It’s been a dreary summer in San Francisco as usual, but the skies cleared on August 7 for the Speakeasy Anniversary party. The crew rolled out some special barrels for the event, including Scarface Stout, Betrayal Imperial Red, a coffee infused Payback Porter, and Midnight Run, a new seasonal black IPA. The crowds filled in by 3:30 and a few bands took the stage inside, but with the sun bearing down they didn’t have much of an audience. Wait time for beer was brief, but not for the dreaded Porta-johns. We just carried our beer and conversation into the waiting line and all was good. My preference fell with the White Lighting wheat beer on this rare sunny day, but the whole lineup was a pleasure.
For more information on the burgeoning black IPA category, check out the recent article in the Washington Post.