craft beer

Halloween is coming, don your masks and grab your bags and get ready for some old-fashioned trick-or-treating! Did you know the history of Halloween in the United States is also wrapped up in its long tradition of great beer. In 1620 the Pilgrims had been at sea for nearly two months and were off-course by the time they sighted land. While they had set a course for the Virginia colony they ended up in New England, and they had a problem—they were running out of beer. This was no small matter—water aboard ship was likely to become brackish and potentially deadly, while beer remained drinkable. When the first pilgrims settled in the vast sweeps of New England, there were pumpkins everywhere. Green pumpkins, blue pumpkins, yellow and pink, and mottled ones littered the ground along with the traditional orange. Their…

San Diego is famous for many things – the sun, the surf, the craft beer (of course), and in the past few years, Comic-Con has made headlines all over the word.  The convention started out in 1970 as a tiny group of comic book aficionados, and since then it’s not only become a model for conventions worldwide, but also blossomed into a huge annual event that brings hundreds of thousands of people to San Diego. Comic-Con is great, not only because it’s a lot of fun even if you don’t attend the main event there’s still a ton of fun stuff going on all over downtown.  And luckily, you’re not the only person who’s noticed that Comic-Con and beer are a perfect combination. It looks like beer events with a proudly nerdy flavor are here to stay. So how’s your…

It’s one of the best weeks of the year! American Craft Beer Week starts today, and it’s gonna be a good one. American craft beer has only gotten better and better every year. This week starts today, and runs all the way through Sunday, May 17th, so you have plenty of time to get your tastings on! This week exists to honor the thousands of American brewers who have made the United States one of the world’s premiere beer destinations. The epicenter of this movement is California, and the absolute heart of the American craft brewing community is right here in San Diego. That’s why we feel particularly blessed to live right here! Not only is the weather fabulous and the scenery unbeatable, it’s also one of the best places on earth to be a fan of excellent beer. That’s…

It’s almost time for that most beloved of beery holidays, Cinco de Mayo. Whether it’s a reason to go party, or just to throw a backyard fiesta, we’re in your corner! But we also wanted to share a little-known fact about Cinco de Mayo. You probably are already aware that it’s not Mexican Independence Day, which a lot of people in the United States thought for years.  In fact, it’s barely acknowledged in most of Mexico.  It’s actually the day that the Mexican army beat back French forces, then thought to be the best in the world, during 1862’s Battle of Puebla. This victory was a source of enormous pride for people in Mexico, but even more so for people outside Mexico – especially the many living in California. Californios began to celebrate May 5th starting the next year, even though…

Just say no. Saint Patrick was an Irish hero for, according to folklore, driving all the snakes out of Ireland. For the purposes of this piece, we're going to skim over the fact that this was probably an allegory for his actual work helping extinguish Druidism throughout the island, and instead focus on what he really should have been doing – fighting back against the tyranny of bad beer, and worse: green beer.  In his absence, though, we'll do our part by giving you our annual list of our favorite San Diego breweries that provide Irish-style beers. It's a tough job, but we're just the people to do it!  First is the venerable and justly famous Red Trolley Ale from Karl Strauss. It's been a winner for ages, because it's delicious, and also because it's named after our famous trolley…

This man just found out he's not drinking craft beer for Superbowl Sunday. Superbowl Sunday is approaching with the speed of an overcaffeinated runningback and we are ready! How about you? Not ready, you say? Well, with this quick and easy primer, you will be as well.  We're assuming for the purpose of this discussion that you are serving the normal Superbowl Sunday munchies: chips, dips, guacamole, et cetera.  And you don't want to bust out the big beer, and who can blame you?  Try these more nuanced brews on for size. First of all, the best thing to drink with salty, cheesy snacks is a good thirst-quenching beer with a bold and hoppy flavor, like an IPA. San Diego is famous for its IPAs!  Apparently, it's our water.  Or else it's just San Diego's inherent awesomeness. Whatever the reason,…

Happy November! This is the time of year that the weather turns cool and the indoors start to look mighty cozy. By the way, did you know that turkey pairs with all wines, from delicate whites to rich reds to all types of roses? It's true!  It's just one of the great things about Thanksgiving. It's also a great time to try some new beers. Because there's so much caramelization in Thanksgiving meals, dark and chocolatey stouts are sublime, but the light hoppy brews are great as well. It's a veritable feast of beer and wine, and you can't go wrong with Thanksgiving! We're thankful for that, too.  Don't forget the champagne, either. Bubbly is great with everything, whether it's the meal, the post-meal game, or the post-game coma. As you can see, we love to count our blessings while…

Holy cow, it's nearly the end of September again. How did this happen? (We know, we know, the same way as always.) While San Diego's summer is filled with interesting and fun things to do, truth be told, our biggest open secret is that autumn is hands down our favorite season around here. “But San Diego Beer and Wine Tours,” we hear you say, “there are no seasons in San Diego!” Ah, that's where you're wrong. There are four distinct seasons here, made all the more beautiful by their subtlety, and this is the best one of them all. It's not just because of the warm winds that sweep up from Mexico, or the way the angled sunlight makes ocean waves extra glittery, but also the wealth of opportunities to go out and have fun! One such event is San…

We've said this before, again and again, but San Diego's best and most underrated season really is autumn. It's when the leaves on the trees change color, the low sun makes the water in the harbor look extra sparkly, and all the harvest activities are happening! One of our absolute favorite autumn events is Oktoberfest. This Bavarian beer festival was first held to celebrate the wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese in 1810, and quickly became a tradition. But you don't have to make a pilgrimage to Bavaria to enjoy Oktoberfest. San Diego, with its glorious craft beer scene, has taken the traditional Oktoberfest and given it a unique regional flair. Best of all, you can find them all over the county, from La Mesa in the east to Encinitas in the northwest, each chock-full of all the best…

  Sure, the flowers are popping up and birds are singing and it's warming up, but the true sign of spring is nearly here: the San Diego Padres' home opener against the Dodgers at San Diego's Petco Park. While we love baseball in all its permutations, and will support the Padres in the face of any evidence to the contrary, we feel as though the true story about Petco Park is being ignored – the existence of “Craft Beers of the Padres.” Yes, you can stop by Petco Park and choose from an amazing array of beers from local microbreweries while you take in a game. No more watered-down stadium beers with inferior ingredients –San Diego local craft beer are the winning team for us.  We’d say that alone is worth a stint at Petco Park, whether or not you're…