I happened to be on the northwest side of Houston this past weekend visiting family and took the opportunity to check out some of the small breweries in the area (there are actually quite a few in about a ten-to-fifteen-mile radius from where I was). One of the ones that I stopped into was Twisted Acre Brewery on Grant Rd., and I decided to give their Jalapeno IPA a taste.
Now despite the fact that I am a lover of spicy food, I’m not a big fan of chili peppers in my beer. However, this particular brew changed my mind. Most of the chili pepper beers I have tried have a spiciness to them, but that is usually not what I’m looking for when downing a pint. I generally have that glass of beer next to me counterbalance the heat of something I am eating, not add to it. It’s just a taste combination that typically does not work. But Twisted Acre has bucked that trend and figured out the right concoction for a mighty tasty brew.
Upon the first sip, there is an immediate taste of roast jalapenos (even though they didn’t roast the chilis) that is really quite pleasing. You then taste some bitterness along with a little bit of sweetness, and it has a nice, rich finish. This is definitely not a hoppy IPA, which is not a bad thing, even though I generally prefer the hops. In this case, too much hoppiness might have conflicted with the other tastes. Most importantly, this is not a spicy beer. Sure, there is a little bit of heat in the background, but nothing that overwhelms the brew. Instead, what comes through is the taste of the jalapenos along with the pleasant richness which makes for a very enjoyable beer.
I got this first on the flight, then liked it enough to order a full pint. Talking to the co-owner, she indicated that they did not use roast jalapenos which I found to be quite surprising. But apparently the brewing process brought out a similar taste to what you get when you put the peppers on the fire. They also add pineapple which was yet another surprise. I did not notice the taste of that fruit, but it certainly added some of the sweetness.
I also tried their “Green Card” Mexican Lager (which came in high for lager on the ABV scale at 7.7%), their Redzone IPA, and their Hazy IPA. I liked all of the beers, but that Jalapeno IPA was my favorite, and I will definitely be stopping by Twisted Acre next time I am in town. You can get a flight to sample several of their beers and they also sell by the glass and the 64 oz growler.
The brewery is located in a warehouse space and has the permanent food truck Filipin Tex BBQ next to it. I got an order of the brisket fries with cheese on top, and that was the perfect pairing with that Jalapeno IPA. The brewery and the food truck are located at 16103 Grant Rd, Space J Cypress, TX, and you can see the hours and info on events on their Facebook page. If you are anywhere close by or just passing through, I recommend checking this one out.