Elina Shatkin
Amid all the happy news of L.A. Beer Week — splashy openings for Golden Road and Sunset Beer Company — we have some sad news: Nibble Bit Tabby brewery is closing.
We talked to brewer and co-owner Brian Lethcoe, who tells us the brewery's last day will probably be October 31st. Don't expect a blowout party. Then again… maybe.
Located on the gritty outskirts of downtwon L.A., the brewery, which opened about a year ago and just launched its tasting room in July, was dubbed, by us, as Los Angeles' Best Contrarian Brewery. Lethcoe did a great job making odd, obscure, intriguing beers — beers that no local brewer was making.
To quote ourselves:
The microbrewery produces only 600 gallons a month. The locale isn't pretty, and [Nibble Bit Tabby] suffers from a lack of marketing finesse. It does not suffer from a lack of great beer. Even as competition for craft-beer handles grows increasingly fierce in Los Angeles, Uncle Arnie's Irish Red is worth seeking out.
If you're lucky, you can find this mellow, earthy Irish ale with a slightly sweet finish at some of the better beer bars in town. Or you can pop into Nibble Bit's recently opened tasting room on Friday and Saturday nights, where you can chat with Lethcoe himself about plumbing, painting, muscle cars, L.A.'s hidden beer history and the subtle differences between London ale and San Francisco lager yeast.
Right now, we're pouring out a little Irish red ale for our favorite departed brewery.
[@elinashatkin / eshatkin@laweekly.com]
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