When the Rincon Band of Luisueño Indians’s economic-development entity went about rebranding the former SR76 Beerworks at Harrah’s Southern California Resort earlier this year, the man on the brew deck was Shawn Steele. A veteran with 16 years of experience at Coronado Brewing and Karl Strauss Brewing, he has since moved on to become Director of Brewery Operations for Barrio Logan-based Thorn Brewing, leaving Valley Center’s revamped tribal-owned beer interest in the hands of Matt Dale, who is guiding Rincon Reservation Road Brewery down the road Steele started it down.
Dale is “3R Brewery’s” third head brewer and the third to have ties to the aforementioned Karl Strauss. During his time there, he worked as a production brewer, pub brewer and quality technician. Prior to joining Karl’s crew, he got his start at Bayhawk Ales in Irvine, where worked his way up to the role of lead brewer. In all, the Orange County native has been working in the beer industry for a decade. When asked what most greatly differentiates him from 3R’s previous brewers, Steele and former Karl Strauss and Mission Brewery alum Brian Scott, he cites his quality assurance and control, and inventory management experience.
“QA/QC entails putting in place certain checks along the entire process and life of the beer to be sure it arrives to the consumer at its highest quality and consistency, while having procedures in place on what to do if it does not meet the specifications,” says Dale. “Inventory management entails having procedures to keep accurate and up-to-date records of all inventory. This is then used to determine cost of goods and reorder points, so that the brewery can price beer effectively and keep beer in stock without having it sit too long.”
Since reopening as 3R, the brewery’s offerings have included a hefeweizen, blonde ale, amber ale, West Coast IPA, hazy IPA and, most recently, a blueberry saison. Next up will be an “international pale lager” as well as beers that will make good on a pair of the operation’s key objectives. The first is to brew beers using “hyper-local” ingredients, while the other is to expand the 3R brand and distribute to venues operated by other local tribes.
“We have already expanded our keg and canned-beer sales to a number of SoCal Indian-owned casinos and continue to get new requests for our beers all the time,” says Dale, who says being the only Native American-owned brewery on trial lands in Southern California is a helpful differentiator. “We have a rich and compelling history to share, which is beginning to come through via our new packaging, social-media efforts and guest experience when visiting our brewery.”
To help improve a visit to 3R Brewery during the pandemic, an outdoor area has been set up in the massive parking lot outside the brewery, complete with shade tents, misters and food options. It’s an effort made all the more comprehensive and executable thanks to the resources of the resort the brewery calls home.
Rincon Reservation Road Brewery is located at 777 South Resort Drive at Harrah’s Southern California Resort in Valley Center