Silicon Valley Beer Week 2013: Gordon Biersch Kick of Party

Felt like walking into the Wonka Factory.

It's Silicon Valley Beer Week! Michael and I attended the Kick Off Party at Gordon Biersch on Sunday. It took place at the brewhouse in east San Jose, right in the back storage and shipping area.

I will do a separate post about Gordon Biersch later on. Right now let's just focus on the event...

Do you ever think about how many random people's photo's you're in?

It consistent of several tents featuring a pairing of an appetizer from a local restaurant and a beer from a local brewery.

Yummy Pilsner

Gordon Biersch had its Czech Style Pilsner, which was my first drink. It is a pretty standard German Pilsner, maybe a little more on the malty side. Very drinkable and a nice starter for the party.

Very big golden ale

Strike Brewing Company offered its Blonde Ale, a very golden ale with a lot of malt. This is a good beer, but has a tartness that needs to be paired with something herb-y or it is overpowering. I see it going well with appetizers, maybe some thick wheat crackers and basil hummus.

I was SO happy to have vegan food. 

There was even a vegan vendor, Good Karma Cafe! We had dinner there the other night actually (I will do a post about it soon). Good Karma served jalapeno poppers, which I have not had in a long time so I was happy. The beer pairing was Lagunitas Dogtown Pale Ale.

Love this IPA

This is a crisp, hoppy beer. Prefect to cut through the richness of the vegan cream cheese in the poppers. I know from experience this also pairs very well with juicy veggie burger. Towards the end, Good Karma ran out of Dogtown, so they tapped a Maximus instead. It's a extremely hoppy IPA, also paired with with the poppers.

Biere de Chocolat, very interesting...

Almanac Beer Company had its California Table Beer: Biere de Chocolat. This is very complex beer, very chocolaty. A bit bitter at first, and finishes kind of smokey. I was not that impressed by this beer. It is a bit much to drink on its own (and does not pair well with jalapeno poppers). I'm sure the beer would have been better with the pairing, a bacon wrapped date or something, to give it more sweetness and compliment all the background flavors. I am very interested in trying more of Almanac's beers though. I love the its concept of taking inspiration from Northern California's farming legacy. Making artisan "table beer" similar to making "table wine".

Malty

Hermitage Brewing Company had two choices: Maltopia and Hoptopia. I am kind of allergic to hops, so I try to avoid extremely hoppy beers when I can. I only took a sip of Michael's Hoptopia, plus I've had it before. It's double IPA that does not skip on the hops. It's balanced out by a caramel background taste, but that fresh hops taste is definitely right in the forefront. I did have a sample of Maltopia. It is a Scottish Ale, toasty malt flavor and a little fruity too.

"Never Trust a Skinny Brewer"

This was a very fun event, nice job everyone involved!

TL Beer Garden

Source

On the drive to my previous job, I passed this little hole-the-wall-looking place. There was nothing special about the building---just a simple sign, no windows, and door. You could catch a glimpse of a decent looking patio with outdoor seating as you drove passed. But it's what that simple sign says that intrigued me, "Beer Garden." TL Beer Garden, a beer garden in Sunnyvale, heck yeah I had to try it. One day after work I offered to buy my sweetheart dinner and beer, he didn't argue (like one of us would ever turn down beer).

I can't find any background information or history about this place. This is the description on the Facebook page "We have 22 beers on tap as well as a full bar, hookah, pool, many TV's for your entertainment, and a delicious food menu!We have an awesome staff of bartenders who are friendly and charismatic, so come on in with your family, friends, and colleagues and enjoy a nice cold glass of beer and some delicious food!" I saw someone on Yelp said this place might have been a Chinese restaurant before because there is a faded mural.

The parking is limited, a few spots in front with some more spots shared with the other small businesses in the back.There is indeed a nice little outdoor seating area on the patio.It even offers hookah.It was too cold out for me so we sat insid, but I could that being fun in the summer. Besides the random Asian decorations, it has your standard alcohol advertisements and sport posters on the walls. Standard bar chairs, stool, and bench tables. Several TV's showing various games. Pool tables in the back too. 


It was kinda awkward when we walked in. No one really greeted us so we just wandered to a table. Shortly after a waitress approached us, and gave us menus and peanuts. Did I mention the waitress was wearing a referee outfit? Like one of the sexy ones you wear for Halloween? She had leggings on too, and it was not too short or showing too much cleavage, but still...not sure how I feel about that. But hey, I've been a waitress before and flirted with guys to get more tips, so I get it. A girl's gotta pay her bills. 

Anyways, we happily munched on peanuts while we decided what to drink. They had all but 2 of the beers listed on tap, plus several bottled. I decided on my favorite beer in the world, Dead Guy by Rouge Ales (I will do a post about them soon). Michael got Moose Drool.  Both are good beers so no complaints. They came in big, frosty cold mugs too. 

I ordered the Bombay Garden Burger, Michael got the Jamaica Red Burger. Both were good, nothing special. Just standard decent bar food to soak up your beer. Everyone raved about the fries on Yelp...I will say they were good for dive bar fries, but nothing special. 

We ordered one more round and stayed awhile. We chatted, and watched the various games. Some of the obvious regulars showed up at the bar...they were interesting. Both pool tables were occupied and had people waiting for the next game. Another couple came in (probably expecting a nice date night) and turned right around when they saw the place. It was kind of funny. 

Overall, this is probably not the place you want to take your date (unless she's a beer girl like me). The service was not that great. They brought us what we asked for in a reasonable amount of time and were polite. Nothing more, nothing special. No complaints though. This place is what it is---a cheap place to get a big cold beer. I will come again though. They have a nice selection and there is not much in the area like this that is not insanely overpriced or always packed. I think Michael said it best, "This is the place I would start off a bachelor party. Get a couple cheap drinks before you head out for the night."