After nearly three years of development and construction, a first-of-its-kind beverage collective concept has set a grand-opening date. That project goes by the name CoLab Public House, and has brought together three brewing companies, a winery and a culinary tenant, all under one roof.
Envisioned as a concept that can be replicated throughout the country, the inaugural Vista facility was designed with both its tenants and visitors in mind. The former will share equipment and storage space, allowing the latter to sample and enjoy a variety of house-made products within a large, two-story tasting room or on a sizable outdoor patio.
It’s a project that has been highly anticipated by local beer enthusiasts who, after numerous project delays, will have their first chance to experience the unique venue on Friday, July 22, starting at 4 p.m.
Located directly south of State Route 78 in a business park next to the building that housed since-shuttered Indian Joe Brewing, CoLab’s 12,500 square feet are split into brewing, fermentation, barrel-aging, cold-storage, kitchen and public spaces. The dual-level tasting room comes in at 4,500 square feet and features a 100-foot-long, contiguous bar split equally between the beverage producers with a separate order window for the culinary tenant.
While other concepts have brought multiple breweries together, or paired beer and food operations in the same space, this is the first such facility to do so on this scale with permanent (versus lease-to-brew or start-up) tenants.
CoLab’s tenants are varied, with new interests, out-of-towners and more. The most locally recognizable of the brewing contingent is Breakwater Brewing, which has operated a brewpub in Oceanside for the past 15 years, winning some prestigious awards along the way. CoLab will allow Breakwater to increase its production while expanding its reach inland.
Next up is Barrel & Stave Brewing, a new operation founded by Wild Barrel Brewing co-owner Chris White (not to be confused with the White Labs owner of the same name). Brewing at CoLab represents phase two for a business that already boasts a pair of Pour House beer bars (an original location in Fullerton as well as a one-year-old spin-off in Old Town Vista). Helming production will be Chris Banker, a highly decorated local homebrewer who is well known throughout San Diego County.
The final brewery tenant is Laguna Beach Beer Co., a seven-year-old company that, rather than upping production, will primarily utilize its space at CoLab to expand its barrel-aging efforts. That program will be overseen by Chris Linn, who came over to Laguna Beach Beer from Beachwood Brewing in 2020.
The breweries will share space with a new wine producer, Propaganda Wine Co. (which may not yet be operative on July 22) as well as Baby’s Badass Burgers, an L.A.-based food-truck business that’s operated in San Diego County for the past half-decade. This will be the latter’s first brick-and-mortar, though it will utilize one of its trucks to meet demand on busy days and special events like the grand opening.
“Having quality beer, wine and food all in one place makes it easy to make a day of it at CoLab Public House and have a great time with family, friends or both,” says project developer Joe Deutsch. “We have room to accommodate and entertain hundreds of visitors at a time, and we look forward to doing exactly that.”
When asked why he and his team decided to site their first CoLab facility in Vista, a city that is already home to 17 operating breweries and brewpubs plus four additional brewery-owned venues, Deutsch says that was part of the appeal. Being a part of San Diego County’s rich craft-beer culture and bringing a rarity—something that hasn’t already been done—would not only prove the CoLab concept, but hopefully also bring even more consumers to Vista to discover its already vibrant craft-beer culture, equating to a win-win situation for the CoLab team, its tenants and its patrons.
CoLab Public House is located at 2129 Industrial Court in Vista