During Savagewood Brewing’s five years in Scripps Ranch, owner Darrel Brown collaborated with a great many people. Some were brewers from other beer companies, but even more of his conspirators—homebrewers, culinary vendors, media, influencers—hailed from outside the industry. Not only did those collab-brew sessions make for lasting memories, the beers and hybrid beverages that came out of them provided proof of concept for several future businesses, including the one that ended up taking over Savagewood’s brewery when Brown moved out of state last year, Voodoo Child Brewing.
As it turns out, the trio behind Voodoo Child originally had a fourth business partner. That individual, Ernesto Garcia, was another Savagewood collaborator. In 2020, he and Brown produced 100 gallons of a tamarind-infused hard agua fresca, all of which sold out in just three hours. The following year, the pair brewed up three more offerings: Jamaica, Fresas con Crema and Café de la Olla. They were similarly well received and motivated Garcia to produce his hard agua frescas on a commercial level.
“As we all know, San Diego is a great place for beer drinkers. There are amazing breweries everywhere you go offering their own twists on craft beer. I love craft beer, but I wanted to bring something different to the table, something people hadn’t seen yet. And that’s when I thought of hard agua frescas,” says Garcia. “I am not making beers with agua-fresca flavors, I’m making an alcoholic beverage, the focus of which are the authentic flavors we’ve learned to love from taco shops, street vendors or Saturdays at the Spring Valley Swap Meet.”
When Brown approached Garcia and the Voodoo Child team about purchasing his facility in 2021, it seemed like the perfect situation. Unfortunately, Garcia’s father was diagnosed with cancer shortly after the quartet agreed to Brown’s terms, forcing him to back out and suspend work on his entrepreneurial venture, which by then had a name, El Puerquito Hard Frescas.
“Everyone was very understanding and supportive with my decision and often reached out to see how me and my family were doing. Eventually, Voodoo Child moved on with the entire Savagewood purchase and, later, I did a collaboration with them when we released a cucumber hard fresca called Pepino,” says Garcia. “In the summer of 2022, I received a call from Darrel informing me that the owner of Mister G’s Salsa wanted to reach out to me about potentially partnering up, but wanted to know where I stood. After a few meetings, we decided sharing space at his Miralani location was a great idea for both of us as my hard frescas and his salsa seemed like the perfect fit.”
Fast-forward to present day and Garcia is a week away from debuting his products in what is now a shared tasting room in the Miramar industrial park dubbed the Miralani Makers’ District. That site has housed numerous beverage companies (beer, wine, cider, mead, sake), including current tenant, Protector Brewery.
El Puerquito’s all-natural hard frescas and “fresca slushies” will be available along with Mister G’s array of salsas and local craft beers. The latter is only fitting considering the major role San Diego breweries have played in getting Garcia to this point.
“I’ve been very fortunate through this whole process, and am very grateful for the love and support I’ve received, not just from hard-fresca drinkers, but people in the industry willing to lend a hand,” says Garcia. “Voodoo Child has agreed to produce my hard frescas, and Little Miss Brewing is renting me storage space in their cold box. I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for Savagewood giving me my first opportunity and later reaching out to connect me with Mister G’s Salsa. It’s really been a collaborative effort by many to get to this point.
Garcia’s master plan is to eventually own his own kitchen-equipped facility, complete with a garden inspired by Mexican culture. But for now, he is focused on building his brand and consumer demand, something he can do in a significant way via his new digs.
El Puerquito will officially open to the public on Thursday, March 16. Once operational, its hours of business will be 5 to 9 p.m., Thursday through Saturday.
El Puerquito Hard Frescas is located inside Mister G’s Salsa at 8680 Miralani Drive, Unit 133, in Miramar