A Great L.A. Craft Beer Tradition Continues with the Falcons 2017 Stuffed Sandwich Tasting

A Great L.A. Craft Beer Tradition Continues with the Falcons 2017 Stuffed Sandwich Tasting 

By Brent Yarkin, Activities Director

The Maltose Falcons had our annual holiday tasting at the legendary The Stuffed Sandwich in San Gabriel on Saturday, December 16. 28 Falcons enjoyed some great beer and tasty sandwiches while learning about this year's all European selection (except the surprise flight!). This year we actually were able to start the tasting the earliest it's ever been thanks to our group getting there on time and getting their sandwiches early. Great job! We tasted 14 beers and all but one were over 5.9% ABV!

A deli that happens to be one of the greatest beer outlets in the Southland, The Stuffed Sandwich has been at the craft beer game for nearly as long as the Falcons (1976 to our 1974). The decades-long fixation of The Stuffed Sandwich on the best in beer means that this is always one of the greatest surveys of winter holiday beers that you can find anywhere. This special annual tasting dates back to 1991 when "Craft Beer" was just a dream and places to find interesting, imported beer were scarce. The legacy of the Falcons' support for this pioneering beer venue is well-established.

The special flight for 2017 included four versions of Avery's Maharaja; 2009, 2011/12, 2013, and 2015. It was surprising to many of us to see how the hops really mellowed out as the years went on and the 2009 version tasted much more like a Barleywine rather than a double IPA. 

Some of our top choices from the night were the 2009 Maharaja, Brasserie Fantome de Noel, Brouwerij St. Bernardus Christmas, and the Castle Brewery Samichlaus Helles (coming in at a whopping 14% ABV!). For many of us, this was our first Samichlaus!

Marlene did a great job choosing the beers and Drew was "on point" with stories, explanation, and details about all of the beers. We can't wait for next year!