After a marvelous imbibing session at Green Flash and Port Brewing/Lost Abbey, we stumbled (figuratively) over to Alesmith.
Unfortunately, far from the bustling, vivacious atmosphere of Port, the tasting room here was quiet and sans music. Hands together now, you gotta turn on the tunes to drink beer to! There WAS a stereo. I saw it. Just sitting there. Lonely and unable to sing out. So sad. The guy behind the bar was nice and knowledgeable, but the beer was served in tiny plastic cups for $1 per taste. Guys, you have great beers, I’ve had most of them on tap, but you gotta spruce up the tasting room. And for all that is right and good about craft beer, use glass.
The next day we headed to the Bikes, Boards, and Brews Festival at Catamaran Spa and Resort in Pacific Beach. Music, vintage surfboards, beach bikes, and beer. Yeah. Oh and Spongebob driving a car. We happily sipped on a variety of craft beers from breweries such as PB Ale House, Kona, Green Flash, Karl Strauss, Airdale, and Yellowtail (NOT the sucky Australian wine producer of swimming pool swill).
Most of the brews were Wheats, Pale Ales and IPA’s, my hands-down favorite being the Hopulent IPA from PB Ale House brewer Eric Jensen. (Stay tuned for an interview in November!) Kettle hopped 6 times, then dry-hopped, Hopulent is everything an IPA should be. Great nose of citrus, stone fruit, and spice, its a must-try for IPA lovers! On the flip-side, I was thrilled to see Airdale offering their Imperial Stout, Dark & Stormy. 
Great name, awesome labels, great beer. Dark chocolate and rich coffee on the nose and palate, with notes of tobacco and vanilla. Delicious, and a damn delightful segue from the others. Stay tuned for further enjoyment of this beer in my challenge. Thanks Tony and Nate!
Laurie Delk 
Boy do I have a lot to learn about beer! I had no idea beer could be so complex with so many flavors and aromas – I guess that’s because I only drink Corona! Looks like I will be getting quite an education over the next 30 days during your beer drinking journey. I’m so glad you had a great birthday excursion in California – sounds like it set the stage for your debut next Sunday!