Sierra Nevada Beer Camp Tour Southwest Edition
Great beer is synonymous to Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, as great beer festivals are to San Diego. Put them together, and you have one such fest of epic proportions. On Sunday, July 20th, 95 breweries answered Sierra’s call to participate in the largest craft beer celebration in history. The second in the seven-stop Beer Camp tour took place at a premium SD locale: the Embarcadero Marina Park (North) with over 3,000 beer-loving attendees thirsty for some of the best beers in the southwest.
You may have heard about this year’s Beer Camp mixed-pack hitting shelves earlier this summer featuring 12 unique collaborations with breweries from all over the country. Bars all over are hosting tap takeovers to offer beer lovers a chance to experience each beer. The Beer Camp Tour is the companion piece to this project; a meticulously-planned multi-city event in which a dozen breweries hop on a tour bus to bring great beer to the masses — but its the expansive brewery lineup at each stop that really brings life to the party.
We couldn’t have asked for a more perfect day in San Diego. The marine layer had burned off, there was a cool breeze, and the space at the venue made for a comfortable festival-going experience. The brewery list was top notch with heavy-hitters like Russian River, Firestone Walker, and Cigar City stepping up to the plate alongside strong local support from SD breweries including Societe, Mike Hess, and Culture. The LA beer scene was also well-represented with about a dozen LA brewers including Eagle Rock Brewery, Ladyface Ale Companie, and Wolf Creek. Out of State standouts included brews from Joseph James Brewing out of Henderson, NV.
The Southwest edition of Beer Camp filled all the criteria for a great beer festival. From taplist to facilities, food, atmosphere, live entertainment, and even engagement between brewers and guests. You just can’t beat having Ken Grossman pulling you a sample of Hoptimum on a nice summer day. . If this is how they’re pulling off an event of this magnitude in their first year, we’ll be patiently waiting to see how this grows in the years to come.
The tour continues to Denver on July 25th. Follow along and make your plans to head to one of the best beer events this summer at www.beercamp.sierranevada.com.
