11 IN ‘11


Who & What to Watch in San Diego Craft Beer’s New Year


e recently overheard someone liken the San Diego Craft Beer Community to a Gold Rush-era Boomtown. We think it’s quite fi tting. Instead of old prospectors coming to stake their claim in search of gold, talented individuals and businesses in San Diego are grabbing their piece of the craft beer action by either providing a resource, organizing local events or, well, making beer. Here’s our 11 that will defi ne 2011 in the local beer scene.


W Stone Brewing Co. TapHunter.com


Born alongside San Diego Beer Week 2009, TapHunter.com is the product of marketing maven Mel Gordon & husband/tech whiz Jeff “Flash” Gordon. TapHunter’s crowdsourced website & iPhone application help local beer lovers fi nd where they can sip their favorite brews on tap. Their 2010 SD Brewery of the Year Awards were a hit as AleSmith came out on top; we’re looking forward to see who takes the prize in 2011’s vote. What will set TapHunter apart in the new year is their Straight From the Tap pro- gram. A weekly online service that will team up with a local business to provide a special coupon/voucher deal, Straight From the Tap is geared to bringing the consumer substantial, targeted savings on the beer they love. Great deals on local beer? Yes please. Signing up is as easy as having an email address and visiting their website: taphunter.com/straight-from-the-tap


BrewDiego.com


Founded by homebrewer Dan Brown, SD-na- tive foodie/teacher Eric Martin and local church pastor Josh Carter, BrewDiego.com launched back in November as an intuitive and easy-to- navigate resource for San Diego Craft Beer. Their main 2011 focus: producing high-qual- ity videos that delve behind the scenes of the craft beer industry. Whether it’s interviewing brewers, taking brewery tours, or documenting events, BrewDiego will put faces to big indus- try names. Their blogging and social media outlets are also being developed because, ac- cording to Dan, “we really enjoy the relation- ships and conversations we’ve had with the people who are brewing here. We want to help bridge the gap between those brewing the beer and those drinking it.” More specifi cally, their target audience includes enthusiasts eager to learn more, those locals who previously found getting into craft beer overwhelming, and beer tourists looking for creative local resources.


33rd Annual American Homebrewers Association National Homebrewers Conference


Former San Diego Brewers Guild President Colby Chandler said it best last month: “2011 is the homebrewer’s year to shine! Now is the time to learn how to make beer San Diego!” Whether you’re a new-comer to the home- brew scene, or a seasoned veteran, the National Homebrewers Conference is the place to be in June. This year will mark the fi rst time the con- ference has come to San Diego. Another fi rst: an opening-day Pro-Am Competition featuring San Diego’s best brewery/homebrewer teams vying for bragging rights in a free-for-all, no- style-guidelines match-up. As of press time, several big San Diego names are scheduled to speak at the conference, including Port Brewing Co./The Lost Abbey’s Co-Owner and Brewmas- ter Tomme Arthur, Stone Brewing Co.’s CEO & Co-Founder Greg Koch, Owner of O’Brien’s Pub Tom Nickel, White Labs’ Founder & Presi- dent Chris White, and AleSmith Brewing Com- pany’s Owner Peter Zien.


The local behemoth of arrogance and inno- vation, Stone Brewing Co. is planning to open the Stone Company Store South Park sometime in 2011. This brilliant move will bring their palate-destroying beers closer to the greater San Diego population, while also helping defi ne the already craft-beer saturated South Park end of 30th Street. Never satisfi ed or stagnant, Stone is simul- taneously scouting a location in Europe to open brewing facilities. The last that West Coaster heard, Stone had narrowed the list of cities down to two: Bruges and Ber- lin. To feel what it’s like to be courted by Stone, or if you’re hankering to open the next big thing in Europe, check out their Request for Proposal online at stonebrew. com/rfp/


Stone Brewing World Bistro Escondido gets in the holida


Lee Chase & Automatic Brewing Company


The talented UC Davis & Stone Brewing Co. Alumnus keeps his laboratory quietly secluded in the inner sanctum of Blind Lady Ale House. We’ve seen some deliciously clever beers from Lee. Examples include Automatic’s ginger & coriander’d #1 Belgian Ale, Chocolate Rain Oat- meal Stout, Sex Panther Strong Ale, and most recently, a duo of Belgian White Ales – Light Whitening and Thank You Mamm (which was actually pink!). Lee’s been covertly scouting and purchasing new equipment, but has been careful not to let slip what exactly he is up to. Whatever it may be, it’s going to rule. Blind Lady Ale House has redefi ned the dinner scene in Normal Heights, and Automatic Brewing is the fi rst licensed brew- ery in the craft beer-drenched uptown neighbor- hoods. West Coaster will be watching him from behind an Honest Pint-certifi ed brew & a slice of Napoletana-inspired pizza.


New pub glasses f


San D


Check back to BrewDiego.com as their fi rst high-quality video will be up by the end of January


Kelsey McNair’s homebrew setup


Ready or no Simply cons during 2010’ 500), it’s dif the Week’s t know is that gans will beg know, and th will serve to is an all-arou the power Sa


Melani Gordon all smiles interviewing SDBG Pres. Adam Carbonell for NBC San Diego


Mayor Jerry Sanders offi cially taps SDBW 2010 at Liberty Station


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13