Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

New brewer a “Local” product

Taking a look at the homebrewer hired to man the Local’s brewpub project

Robert Masterson (left) posing with fellow homebrewing competition winner Ryan Reschan at the 2013 Stone Homebrew Competition and AHA Rally.
Robert Masterson (left) posing with fellow homebrewing competition winner Ryan Reschan at the 2013 Stone Homebrew Competition and AHA Rally.

Time flies when you’re covering a craft brewing scene that, in the past three years, has seen 78 brewery-owned hospitality venues come online within San Diego County. Of those, 55 were the products of completely new brewing companies. And, currently, my list of work-in-progress brewery projects clocks in at 40-plus. Some of those have been on that list for years. Case in point, a project from a downtown bar and restaurant that I let readers in on a whopping 16 months ago.

While it doesn’t yet have a name, I can finally disclose details I had way back then, but wasn’t at liberty to share. The Local Eatery and Drinking Hole (1065 Fourth Avenue, Downtown) is currently closed for renovations. As reported in October of 2013, its rebirth will include the addition of brewing equipment, making this long-time hotspot for booze and pub-crawling a full-fledged brewpub. But who will be in charge of the new 10-barrel brewhouse?

Sponsored
Sponsored

When I first reported this, I was itching to share the identity of that individual. After all, I had just worked closely with him as part of my day job at Stone Brewing Co., where I interviewed this gentleman as one of two co-winners of Stone’s 2013 homebrewing contest. In doing so, I had the chance to taste a couple of his homespun beers and was impressed by their flavor and quality. So when I found out The Local had selected him to fill their brewer position, I was ready to tell the world and offer a vote of confidence. Unfortunately, the folks at his day job weren’t privy to his impending move, so I kept this news under my hat until he was ready to talk.

Now, well over a year later, he’s told all the necessary people at his employer (and numerous news outlets), so I can finally tell all of you that Robert Masterson will serve as head brewer for this new venture. A member of local homebrew club, the Society of Barley Engineers, Masterson has won many awards for his beers, including the aforementioned Stone American Homebrewers Association-sanctioned competition that saw he and fellow homebrewer Ryan Reschan’s tropical India pale ale, Robert Masterson & Ryan Reschan/Rip Current/Stone R&R Coconut IPA brewed at Stone’s Escondido facility and distributed nationwide.

As hard as it was for me to wait to tell readers about this, it must have been even harder for Masterson to wait so long to see his crack at the big leagues come to fruition. Look for The Local’s yet-to-be-named brewing component to debut this April when the greatly expanded venue reopens.

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Hike off those holiday calories, Poinsettias are peaking

Winter Solstice is here and what is winter?
Robert Masterson (left) posing with fellow homebrewing competition winner Ryan Reschan at the 2013 Stone Homebrew Competition and AHA Rally.
Robert Masterson (left) posing with fellow homebrewing competition winner Ryan Reschan at the 2013 Stone Homebrew Competition and AHA Rally.

Time flies when you’re covering a craft brewing scene that, in the past three years, has seen 78 brewery-owned hospitality venues come online within San Diego County. Of those, 55 were the products of completely new brewing companies. And, currently, my list of work-in-progress brewery projects clocks in at 40-plus. Some of those have been on that list for years. Case in point, a project from a downtown bar and restaurant that I let readers in on a whopping 16 months ago.

While it doesn’t yet have a name, I can finally disclose details I had way back then, but wasn’t at liberty to share. The Local Eatery and Drinking Hole (1065 Fourth Avenue, Downtown) is currently closed for renovations. As reported in October of 2013, its rebirth will include the addition of brewing equipment, making this long-time hotspot for booze and pub-crawling a full-fledged brewpub. But who will be in charge of the new 10-barrel brewhouse?

Sponsored
Sponsored

When I first reported this, I was itching to share the identity of that individual. After all, I had just worked closely with him as part of my day job at Stone Brewing Co., where I interviewed this gentleman as one of two co-winners of Stone’s 2013 homebrewing contest. In doing so, I had the chance to taste a couple of his homespun beers and was impressed by their flavor and quality. So when I found out The Local had selected him to fill their brewer position, I was ready to tell the world and offer a vote of confidence. Unfortunately, the folks at his day job weren’t privy to his impending move, so I kept this news under my hat until he was ready to talk.

Now, well over a year later, he’s told all the necessary people at his employer (and numerous news outlets), so I can finally tell all of you that Robert Masterson will serve as head brewer for this new venture. A member of local homebrew club, the Society of Barley Engineers, Masterson has won many awards for his beers, including the aforementioned Stone American Homebrewers Association-sanctioned competition that saw he and fellow homebrewer Ryan Reschan’s tropical India pale ale, Robert Masterson & Ryan Reschan/Rip Current/Stone R&R Coconut IPA brewed at Stone’s Escondido facility and distributed nationwide.

As hard as it was for me to wait to tell readers about this, it must have been even harder for Masterson to wait so long to see his crack at the big leagues come to fruition. Look for The Local’s yet-to-be-named brewing component to debut this April when the greatly expanded venue reopens.

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Reader writer Chris Ahrens tells the story of Windansea

The shack is a landmark declaring, “The best break in the area is out there.”
Next Article

Mary Catherine Swanson wants every San Diego student going to college

Where busing from Southeast San Diego to University City has led
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader