Try This Beer: June Lake Brewing
When driving back from the Eastern Sierra this weekend, Greyson and I finally got to try the new-ish brewery in June Lake – June Lake Brewing.
June Lake Brewing // tahoefabulous.com
We sampled both tasting flights the brewery offered, and the awesome owner threw in samples of the other two beers on tap so we could have the full experience. Here’s what I tried (all descriptions from June Lake Brewing website):
Deer Beer Brown Ale (3/5): Having a love for traditional English Browns we used UK Fuggles and UK Goldings hops coupled with 2-Row Pale, Crystal 15 and Chocolate malts to craft this beauty. By doubling the amount of Fuggles and Goldings recommended for the original style we introduced a slightly higher hop flavor (read Westcoast style) to the traditional English Brown, and complimented the hoppyness with the additional of Chocolate malt. With an ABV of 5.8%, an IBU of of 24 and an SRM of 21, Deer Beer Brown is smooth, refreshing and packed with character.
Alper’s Trout Pale Ale (3.5/5): Working with Tim Alpers, father of the famed Eastern Sierra Alpers Trout, we put together a well rounded grain bill comprised of 2-Row Pilsner, 2-Row Pale, Munich, Crystal 15 and White Wheat malts to compliment the heavy additions of Cascade, CTZ, Mt. Hood, and Crystal hops. This beer weighs in around 5.8% ABV with 35 IBUs and a light 6.6 SRM color profile. Combined with our phenomenal water, the primarily Pilsner malt grain bill provides a nice, slightly creamy mouth feel, with the strong citrus notes compliments of the Cascade and CTZ hops. In the finish hints of spicy can be found from the Crystal and Mt. Hood aroma hop additions after the boil during the whirlpooling process.
SmoKin Porter (4/5): Brewed and named in honor of TestPilot 001 Jeff Kramer the SmoKin Porter is a full bodied robust porter exhibiting a mildly smoky character complimented by a generous helping of CTZ hops for bittering and Mt. Hood hops for flavor and aroma. With an ABV of 7.2%, a bitterness of 51 IBUs and a deep dark SRM of 32, the SmoKin Porter drinks remarkably smooth for such a dark colored beer. With skills that rival Kramer’s own, the SmoKin Porter is a delicious choice for any occasion.
Hutte Double IPA (4.5/5): Working with our Brewfather and a number of our brewer friends we developed this Goliath of a beer. Think big Westcoast style DIPA with a massive hop bill that includes Cascade, Millenium, CTZ, Ella and Nugget, countered by an even larger malt bill comprised of 2-Row Pale, Carapils and Crystal 15. Oh yeah and throw in 66lbs of dry hopped Cascade, Ella and Armarillo for a citrusy, orangy finish that accentuates the overall super hoppy goodness. Though light in color at 9 SRM, Hutte makes up for it in flavor and body with 9.5% ABV and 120 IBUs of palate crushing awesomeness!This beer was my far away favorite, and reminded me of a couple of the beers I really liked at Crux. When we told the owner that, she said that she was super flattered, as Crux is one of her and her husband’s favorite breweries!
Silver Lake Saison (3/5): You’ve spoken, and we’ve listened… This is our lightest beer in color, flavor, alcohol and palate… But never ones to fully capitulate to other’s opinions we utilized a fruity/spicy Belgium Farm House Saison Ale (BFHSA) yeast as opposed to our standard California Ale yeast to keep it foot! Combining equal parts 2-Row Pale and 2-Row Pilsner with some White Wheat and Munich malts, we ended up with a light refreshing BFHSA that is lightly hopped with Cascade, Columbus/Tomahawk/Zues, Crystal, Ella and Mt. Hood. Perfect for a long day at the downhill park, and/or a hot day in the sun, the Silver Lake Saison
Rock-N-Dirt Milk Stout (3/5): We love Mammoth Rock n’ Dirt so of course we wanted to make a collaboration beer with them to express our deepest feelings and gratitude. You may ask how a heavy equipment and excavation company can collaborate on a beer, well all we can tell you is that it’s got real dirt in it and that’s how you can tell it’s authentic (*does not actually contain dirt, we just think that sounds good). The combination of 2-Row Pale, Carapils, Chocolate and Crystal 75 malts creates the perfect backbone for the conservative Columbus/Tomahawk/Zeus and Mt. Hood hop profile. Brewed with English Ale yeast as opposed to our standard California Ale yeast, this brew has a smooth, slightly sweet finish.
Archimedes Red Ale (3/5): RIP Tyson Archimedes Montrucchio. Gone, but certainly not forgotten we brewed this kickass Red Ale for our fallen friend Tyson. As a tribute to the intensity with which he lived life we packed this beer with a sh*t ton of love and respect. From a grain bill comprised of 2-Row Pale, Crystal 75, Munich, Victory (that’s where the biscuityness comes from), and Chocolate malts, to a hop profile of Cascade and Mt. Hood, we didn’t pull any punches on this one. As a full bodied Red Ale that isn’t over the top, the Archimedes Red is our TCB go to beer, and is a constant reminder that we all need to be thankful for each new day with our friends and family. La Familia Por Vida!
8140 IPA (4/5): 8140 ain’t our altitude folks so don’t go telling our friends at Mammoth Brewing Company they aren’t the highest brewery in California. The 8140 Black IPA was brewed in homage to the eight thousand one hundred and forty square feet of sheet rock we had to hang in our brewery. As the ring leaders of the monumental task we naturally asked our supreme friends Jonathan Widen and Dave Thomas from Premier Painting Plus what kind of beer they wanted and naturally they said BLACK. So before you sits a Black IPA with an ingredient list as ominous as the color (basically it has more ingredients than will fit on the page). So enjoy the black hoppy goodness and avoid hanging drywall at all costs!
ESBzar (3/5): Rest In Powder BZ! We hand crafted this traditional Extra Special Bitter to honor our fallen friend Larry “BZ” Miller, without whom it would have been very difficult to open our brewery. Utilizing ESB as our base malt (think English style malt similar to Marris Otter) we combined Crystal 15 malt with Golding and Fuggle hops to provide the perfect base for the WLP 002 English Ale Yeast to do it’s yeasty magic and create this full bodied, subtly hopped 7% ABV 32 IBU beauty. If big hop forward beers aren’t necessarily your thing, the ESBzar may be your new go to fermulation.
Not So Hoppy Holiday Ale (3/5): Picture Santa crying…. Taking a step away from our hop forward roots we crafted this recipe with the help of our Brew Father to highlight the tastyness of holiday spices. Utilizing cinnamon sticks, fresh ginger, nutmeg, fresh orange zest, grains of paradise and amazing awesome sauce we concocted this wickedly good holiday mix. With an IBU of 19 and 5.7% ABV, this crimson beauty can be sessioned all night without fear of praising the porcelain thrown. Spicy, malty, goodness.I really liked this brewery – it’s in a really cool space and Sarah the owner was super friendly, not only giving us a couple of free tastings, but offering mountain bike suggestions in the area. The brewery doesn’t do food, but there is an AMAZING Hawaiian food truck parked outside – Ohanas395. You can order at the truck, and they’ll deliver your food in the brewery. Try the Big Kahuna Fries!If you’re road tripping up or down 395, June Lake Brewing is worth taking the scenic route on the June Lakes loop!