The crazier the better, right? This seems to be the norm for the world we live in today as the daring try to experiment with unique yet odd pairings, however back in a simpler time – brewing only consisted of the four scared ingredients: malt, hops, water and yeast. Only the bold deviate from this, and here starts our story of Sacrilege Brewery + Kitchen.
Since moving to California in the early 2000, Joe Pacini never really had the idea to start a brewery but naturally developed the itch after meeting the real beer geeks once he landed a job at a beer distribution company. He quick picked up home brewing, and started crafting up some crazy recipes..some of which you might find at the Half Moon Bay taproom.
Without the help of the tight knit brewing community, Joe probably couldn’t have gotten off the ground. His brewing system was gifted by fellow Half Moon Bay brewer, Dan Littlefield of Hop Dogma; and their current space was once Cowboy Fishing Co., where they offered Joe to come in and begin brewing for the restaurant initially. Although Cowboy Fishing Co. eventually shut its doors, out of the ashes came the flourishing Sacrilege Brewery & Kitchen in the coast side downtown. The brewing system is a modest 3 barrels, meaning that they have a few guest brews on tap to highlight friends within the industry. And did we mentioned they have a full kitchen? Manned by Chef Santi, make sure to try their seasonal Beer Dinner that includes a four course meal paired with both a mix of their own brews and guests on tap.
As we Californians love the outdoors, I highly suggest getting there early to grab a spot on the dog-friendly patio (which is exactly where I held this interview). You won’t be disappointed, as Sacrilege will have at least one maybe two interesting yet unique brews available – just check out their website ahead to see what’s on tap. Joe has hundreds of beers in his repertoire and maybe their flagship cream ale with a new ingredient or the ginger-wasabi Saison might make its triumphant return when your there.
Cheers \m/
Joe Hawk
