El Segundo Has a Small Town Feel, but a Big Time Brewing Company

If you were a kid or young adult in the early 1990s, and you heard the term “El Segundo,” then you may think of the A Tribe Called Quest song, “I Left My Wallet in El Segundo.” The South Bay city looks nothing like the desolate area that the music video depicts, where Q-Tip left his props numbers and jimmy hats. In fact, El Segundo, CA is one of the few places in Los Angeles County that has that Anytown-Suburbia, USA feel where it seems like everyone knows each other. But that’s only half of El Segundo; the other half of the city is a bustling high-tech industrial area that houses several aerospace companies, the Lakers practice facility, an oil refinery, the LA Air Force Base, and is literally a stones throw away from the runways of LAX. Rob Croxall is the perfect representative of this city – not only did he grow up in El Segundo and worked in the aerospace industry, but he also encapsulates its culture in each one of his West Coast crafts at El Segundo Brewing Company.

I was fortunate to go to ESBC’s release party for their Hop Tanker DIPA on the last Saturday of LA Beer Week and hear ESBC’s story from equity partner Tom Kelley. Rob got in a corporate rut in the finance world and needed a way out. He started homebrewing and wanted to take the blind leap of faith by turning his passion and hobby into his career. With some help from his friends, Rob said goodbye to background checks and his sardine can-sized cubicle and fulfilled his dream by leasing a small space on Main Street in July 2010. If you picture Main Street in El Segundo as a great place for your mother to go window-shopping, then you’re exactly right. Main Street houses some great bars, restaurants, and stores, but this camino is also the iconic heart of the “Pleasantown” side of El Segundo. ESBC sold their first kegs in May 2011, and their beers have been impressing people of the South Bay and the West Side of LA ever since.

Rob started ESBC with his homebrew recipes: the Blue House IPA and the Blue House Pale (the “Blue House” label is actually a drawing of Rob’s house in El Segundo). He wanted to mass-produce his Citra Pale Ale, but he needed huge contracts with Citra hops to do so. Tom was hired from the Library Ale House in Santa Monica prior to ESBC’s opening and Tom was able to help Rob land the necessary contacts that have made their Blue House Citra Pale Ale their flagship beer.

ESBC has carved itself a niche in the IPA-crazed West Coast craft beer scene by focusing on Citra and floral notes that make their IPAs less bitter and fruitier. They have longer tank times with their hoppier beers due to the dry-hopping process so they can obtain as much flavor from those magical little green nubs as they possibly can. Sure, the market is currently flooded with IPAs and big hoppy beers, but everyone wants these beers. Rob and Tom are dedicated to bringing the people what they want, like a modern-day IPA Che Guevara, but with a Citra twist, which makes their IPAs and Pales brighter. Tom believes that IPAs are trending toward using more Citra hops, and ESBC is helping to lead the way.

Hops lovers will be excited when they visit the ESBC tasting room because they have three IPAs, two Pales, and two DIPAs (now that they released their Hop Tanker DIPA). I was recently asked what my favorite beer was while being interviewed for Lance’s Brewery Tour earlier in the week, and like many people who love craft beer, I gave the common answer of “my favorites are constantly changing and it depends on the occasion and what I’m in the mood for, cop-out, cop-out, cop-out.” I’ve done some meditating since then (and by meditating, I mean drinking beer), and I think Double IPAs are my favorites right now. I would be comfortable saying that the Hop Tanker is probably my beer of choice at this point in time because it’s so f–king good (sorry for my profanity, Grandma Milly). It has a strong Nelson Sauvin and Citra hop base with no malts and is like a San Diego West Coast DIPA.

Notable crafts at the brewery’s release day included the Casa Azul, which is a Vienna Style Amber Lager (like a marzen, but with less malts). It’s very refreshing and way better than any amber lager that’s (supposedly) released south of the border. They also released two of their IPAs brewed with local heirloom melons, an IPA on peaches, and a saison brewed with cherries. I especially loved the White Dog Wheat IPA brewed with Ogen melons because the hints of melon balanced the Nelson hops and the wheat in the beer made this craft heavenly.

The names of ESBC’s beers come from local El Segundo landmarks like the Standard Crude Imperial Stout (from that oil refinery I mentioned above) and the Two 5 Left DIPA (from the runway at LAX that sends planes right over El Segundo, causing people’s conversations to be mu—–, WHAT DID YOU SAY?!). These names help capture the essence of El Segundo, which my wife frequently describes as “adorable,” but the big floral, fruity, Citra hop profile of ESBC’s beers help capture the West Coast craft style while making them unique at the same time.

Their goal right now is to be a regional-sized California brewery, but Tom would like them to reach the big beer cities in the near future. They currently distribute 22 oz. bombers to local bottle shops, to Whole Foods, and anyone can order their kegs online for pick-up from the brewery (which is an excellent idea). Tom hopes that they can start distributing 12 oz. bottles of their Citra Pale next summer, which would make barbeques next year even more amazing.

For now, El Segundo Brewing Company should be a destination must for any hophead that lives in or passes through LA. If you happen to have a long layover at LAX, then try hailing a taxi and tell them to take you to 140 Main Street in El Segundo. You won’t regret it.