EAT &drink
November 17-December 7, 2021 EAT & DRINK
food & libations | recipes | delicious events
Sierra Sips
NORTH SHORE’S BREWERY SCENE BY P R I YA H UT N E R
C
Vietnamese Style Pulled Pork along with the tofu-version of this tasty and spicy sandwich, along with an Alibi Mustache Pretzel (a nod to their logo) with homemade beer cheese. With three locations, Alibi Ale Works is a go-to for community events, music, bingo and damn good beer. The Incline and Truckee Public Houses both have a restaurant, as well. | alibialeworks.com
raft beer brewing in Tahoe is a happening scene. While cruising around the lake, there are many places in which to sample different brewers and their creative and experimental beers. Whether you tend to lean toward IPAs, ales, pilsners or lagers, there is something for every palate. As the seasons change, so do the brews. Darker, richer beers become more popular in the winter months.
BEAR BELLY: NEW KID ON THE BLOCK
“ They’re very rarely a single batch of beer. So, we might take one that is 3 years old and blend it with one that is maybe 6 months
ABOVE: A tasting extravaganza with Joe Steinsfelds,
to 9 months old. The
LEFT: Adam Latham of Bear Belly Brewing works on a new
head brewer for Alibi Ale Works. | Katherine E. Hill creation. | Heidi Peinthor Photography, Bear Belly Brewing
thing about barrel-aged beers that makes it the most interesting is the magic in the blending.” –Joe Steinfelds
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In the Tahoe Sierra, there are more than a dozen local breweries creating craft beers stretching from the Lost Sierra to the South Shore. Over the next few months, I’ll be highlighting these breweries and invite you to sample their creations. You can create your own pub crawl using our inaugural Sierra Sips map available at TheTahoeWeekly.com. Read my first article on Truckee breweries online.
take one that is 3 years old and blend it with one that is maybe 6 months to 9 months old. The thing about barrel-aged beers that makes it the most interesting is the magic in the blending. One, this might be a little bit acidic, you might think it tastes really good, but it has a little bit of a bite and then you mix it with something that’s a little younger to round that out,” says Steinfelds as he points to the wall of barrel-aging beers. “No two barrels are ever the same.”
Sierra Sips Tahoe Weekly presents
Plan your own
Portola
Blairsden BREWERY
Graeagle
ALIBI ALE WORKS: EVER-CHANGING VARIETY
FEATURED LISTING (PAID)
Lost Sierra 601 Graeagle Johnsville Road #1645, Graeagle roninfermentationproject.com
WINERY
FOOD TRUCK
DISTILLERY
FOOD
Reno & Sparks
The Brewing Lair
brewery tour with
Great Basin Brewing Company Sparks
67007 CA Hwy 70, Blairsden | thebrewinglair.com
846 Victorian Ave., Sparks, NV 89431 | greatbasinbrewing.com
Dedicated to high-profile ales
Great Basin Brewing Company Reno
Ronin Fermentation Project
5525 S. Virginia St, Reno, NV 89502 | greatbasinbrewing.com
Sierraville
Classical brews married with experimental brews
Truckee
Reno
Alibi Ale Works Truckee Public House 10069 Bridge St. | alibialeworks.com
RENO INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
Truckee
An adventurous line-up this is always evolving
TRUCKEE AIRPORT
Donner Creek Brewing
11448 Deerfield Drive | donnercreekbrewing.com Pico brewery focused on locally grown hops
FiftyFifty Brewing
11197 Brockway Road, Suite 1 | fiftyfiftybrewing.com
The Good Wolf
Northstar
10990 Industrial Way B103 | thegoodwolfbrewing.com
our Sierra Sips map
Incline Village
Forest beer from local sources
Old Trestle Distillery
West River St. | Tasting room opening fall 2022 | oldtrestle.com Gin, vodka & bourbon using locally harvested botanicals
Kings Beach
Olympic Valley
Truckee Brewing Co. a. 10736 Pioneer Trail, Suite 1 b. 1001 Soaring Way (opening Jan. 2022) truckeebrewco.com
Alpine Meadows
Focus on high-quality ingredients
Truckee River Winery
10061 S. River St. | truckeeriverwinery.com Specializing in single-vineyard varietals
NV
Tahoe City
North Shore
Carson City
Alibi Ale Works Brewery and Barrel House
204 E. Enterprise St., Incline Village | alibialeworks.com
Alibi favorites & Barrel House exclusives (bring your own food)
931 Tahoe Blvd, Incline Village | alibialeworks.com Crafted with an eye to experimentation & variety
Homewood
Bear Belly Brewing Company
8428 Trout Ave, Kings Beach | bearbellybrew.com Small batch brewery
South Shore
TAKE THIS
CA
MAP WITH YOU
Cold Water Brewery
2544 Lake Tahoe Blvd. | tahoecoldwaterbrewery.com 7-barrel brewhouse featuring all-grain beer
Sidellis Brewery
3350 Sandy Way | sidellis.com
Specializes in rotating, small-batch brews
South Lake Brewing Company
1920 Lake Tahoe Blvd. | southlakebeer.com
16 craft brews on tap with styles for every beer lover (bring your own food)
South of North Brewing Co.
932 Stateline Ave. | southofnorthbeer.com Locally handcrafted ales
Stateline Brewery
4118 Lake Tahoe Blvd. | statelinebrewery.com
Emerald Bay
Read about
Truckee breweries at
Alibi Ale Works Incline Public House
South Lake Tahoe
Stateline
READ OUR STORY ON
TheTahoeWeekly.com
TRUCKEE’S EXPANDING BREWERY SCENE IN THIS EDITION ON PAGE 16
Crafting house & seasonal favorites
Revive 15
Creating good beer is an art and Alibi Ale Works owners Kevin Drake and Rich Romo have created such a brewery. Joe Steinfelds is the head brewer at Alibi Ale Works. He is a well of beer and brewing knowledge. He dons a black, German-styled hat speckled with a multitude of buttons from around the world, each telling a story related to his love of beer, including his status as a German beer sommelier. He greets Tahoe Weekly Publisher Katherine Hill and me at the Brewery and Barrel House location in Incline Village, Nev., to discuss his favorite topic. His wild, ginger mustache and feathered hat, along with a backdrop of barrels of beer, create an Old World feel. “Usually, these are blends. They’re very rarely a single batch of beer. So, we might
Barrel-aged gems from Truckee’s oldest brewery
3135 Harrison Avenue | revivecoffeewine.com
Meyers
TheTahoeWeekly.com DESIGN BY ALYSSA GANONG | TAHOE WEEKLY
Kirkwood
As we enter the brewery, huge bags of malt grains sit ready to be processed, pipes wind through across the ceiling to massive barrels in the back of the building. The place is like a giant laboratory. Brewing is clearly a science, as well as an art. “Beer is a living thing with four main ingredients: malt grains, hops, yeast and water,” says Steinfelds, who admits he really loves German-styled beers. We walk over to one of the large silver tanks labeled Snowflake White IPA and
Steinfelds pours beer into a glass and hands it to me. It smells like citrus with a hint of coconut. Soon it will be ready to drink. This beer is only made in the winter. We move back into the bar area to do some tasting. The vibe is low key; people are sitting at tables playing games and hanging out at the bar. Everyone is drinking draft beers. We sit at a long high top. The chalkboard over the board is the beer menu. Each of the beers on tap has creative, clever and often cheeky names: the Jaded Local, the Heretic and Arousal catch my eye. The first beer we try is the MoPils, a modern pilsner that Steinfelds is excited about. It’s got a bit of bitterness, a touch of sweetness and a subtle hint of candied lime. MoPils is just being released and is definitely one to try. It is delicious. We try the last of a summer brew, Cucumber Gose, made with 1,000 pounds of cucumbers. We taste the Alt Beer, which is akin to an amber ale, malty with a gentle sweetness to it, and a pale ale, Alibi’s No. 1 selling beer. We enjoyed English-styled beer, followed by the London Gentleman, a darker IPA. Arousal Alibi’s Belgium Dark Ale is 11.8 percent alcohol and not for the faint of heart. It was delicious, as was their porter. Before we knew it, there were a lot of glasses spread out before us. The character of each beer was uniquely different. Joe and his brewers are true creative artists when it comes to brewing and it’s all done with a great sense of humor. “The one thing I love about working here is that we have such a wide range of beers. And it never gets boring,” he says. Afterward, we head over to the Incline Public House to sample the cuisine paired with their Oatmeal Stout enjoying the
Tucked away in Kings Beach is a small brewery owned and operated by Adam Latham. This nano-brewery, Bear Belly Brewing Company, is open Wednesdays through Sundays and offers small-batch beers. “I have five draft handles and brew about 30 different beers. I’m pretty much brewing two kegs of beer at a time. And to keep up with demand, I have to brew a lot. I go through my beer so quickly that it’s always fresh and turning over constantly,” says Latham.
Alibi Ale Works alibialeworks.com Bear Belly Brewing Company bearbellybrew.com Tahoe National Bear Company tahoenational.beer He always has two IPAs on draft because it’s a fan favorite in his brewery. He brews seasonal beers and currently is pouring a Pumpkin Stout. His Imperial Stout is almost ready. The release party for that brew is Nov. 20. Now We Taco’N Food Truck is on site Fridays and Saturdays. The brewery also hosts Wednesday movie nights and Thursday trivia nights along with fun events throughout the year.
TAHOE NATIONAL BREWING: COMING SOON Tahoe City, get ready for a brewery in your neighborhood. The opening date is yet to be announced. They’ll be serving freshly brewed beers, wines, cocktails and food. Located lakeside behind the Safeway, the site will include a dining room with a built-in bar and a patio with a gas fireplace. | tahoenational.beer Priya Hutner is a food writer, personal chef and owner of The Seasoned Sage, a local meal delivery and catering company. Priya has been creating and preparing meals from an early age. She has worked in the restaurant industry in New York City, attended catering school, and was the head chef and executive director of a nonprofit spiritual community in Florida. Visit her website at TheSeasonedSage.com. Send your comments, story ideas and food tidbits to priya@tahoethisweek.com.
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