Stone Brewing Co., Southern California’s largest craft brewer, will open a second outfit of its award-winning Stone Brewing World Bistro and Gardens in Point Loma’s historic Liberty Station as part of early $27 million in expansion projects slated for the coming year. The brewery-restaurant, scheduled to open in spring 2012, will boast 20,000 square feet of indoor dining, a 10-barrel brewing system, 40 craft and specialty beers on tap and nearly an acre of outdoor space that will include a beer garden, bocce courts and an outdoor movie screening area. “We weren’t really looking for another spot, but the spot [Liberty Station] found us,” said Stone Brewery’s CEO and co-founder Greg Koch. “We’re able to create a very special environment there and we’re very excited about it,” he said. Koch and his business partner, Steve Wagner, adhere to their commitment that beer should be bold and that cuisine should be held to a higher standard. Menu options will include non-commodity, non-factory-produced meats, no processed foods or chemical enhancers, and all locally-grown, small-farm organic produce. “All of the small decisions we make, we try to make in concert with each other. Creating bold beers with boring food just wasn’t in the cards for us,” said Koch. Fruits, vegetables, herbs and even indigenous hops for both the existing and planned Stone Brewing World Bistro and Gardens will be supplied by the brewery’s own newly-purchased 18.7-acre farm located eight miles north of its current Escondido location. Mil Krecu, Stone Farm’s manager, even planted pumpkins, which will be harvested in late summer for pumpkin ale, expected to be released in October this year. The 400-seat restaurant in the newly-restored Building 1 at Liberty Station and the revival of the former La Milpa Organica farm are only two components of the company’s vast $26.6 million expansion. Other plans that are already under way include doubling the size of the company’s original Escondido-based brewery, opening a store and tasting room in South Park’s “beer corridor” on 30th St., and building a 40- to 50-room boutique hotel across from the existing Stone Brewery in Escondido. In the wake of an overall drop in American beer sales, craft beer — traditionally-brewed, independently-owned beer with an annual production of six million barrels or less — has spiked 11 percent, according to the Brewers Association, a Colorado-based trade group. According to the San Diego Business Journal, Stone Brewery has been one of the fastest-growing companies in San Diego County for the last 10 years. This year is no different. Stone Brewery is not only increasing its production capacity from 115,000 barrels to 400,000 to 500,000 barrels per year, it is also creating 250 permanent jobs and several hundred contractual construction jobs as a result of its expansion. Stone Brewery, which began in a small warehouse in San Marcos, has grown to surpass San Diego’s oldest beer manufacturer, Karl Strauss, by three times its sales percentage. Stone distributes its craft brews to 36 states in the U.S. and the District of Colombia. Koch and Wagner also hope to become the first Americans to open a craft brewery in Europe. As to the philosophy behind Stone Brewery’s success, Koch contends, “There are a hundred right ways to do something and a million wrong ways to do it. Not that our way is the right way, but it’s right for us. We’ve tried to focus on what is our right way. Number one, be true to ourselves by creating our styles of beer and food.” STONE BREW’S EXPANSIONS ON TAP • Stone Brewing World Bistro and Gardens: 400-seat, 20,000-square-foot restaurant and bar; three-quarters of an acre outdoor space with a beer garden, bocce courts and outdoor movie-screening area; 10-barrel brewing system and 40 craft and specialty beers on tap • Stone Farm: 18.7 acres of farmland to supply organic produce for Stone Brewing World Bistro and Gardens and Stone Brewery’s new catering company • The Stone Co. Store: 1,100 square feet of retail space, filled with Stone merchandise and a 14-tap growler and tasting station in South Park • Stone Hotel: Boutique hotel with 40 to 50 rooms next to Stone Brewery and restaurant in Escondido • Expansion of the existing Stone Brewery: New office, a catering kitchen, event space, special room for barrel-aged beers and an expanded production facility allowing for a second brewline and additional fermentation in the existing brewery STONE BREWERY’S NOT-SO-LIGHT-AND-FLUFFY BEERS Stone Brewery is not your typical brewery that cranks out mass-produced light beer. In fact, co-founders Koch and Wagner tend to steer clear of what Koch labels “fizzy yellow beer” and leans more toward aggressively-hopped beer with bold flavors, high alcohol percentages and International Bitterness Units (IBUS) that are off the charts. “Light and beer don’t belong in the same sentence,” said Koch. Here are some of the year-round releases with bold flavors and quirky titles produced by Stone Brewery’s ever-expanding repertoire: • Stone Pale Ale: Stone Brewery’s flagship ale; robust and full-flavored deep-amber ale complemented by a rich maltiness; alc./vol.: 5.4 percent; IBUs: 41 • Stone Smoked Porter: Ebony-hued ale with a creamy head; smooth, yet complexly rich chocolate and coffee flavors and a subtle smokiness; alc./vol.: 5.9 percent; IBUs: 53 • Stone IPA: Heavily-hopped India pale ale with a heavy dose of bitterness and a medium malt character; alc./vol.: 6.9 percent; IBUs: 77 • Stone Ruination IPA: Immensely hopped, bitter India pale ale with a refreshing malt base; alc./vol.: 7.7 percent; IBUs: 100+ • Stone Sublimely Self-Righteous Ale: Deep black-hued, bitter flavor with a high alcohol percentage; alc./vol.: 8.9 percent; IBUs: 90