Ballast Point’s ‘Made in San Diego’ brew gives back to small businesses

Ballast Point’s newest brew will give back to the city that originally supported a small brewer’s dream more than 20 years ago. The "Made in San Diego" beer was created in partnership with the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation— 50 cents for every case sold of Made in San Diego will go to the EDC Foundation Entrepreneurship Fund.

The multi-year partnership will provide aspiring San Diego entrepreneurs with needed resources to launch and grow their small businesses and will raise up to $25,000 each year for the program.

“As a brewery that has called San Diego home for over two decades, we couldn’t be more excited about this announcement,” said Marty Birkel, president of Ballast Point Brewing Company. “This community has embraced us from a small home brew supply shop to a globally distributed brewery, and we want to honor our hometown supporters while empowering other local business owners to pursue their passion – just like Ballast Point did.”

The debut keg tapping was hosted on April 18 at The Draft by Ballast Point at Petco Park ahead of the Padres vs. Dodgers game. Special guests included SD City Councilmember Mark Kersey and executive leaders from the EDC, Ballast Point and the San Diego Padres.

With packaging that pays homage to the vibrant cities and neighborhoods across the San Diego region, the beer is an easy-drinking Kolsch that features toasted bread aroma and flavor from Munich malt and a soft bitterness from Cascade and Mosaic hops.

Made in San Diego will be available on draft in San Diego County later this month with six-pack 12 oz. cans roll out county-wide at the end of May.

In 2017 alone, Ballast Point generated $537 million of total economic activity in the region. Quantified by EDC, the brewery is also a significant contributor to jobs. While directly employing approximately 375 people locally, Ballast Point’s presence in the region impacts roughly 1,074 jobs.

“Ballast Point is a great steward in supporting the local economy and local businesses,” said Lauree Sahba, chief operating officer of San Diego Regional EDC. “In fact, EDC found that for every direct job Ballast Point creates, another 1.9 jobs are supported elsewhere in the region. Ballast Point embodies the life-changing spirit that EDC is promoting, so when they approached us about the Made in San Diego initiative, we knew it would be a partnership the community would embrace.”

For more information on Made in San Diego from Ballast Point, visit MadeInSD.com

To learn more about San Diego Regional EDC, visit sandiegobusiness.org and sandiegolifechanging.org.