Opening Day at Angel Stadium

Opening Day of MLB is one of my favorite days of the year.  This past Friday, I was able to return to one of my most favorite places on Earth, besides Disneyland, Angel Stadium. Going to games at the Big A are one of my favorite things to do, besides visiting new breweries.  For the past two years, I've written about the craft beer offerings at the stadium on my blog.  It's been great to see a steady increase every year.  Attending the Angels home opener was a great opportunity to not only watch a game but also check out the latest craft beer options at the stadium.  
Before I go to any game at the stadium, I first have to visit one of my favorite local breweries, Noble Ale Works, which is located just north of Angel Stadium.  Having a beer at Noble Ale Works before walking over to the game is a great way to support a local brewery before supporting my local baseball team.
As in the past few years, the location with the widest variety of craft beer is also closest to the entrance to the stadium.  Located near Gate 2, Draft Pick once again this season has a great selection of both local, regional, and national breweries.  I was happy to see that along with breweries that have been present at the stadium the past few seasons, there were also newer breweries on tap as well.

Always important to visit Draft Pick upon entering the Big A

Breweries at Draft Pick include:

Angel City Brewery
Ballast Point Brewing
Bootlegger's Brewery
Coronado Brewing
Firestone Walker
Golden Road Brewing
Goose Island
Hoegaarden
Karl Strauss Brewing
Kona Brewing
Left Coast Brewing
New Belgium Brewing
Rough Draft
Saint Archer
Stone Brewing

Firestone Walker DBA and Left Coast Brewing Uno Mas

Two new craft beer options are the stand alone cart from Firestone Walker which is near section 204 and another large stand located near the Left Field Pavilion, not far from section 256.  The new larger stand has most of the same beers available at the Draft Pick stand as well as a few macro selections and ciders.  As with last season, Golden Road Brewing has stand alone carts such as the one located near section 233.

This fella is happy to pour yummy craft beer!

Another stand with craft beer!

While Angel Stadium boasts the lowest cost per ounce of beer in the MLB this season, their price of craft beer increased by $0.25 this season.  For $13, you are able to enjoy 24 ounces of craft beer, which equates to $0.54 per ounce versus $0.28 per ounce for macro styles of beer.  Considering that breweries near the stadium charge an average of $0.31-$0.37 per ounce, while it is nearly double the price, it is still reasonable for a sports venue.

It's exciting to see that each year over the past three years has seen an increase in not only the variety but also more locations throughout the stadium.  Even though the price is more for craft beer, I'm happy to have the option to enjoy some of my favorite breweries while watching my Angels play games at the Big A.  

Besides enjoying delicious beer at the game, I of course also watched the game.  One of my favorite parts of Opening Day, besides the excitement of a new season is the flyover and gigantic U.S. flag that is walked out onto the field.