When it comes to local personalities, few were as ingrained in the multi-tiered fabric of San Diego’s beer scene as Derek Gallanosa. After years spent at Karl Strauss Brewing Company, he went on to be the opening head brewer for Rancho Bernardo’s Abnormal Beer Company, while at the same time serving as an instructor for the marketing component of San Diego State University’s Business of Craft Beer certificate program. On top of all that, he was a constant fixture among beer geeks, coordinating and participating in epic bottle-share events throughout the county. Everyone knew this omnipresent fermentation fixture, which made it all the more surprising in August when he announced his resignation from Abnormal and SDSU along with plans to leave San Diego. Since then, he’s been traveling while awaiting the moment when he would be contractually able to announce plans for his future. Today is that day. Gallanosa has taken up residence in the Sacramento area to helm operations for start-up business, Moksa Brewing Company.
Located at 5860 Pacific Street in the city of Rocklin, directly northeast of Sacramento, the brewery-to-be is named for a Hindu term referring to finding one’s freedom. Gallanosa says this describes his and his partners’ intentions from a brewing perspective. They intend to break away from the norm and create their own path, exploring how to further express familiar flavors found in beer, while also striving to discover new taste sensations to showcase via ales and lagers. They will do that from a 4,960-square-foot former car dealership, roughly 1,100 square feet of which will be used for the brewery. Moksa’s 100% steam-heated 10-barrel Premier Stainless brewhouse will be fully visible through a glass wall; a setup Gallanosa refers to as a “brewquarium” like he worked within at Abnormal. Moksa’s cellar will consist of two 30-barrel, three 20-barrel and two 10-barrel uni-tanks plus a pair of brites.
Moksa has also brought on brewer Cory Meyer from popular Sacramento interest New Glory Craft Brewery. He and Gallanosa will put their heads together to determine what styles they will brew. So far they know they will craft India pale ales similar to the mixture of West-Coast and hazy IPAs Gallanosa made at Abnormal. Rich stouts with adjuncts will also figure in along with barrel-aged imperial stouts, but the sky is the limit outside of those staples. The current estimate for Moksa’s debut is December of January. Total 2018 production figures to come in around 1,000 barrels, but once everything is maximized, the business should be able to churn out 2,500 barrels of beer annually.
Yes, it is a good opportunity with the benefit of partial ownership, but what could inspire a brewer synonymous with San Diego to pull up stakes for unfamiliar territory? Love, it turns out, was his primary motivator. Gallanosa’s fiancé landed a dream job to be a State-employed archaeologist based in the Sacramento area. Upon learning this, he contacted some people he knew up north and was made aware of the Moksa project and its team’s need for a brewer. The rest is history. Even with all of the pieces falling in what would appear to be perfect placement, Gallanosa says he will miss working with the talented team at Abnormal and the restaurant that houses it, The Cork and Craft. But he is bullish about Sacramento’s burgeoning craft-beer scene (having visited the region four times in the past two years, I can attest that it is growing and an exciting place to be for beer enthusiasts) and happy to become a part of it.