It was the second week of January. The staff had been hired and trained, the beer was stocked and the interiors had been refreshed to include a mural paying homage to the history of the Rincon Band of Luiseño Indians. Valley Center-based Rincon Reservation Road Brewery’s satellite tasting room in Ocean Beach—its first-ever off-reservation location—was ready to accept visitors. And it did when the Rincon Economic Development Corporation (REDCO) invited friends and family to a private celebration the day before the venue’s slated January 16 debut. But that public unveiling never took place.
“3R” Brewery’s OB location—which is on Newport Avenue in the two-room site that last housed a tasting space for Oceanside-based Belching Beaver Brewery—wasn’t able to open due to a delay in the issuance of its liquor license. The culprit in this unfortunate turn of events, as with so many things in modern-day life, was the pandemic. Staff at the local office of the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) came down with COVID-19, which severely impacted the agency’s ability to process and finalize licenses for 3R Brewery and a number of other hospitality venues and manufacturing facilities. But after two months of waiting, REDCO has its license in-hand, quietly soft-opened late last week and has a date set for a grand opening celebration.
“We are ecstatic to be able to announce that we are finally open to the public and will make it official at a special event on March 26,” says REDCO Tribal Chairwoman Ruth-Ann Thorn. “The six-week opening delay was tough, but as Native Americans we are resilient. We are excited to welcome everyone to join us in OB for a journey down the Rincon Reservation Road.”
REDCO is currently working on restaffing. While they were able to keep on a few key members of the team they had assembled to work at the OB tasting room, they do not have a large enough crew to operate with a full house at the location. Individuals interested in applying for open positions are encouraged to reach out to 3R Brewery via email.
Though a six-week delay is never ideal, the time was put to good use. 3R Brewery recently brought on a new head brewer, Zeth DeVorie, who came over from award-winning Temecula operation Garage Brewing. The company is also preparing to have its beers available at Disneyland’s Food & Wine Festival, an event that will raise the brand’s visibility over its two-month span.
“Now you can join us, not only in OB but at Disneyland, too,” says Thorn. “We are making the happiest place on Earth even happier.”
3R Brewery’s OB tasting room will be open Sunday through Thursday from noon to 10 p.m. and Fridays and Saturdays from noon to midnight.
Rincon Reservation Road Brewery’s tasting room is located at 4836 Newport Avenue in Ocean Beach