McIlhenney Brewing

The heart of California, and the people here are the heart, not only in the bar but around town. Now the beer, very good quality. No complaints, worth driving in from San Diego? You don't have to unless it's on the way to somewhere else. But the beer is very good.

Well, we started the day up in Carlsbad and drove down to San Diego to meet up with the talls, as they’d just flown in. Got the wheels and where to go where to go where to go? How ‘bout up that mountain there (me, pointing east)? So, we ran the 8 as 4 did, up and woah, Alpine vu! circa 2012, from when we last came out of San Diego town some…

A tight single tap room space on this end, brewery on the other end, and a few store fronts in between (same as it ever was). Small stainless steel topped straight bar, gray painted base, & a foot bar to the rear. Seating for none (get your beer, then stand clear). Drop 3x4 vertical board hanging behind the bar listing beer, style (sometimes hop descriptors), ABV, & pricing for a full pour (but they do shortys, too). 22 beers up at current. Half the list is West Coast and/or New Zealand IPAs. I don’t ever want to go home. 2 rows of non-descript handles below on a stainless panel, 15 over 14 alternating. Crowl crimper on the corner of the bar, and a cooler to the left with cans, crowls, & growls.

Concrete floors, Tarpy arched ceiling with sky light cuts over rafters and phat cross beams, with drop caged pineapple filament bulbs. Walls in horizontal wood plank + some brick play. Caged boxing on the inner wall with framed pics, plants, medals, & steins sitting atop. Front corner merch, and a painting on the rear wall of an old tyme Alpine scene.

Far wall has a bar counter ledge with 8 affixed swivel stools below a pair of swing-to-open horizontal windows opening out (there’s a beautiful breeze up here on the mountain today). A single same type window up front over seating on 5 stooled squares on the stainless counter, and 5 raised roundy tables in the center of the room; 4 are barrel top, the 5th is not. Out back, a multi-tiered patio space with 8 tables and the bathroom hut.

Okay, beer. I may have gotten into a few shortys, it’s true (Nothing but Nelson, WC IPA w/all sorts of Nelson things, 6.6%, dank, resiny, lovely; Apricot Bells Bluff, Blonde Ale w/Apricot, 5%, holy shit, that’s a much better #9; All Gas, No Brakes, WC/NZ IPA with many hops, collab with Yakima Chief Hops & NZ Hops LTD, 6.6%, piney, tropical fruity, and onion patch in a good way, hooray; Honey Hill, Orange Honey Ale w/Orange Peel & Coriander, 6%, you really get the honey love on the end, it’s a big sweety; FreeStyle Flow, WC IPA w/NZ Cascade, Nelson, & some friends, 2 Pizza Port locations collab, 6.3%, citrus, dry, it’s really fookin good; Surname Red, Traditional Irish Red Ale, 5.2%, Yeah, borders on the ESB, very nice). Apricot Bells Bluff Blonde Ale, Nothing but Nelson WC IPA, All Gas No Brakes WC/NZ IPA, & FreeStyle Flow WC IPA for the wins, but there were no clunkers here.

Chill house, good crowd, friendly folks, and the beers are just beautiful here. Alpine revisited and I dig it. Happy to have driven up and out here. You should do the same.

Great place that serves great beers. Located in 'downtown' Alpine, the brewery is located in Alpine's main thoroughfare with decent seating to view passerbys & vehicles. Great selection of quality beers - both on tap & to go. Very friendly wait staff and servers. A must visit if in the area.

This one is a bit out of your way, but worth your time. Alpine is about 30-40 minutes from Downtown San Diego by way of Highway 8. Tucked a few miles up the mountainside from the freeway, it's one of the more charming spots you'll see. An outdoors vibe, feels like you're off in a cabin in the woods.

Staff is friendly, they've always been happy to let me try before I buy, but you really can't go wrong here. They have the full West Coast IPA experience, as well as some of the early day hazy stuff in Muntz (like Nelson, get it? Get it? GET IT?). These are the folks who founded Alpine, sold it to GF and got the building back in the firesale. If you've been to Alpine, this is Alpine 2.0, just better capitalized.

 

Great place... small roadside brewery just off the highway. Service bat to the right of the entrance, with barrel top tables about the remainder of the room. 20 beers on tap, the 2 IPAs I had were excellent. Crowlers to go, knowledgeable bartenders. I foresee stopping there whenever I drive by.

Easy stop off of I-8 traveling from AZ to San Diego. Nice atmosphere with outdoor seating. Bartender was very pleasant and helpful with samples. Had a delicious hazy and great Russian stout on nitro. Will definitely stop every time I’m coming through.

First visit since the changeover! Happy to see them back and officially swore off Alpine Beer Co products after reading the story. Perfect for Alpine, this is the kind of place for regulars. Love the vibe. Great beer, obviously!