Beer of the Vacation: 1554 Enlightened Black Ale

Greeting from California’s beautiful central coast — San Simeon to be exact. The Hearst Castle is a few miles to the north, and my parents and I will be taking Tour One tomorrow at 9:20 am. After it ends we’ll hit the highway and try to make it back to Huntington in time for the Iowa-Michigan State game. Go Hawks!

San Simeon isn’t much. The place we’re at is just a collection of hotel’s, which, I assume, are all for Hearst Castle tourists. The real town — historic San Simeon — is, I think, at the foot of Hearst Castle where the beach is. According to the clerk, everything closes at 9, so my dad and I hit the little liquor store down the street. They had good Cali beers in stock (Anchor Steam being one of them), but what caught my eye was the selection of New Belgian brews. New Belgian is the brewer of Fat Tire, an amber ale that’s been sweeping the nation for three years (since I first heard about it after moving to Santa Cruz). They had three or four of their styles, but 1554 Enlightened Black Ale was the most appealing.


Again, I won’t give 1554 the proper treatment. I have a bottle opener now (a titanium bad boy courtesy of the Anchor Brewery) and a pint glass (an Anchor Porter logo pint, also courtesy of the beer Mecca on Mariposa and De Haro), but I don’t feel like it tonight. I’m on vacation for Christ’s sake. But, like I said, the urge to make a record of my tasting is too great to overcome.

1554 reminds me of Sam Adams Black Lager. The smell is chocolaty and very enticing; it’s stout-like, which pulls me right in (God, when was the last time I truly sampled a stout?). The taste is equally chocolaty; it’s a smooth cocoa with a perfect hint of hop bitterness. It’s a great beer; very drinkable.