DTLA Brews & Bike Crawl by Just Ride LA

The DTLA Brews & Bike Crawl by Just Ride LA was a great way to enjoy great beers and make friends along the way - in Downtown Los Angeles

There’s something special about finding the right event at the right time.

I remember that I told myself that I wanted to make just one new friend or connection on Instagram. But above all, I wanted to have fun.

Audio Graph Beer Company

1203 Olive St. Los Angeles, CA 90016
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With the meeting point at Audio Graph Beer Company, I knew that I was going to ease into the new and exciting experience while drinking a pretty solid beer to start.

It was a breeze to walk my bike to the bike parking area, lock it safely and head inside to receive my stamp card and order a libation.

As I didn’t want to specifically start off too hard, I ordered a 5 Oz taster of the 13.13 (BA Imperial Stout –  13.13% Bourbon barrel-aged 10months w/ notes of coffee, chocolate, & cherry) and  a 5 oz pour of the  COMPRESSOR (West Coast IPA, 7.35% – Modern IPA with Pilsner Malt, Motueka & Citra hops).

Double fisting, I made my way to a table that seemed to have friendly faces. After introducing ourselves to each other, I naturally led a conversation regarding what everyone’s favorite restaurants were in Los Angeles. One person recommended Maccheroni Republic for Italian.  Someone else recommended Sonoratown for Mexican. I asked if anyone had been to Zizou, a Moroccan restaurant I’d recently noticed after it pop up in my IG stories.

Before long, I found myself relaxing into the unique adventure of the situation. Here I was, forcing myself to get out of my comfort zone and into a new experience. All this, while combing two things I love: beer and bike riding.

When our group leader popped up and said that it was time to head to our next stop, I was excited. The vibe was electric.

Creature Comforts Brewery

1124 San Julian St, Los Angeles, CA 90015
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There is a true sense of freedom that I feel while seeing the world around me from the comfort of my bike saddle. Riding down the streets of Downtown Los Angeles felt like I was flying. I felt safe, a part of community and just – in the purest sense – filled with joy.

THIS was the community that I’d desired when I first purchased my bike.

Arriving at Creature Comforts Brewing, I was DEEPLY excited. Because, out of all the breweries in our destinations, THIS was the one I was most looking forward to revisiting.

Previously, I’d stopped by to buy some beers for a Super Bowl party. They were extremely well received. I also picked up a pack for Rosemary – who downright said that she was happy it was  downtown with shit street parking. Otherwise, she’d be at Creature Comforts a bit too often.

Honestly, same.

After more awesome conversations in line, I got to the bar and ordered small tasters of the  TRITONIA (Gose 4.5% – Cucumber and Lime) and the ANGELENO PARADISO WATERMELON (4.5% – Watermelon and Salt).

You know those beers … that when you sip them – admit casual conversations about adventures, art and biking on a warm summer day – just make you happy to be alive? That’s the vibe that beers from Creature Comforts give me.

The only other brewery in Los Angeles / Orange County that does the same are beers from The Breuery in Placentia, California.

The conversation flowed as strangers became friends. I met new IG connections (yay!) and found out about awesome organizations like the Skate Hunnies Inline & Roller Skating Community and Intuition Skate.

Most importantly, I found out that the original group bike group I heard about – Los Angeles Critical Mass – was still around!

And, my table of conversation turned me on to the Mikkeller Cycling Club’s Los Angeles and Orange County chapters.

Before I knew it, it was time to ride on.

Boomtown Brewery

700 Jackson St, Los Angeles, CA 90012
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It was at this point that I was truly feeling the vibe and getting in the flow of the ride. As we biked up and down slight inclines in the city, I effortlessly shifted gears.

We arrived at Boomtown Brewery in no time at all.

Unfortunately at Boomtown, I was told that they didn’t sell taster sizes. So, I ended up getting a 10 oz pour of the MIDWEST NICE (6.5% – Michigan IPA). It was – indeed –  a nice easy drinking beer.

I wanted to relax a bit more. But, after about 45 minutes, we were all on our way to our final stop.

Angel City Brewery

216 S Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA 90012
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Now, after a morning of biking, conversation and drinking, there was only one thing on my mind: WHERE IS THE FOOD?!

Luckily, Angel City Brewery proved to be the saving grace of my increasing hunger. I ordered the HAND CUT FRIES (Kennebec potatoes, parsley with lemon- garlic aioli) and the NO BS BURGER (2 smash Pattis, pepper jack cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, brioche) from House Made by Angel City Brewery.

For beer, I ordered a CUSTOM FLIGHT consisting of the KOLSH (4.5% – German Ale), P-22 (5.3% – Hazy Pale Ale), THAT VOODOO THAT YUZU (7.5% – Barrel Aged Saison), BLACK LAGER (4.8% – Schwarzbier) and DOUBLE IPA (10% – Imperial West Coast IPA).

After a comfortable time of relaxing and conversation, it was time to ride back. I was very grateful that our ride leader led those that needed it back toward our starting point, at Audio Graph Brewing.

It was absolutely the best way to end such an outstanding event of biking around downtown Los Angeles, enjoying pours of great brews and making new friendly connections along the way.

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