by Guest Blogger Eleanor
The night that UNC beat Duke–two arch-rivals playing each other for the first time in the March Madness Final Four–Chauncey and I joined his sister Krista and her boyfriend Sparklett Bill (not to be confused with the SCCBB’s own Beachrock Bill) for a visit to Lucky Luke at its newest location in Santa Clarita at the site of the former Wolf Creek Brewery. Our daughter Isabella came along for the ride. And the beer.
Each person ordered something different. Chauncey went for a flight with, from left to right in the photo, Popular Consensus (called a POG tart–not quite sour, featuring passion fruit, orange, and guava), Noise Pollution (a Hazy), Play It Lauter (a West Coast pale ale), and Millwright (an Oatmeal Stout). According to Chauncey, the stout had the others easily beat in flavor and overall satisfaction–though he “quite enjoyed” the Pog Tart.
Izzie kept it cool with Luke’s American Blonde (upper left), as she kept her eye on the players on the screen. The blonde lived up to its description on the board–crisp and clean–perfect for watching a game.
I went for a West Coast IPA. A 6.3 percenter (lower left). It was less hoppy than, say, the iconic Green Flash West Coast IPA from the early 2010s, and went down smoothly with a hint of citrus and slight bite at the end. (See Beachrock Bill’s tutorial on the evolution of the West Coast IPA, “Hop-Fu! Meet Mr. Hoppy” at the end of his post on Tasting at North Park Brewing Co).
Nothing Left to Lose (which may or may not describe how either Duke or UNC felt during the game) was Bill’s choice (upper right). He claimed that the Imperial Red, coming in at 7.3%, was his favorite of Lucky Luke’s beers and sucked it down unobtrusively.
The surprise of the evening was Krista’s selection (lower right). A 10.4 % Triple IPA, Swimming With Sharks was, indeed, a sleeper. The alcohol was nearly undetectable and the taste somewhere between champagne and bourbon. Definitely worth going to Lucky Luke to try that one, as long as you’re not the DD.
Interestingly, the “Billie” was a cantaloupe sour–would it have trumped
Sparklett Bill’s favorite, “Nothing Left to Lose” if it had been on tap? Hmmm…..
Cheers, Eleanor
So Cal Craft Beer Blog 
One thought on “Lucky Luke”