Newfangled Times Brewery/Roastery in Point Loma. Photo by Daily Coffee News.
Given the astonishingly parallel rise of craft beer and specialty coffee over the past two decades, it would be demanding to find an American city of any size that doesn’t have either. Over the past nine years that I’ve lived in San Diego—a city that now boasts a spectacular array of options for lovers of both beverages—it’s been impossible to separate my love of beer from my love of high-quality coffee.
Beer and coffee aren’t just my favorite beverages, they’re increasingly being redefined by dedicated crafters in both industries, who typically have a passion for perfection and an ethos driven by quality above all else. In that sense, they represent the perfect pairing of drinks. San Diego’s craft beer industry is one of the most mature in the country, but the city’s craft coffee has made significant strides on its own in recent years. This has led to a boom in coffee and beer collaborations, where coffee isn’t just a filler, but a key ingredient associated with a brand focused on quality.
“While beer and coffee are different in many ways, the craft scene shares a common ideology: delivering the best product possible to the customer and loving what you do,” says Rob Moran, owner and partner at Heartwork Cafe in Mission Hills, told Daily Coffee News.
Heartwork Coffee Bar in Mission Hills. Photo via Facebook.
Perhaps the clearest connection between these two industries in San Diego can be found in Modern times of beerA 4-year-old craft brewery in Point Loma that is also a deadly stern coffee roastery. Their in-house coffee program was started to have more control over the Ethiopian/Sumatra blend for their flagship Black House oatmeal stout, but quickly expanded into a variety of seasonal and one-off releases, including the City of the Dead export stout with bourbon-barrel-aged coffee beans. Newfangled Times currently roasts over 9,000 pounds of coffee per month—largely independently of their beer program—and now offers a variety of canned frosty brews, as well as Black House Beer on NitroThe first ever Caffeine Carnival was even held in February to celebrate the intersection of craft beer and coffee.
The success of Newfangled Times—and the success of other brewer/roaster collaborations—isn’t just about changing trends or more sophisticated palates. It’s also about changing the way we think about craft.
“San Diego residents are finally starting to realize that coffee is more than just a commodity,” Moran said. “It touches the lives of people all over the world. People are also starting to understand the power of where they spend their money.”
Barrel-aged coffees at Newfangled Times in Point Loma. Photo by Daily Coffee News.
Local coffee and beer collaborations go beyond the standard coffee stouts, though there are plenty of great “standards” to choose from. Show coffee/An abnormal brewery companyThe M3 anniversary beer with 12.4% alcohol content sold out in seconds and remains one of the most coveted bottles by collectors. If you’re looking for something less alcoholic, Dark Horse Coffee Roastery/Autumn Brewing Company5.0% ABV 2 AM Bike Ride is a silky alternative that’s even better on nitro. It’s also almost always available, which is convenient for those who want to avoid hunting down treasures in San Diego bottle shops.
There is also no shortage of award winners. ZUMBAR coffee/New English Brewings Chocolate Coffee Imperial Stout (9.0% ABV) won gold AND Coffee Beer bronze at several Great American Beer Festivals, including 2015, when California breweries dominated the category. This year, Mocha Machine from Beachwood BBQ & Brewing in Long Beach won silver, and one of my favorites, Bacon & Eggs imperial coffee porter (8.0% ABV) from Bird Rock Coffee Roastery/Pizza Port Brewing Company — he caught the bronze.
Bird Rock Coffee Roasters in Morena. Archive photo.
Coffee beer isn’t the only category where San Diego breweries have won gold medals for their coffee-infused products. AleSmith Brewing Company’s 12.0% ABV Speedway Stout has two gold medals in the GABF Imperial Stout category, as well as a silver in the Aged Beer category, showing that coffee beer can go beyond its basic definition and appeal to even the most reluctant coffee drinkers.
Revolution Roasters in Oceanside. Photo via Instagram.
The beauty of these joint efforts lies in the spirit of cooperation and mutual respect between both industries.
“I love going to and working at craft beer events and seeing how close people are in the beer community,” said Nicole Araujo, a former roaster at ZUMBAR Coffee who is now a quality control specialist at InterAmerican Coffee, a green coffee importer. “I see that happening more and more in our coffee community in San Diego, and it’s really stimulating.”
While many local breweries have pledged their allegiance to locally roasted coffee, many others have sought something more distant, from San Diego’s ultra-trendy Shadowy Horse and James Coffee Co. to San Diego-based coffee shop Foxy Coffee Co. (formerly Ladies and Gentlemen Coffee Roasters, now based in Portland, Oregon), Timeless coffee in Oakland, Flying Goat Coffee in Sonoma, Four Barrel Coffee AND Glass coffee in San Francisco, Temple Coffee Roastery in Sacramento and beyond. Adolescent Hickory, from San Diego’s North Park neighborhood, has taken its “coffee and beer” approach a step further by releasing coffee in a can beer with partner Mason Ale Works in October.
From a coffee lover’s perspective, these connections between coffee and beer brands represent a potential modern audience – consumers who have already shown an interest in things focused on “craft” such as sustainable sourcing, unique and sporadic ingredients, and the compelling stories behind them.
Holsem Coffee in North Park. Photo via Facebook.
Experts like Araujo remain confident about the continued growth of craft coffee in San Diego. Given the success of our craft beer, there’s every reason to be. Araujo said, “The more the industry grows, the more educated people become about quality coffee, and that only further raises the standards of the industry.”
