Beer of the Week: Mosaic Hazy Pale

If you talk to Sean Haggerty, the ex-Navy SEAL whose found a second, productive career as the owner of Miramar-based Protector Brewery, he’ll proudly share that his business is the only USDA-certified organic brewing operation in all of San Diego County. As well he should. It’s a really big deal. Currently, such beer companies make up far less than 1% of all of the breweries in the country. Watching the work Haggerty has put in over the past eight years, I am proud for what he has been able to accomplish as a member of a small collection of trailblazers looking to expand the market for beers produced using all-organic ingredients so that they eventually become more common and plentiful. That said, I’m just as happy to see him committing as much energy to crafting quality beer. Going the organic route is great, but if the beer’s no good it renders all of that moot. Fortunately, that’s not the case at Protector, as evidenced by this week’s featured beer, Mosaic Hazy Pale. Named simply for its style and the workhorse hop varietal it’s brewed with, this beer comes across clean as a coastal breeze, presenting tropical notes of pineapple and passion fruit plus a touch of orange zest against a smooth, soft canvas. One would never know they’re consuming a beer made using organic ingredients, and that’s a good thing. It tastes like any other beer and stands up against any non-organic hazy pale ale. In offering well-made, high-quality beers like Mosaic Hazy Pale, Haggerty is setting an example for others to appreciate and perhaps even be able to follow as all-organic craft-beer contemporaries. Cheers to that!

Our award-winning organic Mosaic Hazy Pale is one of our great core beers that’s available year round. Tropical fruit aromas mixed with a medium body makes for smooth and easy drinking. We updated all our core beer labels to blend clean nature elements together. Since we produce only USDA-certified organic beer, it’s definitely a fitting combo, but nature also ties in with our military roots. Since partnering with the team at Karl Strauss Distributing this year, they have helped make this beer and all of our other core beers available to more customers across Southern California. Of course, anyone can enjoy them at either of our local taprooms.”

Sean Haggerty, Founder & Head Brewer, Protector Brewery

Protector Brewery is located at 8680 Miralani Drive, Suite 128 in Miramar and its Hide Site taproom is located at 901 Bayfront Court, Suite 102 in downtown San Diego’s Marina District