32 North at Liberty

Among the many new projects pending for Liberty Station's north end arts district is a multipurpose store from design and fabrication brand Moniker Group. The 5400-square-foot indoor/outdoor Moniker General will combine a modular retail concept with a dedicated coffee bar — and a tap room.

Miramar brewery 32 North has been tapped to supply the beer component of the shop. Moniker CEO Ryan Sisson says a personal connection with 32 North owner Steve Peterson was behind the choice: "Most of what we do at Moniker is invest in people and the relationships we have, so we started there."

The young brewery is expanding despite experiencing a somewhat tumultuous first year. Last spring, barely six months in, original head brewer John Hunter left the company, and Peterson brought in Louisiana transplant Will Gallaspy to replace him. But Peterson insists things have smoothed out since the transition.

"Will has hit his stride as a brewer," Peterson says, "We've really locked in to our style, and his consistency is fantastic," adding that Gallspy's experience brewing out of state results in beers that are "a little off style" relative to the usual San Diego fare.

32 North will collaborate with Moniker in building out the tap room, which will feature eight taps, two of them nitro. Monthly special releases will be available in addition to the brewery's core offerings, which include fruited versions of its Landfall Berliner Weisse, Nautical Mile IPA, and Fly by Night(ro) milk stout.

The brewery's first satellite tasting room will sit directly across the street from Stone World Bistro and Gardens, little more than a block removed from the 42 taps of Soda & Swine and the 100+ of Slater's 50/50 — making Liberty Station a burgeoning and increasingly competitive beer district.

But Peterson doesn't seem fazed. "Just like in Miramar, I'm not afraid about having all these other breweries around us," he says, figuring the growing beer community will make the district a beer destination. "The biggest deal for us is it builds exposure for 32 North, and it gets beer closer to people."

Moniker General expects to open in February. In the meantime, 32 North has other plans in the works. Peterson says the brewery just kicked off its barrel program in December, has plans to bottle for the first time in the first quarter of 2016, and will increase the output of its brewhouse with the addition of two new 40-barrel fermenters in the near future.