A keg is the ultimate Super Bowl party amenity, but who wants to deal with tubs of ice, party pumps and getting a keg deposit back? The next best way to enjoy draft-fresh beer at home has been from a growler — a reusable jug that’s filled with 32 or 64 ounces of beer from a brewery’s draft faucet. But growlers are only convenient when they’re full — empty, they’re ugly, fragile space hogs likely to be forgotten in the back of a closet or left to roll around in the trunk of your car. When the New England Patriots line up against the Atlanta Falcons this Sunday for Super Bowl LI, maybe leave the growlers on the bench and call on the convenience of the crowler.
Crowlers are part growler, part extra-large beer can, and they are the latest trend in on-demand, to-go beer containers.
If you’re a fan of both craft beer and football, you’ve probably brought a growler filled with your favorite local brew to a Super Bowl party before. And you’ve probably also had trouble finding space in a refrigerator overfilled with game-day snacks, forgotten to take the empty jug home with you after the game, or failed to rinse out the dregs of beer.
The glass or stainless steel growlers of today are descended from pre-Prohibition beer pails, then a popular method of getting beer home from the brewery. Those galvanized buckets held a quart or two of beer, and as they were carried home by the handle, beer would slosh and escaping carbonation would rumble through the lid. Or growl, hence the name.
The crowler concept was developed by Colorado’s Oskar Blues Brewing — one of the first craft breweries to embrace aluminum cans — as an alternative to the reusable jugs, and in just a couple of years, hundreds of breweries across the country have added crowlers to their to-go offerings.
These 32-ounce aluminum cans are filled from the tap at your local brewery tasting room, just like a glass growler, then sealed with a custom bar-top machine that crimps a pop-top lid onto the can. The result is an oversized can that’s more lightweight and durable than glass growlers. And since crowlers are recyclable, you don’t have to worry about washing or storing empty jugs after the game.
When Mumford Brewing opened in downtown L.A. in 2015, it was one of the first local breweries to offer crowlers, and the big cans were an instant hit. Cofounder and brewmaster Peter Mumford says crowlers now outsell growler fills by nearly 20 to one, even though the per-ounce price is slightly higher. A crowler fill runs between $10 and $12, depending on the beer, while a growler holds twice as much and costs between $16 and $22 — plus the cost of the reusable jug if you don’t already have one.
Once full and sealed, keep the crowler cold and the beer inside will stay fresh for up to a week.
Fewer than a dozen of the 50-plus craft breweries in and around Los Angeles offer crowlers. Here are some to choose from, with a few suggestions for what style of beer to put in that massive can.
What’s in your crowler?
Peter Mumford’s pick for the game is unsurprising, at least from a brewer best known for his hoppy beers. “I’m always drinking IPAs,” he says, and he calls the new Third Term IPA from Mumford Brewing his go-to Super Bowl crowler.
If you’re looking for a lighter beer, pilsner is hard to beat for game-time sipping. You’ll find Paper Boy Pilsner in crowlers at Iron Triangle Brewing Co. in the Arts District. Or try the dry-hopped Palm Pilsner from Sanctum Brewing Co. in Pomona. A Mexican-influenced amber lager will go great with Super Bowl snacks, and the toasty and bitter Casa Hermosa from King Harbor Brewing Co. is available in the crowler format at the Redondo Beach brewery.
You can also find crowlers at Stone Brewing Co. Store in Pasadena, where the Go To session IPA is a light and hoppy ale that’s great for all-day sipping. Both of the Dudes’ Brewing Co. tasting rooms, in Torrance and Thousand Oaks, offer crowlers, and the Wiser Dude pilsner and Mild Mannered Dude English ale are good game-time options.
Pocock Brewing Co. in Santa Clarita has crowlers, and if you like English styles, try the British Volunteer ESB. Or fill your crowler with the El Mas Guapo IPA, an IPA made with guava, at Transplants Brewing Co. in Palmdale.
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Actor Danny Trejo’s restaurant, Trejo’s Cantina, serves up a healthful and tasty vegan taco — roasted cauliflower and grilled corn with cashews.
Actor Danny Trejo’s restaurant, Trejo’s Cantina, serves up a healthful and tasty vegan taco — roasted cauliflower and grilled corn with cashews.
Actor Danny Trejo’s restaurant, Trejo’s Cantina, serves up a healthful and tasty vegan taco — roasted cauliflower and grilled corn with cashews.
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