Date: 29/08/24
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Fieldwork – Berkeley (Taproom)***** 1160 Sixth St, Berkeley, CA 94710
- Fieldwork – Imaginator 6.8% NZ IPA [4.25]
One of several Fieldwork outlets in the Bay Area, these boys are the bollox.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Gilman (Brewery)*** 912 Gilman St, Berkeley, CA 94710
- Gilman – Bad Tattoo 8.2% DIPA [3.75]
Nice enough taproom, split into serving and seating areas.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Headlands (Beer Garden/Taproom)**** 1280 Gilman St, Berkeley, CA 94702
- Headlands – Socked In 6.4% NEIPA [3.75]
Pleasant beer garden atmosphere. Busy.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Great Notion (Taproom)*** 2031 Fourth St, Berkeley, CA 94710
- Great Notion – A Beer Has No Name 7.4% NEIPA [4.25]
A great addition to the Berkeley area, situated in the former Anchor Steam bar. A welcome outlet for Great Notion beers.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Cellarmaker – Berkeley (Taproom)**** 940 Parker St, Berkeley, CA 94710
- Cellarmaker X Other Half (collab) All Citra Everything Bagel 8.5% DNEIPA [4.5]
Large, sprawling industrial space, situated in the former Rare Bottle brewery.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Tenma Beer Project (Brewery)*** 6510 San Pablo Ave, Oakland, CA 94608
- Tenma – Visible Sound 6.4% NEIPA [4.0]
Smallish taproom with decent enough beers.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Wondrous (Brewery)*** 1306 65th St, Emeryville, CA 94608
- Wondrous – Hazy Single Cuff 6.6% NEIPA [4.25]
Another bijou taproom, quiet on our visit.
Date: 30/08/24
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
E.J. Phair (Bar/Eatery/Taproom?)** 300 Cumberland St, Pittsburg, CA 94565
More of an eatery, with a half-decent tap list. E.J. Phair is a chain venue with several outlets. They certainly used to brew their own beers, but I could find no trace of them, so suspect that brewing has ceased.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Fourth Bore (Eatery/Bar)**** 2 Orinda Theatre Square Suite 134, Orinda, CA 94563
- Paperback – The Showdown in Downtown 7.2% NEIPA [3.75]
Great-value eatery with a better-than-average tap list. The pulled pork sandwiches were spectacular!
Date: 31/08/24
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Headlands (Brewery/Beer Garden)**** 3420 Mount Diablo Blvd Suite A, Lafayette, CA 94549
- Headlands – Hello Weekend 6.8% NEIPA [3.75]
- Headlands – Socked In 6.4% NEIPA[3.75]
A smashing little taproom with a very busy, well laid out beer garden.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Beeryland (Bar)*** 2318 Telegraph Ave, Oakland, CA 94612
- Fieldwork – Hazy Train 6.9% NEIPA [4.0]
A rough-and ready bar with a small serving area and larger outside drinking area. Decent enough tap list, but the greasy burger gave me the shits!
Date: 01/09/24
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Concord Tap House (Bar)**** 3513 Clayton Rd, Concord, CA 94519
- Narrative Fermentations – Hop of the City 7.6% NEIPA [4.0]
- Barebottle – Citra Shredder 6.5% NEIPA [4.25]
This is a great all-round bar. Can be a bit pricey compared to other local outlets.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Rocco’s Ristorante Pizzeria (Pizza House)*** 2909 Ygnacio Valley Rd, Walnut Creek, CA 94598
- Elysian – Space Dust 8.2% AIPA [3.5]
A very busy pizza house. Beers are coincidental.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Good Hop (Bar/Bottleshop)*** 2421 Telegraph Ave #102, Oakland, CA 94612
- Slice – Raging Slurries (can) 7.0% NEIPA [3.75]
A cracking bar just across the road from Beeryland. Modest tap list, but a mega can choice from a wall lined with fridges at the back.
Date: 02/09/24
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Floodcraft (Taproom/Beer Terrace)*** 777 The Alameda, San Jose, CA 95126
- Floodcraft – Sloth Smile 6.6% NEIPA [4.25]
This was a tricky one to find. Located at the back of a supermarket, up a flight of steps. A decent beer menu and lovely little open terrace drinking area. There was a (bad) trumpeter busking outside… “Does anyone have any requests?” “Yeah – can you play three blocks down?”
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Narrative Fermentaions (Brewery)*** 101 E Alma Ave, San Jose, CA 95112
- Narrative Fermentaions – Frickin Laser Beams 7.1% NEIPA [4.25]
Great setup in the middle of a residential area.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Clandestine (Brewery)*** 980 S 1st St ste b, San Jose, CA 95110
- Clandestine – Ode to Odin 7.6% NEIPA [3.75]
- Clandestine – Barrel Aged Faceplant 11.5% Double oatmeal stout [3.75]
A friendly, otherwise bland venue located on a man road and under a flight path, so fairly noisy outside on the patio. Good beer though!
Date: 03/09/24
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Barebottle (Brewery)**** 1525 Cortland Ave, San Francisco, CA 94110
- Barebottle – Juicy Couture 6.4% NEIPA [3.75]
- Barebottle – Muir Woods 6.4% NEIPA [4.0]
- Barebottle – Haze & Ashbury 6.7% Hazy IPA [4.0]
A fair way out of town (We took a Waymo driverless taxi), but totally worth it. Great range of beers in a working brewery with friendly staff. Japanese food truck outside.
Date: 04/09/24
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Salesforce Park (Beer Garden/Taproom)**** 4th Level, 425 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94105
- Barebottle – Supernova Nelson 8.5% DNEIPA [3.75]
- Barebottle – Small Wonder Dust 5.6% Hazy pale [3.75]
We took two attempts to find this. Couldn’t find it first time, walking around the block twice. It’s actually on a lovely landscaped bridge on the 4th level of the building. Enter the building and take the escalator(s) up, or there is a free gondola from street level (unfortunately out of order on our visit). The bar is run by Barebottle, and it’s a beautiful place to while away an hour or two in the middle of the city. Unfortunately, beers are served in plastic cups.
Date: 05/09/24
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Mike Hess (Taproom)*** 2313 Oak Grove Rd, Walnut Creek, CA 94598
- Mike Hess – Fair Point 6.5% Hazy IPA [3.75]
- Mike Hess – Hop Cloud 7.0% Hazy IPA [3.75]
- Mike Hess – Umbrix 10.2% Imperial stout [4.0]
Nice enough taproom with a small, shaded outside drinking area, situated in a small shopping hub. Nice atmosphere.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Calicraft (Brewery)** 2700 Mitchell Dr, Walnut Creek, CA 94598
- Calicraft – Cool Kidz 7.2% APA [3.25]
Dull brewery situated a fair walk out of town. Thankfully, a No.7 bus (stop opposite side of the road) will take you back to Pleasant Hill BART station free of charge.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Beeryland (Bar – 2nd visit)*** 2318 Telegraph Ave, Oakland, CA 94612
- Fieldwork – Hazy Train 6.9% NEIPA [4.0]
A second visit to this place on the way home to our AirBnB. The burger gave me the shits again, so can’t recommend the food!
Date: 06/09/24
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Sante Adairius (Taproom)**** 460 8th St, Oakland, CA 94607
- Sante Adairius – Yes is the Answer 6.8% Hazy IPA [4.0]
A lovely, cosy Belgian-style bar, specialising in Belgian style barrel-aged and spontaneously-fermented beers with the odd hazy or Impy thrown into the mix. A real connoisseur’s place.
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Hesher’s Pizza (Pizza House/Bar)** 206 Broadway, Oakland, CA 94607
- Ghost Town – Forbidden 6.4% NEIPA [4.0]
Heavy metal pizza and beer joint, serving with toppings such as ‘Tomb Mold’, ‘Reverend Bizarre’ and ‘Befowlment’. If metal and pizza ain’t your bag, man, then this isn’t the place for you!
Venue – Beer(s) Sampled – Notes:
Line 51 (Brewery)*** 303 Castro St, Oakland, CA 94607
- Line 51 – Oakland Soul 6.0% Hazy IPA [3.5]
Situated in an old bus depot, this place has a converted coach for the beer cellar. Sadly average beer.