California Beerzine

California Beerzine Presents: Nick Walks America Victory Beers

For the past 5 months, Nick Moffatt has been walking across the country to raise money for the American and Royal British Legions.  Along the way, he’s been writing an excellent online travel journal, which he  updates from the road via cell phone.

He started in New York back on June 17th.  Here’s a little taste from Day One of the Nick Walks America blog:

Hello all. Well its the end of day 1 & I am still alive. Ive camped up somewhere in New Jersey by a very nice river, about 13 miles from Staten Island. It’s gonna be squirrel for breakfast too if they dont stop dropping things on my head. So far there’s been no blisters, muggings, crying or passing out. I did see a pretty cool car chase in manhattan though, not that im condoning car theft. Still hasnt sunk in that I’ve actually started, oh well, only 2,985 miles to go….

Wow. When was the last time you walked 3,000 miles?  As a native Angeleno, I’m not even sure I’ve walked that far in my whole life, and to do it all at once just seems plain crazy.  And obviously I’m not the only one who thinks this guy is a bit crazy.  Along the way, he’s been mistaken for an escaped convict, a midget, Mr. Bean, and perhaps worst of all, an Australian.

If you have a few minutes, head over to Nick Walks America and pick up the story from his June archives.  It’s a great account of a huge adventure, and I’ve had a great time catching up to speed with this firsthand account of a Brit crossing the US on foot.

There’s only one thing I can think of that would be more fun than reading Nick’s travelogue, and that’s going out next week to throw back a few Victory Beers with the man himself!

Yes, that’s right.  Next Wednesday, the 19th, you can join California Beerzine at the Daily Pint in Santa Monica for an evening of victory beers with Nick.  Prepare to be enthralled by his stories from the road!  To be charmed by his rugged good looks!  To be sickened by the grotesque swelling around his ankles! Read more »

A Beery Saturday at the Real Ale Festival

The alarm clock went off way too early for a Saturday morning. Saturday morning? Isn’t it not supposed to do that on the weekend?

As much as I usually savor Saturday morning snoozing, I flipped the switch off and jumped out of bed, alert and excited for the day ahead of me. This was no ordinary Saturday.

The girl and I hopped in the car and drove to Culver City. We were meeting up with about 35 other craft beer fanatics at the Culver City Homebrew Supply Shop, home to the (in?)famous Pacific Gravity homebrew club. A chartered bus was waiting to take us down to Carlsbad, where the 11th Annual Pizza Port Real Ale Festival was set to commence.

This being my first road trip with PG, I wasn’t savvy to proper bus protocol. Is it poor form to drink beers when you’re on the way to a beer fest? I didn’t want to pull some huge rookie move and blow my taste buds before we even got through the gates.

When we hit the 405, a bottle of Reissdorf Kölsch was cracked, and I breathed a huge sigh of relief. To draw an analogy to my 2nd favorite Microsoft Windows card game, Hearts had been broken. Coolers opened up and backpacks were unzipped, as bombers and 750s were uncapped and uncorked, and passed around the bus.

And this wasn’t just regular stuff from the store. People had brought their delicious homebrews, their recent trades from the East Coast, new releases that are hard to find, and their special reserves that have been squirreled away in closets for years. Highlights included an Affligem Noel from 2004, Avery 15, Penn Brewer’s Reserve St. Nikolaus Bock Bier, and Pizza Port Moon Lit Sessions Lager, which is made from the second runnings of the mash from Lost Abbey Serpent’s Stout.

It’s strange to have that delicious stouty taste in your lager, but overall, it’s very drinkable. Kind of a Serpent’s Stout Lite (I hope Tomme doesn’t read this, I doubt he’d want the word “Lite” in the same sentence with any of his beers).

The bus finally exited the freeway and we made our way down Carlsbad Village Drive. The event had just started, and there was a 20 minute line that extended down the street, way past the alley. Soon enough, though, we were in the gates, we grabbed our commemorative pint glasses and taster tickets, and we were off.

The lineup was stunning.

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Pliny the Elder Now in Bottles

Big news in the California beer world this week; Russian River is now bottling their Blind Pig IPA, as well as the cult-status Pliny the Elder. Jay Brooks of Brookston Beer Bulletin was on hand to help out at the brewery, where he got to snap a few pictures and take some video of this historic event.

For his full recap, check out: Pliny the Pint Bottle

Hot Knives Taste Signature Ale

Signature Ale is a 2007 collaboration between Tomme Arthur of Lost Abbey/Pizza Port fame, and Dirk Naudts of De Proef Brouwerij.

This limited edition brew was on shelves at the end of last summer, and disappeared pretty quickly. In fact, due to overwhelming success, the powers that be decided to brew it again this year.

Find it out on the shelves now, wherever fine beer is sold.

For more videos and other beery goodness, visit the Hot Knives blog.