-a-non-descript-business-park brewery experiences we've had, the one at Iron Fist was, hands down, the best. The Great American Beer Festival ought to have a category for this. As committed West Coast IPA types, we don't even really care for Belgians and Saisons. However, we will hammer any of the "Hand" beers mentioned above any day of the week. Having said that, our favorite remains their Spice of Life. Highly recommend it with some sushi.)

MAXED OUT: Summer Is Here! Where Should I Beer?

Looks like it's going to be a spectacular 4th of July weekend so what better way to get into it than for Max to hook us up with some great outdoor beer joints here in San Diego. You have the floor, sir:

Aloha, my gorgeous gathering of grain-o-philes and welcome back to the summer edition of Maxed Out. Its days like today that I wish I was a teacher on summer break because the weather here in San Diego is the definition of the word “perfect.” Not a cloud in the sky and 75
degrees with a very mild breeze. So where should you be drinking in
San Diego on these gorgeous summer days? Dats wud imma tell ya’s all
taday! No, no, after you, I insist.

As some of you may remember, I am a huge fan of bars with patios as I
love to smoke while drinking. So who better to tell you of the many
bars in San Diego with outdoor smoking (and non) than me? Nobody,
that’s who. So let’s count down my favorite patio bars in San Diego,
shall we?

I have to start the list with the most obvious bar to me and one that
I have talked about on several occasions, Toronado San Diego. Located
in the heart of North Park this bar features my personal favorite tap
list and just so happens to have one of the best patios to boot. It’s
a quiet little patio in the way far back of the bar and if you didn’t
know they had one you’d probably never think to look for it.

To be honest it took me several visits to this beer haven before I even knew they had one. And for that reason, especially during the day, there
is usually no one out there. So bring a few friends, order one of
their beautiful IPAs and rock out on the back patio. Kids are welcome
before a certain time so give 'em a call and check it out for yourself.

The Neighborhood is another beer bar in San Diego with a fantastic
beer line up, glorious service (by this I mean gorgeous service… and
by that I mean they are primarily hot girls,) but if you don’t have
one of the girls serving your table and bringing you tasty libations
you can be pretty sure that it will be a mustachioed young man helping
you out. Yes, they all are required to look like their hipster boss
and sport curled up mustaches. No, I don’t know why. There are two
fairly small patios here, smoking is allowed, and it’s just a few
short blocks away from Petco Park. So if you’re on your way to a
Padres game stop by here before hand and enjoy the last few hours of
daylight before the AMAZING and ALWAYS SOLD OUT Padres take the field for what is sure to be an epic battle on the diamond. EPIC!


I’m going to throw a curve ball in here because I just visited this
brew pub this past Monday. Pacific Beach Ale House has a roof top bar
that has a slight view of the beach, brews their own beers (Their IPA
was 6.5% and surprisingly delightful,) and seats close to 100 people.
I’ve been here a couple times now and have enjoyed myself thoroughly
both times.

Just do yourself a favor and don’t get the oyster
shots... NO BUENO! I’d recommend going after a day on the beach in
the early evening as the sun sets. Tres belle. I have yet to attend
at night but can only imagine that it full of the typical half-witted
blondies and neckless meat heads. Afternoons are definitely the way
to go here.

Hoffer’s has an awesome patio and I work there so it is a pretty damn
good place to go. Only problem is that it’s in East County and is HOT
AS HELL! I’ve told you all about Hoffer’s so I won’t bore you with
any more of the details. Just come visit me!

The last one I’m going to give you is the bar that is credited as
being the bar that has carried San Diego craft beers the longest:
O’Brien’s Irish Pub. Good pub fare, good, however small beer list
including several Alpine brews. They even have a beer named after
them from Alpine aptly called O’Brien’s Ale (just ok.) Their outdoor
patio is totally chill and located in the Korean area of Kearny Mesa.
So grab a beer, grab a burger, and chill on this here patio.

I’m sure I missed a few so tell me in the comment section below, on
Facebook, or email me at maxamilliondollars@gmail.com. Thanks for
joining me today and go check some of these patios out there in sunny
San Diego if you haven’t already.

Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me.

(ed. note: Concur with all of Max's recommendations, particularly The Neighborhood for the stated reasons. We will submit, as well, K and B Wine Cellars in Del Cerro which has the coveted SLOBs' seal of approval.... Also, while it isn't there yet, Alpine Brewery's back patio area has the potential to be an excellent beer garden. Right now, it's a picnic table and some plastic chairs but the folks there tell us they have plans... big plans.... Hey, how about your own back patio? You've got the kids and/or don't necessarily want to drive anywhere and more importantly, don't want to drive back, stock up on some good beer, ice 'em down properly, put on the iPod, crack open a few of those said beers and just relax in the back of your own castle in this glorious San Diego summer weather. Oh, and don't forget to call us up for the invite.

MAXED OUT: Brewery Tour!

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Well, well, well. Looky who's back? Max with his first installment of MAXED OUT for 2012...

Well, HEELLLOOOOO there my faithful friends of the froth, how have you all been? I've been great, thanks for asking, and I'm back for more debauchery in this new and fantastic year. This is my first time writing in 2012 for Beers with Demo and I am pleased to bring you a wrap on what was one of the better beer tours that we've taken, which was just this past Saturday.

As some of you know and some have even attended, every six months or so I put together a tour of breweries that starts and ends at my bar, Hoffer's in lovely downtown La Mesa. In the past we have checked out such places as Green Flash, Alesmith, Stone, Ballast Point, and Port/Lost Abbey, which we added to the list again this time around. We also checked out Ironfist and a brand new nano-brewery called Aztec, both of which reside in.... errr... lovely? Vista, California.

So we loaded a 50 person stretch-limo bus complete with two stripper poles and a bathroom (BOOM!) with 45 drunkards and set off at noon this past Saturday. First stop: Ironfist. So, Ironfist has a pretty cool story behind it. When they first opened, some 2 almost 3 years ago, their head brewer was a ripe young 20 years old. Since it is illegal to brew at such an age his older brother took the credit for the beer for the first year that they were open. Kinda funny. Ironfist specializes in Belgian style beers with a West Coast angle. More than the angle, it's the accessibility that makes Ironfist a pretty damn good brewery. By accessibility, I really mean that they aren't crazy, over the top recipes like The Bruery in Orange County and Lost Abbey, who both take a pretty batty take on Belgian style brews. If you haven't had the opportunity to try any Ironfist delights, may I recommend the Velvet Glove Imperial Oatmeal Stout, Spice of Life Belgian Pale, or the Hired H nd Saison.

Somehow we got all 45 people back on the bus and headed to Aztec Brewery. One of the people on the bus, my friend Matt Wilson, is classmates with one of the owners and recommended we try them out. Thanks, Matty, great suggestion. While they are a young brewery that only self-distributes, I was shocked at the size of their brewery (pretty darn big.) Not only were the beers and size a pleasant surprise but they also had a Jamaican dude slingin' Jamaican food in front. They had a few really nice bourbon and tequila (ya, tequila) aged beers that were very interesting and not overly aggressive. But the highlight for myself, and several other people that I talked to, was their Chipotle IPA. Very interesting and like the barrel aged beers, was refreshingly unaggressive. Great job Aztec, keep up the good work. Oh, and if you want to try the Chipotle IPA, Hoffer's will be getting a couple kegs of it by next week. You're welcome in advance.

Our last stop on this here brew tour was the ever reliable Port/Lost Abbey located in... errr... lovely? San Marcos, California. My main man Andy surprised us all and had a tour lined up and waiting for us when we stepped off of the bus. THANKS ANDY!!! So we took a quick 20 minute tour of their facilities, complete with a brief history of the place and a concise yet educational description of how they make their beers, and split time making it between Port and Lost Abbey. Even I learned a thing or 2. I know, and you thought that I knew it all. Port/Lost Abbey is my personal favorite brewery I've ever been to, and if you haven't checked it out, I implore you. As for beers to check out if you get the chance? ALL OF THEM!!!

All in all, I had a great time and I think that most of the other people on the tour did as well. Stay tuned for the date of the next tour, which I'm thinking will be some time in mid-July. If you want a spot let me know in advance and I'll save a seat for ya.

Oh, and since I've already told you all my top 10 favorite beers of all time, a new addition to this new year will be a little segment I call THE BEST BEER I EVER HAD THIS LAST WEEK!!! So...

THE BEST BEER I EVER HAD THIS LAST WEEK: Chipotle IPA from Aztec.


Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me.

(ed. note: Familial obligations prevented us from attending what was this favorably received brewery tour.... We are not into Belgians but we are way into Iron Fist, if that is any indication regarding the quality of their beers.... If we can make a pairing recommendation: grab some sushi to go along with Spice of Life.... And Max wasn't lying about the brother combo. Our first exposure to Iron Fist was about 2-1/2 years ago and big brother Adrian was indeed passing himself off as the head brewer.... Reason #28 as to why San Diego is the craft beer capitol of the world: cheap real estate in which to set up shop in these charming little industrial parks in places like Vista and San Marcos)

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MAXED OUT: Beers in the mail

Max assures us that he will be getting around to the mail bag soon... unless he didn't... we're not quite sure. Until then...

Welcome back to the mental institution my fun loving friends, how the
hell are ya? Today on Maxed Out, I will be putting on blast the act of
buying beer on Ebay and trading beer online. Why is this even an
issue? Well I’ll tell you! Don’t get ahead of me. Geez. Ok, here
we go!

The selling of craft beer on Ebay is not necessarily a new thing but
a growing concern for some breweries. Greg Koch, the CEO and Founder
of Stone Brewing recently released a bourbon barrel aged version of
one of his collaboration beers. He numbered each of the bottles and
held a raffle, vowing that anyone who sold the bottles online would
automatically be disqualified for future raffles. At first, I didn’t
understand why this could be an issue for the brewery. I just thought
it was a rash move by Mr. Kock…. I mean Koch. Dean gave me a good
reason that this could be an issue, and I have thought of a couple
since then. So the reason that Dean gave me was that if you were to
ship a beer it might lose its luster, its pizzazz, its gravitas so to
speak. Sure. It may. But what did you really expect? YOU BOUGHT A
BEER ONLINE!!!!

So Ebay sucks. I mean, kinda in general, but especially when it
comes to beer. While I think that Greg Koch is a total DB, I don’t
think that he is entirely in the wrong. Buying an amazing beer on the
west coast and selling it to someone on the east coast is a brilliant
idea. TRADING it is even better, and something that I’m hoping you’ll
check out.

There are two websites to check out when it comes to this:
tradebeer.com as well as beeradvocate.com. A good friend of mine just traded some pretty mediocre San Diego beers for some pretty freakin’ awesome beers from Odell’s Brewing Company out of Fort Collins,
Colorado. I mean he got hooked up! And it didn’t really cost him
anything. SCORE!

Oh, and one more thing. I have had a lot of friends drive up to
Oregon, or Northern California recently. Or even fly up and drive
down. That sounds neat. Listen to what I am saying now, though.
Bring San Diego beers with you. Send them if you have to. They don’t
even have to be amazing, just decent San Diego beers. They are as
good as gold. If you don’t drive up, ship them up to where you will
be staying! Trust me, I’m a professional.

So what did we learn today, kids? Don’t buy beer online. Lame.
Trade beer instead! Sweet! And take San Diego beers with you if you
are going to good beer towns. I know what I’m talking about.

Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me.

ed. note: Yes, buying beer online is totally lame and we're still skeptical of trading as there would seem to be a lack of control on both the age and heat factors which as you all know are the death of good beers. How-evah (comma) we are, as Max advised, big fans of travelling with, as in, travelling with great San Diego beers to share with friends and soon-to-be-friends abroad, especially on road trips. As an example, whenever we go river rafting on the Lower Kern, we always tote along in the cooler some of San Diego's finest up to Kernville and the folks at Kern River Brewing Company. Sharing and caring: it's good for business, it's good for the soul. How can you go wrong?

MAXED OUT: BEERPLOSION!!!!

Got those mid-week blues? Not to worry - Max is here to get you out of that funk and looking forward to the weekend.

Hello, hello again my beer buds and babes, let’s talk shop shall we? If I were to ask you what the two fastest growing and most profitable industries in the United States are would you ever guess craft beer was one of them? Of course you would, you’re so smart! That’s right, its craft beer and electronics (smart phones, TVs, IPads, etc. etc.) and as far as I’m concerned beer is quickly becoming the new wine, and I looooooove it… kinda. More like a love-hate relationship.

So I’m sitting at Toronado San Diego, drinking a Stone Double Dry-Hopped IPA at 2 o’clock on a Tuesday and this place is pretty freakin’ busy. It got me thinkin’ about the new Beer-Explosion or BEERPLOSION that I’ve noticed throughout San Diego and certain cities throughout the good ole U.S. of A. I know it didn’t happen overnight but it sure seems like it happened pretty damn quickly, doesn’t it? I mean, 10 years ago there were maybe 3 or 4 “beer bars” in San Diego; now there are dozens, as well as a new brewery popping up like zits on a 13 year old boy. Am I wrong?

Here’s why I love it: More great beers are available than ever before. With the influx of breweries brings with it several new beers to try seemingly every other day! Iron Fist out of Vista, CA is a brand new brewery with SEVERAL great beers to check out, like their Imperial Oatmeal Stout the Velvet Glove, or their Gauntlet Triple Dry-Hopped Imperial IPA Gauntlet. Oh, and their head brewer just happens to be 21! Unreal!

It also means that pretty much anywhere you go around the city you’re bound to find a good beer bar. Even if you are at some random seedy dive-bar you’re bound to have at least a Stone IPA or Racer 5 available on draft. I’ve been talking with one of the Stone reps in San Diego who tells me that every day he has at least a few new bars calling him for one of his beers, more so than ever before which means great things for the craft beer industry.

Here’s why I hate it: Everybody knows everything about beer! Or at least they think they do. In case you’ve forgotten I’m a bartender at a pretty cool little beer bar called Hoffer’s. At least once a week I have some snot-nosed 21 year old kid that sits at my bar and refutes just about everything that I tell a customer about a beer.

Me to a customer: “Yeah with the Speedway Stout you’re gonna get a strong chocolate/coffee flavor with a nice toasted malt note.”

Zit-face: “Actually they use ______ malts, so you should be getting a more vanilla undertone than chocolate.”

Me to Zit face: “Oh really? That’s funny, I’ve been serving this beer for almost two years and that is what NO ONE has said about this beer. How old are you? How long have you been drinking craft beer?”

Zit face: “I’m 22 but I’ve been drinking craft beer since I was 20, and I’ve been home-brewing for over a year.”

Me: “*&*&*^#*@^*^*^#@*(#$&!!!!!!”

I really couldn’t be happier that the skinny-jeaners and the dock workers can finally agree on something and that thing happens to be one of my favorite things on this planet, but with that there is always bound to be those know-it-alls that think, just because they read it somewhere or heard it second-hand somewhere that what they say is gospel. Don’t be that guy, kids. Don’t be that guy that sits at the bar and tells people what beer they should have. I don’t even do that and I DO know it all.

I feel much better know. I needed to get that off of my chest, thanks guys. Seriously though, thanks as always for checkin’ out this week’s edition of MAXED OUT, and as always I really do appreciate any comments or suggestions at maxamilliondollars@gmail.com, on Facebook, or in the comment section below.

Oh, almost forgot...Last week Big Brother Brian asked my opinion of Stone’s collaboration with Green Flash and Pizza Port Carlsbad, Highway 78, a big boozy Scotch Ale. I think it’s one of the best collaborations that Stone has had in awhile. Big, boozy, sweet, but very well balanced and not too over the top… ok maybe a little over the top, but it is a Stone beer. Would you expect anything less? Please feel free to submit questions and if you have an idea for next week’s topic I’d love to hear them. So HIT ME UP, kids.

Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me.

(ed. note: We would like to add Spice of Life to the list of Iron Fist's beers. The first time we had it, we said to ourselves, "Doggone... wish we had some sushi to go along with this darn fine beer". Also, we can't emphasize enough the double-edged sword that Max touches on regarding San Diego as a major league beer town. We see the pretension and snobbery in some un-named quarters of the scene here in town. Let's not do that. Let's not go all Napa Valley and recognize that beer is the most egalitarian of beverages and should be enjoyed by everybody in the spirit of fellowship, friendship and brotherly love.)

MAXED OUT: Drinkin' Safari

A beer and food pairing post? Well, not quite but we'll let Max explain. Max..?

Alright, you crazy kids, I’m still trying to get statistics compiled from that article that I was going to talk about today, so instead I’m gonna talk about what I did this past Saturday night. As some of you may know, my roommate, Matt Steele, used to work for Stone Brewing
and is the current Social Media Coordinator for The San Diego
Zoological Society (which includes both the Zoo and Safari Park,
formerly known as The Wild Animal Park.) To make a long story longer,
this job-o-his includes some pretty freakin’ cool perk,s that
occasionally make their way to me. This past Saturday Stone Brewery
had a beer dinner at the Safari Park and aye was invited! Boom! Wait! Wait! It gets better. Not only was I invited, but because Mr. Steele was the only representative from the Zoo, we got to sit at the brewmaster’s table. Boom, again! Sos there I am at the Stone beer dinner, sitting at a table with Arlan Artsen (#3 in line at Stone) and Mr. Peter friggin’ Zien! You know, the guy who founded, built,
created, owns Alesmith Brewery?!?!?! Ya, kinda sorta beer geeked-out
a little when he started talking about how he came up with idea for
Speedway Stout and what not. Kindasorta!

Ok, so the highlight of the night was definitely meeting Mr. Zien but
I have to hand it to Stone; those SOB’s brought out some pretty
freakin’ good beer. And I have to take away from the Safari Park; the
food kinda sucked at life. Oh, and isn’t there something just weird
about eating meat at a place that saves animals and what not? I
dunno, maybe it’s just me.

So the beer! I know some of you know what a collaboration beer is
but for those of you that do not I shall inform you. Stone kinda
actually broke new ground with their usage of collaboration. What
they have been doing for the past few years is getting together with
different breweries' head brewers and concocting some pretty tasty
libations. Their first collab was with Alesmith and Mikkeller, a “brewery” out of Denmark. The reason I say “brewery” is because they don’t actually have a brewery. It’s just this young guy that goes around and makes beer at other breweries. I know, weird, and their beer is pretty unique as well. But this beer, brewed in 2008, was the hit of the night for me! A Belgian Triple that was accented nicely by the spices and the subtle hints of bubble gum. I asked Mr. Zien of Alesmith how he felt about this particular beer and he said, rather candidly, that when they first bottled it he wasn’t very impressed but was more excited to see what would come of it. And he was totally right. I had this beer some three years ago, and it was just ok in my opinion. But after three years of aging it has turned into such a bright and beautiful beer. The problem is that it will be tough to come by. They only brew these collab beers once, and since this one was 3 years ago the chances of finding it are slim to none. Sorry
y’all.

Other beers that were at this dinner included El Camino “Un”-Real
Black Ale which is a collaboration between Stone, Firestone and 21st
Ammendment (I had mentioned this beer in a previous blog about SF,),
there was Highway 78, a scotch ale collab between Stone, Green Flash
and Pizza Port Carlsbad. The two low-lights for me were the Holliday
Ale collaboration that Stone did with Jolly Pumpkin (remember the Oro
de Calabaza?) and Nogne and the ever forgettable Saison de BUFF that
Stone did with Dogfish Head and Victory. Yes, they actually brewed
this beer with parsley, sage, rosemary and, say it with me, thyme. No BS on that one.

So I just mentioned five beers that you probably won’t be able to
find ANYWHERE! But wait! I have good news. This summer Stone has
released two new collaborations that are available as we speak! I
know, I know. I do kick a$$. So go out there and keep your eyes
peeled for their collab with Iishi and Baird, the Green Tea IPA, which
I have had and personally do not like, but I don’t like green tea, so
it kinda makes sense. The other one that is available now is their
Cherry Chocolate Stout that they brewed with Troegs Brewery and this
year’s homebrew competition winners Jason Fields and Kevin Sheppard.
Oh, and Hoffer’s just so happens to have both of them available. Some
come on down and try em out!

As always thanx for checkin’ me out! You know where to leave the
commentos, and stick around next week when I promise to get to that
idiotic article from Travel and Leisure. SO FREAKIN’ STUPID!!!


Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me.

(ed. note: We've had the opportunity to meet Peter Zien. Super nice guy. ... A bad beer from Dogfish Head? Get out. Seriously, we don't understand the appeal of that swamp water brewery out of Delaware. People go nuts for their stuff but they just aren't that good. We don't get it.

MAXED OUT: The Weather Man

This week's edtition of MAXED OUT fortuitously delayed one day so that its tapping co-incides with National Beer Day? Perhaps. Regardless, the following ought to put you in the mood to commemorate the ending of Prohibition back in 1933.

Happy opening week of the 2011 Major League baseball season my hop fiends! Yes, opening week, not opening day apparently. And in honor of the return of my favorite sport, I’m going to play weather man and tell you what style of beer you should drink on a rainy day as opposed to a summer’s day, snowy, windy… you get the point. Let’s do this!


As some of you know I lived in San Francisco for five years, and some of my favorite days were cold, rainy summer days in the city by the bay (Mark Twain once said “the coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco”) so I’m going to start off with a porter for a rainy day. Porters tend to have strong coffee, chocolate, smoky, or vanilla notes and often a combination of two or more of those flavors.

As I’ve said before, porters were originally known to be lower alcohol content versions of stouts but these days the lines have been blurred between the two styles, but for the sake of this week’s topic I’m going to stick with true porters. So, the next time you’re cuddled up on the couch watching reruns of The Cosby Show, do yourself a favor and grab a six-pack of Black Butte Porter from Deschutes Brewery out of Bend, Oregon. At 5.2% ABV this beauty (did you see what I did there? Black Butte – Beauty… eh, eh ) has subtle notes of coffee and chocolate. Grab a carton of strawberries, a tub of Dreyer’s vanilla bean ice cream, light a fire, and demolish a six-pack of Black Butte while watching Mad Men and you have yourself one successful rainy day. Damn, now I wish it were raining outside!




Hows about we dive into San Diego weather and go with a nice sunny day, say 78 degrees, not a cloud in the sky? Or as we call it here in S.D. a typical day in the neighborhood (eat it, East-coasters.) I’m going to go with a nice light I.P.A., Bear Republic’s Racer 5 or Sierra Nevada’s Torpedo being the perfect choices.

Torpedo is a nice dry, crisp, refreshing version of an India Pale Ale, and while it comes in at 7.2% ABV is surprisingly smooth and easy drinking. Racer 5 is similar in its smoothness but replaces the crispness of the Torpedo with slightly more fruity notes, citrus and apricot and rings in at an even 7% ABV. Grab a twelve pack of each, a cooler, some buds and bocce ball, hit the park and once again you’ve got yourself a successful sunny day! Son-of-a-b, I wish I didn’t have to work tonight!



For my peeps from Chi-Town, I’m gonna go all windy on you guys and go with a Alesmith’s Nautical Nut Brown Ale for a blustery day in the neighborhood. Quick question: have you ever had a Newcastle?

Did you enjoy it? If the answer is "yes" to both, smack yourself. If the answer is "yes", you have tried it and "no", you didn’t enjoy it, do yourself a favor and give this bird a go. I know it goes slightly without saying but the nutty-ness of this beer is fantastic and while it comes in at a whopping 4.8% ABV, I can think of no better way to escape the wind than by ducking into a hip little beer bar (Hoffer’s) and slamming down one or two of these bad boys. Post script: I HATE THE WIND!




Every once in awhile, San Diego can get rather hot so I thought I’d throw in a good beer on a really swelteringly hot day. As I thought about it, I actually came up with three styles of beer that could best be described as ‘hot weather beer’: There’s the Kolsch, the Hefe and the Pilsner, all of which would go down like a big girl on prom night. For the Kolsch style beer I really like the Alaskan Summer Ale for its creaminess and accessibility (also found in 6-packs.) The Hefeweizen should definitely be the Paulaner Hefe for its smooth characteristics paired nicely with its deliciously refreshing balance of coriander and banana (typically I say "no" fruit in beer but with a true German Hefe, squeeze a lemon wedge in and set the rind to the side.) The best Pilsner I have ever had is called Reality Czech from Moonlight brewing. Absolutely perfect for a blisteringly hot day but only available in the Bay Area as this guy does everything himself including delivery, paper work, brewing, etc., etc. So if you ever get the chance to try one of Moonlight Brewery’s beer, I implore you to Czech it out (see what I did? AGAIN!)


What about a snowy day? I don’t know, I’m from San Diego. Something strong, I guess.


Well my beautiful people, I think that will just about wrap up this week’s dissertation so thank you as always for joining me. Hit me up on Facebook, at maxamilliondollars@gmail.com, or in the comment section below. I’d like to thank my BFF Corey for this week’s topic, and join me next week when I tell you what kind of beer goes best on a Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, etc. etc. And I’m out!

Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me.

MAXED OUT: San Diego Beer Week, Baby!

No introduction needed. You all know the drill.

Hello, cutie pa-tooties! How ya be? I’ve realized that I’ve been on a little bit of a rude streak lately (have you come to expect anythingless?) So today I’m gonna be nice. No, I swear! I’m gonna be on
good behavior!

So raise of hands…. Who here has heard of San Diego’s Beer Week? Oh,
you have? Well aren’t you so cool? Hipster! No, but in all honesty, all of you who have never heard of SDBW let me tell you, you are
missing out… UNTIL NOW!!! You’re welcome! So this Friday marks the
beginning of the third annual San Diego Beer Week in which most of the
beer bars throughout our fair city take part in tapping some of the
finest brews from this fair city, and country, and world.

Ima keep this week’s post short and just let you know that you MUST
check it out. Go to the website here and check out this week’s events. A heads up, I will be at Hoffer’s on Friday (tonight) for our “Best Of” tap list, and at Toronado this Sunday for the total tap takeover and Monday for the Ballast Point night. Come play?

Hit me up if you wanna join or have any questions about any of the events.

Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me!

(ed. note: And do you want to know the coolest thing about Beer Week? There's so much awesomeness contained therein, it simply cannot be fit into one calendar week rather it is spread out over 10 days (Nov. 4-13). Did we say coolest? You bet we did.... To help you sort things out, the good folks at WestCoasterSD have chosen 3 worthy events for each day of the "week", here... Oh, second coolest thing: even when Beer Week is over, you can still drink beer! And you can still drink many of the excellent beers featured during Beer Week that haven't tapped out yet.... A final note on the Great American Beer Festival back in September: San Diego County walked away with 20 medals. More than any other state except California (duh) and Colorado)

MAXED OUT: Are you the key master?

We know it's almost July but do you have an umbrella handy? 'Cause Max is about to rain down some cold hard beer knowledge. Max?

Hello my key masters, I am the Gate Keeper, how the heck are you? So
today is the day that your fateful Gate Keeper reveals some of the
“Gateway Beers” that you non-beer-drinkers should give a try. I know
several of you are avid beer drinkers, but maybe you know someone who
isn’t. With this handy dandy guide you’ll be able to impart wisdom on
your “I HATE BEER” friends and see if you can’t get them to come to
the dark side, one sudsy brew at a time. Yup, here we go!

So, as some of you may remember from my first post, I wasn’t always
the beer-o-phile that I am now. I started my trip down Hoppy Lane
with Bud Light. That’s right, Bud Light. But on my twenty-first
birthday I went to lovely Las Vegas, Nevada with my Mom and a few
friends. While most normal human beings get to Vegas for their first
time and go straight to the black jack tables and grab their first
Long Island, I found myself drawn to a brew pub. I told the bartender
that it was my 21st birthday and that I was extremely interested in
the brewing process and in craft beer but wasn’t sure how to go about
getting into it. He gave me a sly smile (not creepy, I swear) and
poured me a…

...Hefeweizen is the best style of beer to get an anti-beer drinker to
say “Oh, that’s not terrible” to. Hefs are light, crisp, a little
sweet and pretty fruity. DO NOT PUT FRUIT IN BEER! If you MUST,
squeeze a lemon wedge in the beer and set the rind to the side. NO
ORANGES for the love of God! A little tiny bit of orange juice will
do absolutely nothing for the beer, I promise you. If it really makes
the beer drinker feel that much better about themselves or the beer
that they are drinking then go ahead but I can promise you that it
does nothing other than make the beer more acidic and will end up
tasting terribly half way through the beer. I’ve told you a few to
try before but as a reminder Franziskaner is a tried and true delight
straight from Germany. Nice banana flavor with a lovely, light yellow
color that is just beautiful in the light. German Hefs are also great
upgrades for your friends that only drink the swill that is Blue Moon
and Shock Top. PLEASE STAY AWAY FROM BLUE MOON AND SHOCK TOP! They
are the devil!

Pilsners are another good start for some people however you have to
find the right Pilsner. You can’t just throw out some crappy, bitter
Pils, you have to find something with a little sweetness because most
people just getting into beer are used to wine or sweeter cocktails.
Pilsner Urquell is a nice, easily obtainable beer originally from the
Czech Republic and is now brewed in Berkeley. Pilsner Urquell is a
nice dry, crisp and refreshing beer with a slightly sweet body. It is
also a good replacement for your Stella Artois fans out there, who
should be ashamed of themselves (just kidding Mom, I love you!)

Belgian Whites are another style of beer that are softer on the
pallet and offer a great break into the beer world. Avery’s White
Rascal is a beautiful example although you may have to hit up a BevMo
to find this tasty brew. Brewed out of Boulder, Colorado ‘Rascal’ is
nice and creamy with a slightly citrus body to it and a nice banana
nose. I’m not huge on the mouth feel towards the finish but overall a
very Gateway type beer.

Ciders are an obvious choice as they tend to be sweeter and most
people don’t really consider them beers. In fact, yes, they are a
style of beer. Not my personal favorite but pretty damn good on a hot
summer’s day. So if you must start with a cider try Julian Cider. It
is a bitterly sweet treat made with fresh Julian apples and at 7% gets
the job done, if ya know what I’m sayin’.

Delirium Tremmens, yes one of my top 10 favorites, is another beer
that surprises a lot of beer haters out there. It is technically a
Belgian Strong Pale Ale although, like I’ve said before, I think that
it is a perfect example of a Belgian Tripel. Call it what you will,
the beautiful notes of spices on the nose and finish, as well as the
sweetness of the body make this a beer that anyone and everyone can
enjoy. Sarah B, this is the beer that I want you drink when you take
me up on that beer challenge with the salmon dinner. But keep this
one cold, don’t pull it out of the fridge like I said before. This
isn’t that type of beer.

I’m also gonna throw stouts on the list. That’s right, the darkest
most chocolaty stout that you can find. If there are any red wine
drinkers out there, this is the style for you. Try Alesmith’s
Speedway Stout and I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. It has a
very strong coffee/chocolate flavor, and at 12.6% has relatively the
same alcohol content as most wines out there. You must be a fan of
chocolate, but if you are this is probably the beer for you. Me likey
this beer muy mucho!


Do any of my fellow beer nerds out there have any other suggestions?
Do any of my haters out there have any questions? Is there anyone
that needs more suggestions or advice for a step up for some of your
friends that are stuck on some crappy beer? You have a friend that
only drinks Newcastle and you want him/her to step it up? A
significant other that only drinks MGD and you want them to change
their stupid, stupid ways? You know what to do. Hit me up on
Facebook, comments below, or at maxamilliondollars@gmail.com. Thanks
for reading guys... love you all like my children. Or like my distant
cousin, Ralph. Yeah, more like him.

Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me.

(ed. note: He speaks the truth. For those of you that do enjoy beer but may be intimidated by San Diego and California's calling card, the West Coast-style IPA (India Pale Ale) may we suggest the training wheels of Bear Republic's XP Pale Ale
or Green Flash's 30th Street Pale Ale.

MAXED OUT: Forget Abby, Max is here

And where Max digs into the mail bag.

Hey, hey my weary wonderers of the world of wort (wort is unfermented beer.) Look at that, already droppin’ some knowledge on y’all! How do ya like them apples? Welcome back to Mad Max’s Thunderdome and thanks for hangin’ out with me today because today I’m giving back. There have been a few of you guys that have commented regularly on my posts and today I aim to address some of your comments, suggestions and concerns. I was going to mix in my forth favorite beer, but upon further review there are more pressing issues at hand. As Macho Man would say (RIP) ‘OOOOOOOH YEEEEEEEEAH! LET’S DOOOOO THISSSS!


First, Sarah B, I am sorry, but I even asked Dean if he would be willing to oblige you with a picture of him on the stripper pole on our next go around on the brewery tour. An emphatic scoff, eye roll, and machismo were thrown my way in the resulting thirty seconds or so, so unfortunately I don’t think that tough guy is going to get me that six-pack. Have I mentioned how tough he is?

And Mr. Atkinson, yes, the group consensus is that an East County brewery tour is desired by all. I am going to spend the next few months attempting to arrange this, although it is a logistical nightmare for several reasons. First off, Alpine could NEVER IN A MILLION YEARS accommodate 40 people while operating during regular business hours. This gives us two options. Either a) See if they will open early for us or just block out an hour or so for us, or b) We take a smaller group of people. A few other reasons that I question this “E.C. Brewery Tour” include the fact that Manzanita has 1 good beer, several mediocre beers and their tasting room is, from what I understand, smaaaaaaaall!

Going to Alpine would be great, but there just isn’t that much else out there. I thought of, on this trip, also hitting up San Diego Beer Co. located just off of Mission Gorge Road. Once again, smallish and kind of out of the way, although I think that it may be a good destination as most people I have talked to about it, don’t seem to know just how good their beers really are. I would love any other recommendations/suggestions about other beer bars and/or breweries that we could stop by on this next adventure.

Next, Sarah B on Karl Strauss’ ripple-effect and how Stone is helping the entire community of Escondido. I LOVE Stone for several reasons: their saving the farm and building the hotel are just a couple of them. I appreciate what they have done to help put San Diego on the beer map as a whole, which was paved by, as Dean stated, Karl and Port. For all you San Diegans out there, just so you know Stone is already in the process of building a new Restaurant and Bistro in Point Loma, and have plans to build a tapping room in the heart of South Park. Should be interesting to see what they roll out in their near future, especially with plans to open another brewery in either Belgium or Germany. This topic will be discussed in much more detail and certainly in a more heated forum as Dean and I are going to tackle this in a future Video Blog to be featured on this site. Stay tuned!

The topic that I wanted to address the most was something that Sarah B, Road Dawg, B-Daddy, and Dean have all touched on, and that I feel as though I have not for some reason… GATEWAY BEERS!!!! I promise to dedicate an entire entry to this very soon, but in the mean time I wanted to give you all something to chew on (and by chew on I mean DRINK!) For quite some time there has been a social stigma of sorts around beer, and the difference between beer and wine in social situations has been “KEG STANDS AND BEER BONGS” as opposed to a nice bottle of wine for $50 and a nice dinner party for mom and dad. Why? Just this past weekend my friend Vince went up to Lost Abbey to try and acquire a $35 bottle of 2009 Veritas. It has been aged in Pinot Noir barrels, bourbon barrels, and has been babied for over 2 years. Why is that any different than a bottle of 2009 Zinfandel? It’s not, in fact it’s the same quantity, similar ABV, and is, in fact, more rare than most bottles of wine that you’ll find for a similar price as there were only 117 cases made.

So here’s my challenge to those “non-beer-drinkers”: Go to a boutique brewery/bottle shop, grab a 750 ml bottle of beer with a description that sounds like you might enjoy... Belgian beers in particular… make yourself and your significant other/friend/brother/sister/mom a nice meal. Make it a salmon dish, or something from the sea. Keep the bottle in the fridge until you start to cook then take it out. Let it sit there on the counter until you are ready to get your grub on, then open said bottle, pour into wine glasses, preferably red wine glasses (the bigger ones) and SIP the beer, don’t gulp! If you need recommendations or are debating between a few different beers please shoot me a message. I know I’m going a little crazy here and skipping the whole “gateway beers” like Hefes and Pilsners, but I’m feeling feisty. I know, I know, what’s new? Try this out and if you don’t at least kind of enjoy this beer and food pairing, I will buy you a bottle of wine of equal value. Stamp!

So you got it kids. The gauntlets have been thrown. Like I said, if you need a recommendation and you don’t have my number, shoot me a message on Facebook at Christopher “Max” McClain and I will most likely get back to you within the hour. Otherwise shoot me a comment in the section below, or at maxamilliondollars@gmail.com. I double dog dare ya!

Until next time my beer loving brethren, have a beer for me.

(ed. note: Such is Alpine's sterling reputation, we think that people will tolerate some inconvenience in way of a longer bus ride just for the opportunity to go to the Brewery... Our own gateway beers: Sierra Nevada Pale Ale and then stepping up to Red Hook's Long Hammer IPA... What we would recommend as a gateway beer if you think West Coast IPAs are too gnarly on the palate: Bear Republic's XP Pale Ale. An outstanding beer in its own right. You get that under your belt and you'll be able to cast off the training wheels in no time)

MAXED OUT: Makin' Enemies

If it's a Wednesday, it must mean it's time to let our boy do his thing. You are advised to proceed with caution, however, as Max is in a foul mood. We'll let him explain.

Alright my fateful friends of the hop, I am going to renege on last week’s promise to begin the countdown of my top nine favorite breweries of all time. Instead I am going to be blasting one of the most popular beers ever and tell you why I think that both Pliny the Elder and Pliny the Younger are the MOST OVERRATED BEERS OF ALL TIME!!!!

Sos I wake up last Thursday morning about the same time I wake up every morning, 11:30ish, and see that I have five text messages from some of my favorite beer lovers around town all telling me that Pliny the Younger is being tapped at Toronado that day. I am unimpressed, but for “research” decide to see what all of the hullabaloo is about as it had been a couple years since I got my grubby little mitts on this supposed ‘nectar of the Gods’. So I head down to meet a few of my pals and catch a pint or two of this delicious brew. At 12:30 in the afternoon on a Thursday, Toronado was absolutely PACKED with what I can only assume are the most hardcore of beer lovers. One idiot was even so stoked on this beer that he got there some two hours before the freakin’ place even opened, at 8:30 in the morning! Are you high!?!?!

Don’t get me wrong, this beer was a pretty fantastic beer to be sure, with notes of caramel and the hop aroma of a baby Zeus, but the amount of people that absolutely cream their jeans over this bubbly brew is completely outrageous. My good friend Matt Steele once told me an anecdote about this one time when he was meeting a friend at Hamilton’s (talk about overrated), was a little early and decided to take in some nicotine. As he stood out front, this dude was there and Steele asked him why the place was so hoppin’. “I don’t know. They got some amazing beer on called Younger, or sumpin’”, replies the beertard. Exactly!!!! MFers don’t even know what the name of the beer is, but because everyone else says it’s good then it must be, right? (Insert sheep sounds here)

Pliny the Elder is the other one that just chaps my derriere. People talk about this beer like it’s the second coming of Christ when it’s mediocre at best. It’s so earthy that I feel like charging people five bucks to open their mouth so I can throw a hand full of dirt in, add water, rinse, and repeat.

So my people, lesson of the day: Think for your effing selves!!! If you like Pliny the Elder, more power to ya. And if you find yourselves coming across a tapping of the Younger do yourself a favor and go… for the experience. But don’t be that guy that sits outside for two hours waiting for the doors to open at a joint; not cool. Exponential Hoppiness was on at the same time and is just as good if not better.

Thanks for tuning in to this week’s edition of MAXED OUT - as always, feel free to comment in the comment section below, on Facebook, or at maxamilliondollars@gmail.com.

Until the next time, have a beer for me.

(ed. note: Sierra Nevada was our gateway beer into ales and Pliny the Elder was that for IPAs as we fell in love with the stuff upon first sip. Though we still enjoy Pliny, the ensuing years have afforded us the opportunity to get into many more outstanding IPAs. A such, we have come around to Max's general conclusions both on the taste and its unwarranted popularity.)