Meg Gill and Tony Yanow co-founded Golden Road Brewing in 2011, and they've been innovating ever since. They were the first to offer fresh craft beer in cans, deciding that it's a fresher way for the consumer to enjoy their beer, easier to stock and handle for the retailer, and made ecological sense. By the time they sold to Anheuser-Busch InBev in 2015, they were brewing more craft beer than any other micro brewery in L.A. and felt the sale was necessary to help keep Golden Road on the shelves of retailers where the demand for craft beer was increasing but shelf space was limited.]
Being owned by a conglomerate hasn't meant a loss in quality, and you can find out for yourself by visiting the Golden Road Tasting Room in Anaheim, right across from Angel Stadium on Orangewood. There'll eventually be a great big restaurant attached to the Tasting Room; for now you can enjoy the tasty suds in a comfortable atmosphere akin to going to a friend's backyard that just happens to pour about 15 beers on tap! Our Mexican-in-Chief already raved about the Oktoberfest märzen; another tasty seasonal is the canned Back Home Gingerbread Stout (8.5% ABV); this Imperial Stout features a touch of ginger and sweet chocolate—roasty and toasty to the last gulp.
There are styles of beer here for everyone's taste, but IPAs remain Golden Road's ultimate game. Their Wolf series are hop-heavy double and triple IPA's that will satisfy but won't bitterfy your taste buds. Lower in the hops scale is Point the Way IPA (5.9% ABV) Classic West Coast IPA—hoppy, some tropical fruit with floral notes, smooth and enjoyable. My favorite was the Heal the Bay IPA (6.8% ABV)—a fresh, full-flavor profile of perfectly balanced hops, fruit, pine.
Golden Road is open later than most local tasting rooms (usually till midnight), and they also have a raucous Monday night trivia starting at 8 p.m. Food trucks stop by but if not, there's a Del Taco nearby so grab a 12-pack of tacos for the squad!
Golden Road Tasting Room, 2210 Orangewood Ave., Anaheim (714) 912-4015; www.goldenroad.la
