We are headed out to La Jolla, CA which is pronounced the same way as the “Hoya,” in Georgetown Hoyas. It means the jewel in Español. It is a most appropriate name. A jewel indeed.

I weave my way through Under Armour, Callaway, Titleist Pro V1 clad men overrunning the airport on an annual migration to Surprise, AZ to extended bromances beyond the confines of Kansas City and visit our beloved Royals at spring training. The festivities will most likely include endless rounds of golf, analysis, and observations of the upcoming baseball season! It all sounds so idyllic in a mancation type of way, similar to when middle age women gather at spa resorts and sip frozen drinks while chatting poolside. I entertain whether or not this should be me. I decide I’d rather shoot myself in the face.

I pass through security and I feel good, almost cocky. Let the adventures begin. I could pull a Tim Ferriss and life hack my way through a trip like this. I could half starve like Bear Grylls and save a shit ton of money! Nah, I have a wife. This trip will be an exploration of grotesque opulence that will take me a month to recover from financially. There will be no roughing it for me. It’s all plush sheets, lobster tails, and fresh fish from here on out. As it should be I suppose.

Oh yeah! Isn’t his is an article about beer? Yes it is, sort of. The only official shit I have planned this trip is a visit to Ballast Point Brewing’s main location. Like everything at The KC Social, all is negotiable. We are now in a deal as to whether or not this shit is about beer, California, or life in general.

To the average person, I am considered a beer nerd. To actual beer nerds, I am far from a beer nerd. I agree with both assessments. I’m a black and tan man! An enigma. I am but a man and his beer. I readily relish the taste of a well done pilsner as much as the most sought after sours and barrel aged delights. I have no interest in whale hunting or trades but I have been lucky enough to try some truly world class offerings. We are lucky as fuck right now. We have a ton of well made and frankly delicious brews floating around. It is downright ridiculous. I can spend all year trying new and remarkable beers here in the Kansas City market and never ever get bored. We drinkers are a spoiled lot right now. I cannot see how all this is sustainable but that is another fight for another day. For now we have hella options.

This weekend my beer of choice is from one brewer in particular.  Ballast Point beer recently became readily available in the Kansas City market. My love of Ballast Point extends from Longfin Lager to my personal favorite, Habanero Sculpin. I love Habanero Sculpin! Hell, I love regular sculpin. So they took a world class IPA and then add the heat and sweetness of habanero? I’m in! I had no choice. I am a victim to this shit. Habanero, grapefruit, and pineapple were the first toes Ballast Point brewers dipped into the ocean of flavor options available to enhance its incredibly solid flagship. Its opened up a range of versatility to keep the nerds interested and satisfy the casual craft beer consumer. They have been able to masterfully straddle both worlds. Ballast Point is in the unique position of having its nitro velvet cake and eat it too. They have massive growth potential. Ballast Point is creating sour beers like Blackberry Sour Wench, barrel aged stouts aged in Willet Bourbon barrels, Specialty Nitros like Red Velvet, to their unique fruit twists on stellar flagship beers. They do all this and still introduce new craft enthusiasts to session IPA’s and pale ales. There are still plenty of people who consider these styles a massive departure from the normalcy the everyday American lager.

We head over to Ballast Point’s Miramar location, 9045 Carroll Way San Diego, CA 92121 which is 15 minutes from our hotel in La Jolla. The brewers, canners, and bottlers are cranking full steam ahead. There is a genuine bustle in the air. We take a tour through the canning and bottling lines and people are flying by hard at work. All breweries have an incredible amount of work to be done but the sheer volume and pace is the most impressive I have ever witnessed. Ballast Point is not fucking around. They are in most states and pushing distribution internationally. That’s a lot of Sculpin. The branding and artwork as legend has it is more the result of chance and a fluke. According to the Ballast point website:

“Home Brew Mart regular, Paul Elder struck up a conversation about fishing, and then pulled out a sketchbook full of meticulously detailed fish illustrations.”

Those illustrations have become the immediately recognizable call sign to the Ballast Points lineup. It doesn’t take a genius to see the international appeal of the maritime scapes. The art captures the unique style and laid back spirit of San Diego. The beautifully crafted brews allow one to take in a mini vacation with every six pack. I do three straight full pours of fresh Habanero Sculpin followed by a myriad of options that put me in the hole quickly. I follow this up by doing serious damage in the gift shop in efforts to take home mementos of Cali life. Ballast Point has captured San Diego in a can and is spreading the feel good vibes to the rest of the world one sip at a time. It’s a beautiful thing.  It’s early spring in KC and you can still catch a bit of that California sunshine…