SLO LIFE Magazine AugSep 2020

Speaking of which, let’s talk about their beers. I was fortunate enough to try four
of their styles: two portfolio beers to showcase their daily offerings, one beer to
highlight their creative side, and one more because I really like the style and just
wanted to drink it. The foundational beers were their Fog Crusher NEIPA (hazy
IPA) and the pilsener Ships Ahoy, Krispy Boy. The New England-style IPA was
true to its roots and packed a fruity hop aroma balanced with a mild bitterness that
we expect. It’s easy to see why this is one of their most popular beers. It combines
the love Californians have for hop-forward beers with the drinkability of a softer
mouthfeel and tropical aroma of its East coast counterparts. The pilsener was crisp
with just a hint of malty backbone, which is what I want with my craft lager—a
little extra oomph to differentiate it from the more mass-produced macro brews of
the same style. The extraordinarily intricate and nuanced artwork of the can sealed
the deal. And, in the interest of education, a “crispy boy” is industry slang for a
highly quaffable brew.
I next tried the Piston Honda, a rice lager, straight from the 32-ounce crowler
can. I’ve had a few beers of this style before and appreciate the rice adjunct as a
way to give a dry and crisp finish to a beer that can often become cloyingly sweet.
Humdinger’s example was no exception, and I think it paired very well with the
warm sand under my towel and the sun’s rays on my face. A fantastic summer beer,
but it can be enjoyed just as readily on a ski slope as on a riding mower. There might
be plans to do a canning run on this one as well. I will throw money at it, so I sure
hope so. Speaking of summer, their seasonal offering of Blueberry Dinger-weisse
was a home run. It’s a kettle-soured (not to be confused with a wild ale containing
souring microbes) Berlinerweisse with a proprietary lactose blend, a milk sugar, that
has been infused with over one hundred pounds of fresh blueberries. I remarked
how fresh the blueberry flavors came through, as I’ve had my share of “flavored”
beer and knew it wasn’t scent in a bottle, and even had my reservations about it
coming from a more respectable purée. It turns out that Lee and Amy traveled
a few miles over the hill in Arroyo Grande to a blueberry farm where they spent
most of a day hand-picking all of the fruit themselves and then returned to their
restaurant kitchen where the chefs processed the fruit and readied it for the brew.
It was a harmony of sweet, lightly tart, and incredibly refreshing. If you don’t have
a chance to get your hands on one, they have plans to do raspberries in the late
summer and keep a rotation going on this farm-to-table brew year-round.
Naturally, Humdinger offers other beer styles. When asked what will be releasing
around the time of this hitting your mailboxes, Samways pointed to their exciting
collaboration with their roots at the South County Home Brewers Club. A mutually
brewed Kentucky Common will be hitting taps in August, which is an excellent time
of year for this type of beer reminiscent of the beginning of fall. This steam-style beer
can be closely described by comparing it to an original Anchor Steam with a light
flavor or summer mixed with a malt profile more related to autumnal offerings. They
are also offering another Hazy IPA Quality Time, an easy-drinking porter Browndo,
and their strawberry blonde Shevulf. Plenty of options for everyone.
I casually mentioned their kitchen somewhere back there, but according to some
locals, it’s the best food in The Village. Samways waxes poetically, yet humbly, about
their elevated pub fare. Sure they have the standard burgers and fries, but you might
also catch a compressed watermelon salad, or handmade
pasta, or even an authentic Bánh mì Vietnamese
sandwich. He touts his Head Chef Spencer Johnston
and Chef de Cuisine Nick DeShon as the masterminds
behind the kitchen. He affords them full reign over
the menu, allowing them the creativity to use seasonal
ingredients and cater to their customers’ tastes, much
as the brewhouse does the same for the drinkers. Food
and beers are available for dine-in or curbside pickup if
you are on the run. They also use Cafe Runner, another
local company, to deliver food directly to you, explaining
that their consistency and speed results in hot food fast.
Whether you get to enjoy this new establishment in
BRANT MYERS is a beer
industry veteran and
person or from the convenience of home, check out the
founder of SLO BIIIG, a
newest kid on the block and remember that drinking local hospitality consulting firm.
is supporting local so shove off from life and yell “Ships,
ahoy!” as you crack open that Krispy Boy. SLO LIFE
82 | SLO LIFE MAGAZINE | AUG/SEP 2020