Hollister Brewing Co. - Goleta, California

OK, first thing: I'm a huge fan of this place! If anything, I would have called it something different. There is a town called Hollister, California. What if some dude wants to open a brewery there? He can't call it Hollister Brewing Company, the name is already taken. I would have called it Goleta Valley Brewing Company, or something that sounds more local to me. But what's important is: is the beer good? And the answer is an unarguable YES, at least in my opinion.

This place opened May 2007 so it is still relatively new to the area. Eric Rose, the brewer, used to brew at the Santa Barbara Brewing Company, which is located downtown SB (Goleta is about twelve miles up the road). He did fine there, but was undoubtedly more limited in what he could brew. Ever since Eric and his partners opened Hollister Brew Co, he has been doing remarkably well. Eric keeps surprising me with beers that are both creative in recipe and top-notch in quality.

I tried to pop in there about once a month or so. I'd be there more often if it wasn't so far from my house. And probably I'd be there too much, so it's probably just as well. But the point is, every time I go there, I find something new worth getting a pint of. Eric keeps it interesting.



Reviewing all the beers would just be too much work for this blog. I have yet to find one I did not like. I'll just mention a couple that have really made an impression on me. One was the Dunkelweiss upon the opening last year: a very Bavarian tasting wheaty tasty dark Weizenbier. Another is "The J", a smoked hemp ale. I also loved the seasonal Lemon Ale, made with fresh Goleta lemons. Then I became addicted to the "Hip Hop", a double IPA (9.4%) with a chewy body (that's a compliment) and a wonderfully hoppy aroma. The regular Extra Pale Ale ("White-Star XPA") is creamy and wonderful, especially nitrogen-pumped. And last summer's black IPA ("black-eye pale ale") was simply brilliant in my opinion: it tasted like a excellent full-bodied West-Coast IPA, but yet was as pitch black as a stout. Those are probably my two favorite styles of beer and a pint of this stuff was just like pure liquid happiness to me!



If you're a beer enthusiast, and you're ever in the SB area, you have to visit this place. The food is excellent as well. I personally would recommend the fish tacos, and the tortilla soup. It's all good stuff though, and the menu is definitely more creative than at the average brewing company. This place makes me proud to be a Santa Barbaran, or as I like to call myself, a Barbeerian!

Hollister Brewing Co.
6980 Hollister Ave. Goleta, CA 93117
Tel: 805-968-2810
http://www.hollisterbrewco.com/

Downtown Brewing Co - Santa Barbara, Ca

This is my first entry on a local brewery, and we are lucky enough to have quite a few. Technically, the name of "Downtown Brewing Company" is a bit of a joke because it is neither downtown, nor a brewery. But there is an explanation:

Downtown Brewing is a local chain based up in San Luis Obispo, and that is where the brewing takes place. For readers from out of town, that's pretty much exactly one hundred miles up the road from Santa Barbara. They have three locations: SLO, Paso Robles (30 minutes north of SLO) and Santa Barbara, the most recent addition, which opened in May of 2007. They do not brew here in SB, they bring kegs down highway 101. So it isn't really a brewery. In addition, Downtown Brewing is located in the "Uptown" part of SB so it isn't even downtown. Oh well, just had to get that out of my system.

Having said that, I actually like the place. Service isn't anything to brag about but it isn't a place I'd go to if I'm in a rush. But it is a place I love going to on a nice sunny weekend day (or long summer evening) because they have a nice beergarden outside. SB does not have a beer garden and I always said it needed one. We have the right weather, someone just needed to provide the space and bring the beer. And downtown Brewing did, so good on them!



The beers are not amazing, but they are very drinkable. There is a light but tasty honey blonde, a pleasant blueberry ale, a nice reggae red, an IPA, and usually either a stout or a porter. I've never had a bad beer there, but I've had some very pleasant ones. In my opinion, their India Pale Ale (IPA) is their best beer. They also had a very nice Oktoberfest (hey still have some!) and they are now pouring a very nice winter brown. The latter has an ABV (alcohol by volume) of 7.6%. It is well hopped, malty, tasty and strong. It has a nice dark copper color and a decent body. In other words, it has all you need to warm up with if sitting outside in cooler weather as I did last weekend (it was only about 59F, burrrrrrrrrr!!!)



Overall, this place provides very decent beer, nice outside tables, and provides a pleasant watering hole between the downtown area (where several brewries are located) and Goleta where we have the fabulous Hollister Brewing Co (to be reviewed in the near future). I like Downtown Brewing Co and enjoy going there. So cheers to that!

Downtown Brewing Co.
3755 State St, Santa Barbara
Phone: (805) 682-7803