BlackRock Brewers, 1664 S. Research Loop #200, Tucson, AZ. 85710 phone: #520-207-3203   website: BlackRockBrewers.com/
Hours: Mon Closed | Tues 2:30 - 9 | Weds 2:30 - 9 Darts | Thurs 2:30 - 10 | Fri 2:30 - 10 | Sat 12 - 10 | Sun 2 - 7

Experience before you go . . .

Three and a half years ago when the Hoppin Brewery Tour first got on the map there were only a dozen or so breweries in Tucson, Arizona......now there are over twenty and still growing. I recently read an article talking about the saturation of too many breweries across the nation but I completely disagree and the only thing that's getting over saturated is me!! When Beer Drinking Buddy Brad and I started this cross country beer tour, I thought that as we toured more and more breweries that I would develop this finely tuned beer palate where I could differentiate the fine idiosyncrasies of all the craft beer out there. But as we approach #100 on the Hoppin Brewery Tour the palate is definitely better than the popular neon sign you often see in tavern and dive bars scattered across this fine country........that would be "Cold Beer"!! I got the cold vs. warm thing figured out, and I guess I got the hoppy, dank, citrusy, smooth, flavorful, hazy, coffee, drinkable, chocolatey, balanced, malty, lush, complex, creamy, crisp and the delicious thing figured out as well........guess my palate is better than I thought!

So we'd been in Tucson for about a month and my wife has been going back and forth to Naperville to care for her elderly Mom so I was wifeless once again and had a hankering for some craft beer and afs couple of my new buds here in Tucson did as well. So with Willie Nelson's Road House, old time country music on the radio, I picked up David and Rick and we hit the road. Siri did her best job getting us there with only a couple u-turns and one or two "think it's over theres" and despite ourselves we managed to pull right up in front of BlackRock Brewers....yeah buddy!! Patented front sign selfie of the three amigos and we hit the door. A couple three guys sitting at the bar so we sautéed our way through some tables and chairs (I know you're thinking sautéed is food quickly fried in a little hot fat, but on the HBT, words take on different meanings because of how they sound and I got to tell ya....we sautéed) to three empty bar stools that had been waiting for us. And just like that.....Bing, Bang, Boom the Hoppin Brewery Tour strikes again!

As we get comfy, Katelyn from behind the bar greets us with a smile and I deliver a fresh, no dog ears HBT card accompanied with a quick exposé about the tour as we get busy placing our beer orders. Beer Flights seem to be a popular item on the menu at BlackRock today as the three of us experienced beer connoisseurs start to fill out the BlackRock "Choose Your Flight" card with space for 4 delectable delights! Between the three of us and the twelve-four ouncers that we ordered and the ones that made the, "wow, you got to try this" category were the Admiration IPA - English Style IPA (6.0%, 65 IBU) balanced, malty with citrus & stone fruit; Batch 42 - Vienna Lager (4.5%, 13 IBU) light, caramel with crisp refreshing finish; Nit Wit - Belgium Wit (5.0%, 16 IBU) traditional with coriander and orange peel; Tartan 99 - Scottish Ale (6.0%, 28 IBU) caramel, toasty, easy drinking; and the Full Effect - Hazy IPA (4.6%, 25 IBU) juicy, citrusy, pineappley all in a haze with a dank finish!

To my left we have/had Randy and from the short time he joined us on the tour I came to find out he was a retired furniture maker. We talked shop for a minute, skill, trades, apprenticeships.....then he had to run. Guess he had to finish the dovetail on a couple dresser drawers...LOL! You probably know by now that I tend to take it upon myself to meet everyone in the bar and believe it or not this really hasn't changed in 40 years. So a couple more guys were hangin at the end of the bar adding color to the conversation where they saw fit so I just had to mosey down to see what was going on.

Ken and Mike were local Tucsonians and loved BlackRock. Come to find out Ken is a Senior Technician at the Richard F. Caris Mirror Lab at the University of Arizona. Tucson, Arizona is really where it all happens when you're talking Optics!! Tucson is recognized around the world for its expertise in this area. Often as I visit all things Tucson I meet many folks associated with the optics industry. It's similar to when I'm in KC I meet many meat smokers, Maine I'm talking to lobster boat captains, Florida it would be tiki bar owners, Wisconsin we're talking to Packer fans, Kentucky, yes folks its definitely whiskey & bourbon, but once again here in Tucson one out of ten people I meet are all about Optics!! And this is an area I know very little about. Optics to me equals a pair of readers I had to start to get at age 50 when I was diagnosed with the CSS...."Can't See S**t" disease. But Optics along with Photonics is off the charts....lasers, LEDs, LCDs, optical fibers and imaging for applications in industry and medicine.......omgbg!! And at the Mirror Lab they design, fabricate and test honeycombed mirrors that are the largest in the world and these mirrors are currently in the LBT, MMT and Magellan telescopes and they are working on the mirrors for the LSST and GMT. Folks these are the biggies that can see the actual Man on the Moon and beyond. And Ken at the end of the BlackRock bar drinking his sour installs these mirrors...how cool is that!! You just never know who you're gonna meet on the Hoppin Brewery Tour.

The three amigos had a ball at BlackRock that day and we really enjoyed the brews. Katelyn was a gem and the Taproom delivered a relaxed, sit a spell and sip a beer vibe that made us older retired guys feel welcomed.

Until next time and remember.....

Go get'cha one!!!