As the county’s breweries prep to present their many-splendored interpretations of Oktoberfest, we’re taking a moment to share our latest quick-hit rundown of happenings within the San Diego craft-beer community. This edition includes info about a North County venue that’s reopened as well as a short-lived spot that just shut down, plus the familiar identity of the local brewers guild’s president for 2027.
In March, Guadalupe Brewery closed its taproom at 631 South Santa Fe Avenue in Vista. That change in status occurred without any announcement – only a “temporarily closed” note on Google’s listing for the business – leading many fans of the 11-year-old operation to wonder if the doors would actually reopen or if married owners Raul and Lisa Deju had decided to call it quits. Then came the early-September public notice that Guadalupe is once again open on a limited basis, Thursdays and Fridays from 5 to 9 p.m.. Prior to that, the Dejus had operated the venue as a private-event space, holding occasional live-music performances and DJ nights. The temporary closure followed the couple’s 2025 decision to shutter Carlsbad Brew Supply, the North County homebrew retail outlet that housed Guadalupe’s brewhouse and cellar, and consolidate the business down to the Vista location. That space is home to a nano-sized brewing setup which supplies its taps with house beers, a number of which take inspiration from Mexican culture and ingredients.
The San Diego Brewers Guild is a 29-year-old trade organization representing our region’s brewing companies. In addition to coordinating events such as this weekend’s Capital of Craft Beer Festival and educational sessions for its membership, the Guild works to promote the local brewing industry within and beyond county lines. Those efforts are shouldered by a Board of Directors and a collection of officers that includes a president, vice president, secretary and treasurer, all of whom are elected volunteers. Board members serve two-year terms, while those in the president position preside for one year. Yet, Esthela Davila, who works at Stone Brewing’s downtown taproom, is nine months into her second year as president en route to a third consecutive year in the position. Her 2026 term was triggered when 2025 Vice President Jeff Lozano (Ballast Point Brewing) resigned from the Guild near the end of the year. Standard operating procedure dictates that vice presidents ascend to the president role after one year in that position, while presidents transition to president emeritus for a one-year span. The current vice president is Diane Hilz, the owner of The Roadies Brewing, who will be exiting the Guild following the recent closure of her Vista business, triggering a third term for Davila. It’s the longest tenure of any Guild president since former Ballast Point brewer Colby Chandler held the position from 2004 to 2009. Since then, only one president other than Davila, Pizza Port Brewing’s Jill Olesh, served more than a single term.
It was a solid concept with the right guy to lead it: a non-alcoholic brewery with a tasting room doubling as a bottle shop flush with housemade virgin beers as well as a host of N/A beverages from top producers. It was the dream of entrepreneur Zane Curtis, a craft-beer enthusiast who gave up alcohol three years ago, then went on to open a pair of successful non-alcoholic bottle shops going by the moniker Monday Morning in Pacific Beach and Ocean Beach. With those stores thriving, he decided to take things a step further earlier this year by purchasing San Marcos’ Creative Creature Brewing, then working with veteran brewers to convert it into an N/A beverage production facility called The Lab. That facility went on line and its public portion debuted on July 18, giving the county its only-ever non-alcoholic brewery tasting room. It was a rare first for such an established beer community, and unfortunately it is no more. Due to a number of reasons that Curtis wishes not to publicly disclose for a multitude of reasons, he has shut The Lab down. But Monday Morning’s retail locations remain open and, if all goes to plan, Curtis will revive the brewing arm of his business at a different location down the road.