Beer of the Week: Coastin’
Pizza Port Brewing opts to add to its ever-reliable stable of year-round beers by introducing a new tropically calibrated West Coast IPA
When the subject of best grocery-store beer buys comes up, be it with beer fans or professional brewers, the gravitational pull of a certain company’s cans is typically part of the conversation. That beer biz is none other than Carlsbad-based suds-industry stalwart, Pizza Port Brewing. Their name consistently arises as an always reliable producer of go-to canned beer that, in addition to tasting great and being of exceptional quality, is also available at an affordable price point. While their ever-rotating seasonal IPAs keep things interesting, by and large, core beers like Swami’s IPA and California Honey Blonde Ale are cornerstones of the beer aisle. Recently, Pizza Port decided to add to its year-round lineup, bringing aboard an IPA calibrated to give off tropical flavors and aromas. Dubbed Coastin’, this new arrival does just that and is this week’s featured beer. Packaged in hot pink and mint green cans (of both the 16- and 12-ounce varieties), it’s evocative of the Padres’ trademark (and soon-to-be-retired) City Connect uniforms and, like those regionally inspired threads, is perfectly suited for San Diego. An extensive blend of hops – Mosaic, Mosaic Cryo, Krush, Simcoe, Riwaka, Citra and Crystal (an underrated yet extraordinarily complex varietal) – converge to lend pineapple, papaya and passionfruit character. But it’s not just the vibrancy of those hops that makes this a standout 365-days-a-year IPA. Exceptional balance and drinkability are key assets that keep one wanting to cruise back to this beer. It’s not often brewing companies introduce new full-time offerings. When they do, fans hope they get it right, and once again Pizza Port has nailed it.
When we decided to brew a new core beer, we aimed to create a crushable, tropical-fruit-forward IPA that would perfectly fit into our core lineup. We created it with today’s drinker in mind, someone looking for a vibrant, expressive hop character without a high-ABV (alcohol-by-volume) or excessive bitterness. To build Cruisin’, we chose our brewers’ favorite hops, including Riwaka, Krush, Nelson, Mosaic and Simcoe. To take it to the next level, we added some Yakima Chief Hops Mosaic Cryo hops and Freestyle Hops Riwaka Hop Kief, enhancing the juicy tropical aroma intensity. Coastin’ crams juicy bursts of papaya, grapefruit and passionfruit into a light, crisp, easy-drinking 6.2% IPA. From a packaging perspective, we typically pay homage to local surf breaks, however with Coastin’, we evolved our approach by focusing on a broader local surfscape and selecting a name that feels more inviting to a wider audience.”
Joe Arguello, Senior Marketing Manager, Pizza Port Brewing
Pizza Port Brewing operates public venues at 571 Carlsbad Village Drive in Carlsbad Village, 2730 Gateway Road in Carlsbad’s Bressi Ranch development, 155 Mata Way in San Marcos, 135 North Highway 101 in Solana Beach, 1956 Bacon Street in Ocean Beach, 204 Palm Avenue in Imperial Beach and inside Belmont Park at 3146 Mission Boulevard in Mission Beach