If we believe (as we should) that San Luis Obispo (aka SLO) County has the correct relationship of breweries per capita, then there should be at least 33,000 breweries across the United States (at last count, there were just over 9,600 or so). Clearly the rest of the country has some catching up to do. This is a beer-lover’s paradise: More than 50 craft breweries now produce award-winning beers here.
But let’s begin this tour of Central Coast breweries 30 miles to the north, in Paso Robles. There, the enormous—and perennial medal-winner—Firestone Walker Brewing Company invites you to take a tour of its facility, then relax with seasonal bistro fare in The Taproom restaurant. Other standouts here include California Coast Beer Co., Paso Robles Brewing Co., and Barrelhouse Brewing Co.
Heading south, to the aforementioned brewing hotbed of San Luis Obispo, be sure to hit such standout brewmeisters as Central Coast Brewing and Antigua, as well as Liquid Gravity and Bang the Drum brewing companies.
Not even 15 miles away, on the coast itself, in the dramatic meeting of earth and sea that is Morro Bay, gastropub brewer Foghorn Brewhouse offers an eclectic menu and spirited beers. Heading south a bit into the heart of the Central Coast’s wine country, you’ll find father-and-son run Figueroa Mountain Brewery, which has five tap rooms stretching from Arroyo Grande down to Westlake Village, just north of Los Angeles.
In the Santa Barbara area, breweries in both that city and neighboring Goleta benefit from their proximity to UC Santa Barbara and more than 20,000 college students; both cities have a Draughtsmen Aleworks locations, where ciders, wine, and hop teas are made. Also in Goleta you’ll find Centennial Beer Hall, M. Special Brewing Co., and Captain Fatty’s Brewery, while in Santa Barbara, the options are head-spinning: Third Window Brewing offers more than a dozen different creations on tap at any given time, and Lama Dog’s two tap rooms, one in the Uptown district and the other in the Funk Zone, feature 32 and 21 taps respectively of beers from all over the world. Night Lizard Brewing Co., Validation Ale, Topa Topa Brewing Co., and Institution Ale Co. should all be on any beer lover’s brewery-visit list too.