The first time I heard the name Kelsey McNair was in 2010 when Ballast Point Brewing & Spirits specialty brewer Colby Chandler finished up an email saying he was headed up to Stone Brewing Co. …

I didn’t go to college, but thanks to some friends of mine who attended UCSD, I got to tag along and enjoy the recreational parts of higher learning. By virtue of geography, many of our …

It’s been ten months since we broke the news about publican and brewery-owner Scot Blair’s brewpub project, South Park Brewing Company. Since then, he and his crew have been hard at work converting the former …

In December, Port Brewing Company/The Lost Abbey announced the coming of a third brand called The Hop Concept. This seemed an odd route to go for a house already divided, but this is craft beer. …

“Every week in San Diego is San Diego Beer Week.” It’s a popular saying among local imbibers seeing how there are so many beer festivals within the county throughout the year (sometimes two or three …

It’s the fastest expansion in the history of the San Diego County craft beer scene. Just two months after opening La Mesa’s first brewery, the ownership of Bolt Brewery has taken possession of a property …

The San Diego brewing scene is growing so quickly that the open positions for brewing personnel seemingly outnumber the pool of qualified candidates. This means digging through droves of homebrewers for potential blue chips capable …

Last year, I had the pleasure of collaborating in the brewing of an English-style extra special bitter (ESB) aptly named Bitter Beer Writer. It was the idea of Tom Nickel, the owner and brewmaster at …

When URBN St. Brewing Company installed its brewpub in the former home of El Cajon Brewing Company, one of partner Alex Carballo’s major goals was to help move the craft beer needle in East County …

I wondered how a smaller Oceanside brewery would fare opening up a bar and restaurant in the relatively faraway Miramar community. Whereas larger, better-known North County brewing interests — Stone Brewing Co., Pizza Port, Rip …

With the rapid growth of so many San Diego brewing companies, it’s easy to lose sight of those following the less-flashy, slow-and-steady model. One such operation, New English Brewing Company (11545 Sorrento Valley Road, #305, …

Last week, I shared news of Beer to the Rescue, a year-long campaign raising funds for the Lupus Foundation of Southern California (LFSC) via sales of specialty beers from local brewing companies. The first of …

Most of the time, I try to suppress my enthusiasm over checking out new brewing companies, waiting long enough for them to get on their feet and get some brews under their belts before I …

I remember the day I first met Dave Adams. At the time, he was working to meld the wide-ranging array of beers at Churchill’s Pub & Grille with the venue’s evolving cuisine. Within five minutes …

It’s nice to imagine two guys who are now giants of the craft brewing movement meeting as homebrewers and forming a lifelong friendship. My, my — the conversations, ideas, and techniques Peter Zien and Mikkel …

Prior to my Lupus diagnosis, doctors attempted to determine the cause of my symptoms, which included severe stomach pains and other gastrointestinal distress. At one point, they speculated that I might be gluten-intolerant. My heart …

John Marshall, Kevin Lewis, and Steve Garcia have lived and breathed brewing and punk rock for years. They look back to the emergence and rise of numerous local punk acts during the late nineties and …

The first time I heard about lupus was when a dear friend informed me their nephew had died from it. Needless to say, the term lupus stuck with me after that, but it wasn’t for …

To some, it seems like Rip Current Brewing Company’s revamping of the North Park corner spot at 30th Street and Polk Avenue took virtually no time at all. Not so for the people anxiously awaiting …

San Diegans are fortunate to have a wealth of local sour beer options. Though lambics, gueuzes, Flemish reds and browns, and the like are quite en vogue, increased labor, costs, and lengthy maturation cycles make …

San Diego is considered the epicenter for American craft beer, so it makes sense the city is also home to the country’s leading yeast production company. White Labs has experienced phenomenal growth in tandem with …

The 100th anniversary of Balboa Park is a pretty cool thing. You know what would make it even cooler? A beer brewed to commemorate that milestone. But not just any beer. How about a San …

In writing an article expounding the positives at Bagby Beer Company (601 South Coast Highway, Oceanside), I can hear the collective response of my readers: “No duh!” When one of the most famous and award-winning …

With more than 100 brewhouses in San Diego, hundreds of new beers are produced throughout the county each year. I have the good fortune of sampling a great many of them, and the following is …

On December 18, I shared the top five most intriguing upcoming brewery projects in San Diego County. The following are the seven that fill out the dozen top brewery-owned works in progress. 6. Project X …

Per San Diego Beer News tradition, I’m closing out the year by taking a look back at some of the best 2014 had to offer, while keeping an eye trained on what 2015 holds. In …

Last week, I shared an article about the improved beers at Acoustic Ales Brewing Experiment, and it got me to thinking of other breweries I’ve tasted progress from over the past 12 months. The following …

I don’t know about you, but the words “don’t open ‘til Christmas” come across like a mandate not to think about pink elephants. Once communicated, all I can think of is what I’m not supposed …

It’s easy to typecast. You hear a tenured local restaurateur has purchased an East Village property in which to install a brewpub for his son to brew at and his daughter to manage, and you …

It’s hard to believe that, although two-and-a-half-years ago there had never been a brewery in Kearny Mesa, there will soon be five. It’s even more inconceivable that three of those share a strange, unplanned thematic …

Some operations come a long way after initially disappointing. Such is the case with Acoustic Ales Brewing Experiment (1795 Hancock Street, Mission Brewery Plaza, Mission Hills). My first visit to Acoustic’s tasting room was roughly …

Most holiday beers are high in alcohol, heavy in texture, and rife with flavors of winter spices, caramel, dried fruits, chocolate, and booze. The majority fall into two categories — Belgian strong ales and imperial …

In San Diego, award-winning, long-tenured brewers are treated like rock stars. Jeff Bagby (Bagby Beer, Pizza Port), Tomme Arthur (Lost Abbey, Port Brewing, Pizza Port), Chuck Silva (Green Flash Brewing), Peter Zien (AleSmith), Pat McIlhenney …

My boss, Stone Brewing Co. co-founder and CEO Greg Koch, gets lots of attention. He’s a cult figure in the craft beer world, and when he makes appearances at craft beer bars and events, he’s …

Uncomplicated hoppy beers from the people who know how to make them. This is the tagline of The Hop Concept, a new, third brand for the multifaceted Pizza Port production brewing arm that is Port …

One of the best things about the San Diego brewing scene is the fact that most of its players opt to regard each other as comrades versus competitors. Sure, they produce similar products and vie …

December 3 | Sour Mania: Any chance to select from a bevy of tart blondes, Flemish reds, and the like merits the “God bless us, everyone” tagline, but offer that opportunity on a weeknight and …

Remember when the most popular style of beer was amber ale, AKA red ale? Not Irish-style red or West Coast-style red... just a nondescript red ale that looked pretty much the same color as those …

Receiving emails from readers is something I look forward to. Every now and then I get to help people out with suggestions about breweries or beers. It’s one of the best parts of this job …

They say it’s what's inside that counts and that’s true of any business, including Bolt Brewery (8179 Center Street, La Mesa). After all, it’s inside that soon-to-open operation’s Quonset hut brewhouse where the beer is …

With hundreds of events going on throughout the county over a ten-day span, San Diego Beer Week was a blast, but the following week was actually far more exciting from a beer news standpoint. There …

It was the best of times. No, really, it was the best of times! This year’s edition of San Diego Beer Week was one of the finest since the 2009 advent of this annual ten-day …

Even before trying a single beer, one can’t help but be charmed by the collection of sci-fi cinema paraphernalia gracing the walls of Intergalactic Brewing Company (9835 Carroll Centre Road, #108, Miramar). During a recent …

In July, I introduced readers to Brian Kenner, an orchard owner working to open a cider and perry company called Julian CiderWorks in the community of the same name. When reporting on this, I wondered …

While the craft brewing movement has saturated most segments of San Diego County, especially communities in the northern and central regions, its southernmost municipalities are mostly beer barren. The only city south of downtown San …

Barrel-Aged Victory at Sea Day: If ever there was a high-alcohol beer that’s palatable all day long, it’s Victory at Sea, a coffee-vanilla imperial porter from Ballast Point Brewing & Spirits. So, no matter when …

Friday, November 14 Beer Week Events Ballast Point Tap Takeover: Ballast Point Brewing & Spirits has been on a growth tear over the past few years, but even when they were smaller and mostly known …

Two of San Diego’s hoppiest brewing operations are, essentially, becoming one. Today, Green Flash Brewing Company (6550 Mira Mesa Boulevard, Mira Mesa) announced that it has acquired Alpine Beer Co. (2351 Alpine Boulevard, Alpine). Described …

Events for Thursday, November 13 Dark Side vs. Wild Side: The folks at Hamilton’s Tavern are pitting the deep, dark, heavy, highly-alcoholic brews of Avery Brewing Company against that same interest’s light, tart, funky, highly-alcoholic …

Tuesday, November 12 Beer Week events Battle of the Double IPAs: Urge Gastropub will pair two flights of five uber-hoppy India pale ales each and serve them together so guests can cast their votes for …