August 2022

Locals Only San Diego’s Estate Beer Project aims to redefine what “local” really means for craft beer

freight, develop more sustainable farming and shipping practices, give brewers access to higher quality ingredients, and be a path for San Diego to develop a standout identity in U.S. craft beer.” Kiely first came up with the idea in 2017 while working on a campaign promoting California-grown grain. As he met with local farmers, he realized there was a disconnect between what’s being grown here and what breweries are purchasing from elsewhere. Considering San Diego County has more farms than any other county in the U.S., he began to plant the seed with companies like White Labs, the go-to in the craft beer community for yeast and fermentation supplies. Erik Fowler, head of education and craft hospitality at White Labs, says it’s the debate over “local” that convinced him to take part.“[Local] is an ever-changing definition—honestly, we’ll just be excited that people are questioning and trying to understand, whether it’s a brewer or beer drinker,” he says. Additional partners for the San Diego Estate Beer Project include the Farm to Institution Center, an advocacy group to directly connect local farmers with their surrounding communities and businesses; Seed Consulting Group, a sustainability- focused consultancy; and Admiral Maltings, a craft malting company producing floor- malted, California-grown grains for brewers and distillers. “One has to go beyond ‘Does it grow?’ to ‘Is it sustainable?’” said co-founder of Admiral Maltings Ron Silberstein during a June meeting of the Estate Beer Project members. Considering it takes about seven gallons of water to make one gallon of beer, water conservation and carbon footprint are big concerns—especially when establishing a network of local farmers committed to growing barley in the water- parched Southwest. From a pure quality standpoint, Fowler is pretty sure it’s a win. “Sourcing local and building these relationships should help improve beer quality and the story of what connects us to our beautiful county,” says Fowler.“We’re excited to see what conversations it starts and where it takes beer in San Diego.” Winning brews from the first San Diego Estate Beer Project Pro-Am Competition will be poured at Guild Fest during San Diego Beer Week in November. Follow sdbeer.com for more Beer Week details.

by Beth Demmon

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ocal beer is a fantasy. That’s a grandiose statement, but an accurate one. When we refer to a beer as “local,” we mean it’s brewed here. But for virtually all craft beers, ingredients come from afar: hops from New Zealand, malt from Montana, and adjuncts from all over the world. San Diego’s first truly local beer—using exclusively local ingredients—has yet to be created. Tom Kiely is out to change that. Specifically, he wants to create the county’s first “estate beer,” using only hyper-local ingredients to showcase the specific terroir of the region. Very few estate beers exist, anywhere, thanks to challenges like varying growing conditions, climate change, and crop availability. But for those who manage to grow, process, and brew beer in one place, the results can wholly encapsulate the concept of “local.” The logistics—convincing farmers to plant new crops, finalizing group purchasing agreements, predicting ongoing water accessibility issues, investing in local processing facilities—are daunting. So San Diego’s first estate beer is months, if not years, away. But Kiely and others have formed a coalition of California-based businesses of farmers, maltsters, brewers, and others to make it a reality.

“ This will be a path for San Diego to develop a standout identity in U.S. craft beer. ” - Tom Kiely

Why invest in such a long-term project with numerous challenges? Because the long-term benefits far outweigh them, says Kiely: “This will help bolster our local farming community, save brewers money on

San Diego Estate Beer Project participant White Labs

48 AUGUST 2022

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