Remember Karl Strauss? The brewery that has been on San Diego brewing scene since 1989? They are brewing some interesting and unique beer these days, and I recently got a chance to check out their downtown San Diego brewpub and try some of their more recent offerings, along with their fish and chips.
They had just released their Mosaic Session Ale for the summer season, a session IPA, which is a style that is taking the craft beer world by storm. It’s a low ABV IPA that usually has a super dry malt base and a pronounced hop presence, which really showcases the hops that make up the beer. This one is brewed with Mosaic hops and it shows off the bright citrus flavor that these hops lend to the beer, without being too bitter and maintaining a crisp dryness throughout.
The lineup of offerings at Karl Strauss’ downtown brewpub.
Another standout was the Tank Tap Kolsch, a German-style ale brewed at cooler than normal temperatures, lending to it a crisper, cleaner flavor profile while still maintaining that classic, fruity zip that ale yeast offers. The Tank Tap is an experimental offering that Karl Strauss is toying with on the market to see how consumers react to it. This beer is very flavorful for being on the lighter side and is approachable for a vast craft beer audience. I believe the brewery would be well advised to make this beer a regular offering.
The Tank Tap Kolsch also made for a nice pairing with my fish and chips, which morphed the beer into a creamier, fuller bodied version of itself. I find that fish dishes tend to somehow bring out a creamy element in certain types of beer, and this was one of them. Very enjoyable.
The flight of pairing beers
The Pintale Pale Ale made for my favorite pairing with the fish and chips. This is a classic west coast pale ale, oozing with grapefruit and tropical fruit flavor, while maintaining a light and dry malt backbone which lets the hops shine through. It reminds me of the new pale ales from Ballast Point and Alesmith called Grunion and 394 Pale Ale, respectively.
With the fish and chips, the Pintale Pale Ale offered up exactly what I expected of it as soon as I tried it; fish and chips is a rich, fried dish from the fish to the chips, and one’s palate can expect to be sufficiently coated with the oil that is used to fry this dish. One of the beauties of west coast pale ales is that the dry nature coupled with the hop bitterness act as a refreshing and cleansing agent. Think about how weighed down your palate gets after a few bites of those fish and chips, and how it yearns for something refreshing to ready it for the next bite. The dry and bitter nature of the Pintale contrast the rich, fatty quality of the fish and chips, scrubbing the oil right off my tongue and hitting my taste buds with a big wave of delicious, bright, refreshing, citrusy hop flavor.
Fish and chips by Karl Strauss
Any time a pairing ends like this, I consider it a success. With several brewpubs (restaurant + brewery) scattered about San Diego, it makes sense that Karl Strauss makes approachable beers that are great for pairing. Their brewpubs are a wonderful place to visit if you want to introduce someone to craft beer who is not very well acquainted with it. But with some of their other offerings, such as the Tower 20 Imperial IPA, Wreck Alley Imperial Stout, and the newer Mosaic Session Ale, they appeal to the more seasoned craft drinker as well.
