This is the fourth and final installment of a series of roundups assessing the most promising brewery-owned projects currently in the pipeline in San Diego County. We’ve looked at work in progress in the north, east and west, and now we’re finishing up with a trip to the southern regions, including the City of San Diego’s urban core.
TapRoom Beer Co.: Though not slated to open until much later this year, the buzz surrounding this brewpub from the early craft-adopters that founded Pacific Beach’s SD TapRoom is deafening. Beer aficionados are looking forward to seeing what AleSmith Brewing and Black Plague Brewing vet Bill Batten brews up on the pub’s seven-barrel system, while hip urbanites are simply psyched for yet another cool spot to sip and sup. Two stories with street and brewhouse views plus plenty of outdoor seating should provide just that. | 2000 El Cajon Boulevard, University Heights
Kairoa Brewing: There must be something about University Heights and stylish double-decker brewpubs. This one, which is being brought to Park Boulevard by the kiwi owners of Red House Pizza next door, looks to open in time for open-air top-deck imbibers to catch some of the summer’s warming rays. Expect food (including vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free items) evocative of the team’s New Zealand roots, served alongside beers from head brewer Joe Peach, whose résumé includes experience at Lightning Brewery and Bitter Brothers Brewing. | Park Boulevard & Madison Avenue, University Heights
Novo Brazil Brewing Tasting Room: When this Brazilian-owned Eastlake brewery opened, few would have picked them to help champion the South Bay’s craft-brewing movement, but after years spent improving their processes and upping the caliber of their beer—to the point where it has taken medals at competitions as prestigious as the Great American Beer Festival—the company is in good shape to do right by National City, one of the very few municipalities in San Diego County devoid of a brewery-owned venue. | 8th Avenue & A Street, National City
Honorable Mention
Embarcadero Brewing: Novo Brazil may not be the first beer-makers to open in National City. The team behind a brewing-supply store has been hard at work converting its rec-fermentation retail outlet into a fully-functioning brewery and tasting room. The smallest bit of beer has trickled out to the public via festivals and a nearby restaurant account, but for the most part, this is an untested venture. If nothing else, its driven founders will bring homegrown beer and authentic amour for this southerly community to its thus suds-starved denizens. | 340 West 26th Street, Suite D, National City
Picks Last Time Around: TapRoom Beer Co., University Heights (work in progress); Coronado Brewing Bikeway Village, Imperial Beach (project stalled); Kairoa Brewing, University Heights (work in progress)