March, 1996 Volume 19, Issue 3

Coastin’

by John Pyles

I visited the central coast over President's Day weekend, and unexpectedly ran into a Mardi Gras celebration and parade. It was a great weekend! I ended up visiting two brewpubs and a multi-tap pub.

Our first stop was Covany Brewing in Grover Beach (just south of Pismo Beach). The brewery is located in a restaurant named Quarterdeck. It's a little hard to find if you are looking for a sign that says "Covany," so if you are going there look for the restaurant.

We tried their sampler which consisted of five ales and a peach flavored cider. All the beers, from the usual pale ale, wheat, red, and stout, to the unusual dunkel wheat and barley wine, were overhopped. Now I like hops, but I have to believe that the brewer has no taste buds left, at least at the back of his tongue. Other than that, the beers were good - no other problems. But you really have to like hops.

The cider was good, sweet, and the flavor tasted like the fruit flavorings that you can buy. We didn't try the food.

We stopped in at the "Hot Spot" which is a multi-tap pub in downtown Pismo Beach. They had three taps of Covany beer, several British ales like Watney's, and Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. The big activity, however, is pool.

Many pool tables are available at $6 per hour. Not much in the way of food. But if you are hot from digging clams or catching waves, good beer is available a block from the beach.

The last place we went to was SLO Brewing in San Luis Obispo. Good beer, good food, and popular place. Their porter won a second at the GABF this last year. My favorite was a very malty pale ale.

One place we didn't go was Spikes which is a famous multi-tap. Try the central coast, it has nice scenery and lots to do. A storm was coming in and the waves were big. It was fun looking directly down on the surfers from the pier.