Beer Review: SweetWater Brewing 420 Extra Pale Ale

I'd never been to a brewery before. Sure, I'd had beer.  A lot of beer.  This didn't make me an expert by any stretch of the imagination.

I pulled up to the parking lot, a gravel covered industrial thing that sat adjacent to what I was told was a brewery.  Didn't look like a brewery.  Looked like an under-used warehouse.

Didn't know what a brewery was supposed to look like.  I had images of Laverne and Shirley amidst lines of bottles clinking along serpentine conveyor belts.  It was supposed to be massive and impressive and noisy and smell like alcohol.  Three of those four items proved to be truth.

Locked my car, looked at the weeds sprouting up in the middle of the gravel in the parking lot, then double-checked the lock.

That area of town, all along Armour Drive wasn't necessarily rough, per se.  It wasn't run-down.  It wasn't a blighted area of town.  It just wasn't the type of place where people were.  It wasn't where you'd expect to go and have some beers fresh from the brewer.  There weren't very many people around.  Everyone who belonged there had already gone home.

There was a sewing machine shop across the street, an events design company right next door.  There were a lot of trailers and more than a handful of semi trucks.

Odd combination of words; semi, truck.

So, after checking the car's locks again, I made my way toward the guy sitting at a wooden folding table with a big cardboard box and a roll of carnival tickets.

I don't remember how much I'd paid.  I remember handing the guy the cash in exchange for a branded pint glass with a thin ribbon of tickets sitting on the bottom.

My first pint glass!  How exciting!

I remember thinking how cool it was that you could get six beers for your six little tickets.  I remember how people said the bartenders weren't supposed to fill the glasses, but they came awfully close.

How good was that beer, direct from the brewery tanks?  I don't remember much else about that evening.  I don't even really remember who I was with.  I know I had fun.  I know I took the tour and laughed at all the stupid brewery tour jokes.  I remember I almost bought a t-shirt.  I remember one of the people with me didn't want their last ticket, so I had SEVEN beers.

I remember being impressed by the guys a SweetWater Brewing.  They earned a loyal customer after that first tour.  Their stories were great and their attitude was genuine.

I loved then and I love now that such high-quality beer is brewed in my home town.  Their varieties are flavorful and creative.  Their seasonal beers and limited runs are usually extremely enjoyable.

I have an issue with Blue.  I like beer.  I like blueberries.  Can't we just stop there?

So, 420 is my local go-to.  Wandering around a festival, I grab a 420.  At a concert, 420.  Sporting events, 420.  I served it at my wedding.  I grab it when I can't decide what I want to drink.  I miss it when I can't get it.  It's reliable, consistent.  It's exactly what you want in an adult beverage.

Is creamy a good way to describe an ale?  I know there are super-secret combinations of ingredients that differentiate ales from . . . other stuff.  I don't really care to learn them.  I like drinking them.  I suppose one day I'll really focus on what the differences are.  There's always Google, right?

Anyway, 420 is refreshing.  Always welcome.  Sometimes feels creamy in a very good "I think I'll have a sip of milkshake to chase this spicy jalapeño double bacon-cheeseburger" kind of way.  I truly like it and I really hope they never do anything to screw it up.