Firestone Walker - The Propagator | Venice, CA
Beer Trip: Firestone Walker - The Propagator in Venice, California
We usually try to only visit “original” brewery locations, but we made an exception for Firestone Walker: The Propagator - this is their R&D location where they test all new brews!
View approaching from the street that showcases the enormous patio!
The Brewery
The Propagator has a fantastic layout for a brewery. You walk right into the outdoor patio space, which is truly second to none - it has lots of tables, several covered canopies, and plenty of heaters for a chilly evening.
The indoor space was equally impressive, although feeling a bit more like a restaurant than a brewery. Several booths were repurposed from stainless steel fermenting tanks and there was a conveyor belt rotating beer cans around the bar - definitely a cool feel all-around! Logistically, this was also the first brewery we’d ever been to where you ordered all drinks from your phone and then they were delivered directly to your table.
The Beer
Based on the selection and the R&D concept, one could easily visit this place over and over and never drink the same thing twice. They, of course, offered all of their mass-produced options, but also had an additional ~15 drafts only found at this brewery. Their styles were all over the board, but comprised of IPAs, lagers, and stouts to name a few.
Coming in having already tried lots of Firestone Walker’s drinks, we knew they would have good beer. The Fly Jack is actually one of Chris’s favorite IPAs available at your local liquor store! Morgan was a big fan of the stouts here, including the Cinnamon Dolce Nitro and the Kookie Monster. The latter was one of her top beers of the trip due to it tasting just like a chocolate chip cookie. We both tried the Lil Dom, a Kolsch, and could easily see this one being elevated to a mass-produced beer.
Food & Merch
While we didn’t eat onsite, The Propagator offered a full kitchen inside and offered burgers, sandwiches, tacos, and ribs among other things. Perhaps the most impressive space of the entire brewery was the gift shop. Located in its own building right off the patio, you could get anything and everything Firestone Walker you could imagine. They even had an entire walk-in cooler with take-home beer, including some unique small batch items that you can’t get elsewhere.
