Even though California is a wine making behemoth, producing 2.2 billion bottles of wine annually, there is a respectable faction producing top quality micro-brews. In the land of outstanding dining, beer brewers happen to be just as talented as the chefs and winemakers.

Last fall I found an extraordinary collection of brews from the Golden State at the Great American Beer Festival. My trek from booth to booth came to a high point, when I found the Santa Rosa based Third Street Ale Works booth and met Denise Jones.

I was impressed at what California had brought to the show. She agreed "California has a lot of great micro breweries; I'm very proud of our beer state. My hope is that micros can be elevated to the sophistication of wine."

Denise was a rarity at this event. She was one of about four women brewers in attendance, among hundreds of men. "I was the first woman to graduate from the American Brewers Guild, but since then there have been many more women. The American Brewers Guild has been around since 1994-1995 and is a spin off from a UC Davis program." She shrugged off my attempt to call her a pioneer, "I don't think of myself as any different. I'm a brewer."

Like a true brewer she grabs a pitcher and begins to showcase her craft in my tasting glass. She tells me "I feel like I've already won because my 'Cerveza de Santa Rosa Chile Ale' won best of show at the California State Fair." I sample this beer and find an incredible floral aroma, like summer flowers. It had layers citrus and flowers on the palate, finishing with significant, yet perfect heat from the chilies. This beer would be great with a steak.

As she pours a taste of the Old Redwood Porter I can tell she is especially proud of this offering. "I wanted to get that Hershey's Special Dark flavor in my porter. When you draw it off the tank, it tastes just like Hershey's Special Dark chocolate." And she was right, smoldering dark chocolate, roasted coffee bean, and a smooth, creamy mid-palate. It was one of the best porters at the festival.

Third Street Ale Works is also known for its cuisine. She talked about the acidity in beer, like wine, and how she created special beer dinners for the patrons at her brew pub in Santa Rosa. "There is a food for every beer."

The domestic wine industry has been overwhelmed with oaky wines for over a decade. It is so prevalent that is dribbled over into the art of brewing beer. I was pleased to hear Denise's common sense view of using barrels.

"Some brewers are heavy handed with wood. When you use oak you blend roundness into the beer, it needs to be subtle and not so forceful. Sometimes you taste a beer and say to yourself, 'this is perfect.' The oak flavor should softly wrap itself around the beer."

"The longer you leave the beer in the barrel, the more influence you get from what was in the barrel before. Did it have chardonnay, port, sherry, or bourbon? You can match the beer to what was in the barrel."

"I was a judge at the World Beer Cup a year-and-a-half ago. There were 20-30 entries in the oak category. This year at the GABF there are over 60 entries. It's a growing style. Eventually they are going to need a separate category."

I caught up with Denise recently and found out that she is going to be judging at this year's Great American Beer Festival. She has not been brewing for Third Street Ale Works lately, because she has taken on two tremendous projects.

"I am starting a new brewery/winery in Napa and am involved in a resurrection of a brewery in San Francisco, American Canyon Brewing Company and Albion Castle Brewery and Caves respectively. We have no names thus far for the winery but the project site will be named 'The 29/12' due to it's location at the intersection of those two highways here in Napa county. The brewery/winery will share a tasting room to promote both aspects of fine wine and excellent beer. Tentative plans are to be brewing by summer of 2007 and having a first crush in the fall of 2007."

Denise is just the person to brew beers that can sit side by side with Napa Valley wines. With her sense of balance and knowledge of flavor, I suspect her new brewery will be a great success. I am very curious about the wine they will produce at the 29/12 location as well. Keep an eye out for Denise at the Great American Beer Festival. Like me, she'll be the woman tasting beer with thoughtful attention and taking extensive notes.

Opening night session for the Great American Beer Festival is Thursday, September 28, 2006, from 5:30 pm-10:00 pm. Friday, September 29th hours are 5:30 pm-10:00 pm. Saturday, September 30, 2006 the GABF has two sessions. The connoisseurs session runs from 12:30pm - 4:30 with a second and final session running from 5:30 pm-10:00 pm. You can read more about the Great American Beer Festival at http://www.gabf.org To buy tickets go to http://www.ticketmaster.com/promo/5b1mkx.