In November 2020, the founders of Rip Current Brewing announced they were in search of interested parties to invest in or take over the San Marcos business. With an established brand and scores of awards to its name, majority partner and Brewmaster Paul Sangster believed in the brand…and he still does. So, too, do John Boro, Matthew Holden and Manny Ortiz, who answered the call and joined Sangster as co-owners in January 2021. It’s that faith and a mutual desire to pursue new opportunities that has led the quartet’s decision to pass the Rip Current torch. The company is officially for sale.
According to Sangster, who started the company with co-founder Guy Shobe in 2013, the brand is stronger than ever and in a good position for a new owner to take it to the next level. Holden agrees and says the company has a bright future ahead of it.
“We have a loyal customer base that has been with us for the last nine years, and it has been impressive to see the level of support that we have received, especially post-COVID,” says Ortiz. “It was a slow pick-up coming out of the pandemic, but now we are on-pace to deliver the highest sales ever at our San Marcos tasting room.”
It’s that consistent patronage and upward trending, along with the expertise of longtime Head Brewer Alex Stevens, that has Rip Current’s leadership team bullish on the business as well as the opportunity it presents for parties interested in purchasing it. Enduring, exemplary beer quality is another asset they hang their hats on.
For the nearly ten years Rip Current has been in operation, it has been among San Diego County’s most award-winning brewing companies. This includes medals for individual beers earned at the world’s and the county’s most prestigious professional brewing competitions–the World Beer Cup, Great American Beer Festival (GABF) and San Diego International Beer Competition–as well as overarching accolades for the business. In 2015, Rip Current was named Very Small Brewery of the Year at GABF, and in 2019, the company took Best of Show honors at the California Craft Brewers Cup. An entire wall of its San Marcos tasting room is covered in framed plaques, medals and ribbons; a visual testament to quality over the brewery’s lifespan.
Holden believes taking over the company in turnkey fashion and continuing to operate it under the Rip Current name would be particularly advantageous. There would be no need for any downtime, post-acquisition, and the company could proceed business-as-usual in the immediate future while its new owners determine how they would like to tweak the business model, product line or any other facets of the business, if at all.
He also thinks Rip Current’s facility and its North Park satellite tasting room can be good pick-ups for a smaller brewery looking to grow into a larger operation by expanding its manufacturing capabilities and reach within the county.
Rip Current’s San Marcos facility is in an industrial park at the intersection of Grand Avenue and Las Posas Road. It totals 6,700 square feet and is equipped with a 15-barrel steam-powered brewhouse, a 30-barrel hot-liquor tank, reverse-osmosis water filtration system, six 30-barrel fermenters, a pair each of 15-barrel fermentation and bright tanks, and a dual-head canning line. The facility is capable of producing up to 4,300 barrels of beer annually. Its west-facing tasting room offers seating in a large main bar as well as a side room and outdoor patio.
The North Park tasting room (pictured above) is located on the 4100 block of 30th Street. It is 3,300 square feet and features a 29-tap bar, rear outdoor patio and a 900-square-foot kitchen operated by Craft House Burgers. In addition to providing an on-site food option for customers, the built-in kitchen allows the company to sell wine as well as beers from other brewing companies.
For now, operations will continue as usual at both locations. Interested parties are invited to reach out to Rip Current’s ownership team via email.
Rip Current Brewing’s headquarters is located at 1325 Grand Avenue, Suite 100, in San Marcos, and its satellite tasting room is located at 4101 30th Street in North Park