The voyage of Long Beach Brewing Company has been a long one, but LBBC overcame rough seas to found its home port on busy Lawson Boulevard in Oceanside.
LBBC has been brewing beers at its 5,000-square-foot brewery for more than a year and began selling brews for pickup and delivery during the coronavirus shutdown. Work is also underway to finish construction of its taproom, with plans to open this summer when the lockdown ends.
“We’ve had a tremendous response to our pickup and delivery services,” says Brett Blau, a co-owner of LBBC. “It’s been a great way to get our beers out to new customers, many of whom have become repeat customers.”
The three co-owners — Blau, Patrick Harten, and Dan Scandiffio — are all Long Beach natives who raised more than $29,000 on Kickstarter to launch the brewery before signing their lease in 2017. The 10-barrel brewhouse features a Pioneer brewing system from Portland, Oregon and will have 20 taps in the tasting room. It self distributes four-packs to beer stores and kegs to bars and restaurants.
As a New York State-licensed farm brewery, it uses local ingredients in its beers. Its flagship beer, hoppy Ghost Wave IPA, is made from almost all state-grown ingredients.
Summer seasonal beers include 3350A Pilsner, a crisp lager, and West Penn Wheat, a refreshing German-style hefeweizen. Another German-style brew is The Shipwrecks Black Lager, an unusual combination of pilsner lightness with the robust roasted malt taste of a stout, named after a popular local punk band.
The newest addition to LBBC’s lineup, Oceansized, introduced during the shutdown, is a New England-style hazy IPA with super fruity hoppiness.
According to Blau, LBBC’s taproom will have taps dedicated to a tenant brewer, veteran Long Island craft brewery, Flying Belgian Brewery. The taproom will also feature local wines, kombucha from Oceanside neighbor Coastal Craft, and possibly other regional beverages and spirits.
One thing for certain is that the taproom will have space for live music performances and display space for local artists.
“We are proud to be an active member of the community, supporting fundraisers and food drives over the years and especially during this crisis,” says Blau. “We are looking forward to welcoming the community to our brewery when we all come through this together.”
Long Beach Brewing Company is located at 3350A Lawson Blvd. in Oceanside. For more info visit longbeachbrew.com.
Bernie Kilkelly is the editor and publisher of LIBeerGuide.com.
