Hoppy was in the Southwest last week where he visited a number of breweries. The first was Beer Is Good Brewing (also known as BIG Brewing), which opened in April of 2019. They state that they believe in the power of quality over quantity, and that each batch is meticulously crafted with passion and precision. ensuring that every pint is a testament to their commitment to brewing excellence.

While there, Hoppy enjoyed flight-sized drinks of six of their beers. These were as follows:

Schmagon Schmeel West Coast Pale Ale – Brewed with CTZ, Simcoe and Chinook hops. 5% ABV, 36 IBU.

HipHOPopotamus Hazy IPA – Whirlpool and dry-hopped with large amounts of Nelson Sauvin, Strata, and Mosaic hops. 6.6% ABV, 18 IBU.

Hoptopus West Coast IPA – Described as wrapping its tentacles around your taste buds with a tidal wave of citrus, pine, and floral hop character. Its eight hops lurk just beneath the surface, ready to pu;ll you into its ocean of flavor. 7.4% ABV, 109 IBU.

El Guapo Stout – Described as an In-Famous Mexican Chocolate Stout containing a plethora of flavors. Dry spiced with vanilla, cinnamon, cacao nibs, and habanero peppers. 8.1% ABV.

Infinite Rapture Barrel-Aged Imperial Pastry Stout (2026) – Double barrel blend of viscous imperial stout aged in Willett Family Estate barrels for 12 months. 12.6% ABV

Fractured Cognition Barrel-Aged Imperial Pastry Stout – Double barrel blend of viscous imperial stout aged in Willett Family Estate barrels for 12 months. It was then rested on toasted almonds, cacao nibs, and vanilla. 12.6% ABV.

Pictures from the visit follow:

On Sunday, Hoppy visited Voodoo Brewing in Fishers. This location opened on November 8th of last year. It is a franchise location of Voodoo, out of Meadville, PA.

While there, he enjoyed the following brews:

Good Vibes West Coast IPA – Described as their flagship brew with hops added five times in the kettle and then double dry-hopped with insane amounts of Galaxy, Amarillo, and Mosaic. What you get is a big, bold blast of dank, tropical fruit flavors that are straight-up irresistible. 7.3% ABV, 85 IBU.

Everybody Wants This Ladder West Coast IPA – Described as brewed with four kinds of malted barley and a ridiculous amount of hand-selected Mosaic hops. Bursting with fresh notes of tangerine, lime, and peach along with woodsy notes of pine and lemongrass. 8.6% ABV.

Hoppy has previously visited their locations in Myrtle Beach, SC and Knoxville, TN. (Their Knoxville location has since closed.) Information on these visits can be found here.

Here are pictures from the visit:

Pizza Port opened their doors in 1987 in Solana Beach as a pizza restaurant and added their craft beer to the menu in 1992. They now have eight locations in Southern California. Hoppy visited the location in Ocean Beach.

While there, he enjoyed some pizza and a Crooked Tree Red IPA, which was brewed at that location. It is simply described as having pine and citrus notes. 6.8% ABV.

Hoppy’s next visit took place in Alpine, CA at Mcilhenney Brewing. It was founded in 2021by the McIlhenny family which had previously run Alpine Brewing, in the same location, until it was acquired by Green Flash Brewing, also in 2021. More information on their history can be found here.

During his visit, Hoppy drank four-ounce samples of seven different ales. Each of them was rated more than four points on Untappd! They were as follows:

Family Trees – A West Coast IPA brewed with New Zealand Cascade, Citra, DynaBoost Citra, Nectaron, Chinook,, and Lupomax HBC 586 hopos. 6.5% ABV.

All Gas, No Brakes (Collaboration with Yakima Chief Hops & New Zealand Hops Ltd.) – West Coast/New Zealand IPA w/Simcoe, Nectaron, DynaBoost Citra, Superdelic, Cryo Nelson Sauvin, Cryo Riwaka, Cryo Nectaron & Cryo Superdelic hops. 6.6% ABV.

Parallel Paradise – DDH West Coast IPA w/Strata, Mosaic, Simcoe, Citra, Cryo Mosaic, Cryo Citra, Cryo Simcoe & CGX Strata hops. 6.9% ABV.

Wizards Wand – West Coast IPA w/Strata & Mosaic hops. 6.7% ABV.

Alpha Therapy – Mega-hopped IPA w/Simcoe, Mosaic, Nectaron, Cryo Nelson Sauvin, & Citra Incognito hops. &% ABV.

M.A.S. Hops – West Coast IPA w/Mosaic T90 & HyperBoost, Anchovy T90, Simcoe T90, Cryo & DynaBoost. 6.4% ABV.

Wild Child 2xIPA – West Coast Double IPA w/Columbus, Citra, Mosaic & Amarillo hops. 8.4%ABV.

Pictures from the visit follow:

Hoppy also dropped by a second Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens location in the Liberty Station neighborhood of San Diego. Due to weather and time constraints, this visit was much shorter than his prior visit to Stone.

While there Hoppy enjoyed an Arrogant Bastard Ale. This is a strong American Ale that Stone lists as Classified. 7.2% ABV, 100 IBU.

Pictures follow:

Hoppy’s next stop was at Coronado Brewing. They opened their doors in 1996 as one of only five craft breweries in the San Diego area, at the time. It was their desire to be the kind of place where friends could enjoy great beer and a good meal in a laid-back atmosphere. They use the slogan, “Stay Coastal.”

During his visit, Hoppy quaffed an Aloha Warrior West Coast IPA. It is brewed in honor of the C4 Foundation. It is described as being brewed with Chinook, Simcoe and Columbus cryo hops to give this beer a dank and OG character with some notes of fresh pine. It has a dry finish with a firm bitterness.

Pictures from the visit follow: