Karl Strauss Brewing Company (KSBC), the pioneer of craft beer in San Diego, is celebrating 20 years with events scheduled throughout 2009 and the launch of its new bottling operation at its Pacific Beach brewery.    “San Diego’s such a beer mecca,” said Melody Daversa, spokeswoman for Karl Strauss. “We’re happy to have sparked a beer renaissance in SD.” After an extensive remodel completed in January, the Santa Fe Street Brewery is now able to accommodate bottling operations. The beer was formerly bottled at Stevens Point Brewery in Wisconsin and shipped west. It can be found at more than 2,500 locations throughout Southern California, from Santa Barbara to San Diego County and Pacific Beach to Palm Springs. KSBC moved to the PB brewery, a converted greenhouse, in 1996, where it served as the central hub for San Diego brewing operations focusing on kegs. Wanting to expand operations without moving from the facility, the company reconfigured the building to include a two-story bottling production line, adding five new 240-barrel fermenting tanks and two new 120-barrel bright tanks to increase brewing capacity from 31,000 to 60,000 barrels annually. Also added were new systems that allow brewers to monitor each step of the fermentation process via computer. The new bottling line can produce both 12- and 22-ounce bottles, allowing for the production of more seasonal and specialty beers, and the equipment can fill up to 350 bottles per minute.  KSBC has hired an additional brewer and brewer’s assistant to help oversee the expansion. In addition to increasing quantity, improvements have also been made to the quality of the beer. For example, cold sterile filtering will replace the heat pasteurization process for bottles, which will result in bottled beer tasting more like draft. Not only will the beer be fresher as it’s bottled locally, but the taste will be more consistent, with the same beer going in kegs and bottles. To match the newer, fresher taste, KSBC has also freshened up its look with an updated packaging and design scheme in celebration of the anniversary. The company’s in-house graphic design team has updated the look while keeping mainstays such as the iconic Red Trolley Ale logo. The packaging is made with recycled materials, and the natural design scheme saves ink. The website has also been updated and includes more up-to-date information on featured beers and events. Karl Strauss Brewing Company was established in the late 1980s when, after graduating college, Chris Cramer and Matt Rattner decided to start their own brewing company with the help of Cramer’s uncle, master brewer Karl Strauss, who helmed Pabst Beer for decades. Seeing microbrews as the future, they opened the first location in downtown San Diego on Columbia Street in February of ’89.     By 1990, Karl Strauss was distributing beers to other bars and restaurants, and, by 1991 Cramer and Rattner had built the first distributing brewery in San Diego County. The first bottled beer, Amber Lager, was sold by the first retail customer, Costco, in 1995. The La Jolla brewery restaurant on Wall Street opened in 1996, and in 1999 KSBC began distributing in Orange County and Los Angeles. In December of 2006, Karl Strauss died at the age of 94, leaving a legacy of brewing that spanned generations. Currently, there are six Karl Strauss brewery restaurant locations in San Diego, Los Angeles and Orange counties, with about 440 employees, 68 at the home office and 372 at the restaurants. In addition to quality product, KSBC is known for philanthropy. “One of our core values is to care for the community and the environment,” Daversa said. Big supporters of the local craft brew community, the company established a Brewer’s Education Fund to assist aspiring brewers. KSBC also supports the Surfrider Foundation and, Daversa said, has committed 1 percent of beer sales to donations, which has equated to making about $67,000 of beer donations to support nearly 300 events held by nonprofits ranging from museums to arts and environmental groups. Beer appears to be a recession-resistant commodity. Even in these tough economic times, Daversa said, overall sales are about on par with last year, and there has been an increase in bottle sales. Daversa attributes this to people cutting back on going out and treating themselves to Karl Strauss beer at home. Some of the 20th anniversary activities planned this year include:  • A 20th anniversary Dunkel released in mid-February at all Karl Strauss locations plus select bars and restaurants • Each brewery location will host a 20th anniversary beer dinner, four-course meals paired with beers, with the downtown dinner March 24 and La Jolla June 1 • The sixth annual Beach to Brewery festival will be held at the PB brewery May 9 benefiting Surfrider • A 20th anniversary employee homebrew competition, with the winner having his or her brew featured on tap at all Karl Strauss locations. For info on upcoming events, go to www.karlstrauss.com.