As I was doing my research to find a list of brewpubs and
beer bars to check out in San Fran the name
Magnolia came up several times. A
bit of free word association got me wondering if it was anywhere near Haight-Ashbury
and the famed San Fran neighborhood that spawned the Grateful Dead. If you
don’t know the connection, read on, there is nothing I can do here. To my
surprise it is located on Haight street a couple blocks away from the Ashbury
junction and the cute little village you will find there today. Before I popped
in I had to walk up to the see the Grateful Dead house. It may seem cheesy, but
as I have said in recent posts, connecting the dots in our lives for our
readers create far better stories than ”look at this recipe, it’s amazing!”, or
“this bottle of wine is fantastic”, and them not backing it up with any tasting
notes. But I digress.
Magnolia has enough reviews for it that suggest it is one of
the top tier stops for beer lovers when in town. I also found that the beer bar
Toronado, heralded for its 100+ choices, was only a few blocks away from
Magnolia making the trip out that way from Union Square where I was staying
well worth it. I’ll share my Toronado experience in my next post.
After walking up Haight to Ashbury and back, through a few wafts
of marijuana and the glut of head shops, I couldn’t help but think back to the
good old days. For some there was a time when a joint and the Dead on the
stereo was like milk and cookies for other people. Don’t judge.
Magnolia has a busy street corner location making the window
and sidewalk seating front row center for whatever action comes along. On the
bus ride out I saw a naked guy wandering around and a fight. I figured based on
that shit could go down at anytime. It
was busy when I arrived but I scooted under the high bar and grabbed the one
empty stool along the window. I found myself next to a lovely couple from Berkeley,
who were clearly knowledgeable about beer. I picked up several recommendations
for my next visit from them! The one piece of information I did seize on to is
their impression of the West Coast adoration for IPAs over Belgian style beers
which get more love in the East. This was a new consideration for me, I’m equal
opportunity, and one I will delve into a bit more later in this post.
As is tradition I went for the sampler which included six
brews of my choosing in a nifty triangular carrier, all served in tall
cylindrical glasses for a touch of distinction.
Kolsch
4.7% ABV
Light gold color and clear. Lightly toasted grains in the
nose. Mildly bitter early in finish, finishes dry.
Rosebud
7.0% ABV
Orange/gold color. Sweet, floral aroma. Brewed with rose
buds. Finishes sweet with fruit from beginning to end. This was the first beer
I recommended to the new folks to the table.
Proving Ground IPA
7.0% ABV, 100 IBU
Gold/orange color, minimal head. Abundant floral aromatics.
Very bitter and light in body. More hop flavor than malt flavor as expected.
This is a big hoppy beer, but drinks light with fruits and flowers as the
predominant aromas/flavors.
Barking Pumpkin
Medium brown color with amber notes. Tan head, sits up good.
Moderately spiced nose, squash flesh also obvious. Medium bodied and savory
flavors in the mouth. Sweet malts, lightly roasted. Toasted bread is
predominant. A bit of alcohol in the finish. Solid rendition of a pumpkin,
spiced beer.
Blue Bell Bitter
4.5% ABV
Toasted malts in the nose and mouth. Straightforward bitter.
Hops are subtle, not much influence on flavor.
Dark & Mild
Medium brown colored ale. Moderately toasted malts with a
clean and lightly bittered finish. I am starting to get this style more and
more.
The Rosebud was my favorite and mentions are due for the IPA and the Dark & Mild.
The crowd turned over a bit as I moved through my sampler
and two new arrivals grabbed seats being vacated right across the bar from me.
They were also from out of town, Portland, Oregon specifically, and were in
town to see a show. Looking back at my notes who the artist was is the one
thing I didn’t get, and they mentioned it several times. It was either the beer
or the nostalgia at work here.
I did get their names and not long after making their
acquaintance I pegged them for the fun loving types. When Arin (right in pic
below) ordered the Crackerjack Bacon for her and Rachael I took the opportunity
to ask for them to pose with it for a picture. Cheers! And yes, it is literally
Crackerjacks reheated with bacon. And it is surprisingly rich! The salty bacon
with the caramel popcorn is as freaking sinful as you might imagine. I’m gonna
be making this for my next party, Sandra Lee be damned! Sandra Lee didn’t
really come up with this as far as I know, that is just a little inside joke
for Shannon who had shared good laughs with over the weekend. I hope she’s
reading.
After I got home I did a bit of cursory research and the
West Coast is hoppy beer heaven idea is commonly held and demonstrated. Not new
of course, I just hadn’t ever given the stylistic differences between the coasts
into consideration. I found lots of styles of beer in the local haunts, but
there was a considerable representation from IPAs and hopped up beers. I drink
them all so this only makes it more interesting to try the local styles when on
the road.
I ordered the Cubano with Fries for dinner. Can’t beat a Cuban
sandwich and beer! On my bus ride back to the hotel I was chatting up a couple
of partiers and one of them mentioned that the food at Magnolia was
particularly good for a brewpub and that the Cubano was his favorite thing. I
guess I picked a winner. The pork on the sandwich was tender as it should be
and the ham was salty and full of flavor. Served on fresh bread with crunchy
pickles it was just the thing to balance out the beers. I hadn’t eaten since
10:30 (and it was 6:30 or so now) on the count of the gluttony from the Foodbuzz
Festival farewell brunch. I ordered the Chocolate George Stout to go with my
meal having killed off the beer sampler right before my sandwich arrived. The
beers were doing their thing to be sure, including my forgetting to take a
picture of the sandwich. The fries were pretty straightforward, pleasantly
salted and hot. I’d come back to Magnolia for the food, and then stay for a
beer or three.
The George’s Chocolate Stout pours as black as night with a
light brown head. The aromatics were of roasted malts and just a little bit of chocolate and coffee. The chocolate flavor was quite subtle and yet another example for us to consider when we attempt to make a beer in this style again. The finish is clean and it transitions to slightly sweet to dry by the end.
The crowd thinned out a bit and a gentlemen in from Arkansas
joined us. I didn’t catch his name (you sort of see what kind of night this was
turning into), and Danny from the band
Scars on 45 saddled up a short time later. As Danny got
to know the group around him he realized I was taking notes and asked “what are
you a fucking journalist or something” with his killer British accent. Yes, in
fact I am a fucking journalist, and damn glad to meet someone who can make the
work fuck sound so fucking good! He and the band were in town for a show. If
only I had more time. I’m betting I could have maximized that meeting.
We had
some great laughs, all of the out-of-towners appeared to be making a better go
of it than the locals, and after finishing my beer I took my leave and headed
out into the night. I forwent the bus in favor of a 15 minute walk to work some
of my buzz off. Up next, Toronado!
Cheers!
Jason
