Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Saint Archer down a brewmaster

Many San Diego brewing companies come on the scene as quietly as possible, treading lightly as they introduce their first draft beers to a population that, more than most cities, knows its craft beer. Earlier this year, Saint Archer Brewery (9550 Distribution Avenue, Miramar) went with a much different approach, announcing the arrival of their company, which was built to go far fast behind experienced brewers from noteworthy operations and the financial backing of numerous action sports stars. They secured distribution and, within a month of their official open, had their beers—IPA, Pale Ale, and Blonde Ale (which was last week’s Beer of the Week)—on tap throughout San Diego County.

Sponsored
Sponsored

From a consumer standpoint, all looks so bright for Saint Archer that it seems the type of custom sunglasses several of the company’s investors are sponsored by are in order, but it's not all roses and hop flowers. A greater percentage of the industry veterans that provided promise for Saint Archer are no longer there. The first to go was Mike Mellow, who was to head up the company’s sales efforts. At the time of his hire, he was considered by most to be one of the best suds sales guys in San Diego, and his hire was looked at as an astute move. He did not make it to Saint Archer’s launch and has since been replaced by Jeff Hansson, who came over from Coronado Brewing Company after spending a number of years at The Boston Beer Co. (the makers of Samuel Adams).

Salesmanship in no way improves the quality of a company’s beers, so Mellow’s departure meant very little to consumers. That is not the case with Ray Astamendi, a brewer with San Diego roots who returned to America’s Finest City from Left Coast Brewery to take the helm at Saint Archer. Known for making sound beers, his addition was looked on positively by local brewers, several of whom recommended him for the job. News comes in today that Astamendi is no longer employed by Saint Archer either, leaving his former right-hand in the brewhouse, Kim Lutz, in charge.

Lutz is a highly respected brewer, as well, having come to the mainland from Maui Brewing Co., where she was its lead brewpub brewer. Brewer Cy Henley, who splits his time at Pacific Beach's Amplified Ale Works, is also still working for Saint Archer, but the loss of a brewmaster is significant and, for an operation with this one’s size and aspirations, it may prove particularly tough to navigate.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Making Love to Goats, Rachmaninoff, and Elgar

Many San Diego brewing companies come on the scene as quietly as possible, treading lightly as they introduce their first draft beers to a population that, more than most cities, knows its craft beer. Earlier this year, Saint Archer Brewery (9550 Distribution Avenue, Miramar) went with a much different approach, announcing the arrival of their company, which was built to go far fast behind experienced brewers from noteworthy operations and the financial backing of numerous action sports stars. They secured distribution and, within a month of their official open, had their beers—IPA, Pale Ale, and Blonde Ale (which was last week’s Beer of the Week)—on tap throughout San Diego County.

Sponsored
Sponsored

From a consumer standpoint, all looks so bright for Saint Archer that it seems the type of custom sunglasses several of the company’s investors are sponsored by are in order, but it's not all roses and hop flowers. A greater percentage of the industry veterans that provided promise for Saint Archer are no longer there. The first to go was Mike Mellow, who was to head up the company’s sales efforts. At the time of his hire, he was considered by most to be one of the best suds sales guys in San Diego, and his hire was looked at as an astute move. He did not make it to Saint Archer’s launch and has since been replaced by Jeff Hansson, who came over from Coronado Brewing Company after spending a number of years at The Boston Beer Co. (the makers of Samuel Adams).

Salesmanship in no way improves the quality of a company’s beers, so Mellow’s departure meant very little to consumers. That is not the case with Ray Astamendi, a brewer with San Diego roots who returned to America’s Finest City from Left Coast Brewery to take the helm at Saint Archer. Known for making sound beers, his addition was looked on positively by local brewers, several of whom recommended him for the job. News comes in today that Astamendi is no longer employed by Saint Archer either, leaving his former right-hand in the brewhouse, Kim Lutz, in charge.

Lutz is a highly respected brewer, as well, having come to the mainland from Maui Brewing Co., where she was its lead brewpub brewer. Brewer Cy Henley, who splits his time at Pacific Beach's Amplified Ale Works, is also still working for Saint Archer, but the loss of a brewmaster is significant and, for an operation with this one’s size and aspirations, it may prove particularly tough to navigate.

Comments
Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

OSHA rules wall falls our fault

Who, U.S.?
Next Article

March is typically windy, Sage scents in the foothills

Butterflies may cross the county
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.