United Nations of Beer

Mad River Brewing

by Kurt Ober
(Beer Delegate, CA, USA)

Mad River Brewing

Hello, fellow beer guzzlers of the world. I come to you with some info on the great Humboldt nation in California.

But first, let me ask a question. What makes a good, nay, great beer? Well, ingredients of course play a huge role, but what else, I'll tell you what else: Happy people. You see, beer making is an art that an old grump could not handle. It takes patience, understanding, and a smile that could blind you.

I found these people and the place where they work their asses off to bring us some of the best beer in Humboldt county and beyond. This place is Mad River Brewing Co.

My girlfriend and I had the ultimate pleasure of getting a full tour of the brewing facility. There we met some very happy people who just love to bring us the nectar of the gods from the tiny little town of Blue Lake, California.

There we also learned many facts about the company which most people do not know.

We learned that Mad River Brewing was started with the same exact equipment that started the Sierra Nevada Brewery. This equipment was purchased from the Sierra brewery and might even be wanted back for a museum or something. I will find more about this when I take the tour of Sierra Nevada.

Also, there is a Jamaica Beer line at Mad River Brewing that was actually started as a promotional beer for the internationally-known Reggae on the River festival that happens here in Piercy, California.

After the fascinating tour, we had the pleasure of ending with a tasting of every beer they had, which was of course the highlight of the evening. Then I bought a logo hoodie and we made our way home talking about how great that tour really was.

Now onto the beers. Click the links to read my reviews of each.

Steelhead Extra Pale Ale

Steelhead Double IPA

Steelhead Extra Stout

Steelhead Scotch Porter

Jamaica Sunset IPA

Jamaica Red Ale

John Barleycorn Barleywine

So if you are ever in the neighborhood and would like a great tour and a great tasting session, stop by Mad River Brewing and get yer swerve on! This is Officer Ober, signing out for now.