by C. C. Hansen
The SCCBB interrupts his indolent summer sabbatical to share several discoveries and note the passing of a seminal L.A. craft brewery after 15 creative, innovative, and significant years.
First, the discoveries.
Huntington Beach Incursion
Eleanorjulieanne and I were in search of kayaking opportunities hitherto unknown to us, which led us to a place in Sunset Beach, between Huntington and Seal Beaches. It was great to get onto the water and paddle, but it was even better to discover an outpost of Green Cheek Beer Co. literally across the street, and take advantage of an opportunity to visit the Riip Brewery, just down the road, for the first time.
After checking with SCCB Orange County correspondent Steph Zinger to get her permission to encroach upon a couple of places technically in her territory, she concurred with my assessment that Green Cheek’s beers are just okay, and that Riip has the better beers. “But Green Cheek has the better vibe,” she added. Stephanie and I agreed that the Brewer Beard Game at Riip is “on point.”
Green Cheek Beer Co.
Green Cheek has four locations: Orange, Costa Mesa, Oceanside, and Sunset Beach. Eleanor and I decided to check out the latter, at 16685 Pacific Coast Highway (92649), seeing as we were in the neighborhood. The brewery was founded in 2017. On their website, the two pals who founded the brewery (Evan Price and Brian Rauso) acknowledge: “We’re not trying to take over the beer world, as there are a lot of great breweries out there, but to remain authentic to ourselves and make the best damn beer you’ve ever had.”
For a deep dive into Green Cheek’s origins, check out this 2020 article from Forbes magazine. It’s pretty enjoyable. My favorite tidbit from the article is when Evan reveals he was fired from House of Blues for calling a customer a dick.
In contrast to Steph’s focus on OC beer patios and kid-friendly brew pubs, Green Cheek felt strictly over 21 — it might have even said that on the door as we walked in, but I can’t be positive. I have a vague memory of visiting the Orange location with Eleanor, BeachRock Bill, and Bill’s son, Carson. Problem is, I have photo documentation of our stops at Noble (where Evan and Brian worked and met, incidentally), Bottle Logic and a strange out of the way place called Hoparazzi, but no photos of Green Cheek.
I remember the parrot logo, and a venue that was like a converted school cafeteria, but that’s it. Don’t remember the beer.
Visiting Green Cheek’s Sunset Beach location was different. I’ll remember my beer. Don’t know if Eleanor will remember hers. On the left, above, is “Uncle Dave’s Fave,” an English bitter on Nitro (more about that later). As it turns out, I like an English bitter. I’ve had them all over the country, but not in England — yet. This one was creamy and flavorful with a delicate coppery malt and hop combo. Perhaps because it gets its name from Welsh-born collaborator (Uncle) David Naylor, whose Instagram bio (@ladave66) describes him as a surfboard laminator, falconer and So Cal craft ale brewer (from Llanrhidian, Wales), Dave’s Fave seemed particularly authentic.
According to Food & Wine Magazine, “Guinness famously developed and popularized the process of infusing beer with nitrogen gas — a marriage that subtly alters a beer’s aroma and flavor while lending it a silky, creamy mouthfeel.” Green Cheek does it better than some.
On the Green Cheek menu board the day we visited, a number of single-hop brews were featured, with clever names to help you keep it all straight.
Eleanor was trying to decide between “Nectaroni? In This Economy?!”, a pilsner brewed with 100% nectaron hops, and “Peacharine! (It’s What We Like Here)”, a West Coast IPA featuring 100% peacharine hops. She opted for the latter, in part because I’m pretty sure she secretly suspects that pilsner is a waste of her precious beer allotment.
According to nzhops, nectaron hops impart an “intense tropical pineapple, passion fruit and stone fruit character” to a beer. Peacharine hops, also New Zealand bred and grown, sport “a rich peach/nectarine character with an appealing citrus backbone” (according to Freestyle Hops).
As our friend and NorCal beer aficionado Sir Ted of Sonoma would say, the Peacharine IPA was a “worthy” thirst quencher on a beautiful summer afternoon. Bottom Line? My impression of Green Cheek was elevated (at least as high as their second floor Sunset Beach brew patio!)
Riip Beer Company
As the Riip Beer Company website tells you on its website’s homepage, it’s an award winning craft brewery, but more than that, when you drink their beer, it’s “Not Just a Beer, It’s a Lifestyle, an Attitude, a State of Mind. Take a Sip and Transform into a Riipper, Get Riipped & Embrace the Riip Lifestyle.”
I’m a word guy, and so I like to know where words come from. Before doing research, I mused that “riip” might be a surf term — like, riiping a curl, or riptide. Allacronyms.com suggests that riip stands for “reserve integrated information project” (some kind of Canadian military term), “rural infrastructure improvement project,” and Réseau International des Instituts Pasteur. RIIP is also an acronym for “Reduce Injury, Improve Performance” (a type of neuromuscular training used in sports medicine), and the Urban Dictionary says that it means “rest in internet peace,” a term applied to “a poster permanently banned from a site.”
Finally, a website called “The Mayor of Old Town” (a Fort Collins, Colorado beer bar) claims, “The word itself does not have any inherent meaning but the experience is what matters most.”
Okay, we’ll go with that.
After parking in the lot at 17214 Pacific Coast Hwy, in the strip mall where Riip is located — adjacent to the 1300-acre Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve (not all strip malls are the same!) — we made some mental notes and entered the taproom. Perhaps influenced by the detective fiction we’ve been reading lately (any readers wanting to give or get recommendations can email us at [email protected]), we noted the makes and models of the cars in the lot were modest (see photo at the head of this section).
Once inside, we did a quick sociological survey of the age, gender, ethnicity, and sartorial style of customers and servers alike. Hair! And very well-manicured beards! In the photo above, you can get a sense of the server facing the camera, but even the server with his back turned at the taps had a gorgeous red ginger beard to match his locks.
And the menu board? Literally skateboards.
We stayed away from the “Gummiberry Crush” (maybe we shouldn’t have) and “Gimpy McGee.” I was immediately drawn to the renderings of Mike Myers (“Wayne”) and Dana Carvey (“Garth”) from Saturday Night Live!’s “Waynes World,” and chuckled at the name of the beer “Nibbed for Your Pleasure,” a triple chocolate imperial stout.
Except for the stout, we encouraged the Red Ginger Bartender to make our selections for us. Not everything was represented by a skateboard. Left to right, we sampled “Riipers on a Half Shell” (a West Coast blonde — kind of like the predominant demographic at the taproom), “Faiir Enough” (a West Coast IPA), and Raider Bob (a double IPA @ 8.5% ABV). All were worthy. I’d have them all again.
RIP (not RIIP) Eagle Rock Brewing
We were sad to learn that after 15 incredible years in business, L.A.’s true craft pioneer Eagle Rock Brewing shut its doors on June 28, 2024.
On June 17, Eagle Rock’s Instagram feed announced, “Well friends, the time has come for us to hang up our hats and say farewell. It feels strange to say these words after nearly 15 years of operations, but we know in our hearts it is time.
“What an incredible privilege it has been, to be among the first few brewers of the Twenty-First century to plant seeds in Los Angeles soil! To cultivate those seeds and protect their growth. To watch that growth proliferate an entire county and to watch the fruits of that effort earn respect from around the world.
“The community of good beer in LA has grown far beyond our humble, early goals. And just as beer itself is alive and continuously evolving, so too is Beer Culture. We are grateful to have contributed to that evolution, but we also recognize our role in it. We have given our all to this effort, and now we must step aside to make room for the next generation of brewers with new energy, new ideas, and new contributions. The future of beer is in their hands as much as it is in your hands, friends. We pass this torch so that you may keep that future shining bright!”
I lived in Eagle Rock during the time I attended Occidental College, and so the appearance of Eagle Rock Brewery in my early days as a craft beer blogger not only brought a smile to my face, but gave me an excuse to re-acquaint myself with the old stomping grounds.
Just a year ago, I wrote a post for the So Cal Craft Beer Blog, “Hats Off to Venerable L.A. Breweries.” As an encomium to ERB, I’d like to reproduce a few paragraphs from that post.
When I was the Ventura Craft Beer Examiner for the now-defunct Examiner.com, I interviewed craft brewers up and down the state. Jeremy Raub of Eagle Rock Brewery was the very last of the brewers I interviewed before leaving the Examiner. At the time, the Eagle Rock brew pub on Roswell Street had been open for just a few months.
Jeremy started the brewery with his wife, Ting Su, and with help from his dad, Steve. Street artist-homebrewers Lee Bakofsky and his brother, Andrew, were among those involved in these early days. I was introduced to them by long-time friend, street artist, and inspiration Eric Junker, who is also a fellow USC faculty member.
I attended a “Session Beer Festival” at ERB in April 2011 that featured no less than 11 lower alcohol, i.e. “session,” beers. Quite bold, I thought, in the days when the level of hop bitterness was reaching ghost pepper discomfort. Lee and Andrew were responsible for several English-style ales, as well as a couple Belgian-style petite saisons. Steve Raub brewed a cream ale and “Winter’s End” mild, while Jeremy offered ERB’s signature “Solidarity” English dark mild.
Among the many incredible innovations that ERB introduced over the years were a high-end brasserie-style “Public House” on Colorado Blvd in Eagle Rock (which closed during the pandemic) and a hugely popular Women’s Beer Forum. For a number of years, I offered extra credit to writing students who attended the forum and wrote a blog post about it.
I, myself, would make it a point to visit the ERB Roswell brewpub anytime the Lobsta Truck was in residence, inviting emigré East Coasters who might be missing such New England summer must-haves as lobster rolls.
Best of luck on your next adventure, Raubs! Thanks so much for your dedication and the memories I have of your always upbeat, innovative approach to the business of independent craft beer!
Cheers! Until next time,
— Chauncey B, aka the So Cal Craft Beer Blogger
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