So I'll be out in Ventura come July. A family wedding is in the offing but I plan on getting my craft bone scratched!! A couple places on my radar are: surfbrewery.com/ - What should I be trying? and http://www.barrelhouse101.com/ - Seems legit? Where else in Ventura shoud I be thinking? Any bottle shops? Other brewies that I'd hate myself if I missed? Thanks for your input!
Can't speak to the breweries you listed, but Spencer Makenzie's Fish House is a must stop. Check out Institution Ales which is relatively nearby in Camarillo if you have wheels.
Barrelhouse 101 is a good spot with a healthy beer selection and decent food. In my personal opinion, Surf should be skipped...I've never enjoyed their offerings. But, others may disagree. As far as other stops in Ventura, there's Sam's Saticoy Liquor way over on the east side, and they usually have a pretty good selection of bottles. There's a new brewery opening soon downtown called Topa Topa. Looks like they're brewing, but I'm not sure if it'll be open to the public by the time you visit. There's also Poseidon Brewing on the south side of town and by all accounts they seem to be greatly improving since they opened recently. I've only been a few times but I know some people that are big advocates of the beer there. Cheating a little since these aren't in Ventura proper, but Whole Foods Oxnard has a good bottle selection, and sometimes has goodies stashed in the back. Ask an employee if you see one in the beer aisle. Pat Holden's is deep in downtown Oxnard and usually has some good bottles. Prices are decent. As @wuntrikpony mentioned, Institution is a must stop and is my personal favorite for Ventura county breweries. The staff is great, they usually have more than one great beer on (but all are good), and it's a pretty laid back setting. They're moving to a larger location sometime in the second half of this year but should still be at their current spot when you're here. If you make it up to Ojai, check out Ojai Beverage Company. Good bottle selection, good food, and some nice beers on tap. You can also buy bottles and crack them open with your meal if you don't fancy anything on the tap list.
If you can, take the 25 minutes and head up to Santa Barbara. Grab lunch at Eureka, amazing burgers and a really good tap list. Hollister Brewing is right there as well and I was very impressed with their beers the last time I was there. The Whole Foods has great bottles too. Cheers…...
Institution is a must, not really really Ventura but worth your time. Surf makes great beer, though it leans to the classic styles rather than the more exotic. They have barrel-aged stuff that isn't too shabby either. Poseidon is alright. I can't recommend BrewLab; all the beers I had were all over the place. They need to work on their consistency. BH101 is a great place for food and a deep bench of beers. Topa Topa should be open by July but there are no guarantees with new breweries. Bottle shop people love is Pat Holden; their Instagram always has a good selection. I have yet to go, but I only hear and see good things.
