Rough Draft - Hardly Rough at All

Rough Draft Brewing is one of San Diego's best breweries and that's saying a lot, considering all of the award winners we have in the county.  I sampled some of their best offerings today as part of a gathering hosted by my financial advisor Ray Taraz, more on Ray later.  This brewery is well laid out, with ample space, big screen TVs with sports and a great kitchen.  This last amenity is not to be scoffed at.  While I understand why San Diego brewers don't want to be in the food business, too often the food trucks on which they rely are no shows.  Rough Draft's kitchen serves up an outstanding menu of sandwiches, salads, paninis and charcuterie.  Dean sampled the sandwich and said that the fresh bread made the meal.

Rough Draft serves up primarily IPAs.  I started with a Belgian just to be different and wasn't disappointed.  Emboozlement, a Tripel, comes in standard and bourbon barrel aged varieties.  I tried the standard, pictured, which had plenty of character, banana and clove notes and a just right alcohol content of 9%.

I got Michele the Hop Therapy, a double IPA that has a big hoppy, bitter taste and plenty of ABV as well.  Next up was Freudian Sip, an American Strong Ale, that I first sampled at the International Beer Fest at the Del Mar Fairgrounds a year ago.  Still one of my favorite beers, it defies characterization, but I'll try.  It is a bit like a very hoppy amber, but with incredible complexity that requires you to take your time to enjoy.  That's Bree, who did a great job as our server in the background.

After, some great paninis and salad, I had desert of sorts with "Stout Stout Baby with Vanilla and Cocoa Nibs." Its name sums it up.  Pretty traditional stout bitterness was offset by the Vanilla, making a great way to finish up.  Some of the barrels used for aging are pictured in the back.

Rough Draft has been brewing in Mira Mesa since 2012, according to our tour guide Melissa.  Owner Jeff Silver had been home brewing and winning awards for 20 years when he decided to brew beer as a business.  Now, Rough Draft can be found as far away as Spain and Canada, and even in Maryland in the U.S.  They have offerings that you can find in San Diego Costco outlets.  Rough Draft keeps an impressive amount of grain on hand in two silos, which they mill themselves.  They typically use two-row barley in their base.  In addition to the IPA line up, they make a blond ale and an amber ale.

The whole event and tour was organized by our financial advisor, Ray Taraz.  Ray is with Ameriprise and consistently gets high marks for customer service in local ratings.  His real value to us, has been to keep our portfolio diversified and balanced, avoiding big losses in 2008, and keeping us from making emotional financial decisions.