I'm from Texas and love IPAs and DIPAs. I'm about to go to Rancho Palos Verdes, CA (on beach south of Las Angeles) for the first time. I hope I can find some Pliny The Elder (and maybe some Pliny the Younger) while there to try for the first time. Any suggestions on where I should go and any other west coast IPAs I should look for while there? Keep in mind.... I'm mid 40s and married. Looking for some cool, but laid back, atmosphere. Thanks! Bret
Good luck finding Younger. Golden Road's Wolf Among Weeds and Better Weather are great local (LA) IPAs.
Head to Nelsons at Terrenea. Tap list is decent but the view can not be beat. Looks like the times I've been there they've had Ballast Point, Anderson Valley, and Angel City on tap. Other SoCal choices in bottle. Seriously, your SO will love this. http://www.terranea.com/palos-verdes-dining The hotel bar and other restaurant (Mar'Sel) have different options as well.
If you're trying to score bottles of PtE, your best bets are the Whole Foods down in PCH: Torrance, Redondo Beach and El Segundo. Call them first to make sure. The El Segundo location also has the Tapas Bar with a good bottle selection and good tap list. You can also head down to Naja's Place at the Redondo Beach Pier. Sometimes they have Pliny on tap. Not sure if Select Beer Store or even Adam's Fine Wines and Liquor get 'em but those are good bottle shops. Select Beer store has a good tap list, too. You can also head down to El Segundo Brewing in as you head down to PCH towards the airport. They have some good IPA's/DIPA's available. Drive up Western Blvd and Del Amo Blvd and you are within 5-10 minutes of Smog City Brewing and Monkish. Smog has a good list of IPA's and a lot more. I'm not as familiar with Monkish's brews but their Galaxy Defender is quite good. There's also a couple of Rock and Brews locations, one in PCH, near Adams FWnL and Select Beer Store, and one near El Segundo Brewing. Those places are all in good proximity to PV, anywhere from 15-30 minute drives depending on the traffic. You can venture out further to Downtown Long Beach and hit up Beachwood BBQ for their awesome IPA's and guest taps. Congregation is approximately a 2-minute walk from Beachwood BBQ. This is a 20-30 minute drive from PV.
You seriously might be in luck if you want to try 9-10 week old Younger. You'de have to drive an hour or two out to Pasadena, but people go to far more trouble than that these days to score Younger. I am not absolutely certain this year, but usually Lucky Baldwin's Pub in Pasadena (and the one in Sierra Madre) save their Younger kegs for their High Alcohol Festival which this year is occuring April 12th-20th. If you go the first day you may be able to get some, should they have it on. Good luck. http://www.luckybaldwins.com/
Thanks for the wonderful suggestions! We're actually staying at Terrenea, so I'll definitely check out Nelsons and Mar'Sel. Hopefully I'll be able to bring back a bottle (even if empty) of Pleny the Elder to add to my bottle collection! I can't believe they have Ballast Point on tap! I have a 1 pint bottle of Sculpin in my collection! We're luckily enough to get that one in Texas (but not on tap)!
Keep an eye on the Beachwood HopCam - it's a web cam pointed at their current taplist for both locations. Looks like Elder is on at the LB location. http://beachwoodbbq.com/hopcam.html
Had a blast in Cali! But no Pliny. BUT.... We did go to Long Beach and went to Beachwood BBQ. BBQ was.geat, and although I didn't get a Pliny, I tried.their locally brewed Pole Position IPA.... IT ROCKED!
There aren't a whole lot of places where you're guaranteed to get Pliny -- NorCal or SoCal -- except the Russian River taproom. So if you're headed up north and want to guarantee yourself a bottle, that's where I'd head.
Welcome to Southern California. We rarely get Pliny. This perception that it's easy to acquire is a myth.
