craft breweries
The Craft Beer Guy Recap of 2020
Port Town Brewing – progressing
2020 started off mellow enough; little did we know what was in store for us. The highlight of the month, and possibly the year for some, was the Hop Culture Juicy Brews Beach Party Craft Beer Festival held at Brouwerij West. It was a very fun event featuring craft beer from more than 25 of the top breweries in the country.
The month ended with a going away party for Smog City’s taproom manager Jason “Breezy” Briseño as he and his bride prepared to move to Australia; I think COVID put a temporary damper on those plans. Continue reading
South Bay Craft Beer Options Update
UPDATE: February 12, 2021 – The accuracy of this article leaves a lot to be desired. Please check with the brewery directly.
UPDATES: December 14 –The Crac Brewery and Grub now open for to-go beer pickup.
Eureka Brewing Company now open for to-go beer pickup.
In case you had not heard, there is currently NO DINE-IN in LA County.UPDATES: September 13 – Burnin’ Daylight modifies Sunday hours.
Phantom Carriage adds days for to-go beer pickup.
UPDATE: September 4 – Culture Brewing Company now open.
I was going to update my last article on the South Bay breweries to-go and pickup options, but it looks like just about everything has changed so I might as well start from scratch.
Like the original article, this is solely a reference guide, so all breweries will be listed in alphabetical order for your ease and mine. Hours are subject to change so be sure to contact the brewery directly if you have questions.
Absolution Brewing Company – Cans, bottles, crowlers, growlers and kegs can be ordered online at https://www.absolutionbrewingcompany.com/shop-1. You can also order by phone at 310.490.4860 x101 or by email at orders@absolutionbrewingcompany.com. Deliveries are done Thursday through Sunday; order before 6:00 PM on those days for same day delivery. You can also pick up beers to-go at the brewery Monday through Wednesday from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM, Thursday and Friday from 9:00 to 7:00 PM, or on Saturday and Sunday from noon to 7:00 PM.
Brouwerij West – Brouwerij West now delivers throughout California; please visit https://www.brouwerijwest.com/buybeer for Pick Up, Local Delivery, and Shipping options. You can pick up beer to go at the brewery, daily from noon to 7:00 PM. Credit cards are preferred. Continue reading
Greater Expectations: The New Normal
When it comes to writing, I have a process. Whether my article is going to be primarily photos, or like this one, primarily text, I will start writing the article in my head before I sit down at my laptop. I don’t write the entire thing in my head, but I know what I want to be sure to touch on. If I visited a new brewery, or attended some craft beer event, it is pretty easy because I will always take photos that will remind me of what I wanted to mention so I don’t forget. Articles like this one are typically things I think about when walking Buddy. However, before I ever sit down to write any type of article I have to come up with the title. I guess this comes from my days of writing press releases; but the title keeps me focused on what the article will contain. Sometimes coming up with the title is the hardest part.
The original subject matter for this article came to me two years ago. In fact, it was May 22, 2018 that I first spoke with Gary Magnone of HoppedLA and pitched him my idea. My specific pitch was the article would discuss the expectations of 2018 compared to 2012 when it came to craft breweries. Of course, this would be as far as our local Los Angeles craft beer scene was concerned. I gave him first right of refusal, so while I write this, I am not sure if it will be published on HoppedLA or on CraftBeerGuy. Continue reading
South Bay Breweries To-Go and Delivery Options
Update: May 22 – Please visit https://craftbeerguy.com/south-bay-craft-beer-delivery-options/ for the latest updates.
Updates: April 21 – Brouwerij West expands delivery options.
The Dudes’ Brewing Torrance extends hours, adds delivery.
Smog City expands delivery area.Updates: April 20 – R6 Distillery extends pick up hours.
Upshift Brewing open three days a week for to-go beer.
The Dudes’ Brewing Torrance extends hours.Updates: April 19 – Burnin’ Daylight modifies hours for food and beer.
King Harbor Brewing is canning again.
Monkish Brewing goes to online ordering only.
Project Barley modifies hours.
Red Car Brewery modifies hours and days open.
San Pedro Brewing offers growler delivery.
Scholb Premium Ales modifies hours.Updates: April 9 – Common Space expands pickup hours.
HopSaint modifies hours; closed Mondays.
Burnin’ Daylight kitchen opens Friday and Saturday.Updates: April 8 – Ximix Craft Exploration modifies hours, closed weekends. Adds limited delivery.
Updates: April 6 – Surfridge Brewing offers to-go pickups.
Updates: March 29 – Absolution Brewing extends weekday pickup hours.
Updates: March 28 – The Red Car Brewery open three days a week.
Updates: March 25 – Three Weavers Brewing now offering cans to go.
Ximix Craft Exploration modifies hours, adds days open.
The Slice and Pint will reopen Thursday, March 26 with food and beer available.
The Brews Hall offers online sales of crowlers with multiple pickup locations.
King Harbor Brewing pick-up hours expanded.
The Dudes’ Brewing in Torrance modifies hours, days open.Updates: March 22 – El Segundo Brewing and The Slice and Pint are closed until further notice.
King Harbor Brewing now offers crowlers to go.
Absolution Brewing extends same day delivery hours.Updates: March 20 – Yorkshire Square extends hours to 7:00 PM
Hermosa Brewing Company adds crowlers to menu
Cosmic Brewery modifies hours to 2:00 to 6:00 PM
R6 Distillery offers bottle delivery
Brouwerij West adds new page for available beers, change hours
Honest Abe Ciders & Mead has modified their hours
El Segundo Brewing goes to pre-order only
San Pedro Brewing adds mixed drinks to-go
This Coronavirus/COVID-19 outbreak has definitely changed things in pretty much everyone’s world. As I am sure you are aware, in Los Angeles County there are new restrictions for breweries and brewpubs. I will attempt to keep you posted with latest developments as far as South Bay craft breweries are concerned, and how you can support your favorite breweries in these trying times.
This situation is, pardon the pun, quite fluid, which is why I did not write this two days ago. That being said, to be on the safe side, you should probably contact the brewery directly or check their social media page to see if things have changed since I published this.
This is solely a reference guide, so all breweries will be listed in alphabetical order for your ease and mine. Continue reading
The Craft Beer Guy Recap of 2019
As the year comes to an end it is time for me to sit down with a beer and try to figure out what I did that made this year go by so quickly. To be honest, I feel like I have really slowed down on my coverage of the local craft beer scene, but the growth has been so rapid that I cannot keep up. Heck, there were two new breweries getting ready to open in El Segundo that I did not know about until three months before they opened! Oh well, I will continue to do what I can; if I don’t visit a particular brewery as much as I used to it is probably because there are so many breweries around here now. In fact, while my personal craft beer life may have slowed, the growth over the past year is kind of mind blowing. Let’s see what happened in 2019.
Tortugo Brewing, Inglewood
In my review of 2018 I had mentioned there were two new local breweries that I still had not visited, one of those was Tortugo Brewing. I started off 2019 by remedying that. If you have not been, it is a nice location and they have some good brews; you should check them out. Continue reading
5th Annual South Bay Tap Takeover Coming September 5
Better Weather Sweater Collaboration Brew Team
If you have attended any of the previous four tap takeovers, you have a pretty good idea of what to expect; if you have never been I can summarize with at least 25 South Bay breweries/cideries pouring from 50 taps.
When I started this in 2015, we had 10 South Bay breweries with 40 taps; in 2016 there were 15, and in 2017 we had 18 South Bay breweries with 40 taps. In 2018 there was a change of management at the original venue (Flights), and they decided they wanted to do their own thing. I wished them luck, and then approached Rick Gomez of Tortilla Cantina to see if they would be interested in hosting the 4th annual tap takeover. I approached Rick for three reasons; I knew he was a big supporter of the local craft beer scene, every South Bay brewery owner I spoke with knew and really liked Rick, and I knew he had 48 taps. I do not think Rick really knew what he was in for, but he went all-in and the 4th Annual South Bay Tap Takeover ended up featuring 22 local breweries participating, and with the help of a jockey box, 49 taps of craft beer! Continue reading
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