Mybeerbuzz .com Highlights Garage Brewing Mango Hefeweizen, Blueberry Cream Ale & Tropical IPA

I’ll admit that I wasn't very familiar with Garage Brewing in Temecula, CA and I’m really disappointed to say they didn’t exist when I last visited Temecula in 2012. Opened in 2013, Garage Brewing was named after the former garage that occupied their current home and to “show appreciation for where the craft beer industry originated--in the garages of brewers.” In 2016 they opened a production brewery in Murrieta, CA and they have grown to maintain six core/year-round beers as well as several seasonals each year.

Today we’re sampling three beers that have made their way from Temecula, California to mybeerbuzz headquarters…so off we go.

With the sun high in the sky, I could not resist sitting on the deck and opening the Garage Brewing Mango Hefeweizen. This beer pours a slightly hazy pale yellow color with a really pleasant mango aroma. The look of the Hefeweizen is certainly there, and the aromas and flavors of the hefe still remain, but the addition of mango has raised this beer to another level. The flavors began with an almost Witbier-like bready & yeasty presence followed by a really nice sweet ripe mango pop. The balance is good and I’d really like to see even more mango in the flavors to match up with the big presence in the nose. All in all this was a really nice summer fruited Hefeweizen and my only complaint is that I can’t buy more for the beach (5.5%-AbV, 16 IBU).

Up next we popped the top on Garage Brewing’s new summer seasonal; Blueberry Cream Ale. This is a style that doesn’t find it’s way into my ‘fridge very much so I’ll admit I’m no expert, but right out of the bottle this beer just looks appealing. Deep golden colors with a frothy white head lead you into some really soft and pleasant blueberry aromas. Blueberry also takes center stage in the flavors with some reserved fruity esters in the background. The malt flavors sneak in a bit as the beer warms and we found some very subtle almost peppery spices at the end. Overall the blueberry flavors really make for an interesting and really drinkable lighter bodied beer whether you know the Cream Ale style or not (5.5%-AbV, 22 IBU).

Finally, I decided to save my favorite style for last and we opened the Garage Brewing Tropical IPA. This beer pours a bright orange color with lots of great citrus and grapefruit aromas. We found some additional tropical fruit in the nose making the beer hard to resist, especially if you love grapefruit-hop aromas like me. To say this beer is juicy would be an understatement. Tropical IPA leads and finishes with juicy hop flavors dominated by grapefruit, pineapple and citrus fruit. As the beer warms, the finishing flavors lean a bit into resinous pine, but overall the balance and hop choices make this a really drinkable and enjoyable IPA…again a beer I’d love to sit on the beach and enjoy (7.5%-AbV, 65 IBU).

If you’re lucky enough to get Garage Brewing beers in your market, OR if you happen to be traveling anywhere near Temecula, be sure to try out their interesting core and seasonal releases. We were really very pleasantly surprised with Mango Hefeweizen, Tropical IPA and Blueberry Cream Ale and we think you will be too. As always, when you do try these beers, be sure to let us know what YOU think.

Just for fun, I’ve added in the new packaging for Garage Project Golden Helles Lager (AKA Bucket Seat Blonde--5.2%-AbV, 22oz bottle) and Belgian-Style Tripel (aka The Tow Truck, 9.1%-AbV, 22oz bottles)