SF Beer Week 2012 Event Recap – Lost Coast Night at Harry’s Hofbrau

For SF Beer Week this year, the South Bay had enough events that people really needed to plan where they wanted to go. Which breweries you were a fan of probably played a big part in deciding on where you would be headed, but for us here at BetterBeerBlog, who was going to be at an event played just as important part in the decision making process. In the few years we've been writing about the craft beer scened here in the South Bay, we've made many friends. So when Jack Van Stone, the South Bay rep for Lost Coast Brewing, personally picks up the phone to invite us to their event, we go.

Lost Coast Brewery at Harry's Hofbrau.

Lost Coast Brewing is located in Eureka, CA, some 300 miles away from San Jose. The brewery's name is a nod to the stretch of California coastline, the "lost coast", that remains relatively undeveloped and untouched. Their rep for our area, Jack Van Stone, has been a staple of the craft beer community for years. I've seen him at many events and in all cases, he's been very nice and easy to speak with. Working in conjunction with Harry's Hofbrau General Manager Kevin Olcese, Van Stone planned a Lost Coast Brewery Night at Harry's Hofbrau where he brought several friends of his from the brewery. 

I had the opportunity to talk with Lost Coast's manager Briar Bush about the scene here in the South Bay. We spoke briefly about the challenges the area has had but also touched upon how things have changed since the last time Bush was in town. Granted, the area still has a little ways to go but things are changing.

Pouring out some Lost Coast craft beers.

For the most part, Lost Coast Brewery night at Harry's Hofbrau was a mellow affair. There were several groups in Harry's just for the event but I got the sense many people "just happened to be there". Van Stone, as always, did a great job of making the rounds an talking to people who where there for the event as well as introducing the brewery to folks who were unfamiliar with the brand.

We also had the opportunity to speak with Van Stone for an extended amount of time. We learned a little bit more about the brewery as well as some of the colorful stories behind the names of the craft beers they brew. Tangerine Wheat is the flagship beer of Lost Coast accounting for the lion's share of their production. This beer was pouring at Harry's that night but so were several other beers that were limited-run brews that were available only on draught. So if you had missed tasting these beers this night, good luck trying to find them as they won't be bottled. Here are some of my tasting notes for those beers.

Tasting Notes

• Cocoa 8-ball Stout, 5.8% – Very dark brown, nearly black with brown head. Flavor is deep roasted malt,cocoa, coffee, and caramel/toffee backbone. Aroma is roasty, coffee, and chocolate. Hop bitterness is enough for balance. Body is medium, carbonation is medium, finish is on the dry side with slight astringency from roasted malts.
• Winter Porter, 8% – Dark brown with reddish hues and a tan/brown head. Flavor is deep toasted malts, some nuttiness, and fruit. Aroma is toasty malt, fruity, slight alcohol. Body is medium/medium-high, carbonation is medium, finish is dry. Hop bitterness is medium/medium-high.
• Imperial Stout, 8.5% – Very dark brown, essentially black, with a brown head. Flavor is deeo roasted malts, nearly burnt, with licorice and toffee noted. Aroma is roasty and black coffee. Hop bitterness is medium-high. Body is medium-high,carbonation is medium high, dinish is dry with a roasty astringency.
• Double Trouble IPA, 7.8% – Clear amber/copper color with an off-white head. Flavor is toasty malts and caramel. Hop flavor is piney and orange citrus. Hop bitterness is medium-high and well balanced for the style. Aroma is full of orange/citrus notes with some caramel character. Body is full, carbonation is medium-high, finish is dry.

Last Call

The Lost Coast team from left to right: Mattias Bellasalmo, Bill Grossman, Jack Van Stone, Kurt Belluomini, and Briar Bush.

The award-winning Lost Coast Downtown Brown ale is a beer, outside of their Tangerine Wheat, that many people associate with the brewery. Lost Coast Brewery night at Harry's Hofbrau was a solid, if not low-key event, that offered attendees the opportunity to try harder to find craft beer offerings from the brewery as well as meet some of the people behind those beers. 

It was good to have the opportunity to talk to Van Stone a little more as well. Van Stone, as with many other people in the craft beer industry, is one of the good guys. In an area of commoditization, I think he's done a very good job of adding value to Lost Coast craft beers the old fashioned way, by talking to people. 

Mabuhay!