The Coastal City Home To Over 150 Breweries Is Best Known As California's 'Craft Beer Capital'

Denver may tout itself as the "craft beer capital of America," but San Diego is going for broke, with some aficionados even calling it the "craft beer capital of the world." According to the San Diego Brewers Guild, there are more than 150 independent craft breweries currently operating in and around the city, plus an additional 50 brewery-owned venues. And in the USA Today Readers' Choice Awards for 2025, San Diego ranked seven places higher than Denver on the "Best Beer City" list.

With a commercial brewing legacy stretching back to 1896, drinking culture here managed to stay strong through Prohibition thanks to the town's close proximity to the Mexican border (where alcohol remained legal and beer especially was easy to acquire). But like most of the country, San Diego's craft beer scene truly took off in the 1980s, following the legalization of home brewing. After that, it wasn't long until Bolt Brewery and Karl Strauss (known the world over for its iconic Red Trolley amber ale) opened their doors to the public.

Since the Bay Area's Napa Valley and Los Angeles had already capitalized on wine and cocktails respectively, it makes sense that San Diegans pushed forward primarily in beer production. The city has premier access to its state's premium produce (including hops and grains), and as a warm and sunny coastal city, the cool and crisp quality of beer pairs perfectly with its climate. Combining West Coast cool with the innovation in craft and willingness to push boundaries that Californians are known for, there's no doubt San Diego produces some of the strongest and strangest brews you'll come across.

The flagship of the "Capital of Craft" is hands-down the West Coast IPA. While this bright, grassy, "dank" class of IPA — an already hop-heavy brew — didn't originate in San Diego, every brewery around town has attempted to perfect the style. Major players like Ballast Point and Stone Brewing are now known throughout the United States for their "Sculpin IPA" and "Stone IPA."

However, most San Diego breweries push the category even further, producing what's labeled by some as a "San Diego Pale Ale," or a Double IPA. Represented in Stone's "Ruination" and Pizza Port's "Mongo," the DIPA takes everything drinkers love about the WCIPA and maximizes it, making a hoppier (read "more bitter"), maltier (read "more alcoholic") beverage with minimum 7.5% ABV. Unfiltered or "Hazy" IPAs have also gained popularity. Pure Project has high-end iterations with names like "Diamond Dust" and "Limitless Light." North Park makes super-juicy, fruit-forward Hazys "Art Is Hard" and "Infinite Content." And Harland Brewing's signature Hazy, brewed with creamy wheat and oats, has been delightfully compared to a milkshake in texture.

San Diego brewers have also experimented with light-and-easy lagers and stouts. Harland makes Japanese-style lager using puffed jasmine and toasted rice, Craft Coast Beer & Tacos makes a quaffable Mexican-style lager with corn, and Societe Brewing's "The Harlot" sits somewhere between a Belgian blonde and Czech pilsner. Since San Diego likes pushing its beers to extremes, stouts are typically the thick, chocolatey imperial style, with vicious names like Black Plague Brewing's "Medusa" and Societe's "The Butcher." And on the lighter side, Belching Beaver created the first-ever Peanut Butter Milk Stout.

While you can find craft breweries all over San Diego, a few key neighborhoods are perfect hubs from which to explore the scene. North Park, on the northeast corner of Balboa Park, has nearly 20 breweries and tasting rooms huddled within its dense, walkable streets, including North Park, Belching Beaver, and Pure Project. Miramar, which neighbors UC San Diego, hosts big-name and experimental brewers like AleSmith, White Labs, and the Karl Strauss Brewery Garden. Little Italy, regarded as one of the best in America, has hip urban tasting rooms by Ballast Point, Stone, and Karl Strauss. There's also a slew of brewpubs just steps from the beach throughout Oceanside and Encinitas.

The interactive brewery map and brewery guides from San Diego Beer News make it easy to plan a self-guided brewery crawl by neighborhood. Guided (and chauffeured) tours by Brew Hop, Scavengers, and the Beer Train Trolley allow you to both taste responsibly and learn about the beers you're tasting from experts. You can also attend San Diego Beer Week in early November, when the Capital of Craft Beerfest brings together local brewers to celebrate their passion for the West Coast IPA with the public. Its companion fest, San Diego Beer Weekend in Vista, takes place in late June, promoting North County breweries alongside local live music acts. Check out our list of the best hotels in San Diego for every budget according to travelers to find a place to stay during your visit.