Pliny the Younger in San Diego, 2012

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pliny the younger, pliny the younger san diego, pliny the younger san diego 2012, where to find pliny the younger in san diego

This post last year about where and when to find Pliny the Younger in San Diego got a ton of traffic and a whole bunch of folks told me it was very helpful. Since I’ve already been asked multiple times if I’ll be keeping a list this year I figured I should start. See last year’s post (linked above) for more info on Pliny the Younger and some notes about how quickly it tapped out at various bars in San Diego last year.

Pliny the Younger hits taps at Russian River’s Brewpub in Santa Rosa today according to their website. At the brewpub they have a dedicated number of kegs each day to make sure it lasts until at least mid February (meaning if they’ve sold enough one day it might be gone at 9pm, but they’ll have more on tap the next day when they open). Down here in San Diego we’re not so lucky. Most bars get a limited amount and it goes rather quickly, so if you want to get a taste don’t straggle, and be prepared for long lines, crowded bars (and sometime higher than usual prices for smaller than usual pours). But I think most people would agree, it’s worth the hassle.

It should be noted that we probably won’t see Pliny the Younger down here in San Diego for a week or two, I’d guess it will start showing up around town sometime between Feb 8th and 15th.

Below is a list of bars that I expect will be getting Pliny the Younger or have confirmed to me that they will be getting it. Any of the information could change, I suggest you check with individual bar’s if you want to be 100% sure, but I’ll do my best to keep this list updated.

Upcoming 2012 Pliny the Younger:

Blind Lady Ale House – Fundraiser, Monday 2/20/12 from 6-8pm. Tickets must be purchased in advance and will go on sale at 6pm today (2/13/2012). $16 for .25 liter of Younger, .25 liter of Elder and a raffle ticket. Read more about the fundraiser, all the details and buy tickets here. Tickets sold out in approximately ten minutes.

Churchill’s Pub – March 3rd for Churchill’s Renaissance via Beer Advocate

Downtown Johnny Brown’s – Friday, February 17th for a Russian River Night

Encinitas Ale House – They say they’re getting a full keg, no word on date it will be tapped.

El Take it Easy –  From their newsletter: “The Chef’s dinner at El Take It Easy featuring Pliny The Younger and other rare/allocated drinks, will be on Monday, February 27th.”

O’Brien’s Pub – via their newsletter. They’ll tap a keg on Saturday 2/11/2012 at 5pm. According to a comment below the keg ran dry after about 22 minutes.They’ll be tapping another keg for a charity event (proceeds going to local animal shelters and programs). There will be a sign up list at the bar, which your will be required to get a pour. Details will follow in their email newsletter next week (week of 2/12/12). They’ll tap another keg on Friday 2/24/12 at 11am.

Pizza Port Carlsbad – Saturday Feb 11th at Noon for the Brewbies Festival. As of this writing there are 40 $25 General Admission tickets left. Proceeds benefit Keep a Breast. Unconfirmed but according to this Untappd Checkin Pliny the Younger is on tap as of 4pm 2/17

Tap Room – Tuesday 2/21 at 5pm. And again Saturday 3/3 at 1pm for their 5th Anniversary Party.

Tiger!Tiger! – Saturday 2/25 12-2pm and Sunday 2/26 11:30-12:30pm. After selling over 100 ticket’s to the Pliny the Fundraiser night at Blind Lady Ale House in only 10 minutes, the folks at BLAH/Tiger!Tiger! were able to score a bit more PtY to make more money for a good cause. Tickets are limited to 75 people per day and go on sale Monday 2/20 at 7:00pm for Saturday and 7:30pm for Sunday. Same deal as before, $16 gets you a .25 liter of Pliny the Younger, a .25 liter of Pliny the Elder and a raffle ticket. (Dates above link to the online sales). Don’t straggle, they’re sure to sell out fast.

URGE Gastropub – Probably early March for a Triple IPA night, see comment below from Grant at URGE.

Suspected based on Previous Years (but not confirmed):

Pizza Port Ocean Beach

Past 2012 Pliny the Younger:

Breakwater Brewing Company – 2/10/2012 via Facebook and it’s gone.

Eleven – Tonight (2/13/2012) at 8pm. Pre-sale at 7:30pm. Reportedly sold out during pre-sale time, before 8pm tapping.

Hamilton’s Tavern – Tapping PtY at 3pm on Wednesday, February 8th.

Live Wire – On tap as of 9pm 2/8/12 – via Twitter One person on Twitter says it ran out the same night.

Neighborhood – Sometime mid February via their Twitter (warning bit of profanity at the link). A reader emailed to tell me that they got 2 kegs, at least one of which will go on at 4pm today (2/13/2012). This has not been confirmed by Neighborhood. (Also, see this tweet from Neighborhood)

Newport Pizza and Alehouse – Wednesday 2/15/2012 at 4pm. A reader wrote in to say that it was gone an hour and six minutes after they first started serving it.

Pizza Port Solana Beach – Someone emailed to tell me that they put PtY on last night and as of this writing (2/10/12 at 4:45pm) I see it listed on the tap cam. Gone from the tap cam.

San Diego Brewing Company – Tuesday, February 14th at 4pm

Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens – 2/9/12 “At the Inside Bar Only!” Reports are that it ran out sometime around 6pm. A few people have told me that they’ve been told by bartender’s at Stone that they would have some Younger on tap Tuesday night, February 14th (not confirmed with Stone)

Toronado – 10am February 8th (they’ll be putting it on as soon as it shows up) and will tap a second keg when the first one blows per their newsletter. Toronado tapped two kegs, the first at 10am and the second when the first blew. The second ran dry around 12:45pm.They may also be tapping a keg when they open on Sunday at 11:30am. 10oz for $8 on Wednesday, “slightly more expensive” other times they tap it. 6pm tonight (2/14/12) for their last keg of Younger.

If you know of a bar or restaurant in San Diego that will be getting Pliny the Younger, or what day/time they’ll be tapping it, send me an email to get the list updated.

If you’re looking for Pliny the Younger in Orange County check out Craft Beer Culture’s list here.

Updated 2/17/12 at 4:04am

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Deschutes Base Camp San Diego

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deschutes base camp san diego, deschutes brewery, deschutes jake harper, deschutes san diego, deschutes the abyss, deschutes woody, deschutes woody san diego

I had no idea until recently, when the Brewers Association released their annual report on the Top 50 Craft Breweries by Sales Volume that Oregon’s Deschutes Brewery made so much beer. They’re fifth on the BA list, which means they make a lot of beer. I always figured they must be somewhat sizeable based on their distribution, but I had no idea they were one of the top producers of craft beer in the country. But knowing how big they are, it makes sense that they’re rolling into town for a week as part of their Base Camp tour.

Deschutes Brewery is bringing Woody and will be spending some time here in San Diego over the next few days. They have ten events lined up over five days starting Tuesday when they’ll be at Toronado. Throughout the week they’ll be pouring a great lineup of beers including various vintages of The Abyss their barrel-aged Imperial Stout, Jubel 2010 (released once every ten years) and plenty of others at bars and restaurants including a two year vertical of The Abyss at Olive Tree Market, a beer pairing dinner at Churchill’s Pub and Grille, a Bourbon Beers and BBQ at Downtown Johnny Brown’s and more. Deschutes brewer Jake Harper will also be at many of the events .

Head on over to the Events page or read below for the full schedule of events from Deschutes.

San Diego Beer Events April 14th – April 20th

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2008 Stone Old Guardian Barley Wine Aged in Red Wine Barrels, Beer and Chocolate pairings, bitter and sour night, Bombay By Boat IPA, Death and Taxes Black Beer, DoBelgo DIPA, downtown johnny brown's bitter and sour night, Ginger Big Eye, Master Pairings Beer and Chocolate, miho gastrotruck, moonlight brewing, Oakquinox, pizza port real ale festival, real ale festival, Reality Czeck Pils, stone oakquinox, Two Weeks Notice Gruit Ale

If you know of anything that isn’t on the events calendar, please email events@sandiegobeerblog.com to get it added.

Thursday April 14th: It’s not often that beers from Santa Rosa’s Moonlight Brewing show up down here in San Diego, but the folks at The Linkery will have four Moonlight beers on tap starting Thursday. They’ll have Death and Taxes Black Beer, Bombay By Boat IPA, Reality Czeck Pils, and Two Weeks Notice Gruit Ale. The Death and Taxes is in honor of Tax Day the following day.

Friday April 15th: The Real Ale Festival at Pizza Port Carlsbad gets underway, they’ll have over 50 cask conditioned beers which makes it the largest selection of real ale on the west coast. It takes place all day Saturday as well.

Another Tax Day celebration, Downtown Johnny Brown’s is doing their 3rd Annual Bitter and Sour Night featuring some of the best IPAs and sours around. The lineup looks stellar, if you’re a fan of either of those styles (which if you’re reading this blog I would guess you like one of them if not both) this night is highly recommended.

Saturday April 16th: The Real Ale Festival is happening all day, from 11am to 11pm. $30 gets you in with eight 4oz tasters. Starting at 7pm they’ll let you in for $20.

Sunday April 17th: If you don’t already have tickets for Stone Oakquinox you’re out of luck, it’s sold out. But do if you happen by Stone make sure you have your growler with you, they’ll be doing 2008 Stone Old Guardian  Barley Wine Aged in  Red Wine Barrels growler fills.

Monday April 18th: It’s $3 local pint night at Toronado from 6pm to close. I think Eleven is still doing their pint night as well (all draft beers) but I haven’t heard much about it lately. I’ve sent an email over to the folks at Eleven to confirm their Monday night special is still on. I’ll update this post when I hear back.

Tuesday April 19th: The Master Pairings Beer and Chocolate pairing at Stone sounds delicious. I’m not sure what beers they’ll be serving but it’s sure to not disappoint.

Wednesday April 20th: Third Wednesday of the month means it’s time for the DrinkAbout. No word on any of the specials this month but it’s sure to be a good time as always.

They’re also doing another beer pairing dinner at Homebrew Mart/Ballast Point Linda Vista with MIHO Gastrotruck and Fiji Yogurt. Fiji is making a Ballast Point Even Keel wort based Lemonade Ginger Sorbet flavored with Cascade Hop Oil. They’ll have a ton of great beers on tap including Ginger Big Eye and DoBelgo DIPA (Dorado with Belgian Yeast).

San Diego Beer Events March 24th – March 30th

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awesome beer drinkers, brewdog, brewdog bashah, brewdog keep the glass, brewdog tokyo, Bruton Brewery, cantillon, cantillon Classic Gueuze, Firestone Walker 14th Anniversary, Iacopo Lenci, Jean Van Roy, Mango Mongo DIPA, march madness beer tasting, mission valley craft beer festival, Paradox Imperial Stout, suds for surgeries, The Handlery Hotel & Resort, union jack ipa

If you know of anything that isn’t on the events calendar, please email events@sandiegobeerblog.com to get it added.

Thursday Mar 24th:

Pizza Port Ocean Beach is doing a Pizza Port Keep the Glass night. They’ll have a tun of Pizza Port OB beers as well as a few favorites from the other PP locations. They’ll also have some treats from Lost Abbey as well including Red Poppy.

Friday Mar 25th:

More Pizza Port fun, Downtown Johnny Brown’s is doing a Pizza Port/Port Brewing Co. night with 17 different beers on draft. They’ll also have a cask of Mango Mongo DIPA.

Live Wire might not be the first place you think of when you think craft beer, but some say they’re the original San Diego beer bar. They’re featuring a Firestone Walker showcase with four draft beers, including Firestone Walker 14th Anniversary as well as a cask of Union Jack IPA.

Saturday Mar 26th:

My friends over at West Coaster, Awesome Beer Drinkers and Best Damn Beer Shop have teamed up to host a charity beer tasting at The Beer Company downtown. They have an insane VIP bottle list lined up as well as a more standard regular session with a chance to try five beers from The Beer Company, including three never seen before.

Sunday Mar 27th:

Jean Van Roy, owner and brewer at Cantillon, producer of some of the world’s most sought after sour beers will be at Stone Brewing World Bistro and Gardens Sunday afternoon. They’ll have Classic Gueuze on draft and six other Cantillon beers available in bottles. All Cantillon beers will only be available at the outside bar in 4oz pours only.

The Handlery Hotel & Resort is hosting the Second Annual Mission Valley Craft Beer Festival, Suds for Surgeries to benefit Fresh Start Surgical Gifts. They’ll have unlimited tasters as well as food and live music, all for a good cause.

Monday Mar 28th:

Another European brewer will be in town, this time it’s Iacopo Lenci from Italy’s Bruton Brewery. He’ll be at Hamilton’s Tavern with five of his beers.

Tuesday Mar 29th:

I haven’t heard of anything special going on. If you know of something please email events@sandiegobeerblog.comto get it added.

Wednesday Mar 30th:

There’s a lot going on for a Wednesday night, but BrewDog night at URGE Gastropub looks the most promising. They’ll have two different kegs of BrewDog’s Paradox Imperial Stout aged in different Scotch Whiskey barrels and have it on cask as well. They’ll have kegs of the 18.2% ABV Tokyo as well as the  BrewDog/Stone Brewing Co. collaboration Bashah. They’ll even send you home with your own BrewDog glass.

San Diego Beer Events, February 10th- February 16th

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06 06 06 Vertical Epic Ale, 2009 Double Bastard, 2010 Double Bastard, 2010 Dry Hop Lucky Bastard, 2010 Dry Hopped Chipotle Double Bastard, 2010 Lucky Bastard, 22nd Anniversary Vanilla Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout, 2nd Annual Brewbies Festival, 60 Minute IPA, 90 minute ipa, Arrogant Bastard, Backlit India Black Ale, Bitches Brew, burton baton, Chateau Jiahu, Chicory Stout, Flan-Diddly-Anders Red, Habanero Sculpin, indian brown ale, karl strauss saison, lost abbey red poppy, Midas Touch, mongo, Oaked Arrogant Bastard, Palm Belgian Pale, Palo Santo Marron, Pangaea, Raison D'Etre, Red Poppy, Rodenbach Grand Cru, Rodenbach Vintage, will ferrell beer, will ferrell ipa, will powered oatmeal ipa

If you know of anything that isn’t on the events calendar, please email events@sandiegobeerblog.com to get it added.

Thursday, Feb 10th:

Toronado will be opening early at 10am to tap Pliny the Younger. If it hasn’t been delivered yet they’ll let everyone in to wait for the delivery driver. They promise to have an empty tap, clean lines and that the keg will be delivered cold. Say goodbye to your productivity for the rest of the day. For more on Pliny the Younger around San Diego click here.

For Dogfish Head night at O’Brien’s Pub they’ll put on nine DFH taps and have two more beers in bottles. They’ll have 60 Minute IPA, Bitches Brew, Palo Santo Marron, Pangaea, Chateau Jiahu, 90 Minute IPA, Chicory Stout, Raison D’Etre and Indian Brown on draft and bottles of Burton Baton and Midas Touch.

Friday Feb 11th:

Downtown Johnny Brown’s is having a mini Belgian keep the glass with Rodenbach and Palm. They’ll have Rodenbach Vintage, Grand Cru and Palm Belgian Pale. Rodenbach will be $12 with glass and $6 refills while Palm will be $6 with glass and $3.75 refills.

Saturday Feb 12th:

There’s so much going on this Saturday it’s hard to pick just a couple things going on. First and foremost it’s Hamilton’s Second Saturday, this month with Karl Strauss Brewing Co. They’ll have 22nd Anniversary Vanilla Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout and Backlit India Black Ale on cask with plenty of great Karl Strauss beers on draft. I’m especially looking forward to trying the pilot batch of the Belgian-style they’re brewing with Flying Dog as well as their Saison and Flan-Diddly-Anders Red. This month is Mardi Gras themed and they’ll have plenty of New Orleans influenced food.

Automatic Brewing Co. will be tapping a keg of Will Powered Oatmeal IPA when Blind Lady Ale House opens at 11:30am Saturday. This was the beer brewed especially for the Cancer for College benefit with Will Ferrell they held last week.

The Lost Abbey will be releasing bottles of 2011 Red Poppy when they open at noon. I got a chance to try this on draft at Eleven recently and it is good! Bottles will be $15/375ml with a limit of six. They’ll also be releasing Port Brewing Co. Mongo in bottles as well. The bottled version is finished with Simcoe hops and I’m told that it’s even better than it is on tap.

O’Brien’s Pub will also be tapping a keg of Pliny the Younger at 4pm and the 2nd Annual Brewbies Festival, benefiting The Keep A Breast Foundation is happening at Pizza Port Carlsbad. For more on Pliny the Younger around San Diego click here.

Sunday Feb 13th:

Head to Stone Brewing Co. where they’ll be filling growlers of 06 06 06 Vertical Epic Ale. This one was a Belgian Strong Dark Ale which was recently on tap for Stone Winter Storm and folks say it’s holding up well, probably even better and more mellow with some age.

Monday Feb 14th:

Monday’s have become pint night with both Toronado and Eleven offering $3 drafts. Eleven offers all of their on-tap beers for $3 from open to close while Toronado offers locals for $3 from 6pm to close.

Tuesday Feb 15th:

Chicks for Beer at the High Dive is hosting Colby Chandler and Ballast Point Brewing Co. This one is ladies only and they should have some good beer and food pairings. I’m not sure what exactly what they’ll be pouring but I hear the excellent Habanero Sculpin will be on draft.

Can’t attend Chicks for Beer? Blind Lady Ale House will be tapping a keg of the ever-so-sought-after Pliny the Younger when they open at 5pm. It will probably go fast, and there will probably be a line. For more on Pliny the Younger around San Diego click here.

Wednesday Feb 16th:

The third Wednesday of the month means that it’s time for the Drinkabout. The monthly event means a free shuttle runs between Hamilton’s, The Station, Sea Rocket, Toronado, Ritual, Small Bar, Blind Lady Ale House and Livewire and most of the bars have drink and/or food specials. Small Bar is doing the “Night of the Bastards” with Arrogant Bastard, Oaked Arrogant Bastard, 2009 Double Bastard, 2010 Double Bastard, 2010 Dry Hopped Chipotle Double Bastard, 2010 Lucky Bastard, and 2010 Dry Hop Lucky Bastard all on draft. Three 6oz tasters will set you back $6.

Russian River Brewing Co. Pliny the Younger in San Diego

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pliny the younger, pliny the younger 2011, pliny the younger BLAH, pliny the younger blind lady ale house, pliny the younger churchill's pub, pliny the younger hamilton's tavern, pliny the younger linkery, pliny the younger neighborhood, pliny the younger o'brien's pub, pliny the younger pb tap room, pliny the younger release 2011, pliny the younger release san diego, pliny the younger san diego, pliny the younger san diego 2011, pliny the younger san diego tap room, pliny the younger toronado, pliny the younger toronado san diego

Russian River Brewing Co.’s Triple IPA Pliny the Younger is one of the most anticipated beer releases amongst hop head beer geeks. Released just once a year, usually in February the beer is very limited which adds to the intrigue and demand. Last year Russian River sold out of Pliny the Younger at their brewpub in Santa Rosa in about ten hours. This year they changed things up a bit so it will last longer; they aren’t filling growlers, it is available for on-premise consumption only and they have specific allotments for each day, so even if they run out one day, they’ll have another keg to put on the next day so it will be on tap for at least two weeks. But Santa Rosa is quite the drive from San Diego, so thankfully Russian River is sending some kegs down our way.

While I appreciate a good IPA or Double IPA I’m not the biggest hop head aound, and I’ve actually never gotten to try Pliny the Younger, but I’m hoping to get a taste this year. In the past lines at San Diego bars have been long when Pliny the Younger is released and a full keg blew at O’Brien’s Pub in about 45 minutes a year or two ago. So it might be a hassle to get some, but from what everyone says it’s worth it.

I’m unsure of how many kegs will be sent to San Diego, and exactly which bars will be getting it, but below is a list of the bars I do know that are getting it, as well as my best guesses on which other bars might get some Pliny the Younger and those that got some last year. It’s expected that the kegs will be arriving in San Diego this week, maybe even as early as tomorrow, Wednesday February 9th. UPDATE: According to Ian Black at Toronado the first kegs of PtY did indeed arrive at Stone (they distribute Russian River in San Diego) Wednesday and should start going out to bars Thursday. I’m told that there will probably be at least two different shipments of kegs down here, so we could see Pliny the Younger start showing up at bars this week and then again in a week or two.

This is all subject to change and you should check with individual bars for more info. But I’ll try to keep this list as up to date as possible. If I hear of any bars tapping additional kegs at a later date I’ll post that info as well.

Know of any other bars that will be getting Pliny the Younger? Or have updated info on when it will be tapped at any bar? Leave a comment below or send an email: events@sandiegobeerblog.com

• Pizza Port Ocean Beach – Tuesday, 3/8 at 4pm
• Neighborhood – Tuesday, 3/15
• Churchill’s Pub – Saturday, 3/5 at 11am for Churchill’s Renaissance
• The Linkery – Thursday, 3/3 at 5pm. Only served paired with food, click here for the details
• Toronado – Thursday, 2/10 at 10am UPDATE: The first keg ran out around noon, they tapped a second keg which ran out around 3pm. They had another keg on when they opened at 11:30am Sunday 2/13.
• Stone Brewing World Bistro and Gardens – Thursday, 2/10 at 4:30pm UPDATE: Their keg kicked around 5:45pm. I’ve heard second hand that they have two additional 1/2 barrel kegs.
• Pizza Port Solana Beach – 2/11 at 4pm
• Newport Pizza and Ale House – Wed 2/16UPDATE: They’re tapping another five gallon keg 3/1 at 5pm
• O’Brien’s Pub – Saturday 2/12 at 4pm UPDATE: I heard the keg kicked in just over 20 minutes.

• Hamilton’s Tavern – Sunday 2/13 at 1pm UPDATE: They also had a keg on 2/28
• Blind Lady Ale House – Tuesday 2/15 at 5pm UPDATE: BLAH had a 1/2 barrel keg which was emptied in about an hour.
• Tap Room – Monday 2/21 at 5pm and at their Anniversary party Saturday 2/26
• Live Wire – Sunday 2/13
• San Diego Brewing Company – Tuesday, 2/15 at 4pmUPDATE: I’m told the keg kicked around 5:3opm
• Downtown Johnny Brown’s – 2/25 at 6pm
• Pizza Port Carlsbad – Unknown

Check out THINKBREW for a list of bars in Los Angeles and Orange County that are expected to get Pliny the Younger

This post was last updated 3/7/2011 at 3pm

San Diego Beer Events 12/09-12/15

Tags

2nd saturday, Affligem Noel, Avery Old Jubilation, ballast point barmy ale, Barmy Ale, Delerium Noel, Epic Beer Tasting, fiji yogurt, food truck beer pairing, hamilton's second saturday, hamilton's tavern second saturday, holiday night on adams, Jolly Pumpkin Noel de Calabaza, miho gastrotruck, o'brien's belgian holiday weekend, patrick rue, san diego Christmas beer, san diego holiday beer, Santa's Little Helper, Scaldis Noel, second saturday, tabe bbq, tap hunter, taphunter

Plenty of great beer related stuff going on this week. If you know of anything that isn’t on our events calendar, email events@sandiegobeerblog.com to get it added.

Thursday, Dec 9:

Stop by Ballast Point in Linda Vista where MIHO Gastrotruck will be parked and serving food for a special pairing dinner with some of Ballast Point’s beers. They’ll also have the delicious Barmy Ale on tap for samples and growler fills. Fiji Yogurt next door to Ballast Point will also have a Black Marlin Porter based yogurt. Click on over to Westcoaster for the pairing menu.

Friday, Dec 10:

TapHunter recently held an online poll to determine their users favorite brewery. The votes are in and they’re throwing a party with the first and second place winners which are conveniently located just down the road from one another. The party starts at 4pm at Alesmith Brewing Co.’s tasting room and then heads over to Hess Brewing Co. from 6-8pm. After a few hours of drinking at two of San Diego’s best breweries you might need some food, so it’s a good thing that Tabe BBQ will be parked at Hess Brewing Co. And mention “Taphunter” to get a 15% discount on all merchandise – growlers, shirts, hats, and glassware at Alesmith. More details on Facebook.

Saturday, Dec 11:

It’s the second saturday of the month, which means 2nd Saturday at Hamilton’s Tavern! This month they’ll be hosting Alesmith Brewing Co. They’ll have dueling casks of Winter Yulesmith and Wee Heavy conditioned with Islay Scotch soaked oak chips. They’ll of course have plenty of other Alesmith brews on draft and some delicious sounding food.

Ready for Holiday Beers? Blind Lady Ale House sure is. Saturday night is the Holiday Night on Adams, where many shops on Adams Ave have Holiday themed specials. BLAH is tapping some great beers and is offering a flight so you can taste more. They’ll have Port Brewing Co.’s Santa’s Little Helper, Affligem Noel, Delerium Noel, Scaldis Noel, Avery Old Jubilation, Jolly Pumpkin Noel de Calabaza and maybe more.

Sunday, Dec 12:

Didn’t get enough Holiday Beers at Blind Lady? O’Brien’s Pub is having plenty of Belgian Holiday Beers all weekend including Sunday. They’ll have at least seven on tap and more in the bottle.

Monday, Dec 13:

As always, Toronado does local pint night on Monday’s. Stop in for some of the best beers around from all over San Diego for only $3 each.

Tuesday, Dec 14:

Chicks for Beer at The High Dive is a ladies only beer group that meets once a month. This month they’ll be hosting The Bruery and Patrick Rue will be on hand to chat about beer. $20 gets you six tasters, a food pairing and a pint of your choice. But don’t fret guys, while the Chicks for Beer meeting will be women only, you’re still welcome to hang out at the bar and drink the awesome beers from the Bruery.

Wednesday, Dec 15:

The third Wednesday of the month means it’s time for the DrinkAbout. Free shuttles will be running between some of the best uptown bars. No word on what will be on tap yet, but we expect plenty of great Holiday beers.

Best Damn Beer Shop and South Bay Drugs have teamed up for what they’re calling an Epic Beer Tasting with 100% of the proceeds going to charity. Downtown Johnny Brown’s will host the tasting where $35 will get you ten 3-4oz tasters. The list of beer is seriously epic and DTJB’s will have more great beer on tap. Check out the Facebook Event page for all the beers and more info.

This post updated 12/12/2010.

San Diego Beer Week: Day One

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American ESB, avery rumpkin, Citra Session Ale, coconut speedway stout, Fire Roasted Pumpkin Al, Fizzy Yellow Beer, green flash fizzy yellow beer, kopi luwak, kopi luwak speedway stout, rumpkin, silva stout, speedway stout, Traditional Porter, vanilla speedway stout, west coast ipa

The burlesque of Brews and Burlesque at The Ruby Room

And San Diego Beer Week 2010 is here! I will (hopefully) be blogging everyday about the various beers I drink and SDBW events I attend. If you see me out and about say hi (my picture is on the About page). I wasn’t good about taking picture of beer last night, and felt like a total perv taking pictures of burlesque, so thats the only picture today, but there will be more going forward.

The SDBW festivities were supposed to start at O’Brien’s Pub for Night of a Million Zillion Speedways, where they had nine different versions of Alesmith’s Speedway Stout on draft and cask. I got stuck at work a bit longer than I had expected and by the time I got to O’Brien’s there were at least 50 people in a line snaking around the building. I decided to pass and kept driving, but I heard things went smoothly and everyone got in after a short wait and all waiting got to try all of the different version of Speedway. One friend I talked to later said that her top three were Coconut Speedway, Vanilla Speedway and Kopi Luwak in that order.

My night ended up starting at The Ruby Room for the Green Flash Brewing Co. Brews and Burlesque night. They had six Green Flash beers on tap: American ESB, Traditional Porter, Citra Session Ale, Fizzy Yellow Beer, Fire Roasted Pumpkin Ale, and West Coast IPA, the last of which was already gone by the time I got there around 9pm.

I started with a Yellow Fizzy Beer, the only one I could imagine drinking right after I arrived at The Ruby Room by bicycle. It was crisp and refreshing, with a bit of hop bitterness and spiciness, this is what Budweiser should taste like. If I had a lawn to mow this would be my go to lawn mower beer were Green Flash to bottle it. I tried the Traditional Porter next, the first sip was full of intense chocolate flavors but it seemed to die down after that first sip.

I made my way down to Downtown Johnny Brown’s next where they had over 20 barrel aged beers on tap for their 2nd Annual Barrel Aged Night. I started out with Avery Brewing Co.’s Rumpkin, an imperial pumpkin ale aged in rum barrels. At 13.2% ABV this was an intense beer with a boozy pumpkin pie spice smell. The flavors from the rum barrel aging came through immediately upon first sip. It wasn’t overpowering in the least, but tasted very strongly of rum. This beer is definetly a sipper, I think it had the 8oz glass in front of me for about 2 hours before I finished it. Rumpkin will be on tap at Hamilton’s Tavern on Monday night for their Avery Barrel Run Experience

I finished the night off with another Green Flash beer, Silva Stout. I wanted to try it on draft to see how it differed from the bottled version but the comparison was difficult since I didn’t have both in front of me at the same time. I think I actually prefer the bottled version of Silva Stout over the draft, but either way their both amazing beers.

San Diego Beer Week 2010

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We’re just a few days away from the second San Diego Beer Week. This year promises to be bigger and better than last year with over 300 beer related events. The SDBW website is doing a great job of listing all events on their website, so we’re not even going to try to list all the events. Below are a few of the events we’re most excited about, it’s not a comprehensive list, and it’s weighted pretty heavily towards the uptown neighborhoods but it’s a few of the events we’re most excited about. It’s not going to be possible to do every (or even half) of the beer week events, but read below, and browse through the full event listing on the SDBW site and drink some great beer. Be careful out there, write down the number of a cab company, stay safe and have fun!

As always, check with the individual bars/restaurants/breweries as events are subject to change.

Friday, November 5th:

Beer for Breakfast: Kick off the second annual San Diego Beer Week at Stone Bistro and Gardens with Dr Bill Sysak for the Rare Beer Breakfast. All you can eat breakfast and 15 3oz tasters for $55.

Weasel Poo: O’Brien’s Pub is hosting Night of a Million Zillion Speedways. They’ll have eight different versions of Alesmith Brewing Co.’s Speedway Stout including the infamous Kopi Luwak Speedway (which is made with Kopi Luwak coffee which passes through the digestive tract of weasels). In order for as many people as possible to get to try them, the eight beers will be served as 2oz tasters only, split into two different flights of four. But be careful, each flight is only 8oz, but each beer is about 12% ABV. It’ll sneak up on you.

Who Said Fresh is Better?: When it comes to some beers, fresher is better, but not always. Downtown Johnny Brown’s will host their 2nd Annual Barrel Aged Night with complimentary food and 21 barrel aged beers on tap.

Saturday, November 6th:

The Official Kick Off Event: Yeah, you’re probably nursing a hangover from the night before, but get down to Liberty Station for the San Diego Brewer’s Guild Festival, the official kick off event of San Diego Beer Week. The $50 VIP tasting starts at noon. General admission ($35) starts at 2pm and runs until 6pm.

Beer Brewed by an Ex-NASA Rocket Scientist: Forget the fact that Mark Jilg is an ex-NASA Rocket Scientist, the owner and brewer at Pasadena’s Craftsman Brewing Co. makes some unique beers. Blind Lady Ale House will have Craftsman Brewing Co. flights all day long, and will host a tasting with Jilg at 12:30pm. Seating is limited, purchase tickets in advance.

Sunday, November 7th:

Nothing Wrong with a Little Nostalgia: I’ll admit, I’m a little too young to fully appreciate The Liar’s Club. Sure I had been a few times and I greatly enjoyed it, but it doesn’t hold the same spot in my heart that it does for many others. That won’t stop me from recommending that you get yourself to Eleven at 3pm for Liar’s Club Redux though. I’ve heard that last year’s Liar’s Club Redux at Hamilton’s Tavern was one of the most popular SDBW events. Get there early (they open at 3pm) and re-experience the Liar’s Club.

The Beers that Put San Diego on the Map: San Diego brewers make a ton of great beers, but it’s hard to deny the fact that our fine city is known for it’s IPA’s. Toronado‘ San Diego IPA Blowout will feature of ton of San Diego IPA’s on draft available as pints or smaller tasters to sample more.

Monday, November 8th:

A Little History with Your Beer: San Diego history to be precise. You’re at San Diego Beer Week, you already know that San Diego is one of the premier beer cities in the country. Find out how we got here at Stone Brewing Co.’s Beer U: History of Beer in San Diego with special guest, Green Flash Brewing Co.’s Chuck Silva. Tickets are only $25, so if you have your heart set on this, we recommend purchasing them in advance.

Another Educational Beer Experience: If you haven’t seen Beer Wars what have you been waiting for? Delete it from your Netflix queue and get down to Sea Rocket Bistro where they’ll be showing it at 7pm with their 3 course Cooking with Beer Prix Fixe menu.

Barrel Aged is a Big Deal: If you haven’t noticed, barrel aged beers are a big deal. Hamilton’s Tavern and Small Bar will host a plethora of rare Avery Brewing Co. barrel aged beers and will have a shuttle running between the two bars. Many of these beers are barrel aged special versions of some of Avery’s best beers. Chances are they’ve never been on tap in San Diego before, and quite possibly never will be again.

Tuesday, November 9th:

Seriously the Best Double Stout I’ve had in a Long Time: It’s not a secret that I think Green Flash’s Silva Stout is one of the best Imperial Stouts I’ve had in a long time. Head down to the Regal Beagle where the beer’s namesake brewer, Chuck Silva will be pouring it and chatting with beer drinkers. They’ll also have Green Flash’s Yellow Fizzy Beer Bohemian Pilsner and 8th Anniversary IPA on tap as well.

Beer Flights with the Brewer: This isn’t the first beer flight with the brewer flight at Blind Lady Ale House we’ve recommended you check out at SDBW, and it’s not the last. These guided flights with the people who brew the beers are a great way to taste beer and learn more about the beer making process. They’re also really fun and you get to drink tasty beer. Check out the Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. Flight with Steve Grossman, brother of founder Ken Grossman. Get there early for a bike ride with Grossman around Balboa Park before the tasting.

Wednesday, November 10th:

Get on the Bus: The DrinkAbout this month has been moved up a week for San Diego Beer Week. Ride the free bus between Hamilton’s, Station, Sea Rocket, Ritual, Blind Lady, Small Bar, Livewire, and Toronado from 7-11pm. Most bars will have specials going on and a fun time is sure to be had by all. This is one of the most fun beer happenings each month and is surely going to be all the better during SDBW.

Beer for a Cause: The High Dive will tap One of Eight, a collaboration beer brewed by Coronado Brewing Co. and Ballast Point Brewing Co. in honor of women with breast cancer. This Amber Strong Ale was brewed with Belgium yeast, African Cocoa nibs, fresh ginger and Grand Marne.

Russian River Night at Toronado: Who needs a witty title when Natalie Cilurzo from Russian River Brewing Co. will be on hand at Toronado with the following beers on draft: Pliny the Elder, Blind Pig IPA, Damnation, Damnation batch 23, Damnation batch 46, Supplication, Temptation, Redemption, Sanctification, Consecration, Porter, and Gaffer’s Bitter. They’ll also be bringing out some special Russian River bottles from the cellar.

Thursday, November 11th:

Lips of Faith: Eric Salazar from New Belgium Brewing Co. and namesake of the beer Eric’s Ale will be guiding a tasting flight of six beers from the Lips of Faith series at Blind Lady Ale House. Many, but not all, of the beers are sour.

Hang Loose: Get dressed up in your Hawaiian garb for Maui Brewing Co. night at Small Bar. They’ll have 8-10 Maui Brewing Co. beers on tap, some of which we rarely see on the mainland.

Just Outstanding: Yes, Just Outstanding IPA will be on tap at Downtown Johnny Brown’s Kern River Brewing Co. Night, but the whole night should be just outstanding as well. They’ll also be pouring Citra DIPA, Class V Stout, Barrel Aged Stout and more.

Friday, November 12:

Craft Beer Bonanza: There are so many great things happening at so many bars around the city why pick just one? Let the Park2Park Shuttle take you between great bars, restaurants and even a liquor store in the Uptown neighborhoods as well as downtown. See all the details and purchase tickets on their website.

Craft Lagers: Lagers are often overlooked in the craft beer scene. El Take it Easy will hold a Craft Lager Fest with Ballast Point Brewing Co. to showcase some of the best craft brewed lagers around. DJ Claire will be spinning some vintage soul to go with those smooth drinking lagers.

The East Coasts Most Experimental Brews: Dogfish Head Brewing Co. will be on tap and cask for Firkin Friday at Hamilton’s Tavern. 75 Minute IPA will be on cask with Punkin Ale, Palo Santo Maron, Chicory Stout, Sah’tea, Theobroma and more on draft.

Take Your Pick for the Best of Green Flash: Sit down at Blind Lady Ale House for a guided tasting flight (including Le Freak, Black Freak and Super Freak) with Green Flash’s Chuck Silva in the afternoon (or stop in anytime afterwards for the flight) or check out the 20+ taps of Green Flash Beer at Toronado later at night.

Saturday, November 13th:

Small Brewer of the Year: Mad River Brewing Co. just won Small Brewer of the year at the Great American Beer Festival. Check out many of the beers, paired with excellent food (and more likely available on their own as well) at The Linkery’s Mad River Serious Madness 3.0

Second Saturday: Hamilton’s Tavern pulls out the stops every month for the second Saturday, but the SDBW version will be just as good if not better. Marin Brewing Co. and brewmaster Arne Johnson will be in town with Brass Knuckle IIPA and Old Dipsea B-wine with Sherry Wood on cask and plenty of beer on draft.

More Green Flash: Didn’t get enough Green Flash last night? Well today is their 8th Anniversary Festival at the brewery in Vista. $35 gets you ten tasters and it all supports a good cause.

Sunday, November 14th:

One Last Flight: Blind Lady Ale House has hosted plenty of great flights and tastings during SDBW. The last one will be Allagash Brewing Co. with brewmaster and founder Rob Tod. Six great Allagash beers in a guided tasting flight and a small taste of the rare Allagash Blonde Ale after the tasting.

Relax, It’s Been a Long Beer Week: SDBW is coming to a close, it’s been a long ten days. Head to the Courtyard Cookout at Counterpoint in Golden Hill where The Linkery will be cooking in the courtyard and Counterpoint will have 15 taps of craft beer available.

San Diego Beer Week is Officially Coming to a Close: The Beer Garden at The Lodge at Torrey Pines is the official closing event of SDBW. $65 gets you tastes of local beer paired with food from local restaurants and chefs at the beautiful Lodge at Torrey Pines. Purchase tickets in advance here.

This post last updated 11/3/2010 at 8:07am

Click below to see the full event calendar courtesy of the San Diego Beer Week website. And again, click here to see their full list of events.

San Diego Beer Week 2010 Preview Weekend, June 10-13

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bear republic brewing co., beer hall, black lightning porter, fairweather pale ale, firkin friday, hamilton's padres day, mission valley craft beer festival, san diego beer week preview, san diego beer week preview weekend, san diego beer week'nd, san diego beer weekend, speedway stout, speedway stout ice cream, suds for surgeries, the lodge at torrey pines, world cup san diego

Sure, it’s only Tuesday, but that doesn’t mean it’s too soon to start thinking about the upcoming weekend. Especially when that weekend just so happens to be the preview weekend for the 2010 San Diego Beer Week (sometimes cleverly referred to as San Diego Beer Week’nd). The first ever San Diego Beer Week took place last November, and the second year of the event will be taking place this year from November 5-14, but there’s just so much great beer around that they have decided to hold a special preview weekend.

San Diego Beer Week Preview Weekend events starts Thursday evening with a beginner brewing class at Home Brew Mart taught by Ballast Point Brewing Co. brewer Doug Duffield. Homebrewing is a great way to learn about beer and is fun and delicious. This class will go over the basics of brewing and will brew a 5 gallon batch. The class is limited to 30 people and costs $10. Call (619) 295-2337 to reserve a spot. And if a beginner brewing class would be too basic for you, stop by Home Brew Mart on Friday for a 10% discount on all products.

If you would rather drink beer than learn how to make it Thursday night both Ritual Tavern and Hamilton’s Tavern have you covered. Ritual Tavern will host a very special blend of Alesmith Brewing Co.’s Speedway Stout. Starting at 8pm they’ll have a 3 year blend of Speedway, 2008 and 2009 were barrel aged and blended with fresh 2010 Speedway Stout and Ritual Tavern will be pairing this with homemade Speedway Stout ice cream. This will be a unique beer, one you probably won’t ever get to taste again. Speedway Stout is in my top 10 all time favorite beers. I’m excited to try this.

Over at Hamilton’s Tavern they’re doing their Firkin Friday a night early on Thursday hosting Lightning Brewing Co. They’ll have Fairweather Pale Ale on cask and Elemental and Black Lightning Porter on draught.

Friday is Allagash Night at Downtown Johnny Brown’s (in case you missed the Allagash flights at Blind Lady Ale House this past weekend, or just want more). They’ll have Curieux, Victor, Victoria, Confluence, Wit, Interlude, Odyssey, Fluxus 09′, Four and Dubbel as well as BBQ brisket in a Curieux sauce. Also Friday night is Beer Hall at The Lodge at Torrey Pines. Seven chefs will join seven brewers to pair beer and food. It’s $60 per person and 10% of the proceeds will go to the San Diego Brewer’s Guild. Click here for the menu and beer pairings.

Saturday Ballast Point Brewing Co. will be hosting a tasting of their three beers that won the World Beer Cup Champion Small Brewery. That’s Sculpin IPA, barrel aged Piper Down Scottish Ale and Fathom India Pale Lager. Also on tap will be 3 Sheets Barleywine aged on 3 Sheets rum soaked oak chips. That all happens at Ballast Point Brewing Co. in Linda Vista from 1oam-5pm Saturday. After that head on over to Hamilton’s for 2nd Saturday with Bear Republic. There will be casks of Racer X Imperial IPA and Big Bear Black Stout and 18 Bear Republic beers on draught as well as complimentary BBQ from the kitchen.

Sunday wraps up San Diego Beer Week Preview Weekend with the 4th Annual Hamilton’s Padres Day (which as of this writing it appears as if there are still tickets available) for $45 you get field level tickets at Petco Park, a Hamilton’s baseball jersey, transportation from Hamilton’s to Petco and back, two drinks at the pre-game party at Downtown Johnny Brown’s as well as craft beer on the bus.

Sunday is also Suds for Surgeries, the first ever Mission Valley Craft Beer Festival at The Handlery Hotel. $30 gets you unlimited beer and food tastings.  Participating Breweries on hand will be: Airdale, Ballast Point, Coronado, Firehouse, Green Flash, Karl Strauss, Mission and Stone Brewing Co.

And if all that weren’t good enough, the 2010 FIFA World Cup gets started Friday June 11th. Plenty of bars around San Diego will be showing the games and offering drink and food specials. One game which ought to be pretty good and draw a crowd is USA vs. England on Saturday. If you know of any other beer events this weekend, or have a favorite bar (with a great beer selection) to watch the World Cup leave a comment below.