Microbreweries
Hermosa Brewing Torrance Now Open
These photos were taken on four separate visits to the new Hermosa Brewing Company location in Torrance, between July 30 and December 27, when I went to photo-document the build of their new production brewery and tasting room.
Hopefully you saw my post last week when I attended their soft open. At the time I said that the Torrance location should open within the next couple of weeks; well, the time has come. Continue reading
The End of an Era: King Harbor Brewing Closes
These photos were taken over the course of three days; Thursday evening at the King Harbor Brewery, Friday evening at the King Harbor Village Tap Room and the brewery, and Saturday afternoon and evening at the brewery, as all King Harbor Brewing Company locations closed effective Saturday, December 31.
4th of July 2013; I remember the day well. That morning, my girlfriend and I were doing our morning walk around The Galleria with the dogs when we were walking through the strip mall on 182nd Street and walked past a vacant spot that had a Notice of Intent to sell alcohol. Upon closer inspection I noticed that Coastline Brewing would be opening in that location; I was pretty stoked to hear that a brewery was opening within a 10 minute walk from my house. Two months later, to avoid a potential trademark dispute with a winery up north, Coastline Cellars, Coastline Brewing became King Harbor Brewing Company. Continue reading
Soft Open of Hermosa Brewing in Torrance Photos
These photos were taken Thursday evening at the soon to be open Hermosa Brewing Company in Torrance, where they held a friends and family soft open in preparation of their grand opening, which should happen within the next couple of weeks.
The event featured burgers from Proudly Serving, live music by Righteous and The Soul, and of course, plenty of Hermosa Brewing Company beer, with 11 taps available. Continue reading
2nd Annual Ugly Sweater Party at Absolution Brewing Photos
These photos were taken Saturday afternoon at the 2nd Annual Ugly Sweater Party at Absolution Brewing Company, in Torrance. Since I had not brought my camera into Scholb Premium Ales in a while, I decided to walk over and grab a couple beers and photos there too.
Absolution’s Ugly Sweater Party featured photos with a petite Santa, raffles, a photo booth, Jenga, cornhole, darts, foosball, and music by DJ Jay Dieguez. In addition, there was food by Fresh off the Yacht, an Ugliest Sweater Contest, and lots of delicious beer. Continue reading
Upshift and Surfridge Celebrate Three Years
These photos were taken Saturday, November 5, at Upshift Brewing Company and Surfridge Brewing Company, both of which are located in El Segundo and coincidentally, were both celebrating their third anniversaries. Both events featured food trucks and live music.
I started my day off at Upshift Brewing, for no particular reason (at the time) other than it was the only anniversary party I knew was happening. They had a ticketed VIP hour, but I showed up after that. There were a couple dozen people there when I arrived, but it did not take long for the inside and outside seating to begin filling up. Continue reading
Far Field Beer Company One Year Anniversary Photos
These photos were taken Sunday in Lawndale at Far Field Beer Company where several hundred fans came to help Far Field celebrate one year as Lawndale’s first and only craft brewery. Attendees were treated to live music, plenty of food offerings, five new beer releases, games, and vendors offering everything from butterflies to rocks.
If I had to summarize Sunday’s event in one word, it would be “wow!” I have visited Far Field a few times in the past year, but it has pretty much been limited to getting there within the last hour or so of their business day, so I cannot say that I had a grasp on how popular they have gotten in the past year. After attending Sunday’s event, there is no question that the Lawndale locals have definitely learned to appreciate what Far Field is doing. Continue reading
Absolution Brewing 8th Anniversary Photos
These photos were taken Saturday afternoon at Absolution Brewing Company, in Torrance, where they held a party to celebrate their 8th anniversary. The celebration included an anniversary beer release, food, live music, and games.
In addition to their standard tap list, their anniversary beer, 1/8th Anniversary IPA was available on tap as well as cans. Food was available from SouthBay Comfortz (formerly known as Smokin’ Sandos) and Chiky Pancakes. Live music was provided by Nasty Bad Habit, and Taylor Killam Music. For the athletically inclined, cornhole and table shuffleboard were also available. Continue reading
El Segundo Brewing 11th Anniversary Photos
These photos were taken Saturday afternoon at El Segundo Brewing Company, in El Segundo, where they celebrated their 11th anniversary. The day featured an anniversary beer, a couple can releases, and the Something Good LA food truck. Coincidentally, it was also the ninth anniversary of the launch of CraftBeerGuy.com.
It was a pretty hot day at the beach, and the throngs that came to help celebrate El Segundo Brewing’s milestone took full advantage of any shady spot they could find. Continue reading
A Visit to Border X Brewing
These photos were taken Friday afternoon, April 22, when I took a drive out to Bell to visit my friend, Robert Sanchez, who is the brewer at Border X Brewing. If Robert’s name sounds familiar, it is probably because he has been involved in the Greater Los Angeles craft beer scene since 2014. I first met him in 2014 when he brewed at Ohana Brewing Company, followed by stints at Kinetic Brewing, State Brewing, and Ximix Brewing.
Border X Brewing is a Chicano and woman owned brewery with two locations; the Bell location I visited and their original location in San Diego. The San Diego location had a 5-bbl brewhouse, with the Bell location housing an expanded 10-bbl brewhouse which now produces beer for both locations. If memory serves, the San Diego location opened around 2013, with the Bell location opening in March of 2019, just in time for the COVID shutdown a year later. When they shut down, the original Border X brewers left and Robert came on when things opened up last year. Continue reading
Photos from the Smog City 11th Anniversary
These photos were taken Saturday afternoon at Smog City Brewing Company’s brewery and tasting room in Torrance, where several hundred fans gathered to celebrate Smog City’s 11th anniversary. The event featured food trucks, live music, a dunk tank for charity, a mini market, games, and beer; lots of delicious Smog City beer.
While I was there, seafood was available from Anarchy Seafood, with burgers from Heavy Handed LA; after I left Baserriko Peppers came onboard with their sandwiches and churrasco.
There was live music provided by Fuzzy Logic, and a beer garden market village was set up featuring Macetas Plants LA, Gogoma Bakes Dog Treats, D’s Cookies, and local illustrator Evan Clark. Continue reading