Three years ago, The Lost Abbey Brewing co-founder and brewer Tomme Arthur announced that he was embarking on a mission to right-size the business by “growing down.” The first step in that process was moving from the business’ longtime home in San Marcos to become a tenant at Mother Earth Brew Co.’s headquarters in Vista. That facility’s 20-barrel brewhouse was ideally suited to Arthur’s needs, but it wasn’t well configured for the style of brewing he and his team were doing. So when an opportunity to share a larger brewery with another craft-beer entity arose a year-and-a-half later, he looked into it and ended up signing on. That spot is The Lost Abbey’s current base of operations, a 16,000-square-foot facility equipped with a 30-barrel brewhouse and a large cellar setup.
Originally constructed by Eppig Brewing, it was taken over by brand- and distribution-management company House of Mason (which sold its portfolio to Latitude Brewing earlier this year) in 2023. House of Mason brought The Lost Abbey in as a co-tenant, but by summer of last year, that organization determined that contract-brewing was more conducive to its success than running its own brewery. The business moved out, leaving The Lost Abbey as the sole operator of a facility capable of producing 10,000 barrels of beer annually, a far cry from Arthur’s target of 2,000 barrels per year.
“For much of 2026, we have been contract brewing for other partners and trying to fill the void with beer. While tanks got filled, that didn’t really do much to assist our bottom line,” says Arthur. “Rent for the space was too prohibitive and occupancy far higher than normal. In short, we were back to a building – like our original home in San Marcos – that cost too much. Something had to change.”
So, Arthur has negotiated an exit deal with his landlord, which will allow The Lost Abbey to continue brewing at the space over the next few months before moving on to a new location at the end of the year.
The search is on for The Lost Abbey’s next home, but an exact spot has yet to be identified. In the meantime, real estate agents are marketing the Vista facility to potential tenants. The latter is what inspired Arthur to share his news in an effort to quell any rumors that his company may be going out of business. He is also interested to hear from individuals who may have a space that may work for him.
“We’re focused on finally getting down to the right size. If there are locations in North County that want to engage us in this process, by all means, email us,” says Arthur. “When we move our brewing base of operations, it will not mean less Lost Abbey beer. In fact, the goal is to continue producing about 2,000 barrels of beer per year and define a new home for 2027 and beyond.”
Arthur says that once he finalizes his agreement with The Lost Abbey’s current landlord, the company will announce the plan for winding down its Vista tasting room. He expects that will include a warehouse sale, including beers and other items that they will not be able to move to their next location.
When House of Mason moved out of the Vista facility, Arthur says it forced his hand to purchase the brewing and cellar equipment housed within. So, if the landlord is unable to identify an interested tenant there will be an auction to sell those apparatuses. Arthur says he would hate to see such a well-engineered brewery pulled apart, but if it helps him reach his long-held goal of right-sizing the business that will be worth it.
“All of these steps are calculated to preserve our work and emerge on the other side in a better place. That has been the goal since we left San Marcos and we have not been shy about getting there,” says Arthur. “The brewing business isn’t getting any easier and difficult decisions have to be made. Ultimately, paying the right amount of rent each month based on the size of the business is a model we must embrace.”
The Lost Abbey Brewing is located at 1347 Keystone Way, Suite C Way in Vista