As one would expect from a company called Booze Brothers Brewing, the manufacture of beer is the primary focus. That has never been truer than right now. The pandemic has ownership grateful to have its own canning line, allowing them to pivot and concentrate mainly on packaging beer for to-go and retail sales. But before COVID-19, the company generated a great deal of its overall revenue through private events at its multi-suite brewing facility in Vista. It’s been such a large part of their business that, two years ago, the company secured a large venue not far from its HQ, solely for the purpose of hosting private events. Dubbed The Vistonian, it was weeks from making its debut to the world…then COVID struck. Now, it’s sitting, able but not allowed to serve. We sat down with Booze Brothers partner Kris Anacleto to ask about the new space and this disappointing situation.
How has Booze Brothers’ private-event business grown over the years?
When we created The Wood Shed (Booze Brothers’ original private-event space in the suite next door to the tasting room) about five years ago to host birthday parties and small weddings, we didn’t picture it growing into such a substantial part of our business. It’s helped our natural growth and margins far beyond what we were expecting. We operated in The Wood Shed for about a year-and-a-half. When the suite next door became available, we knew we could expand that portion of our business by accommodating more people, and we didn’t want a new neighbor there that could possibly stunt our growth. That, coupled with new legislation allowing us to sell wine for bona fide private events, really transformed what we were doing. We got to a point where we were so regularly booked that we wanted to take what we’ve learned and expand upon it in a larger way.
How did you select the project site and why did you open a second spot in Vista?
It just came down to convenience. We all wear a lot of hats around here, so new locations farther away would hinder our flexibility. A handful of us actually live about five minutes up the road from The Vistonian, so it allows us to bounce back and forth when needed. Plus, the uniqueness of this building was too good to pass up. We actually toured this location six years ago, before we ever had our first private-event venue, but it was way too big for how small of a brewery we were. We didn’t need a satellite tasting room of that size, and private events weren’t on our radar. Fast forward to 2018, we were telling our broker what kind of facility we were looking for to expand and she suggested 306 South Santa Fe. It ended up being the only building we put attention into and it slowly worked out. Fun fact, Burgeon Beer Co. and Black Plague Brewing were also very close to putting pen to paper for this spot as their original locations.
What are The Vistonian’s specs and how did you go about decorating it?
It is 8,200 square feet, and guests will be able to utilize about 6,000 square feet of it. It’s primarily indoor space and has a small patio out front. There are multiple-stalled bathrooms, a prep room for bridal parties or groomsmen to get ready, plenty of storage that we’ll be utilizing, and a spacious bar that will make it easier for staff to move around. We took what we’ve done well with The Wood Shed—plants, wood, natural elements—and expanded upon that idea in a sleeker, cleaner way. There’s still more to implement, but COVID-19 definitely put a pause on the final touches.
Had it not been for the pandemic, when would The Vistonian have opened?
We were slated to have our first event exactly one month after the shutdown. We actually kept the venue pretty under-wraps because we wanted to dial in a few things before a large announcement. When we met with couples interested in The Wood Shed, we let them know about The Vistonian and some of them wanted to try it out. We were also going to have the San Diego Brewers Guild’s Rhythm & Brews (beer festival) media launch party there, which would have been the grand reveal to the beer industry.
What is the current status of the Vistonian?
It’s sitting there ready to open, and ready to be utilized the moment we’re allowed to operate. We spent almost two years developing and building this out; a slow-and-steady-wins-the-race kind of deal. We formed a really healthy relationship with our landlord, who was beyond helpful during the process. When the restrictions came into place, he actually reached out to us immediately and told us not to worry, and that he’d be working with us. The olive branch that he extended has single-handedly been the biggest help we’ve received during all of this, so letting it go hasn’t crossed our minds.