For the third year now, BeerX: Beer and Music Festival made its way back into the heart of San Diego with some of it’s own locally-sourced talent for the enjoyment of everyone’s taste AND ear buds.

Presented by 91X, Waterfront Park was transformed to set the stage for an evening of deliciously unlimited craft beer tastings and paired them with the sweet, sultry sounds of bands such as Splavender, Chicano Batman, finishing the night off with a little reggae in J Boog and Iration.

The moment you entered, you were greeted with your own 2oz beer shooter (shown above as featured image) which you could fill at any of the 30+ breweries that were in attendance. Of course you had to get back in line for 2nd’s but, even though the lines got pretty lengthy, it didn’t seem like too long of a wait at any given time. With 4 hours to get your fill, and with the right company, I’d say the price was worth the time.

Here are the highlights of our CRAWL around the festival grounds in a new series of segments we would like to call: UNDER THE TENT.

UNDER THE TENT: BEERS OF BEERX

Duckfoot Brewing Company

Here I am (pictured right) having a taster of THE CONTENDER, a West-Coast Style IPA with Brett (pictured left), the owner of  Duckfoot Brewing Co. With a 6.5% ABV this lighter IPA was very crisp and piney with some citrus flavors in the mix, making it a perfect start to this hot summer day! Duckfoot is located in Miramar between I-15 and I-805, check out their full beer selection and more info at http://duckfootbeer.com/  Over my shoulder, our audio engineer J-Bone gets the photobombing credit… or are WE double photobombing his shoot with the 91X crew?! J-Bone, you’re famous! Check out the 91X instagram for THAT, plus more…or whatever.

 MONKEY PAW BREWING COMPANY:

 I felt a disturbance in the force, so I made my way over to Nick and his crew over at Monkey Paw Brewing  Co. where they serve their Burgeon Darth Fader Schwarzbier. This beer was as dark as its name suggests but it wasn’t as heavy, coming in at 6% ABV. This German Style beer was definitely a more memorable experience in a sea of American style IPAs. They’re located in East Village so check em out next time you’re out on the town. They have a huge selection and are very excited for what’s to come for them in the near future, so stay tuned for a future podcast or visit their site http://monkeypawbrewing.com/

THORN STREET BREWING COMPANY

Before I met Jay Jones (pictured far left), I had heard so many great things about him and they were all true. As soon as I walked up, he greeted me with a smile and was very excited to talk beer with us! This North Park brewery is a definite go-to whenever I’m in the area so I was really glad to see their tent at this festival. With their wide range of different beer styles and a constantly updated selection, this place never disappoints! I have always been a fan of their SANTOS coffee stout and their Russian Imperial Stout the DARK TSAR, so I’m always interested in checking out what else Thorn Street Brewery has in store for us!  The SANTOS has a mellow coffee flavor and is surprisingly light (5.9% ABV) for a stout! The Russian DARK TSAR stout, on the other hand, is a beast at 10.4% ABV. Check out their menu and event calendar at http://thornstreetbrew.com/

NOVO BRAZIL BREWING

This vibrantly colorful brewing company is the first of it’s kind for my home town of Chula Vista, Ca. Their unique Brazilian soul is woven throughout their entire design from the artwork on their cans, to the aromas and flavors of the brews themselves. Thier MULATA AMBER ALE (5.2% ABV) won Bronze in the 2017 San Diego International Beer Competition in the Amber/Red Ale category for its distinct flavor and refreshing qualities. Definitely an enjoyable experience all around… and you don’t have to book an international flight. Visit NOVO at http://novobrazilbrewing.com/ for more information.

Here are a couple of breweries visiting from other parts of California

FIGUEROA MOUNTAIN BREWING

The Ladies from Fig Mtn Brewing came down the coast all the way from Santa Barbara! I probably came back for their DANISH RED LAGER (5.5% ABV) more times than any other beer at this festival, it was just that good. A great balance of that sweet caramel malt with the blend of North American and German hops… deeeelicious! Find out if a store or pub near you carries any of their multiple-award-winning craft brews at http://www.figmtnbrew.com/ you won’t be disappointed.

 

RITUAL BREWING COMPANY

Making their way down to us from Redlands, CA is Sean and his team from RITUAL BREWING CO.  Sadly, I only tried their WITS END (4.8% ABV) Belgian Style Witbier… three, maybe four times… but I wish I had tried a few others. Good thing is, I may not have to wait very long! Sean was excited to share that they are looking to expand and open a taproom here in San Diego. A toast to you my friend! We hope to see you around and best of luck with the new location! Visit their site for updates and locations at http://ritualbrewing.com

UNDER THE TENT: MUSIC OF BEERX

SPLAVENDER:

This band is as San Diego as you can get! Their style is an eclectic mixture of the SO-Cal surfer lifestyle with some jazzy tones and some funky, psychedelic grooves. Very fun to watch! They were also kind enough to take some time to talk beer with us! Check out our interview and take a deeper look into the band here:

 

CHICANO BATMAN:

With their new album Freedom Is Free dropping earlier this year, this band has a positive message to share with all of us. Their stance on self expression has lead them to play for very influential public figures, such as Senator Bernie Sanders during his 2016 Presidential Campaign. Always excited to see these guys perform.

J BOOG

This man has come a long way from his origins in the boy band B2K! Having the background as an R&B singer really makes his tracks stand out among the rest. He made BeerX one of his stops on his Sounds of Summer 2017 Tour, but it won’t be his only festival appearance.

IRATION

Every time I hear a track from this band, it takes me back to some of the greatest memories of my life. Since their EP release in 2006, I couldn’t even count how many times I have seen these guys live. Always full of energy, you can’t help but dance in place and sing along with the crowd at the top of your lungs. With their singles such as “Time Bomb” and “Wait and See,” you almost have no choice.

There you have it folks! Our Crawl Around BeerX has come to close, but don’t worry! We will be covering other festivals and beer events around San Diego so stay tuned for more stories and future memories here at SD Pubcrawlers. Also, check out and follow our soundcloud account for upcoming Podcasts! Super excited and can’t wait to bring you all along for the adventures! https://soundcloud.com/pubcrawlerspodcast

Have you seen any of these bands live? Were you also at BeerX?

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