Yes, I know, it’s been quite a while. But I have managed to get out every now and then, so I thought I’d catch y’all up on some of my recent beer travels.
BUT FIRST, MALT
“Beer is agriculture!”
So shouts Admiral Maltings’ Ron Silberstein during a tour of the malt house during the 2nd Annual “It’s the Malt!” festival, held recently at Admiral’s Alameda facility.
He is passionate about the grain, something I found out years ago while interviewing him for the chapter I contributed to this book about the geography of beer.
Admiral Maltings was founded in 2017 due at least partially to the fact that hops were hogging the spotlight. As I mentioned in the book, the IPA explosion turned tap lists into virtual hop-varietal marquis. While malt, the backbone of beer (Admiral’s tagline is “No Malt, No Beer”) was relegated to a supporting role, at best. You didn’t see malt varieties on beer labels, or malt farmers glorified as much as their hop-growing counterparts.
Malt was under appreciated, and Admiral Maltings set out to help change that.
Fast-forward seven or eight years, and Silberstein’s passion continues. Enough to where, as an alternative to festivals highlighting hoppy beer styles (IPAs!) or beer-drinking occasions (Oktoberfest!), it was time for a festival celebrating malt.
The “It’s the Malt!” festival, like the facility that that hosts it, is utterly unique and not to be missed.
Let’s start with the fact that Admiral’s pub, The Rake, is truly an astounding place to enjoy a beer. Not just because you can see the actual malting floors from your table, but because it consistently features one of the most amazing tap lists you will ever find.
The common thread, of course, is that everything poured is made with Admiral malts. This ensures not only out-of-this-world quality, but an amazing cross-section of breweries and styles. Are you a hophead? Check. Dig a saison, or maybe a porter? Check-check. Love an impeccably brewed lager? Check-mate.
Having a place like this host a festival? Forget it. If you only have room in your budget for one festival a year, make it this one.
For starters, they turned their tap list up to 11 by featuring tents with additional taps outside. The Lager Land tent (I doubt that big music party on the other side of the Bay had this) was pouring beers where these standout malts can really shine.
The Bay Area Mashers tent celebrated the famed homebrewing club’s 35th anniversary by featuring collabs with several local breweries. The Bluegrass Common with Moraga’s Canyon Club, and Fool’s Gold English Golden Ale with Richmond’s East Brother were standouts.
(An aside — I was fortunate enough to later enjoy Fool’s Gold ON CASK at East Brother. Holy cow. Smooth, tangy, just slightly bitter, and absolutely amazing.)
So yes, the beers (and Whiskeys (!)) on offer were amazing enough. But this wasn’t just about tasting the finished products, it was also learning about malt and interacting with it.
If you weren’t able to catch one of the guided tours, the malthouse was opened up for self-guided tours that included several informational displays detailing the entire malting process.
Educational seminars were also offered, right on one of the germination floors, which included talks on the optimal situations to grow malt, as well as guided sensory tastings.
So — world class beers and spirits, AND the chance to learn a thing or two about what makes beer beer? Get to this next year, you will not regret it.
The Rake Pub at Admiral Maltings
651A W Tower Ave, Alameda
Open 7 days, check site for hours
PUB HOPPIN’
I’ve managed to squeeze in a few brewery stops while I’ve been our seeing our fine (still, I think) country.
Back Unturned Brewing, San Antonio, TX — Just off the Riverwalk north of the Downtown tourist spots sits Back Unturned Brewing. A scrappy, feisty, DIY type of place, with concrete floors, a stainless steel bar, and tanks in full display in the dining room. The beers are as solid as the space, with some nice IPAs and a delightful hoppy Belgian-style ale. Full kitchen featuring pizzas, full bar, friendly space. Worth the trek out of downtown.
516 Brooklyn Ave, San Antonio, TX 78215
Open daily at 11am
Roadmap Brewing, San Antonio, TX — Roadmap is just a few blocks from Back Unturned, although I had already built up quite a thirst in the stifling heat. A bit more polished, the expansive building features several separate but still very open spaces to hang-out, including a serious dartboard area around the corner from the bar.
And the beers are spot on. These folks have won their share of awards, locally and from GABF in Denver and the World Beer Cup. Great selection of merch, and a food truck on site featuring burgers. If you only time for one beer stop in SA, make it this one.
723 North Alamo Street, San Antonio, TX, 78215
Open M-F 2-10pm, S-S Noon-2pm
Barhop Brewing, Sequim, WA — headed to the Pacific Northwest for a family reunion, and wouldn’t you know this place just happened to be right across the street from our hotel. Of all the luck…
This is actually the second outpost for Barhop, their main facility is in Port Angeles, just down the highway. Not an ounce of pretension here, just good beer in an assuming, open space, with some outside seating, as well.
Pizza’s the name of the game here, as well. We had a nice spicy Pep, with just enough pop to work well with the crispy sourdough crust. The beers were solid as well, I particularly enjoyed a lively tart Key-Lime Chili Lager. Just enough of everything to make it interesting and not overwhelm.
845 W Washington St, Sequim, WA 98382
Open M-Thur Noon-7pm, Fri-Sun Noon-8pm
Headlands Brewing, several East Bay locations — closer to home, Headlands is bucking the trend and gone into major expand mode as of late, and they’ve carved a pretty good niche for themselves with each of their very unique spaces.
They’re all about making the absolute most with fairly small-ish footprints, with an emphasis on family-friendliness. Unique seating arrangements, dedicated kids’ play areas, and just enough greenery to feel like you’re hanging out in your friend’s backyard.
Walnut Creek, especially, pulls this off. They’ve managed to create a wooded oasis in the middle of a business park right across from a BART station! You wouldn’t think it would work, but it does. And, bonus, this location features a full bar.
The tap list is conveniently divided by flavor profile, so you’re sure to find what you need. Food menu features burgers, sandwiches, salads, and apps, as well as choices for the kiddos.
Hours vary by location, check their site for deets.
Lafayette — 3420 Mt. Diablo Blvd.
Berkeley — 1280 Gilman St.
Walnut Creek — 2999 Oak Rd., Suite A