S ER VIN G TH E S AN D IEGO C RAF T B EE R C OM MU N ITY
TABLE OF CONTENTS Beer and Now - SD Beer Scene Brews in the News Letter from the Editor SDBW Beer & Food
SD Beer History Timeline
Plates & Pints - Farm House Café
Pizza Port Brew Guys
Into the Brew - Barrel-aged beers
Guest Tap w/ Sheldon Kaplan The Nameless Beermaid NEW Directory & Map
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Party-goers enjoy last year’s San Diego Brewers Guild Festival at Liberty Station 8 10-11
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18-19
Beer Week Is Back SDBW’s 3rd incarnation result of unprecedented
organization and funding By Mike Shess
W
hat a difference one year makes. Our now not-so-little brewing community has seen
incredible changes since San Diego Beer Week 2010. Soon, the thirsty masses will converge upon ten days of nonstop beer drinking madness at our various breweries, pubs, restaurants, and hotels. The greater narrative at play, however, is that San Diego’s brewing industry will be under the most public scrutiny it’s ever received. It has enjoyed both incredible growth and more than its fair share of hype – so with SDBW 2011,
it’s time to see rubber hit the pavement. So what’s different with this beer week, you ask? Money and coordina- tion. On the money side, I’m a firm believer in the power of advertising as a means to get the word out about your product. Advertising works, and the amount of marketing dollars you pour into a project relates directly to the return you’ll see. SDBW 2010 saw a budget of approximately $47,000 that was directed towards print advertising insertions in both national and local publications such as Celebrator, Draft,
and yours truly. This year? Approximately $75,000 went towards advertising. Where did that money go? $25,000 went beyond San Diego city limits for print advertis- ing in publications including LA Weekly, Pasadena Weekly, Celebrator, and BeerAd- vocate. $5,000 was dedicated to local print advertising insertions ($800 of that to WC— thank you!). $8,000 went towards online advertising outside of San Diego, including websites
BeerAdvocate.com, RateBeer. com, LA Weekly Online, and TheFullPint. com. Another $10,000 was spent on national radio ads, and a trade partnership was struck between the craft beer-friendly FM 94.9 and the Brewers Guild to promote the event to local listeners.
On the coordination side, a small strike
force organized by the Brewers Guild comprised entirely of industry members has been at work diligently since early 2011. I’ve had a unique front row seat on this advertising campaign as the Guild’s in- house graphic designer, serving under Cat Costlow (Stone Brewing Co./ SDBW 2011 Advertising Committee Chair), along with Melody Daversa (of Karl Strauss / SDBW PR Chair), Melani Gordon (of TapHunter / SDBW Website Chair), and Neva Parker (of White Labs / SDBW Event Chair). The women behind SDBW 2011 that I worked with are extreme professionals, able to jug- gle several tasks at once. It’s been incredible to see how they operate first-hand, and even more impressive that they’re not in it for ac- colades or money. I don’t know where they get their energy to work above and beyond, but without them much wouldn’t get done. On the eve of SDBW 2011, it’s important to know that many hours and dollars have been spent working towards a common goal of promoting our beer community. So, with all this hard work it would be a shame if you – the beer lover – didn’t enjoy yourself im- mensely during this San Diego Beer Week. Good luck, don’t drive drunk, and salud!
English 101 New English Brewing’s keeping things sessionable and true to owner’s roots
By Brandon Hernández S
an Diego is mostly known for its impe- rial beer styles; juggernauts to the palate packed with copious amounts of hops and as much alcohol as White Labs’ microbial wonders can generate. But there’s more to life and the local scene than double IPAs and Belgian-inspired strong ales, and one brewer’s proving that point with his entire operation centered around quality, session beers. “That’s purely based on my background as an Englishman,” said Simon Lacey, owner and brewmaster at New English Brewing. Born in Wallasey—right across the River Mersey from Liverpool—he spent his formative years studying local beer and mechanical engineer- ing in Lancashire. “I was fortunate to come into drinking when craft beers started to get popular again back in Britain. You could al- ways find Tetley’s, Theakston’s, Samuel Smith and Timothy Taylor in local pubs and I drank those from an early age.” How early? Though eighteen is the legal drinking age, nobody batted an eye when Lacey’s river pilot father came ashore and into the pub with his thirsty fourteen-year-old. That jump start allowed Lacey to catch the UK’s beer renaissance, and encouraged his move
across the pond to San Diego in 1995; just in time for San Diego’s craft beer explosion, our brewing local culture resonated with him on a personal level.
“My background is in the high tech indus-
try. After nine years, I was totally burnt out and wanted to get involved in something I could do that was really hands-on and arti- sanal,” Lacey said. In 2004, he heard a radio commercial advertising the national Craft Brewers Conference and decided to attend. “It was just an incredible epiphany. I got sucked in by the whole buzz and vibe.” Soon after, he interned with brewmaster Joe Couzzo at La Jolla’s Sports City brewpub for nine months before moving to On Tap Bistro and Brewery (formerly Hops!) in nearby UTC, replacing Chuck Silva who took a job at Green Flash. Eighteen months, several LA County Fair medals and lots of experimentation later, Lacey knew he was on to something and de- cided it was time to do something on his own. He shifted back to consulting as an engineer to free up time and work out a business plan for a brewing company.
New English Brewing debuted in July 2007 featuring beers that are archetypes of Lacey’s
Simon Lacey of New English at the new digs
hometown hooch, including Trooper’s Tipple English-style IPA and Explorer ESB. The latter is one he’s particularly proud of and determined to get into the pint glasses of San Diego drinkers. Explorer’s descriptive label text explains it best—In England, Extra
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