Busy busy, that’s the best way to explain our schedule for the last few weeks. We were looking for something fun to do on Saturday after a hard week’s work, and we certainly found it with a trip to the Del Mar Fairgrounds. The horse-racing season is freshly underway here in Del Mar, but tonight offered something unique – A BEER FEST!
I can’t stay away from a quality craft brew. I’ll gladly run an extra mile or bang out an additional rep to get my hands on some quality suds. Needless to say, here is our “cheat-day-at-the- beer-fest review”:
Kid in a candy store. Kid in a candy store.
That’s all I could think. IPAs, stouts, porters, ales and more … it was all there! The festival allowed for 5, five-ounce samples from some of the top breweries in San Diego … below is my two cents:
Lost Abbey: Boy, as soon as I knew they were there, we got in line. I’d heard so many good things about the brewery that I just HAD to check it out. Ended up with a sample of “Board Meeting”, and it kicked the day off right! Dark, deep and rich is the best way I can describe that brew. So, so tasty.
Next stop, Rip Current Brewery: Cruised around the corner and ended up with some samples of what was an IPA of some kind (crowd=loud, no glasses, #washopingforthebest), and it didn’t disappoint. Smooth, yet full of hops and happiness. Will definitely look into their beers further.
Lucky number three? Ballast Point.
Oh man. Since our arrival, I’ve fallen in love with their Sculpin IPA, so it took every fiber of my being to try something different. So glad I did.
I ended up with a 5-ounce taste of Victory of the Sea. Mmmmm, mmm, MMM, is all I can say of that one. It reminded me why I like trying new brews. Could see that one as an after-dinner, before-dinner, or, quite honestly, before-breakfast beer. That brew can kick off a great day no matter what.
Our next stop? Manzinitas. Glad we came. Their Chaotic Double IPA was WELL WORTH the taste. We’ll be picking that up in the future.
And finally … we ended up at AleSmith. Since we’d both had their IPA, we decided to give their Nut-Brown Ale a try. Definitely don’t regret that decision.
There were several other breweries we wished we could have stopped by … but I guess that’s for another day. As recent transplants, we would say the craft-brew culture here in San Diego is unlike anything we’ve ever seen. But the most inspiring part is that the city embraces, enjoys and—most importantly—SUPPORTS local breweries.
We had a blast unwinding, putting a few dollars down on the horses and eating some highly-caloric food – because if you work hard, you deserve to be rewarded.
(Disclaimer: the line at Stone was terribly long and we’ve tried the majority of their beers already … because they are amazing.)
GnC
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