New craft beer and cider bar appears in a surprising Carmel Valley spot.

It's as simple as the opinion decreed on the Valley Greens Gallery website: "We think good beer and good art go hand in hand!"

More where that came from: "You won’t find your dad’s Sunday afternoon beers here, we focus on complex carefully brewed masterpieces of hoppy golden liquid art." 

What you will find next to the Wild Goose Cafe on East Carmel Valley Road: head-turning urban art, retro turntables that host open vinyl nights, cool lounge spaces and participatory art gatherings.

And as of recently, a microbeer and small-batch cider bar in the thick of the art.

Husband-wife duo Neil Kirkpatrick and Leah Fusco are drawing from their experience owning a bar-café in Birmingham, Alabama and revealing an enthusiasm for not just quality craft beer but high-gravity quality craft beer.

"Much like our unique and bold style of art," they add on the website, "we go out of our way to provide you with the most rare and complex beers and ciders we can find."

Thirteen IPAs include a half dozen choices over 8 percent alcohol like Dogfish Head 90-minute ($9) and Boulevard Brewery’s Double Wide ($9).

They also stock 11 “not so pales” like Speakeasy’s Tallulah ($6) and Iron Fist’s Nelson the Impaler ($7), and a handful of ambers/browns, stouts/porters and four dry ciders, including a fresh and smooth Crispin cider ($6).

“We look to Beer Advocate or Great Beer.com or On Tap to find things that score over 90,” she says. “We only serve beers we like to drink.”

Our Sunday visit revealed three very interesting choices on tap (one less than normal, and rotating every three weeks or so). The Oskar Blues Gubna Imperial IPA (10 percent) is as busy but cohesive as the place itself, all bright, lemon zesty, spicy and peachy flavors but surprisingly smooth. Deschutes’ intense Conflux No 3 Doppel Dinkel Bock (10.5 percent) and a dry 4.2 percent coffee milk stout from Stone also intrigued.

In a sleepy community of 22 wine tasting rooms—with a 23rd on the way—they’re already a dynamic, albeit still rare, alternative to the wine scene, the rustic Running Iron or Game of Thrones binges at home, and a hub for younger winemakers like Russell Joyce and Rob Karlsen and tastemaking beer geeks Meredith and Chris Nelson.

“We started this place so we’d have something to do at night,” Fusco admits.

Like the movie night collaboration with Carmel Valley Video starting the first Wednesday in November and the art workshop with craft beer flights 7-10pm Thursday, Oct. 9, that will draw 45-60 people.

Whatever the occasion, visitors can bring in food from nearby spots like Stirrup Cup Pizza, Village Thai, Cafe Rustica or the due-to-open-soon Trailside Cafe.

Get more on the gallery's art curating and philosophy with my colleague Walter Ryce's profile, "Valley Greens Gallery brings the flavor of the streets to Carmel Valley."