My view on their portfolio seems to be in the minority as most people seem to talk about 21st Amendment’s Back in Black IPA, Monk’s Blood, and other various offerings before the Bitter American. With that in mind, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that we’re seeing the Hell or High Watermelon Wheat and the Back in Black IPA, but I wish we were getting some of 21st Amendment’s rarer offerings, like, for example, Hop Crisis, or any of the other myriad beers that we rarely see in DC.
Let’s get this out of the way. I don’t honestly give a damn about craft beer in cans. Wait, bear with me, because many of my favorite beers come in cans, so I’m not saying I don’t care about craft beer that comes in cans. What I mean is it really doesn’t matter to me whether a beer comes in a bottle or a can because I rarely drink straight from a bottle or a can and neither should you, unless you have a situation that specifically calls for cans (whitewater rafting, for example). There is a constantly growing list of breweries that are canning their beers. Oskar Blues immediately comes to mind first, but that list is always growing. 21st Amendment Brewing in San Francisco was one of the first to distribute craft beer in cans. I suppose there is something to be said for that kind of trailblazing.
Location: San Francisco, CA
Type: Production brewery
Available in DC Market: Yes
Beer #1: Hell or High Watermelon Wheat ( Wheat / Fruit Beer) ( 4.9 % ABV )
Beer Advocate: C+ ( 392 Review )
Rate Beer: 33 overall, 57 style
Notes: I don’t catch myself wanting Watermelon Wheat too often but it’s a truly unique beer. These guys pulled off exactly what the set out to do. This wheat based beer is refreshing and the subtleties of the watermelon work well together. Be sure to check Matchbox in Chinatown for fresh Watermelon-wheat on draft. It’s been known to show up there.
Beer #2: Back in Black (Black IPA / 6.8 % ABV )
Beer Advocate: B ( 386 Reviews )
Rate Beer: 93 overall, 68 style
Notes: 21st Amendment debuted this beer in 2009 at the beginning of the Black IPA trend. This is one of the better examples of this style the AC/DC reference makes it hard not to love. The dark malt works well with the subtle, comparatively speaking, amount of hops and do a great job of masking the higher end ABV. I’m really curious to see how this pairs with the Hot Smoked Pepper Salmon.
Like with most breweries, I haven’t loved every one of their offerings; the Bitter American is far and away my favorite of their beers. Bitters are not exactly widely popular these days so I applaud them for tackling the style. My view on their portfolio seems to be in the minority as most people seem to talk about 21st Amendment’s Back in Black IPA, Monk’s Blood, and other various offerings before the Bitter American. With that in mind, I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that we’re seeing the Hell or High Watermelon Wheat and the Back in Black IPA, but I wish we were getting some of 21st Amendment’s rarer offerings, like, for example, Hop Crisis, or any of the other myriad beers that we rarely see in DC.
This profile is a part of the DCBEER.COM SAVOR Brewery Profile series. For more information, follow the link to see profiles of all 2011 SAVOR participants.
Beer Review Disclaimer: The beer reviews found on Beer Advocate and Rate Beer do not represent the opinions of this site. We provide these in the hope that they will serve as a resource showing what some craft beer fans have thought of the beers. These reviews can be a helpful guideline, but are not the be-all end-all about a beer’s strengths or weaknesses.
