Mikkeller Partnering With AleSmith To Open San Diego Brewery

Mikkel Borg Bjergsø, a celebrated Danish brewer who roams the globe making beer under the Mikkeller label, is forming a partnership with Miramar’s AleSmith to produce his beers in San Diego.

The as-yet-unnamed brewery will open June 1 in the plant now occupied by AleSmith. AleSmith is moving to larger facilities nearby, still in the Miramar area.

Bjergsø, who owns a beer bar in San Francisco and operates a Copenhagen brewery, Warpigs, with Indiana’s Three Floyds, said he intends to continue brewing at numerous European breweries.

Their talks eventually arrived at this idea: They would form a new company, with equity held by Mikkeller and AleSmith. The as-yet-unnamed brewery will make Beer Geek Breakfast and other Mikkeller mainstays, plus experiment with new beers.

Making his beers in Europe and shipping them to the U.S., Bjergsø said, "it’s hard to keep them fresh and keep them at a fair price."

This from AleSmith:

Well, the word is out! Mikkeller and AleSmith Brewing Co. have officially joined forces to transform the original AleSmith brewery location into one glorious, creative workshop. These two legendary brewers will formulate entirely new recipes with some of the world’s finest breweries. Expect to see the liquid results of this creative partnership summer 2015!

"People have always asked me when I’m going to open my own brewery, and my answer has always been ‘never,’" says Mikkel Bjergsø. "It’s the easiest answer, but it’s been on my mind for several years. Just nothing concrete. When Peter proposed for me to brew at AleSmith in this capacity, it became real for me. I like being a ‘gypsy brewer,’ but know that having a stake in a U.S. brewery will change our position here."

For 20 years, AleSmith Brewing Co. has occupied the Cabot location and even though a completely new brewery awaits us, we never truly wanted to leave this space behind. Fortunately, a lasting friendship is making it all possible and San Diego will soon reap the rewards. We hope you’re excited as we are, cheers!