11/5/2016 -- San Diego Beer Week: Guild Fest

San Diego Beer Week, the annual celebration in the Capital of Craft, kicks of with Guild Fest.

For the eighth consecutive year, the San Diego Brewers Guild will bring together over 100 breweries from across San Diego County (and beyond) for the region’s highly anticipated annual celebration of beer: San Diego Beer Week (SDBW)— sponsored by San Diego-based Dorco USA, a leading provider of technologically advanced and superior quality shaving products. The 10-day event, beginning Friday, November 4th and continuing through Sunday, November 13th, consists of more than 500 beer-centric events held at locations around the county. San Diego Beer Week is bookended by two historically sold out events hosted by the Guild: San Diego Brewers Guild Festival (often referred to as Guild Fest), SDBW’s two-day official opening event held at downtown’s Port Pavilion on Broadway Pier, and The Beer Garden, the week’s closing event held at The Lodge at Torrey Pines.

SDBW is the Guild’s largest community event and is representative of the organization’s tradition of bringing craft beer to the masses while giving local brewers needed visibility and opportunity for continued success. According to a recent study by the National University System Institute for Policy Research, the economic impact of the craft brewing enterprise continues to grow substantially. San Diego has been especially impacted by this economic growth, with 114 locally-based breweries and brewpubs generating $851 million dollars in sales in 2015 and employing 4,512 workers. In 2015 San Diego’s craft beer dollar share had grown to an impressive 34.25 percent, as shown by data collected by IRI Worldwide shows (at off-premise supermarkets that are greater than 2MM in total sales). 

Craft beer tourism has been a vital component of the sector’s economic growth as millions of visitors explore the region to experience San Diego’s dynamic craft brewing industry— last year’s SDBW attracted thousands of out-of-town guests from as far as 28 states and eight countries. SDBW is the only week of the year when the county’s many breweries come together to host festivals, exclusive beer tastings, pairing dinners and much more to a devoted audience of craft beer fans. The many beer-centric events allow visitors to familiarize themselves with the best of region’s innovative brewing culture while simultaneously enjoying everything San Diego County has to offer.

The week officially kicks off with the 14th annual two-day Guild Fest, presented by the Unified Port of San Diego, on the evening of November 4th, beginning with the VIP Brewer Takeover held at the Port Pavilion on Broadway Pier from 6 to 9 p.m. Guests to this exclusive event will have the opportunity to taste San Diego craft breweries’ finest, rare and specialty beers, as well as limited edition brews made solely for the evening. The all-inclusive ticket includes unlimited beer samples throughout the evening as well as unlimited food samples from more than a dozen local craft-beer centric restaurants, including EAT at the Pearl Hotel, Slater’s 50/50 Liberty Station, Currywurst Frankfurt and Draft. The festivities continue the next day from 2 to 5 p.m. at the SD Brewers Guild Festival— the high energy daytime kick-off event features unlimited craft beer samples from over seventy San Diego breweries, food for purchase from popular local food trucks and restaurants, plus live music. Both Guild Fest events raise funds for the San Diego Brewers Guild and San Diego State University’s L. Robert Payne School of Hospitality & Tourism Management.

Many of San Diego’s 128 craft breweries will collaborate to offer exclusive experiences for SDBW attendees, including ‘meet the brewer’ events, brewery tours, rare beer tastings and educational events. More than 500 individual brewery hosted events will take place during SDBW, a complete list of events will be available at https://www.sdbw.org/schedule.

SDBW week will conclude with the highly anticipated The Beer Garden event at The Lodge at Torrey Pines on Sunday, November 13 from noon to 3 p.m. This year, 14 of the finest local chefs and 28 San Diego breweries will unite for a memorable afternoon of unlimited beer and gourmet food pairings to celebrate the county’s thriving craft beer movement. The sell-out event is a can’t-miss culmination of the week’s happenings, complete with live musical entertainment and stunning panoramic ocean views. Proceeds from the event will benefit both the Chef Celebration Foundation and the San Diego Brewers Guild.

Tickets to the two-day Guild Fest (single day tickets are also available) and The Beer Garden at The Lodge at Torrey Pines can be purchased via Event Brite here:
• Friday, November 4: VIP Brewer Takeover: http://bit.ly/2c4ylOi
• Saturday, November 5: SD Brewers Guild Festival: http://bit.ly/2beTW3C
• Sunday, November 13: The Beer Garden: http://bit.ly/1uj6IRK
Visit www.sdbw.org for all ticket options and pricing. Additional information about all SDBW events can be found here: www.sdbw.org/schedule.
For more information about San Diego Beer Week, please visit www.sdbw.org, its Facebook page, follow @sdbeerweek for Twitter updates or @sdbrewers on Instagram. For information about the San Diego Brewers Guild organization and its other upcoming events, please visit www.sandiegobrewersguild.com.
About the San Diego Brewers Guild
The San Diego Brewers Guild is a nonprofit organization made up of allied San Diego craft breweries, tradespeople, restaurants serving craft beer and craft beer aficionados. Started in 1997 by a group of brewers with a common goal of supporting the brewing culture in San Diego, the Guild is the primary nonprofit organization supporting San Diego’s growing craft beer community. Its mission has remained the same since its inception: to promote awareness and increase the visibility of fresh, locally brewed beer through education and community events. Throughout San Diego’s craft beer history, the Guild has worked to create an open line of communication between brewers, be an advocate for modern beer laws and promote the robust brewing community locally, nationally and internationally. With over 100 craft breweries now operating in San Diego County, the Guild’s role is more important than ever. www.sandiegobrewersguild.com