If you had told me in February that within one month my drinking habits in 2020 were going to take a very weird turn…I would have laughed in your face.
In fact, the week Los Angeles went into “Safer At Home” lockdown, I was supposed to get together with my regular bottle share friends for a day of opening rare bottles from around the country. A week or so before we locked down I was at a similar party in Culver City. Through the first week of March, absolutely nothing about my alcohol consumption seemed abnormal.
Since March, I have lived in fear of catching this bug. If you haven’t already, see any of my recent posts (not the food-related ones!) to learn how much of a hypochondriac/germaphobe I have become this year. I haven’t even gotten stoned for fear of putting anything that isn’t oxygen in my lungs. I don’t drink more than a couple beers a night because the resulting hangover would mimic flu-like symptoms, and send me into a downward spiral of anxiety and panic.
In 2019, I drank a total 1,006 beers (2.75 daily).
As of today, in 2020 I’ve consumed 601 beers (1.60 daily).
Yeah… things have changed.
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As much as I love a memorable meal, or a great album, or a roll in the hay with a young lady who just arrived in Los Angeles with dreams of breaking into the entertainment industry, nothing beats a good beer. Beer (and by extension fine wine or small-batch bourbon, I suppose) elevates memorable meals, goes quite well with good music (at least according to my Instagram account), and helps give me the confidence to make those rolls in the hay possible. At least it used to, back when I was young and single.
I try to take beer seriously without sucking the fun out of it. I don’t normally chase limited releases. I refuse to stand in line for beer, not that it mattered this past year. I’ve stopped setting alarms for online sales. I’m happier to show up to a party with a 4-pack of Hazy Little Thing or 805 than I am something exclusive. I like to share equally with enthusiasts and friends who just don’t give a shit about craft beer.
This year has had some benefits for those of us who enjoy good beer. California (and several other states!) have loosened restrictions about sending beer through the mail. This has afforded us the opportunity to regularly place orders with Russian River Brewing Company, North Park Beer Co., Fieldwork Brewing Co., Henhouse Brewing, and many other California breweries that would be more difficult to obtain in bulk under normal circumstances. Hell, I can even order beer from Threes Brewing now instead of having to load up on cans and bottles when I’m in Brooklyn for work.
I’m hoping that once COVID isn’t dictating our lives anymore these loosened restrictions stay in place. I’m not a lawyer (or a lawmaker), but I would have to think the ability to sell and ship beer directly to customer helps breweries more than it hurts them. Also, Threes hasn’t brewed Short Fuse in a while so they can’t stop shipping beer to California until I get at least a case of my own to enjoy.
Speaking of which, Short Fuse was my favorite beer of 2018! And now I’m going to unveil my favorite beers of 2020! I’ll stop pontificating now and get to the list.
This list was compiled and calculated using my ratings on Untappd (and Beer Advocate where applicable). Rather than bore you with my own tasting notes I’m using the commercial descriptions wherever possible.
As always, if you want to keep up with what I’m drinking in real-time (or stalk me IRL), there’s always Untappd.
My ratings are included using both Untappd and BeerAdvocate.
The Top Ten Beers I Consumed In 2020
Honorable Mention:
HenHouse Brewing Company – Saison (Untappd 4.25, BeerAdvocate 4.32)
Tired Hands Brewing Company – Frequency Illusion: Skin Contact (4.25, 4.31)
Russian River Brewing – Pliny For President (4.50, 4.45)
Cellarmaker Brewing Company – Imperial Coffee & Cigarettes (4.50, 4.49)
4 Hands Brewing Co. – Madagascar Coconut & Cacao (4.25, 4.27)
Heater Allen Brewing – ZwickelBier (4.25, 4.16)
Sierra Nevada – 40th Hoppy Anniversary Ale (4.25, 4.28)
Holy Mountain Brewing – Mercy Seat 2020 (4.50, 4.49)
Highland Park Brewery – Barrel-Aged More Maas (4.25)
Enegren Brewing Company – American Reinheitsgebot Pilsner (4.25, 4.39)
Bottle Logic Brewing – Hypermash Hydra (4.25, 4.40)
Sour Cellars – Ladida (4.25, 4.30)
The Referend Bier Blendery – Le Mur (2018 Harvest) (4.50, 4.47)
Side Project Brewing – Abricot du Fermier Blend #4 (4.50, 4.39)
10b. Holy Mountain Brewing – Midnight Still: Wood Fired & Candied Maple Pecan (Untappd: 4.50, Beer Advocate: 4.55) – “This blend incorporates stock of Imperial Stout aged in bourbon barrels for 15 months and 10 months. We candied a large amount of pecans using Grade A dark maple syrup from Sprague Maple Farms. The pecans were toasted with the help of our good friend Matt at The Masonry [a Seattle restaurant/bar] using his mobile wood fired oven. The blend of stout was then aged on these incredible sweet & smoky pecans. 13% ABV” This was consumed on March 6th, the last weekend before Los Angeles shut down. It’s incredibly sad to think back on that night, and how I actually felt anxious being in a room with people from the Seattle area, and panicked when I couldn’t find the tasting glass I’d been using throughout the evening. Since that night I have just one drinking buddy, and this is most definitely not her preferred style of beer.
10a. Threes Brewing – Yore (4.50) This is her preferred style of beer. Threes states, “Our latest Czech-style session pilsner, inspired by the rich SV?TLÉ Pivo brewing tradition. It’s a testament to the beloved Czech lager craft and to the beers we enjoy drinking both carelessly and studiously. Clocking in at 3.9%, what it lacks in ABV it makes up for in rich malt character and rolling hop expression. Like most pilsners, it’s confined to a few simple ingredients: Pilsner malt, Saaz hops, lager yeast and soft water. Yet with these simple ingredients it’s possible to brew beers with a range nearly as broad as American IPAs.” This beer is the epitome of why I love Threes, and why I’m so delighted they are now able to ship beer to California. It tastes like beer. It has just the right amount of fresh dough, mild earthiness and spice to keep you thinking and enjoying while you crush can after can. In the same way that Short Fuse blew my mind in 2018, and Backways did in 2019, Yore has been the best Threes discovery this year. I really, really missed getting to work in Brooklyn this year so I could take my lunch daily at Franklin/Kent. It seems like every year that place opens my eyes to one amazing new discovery. Hopefully I can return in 2021.
09. Skookum Brewery – In Ruins (4.25) “In Ruins is a barrel-aged barleywine brewed with English malts and hops and aged for 14 months in local bourbon barrels. 12% ABV. Rich notes of bourbon, vanilla, dark candi sugar, boozy cocoa and charred oak.” Other than maybe Firestone Walker’s Sucaba and the Bruery’s Mash series, I’m not a huge barleywine drinker. 64 of my 5,051 unique Untappd checkins fit the English or American-style barleywine style. That said, this one was really, really good. I also really enjoyed Life Is Round from Private Press Brewing. So, I’m getting more accustomed to the style. It used to be, back in the day (I’m talking like 2006) I’d buy things like Stoudts Old Abominable, Weyerbacher Blithering Idiot, or Dogfish Head Olde School just because the ABV was high and I could get drunk faster. These early experiences might have sullied my appreciation of the style. I’m sure this will continue to change as my palate develops in 2021 and beyond.
08. de Garde Brewing – The Anniversary Blend #6 (4.50) – “Aged in Oak Barrels. Blended from 5 years for 6th anniversary.” That’s a pretty simple description for a very complex beer. I’ve had both the 2nd and 6th anniversary blends, and each one was an eye-opening experience. Whenever I get proper old-world funk on an American wild ale it makes me giddy. Oxbow’s Momoko is another one where the oak and barnyard aromas really standout. There’s a lot of fun fruity esters that keep you returning to your glass, but I’m one of those weirdos who likes the musty, cheesy, horse blanket thing more than apples, lemons, and peaches. This bottle had all of those working harmoniously together. Insert chef’s kiss emoji here.
07. Highland Park Brewery – Meryl (4.50) “We blended a barrel of imperial stout that had been aging for 24 months with a little bit of fresh pastry stout, tons of peanut butter, and some coconut.” Big adjunct stouts aren’t normally my thing, but I do have a soft spot for peanut butter. My original tasting notes for this bottle were, “Nose shows more spirit than PB or coconut. PB comes out a bit as it warms. Rich, low carb, warming. Finishes on PB with light astringency. Fun to let sit and develop.” That’s probably not as glowing a review as one would expect for something I rated 4.5/5, but I try to stay unbiased and objective whenever possible. So here’s where I’ll say that HPB (my favorite local brewery) has put out a lot of great bottles and cans this year, including the recently-released Barrel-Aged More Maas and a canned stout with vanilla and pistachio. Meryl was the best beer I had from the best brewery near me, so it deserves a spot on this list.
06. House Of Fermentology – Orange Dot (2016) (4.50) “Golden sour ale fermented and aged in oak barrels with roasted Cara Cara oranges and Vermont wildflower honey.” I don’t quite remember if this was bottled in 2016 or 2017, but that’s not the point. To say that I am in love with HOF is an understatement. I respect the mission (a “weekend project” when brewer/blender Todd Haire is not busy with Foam Brewers). I respect the process: wort is fermented with a mixed culture of Saccharomyces and Brettanomyces in oak barrels, often with a fruit addition. And the execution is always in keeping with the ethos: make experimental, interesting beer. The Dot series (“All great art starts with a single dot”) are pretty much flawless. I think I have one or two left in my cellar and if past is precedent, they will end up on this list in 2021 or 2022.
05. Oxbow Brewing Company – Sap Haus (4.50) – This was a recommendation from Nick at DeCicco’s in NY on one of my annual pilgrimages to drink with my buddy Ian. More than any other year in recent memory, I actively sought out more smoked beers in 2020. Several have made this list, including two in the top 5! I have a feeling this trend is going to continue in 2021. Anyway, the commercial description of Sap Haus is “A smoked dark lager brewed with Maine maple syrup. Dark brown in color with notes of campfire, toffee, maple, and earth with a full body and lightly sweet finish.” It was outstanding. It has this sweet-but-dry malt thing, and a savory essence that just blew me away. Everything I get my hands on from Oxbow is fantastic, but these cans were a step above.
04. Private Press Brewing – Beyond Forever (4.50) – “Beyond Forever is a stout blend built for the rich and creamy character of Ugandan vanilla beans. A trio of stouts that aged in Willett, Weller, and Blantons barrels create a complex base of dark chocolate, toasted almond, vanilla soaked oak, and ganache. The vanilla beans blossom into ripe fig and silky milk chocolate notes. A cosmic abyss of vanilla splendor best explored with an astral confidant.” My personal notes from my first bottle were, “I could say a lot about this but my most favorite aspect of it is how the vanilla doesn’t overpower, but adds depth. And the finish makes you want to take another sip. Dark fruit and leather and tobacco with this sweet toasted marshmallow thing on top.” Sounds tasty, right? Brad at Private Press has just really gotten started but he’s definitely hit the ground running and I think 2021 is going to showcase even more world-class brews.
03. The Referend Bier Blendery – Berliner Messe Sanctus (2016 Harvest) (4.75) – “Spontaneously fermented Berliner Weisse/Lambic hybrid aged in neutral oak barrels, re-fermented with 2016 harvest NJ Chambourcin grapes in port barrels.” My tasting notes for this one state, “bottled Feb 19, 2017. Outstanding. Aroma implies darker fruit, red wine, oak, lemon, and funk. Taste is bright red fruit (cherry, strawberry). Soft acidity, Round tannins. Light and crisp. I could drink this forever.” I don’t get a lot of Referend bottles here in Los Angeles, and I’ve never been able to visit on a trip home to New Jersey, but everything I have received from friends and — until this year — trade partners has been phenomenal. Next trip home I will make it my business to visit.
02. Metabrewing – Woodshop XII (4.75) – “An Old World-style mixed-fermentation ale produced by a turbid mash and a 3-hour boil with aged noble hops. It spent the first 12 months aging sur lie in French oak red wine barrels, followed by 4 months on 170 lbs of fresh, whole Flavor Crest peaches and Spring Bright nectarines from Masumoto Family Farm. The final stage was an extensive, 17-month bottle-conditioning before it’s very limited release at Woodshop XII (Woodshop 12).” It’s odd that I’ve been hanging onto this luxe homebrew since 2018, but I finally opened one of my two bottles and it was spectacular. My tasting notes were pretty simple but I think informative: “Soft carb. Lots of oak, must, and funk on the nose. More stone fruit on the tongue. Tart but not sour. Wonderful.” As previously stated, oak-funk-must is my sweet spot when it comes to this style, and Luke hit this one out of the park. I don’t think there were many bottles of this produced, but if you can find Beachwood Blendery’s Many Fruitless Trials he had a hand in that one as well.
01. Enegren Brewing Company – Blondfire (4.50) “Bamberg-style smoked lager (rauchbier) that combines the refreshing maltiness of a helles with smokey notes of black forest ham. This beer is the perfect accompaniment to a family backyard bbq or a California beach bonfire.” In a year in which I consumed many smoked beers, this one stood out as my favorite. It checked every box I look for, from crispness to dryness to its effervescence and rich smokiness…it was, in my mind, the most perfect beer I had this year. In a year in which I couldn’t enjoy a California beach bonfire with friends (but certainly consumed a lot of bbq thanks to Postmates and my own middling culinary skills) I only wish I could have taken down a case of Blondfire on a weekend trip to Joshua Tree or a July 4th pool party. Hopefully Enegren re-brews this in 2021 so I can enjoy a dozen or two dozen more of these in a setting befitting of such a magnificent beer.
Cheers. Prost. Na Zdravi. Sante. Salute…whatever your preferred nomenclature, enjoy the rest of 2020 and let’s look forward to 2021 and hopefully some return to normalcy.
Continue to stay healthy and safe, y’all.
