Visiting San Diego - Summer 2014

Don't be sorry because this is exactly what this thread is for!

 

Trying to finalize tentative details for our day trip to San Diego (driving down from LA) this coming Friday. Goal to efficiently pause for pints (or probably flights) at as many hot spots as plausible/practical. Have crossed off Green Flash and have been to Pizza Port (Carlsbad), Stone and Rip Current before; there is no time for an Alpine side trip unfortunately.

We're allotting an hour at each location and the plan is to leave LA around 830-900AM, to arrive at Pizza Port Solana Beach (southern-most locale?) when they open (11AM). Then to AleSmith, Ballast Point, Societe and Council, before checking in at the Lafayette. Hoping there is enough wind left in the sails to go to Tiger! Tiger! and/or Toronado, in search of offerings from breweries we missed.

Continuous vacillating with regard to swapping out stops. Welcome any suggestions to edit current list or advice to simply leave it as is. Thanks in advance.

 

Sounds like a super solid list. My one suggestion is that Ballast Point Scripps Ranch (which I assume is the location you’re going to) can be a bit of a crazyhouse. I would consider taking that off your list if it increases your chances of doing Tiger Tiger and/or Toro. Just don’t get to Toro too late at night because that’s also a bit of a crazymaking situation.

 

HELLO SAN DIEGO!

Look at me - using an already created thread to ask questions. You're welcome.

Ok, scenario: I am visiting from Portland. I lived in San Diego 3 years ago, but have only gone back to visit once in the last couple years.

I have already been to/drank:

• Alpine
• Stone (had first date with my wife here many years ago)
  
• Green Flash
• Lost Abby
• Alesmith
• Pizza Port
• Societe
• Ballast Point

My list of places to go to so far includes:

• Modern Times
• Council Brewing
• Toolbox

What places am I missing guys?

I have a penchant towards farmhouse styles, funky sours, wheat and rye based beers, & all lager types. Ive drank enough IPAs/DIPAs in my day to sustain a hop farm, but (as douchey as this will sound ) I am moving out of that phase unless something really really good pulls me in. I love nano/smaller breweries and places that give off cool vibes (read: "raw"). Ill be all around San Diego with a car and driving to Orange County and back while I'm there.

Thanks for any suggestions/places to lead me. I am afraid I am beginning to feel lost in the SD beer scene so I need your help for some knowledge.
Cheers!

 

Belching Beaver & Rip Current, since you are already up in the area at Toolbox.

Can't say BB really fits your styles that you listed, but RC has a few there.

 

I wouldn't say Portland as much as Oregon overall. All the best farmhouse places are outside of Portland (De Garde - Tillamook; Logsdon - Hood River; Ale Apothecary - Bend). The only one really inside of Portland is Cascade which I guess could crush San Diego alone on volume of sours but I'm not so sure about quality.

 

I guess you could say Upright and Commons too but I wouldn't put them in the same breath as De Garde/Logsdon/Ale Apothecary and their profiles are a little more broad.

 

That Lucky Charms cascade made, and Pink Pixie Stik. They were pretty spot on with the flavors.

 

Oh?

 

Sold on the porter, guess I have a weekend day planned out already.

 

Yeah, I'm with you on Cascade. The best thing about it used to be ease of availability but even that's gone now too.

I'm fine with Commons but I don't know if they're that much better than Lost Abbey or anything. Pretty similar to my tastes (I do like that they aren't all as big of beers like LA though). I think Upright Four is a pretty underrated saison though.

 

Thanks for the thoughts. As someone who lives a block away from The Commons, I would hold them in very high esteem but not up to the funky farmhouse chops of Logsdon/Ale Apothecary. Their saisons are very good, but they really shine in their sours and lagers. The Commons is where my taste profile lies - and that is the kind of brewery I would want in San Diego. De Garde is a completely different beast, as they specialize in fruited berliners and wild ales - not traditional farmhouse. Upright is probably one of the best examples of funk - great saisons in 4,5,6,&7 but also dominating in speciality herb ales, and fruited sours. Cascade, as it has been pointed out is a one dimensional sour factory. Some very big hits, but IMO most are lacto bombs.

As for comparisons to Lost Abbey - I don't really know if there is one. No brewery in Portland is doing exclusively BSDA, Tripel, Goldens, and the like. Pfriem in hood river is the closest thing to Lost Abbey I can think of.

The reason I included Toolbox in my initial post is because they seem like they are doing the things I like. I am very excited to try them out.

One last point and I might get some kickback ... If you are going to include Toolbox in San Diego breweries, you really can't make a distinction that De Garde is in Tilamook and Logsdon is in Hood River. They are equatable distances from their respective cities epicenters. Just food for thought if you come and visit PDX.

Thanks again for the discussion guys.

Edit: Societe is starting to make saisons correct? And of course their sour program is... right around the corner?

Second edit: I realize that this has already kind of become a PDX verse SD post and i am sorry for that. But i want to strongly iterate that there is no "better" in these two cities. They are VERRRY different and huge beer cultures. I am very excited to get back to San Diego for a little bit.

 

I wasn't directly trying to compare Lost Abbey and Commons. I was more saying that the level of quality is pretty similar to me. Good Belgian style beers (albeit different styles of Belgians in general) but not amazing Belgian beers. Sorry if you thought I was shitting on your local brewery. I'm definitely not! I have ordered cases of their beer and have them shipped from the distributor to me in the tiny ass town I'm currently in in BC!

Yeah, I disagree with that. North County is 30-45 minutes from downtown San Diego (or even Alpine if you cut through Poway) whereas Logsdon and De Garde are a good hour and a half from Portland. If you're going that distance from San Diego you could consider The Bruery to be local.

Nope, Societe does not make saisons. They make sours but don't release them (except at special events).

 

Oh i know you weren't shitting on the commons, nor would i really care if you were. It was just a miscommunication that I thought you were comparing LA and Commons styles.

Thats decently fair on the distance (though figuring traffic might make it a bit closer), but i don't think the term "local" has a distance attached to it. I guess its just how far you are willing to drive/walk for beer.

Oh i thought they just released their first saison. my bad.

 

Thats a good assessment. I guess along those same lines, if i was going out to logsdon - i wouldn't really hit portland breweries, i would stick to hood river breweries. San Diego was the same for me (at least when i lived there) If i was going to Stone, I would also go to LA/Port. Or i was going to Ballast Point, I would also go to Green Flash/Alesmith

I think what we are both getting at is there are pockets of san diego, just like there are pockets of portland and surrounding areas (I am including Hood River). I guess that is where I was drawing the correlation. I would think a good suggestion would be to spend the day in a pocket of san diego (i.e. Miramar, Highway 78, Northpark). Is that fair?