Wednesday, July 24, 2024

Beer Review - Hefeweizen (Golden Road Brewing)

A straw colored pint of Hefeweizen
Golden Road Brewing's Hefeweizen


I love that opinions can change. I recently had a “Voodoo Ranger Juicy Haze IPA” from New Belgium Brewing that I thought was the tastiest, cleanest, most refreshing beer I had drank in years. Then I looked at my beer ranking data and discovered I had drunk it twice and for some reason thought it was vile. I questioned if the first location had bad lines that needed to be cleaned, but one of the drinks was from a can and one from a tap! And this is not the only time that on a hot day, this happened this summer.

“Hefeweizen” by Golden Road Brewing is a crushable 15 IBU, 5% ABV Hefeweizen style beer. The straw-colored liquid brings forward what one expects and needs from a Hefe, a little spice flavor, a lot of banana, and some sweetness that refreshes. All of this is played over the flavor of ale, letting you know it’s a beer and not a soda. I came away from this pint thinking it was a fantastic representation of a Hefe that is worthy of a super high ranking. That’s when I realized that the last time I had this beer at BaseLine, I rated it the lowest of the beers in a flight of four. These two incidents are great reminders, taste changes and so does the setting. On a day when this was mingled in a flight, I wasn’t a big fan. But on a day that I had a pint of it alone that was also super hot, it did nothing by refresh me.

Golden Road Brewing is a California-based brewery that is featured in the taps at BaseLine Taphouse. It was founded in 2011 and is inspired by the neighborhoods of Los Angeles. Honestly, it might be the perfect match for Disneyland. But I can see how a taproom that wants to give Cally vibes would rely on the experienced and finished beers of a nearly 15-year-old brewery. Another thing I now love about this brewery is that it was founded by Meg Gill, one of the first female brewery founders. So not only is it a polished brewery, it is historical. 


Who Drinks This? The beertender laughed at me when I ordered this. I was choosing between two options, a really heavy IPA and “Hefeweizen.” He laughed that I could not find two more different beers on the menu. If it wasn’t for my ignorance of my past drinks, I would have chosen the IPA. But this really is a beer for those who want refreshment and sweetness on a hot day. The thick-looking liquid may not seem refreshing but it is. For those wishing to sample what a Hefeweizen-style beer can bring should consider “Hefeweizen” by Golden Road Brewing.

 

Thursday, July 18, 2024

Brewery Review - Ivanhoe Park Brewing Company


The grain storage with the Ivanhoe Park Brewing logo and kegs lined up.
Ivanhoe Park Brewing Company

It’s important to make your own impressions of a brewery. Due to vibes, taste, or offerings, you may not know if it’s a go-to or a pass until you go there yourself. I had really anticipated Ivanhoe Park Brewing Company in my head the last few weeks with their amusement park-inspired names, award-winning beer, fun happenings, and strong social media presence. Sadly for me, when I ask who drinks there…overall it’s not the best fit for me and my style preferences. 

Ivanhoe Park Brewing Company was founded in 2017 in the Ivanhoe District of Orlando, right next to Ivanhoe Park. For beer lovers, it’s within an easy walking/driving distance from other Orlando Beer spots like GB Bottle Shop & Tasting Bar. It just feels like a beer and food rich area of Orlando. One could easily make a day of it enjoying Invanhoe and other locations. The site itself is an somewhat unassuming building with a small patio to the side. But best of all it has a lot of parking. But, it also has a lot of events on site, and the parking lot was not available to us as they setup for an event later in the day. We parked across the street at a park, one we hoped we were allowed to park at and walk over.

The tap room is very well lite, but perhaps a little small. While there is a bar for seating, there were not a lot of tables which surprised me. We sat at a large table that had some fairly uncomfortable wooden seats that I did not enjoy…and maybe set my mood. It’s possible they encourage patrons to sit outside. But this space was being prepped for an event and sometimes in Florida you just want to enjoy the AC. 

The Ivanhoe Park Brewing bar area showing taps.
The Ivanhoe Park Brewing Bar



My drinking companion enjoyed a “Pineapple Hard Seltzer” and I do mean enjoy. It was the hit of the table. Really in the land of Dole Whip, every brewery needs to have a pineapple flavored beer on the regular! This seltzer did the job, especially for someone who does not like beer as much as me.

Since I had never been here, I took on a flight. 
A wooden flight board with 4 different taster glasses colored yellow and brown.
The Flight


  • “Barrel Aged Bold Red Lip: My buddy says every brewery has their 3.25 rated Red Ale. This number exceeded that for me. The barrel really gave it a sweet mellow taste that was easy to drink and enjoy. As I look back at it now I am shocked to see a 9% ABV, as the taster went down so much easier than I expected. And it was likely my favorite beer of the flight. But I do love bourbon barrels and what they can do to beer!
  • “Park Hopp’r”: From what I’ve seen this is a flagship pilsner. I found this 5 ABV beer to be a little funky. And this was the beginning of me realizing that my tastes and Ivanhoe may not be aligned. The beer reminded me of what I would remember of a “Miller High Life” which I’ve not had in at least a decade. It just didn’t fit me…despite the fact I think this is one of the best beer names in the Orlando area. I attribute this to what I view as a more Belgian flavor profile, highlighted by German hops and malts. Most Beligan style beers, or what I think are Beligan, don’t work for my tastebuds.
  • “Joyland American IPA”: Every brewery needs a flagship IPA. They all generally taste the same to me, with a nice crushable balance of hops. This is a 7 ABV IPA with no IBUs? An IPA with no bittering. Tastewise, it’s a funky Pale Ale to me. Yeah, funky again! In looking over the website, the Head Brewer’s name of origin is Holland (per the internet) which totally explains potential influence. I do love the name of this beer, it’s historic and tips it’s hat to the tourist industry of the area. Joyland was originally an amusement park on Lake Ivanhoe. None of these brews have a reported IBU!
  • “Tupac Skaporter:”: This porter is a great representation of the porter style. It’s rich and malty with a 7.3% ABV. This is a good example of the style, no funk, and would make every Englishman proud, at least beer drinking ones who like the style.
  • “Masquerade: And we have a White Stout my friends. This was a freebie taster as it was accidentally poured and the excellent beertender wanted me to sample it. It has a 6% ABV, is sweet, and not surprising funky. The idea of a light colored stout has typically not worked for me as a style, and the funk is not for me.


Overall, Ivanhoe Park Brewing Company is not my favorite Orlando area brewery. I think for what it wants to achieve, it’s professional and making beers to style. But they are not the types of beers I generally go for as I like more crisp and shocking to me piney brews. 


Who Drinks Here? First and foremost, if you are creating your own beer tour in the Ivanhoe Park area, you will need to stop. Second, if you enjoy Belgian styles and you want something locally made, stop here. Finally, I do love the names of the brews, and if you are a parkhopper maybe you’d want a “Park Hopp’r”. I am glad that I checked it off my ride ticket, but I have other attractions I personally need to visit before I return. 

Thursday, July 11, 2024

Beer Review - La 150° Ambrata



A pint of La 150° Ambrata with the Italian pavillion in the background
A pint of La 150° Ambrata


I’m working on it, but apparently, I am a beer snob. I like craft, dark, thick, high ABV beers. What I don’t reach for are generally lagers and pils so far away from the beers that I love. AND I’M SUPER OUTSPOKEN ABOUT IT! But maybe there are gateway brews to get me back to those as I have heard so many times that lagers are the favorite beers of brewers and the hardest to achieve as there is no latitude for error!

I was walking the World Showcase with friends. While wandering, some of the members of our group noticed a wine cart in Italy that was selling something with Limoncello and they were in. Now, I had never considered Italian beer as it’s not pizza, pasta, or calzone! But since I was making a purchase, I thought I would add something for myself and grabbed a “La 150° Ambrata”. I had never heard of it, so at least it was something new!

“La 150° Ambrata” is listed as a Red Lager. It is Amber in color, though the light tones still allow you to see light through the pint. There are some darker malts used to achieve the color, which also provides a nice sweet yet bready flavor. And with 30 IBUs, the hops play nicely with that malt, creating a nice balance that lets you know you are drinking something substantial. Yeah, Red Lager!

Wait, what’s a Red Lager? That’s a Marzen? How do we know Marzen? Oktoberfest! But this is an Italian beer brewed by Birra Menabrea, not a German roll-out-the-barrel Octoberfest. Also, it’s not July when those hit the market as they keep coming out earlier and earlier every year. Marzens have traditionally been brewed in spring, with darker malt and more hops than traditional lager to help the flavor stick till it was drunk in the fall. But really, Marzen is a dark lager brewed by lager brewers. And while this is not a German Marzen, Piedmont the home of the brewery, is a northern Italian region that borders Switzerland, which borders Germany, and geographically, Europe as Epcot shows are countries just footsteps away. So, with many of us having our favorite American Octoberfests, do we not have room in our hearts for Italy?

Speaking of Birra Menabrea, it was established in 1846 in the foothills of the Alps. It is still run by the great-great-great-grandson of the founder, making it a true legacy family business. Birra Menabrea is Italy’s oldest brewery.

With a ABV of 5%, this was super drinkable strolling around the World! The biggest lesson we learned, Disney PhotoPass photographers are more than happy to take pictures with you and your beverages. They will set you up for a cheers picture. However, they won’t create a Magic Shot for you where Olaf joins you for an adult beverage!

Who Drinks This?: I have often complained that there Octoberfest season is too short! Americans, we love and drink barrels and barrels of Samual Adams Octoberfest. If you like the Sam Adams flagship, reach for a Yuengling Octoberfest, it’s just a little more flavorful and biscuity! But if at home, you enjoy the fall beer season, at Epcot a visit to Italy will let you love that style all year long, even if you are not in Germany! “La 150° Ambrata” is also a beer for beer snobs, who need to work their way towards lighter styles, one space on the color wheel at a time!

Grazie!

Thursday, July 4, 2024

Venue Review - Steakhouse 71 Lounge Bar



The Steakhouse 71 Lounge bar with the prep area full of glasess and bottles
Steakhouse 71 Lounge Bar




I don’t think Disney’s website is clear enough.


I don’t think a lot of food review sites are as transparent as a simple guy from the Midwest needs.


So let me spell it out!


STEAKHOUSE 71 LOUNGE IS FIRST COME, FIRST SERVE! I only screamed because I was trying to find out if there was a virtual waitlist, physical waitlist, or other system or code to get a seat at the bar or the nearby couches. It is walk up. You see a seat, you take a seat…it’s yours! Easy peasy my friends.


We had heard a lot about Steakhouse 71 and the Lounge with statements that it was the best burger at Walt Disney World. So after an enjoyable morning in the Magic Kingdom, we monorailed over to the Contemporary. Then we grabbed directions from the Disney Vacation Club desk to Steakhouse 71, I am convinced this cast member’s duty is solely to serve as my personal concierge at this resort hotel despite the fact I have no connection to DVC. We reached the lobby area, walked to the host stand, and were informed we could take any empty space behind the partition that blocked the stand from the lounge. We emerged on the other side expecting to find guests jostling for positions…what we found instead on this Sunday early afternoon was a lot of seating with us taking an entire end of the bar.


My delightful date selected a cocktail, the “French 71” which is a cocktail with cognac, prosecco, and pear nectar which was the real reason she grabbed it. And it fulfilled all her hopes. I did consider a cocktail myself, with the bourbon-based “Cocoa Boulevardier” or “Curious Cold Brew” catching my eyes. 

A pint of golden colored beer.
A Pint of Key West Sunset Ale


But I am here for the pints! There were only three beers on tap all of them in shades of yellow and gold. “Jai Alai” led the list as the one IPA. They also had the “3 Daughters St. Pete Beach Blond Ale” from Saint Petersburg of course, which I saw a non-adventurous drinker ordering. I selected the Florida Beer Company “Key West Sunset Ale”, a traditional Pale Ale. It’s a beer that tastes like beer with a light hop bite, at 16 IBUs. It is kind of like a light IPA as it does not hit too hard. I could likely drink a second at 5% ABV. It reminded me of when Pale Ales, especially Summit’s “Extra Pale Ale” or Surly’s “Xtra Pale Ale”, were beer staples for me. I also do like the fact that all three draft options are local Flordia beers, whereas the packaged options lean closer to macro brews.



A burger cut in half on a plate with a small portion of waffle fries.
The Stack Burger...Worth the Hype!


But wait, we were really here for the food. We grabbed a Loaded Macaroni and Cheese. This Mac has a nice bacon flavor to it, and I liked it more than Nomad Lounge’s Lobster Mac and Cheese. But my date disagreed on all points. We had discussed Lump Crab Cakes, but the bartender warned they were somewhat small. We also got the Stack Burger, which with its’ Lemon Aioli and Pork Belly is truly everything that was been promised. It truly is in contention for Walt Disney World’s best burgers.


Who Drinks Here? Anyone who wants a great burger should drink here. Everyone who needs a bite near the Magic Kingdom should look for an empty seat! If you like craft cocktails, you are likely to find something fun here. But if you are looking for the best beer bar at Walt Disney World, you likely need to find a different barstool.

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