The Adventures of Davidoff Jones, Part 3

This is part 3 of a 3-part series recounting my latest trip to California…

Wednesday, October 2

I ended up getting most of Wednesday off from work since I had been able to finish the catalog work in nearly record time…and there were no requested changes! I still don’t know how much of that reflects on my accuracy and how much is that the client didn’t look it over very well. Probably best not to speculate!

For lunch Wednesday, I headed to El Farolito in Placentia, voted many times as the best Mexican food in Orange County. I took Keith’s recommendation and got a taco and tamale combo plate. I’ve said it before…I will judge a lot of a Mexican restaurant’s quality on the rice and beans…if they are amazing and something I would order by themselves, they must be doing something right. Farolito’s rice and beans are some of the best ever.

I headed to see my friends at Maxamar and Small Batch Cigar, and to try a few of the things they had available. I started out with their newest Davidoff exclusive, the White Knight. I’ve heard some mixed reviews of this one, but I really enjoyed it. I’m planning on getting some more and getting a review posted soon. Next I found a Powstanie Wojtek on the shelf (they are sold out at Small Batch’s online presence); very good stick that was maybe not quite as enjoyable as their regular-release Habano. This might be an instance where further testing is needed, though.

Next up for me was a trip to Stereo Brewing, where pretty much everything is named after classic rock songs. The music is all played from vinyl, too, which was a cool touch. I started with Summer Sun, a blonde ale sour with raspberries, that was nice. The Perfect Day IPA was a little too bitter and hoppy for me. Robot Red Ale was nicer, with a little malty sweetness and floral notes. I saved the best for last, though, with the Wall of Sound Oatmeal Stout, which had some of the most distinct oatmeal notes I can remember, along with plentiful roasted coffee. I will probably come back to this place.

Speaking of going back to previously visited breweries, I did that next when I went to Terreux, sister brewery to The Bruery and one of my stops two years ago. This makes twice each that I’ve visited both Terreux and The Bruery, but the first time I visited them both in a single year. Getting a flight from them is always something to be careful of…especially when you just came from another brewery. I made my fairly lightweight and took my time.

I started with Bruesicle: Blueberry Guava, a sour fruited beer that reminded me a bit of the milkshake IPA beers that I’ve gotten at Monkey Town in Dayton, TN, the last year or so. I followed that with Frucht: Cranberry & Orange, another installment of their signature sour series; it was one of my favorites in the series so far. Minor Miner is a Grisette, similar to a Saison, meant to be a refreshing beer for hard-working people. I enjoyed it, but this style still isn’t a favorite of mine. Sour in the Rye is an American Wild Ale using rye malt. I wanted to try a non-fruited sour and this fit the bill…but still not my thing really. Finally, I tried the 2019 installment of So Happens It’s Tuesday, a signature American Imperial Stout aged in bourbon barrels and weighing in at an astounding 15% ABV. This really is my thing. A truly amazing beer that I would drink again and again if it came in bottles actual humans could consume without getting completely ripped…and if it were available anywhere near me. Sweet, boozy, rich, malty, roasty…perfect.

I hit L&L Hawaiian BBQ for dinner, opting for just the BBQ Chicken (really Teriyaki chicken) with rice and macaroni salad. I can’t say this is high cuisine, but it’s something I miss and it’s nice to get it once a year or so.

From there I headed to Islands Cigar Lounge in Brea to watch some baseball and hang out with Chad who owns the place. I smoked one of the new Archetype “black light” cigars while I was there…good stuff, but I need to pay attention better next time.

Thursday, October 3

This was a “not much to report” day.

I went down to Irvine to have lunch with a very good friend who I hadn’t seen in years. Life is going well for him and his family, which I was very happy to hear.

On the way back to north OC, I stopped at Golden Road Brewing across the street from Angels Stadium. I had a quick pint of their Sunset Coffee on Nitro Stout. The nitro gave it a very creamy feel while there were tons of sweet chocolate and coffee notes coming through.

After that I had dinner with my in-laws (they are doing very well and I would be remiss in not giving them public shout-out and “Thank You” for letting me stay with them while I was in town) and headed back to Islands to watch the first NLDS game with the Dodgers versus the Nationals. The good guys in Blue took care of business for that game and I smoked a Davidoff Winston Churchill Limited Edition 2019 and a Room101 10th Anniversary while I was there. Sadly that game was about the best one the Dodgers played in that series, which they would ultimately go on to lose. 

Friday, October 4

One day left before heading home, and just a couple things I wanted to do…

I started the day back at Black Bear Diner where I had breakfast on Sunday. I didn’t want to “go big” again, so I just had their Chorizo Breakfast Tacos. Excellent. Then I headed over to Craig Park, one of the few remaining places where you can smoke a cigar in peace and quiet in the busy Southern California megalopolis. I fired up a Davidoff Signature No. 2 and read for a while, surrounded by peaceful green fields and tall, mature trees, far enough away from Imperial Highway and the 57 Freeway to not hear the constant buzz of traffic.

That afternoon I headed to one of Orange County’s newest beer havens, Brewery X in Anaheim. I started my flight with a Project Blue Blonde Ale, which was one of the best blondes I can remember having recently. I continued with a fairly generic American IPA called The Murph and another Oktoberfest beer called Festbier Ja. It was probably the least interesting Oktoberfest beers I had on the trip. I finished with a nice porter called Dark Diddler. This was a nice brewery with plenty of amenities, including a place for food trucks to pull up and sell their wares. They also purportedly have a smoking section, but it consists of a place to stand in direct sunlight near where dogs are supposed to relieve themselves. Honestly, either have a smoking section or not…give me a table and chair along with a little shade so I can enjoy a cigar with my beer…or just say “no smoking.” 

I hit a new place for dinner…recent burger franchise called BurgerIm. I had their Dry-Aged Beef burger with BBQ sauce, onion ring, bacon and cheddar cheese. It really was one of the best fast burgers I’ve ever had. The French Fry chips were very good, also, and I’m happy to see they are opening a location in Chattanooga before the year is over. This is so good I want to share it with friends.

We gathered at Keith’s house for the final herf of the week. I fired up a Padron 1926 Serie No 90 Maduro to start the proceedings and I had a great time catching up on last time with Keith, Ray, Vernon, Jim, and Paul.

With that, the Adventures of Davidoff Jones in California were complete. I got on a plane early the next day out of Orange County airport and made my way back to my beautiful home in East Tennessee. As I write this final installment I’m a week out from the trip and everything is getting back to normal…or the new normal, with my new job and all. Rumor has it that I may be out there again in July of next year for a Cuban-themed party. Hopefully I have time to hang with everyone at that time and I can make it another adventure.