OUT NOW: Santa's Little Helper Holiday Ale!

We are proud to announce the release of our newest seasonal ale "Santa's Little Helper," just in time for the holidays. This beer is a rich and malty Imperial Stout, with a subdued hop bitterness highlighting caramel and chocolate malt flavors. In addition, this behemoth of an ale clocks in at 9.2% Alcohol By Volume, and accordingly, we are serving it on draft in 12 oz glasses. Due to the increased volume of grain needed to create such a strong brew, we will be charging a little more, $6 a glass and $4 for Island Nation members. We only produced a small volume of this special ale so swing by the tasting room and enjoy some soon! -Cheers IBC.

Early December News!!!

As we transition into December we have some news here at the brewery you loyal bloggers may need to know. First, we will be rolling out another cask conditioned ale for Carpinteria's First Friday celebration 12/4. This month's release will be a quadruple dry hopped IPA! Four times the amount of hops as a regular cask IPA makes this ale floral and spicy, with a hint of citrus as well. Second, we are looking for new recruits in the Island Brewing Drum Coprs/Flag Corps. We are scheduled to march in this years Carpinteria Christmas Parade on Saturday 12/12. Come into the bar and sign up if you are interested in marching in lines, banging drums, twirling flags, or good old fashioned fun! Next, we are also glad to announce that Paul's band, the Brewery Boyz, will be performing two of their annual holiday acoustic shows here on 12/3 and 12/17. They are planning a full two hour set from 7-9pm. Come in to see them, it is always a great time. Finally, we also want to announce that we will be CLOSED on Mon 12/7 for our annual brewery maintenance and cleaning day. We will reopen Tues. 12/8 at normal hours, so plan ahead and stock up on beer!

THANKSGIVING HOURS:

Wednesday 11/25: 2pm-9pm (Normal Hours)
Thursday 11/26 THANKSGIVING: CLOSED!
Friday 11/27: 2pm-9pm (Normal Hours)

Don't forget to come in Wednesday and fill up your growlers or get bottles for the holiday feast. Also, "Black Friday" 1 day only special beer release! See you here, Cheers -IBC

BLACK FRIDAY!!! Stout and Christmas Ale!

This "BLACK FRIDAY", 11/27, we will be releasing two kegs of dark, rich, and of course black ales in celebration of the season. Starry Night Stout is a robust, opaque, jet black foreign style stout. It is full of roasty flavors and checks in at a moderate 7%ABV and around 50 IBU. Starry night has been a fixture here during the wintertime and many fans await its release at the end of autumn. Our other black beer is the Collaborative Christmas Ale, a beer brewed in conjunction with many other local breweries. This beer could best be described as a malty version of a Russian Imperial Stout, with a hint of chocolate flavor. It clocks in at 9%ABV and about 40 IBU. In addition, other local breweries will be producing their own versions of a holiday ale using the same specialty malts, creating different interpretations and styles based on base malts and and adjuncts that are used. Each brewery will be serving their unique beer throughout the holiday season, with more details to follow. Both of these beers will be unfiltered, and available only on BLACK FRIDAY! Come by the tasting room and get some for yourself! Cheers -IBC

COMING FRIDAY 11/6/09: CASK HEATHER ALE!!!

This Friday 11/6 we will be again releasing a cask conditioned ale here at the tasting room. This month will be a cask conditioned heather ale. What is heather ale exactly? Heather ale starts off as our award winning Jubilee Ale, which is then casked up before fermentation is complete and it is "dry hopped" with heather flowers (Calluna vulgaris). Heather has been used to flavor ale for centuries (dating back to the Picts of present day Scotland), but is no longer as common a beer ingredient as it once was. Heather has a distinct flavor and aroma, somewhat 'tea' like, so stop into the brewery and try a pint or two for yourself. Cheers! -IBC

PUMPKIN CARVING CONTEST!!!

We will be having our annual pumpkin carving contest at the brewery on Thursday 10/29! Come in from 6-9 pm and enjoy some great beers, friendly camaraderie and holiday cheer. Don't forget to bring your own pumpkin and carving accessories. FUN! PRIZES! PUMPKINS! See you there!

AVO FEST, CASK "OAKED JUBILEE & NITRO PORTER!

It is that time of year again! We will be celebrating the annual Carpinteria Avocado Festival with our Avocado Honey Ale! In addition we will be releasing two special five gallon kegs of Cask Conditioned "OAKED" Jubilee and Nitro Porter. Oaked Jubilee is aged on real French oak and a dry hop addition of Golding hops, and Nitro Porter will be served on nitrogen gas, contributing to a rich full mouthfeel. It will be a busy weekend, and accordingly, we will be ONLY serving 16 oz pints (No imperial pints or samplers) in compostable earth friendly cups. Hope to see you down here! Cheers -IBC.