Top San Diego Beer Week Events

The region’s largest craft brewing event returns for its fifth year with ten days of cask nights, beer festivals and everything in between from Nov. 1-10.

San Diego is a beer town, no doubt about it. And with more than 60 participating breweries and 600 different events, navigating the holy week—San Diego Beer Week—can be a difficult task. From pairing dinners to the annual Brewers Guild Festival, we’ve rounded up the biggest and best events to help you make most of San Diego Beer Week this Nov. 1-10. If you’re looking for something to do in San Diego this weekend and love beer, this is your spot. See the complete list of events here: sandiegobrewersguild.org/events

VIP Brewer Takeover
Nov. 1. Rub elbows with local award-winning brewers and see why San Diego beer is taking over palates everywhere. This SDBW preview party will showcase the county’s finest rare and specialty beers, including libations brewed just for the event. Tickets include unlimited beer tastings, food samples from San Diego’s craft beer-friendly restaurants and food trucks, a commemorative tasting glass and live musical entertainment. $75/pp. 6-9 p.m. Port Pavilion on Broadway Pier, 1000 N. Harbor Drive, San Diego.

San Diego Brewers Guild Festival
Nov 2. Don’t miss the official SDBW kickoff with rare and specialty beer tastings, including some brewed just for Beer Week. General admission includes 15 3-ounce beer samples, a commemorative tasting glass and live entertainment. Upgrade to a premiere access ticket for early access and five additional tastes. Food will be available for sale from local restaurants and food trucks. $40/general admission. $55/premiere access. 2-5 p.m. Port Pavilion on Broadway Pier, 1000 N. Harbor Drive, San Diego.

Ballast Point @ SD TapRoom
Nov. 3. Meets the local legends behind Ballast Point at this ultimate tap takeover, where SD Tap Room will be tapping the best and rarest beers from Ballast Point all day long. SD TapRoom, 1269 Garnet Ave., San Diego. 858.274.1010.

The Lost Abbey Ultimate Box Set Listening Party & Encore
Nov. 4. Thirty lucky individuals will take Noble Experiment to its maximum capacity for this tasting series from Lost Abbey’s extremely exclusive Ultimate Box Set, a collection of 13 rare beers with label art and box cases designed by Grammy-winning art director Matt Taylor of Varnish Studio in collaboration with John Schulz of StudioSchulz. Outside Noble’s secret door, Neighborhood will host the “encore” with a lineup of Lost Abbey and Port beers on tap, including 2012 Red Poppy, Framboise, Hop 15 and Angel’s Share. Noble Experiment and Neighborhood, 777 G Street, San Diego. 619.446.0002.

12 Brewers, 12 Casks, 12 Mallets
Nov. 6. Meet Stone’s brewing stars and sample 12 casks of deliciously enhanced Stone brews. Precisely at 5 p.m., 12 Stone brewers will each tap their unique casks simultaneously… with mallets. Special cask variations include Stone Ruination IPA with orange peel and vanilla, Stone IPA with habanero peppers and cilantro, and Stone Cali-Belgique IPA with black limes and Sorachi Ace hops. 5-7 p.m. Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens, 1999 Citracado Parkway, Escondido. 760.471.4999.

A Night of Craft Beer, Food Pairing, Education and Interaction
Nov. 6. Ballast Point, Hess Brewing, Modern Times and Saint Archer will be in attendance for this evening of craft beer, food pairings and education. Set up as a free-flow tasting dinner, attendees will have an opportunity to enjoy eight unique craft beer and gourmet food parings at their leisure, talk with the chefs and brewers, and learn about the history of San Diego’s craft beer culture. The event also includes entrance into the “Bottled & Kegged: San Diego Craft Beer Culture” exhibit. 6-9 p.m. $69. San Diego History Center, 1649 El Prado, Suite #3, Balboa Park.

Master Pairing Beer Dinner with The Lost Abbey
Nov. 7. The Lost Abbey is widely revered for its painstakingly crafted abbey-style ales and barrel-aged beers. This spectacular seven-course meal is no different. Stone’s “Dr.” Bill Sysak has paired each dish with two of the best beers The Lost Abbey has to offer, many of which are rare and highly sought after. 6:30-9 p.m. $79. Stone Brewing World Bistro & Gardens, 1999 Citracado Parkway,  Escondido. 760.471.4999.

Best Damn Sour Fest 3
Nov. 9. Pucker Up Sour Fans! Best Damn Sour Fest is shocking palates yet again, this year with 10 4-ounce tasters of limited edition sours, including Cantillon Vigneronne, Fantome Extra Sour, Russian River Supplication and a secret keg. 5:30-8:30 p.m. $60/advance. $65/door. The Beer Co., 602 Broadway, San Diego. 619.232.6367.

Beer Garden
Nov. 10. The closing reception to SDBW is a gourmet beer and food-pairing event featuring 12 renown chefs and 24 local breweries. Each chef will be matched with two breweries and will prepare a dish that pair perfectly with each beer. Tickets include unlimited tastes. $75/pp. 12-3 p.m. The Lodge at Torrey Pines, 11480 N Torrey Pines Rd.