Atwater Village: LA’s Craft Beer Scene Grows with Golden Road Brewing

A big downside to being pregnant is that you can’t down beers. This fact can be torture if, say, you get invited to a brewery, where the beer is free flowing. This very thing happened to me a few weeks back when I was asked to attend Golden Road Brewing’s grand opening. Good thing I had my brother, who agreed to be my beer-guzzling proxy, in tow.

Golden Road, a massive three-building affair located in an industrial section of North Atwater Village, is the latest addition to Tony Yanow’s growing northeast LA beer/food empire, which includes Tony’s Darts Away in Burbank and the recently opened Mohawk Bend in Echo Park. It’s also his attempt to fill a gaping hole in LA’s craft beer production, specifically of the “world class” variety. Currently, only the actual brewery is operating, but a brewpub with 40 taps and a full, vegan-friendly menu will open soon.

The plan for Golden Road is to brew 10,000 barrels next year with a focus on “hoppy, California-style ales”. For quality and consistency, they’ll be canning (in 16 oz. tall boys) instead of bottling—something about light getting in. However, right now they’re filling growlers on certain days of the week (check their Facebook for more details).

At the opening, they served their two current releases, Point the Way IPA and Golden Road Hefeweizen, which are now available in 30 locations around LA. My brother said he was surprised at how accessible the IPA was, since he’s usually not such a big fan. I took a sip myself, and I had to concur.

We also got to taste the first batch of their more challenging but still really freaking good Burning Bush, a smoked IPA that leaves you wanting more—although the fact that I could only have a nibble may have something to do with that yearning. More IPAs, using local ingredients (locavore beer!), are on the way.

Once they start with the food, I’ll be sure to report.

-Valentina

Golden Road Brewing
5430 San Fernando Rd West,
Los Angeles, 90039