Years before TapRoom Beer Co.’s (TRBC) 2020 debut, the individual who would helm the North Park brewpub was widely known. The owners of the business and its parent company, SD TapRoom, were excited to have secured Bill Batten, a long-time employee of AleSmith Brewing, who brewed there as well as Mikkeller Brewing San Diego (MBSD), when the latter interest was installed in the original home of the former in 2016. From day one, “#BattenBeer” has been a key TRBC branding element, a symbol of pride and quality, which made it all the more surprising when Batten recently accepted a brewing position at nearby Fall Brewing. When looking to fill the boots of the only head brewer TRBC’s ever known, owner Kevin Conover sourced from a familiar locale, bringing aboard former MBSD brewer Daniel Cady. Best known for pumping out literally hundreds of extremely varied beers on an annual basis, Cady is returning to the brewpub environment where he began his career roughly a decade ago. We caught up with him to find out his plans are for his future at TRBC and beyond.
What did your road to TRBC look like?
After a couple years of homebrewing various beers from a Citra-heavy pale ale to a Berliner-style weisse up to various barrel-aged sour ales, I entered the industry at the El Cajon Brewing / URBN Brewing facility in El Cajon, because I found the concept of large-scale brewing fascinating. After two years, I moved into a production-brewing role at Manzanita Brewing / Twisted Manzanita Ales, where I spent some amazing years with some great people. For the last six years, I took up residence at MBSD, where from the first days of opening I was heavily involved with production operations, creative recipe design and the barrel-aging program. What a wild ride that was…brewing some of the wackiest beers, pushing the limits of the brewhouse and watching a program explode into a fully incorporated production and distribution beast.
What are some of the accomplishments at your last job that you are most proud of?
Not only was my time at Mikkeller a rewarding opportunity from a creative-development perspective, but the people pushed each other to constantly strive for excellence, to always do better–that is something I will forever be thankful for. I had an incredible support system that pushed me to make ever better barrel-aged beers, build up a dynamic sour/wild ale cellar, and drive recipes for global distribution. I am most proud that I got to experience that with the group of folks that I did.
What made you want to pursue the open head-brewer position at TRBC?
Over time, while learning more about myself as a brewer, as a creator, I often found myself thinking in a tighter scope, envisioning things that would be out-of-place in a large production environment. From my earliest experience as a pub brewer, I always possessed this inclination of a return to that scale, looking forward to an opportunity where our connection with the customer experience was immediate.
MBSD and TRBC are very different operations. What are your plans in the new environment?
They are very different approaches, indeed, but not definitively. Not just literally, but I believe beer is conceptually fluid–harkening the knowledge and inspiration of tradition while remaining presently committed to learning, I enjoy brewing all things. Promoting an avante-garde nature at MBSD was simply necessary, it was part of the identity of the brand and what it accomplished was pushing myself and our team to think out of the box. There has been a great foundation built here at TRBC; my extremely talented Assistant Brewer, Paul Haws, and I intend to remain committed to the constant pursuit of excellence. We look forward to brewing some well-defined styles familiar to the drinker, while integrating a level of creativity appropriate for our growth as a team.
How do you plan to put your stamp on TRBC’s beer program and what beer fans look forward to?
There is certainly a powder-keg of ideas ready for the brewhouse, but Paul and I will make sure to approach each beer methodically and with inspiration as paramount. Though we believe it goes beyond the brewhouse, we want to continue promoting a culture of learning and knowledge with our team here at TRBC. Having a connection with the product, universally, is essential. We look forward to collaboration with the staff as well as more of our colleagues in the industry to bring out the best potential of the beers and the people. On the liquid side, I can’t wait to get some really amazing IPA out, as well as my stouts. Yeah and some sours, and maybe some lagers. Maybe even some ales? Oh, and we just bought a dozen or so top-shelf bourbon barrels.
What are some career goals you are pursuing and how do you hope to realize them?
My trajectory is such that I work with excellent people doing excellent things. I have seen a side of creative brewing that was very fulfilling (and I plan to continue that experience), but I want to refine my talents and technical prowess. Paul and I are going to work very well together, and I am so excited by his level of tenacity and enthusiasm for bettering everything around us.