Beer Me! — Moonlight Brewing — Santa Rosa, California, United States

Read about our trip to Germany and Prague at
The "Beer Me" Blog!

This is not the official web site of

Moonlight Brewing

3350 Coffey Lane
Santa Rosa CA 95403
Telephone: +1 707-528-2537
Hours: Wednesday 4pm-8pm, Thursday-Friday 4pm-10pm, Saturday noon-10pm, Sunday noon-8pm.
Brewer: Brian Hunt
[Contact] [Update]

Notes

Opened: 1992

Annual Production: 1,500 bbl

Contributors: Diane Crawford, Siegfried Binge

Interesting mix of beers coming out of Brian's barn in Fulton CA before he moved to Santa Rosa. Give them a try.

Updated: May 17, 2022

News

2022-05-13: Lagunitas Sells 50% Stake in Moonlight Brewing to The Bruery Founder Patrick Rue (ProBrewer)
2009-08-31: Monk’s Kettle to Host Moonlight Brewery Beer Dinner (The Full Pint)

Beer List

4868 Dark Wheat

Robust Porter
- Date: September 4, 1997 (#2173)
  
  Package: draught
  
  Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA
  
  Score: 17 points
  
  Overall Impression (3)
  Black, actually. Nice dense head. Smells like coffee! This is a Porter, and a damn fine one. Lots of black malt and coffee flavor, real roasty and pretty sweet. Not a lot of wheat character, but who cares.

Baritone Red

American-Style Amber/Red Ale

Date: September 4, 1997 (#2175)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 15 points

Overall Impression (2½)
Red, flat, no head. Spicy, caramel aroma. Spicy, big, sweet. If I hadn't already tasted the Rocket Red, this would be fantastic. Word: "focus"...just like sharpening the image in a telescope's eyepiece.

Bombay by Boat IPA

American-Style India Pale Ale

Date: February 21, 1995 (#785)

Package: nitrogenated

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 12½ points

Overall Impression (2½)
Dark amber, nearly opaque. Relatively thin head. Fruity, citrusy nose. Thick. Very bitter, quite fruity. Lingering bitterness, but not balanced at all. Served on the "nitro tap".
Date: October 2, 1993 (#2523)

Package: draught

Place: Lyon's Brewery, Dublin CA

Overall Impression
Bitter...long. Quite yellow. Sorta fizzy.

Death and Taxes Black Beer

Robust Porter

Date: April 18, 1995 (#870)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 17 points

Overall Impression (3)
Black opaque and good head. Roasty-burnt aroma. Good body, good burnt flavors...good Porter.
Date: April 23, 1993 (#9)

Package: draught

Place: Pacific Coast Brewing, Oakland CA

Score: 18 points

Overall Impression (3)
Definitely black, thin brown head. Nice roasty aroma that reminds me of the original Devil Mountain Devil's Brew. Real smooth. Like they say in their description, "sweet start and bitter finish." The black malt works really well, not burnt or astringent at all. This is a Really Good Beer! It's just like the original Devil's Brew, which was one of the best Porters ever.

Date: July 28, 1995 (#1111)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 15½ points

Overall Impression (3)
Golden, hazy, good head. Malty nose. Bitter hoppiness follwed by big malt flavor.

Date: June 5, 1995 (#995)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 14 points

Overall Impression (2½)
Red-amber, hazy. High carbonation. Spicy aroma. Very spicy hops. Some malt in finish. Weird balance, but good.

Date: August 1, 1995 (#1120)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 14 points

Overall Impression (2½)
Red, some carbonation, good head. Some haze. Fresh hops and malt in nose. Big caramel blast, followed by bitter-sweet finish. Sorta cloying.

Date: January 4, 1995 (#691)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 14½ points

Overall Impression (3)
Pale-amber. Lots of carbonation and huge head. Fresh, sweet, grassy aroma. Malty-sweet. OK balance...some bitter flavor here a little off. Tastes almost like a hand-pump beer.

Date: August 13, 1994 (#411)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Overall Impression (2)
Hazy yellow. Good carbonation. No head. Tangy "homebrew" nose. Kind of thin and sour and bitter. Not impressed.

Date: March 13, 1995 (#796)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 10½ points

Overall Impression (2)
Dark yellow, hazy. Big bubbles, dense head. Malty aroma, slightly soapy. Bitter, then malty. Poor balance, weak finish.

Date: August 8, 1994 (#402)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 17 points

Overall Impression (3)
Pale, transparent. Very slight haze. Very nice aromatic balance of malt and hops. Good body, balance. A little bitter. Finishes quick and clean. Very nice indeed.

Date: July 5, 1993 (#126)

Package: draught

Place: Lyon's Brewery, Dublin CA

Score: 12 points

Overall Impression (2½)
Definitely amber. "Copper-colored". Big sparse bubbles in head. Hops and malt aromas are pretty equal. Fruity...quickly goes to bitter. Crystal malt flavors are there if you really pay attention.

Date: January 27, 1995 (#737)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 16 points

Overall Impression (3)
Very dark brown opaque. Spicy and black aroma. Amazingly thick. Very black flavor. Long black finish.

Date: December 18, 1994 (#653)

Package: draught

Place: Pacific Coast Brewing, Oakland CA

Score: 16 points

Overall Impression (3)
Very dark red. No head or carbonation. Kinda dark aroma, but pretty clean. Porter, a lot like Anchor's!

Date: August 8, 1994 (#407)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 17 points

Overall Impression (3)
Deep deep red...good brownish head. Smoky aroma. Tastes like Anchor Porter, but smoother. Very smooth. Alcohol not evident in this "Christmas Stout".

Date: June 15, 1993 (#88)

Package: draught

Place: Pacific Coast Brewing, Oakland CA

Score: 13 points

Overall Impression (2½)
Very very dark red...maybe even black. No head. Smells...brown. Not particularly assertive. Medium-bodied...lots of crystal, but flavor comes mainly from black malts. Hops faint but noticeable in finish. Reasonable aftertaste, a bit sweet. Not a bad beer.

Date: December 12, 1992 (#2496)

Package: draught

Score: 12 points

Overall Impression (2½)
Chocolate aroma. Very Porter-tasting, but unremarkable.

Date: January 11, 1995 (#707)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 14½ points

Overall Impression (3)
Looks like toast. Smells like toast. Bitter. Thick. Malt in aroma loses to hops in flavor.

Date: November 5, 1994 (#493)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 14½ points

Overall Impression (3)
Extremely dark...black? Good brown head. Burnt aroma, but not Real Assertive. Burnt and bitter. Long bitter finish is a bit much.

Date: March 30, 1995 (#836)

Package: draught

Place: The HopYard, Pleasanton CA

Score: 13 points

Overall Impression (2½)
Red. Big head. OK carbonation. Tettnang aroma. Some perfume undertones. Chewy, kinda brown. Definite Tettnang flavor. Brown sweet finish.

Date: July 5, 1993 (#130)

Package: draught

Place: Lyon's Brewery, Dublin CA

Score: 13½ points

Overall Impression (2½)
Dark red. Thick white head. Grassy/phenolic nose. Typical...lots of dark crystal and probably some chocolate malt. Odd aroma doesn't appear in flavor. Bitterness comes and goes.

Date: November 5, 1992 (#1942)

Package: draught

Place: Pacific Coast Brewing, Oakland CA

Overall Impression
Very bitter - a hop bomb.