Beer and Chili Festival - A Delicious Start

Well, as much as I had wanted to blog about my trip in real time, we were too busy and there was never time. The setting was the waterfront in Long Beach, California. The occasion, the inaugural Queen Mary Delicious Chili & Brewfest. It was a hot day, one might say "Hot as Chili"! We were baking in the sun, when, just over the horizon in the faint distant, beer appeared. We were saved!

The beer was good, several great but only 2 were exceptional. These were both IPA's, and they had an assertive yet balanced hop characteristic that I totally love! It was great to find folks who can craft a hoppy beer with subtle malt characteristics that still make the beer clean tasting and refreshing.

The first one that made a big impression on me was from Rock Bottom Brewery in Long Beach. My first experience with a Habanero IPA was amazing! Brewmaster Thomas Mercado hit the nail right on the head with this one. Very clean and refreshing with a nice bit of hops to make this a great IPA. Then comes the habanero, and this pushed it over the top for me. The heat only appears in the finish and was just enough to compliment the hops without masking them. It also paired well with the spicy chili that we were enjoying thoroughly. I must commend Thomas on this one, it blew my mind!

Here is the winning chili (in my opinion) paired with the Habanero IPA. A delicious meaty chili made with Tri Tip and no beans. It was amazing how much texture the beef had, even after slow cooking for hours! It was made by On The Road Chili, who won the 2012 World Open Chili Championship. The chili was so flavorful, I was shocked when they did not place first!

The other brew that stood out for me came from Heretic Brewing Company. Another local, hailing from Fairfield California had 2 styles to sample from. It was the Evil Cousin that did it for me. This was their take on a West Coast Imperial IPA, a massive dose of hops balanced out with a light malt character. This hoppy powerhouse was more balanced than most of the double IPA's I tasted. It was delicious and refreshing, cutting right through the heat from the chili's. Evil Cousin below on the right and Evil Twin on the left.

We had a great time, even in the high heat! Beer was delicious and so was the chili. One more honorable mention for the beer was Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, a refreshing beer with a nice citrusy hop character. This was the first beer we tasted at the festival.

A great start to the trip, we left with bellies full of beer and chili. Life can be hard, drink beer and it gets better!