keg beer in San Diego

[notjustastomach]

In San Diego, where's the best place from which to purchase a keg of craft IIPA? Okay, rent the keg; buy the beer.

An establishment that refrigerates its beer properly and has rapid turnover is better than one that keeps warm beer around for a long time.
Lower price is better than higher price.
Delivery is better than having to pick it up myself.

[notjustastomach]

Thank you everybody for your thoughtful advice. I haven't made a decision yet. Now I am leaning towards a 30-liter keg of Maredsous Dubbel instead of a IIPA. Oh my troubles! Thankfully I have time to drink some more and think some more.

[MrKrispy]

damn that sounds really tasty - and expensive! Have fun!

[juantanamera]

For craft IIPA, you will almost certainly have to make advance arrangements. Due to the recent high prices for hops, many breweries have suspended or reduced production of IIPA's, so things like Dorado or Pure Hoppiness are very hard for bars to get, and nearly impossible for private purchase. Larger breweries like Stone are more likely to have IIPA kegs available. In fact, Ruination is probably the only local IIPA you can easily buy right now in kegs unless you have some good connections in the brewing industry.

[buenasolas]

Beer King in the Kearny Mesa area has a good stock of all kinds of kegs. They are well refrigerated and have a high turnover, as that is all they sell. I would not rent hardware from them(taps,buckets,etc) as their markup on these items is high. They can get pretty much anything that has distribution in SD county. I also like that they had many of their kegs as bottles, and offered them as tasters when I went by to pick some kegs up for a picnic party.

http://www.beerking.com/Beer-King-Microbrews.html
<A HREF="http://www.beerking.com/Beer-King-Mic... King Microbrew List</A>

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Beer King
5037 Shawline St, San Diego, CA

[normalheightsfoodie]

There is a brewery on at the intersection of San Diego and Rancho Mission Road::
Firehouse
10306 San Diego Mission Rd
San Diego, CA 92108

[phone]‎
firehousebrew.com

According to their website they sell/rent kegs.

[Josh]

That's not a place I'd recommend. Especially not if you're looking for anything like an IPA.

[Josh]

I'd go to Ballast Point aka Home Brew Mart near USD. They rent kegs, and they make the beer on-site. If you're looking for IIPA I think that'd be your best bet, though they don't deliver AFAIK.

[Uncle Lefty]

I agree with Josh. Ballast Point makes the finest beer in San Diego - Big Eye IPA. It's at the bottom of Linda Vista Road, just east of Napa.

[DougOLis]

Big Eye is weak compared to their other IPA offerings - Sculpin or Dorado. Either of those might be difficult to get in kegs though.

I think that for a true IIPA, Pure Hoppiness might be the best and easiest to come by (it does require driving out to Alpine though). I'd go with the Green Flash offerings if you're more in North County.

[MrKrispy]

For the last year or so Alpine hasn't been selling kegs of Pure Hoppiness while they were expanding. A buddy of mine has been on the Wait-List for over a year haha.

[DougOLis]

Ahh, bummer, didn't know that. I wonder if they'll start doing it again soon since they were finally able to expand.

[MrKrispy]

I'm going up there today so I will ask them.

[MrKrispy]

Stopped at Alpine...no kegs of Pure Hoppiness for some time, and no bottles for quite a while either...they are knee deep in expansion for the beer garden/BBQ thing

[Uncle Lefty]

My mistake. I didn't see the 'II', as in Double IPA. Those doubles are too big, even for me, and I am a beer guy.

[MrKrispy]

Ballast Point doesn't sell their IIPA (Dorado) in kegs to the general public.

[Josh]

Interesting.

Probably would be hard to get a IIPA keg at BevMo, too, then. It's not exactly the most common beer style.

I wonder if Green Flash would do it.

[DougOLis]

Why not get a keg directly from a brewery? Maybe try Pure Hoppiness at Alpine, West Coast IPA at Green Flash, Sculpin at Ballast Point, or Ruination at Stone.

Otherwise I'd try Beverages for Less in Santee or Del Cerro Liquor (is that the new name or the old name? I get confused) near Windmill Farms.

[JRSD]

I think Del Cerro Liquor is now K&B Liquor. Not sure if they carry kegs.

As far as bottle shops, I have had good success getting bottles at Beverages for Less in Santee and would think that it would be a good place to get a keg as well.

[DougOLis]

I screwed up, Sculpin is an IPA at Ballast Point. Dorado is the IIPA but I highly doubt you can get that in kegs.

[MrKrispy]

Honestly BevMo is probably your best bet. You might try Longs in PB, Liquor Locker on Morena, or Beverages 4 Less in Santee depending on where you are located.

[Josh]

For IIPA?