Beer + Bikes in Novato
Hi All!
Yesterday I drove out a half hour south from where I live to Novato to go do some beer tasting with my friend Taylor.
Taylor, and her family, have been good friends of mine for the last 6 years or so now.
I had nothing to do besides go on a little hike earlier in the day before going out and drinking beer later.
I get to her house around 4:30 and start talking with her parents and crack open one of y Raspberry Pale Ale's that I brewed and they were instantly shocked with how good the beer was!
That's one of my favorite feelings in the world, when someone loves my beer!
I also get a compliment within the first 20 minutes of being there about how I look skinny and we come to realize it was y more fitting pair of jeans I wore that day. I guess I'm wearing a little more skinny pants from now on!
So we get the bikes all pumped up and ready to go and we're off! (I haven't ridden a bike in about 8 years at this point) It's just like riding a bike!
We make it to our first stop, Speakeasy, and after ordering food, I ask if they serve beer, and they didn't serve beer. That wasn't good enough for me so we left and biked to the next one.
After biking with the traffic and feeling like I broke all traffic laws, we make it to Moylans Brewing Company where I can finally drink some damn beer!
They had $4 pints on Wednesday's, so naturally we get pints. I get a pint of their Irish red, and Taylor gets a pint of their Haze Craze IPA. Their irish red is extremely malt based, not very bitter at all and just a real easy drinker.
The Haze Craze IPA wasn't too good. It had a little more floral, herbal, taste to it then what I was hoping for.
We ended that place by splitting a glass of their Kiltlifter Scotch Ale that is always my favorite. Downed that beer no problem!
I highly recommend Moylans! 4.0/5
After Moylans we bike over to Hopmonk which is a 3 minute bike ride from Moylans. It was packed! and it was also a 15 minute wait, so we said fuck that and left.
We then had to take the long bike ride back to downtown Novato to hit up our final little stop for one last beerscapade before heading back to her house.
We stop at Beercraft in Novato for our last stop. They were closing in 20 minutes so we tried to make it fast.
I got a pint of a wet hopped NEIPA from Mikkeller and I swear to god it tasted like an unfiltered extract homebrew with stale hops used... I hope it was just the lines or something because I would never order that beer again lol. Strange from Mikkeller which I usually enjoy!
We then got 6 samplers at $4 a pop too. Pretty expensive if you ask me. Out of all 6 samplers, none really stood out as "great beers" to me. I think I could brew better beers then the ones I tried there.
I'd give that beercraft store a 3.2/5 sadly. Not too good of vibes from that place.
We finally made it back to her house where I cracked open a can of Fogbelts Stardusk Juicy IPA and it made up for all those bad beers!
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Now it's the following morning, and my ass is killing me from the bike riding!!! Oh well!
Hung out with an old friend, drank some new beers, and got a little exercise in. That's what it's all about baby!
Until the next adventure!
Cheers,
Ty Stevenson