One of the casualties from Covid in California is our restaurant and bar sector. Doors were closed during the height of the pandemic, then allowed to open only gradually as the illness receded. This meant, of course, that business activity dropped, often dramatically, as did the incomes of owners and employees. Some places went out of business; others continue to struggle. So when you’re fishing this summer, please consider patronizing the restaurants and cafés, the bars and brewpubs, in the towns you’re staying in or passing through. Your expenditures will certainly be appreciated and also will enhance the local economy through the multiplier effect.
And who knows, perhaps you’ll come across a diamond in the rough that not only serves a pleasurable meal or drink, but is intriguing or otherwise somehow more notable than the same ol’ same ol’. (Either way, let us know what you find.)
As Peter Pumphrey notes elsewhere in this issue, the Sierra Nevada range attracted hordes of visitors last summer. The Truckee/Tahoe area was particularly slammed, and many locals were aghast at the resulting impacts. So it’s with a bit of hesitancy that I use some ink here to focus on Truckee, but the reality is that fly fishers will visit based on their expectations regarding the angling experience, and not whether someone waxes rhapsodic about where to eat . . . or where to hoist a pint of beer, the foamy stuff being a particularly fine and appropriate beverage for ending a warm summer’s day on the water. “The Foraging Angler” column has noted some of these brewpubs in prior issues, but there’ve been changes, hence this update.
So, the facts: Truckee, a community of 16,000 to 17,000 people (which can double at times during summer), is home to five brewpubs, and maybe six, if the Tahoe Mountain Brewing Company resurrects itself after closing its downtown location this past winter. The longest-lived brewpub here is the FiftyFifty Brewing Company (11197 Brockway Road), which also has the most awards from beer-tasting competitions. The newest is Donner Creek Brewing (111448 Deerfield Drive), which plays up its tiny size: “We are a pico (smaller than nano) brewery,” states their website. Donner Creek has the fewest beers on tap at any one time, although they do offer cans from other breweries, while Alibi Ale Works (10069 Bridge Street) usually has the most. Each of these three brewpubs is easy to find, being situated in existing commercial areas. As for dining, FiftyFifty and Alibi offer pub-grub fare, and Donner Creek serves grilled-cheese sandwiches.
The other two brewpubs out of the five total are a little trickier for visitors to locate, because they’re in an industrial area just north of Interstate 80. The Truckee Brewing Company (10736 Pioneer Trail, Suite 1) and The Good Wolf (10990 Industrial Way, Suite B103) are small, but as with their larger brethren, definitely worth visiting. All of the five brewpubs offer an eclectic variety of beverages, some impressively so, including — depending on which brewpub you visit — different styles of pale ales, stouts that are imperial and otherwise, porters, bitters, sours, lagered beers such as pilsners and marzens, wheat beers, session beers, beers that use fruit or berries, at least one gose, plus complex ales, simple sippers, beers that are hop forward, maybe even hop backward, and other sundry quaffable suds. If you’re looking for something for the cooler, all sell some of their products in cans or bottles, and most will fill growlers. Offerings change by the season, and one brewpub, The Good Wolf, even forages for local ingredients to create seasonal “forest beers.” Their Needle & Resin was a lager made with pine tips, and their Dirt Candy uses local mushrooms.
Some of these brewpubs are open seven days a week, some aren’t, and hours vary, but you’re sure to find at least several (and perhaps all) open until 9:00 p.m. or longer come summer, which means they will be logical destinations après angling. All offer outdoor seating. The largest and perhaps most congenial outdoor seating area is at Alibi, which also abuts Trout Creek, albeit the concrete, channelized portion. The outdoor seating areas at Good Wolf, Truckee Brewing, and Donner Creek are smaller and somewhat ad hoc in feel, but don’t let this put you off. I know a number of people who prefer these spots because they can feel intimate, and at times, they have an “in crowd” vibe. If things really get happening, it’s a good idea to stash one or more folding chairs in your vehicle so that you can create your own seating. After neighboring businesses have closed, the thirsty will sometimes repurpose parking spaces this way, when allowed.
The creativity of the brewers in Truckee would surely be the envy of communities much larger and more urbane. Somehow, we’re very lucky here. If you’re coming up to the area to fish, do yourself a favor and check out these brewpubs. For more information, enter the brewery’s name into the search engine of your choice.
