Beer of the Week: Blue Line

When it comes to NFL, NBA and Major League Baseball, fumbles, airballs and whiffs best sum up the performance of San Diego’s franchises. The lack of a local championship in any of those leagues and scarcity of playoff appearances or notable moments is enough to make one believe America’s Finest City is actually the nation’s most cursed from a sporting standpoint. Fortunately, that sinister spell doesn’t have as much of an effect on San Diego’s minor-league franchises. Take, for instance, the San Diego Gulls, the original West Coast Hockey League edition of which were champions in five of the eight seasons the team competed in from 1995 to 2003. Our current Gulls compete in the American Hockey League as an affiliate of the Anaheim Ducks and, though they have failed to come anywhere close to the success of their seabird predecessors, they bring plenty of youthful fire to the ice. They also get style points in place of Ws for understanding the prestige of San Diego breweries and enlisting local operations to produce their official beer, Blue Line Blonde Ale. Like the Gulls, an original Blue Line was produced in previous seasons by Second Chance Beer Co. Following that business moving out of its Carmel Valley production facility last year, the Gulls passed the puck to Mason Ale Works. That nine-year-old beer concern has leveraged a long-standing contract relationship with AleSmith Brewing, an award-winning operation with the capacity needed to keep Pechanga Arena’s concession stands and local store shelves stocked with Blue Line. Refreshing and pleasantly hoppy (the most winning aspects of most San Diego brews), this mid-strength golden-hued ale is worth cheering about.

Getting a chance to work with a team you grew up watching is pretty damn rad. This is a project I have been pursuing for some time with our beloved & talented sports ice birds. The San Diego Gulls are synonymous with San Diego, and while we would have loved to create a hoppy style we’re known for in our great city, we decided to take it in a different route to appease the masses, while also honoring another profile that we tend to love here: crushable! So goes this beer with a perfect balance between hops & malt. Definitely light body, but with a bright golden luster of color all wrapped up with an extremely smooth finish. The best part? It’s a living project that we can continue to progress with. Already we have ideas for next season and beyond, including some fun, limited edition projects with the players on the team. Sports, am I right?”

Cesar Torres, Senior Sales Manager, Mason Ale Works