Organizer, San Diego International Beer Festival

There’s more to the San Diego County Fair than tilt-a-whirls, geode collections, hot-tub shows and deep-fried everything. It also plays host to one of the largest annual craft-beer festivals, here or anywhere on the West Coast, the San Diego International Beer Festival (SDIBF). This year’s event will feature hundreds of beers from multiple states and countries, all of which can be sampled in an all-you-can-drink (responsibly) format during five sessions taking place over three days from June 17 to 19. In addition to fun for the general public, there is also a brewing-competition component, the winners of which were recently announced. For the second straight year, AleSmith Brewing Company earned Champion Brewery bragging rights, with 23 gold medals (and 41 medals total) awarded to local breweries. It’s quite an event with a rich history and promising future. For more on both, we sat down with event organizer Tom Nickel (who also owns Nickel Beer Company, O’Brien’s Pub and West Coast Barbecue and Brews).

What was the impetus for the SDIBF?
The original idea came from Chad Stevens, who was a member of (local homebrew club) QUAFF. He’d been running the homebrew competition at the fair for a number of years and felt there should be a professional competition there as well. He brought me in because he felt he needed someone on the professional side to legitimize the idea it was a professional competition. The vision was for a competition for professional brewers by professional brewers. We had like 200 entries the first year and thought it was highly successful. We held it in the paddock area and it was a one-day afternoon festival. It was fun, and it’s grown from there.

Tell me about the tremendous growth of the field and competition over the years.
Twice before we’ve had exponential growth where we’ve reached another plateau. We slowly grew by a hundred or so each year, then four-or-five years ago, when the real boom of brewery openings occurred, we had a jump from 600 to 900 and we hovered at just under 1,000 for the last three years. This year, we jumped from 979 to 1,356 total entries, over 1,300 of which were beers—a 44% increase overall.

Who are some of the individuals who’ve been integral to the SDIBF’s success?
Chad was with us the first three years, then moved on. That’s when I brought (Bagby Beer Company founder) Jeff Bagby in to help me. He was there a number of years, and the last two years that slot’s been filled by (O’Brien’s Pub general manager) Tyson Blake. Throughout the whole time—from Chad to now—Chris Shadrick has run the homebrew competition and served as judging coordinator. He helps coordinate all the judges for the competition, as well. Tyson and I do the festival and entries, marketing and promotion of the competition and festival.

How are judges solicited for the competition?
We have two avenues. One is registering in the competition with the BJCP (Beer Judge Certification Program). The SDIBF is posted on their website so all BJCP judges can see and access the event. What really sets SDIBF apart from most events is most BJCP-certified homebrewers don’t have the opportunity to judge professional beers. That’s a real carrot as far as enticing the judges. Secondly, we solicit through the local professional brewing community; from people who enter through the San Diego Brewers Guild and also, for the first time ever this year, through the craft-beer programs at UCSD and SDSU.

What can attendees to this year’s SDIBF look forward to?
There’ll be an expanded VIP area with food pairings and more space on the festival floor as we continually grow our footprint. We’re expecting beers from 15 countries, and the selection of beer in terms of number of different places it’s sent from will be unparalleled compared to any festival west of Denver’s Great American Beer Festival. Ditto the number of different beers and the diversity of international beers that we’ll have. We’ll also have a special beer, Steampunk Ale, a California common brewed specifically for the SDIBF by Abnormal Beer Company, and rare beer tappings throughout the festival.

Where is the SDIBF going?
The competition component is only going to continue to grow and we’re expanding our paid staff to accommodate that. The Del Mar Fairgrounds are doing everything they can to keep SDIBF growing at whatever pace it naturally grows at. If it doubled in the next 10 years, I don’t feel like there will end up being a cap. With the festival itself, there are a lot of interesting ideas. It’s always been my belief that the SDIBF will become enough of an event that, eventually, it won’t be part of the fair, but will instead take place as its own event over a weekend. I feel like for some connoisseurs, they don’t want to deal with the fair crowds, tickets, etc., but I do see us easily doing an independent festival. But having a presence at the fair is always important, so maybe we’ll do two events. I feel like part of the benefit for brewers is not only getting to expose their products to die-hard beer-fans, but also make new converts in an all-you-can-taste setting.

Larry’s Place IPA, a tribute brewed by Nickel Beer Company

From the Beer Writer: When beloved individuals pass on, people pay their respects in a variety of ways ranging from heartfelt eulogies, lasting dedications and artistic gestures. In the brewing industry, the tribute-beer is a popular way to say good-bye and thank-you to our friends and colleagues. Enter Larry’s Place IPA. Originally brewed last year at Julian’s Nickel Beer Company as a companion quaff for La Mesa restaurant West Coast Barbecue & Brews‘ four-year anniversary, this 7% alcohol-by-volume India pale ale is dry-hopped with Cascade and Zythos, resulting in a pronounced piney, resinous bitterness. Veteran San Diego brewer Tom Nickel owns both business as well as O’Brien’s Pub in Kearny Mesa. It’s there that he befriended Koger, a Luthern pastor with such an affinity for beer that he approached Nickel about opening a similar beer-centric venue together. This, despite him having no hospitality industry experience. Though an unlikely scenario, the two partnered and West Coast opened its doors in 2012. Though the business aspect of the venue was foreign to him, Koger was a natural when it came to engaging patrons, staff and employees of the breweries whose beers he showcased via West Coast’s impressive tap-list. He loved and appreciated them all, and the feeling was mutual. That was abundantly apparent last month when Koger passed away unexpectedly due to complications from an undiagnosed heart condition. Shortly after news of his passing surfaced, droves of people he’d touched gathered at West Coast and O’Brien’s to share their grief and toast his memory. Rebrewing Larry’s Place is one way Nickel is paying homage to his fallen friend and, in doing so, allowing others to say their good-byes with a final tip of the glass to someone who, speaking from experience, really was one of the sweetest people you could hope to meet. The beer is currently on-tap at West Coast, O’Brien’s and Nickel Beer. As part West Coast’s month-long fifth anniversary celebration, February 9-12, the beer will again be tapped along with a variety of rare, dark, strong and barrel-aged beers. They were Koger’s favorite types of beer and he’d saved these particular kegs for a special occasion. An event celebrating a fine man and a lasting piece of what he was all about is about as special they come.

From the Brewer: “Ask folks who the nicest person in the local beer scene was and anyone who knew him would say Larry Koger. Larry was a man of god, a Lutheran pastor who found a passion for craft beer. I met Larry as a customer at O’Brien’s. He quickly became a regular and formed many friendships there. After years of enjoying our pub as a patron, Larry wanted to try his hand at owning his own place. When he approached me and my wife about partnering up on a new pub, we knew that Larry would be the most honest and trustworthy person that we could go into business with. He exuded a child like enthusiasm for new beers and sharing them with customers. He loved West Coast, its patrons and its employees. Larry left us too soon at the age of 56 but he leaves behind a legacy of good beer and, more importantly, a legacy of kindness and optimism that is all too rare.”—Tom Nickel, Owner & Brewmaster, Nickel Beer Company

When I was diagnosed with the chronic auto-immune disease, lupus, in 2014, I felt very ill and entirely defenseless. I’d been suffering from the condition without a diagnosis for nearly a decade and was dismayed that there is no cure or medications specifically engineered to combat lupus. Nearly three years later, I am still rather ill, but I feel emboldened and lifted by the support of so many in the brewing community (60-plus and counting)  who have come together to help, not just me, but lupus patients throughout San Diego and Imperial Counties, by participating in the Beer to the Rescue charity campaign established to raise funds for the Lupus Foundation of Southern California.

Over the past two years, this campaign has raised more than $70,000 to fund the complimentary support services the LFSC provides locals in need as well as their work to support research and educational initiatives. Because dozens of San Diego County breweries brewed charity beers, made donations and held fundraising events, the LFSC is able to do more and people like me have reasons to be more helpful. We also have cause for increased happiness. Before Beer to the Rescue, most of the lupus sufferers the organization helps only saw each other when commiserating at support group gatherings. A fringe benefit of this cause is that its events are fun ways for lupus patients to comingle in an enjoyable, uplifting atmosphere where they feel cared for and supported. For that, we thank the participating breweries as well as the many, many beer fans who have come out to support the cause. It’s all of this that led me to push to make this year’s Beer to the Rescue campaign the biggest and best yet for all of us.

The 2017 Beer to the Rescue calendar kicked off on May 1 and includes over 40 events packed into the month of May—Lupus Awareness Month. At least one event will take place at a local brewery or watering hole each day this month, and hit numerous communities from Downtown to Fallbrook to Oceanside to PB to La Mesa and more, providing opportunities for beer enthusiasts and humanitarians all over the county to take part and enjoy some good beer and good times, in many cases right alongside the LFSC’s volunteers and beneficiaries. The full schedule is provided below. Thank you to everyone out there who has helped move the needle and make a positive difference for our region’s lupus patients. It means more than you can know and we look forward to seeing you around San Diego in May! To keep up with Beer to the Rescue, you can check out the campaign’s official website or follow on social media via Facebook, Twitter or Instagram (@beertotherescue).

All-Month 5/1-31
– Spring Fling Lemon Verbena Saison @ Bitter Brothers Brewing Co.
– Daily Grind Coffee Cream Ale @ All Oggi’s Locations
Monday 5/1
– Beer to the Rescue Kick-Off @ Rip Current Brewing Co. – North Park
Tuesday 5/2
– Charity Tuesday @ Societe Brewing Co.
Wednesday 5/3
– Dank Drank Charity Beer Fundraiser @ Pariah Brewing Co.
Thursday 5/4
– Coffee IPA Fundraiser @ Duck Foot Brewing Co.
– Beer to the Rescue Night @ Thorn St. Brewery
Friday 5/5
– Cinco de Drinko Fundraiser @ Booze Brothers Brewing Co.
Saturday 5/6
– A Sweet & Sour Fundraiser @ Indian Joe Brewing
Sunday 5/7
– Beer to the Rescue Day @ Pure Project Brewing
Monday 5/8
– Beer to the Rescue Rafflemania @ All Barrel Harbor Brewing Co. Locations
Tuesday 5/9
– Charity Tuesday @ Societe Brewing Co.
Wednesday 5/10
– Mason Ale Works Charity IPA Fundraiser @ All Urge Gastropub Locations
– Brett Coast IPA Fundraiser @ Green Flash Brewing Co. – Cellar 3
Thursday 5/11
– Beer to the Rescue Night @ North Park Beer Co.
Friday 5/12
– Specialty Beer Fundraiser @ Mission Brewery
– Hoppy Saison Fundraiser @ Kilowatt Brewing Co.
Saturday 5/13
– Dank & Sticky XPA Fundraiser @ Second Chance Beer Co.
– Prodigy Brewing Co. Collaboration Nelson Lager Fundraiser @ Dos Desperados Brewery
Sunday 5/14
– Hazy Double IPA Fundraiser @ All Amplified Ale Works Locations
Monday 5/15
– Beer to the Rescue Night @ New English Brewing Co.
Tuesday 5/16
– Charity Tuesday @ Societe Brewing Co.
– Resident Brewing Co. Beer to the Rescue Night @ The Local Eatery Downtown
Wednesday 5/17
– Blood Orange Double IPA Fundraiser @ Division 23 Brewing Co.
– Beer to the Rescue Night @ 32 North Brewing Co.
Thursday 5/18
– Nickel Beer Co. Hops to the Rescue Double IPA Fundraiser @ O’Brien’s Pub
Friday 5/19
– South African Nelson IPA Fundraiser @ Bay City Brewing Co.
Saturday 5/20
– Prodigy Brewing Co. Collaboration Nelson Lager Fundraiser @ Dos Desperados Brewery
– Beer to the Rescue Day @ Bolt Brewery La Mesa
Sunday 5/21
– Blonde Session IPA Fundraiser @ 2kids Brewing Co.
Monday 5/22
– Beer to the Rescue Cask Night @ Benchmark Brewing Co.
Tuesday 5/23
– Charity Tuesday @ Societe Brewing Co.
Wednesday 5/24
– Beer to the Rescue Week Kick-Off @ White Labs
Thursday 5/25
– Charity IPA Fundraiser @ Belching Beaver Brewery – Oceanside
Friday 5/26
– Corn-Hole & Foosball Tournament @ Iron Fist Brewing Co. – Vista
– Belgian Coffee Ale Fundraiser @ Burning Beard Brewing
Saturday 5/27
– Bottle Beer Release @ Toolbox Brewing Co.
– Beer to the Rescue Day @ Fallbrook Brewing Co.
Sunday 5/28
– Oat Imperial Pale Lager Fundraiser @ ChuckAlek Biergarten
Monday 5/29
– Trending Travis-ty Hazy Session IPA Fundraiser @ Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens – Liberty Station
Tuesday 5/30
– Charity Tuesday @ Societe Brewing Co.
Wednesday 5/31
– Beer to the Rescue Closing Ceremonies @ Rip Current Brewing Co. – San Marcos
Thursday 6/1
– Nickel Beer Co. Hops to the Rescue Double IPA Fundraiser @ West Coast BBQ & Brews

While the rest of the country waits for summer, San Diegans get a leg up on the season thanks to eternal sunshine. Take advantage of this benefit of Southern California residence by getting out ad drinking in local beer at any of the many events taking place in June. Start with the following featured happenings, then check out even more on our events page.

June 1 | Beer to the Rescue Extra Innings: So you missed the 43 May events raising funds for the Lupus Foundation of Southern California via sales of special beers from local breweries? No problem. There’s one more bonus event with charity beers from Bay City Brewing, Mason Ale Works, Nickel Beer and Resident Brewing plus lip-smacking, rib-sticking barbecue fare! | West Coast BBQ & Brew, 6126 Lake Murray Boulevard, La Mesa, 5 p.m.

June 3 | Pink Boots 10th Anniversary Beer Festival: The Pink Boots Society is celebrating a decade of promoting the inclusion and importance of women in the brewing industry with a great big beer festival featuring a bevy of breweries bringing their A-game—including numerous beers brewed by PBS members—in honor of the great work and impact of this fine organization. | Ingram Plaza at Liberty Station, 2751 Dewey Road, Point Loma, 12 p.m.

June 10 | 3rd Anniversary Party: Council Brewing Company is going big with its anniversary festivities, breaking out a beer list 50-plus strong. More than 30 of those brews will be barrel-aged. They’ll also debut an 11.2% ABV biere de miel (a bubbly, honey-infused French-style farmhouse ale) in corked, caged bottles during a celebratory toast taking place at 1:30 p.m. | Council Brewing Company, 7705 Convoy Court, Kearny Mesa; VIP: 11 a.m., General Admission: 12 p.m.

June 16-18 | San Diego International Beer Festival: The San Diego County Fair’s salute to suds is our region’s largest annual beer festival. Start the day with funnel cakes, carnival rides and jacuzzi shopping, then get your fill of unlimited samples of beers from all over the world, many of which took home awards in the competition component of this grand-scale summertime stalwart. | Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Boulevard, Del Mar, Times Vary

June 24 | SOCIETE 5: This two-phased beer festival and multi-coursed feast has been sold out for months. So why is it listed here? Because Societe Brewing rarely debuts new draft offerings, but they’ll tap four at this event and all of them will be available to the public the next day. If you’re going, great. If not, no biggie. Those beers will taste just as good on Sunday! | Societe Brewing Company, 8262 Clairemont Mesa Boulevard, Kearny Mesa, 1 p.m.

Nickel Beer owner and former Home Brew Mart employee Tom Nickel (third from right) during a Family Reunion collaboration brew day at Ballast Point’s Miramar brewery.

Before Ballast Point Brewing was a company capable of commanding decuple figures, before it grew into San Diego County’s largest brewery and one of the biggest beer-producers in the country, before there even was a brewery called Ballast Point, there was Home Brew Mart (HBM). That Linda Vista hobby shop—one of the first to grace America’s Finest City—opened quietly in 1992 and, over the following quarter-century, has ignited a fire for recreational fermentation within a great many ale-and-lager neophytes. That includes individuals who now own breweries and brew professionally. Some of that contingent even worked for HBM in its early days. In celebration of the big two-five, Ballast Point is creating Family Reunion collaboration beers with those ex-employees as well as former BP brewers, an impressive assemblage of well-known, award-winning talent.

Ballast Point vice president Colby Chandler dumps hops over Amplified Ale Works head brewer Cy Henley’s head as part of a collaboration brew tradition.

Several of the beers have already been released, while others are scheduled to be brewed in time for them to all be on-tap at HBM’s 25th anniversary event on September 24. The following is a breakdown of the collaborators, their creations and their past.

• Saludos Saison: The third brewing of a strong saison with lemon peel, orange-blossom honey and thyme inspired by Brasserie Dupont’s Avec Les Bon Vouex brewed with Tom Nickel. He was HBM’s sixth employee and now owns and operates Nickel Beer Company as well as O’Brien’s Pub and West Coast Barbecue & Brews.
• Loud & Proud: An English-style barley wine with cherrywood-smoked malt brewed with Cy Henley, the head brewer at Amplified Ale Works. He was a clerk at HBM before moving on to Alpine Beer Company and Green Flash Brewing.
• Name TBD: Ex-HBM clerk Larry Monasakanian is now with Fall Brewing and will help brew a 5% alcohol-by-volume saison based off the recipe for BP’s charity offering, Brother Levonian. This version will be brewed with grains of paradise, local sage and equally local wet hops from Star B Ranch, then fermented with a blend of Brettanomyces and saison yeast,
• Scripps Tease: An extra special bitter (ESB) made with toasted oats and Ethiopia Ayeahu RFA coffee beans from James Coffee Company (close to BP’s Little Italy brewpub) brewed with Nate Stephens and Clayton LeBlanc, the brew crew for Eppig Brewing. Both worked for BP, the former led Little Italy operations while the latter brewed at its Scripps Ranch facility.
• Swemiceros: A hoppy Kolsch dry-hopped with fruity, citrusy, herbal hops brewed with Nick Ceniceros, head brewer at 32 North Brewing. Nick worked at Scripps Ranch before moving to Fall Brewing and eventually his current digs.
• Bay to Bay: A black California common that’s “obnoxiously dry-hopped” with Mosaic brewed with Alex Tweet, who won a BP homebrew contest with his recipe for Indra Kunindra, a curry export stout the company still manufactures. Tweet went on to brew for Modern Times Beer before moving to Berkeley to open the popular Fieldwork Brewing.
• Name TBD: John Maino and Greg Webb, former Scripps Ranch brewers and co-owners of Temecula’s Ironfire Brewing, will help brew a wet-hop India pale ale (IPA) fermented with Brett.

Eppig Brewing’s Clayton LeBlanc talks about his time working at Ballast Point with the company’s current employees.

In an effort to increase its current employee base’s knowledge on the history of BP and its eldest venue, vice president Colby Chandler asked each collaborator to speak to present-day brewers about their time with the company, how it was then and how it prepared them to venture out on their own. Many said that making beer at such a fast-growing brewing company provided them wide-ranging experience as well as reference points for overcoming myriad obstacles. According to Chandler, many brewery owners, in particular, felt their time with BP made it much easier once they were working for themselves.

In addition to the HBM anniversary event, BP is also holding a series of beer-pairing dinners incorporating the aforementioned collaboration brews at HBM. The next will take place on August 24 and include five courses served with Swemiceros, Bay to Bay, Scripps Tease and various other BP beers. Chandler, Tweet, Stephens, LeBlanc and Ceniceros will all be in attendance.

On Memorial Day weekend of 2016, downtown Julian’s The Bailey Wood-Fired BBQ closed its doors. That move shut down its on-site fermentation component, Julian Brewing Company. The business was taken over and converted into a brewpub in 2012 by San Diego brewing veterans Vince Marsaglia and Tom Nickel. The latter is the owner of O’Brien’s Pub and West Coast BBQ & Brew, and sold off his stake later that year, going on to open his own brewery, Nickel Beer Co., just down the street. Marsaglia, co-founder of Pizza Port, Port Brewing and The Lost Abbey, soldiered on but struggled to make a success of the operation. After exploring the option of selling The Bailey, he made the decision to close it and revamp it almost in its entirely. Soon, it will reopen with a new identity that will make it unique from a beermaking perspective, not only within Julian, but throughout San Diego entire county.

The new Julian Brewing Company will utilize an over-sized five-barrel system from local business, Premier Stainless Systems. Marsaglia is going even more ultra-local with the beer program, taking advantage of two acres of fertile land and JBC’s country environs to turn the property into a farmhouse brewery operating under the tenets of archetypal rural fermentation plots throughout Belgium and France. Historically, those locales produced beers for consumption by the farm’s occupants using ingredients produced on-site and airborne yeast and microorganisms. While JBC’s farmhouse ales will most likely be fermented using local yeast of the White Labs variety, numerous fruits, vegetables and herbs from the in-house garden will be added to create a sense of indigenousness and terroir.

Marsaglia says JBC will be a house of innovation where experimentation will be a daily part of the game plan. He has many ideas, some of which have yet to be fleshed out, and is excited to see what they tackle. Long-time Pizza Port brewer Matt Pittman will resume his role as head of JBC’s production, but Marsaglia also intends to play a key role. Saisons and lambics produced using locally grown and foraged ingredients will be the main focus, but no style will be off limits. Marsaglia also foresees numerous collaboratively composed beers coming out of the brewhouse.

Marsaglia says revamping JBC has been a family affair, and that he, his sons and Pittman have all had saws, shovels and hammers in their hands. It’s apt since much of this project is inspired by family history and tradition. Marsaglia’s grandfather was a farmer, as well as a hunter, butcher and bee-keeper. His brother was a barbecue maven who towed a ‘cue rig on a trailer. Marsaglia used to pick vegetables from his field and help make charcuterie from such wild-caught beasts as elk. In addition to homespun beers, JBC will offer a food menu comprising house-smoked meats. The old-school smokehouse will be hand-stoked with local oak and apple wood, and the proteins it produces will make their way onto flatbreads and sandwiches. Fermentation will also be key to JBC’s edible offerings, from pizza dough to an assortment of pickled items. Additionally, house beers will be key components of condiments. The restaurant’s aesthetic will be “country casual” and aim to make anyone who walks in the door feel instantly at home.

JBC is located at 2315 Main Street. Beer is currently being brewed there, but it is unclear when the brewpub will open to the public. Marsaglia says he hopes to be open for business within the next two months.

Organizer, San Diego International Beer Festival There’s more to the San Diego County Fair than tilt-a-whirls, geode collections, hot-tub shows and deep-fried everything. It also plays host to one of the largest annual craft-beer festivals, here or anywhere on the West Coast, the San Diego International Beer Festival (SDIBF). This year’s event will feature hundreds […]

The post Q&A: Tom Nickel appeared first on West Coaster San Diego Beer News.

From the Beer Writer: When beloved individuals pass on, people pay their respects in a variety of ways ranging from heartfelt eulogies, lasting dedications and artistic gestures. In the brewing industry, the tribute-beer is a popular way to say good-bye and thank-you to our friends and colleagues. Enter Larry’s Place IPA. Originally brewed last year at Julian’s Nickel Beer […]

The post Beer of the Week: Nickel Larry’s Place IPA appeared first on West Coaster San Diego Beer News.

When I was diagnosed with the chronic auto-immune disease, lupus, in 2014, I felt very ill and entirely defenseless. I’d been suffering from the condition without a diagnosis for nearly a decade and was dismayed that there is no cure or medications specifically engineered to combat lupus. Nearly three years later, I am still rather […]

The post Beer to the Rescue back bigger than ever to help lupus patients appeared first on West Coaster San Diego Beer News.

While the rest of the country waits for summer, San Diegans get a leg up on the season thanks to eternal sunshine. Take advantage of this benefit of Southern California residence by getting out ad drinking in local beer at any of the many events taking place in June. Start with the following featured happenings, […]

The post Sampler Flight: June Events appeared first on West Coaster San Diego Beer News.

Before Ballast Point Brewing was a company capable of commanding decuple figures, before it grew into San Diego County’s largest brewery and one of the biggest beer-producers in the country, before there even was a brewery called Ballast Point, there was Home Brew Mart (HBM). That Linda Vista hobby shop—one of the first to grace […]

The post Ballast Point holding Family Reunion brews appeared first on West Coaster San Diego Beer News.

On Memorial Day weekend of 2016, downtown Julian’s The Bailey Wood-Fired BBQ closed its doors. That move shut down its on-site fermentation component, Julian Brewing Company. The business was taken over and converted into a brewpub in 2012 by San Diego brewing veterans Vince Marsaglia and Tom Nickel. The latter is the owner of O’Brien’s […]

The post Julian Brewing Company v2.0 appeared first on West Coaster San Diego Beer News.