Over the past year-and-a-half, Mason Ale Works and its parent company, which casually operate as the “House of Mason”, has been on a tear, bringing a number of local beer brands under their umbrella. It all started in the fall of 2023 with Eppig Brewing, followed last year by the onboarding of Second Chance Beer Co., Shoots Beer, and several other beverage producers in the spirits, cider and soda categories. And last month, Mason welcomed The Lost Abbey as a tenant at Eppig’s Vista headquarters, where world renowned, 18-year-old brewing company now produces beers using the site’s 30-barrel brewhouse.
In addition to the Vista facility’s tasting room and bierhalle-turned-activity center, Mason also operates Eppig’s Point Loma waterfront biergarten. And last year, the company experimented in the East Village, operating a tasting room abutting Petco Park during the San Diego Padres’ regular season. That venue has since closed, but if all goes as planned, next week Mason will have both another brand and another location to its name: Border X Brewing and its recently shuttered Barrio Logan taproom.
Mason Ale Works founder and “Head Mason” Grant Tondro has teamed up with Border X founder David Favela to reopen the decade-old venue, which closed at the end of 2024. The plan is for it to serve as a shared tasting room offering Border X beers along with those of Mason and its affiliated brands, plus products from San Marcos’ Castellum Ciders. Those beverages will pour from 16 taps, double what was there before.
That increase in faucets will be the most immediate change, and will be followed by installation of large-screen televisions, some new furniture, heating for the outdoor patio and a refresh of the restrooms. But as for aesthetics and branding, Mason wants to take that slow and preserve what longtime Border X fans and members of the Barrio Logan community have always loved about the space.
“Border X has done an amazing job over the last 10 years to ensure that craft beer was part of that community and this was a great opportunity to carry that torch,” says Tondro. “The first step is to be respectful of the art that has been poured in by the community over the years, so if a Border X regular comes into the space once we re-open, they likely won’t see a lot that’s different at first. We will slowly add more branding from Mason Ale Works as we find the right ways to complement what is already there.”
Tondro says that, while they want to get the taproom open as quickly as possible, they would like to take a careful, phased approach to incorporating elements going beyond Border X’s brand. Eventually there will be a merchandise area and a to-go beer refrigerator. And Chula Vista-based Tacos El Villasana has signed a sublease to handle culinary operations at the reborn space.
“We know we are new to the neighborhood, so our number-one goal is to be respectful. We want to make sure we are good neighbors and complement the community as best we can,” says Tondro. “Our goal is to build on the legacy that David and his family have created in Barrio Logan and to continue that mission.”
To that end, Tondro has been working with Mason’s graphic designer Billy Daggers on ideas for featuring murals from local artists in the beer garden, a continuation of a tradition Favela started years ago.
When asked if Mason is in the market for additional taprooms, Tondro says the company is always on the lookout for the right projects. While they aren’t opposed to going the new-construction route, with so many quality turnkey brewery taproom locations becoming available, that is where they are primarily focused.
Mason Ale Works’ and Border X Brewing’s taproom will be located at 2181 Logan Avenue in Barrio Logan