networking event
Red Car Brewery Owners: Torrance Citizens of the Year
On Thursday afternoon I headed to the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel in Torrance for the annual State of the City Address given by our mayor and for the awarding of the Citizen of the Year Award. For 2014 it was actually the “Citizens of the Year” as Bob and Laurie Brandt, owners of Red Car Brewery & Restaurant in Old Torrance were both honored as the 2014 Citizens of the Year by the Torrance Area Chamber of Commerce for their support and contributions to numerous local charities over the years.
Red Car Brewery was the original craft brewery in the City of Torrance; helping Torrance to become the craft beer destination that it is now. Laurie Brandt thanked the Chamber for the recognition and reflected on Red Car’s time in Torrance, the organizations they donated to and the people they had the opportunity to interact with over the past 17 years. Bob Brandt also thanked the Chamber and encouraged local officials to speak up in favor of the new distilling industry stating that it is essentially in the same place as craft beer was 25 years ago.
You can find all the photos from the State of the City Address and the Citizens of the Year ceremony on GotBaddog.com. Red Car Brewery & Restaurant is located at 1266 Sartori Avenue in Torrance and is open daily at 11:30 AM weekdays and noon on the weekends. Cheers! Continue reading
The Brewery at Abigaile hosts September Business & Beer
On Thursday evening Business & Beer, arguably one of the South Bay’s more fun business networking groups, returned to the Brewery at Abigaile in Hermosa Beach. The Business & Beer networking group has been meeting since July of 2012 and The Brewery at Abigaile was the second venue visited, making it the longest running in the Business & Beer rotation. The Brewery at Abigaile is the only brewery in Hermosa Beach and is probably the biggest brewpub in the South Bay. We had a pretty nice turnout considering the number of competing beer events going on at the same time. There was a great mix of regulars and first time attendees which allowed everyone to get to know each other a little better; and about five minutes after everyone left a second wave of first timers showed up. I guess I will have to be sure to include the end time (8:00 PM) along with the start time for future events.
The Business & Beer networking group meets on the second Thursday of every month at a different production brewery tasting room or brewpub in the South Bay. Currently, that includes The Brewery at Abigaile, El Segundo Brewing Company, Strand Brewing Company, Monkish Brewing Company, The Dudes’ Brewing Company, King Harbor Brewing Company, Absolution Brewing Company and Smog City Brewing. The October 9 gathering will be held at King Harbor Brewing Company. If you live or work in the South Bay and networking is important to your business success or it falls under your job description and you enjoy craft beer, Business & Beer is going to be right up your alley.
You can sign up to the Business & Beer mailing list on their website or you can Like them on Facebook to be kept in the loop for upcoming events. All upcoming Business & Beer upcoming events can be found on the free craftbeerguy mobile app which is available for download on iTunes or Google Play. Cheers! Continue reading
The Dudes’ Brewing Company hosts Business & Beer
On Thursday evening, the long awaited opening of The Dudes’ Brewing Company’s tasting room seemed to take another step closer to becoming reality when they hosted the August gathering of Business & Beer; the South Bay’s most fun business networking group. Now before you get too excited and start streaming over to The Dudes’ you might want to hold off because their tasting room is not yet officially open but work has begun and they are anticipating completion by mid-September. One might say, “they have been saying that for a year now,” and they would be right, but since The Dudes’ were granted their Conditional Use Permit for a tasting room back in May and it is only good for a year (meaning it must be opened within a year, or they have to reapply) they have actually begun work on the tasting room itself; including the addition of gender specific bathrooms.
There was an excellent turnout of attendees, with probably more than 30 people throughout the course of the evening stopping by to try one of four Dudes’ Brewing Company offerings currently available; Kolschtal Eddy, Grandma’s Pecan, Double Trunk DIPA and their latest, South Bay Session Ale. In addition to the beer there was free pizza and The Dudes’ Brewing Company assistant brewer, Rich Madden gave a tour of the facility which is unlike any other brewery in the South Bay. It looked like everyone really enjoyed checking it out.
People that live or work in the South Bay area that find networking to be a valuable tool for their business’ success should consider checking out the Business & Beer business networking group. This is an informal group of business people that share a common interest in locally brewer craft beer. Continue reading
Business & Beer at El Segundo Brewing Company
These photos are of the June 2014 gathering of Business & Beer which was held Thursday evening at El Segundo Brewing Company. Business & Beer is an informal business networking group that was established in July of 2012 and currently meets of the second Thursday of every month at one of the tasting rooms or brewpubs found in the South Bay. This is a very informal group in that unlike other business networking groups there are no dues, no mandatory meetings and no restrictions on the type or number of businesses represented. The attendees cover a wide range of occupations including plumbing, accounting, insurance, web development and more. Frequently there will be members of the craft beer industry joining in, including professional brewers, home brewers and people that help new breweries get started. In a nutshell, everyone is welcome with the common denominator being that everyone enjoys craft beer. One of the advantages of joining the Business & Beer networking group is that you will have an opportunity to visit all the craft breweries the South Bay has to offer.
El Segundo Brewing Company had a full menu of their brews available both on tap and in bottles and everyone was able to find something they liked whether it was a hoppy Two 5 Left DIPA, a malty Station No. 1 red ale or a rich Standard Crude Imperial Stout. El Segundo Brewing Company is located at 140 Main Street in El Segundo. Cheers! Continue reading
L.A. Beer Bloggers Summit No. 11
On Sunday afternoon the L.A. Beer Bloggers held their LA Beer Bloggers Summit No. 11 with tours of two of L.A.’s newest production craft breweries; Pac City Brewery in Pacoima and MacLeod Ale Brewing Company in Van Nuys.
Pac City Brewery had their ribbon cutting was held at the end of April and since then they have been brewing up a storm, including the first beer ever named after me; Lloyd’s Hazel Nuts. While the beer was only a few days old it was pretty tasty, especially if you enjoy hazelnuts. I look forward to trying it again in a couple of weeks.
Because of the type of license Pac City Brewery has they cannot sell their brews at their tasting room, but they can give it away if having a function that is a fundraiser for a 501(C)(3) organization. So, while they work on getting the word out that Pacoima now has a craft brewery they have been displaying their beers by holding fundraisers such as their Beer Nights with Pac City which is being held Saturday, June 21 from 6:30-9:00. The $40 entry fee gets you full pint pours of whichever beer you desire, good music and Pac City tri-tip chili. A major portion of the monies raised will go to the LAPD Baker to Vegas running team. I sponsored Riverside Sheriffs a few years ago and went to photograph it; these guys are madmen. If you are interested, you can purchase tickets through Eventbrite. Pac City Brewery is located at 12780 Pierce Street in Pacoima. Continue reading
Business & Beer May gathering at Smog City Brewing Company
The Business & Beer networking group returned to Smog City Brewing Company on Thursday evening to the delight of all that attended. It was a nice group with people coming and going throughout the evening. It was almost like a reunion event as we had several members that we have not seen in a while return, and several of them brought guests. Smog City had a wide variety of brews available so that whether it had been a week or six months, there was definitely something new to be tried.
Last night it was mentioned by one attendee that Business & Beer seemed to be more about beer than business, so I would like to address that publicly. I have been attending trade shows for well over 10 years and I used to think that the trade show floor was where the business was being done; I eventually figured out that was not the case at all. The real business was being done at the suite parties or circle bar. Business relationships are built with people you know, and not all business deals are impulse buys. In fact, I may never have need for your particular product or service, but chances are I will know someone that does. Word of mouth is the best advertising and relationships bring referrals. I will never forget the guy that came to his first meeting as a guest; he did stained glass windows and figured the likelihood of someone at the gathering needing a stained glass window was pretty slim. To his surprise, another member needed just that. So come to Business & Beer and start building your potential referral list.
Business & Beer meets on the second Thursday of every month at a different craft beer tasting room or brewpub in the South Bay area. It is free and has no rules about how often you must show up or limiting the number of people in a certain field. It is very casual and the time was set up so you can bring your significant other if you wish. If you are a small business owner or networking is an important part of your job description, Business & Beer is the most fun way to accomplish your goal. You can follow Business & Beer on Facebook or sign up to their mailing list so that you know when and where the next gathering is. In June we will return to El Segundo Brewing Company. Cheers!
Business & Beer returns to Monkish Brewing Company
Thursday evening, April 10, the business networking group Business & Beer returned to Torrance production brewery, Monkish Brewing Company. Monkish Brewing is the South Bay’s source for fresh Belgian-styled ales of which there were 13 available to us last night. There was a nice group of people that at least stopped by for a while to say hello and join the large group of Monkish Brewing fans that were in attendance. Vella Pizza was there with their mobile brick oven; for the first time that I recall, they actually sold out of pizzas.
If you live or do business in the South Bay and enjoy craft beers and networking you might want to consider checking out the Business & Beer networking group. It is an informal networking group that meets at a different craft beer tasting room or brewpub in the South Bay area on the second Thursday of every month. Rapidly approaching their two year anniversary the group has built solid business relationships for some and is constantly putting possible business connections together. There are no dues and no mandatory meetings; just come down and join the group. Everyone is friendly and a fan of good beer so you know you will have at least a couple things in common with everyone there. You can find the schedule of upcoming meetings on the BusinessNBeer.com website or by following them on Facebook. The next gathering will be May 8 at Smog Brewing Company in Torrance. Cheers! Continue reading
Business & Beer gathering at Absolution Brewing Company
Thursday evening the Business & Beer networking group welcomed Absolution Brewing Company to the rotation of the South Bay breweries and brewpubs it visits. It was a great opportunity for many members to get their first chance to try beers from Torrance’s newest production brewery. In addition to the beer and networking, Business & Beer co-founder brought in some baked goods that she made using flour she made from Absolution Brewing’s Angel’s Demise IPA. Head Brewer Wes McCann also took some time to discuss the brewing process, recipes and future plans for Absolution Brewing Company. It was another enjoyable Business & Beer event.
If you live or work in the South Bay area and networking is important to you, and you enjoy craft beer, you might want to check out BusinessNBeer.com. This is the South Bay’s most fun and relaxed business networking group. They meet on the second Thursday of every month at a different production brewery or brewpub in the South Bay area. With all the additions to the craft beer scene recently, there is a good chance you have not had a chance to visit some of them. This is your chance and you might even do some business. Events are scheduled at 6:00 PM so you do not have to rush to work and you can bring your significant other so there is no need to rush home either. There are no rules and no dues; just come have a good time, meet some good people and enjoy a beer or two. You can find the schedule of upcoming events on their website or by following them on Facebook. Cheers! Continue reading
LA Beer Bloggers Summit at Smog City Brewing
Sunday afternoon, February 23, the LA Beer Bloggers held their 10th LA Beer Bloggers Summit, this time at one of my favorite local microbreweries, Smog City Brewing Company. The LA Beer Bloggers are a group of craft beer aficionados that promote craft beer either professionally or as a hobby. The summits are held every month or so at various breweries, brewpubs and gastropubs in the greater Los Angeles area. These events give the writers and photographers an opportunity to network with others that have the same passion for craft beer and to experience new locations they may not have visited before.
Today’s event included a panel on photography and how it is utilized as a marketing tool to promote businesses that are too new to afford a marketing team. The panel, moderated by John Michael Verive, featured Joshua Liberman from The Tao of Photography; Bernie Wire of Friends of Local Beer, Laurie Porter of Smog City and Tyler Graham from the Stone Brewing Company marketing team. Their discussion included topics such as how they got into photography, the use of social media, favorite tools and methodologies. Of course there was lots of networking and plenty of great beers. Cheers! Continue reading
King Harbor Brewing Company hosts Business & Beer
Thursday evening, February 13, Redondo Beach’s first production brewery, King Harbor Brewing Company (KHBC), opened their doors to host the February 2014 gathering of the South Bay’s business networking group, Business & Beer. While King Harbor Brewing Company is not yet officially opened, the Business & Beer event served as the first of several soft opens before King Harbor has their grand opening which will likely be held towards the middle or end of March.
Due to issues with Southern California Edison, there was not enough power coming into KHBC’s brew house they have been unable to begin brewing to their full potential, but power has been completed and King Harbor’s brewer Philip McDaniel plans to begin the full brewing process this coming Wednesday. In the meantime, he has been brewing pilot brews and was able to provide four offerings at Business & Beer. The brews available included their flagship beers, The Quest and Abel Brown along with two variations; The Pineapple Quest, The Quest soaked with fresh pineapple and Vanilla Abel, which is the Abel Brown after sitting on whole vanilla beans for a few days.
Since King Harbor has been providing us with spent grain from their brewing, Tanya baked up a storm using their grains and flour she made from the grain. She brought in three kinds of cookies, two different breads and some crackers. She also brought in six mustards she made using their California Saison and Abel Brown. I think it is safe to say that the beers and foods made from said beers were a big hit. Continue reading