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

North County brewer shuts down

Six-year-old On the Tracks got clipped on a technicality

In early February, someone posted this On the Tracks Brewery growler to eBay.
In early February, someone posted this On the Tracks Brewery growler to eBay.

Carlsbad's brewery scene has been on the rise, with two new breweries opening in 2016, and two more due by the spring. However, the North County city lost one in December, when On the Tracks Brewery ended its nearly six-year run and closed permanently.

Place

On the Tracks Brewery and Tasting Room

5674 El Camino Real, Carlsbad

The brewery faced a 30-day suspension of its state license that began December 8th. Unable to produce, sell, or serve beer, the brewery closed its brewery and tasting room during that time. Although the suspension ended January 7th, the 7-barrel microbrewery never reopened and its website came down.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Brewery manager John Davison confirmed via text: "On The Tracks Brewery is closed. Did do a 30 day supend in Dec and did not reopen. If anyone wants to buy equipment e-mail [email protected] and someone will get back to them."

According to the ABC, the monthlong suspension was a result of several code violations stemming from a single instance. The violations were administrative, not criminal in nature, regarding a contract brew made by On the Tracks for an unnamed retail establishment in North County.

Melissa Ryan, the state bureau of Alcoholic Beverage Control district supervisor overseeing North County, explained that On the Tracks "was making a beer special for a retailer, and they didn't do all the proper licensing, labeling, and pricing." In essence, the beer was served at the restaurant under the restaurant's brand and not the brewery's. While contract brews between breweries and restaurants are common, they require labeling.

Additionally, the beer itself must be reported to the state bureau under the administrative requirement that "every manufacturer or bottler of beer in this State…shall file with the department the brand name or names under which he sells or labels his draught beer sold in the State."

Ryan says that "agents observed a violation at a retail location," leading to an investigation. "If you look at their spigot," Ryan relayed, "the retailer said they made it, that it's their beer." And unless it's a licensed brewpub, "a restaurant can't make its own beer."

Ryan did not identify the retailer, as she said it "is still facing discipline" for its part in the violations. Johnson also declined to name the restaurant in question, but stressed, "the ABC issue was unintentional," a position supported by the agency's investigation. No fines were issued.

In the meantime, On the Tracks' Type 23 license allowing it to brew and serve beer expired on January 31st. Davison indicates that, even prior to the ABC action, the family-owned brewery was disinclined to renew it. Without further comment, he stated, "Suspension was only one of a number of issues."

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

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

Classical Classical at The San Diego Symphony Orchestra

A concert I didn't know I needed
Next Article

Ramona musicians seek solution for outdoor playing at wineries

Ambient artists aren’t trying to put AC/DC in anyone’s backyard
In early February, someone posted this On the Tracks Brewery growler to eBay.
In early February, someone posted this On the Tracks Brewery growler to eBay.

Carlsbad's brewery scene has been on the rise, with two new breweries opening in 2016, and two more due by the spring. However, the North County city lost one in December, when On the Tracks Brewery ended its nearly six-year run and closed permanently.

Place

On the Tracks Brewery and Tasting Room

5674 El Camino Real, Carlsbad

The brewery faced a 30-day suspension of its state license that began December 8th. Unable to produce, sell, or serve beer, the brewery closed its brewery and tasting room during that time. Although the suspension ended January 7th, the 7-barrel microbrewery never reopened and its website came down.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Brewery manager John Davison confirmed via text: "On The Tracks Brewery is closed. Did do a 30 day supend in Dec and did not reopen. If anyone wants to buy equipment e-mail [email protected] and someone will get back to them."

According to the ABC, the monthlong suspension was a result of several code violations stemming from a single instance. The violations were administrative, not criminal in nature, regarding a contract brew made by On the Tracks for an unnamed retail establishment in North County.

Melissa Ryan, the state bureau of Alcoholic Beverage Control district supervisor overseeing North County, explained that On the Tracks "was making a beer special for a retailer, and they didn't do all the proper licensing, labeling, and pricing." In essence, the beer was served at the restaurant under the restaurant's brand and not the brewery's. While contract brews between breweries and restaurants are common, they require labeling.

Additionally, the beer itself must be reported to the state bureau under the administrative requirement that "every manufacturer or bottler of beer in this State…shall file with the department the brand name or names under which he sells or labels his draught beer sold in the State."

Ryan says that "agents observed a violation at a retail location," leading to an investigation. "If you look at their spigot," Ryan relayed, "the retailer said they made it, that it's their beer." And unless it's a licensed brewpub, "a restaurant can't make its own beer."

Ryan did not identify the retailer, as she said it "is still facing discipline" for its part in the violations. Johnson also declined to name the restaurant in question, but stressed, "the ABC issue was unintentional," a position supported by the agency's investigation. No fines were issued.

In the meantime, On the Tracks' Type 23 license allowing it to brew and serve beer expired on January 31st. Davison indicates that, even prior to the ABC action, the family-owned brewery was disinclined to renew it. Without further comment, he stated, "Suspension was only one of a number of issues."

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

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

Now what can they do with Encinitas unstable cliffs?

Make the cliffs fall, put up more warnings, fine beachgoers?
Next Article

Gonzo Report: Downtown thrift shop offers three bands in one show

Come nightfall, Humble Heart hosts The Beat
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