Firestone and Beavertown West Side Beavo

West Side Beavo is a one-off collaboration by brewmasters Logan Plant and Matt Brynildson, inspired by a friendship forged at the Firestone Walker Invitational Beer Fest. “Logan has been to the fest several times, and we’ve been talking about doing a collaboration for a few years now,” said Brynildson, Firestone Walker’s brewmaster. “We’ve both been itching to do our own IPLs, so we thought it would be a perfect style to explore together.”

West Side Beavo was fittingly brewed with hops from the Pacific Northwest and the United Kingdom, most notably Jester.
“Jester is the newest flavor-forward hop from the U.K.,” Brynildson said. “It gives the beer a hint of lychee fruit with a familiar English earthy, herbal element. The American hops are more new-age in style, bringing a more tropical, citrusy character to the beer.”
The result is an IPL, a beer that speaks to both breweries’ penchant for brewing hoppy beers with complexity and balance. The alcohol is 6.5 percent.

The name “Beavo” is a nod to both Beavertown and Firestone Walker’s Pivo pilsner, a hoppy beer in the lager family. The can artwork was also a collaboration between both breweries, with Firestone Walker’s Lion and Bear icons rendered in Beavertown’s signature skeletonized style. Said Plant, “Our creative director Nick Dwyer drew his inspiration from the unique beauty and characters that make up the intrinsic fabric of Venice Beach, Los Angeles—the West Side.”