Beer Me

Los Angeles Ale Works Readies Its First Brew

Coming Soon: Gams-Bart
Coming Soon: Gams-Bart Photo: L.A. Ale Works

While we continue our so-far fruitless search for Golden Road’s Wolf Among Weeds, another local brewery is bubbling up, as Food GPS learns that Los Angeles Ale Works is just about ready to debut its first beers, which include twists on old-world styles like roggenbier and saison brewed with kumquats. Owners John Rockwell and Kip Barnes, two friends who met in U.S.C.’s marching band, are also looking to open a permanent brewery, with the Jefferson corridor or another location adjacent to Culver City’s new Expo Line under serious consideration. But first, the two will introduce L.A. to their craft this month in the first release of a rye-amped roggen called “Gamsbart,” which means “goat’s beard” and describes the feather in a Bavarian hat.

The guys say they have a “steampunk” theme at play (a California-style beer named Dampf Machine, meaning steam engine, is also in the works) and are sticking mostly to German and Austrian names for now. Barnes admits, “We always start off with a homebrew name that’s a little too ridiculous for the mainstream, and inappropriate, it seems like.” Stay tuned to the guys’ website for updates on their first release.

Interview with LA Aleworks founders John Rockwell + Kip Barnes [Food GPS]

Earlier: With New Owners in Place, Angel City Brewing Looks to The Future [GS]

Los Angeles Ale Works Readies Its First Brew