Soon, Benchmark Brewing Company will offer canned beers as well as an al fresco space to enjoy aluminized libations. Owners Matt and Rachael Akin recently signed a lease on a business park space just west of the one that houses their brewery and tasting room. That facility includes a 2,500-square-foot gated, outdoor space that will be converted into a beer garden.
Keeping in line with this family-run operation’s our-own-eight-hands MO, Rachael is in charge of the design aspects of Benchmark’s “Backyard.” Per her rendering, the area will be outfitted with picnic tables and an old trailer that will be converted into a back bar. Lights will be strung and some planters will bring flora and fauna into the equation. The layout will allow customers to order from pull-up food trucks without having to set down their beers. Additionally, a giant Jenga site, corn-hole and a table-sized cribbage board (for which beer glasses will double as markers) will up the entertainment value. Further down the road, a stage will be constructed if the Akins are able to obtain a live music provision.
Initially, the Backyard will be open Fridays through Sundays. The Akins hope to have it open in time for their two-year anniversary event, which will take place in late June. But that’s not the only new development they hope to unveil prior to that date. Rachael has also been at work designing 16-ounce cans for Benchmark’s Table Beer, Amber Ale and IPA, and the interior of the newly leased suite will be used to store those receptacles. Once filled, Benchmark will self-distribute their beers throughout San Diego County.