by Ed Solt
Let’s put the term “beer nerd” to rest.
A taste for craft beer has taken over the majority of the South Bay’s beer palates. Local craft beer is not strictly carried by places like Naja’s Place and Select Beer Store in Redondo Beach, or the obvious, a local brewery, but your neighborhood supermarket.
Music events, food pairings, special beer releases, anniversary parties, and art shows held at the local breweries have become a vibrant part of the South Bay’s cultural landscape.
On March 12, “Easy Reader” and Saint Rocke saved us from green beer with the Third (Occasionally) Annual Froth Awards and Beer Experience. After a year hiatus, “the Froth” connected Strand Brewing Company, El Segundo Brewing Company, King Harbor Brewing Company, Dudes’ Brewing Company, Absolution Brewery Company and HopSaint Brewing Company with great grinds cooked up by HopSaint’s mastermind Steve Roberts, and amazing music.
“The Froth was a celebration of our bitchin’ community,” said South Bay’s reigning blues queen Kira Lingman, who blazed a radical set during the Froth. “It’s all put together in one event in a nice pretty package.”
King Harbor Brewing Company took “Best Brewery” in Easy Reader’s 2016 Best of Beach reader awards. Strand Brewing Company had held the honor since the inception the local brewing award six years ago.
“We thought, ‘How can we make kickass beer, but one that doesn’t have to have to be super high in ABV [alcohol by volume]?” said KHBC founder Tom Dunbabin. “We wanted 4.5 to 6 percent rating, so you could enjoy dinner and have four or five pints and still get home on a beach cruise. I mean, it’s cool, but if I drink a 9 percent stout, I’m toast. We wanted a beer you could put in a coffee cup and ride your bike to the pier, something that fits our South Bay lifestyle.”
Last summer, Naja’s Place held the two most important events in local craft beer culture, the 8th Annual IPA Festival and the Battle of the Guilds.
“I like to think of us as the frontier of great beer,” said Naja’s Manager Kara Smail, in her thick Australian accent.
The IPA Festival brought the best breweries with the best IPA’s from all over the world. The Battle of the Guilds pitted the Los Angeles Brewers Guild against San Diego and San Francisco’s Brewers Guilds in a drinker voted challenge. LABG took top honors in an event that lined up craft beer aficionados out Naja’s doors, down the International Boardwalk.
“We’re all brothers in brew,” said Jay Ousten, Naja’s General Manager. “We are very supportive of each other. That’s why you see a lot of collaborations between what may seem like competitive breweries and bars. Everybody has their own unique perspective that overall adds to the entire community.”
The South Bay held its own at Craft Beer’s largest, most prestigious competition — the Great American Beer Festival, in Denver last October. The GABF’s judging panel of 264 beer experts from 12 countries awarded gold, silver, and bronze medals in 96 beer categories and 161 different beer styles from 7,227 entries.
El Segundo Brewery won gold in the American-Style Amber/Dark Lager category with their Casa Azul Mexican Lager.
“It’s a pilgrimage for all who are into craft beer, our craft beer mecca,” said El Segundo Brewing Company president and founder Rob Croxall. “Being primarily an IPA brewery, I’m beyond stoked on winning in this category. I’ve been really happy with Casa Azul over the years but am still in disbelief at how well it did.”
Smog City Brewing won bronze for its Sabre-Toothed Squirrel, an American Hoppy Amber in the American-Style Amber/Red Ale.
Zymurgy Brew Works and Tasting Room opened the first “DIY” brewery in the area in over 20 years. Using the long gone Hamilton Gregg Brew Works in Hermosa Beach as an inspiration, Zymurgy appeals to beer lovers who want to brew their own batch for special events and homebrewers who don’t want to deal with the messy clean-up or want to brewer a larger batch from a proven recipe.
“The brewing process is something everybody can take part in,” Zymurgy owner Bill Baker said. “Just as enjoying beer brings people together, brewing beer brings people together. There’s something special about the first tasting you share with fellow brewing collaborators.”
South Bay’s pioneering craft brewery Strand Brewing Company celebrated their Lucky 7th anniversary. Their Torrance tap room gives patrons a view of the brewery that produces upwards of 8,000 barrels a year. They now offer their classic beers in cans.
The humble beginnings and the go-for-broke attitude behind Strand Brewing Co. are part of their charm and success. Owners Rich Marcello and Joel Elliot are just two relatable everyday dudes. The iconic 24th St. Pale Ale, with its simplicity and sheer likeability, is the fermented epitome of the duo.
“It’s a style the fits everybody’s palate,” said Marcello. “I get stoked when people refer to it as their ‘go-to beer’ and that it’s a part of their everyday set. It’s the one beer they never get tired of drinking.” ER
