Have you fulfilled your New Years’ Resolution to drink more beer this year? If not, there’s still enough time to cram it in at one of the many Los Angeles breweries before the end of the year. And if you didn’t make that resolution… then what’s wrong with you? There is an insane amount of good beer in Los Angeles right now and you should be drinking it. With friends. At the breweries where they make it.

Here’s a list of all of the new Los Angeles breweries. If you want a full list of all of the LA breweries, please check out our page here: labeerhop.com/breweries.

Los Angeles Breweries – Class of 2016

Indie*

Located in Boyle Heights, this shabby industrial taproom serves finely-tuned beers on the weekends and in 16oz cans. If you want to visit, they’re hosting a cheese and beer event with Vagabond cheese this Saturday (12/17) at their taproom.

Boomtown*

Equal parts brewery and warehouse party, this Arts District brewery is now open every weekend serving around 10 or more different crafts.

Frogtown

A homebrew shop turned tasting room and brewery. They’re not officially “open-open” yet, but they’re open enough to count them in the class of 2016.

Cosmic*

They were contract brewing for quite a while before opening their brewery in Torrance a stones throw from Monkish, Smog City and The Dudes (I think you could literally hit Monkish with a stone from Cosmic if you were really good at throwing stones). Also, you pour your own beer here, no bartenders.

Santa Monica Brew Works*

They’ve been brewing for a while, but their rather large Santa Monica taproom officially opened this year making them the only taproom in Santa Monica out of all of the Los Angeles Breweries. Go to check out a wide range of beers brewed onsite and grab some food from their rotating schedule of foodtrucks.

Brouwerij West*

Formerly part of the contract brewing club, Brouwerij West had a much-anticipated opening this year at an enormous location in the Ports’o’Call in San Pedro. They make a bunch of experimental (and good) Belgian and French-style beers in a taproom that could fit a fleet of elephants.

Homage Brewing

Alright, it’s out in Pomona, but it’s worth the trip. It’s the first brewery to really adopt the white walled, green plants, clean atmosphere of a coffee shop (I’m looking at you Dinosaur coffee). You might say that this brewery is “on trend”. And boy are they doing things right. Innovative beers, trendy styles done well, well adorned taproom, good music, and incredibly warm people. Do yourself a favor and head out to Pomona.

Rob Rubens Distilling and Brewing

The only combination brewery and distillery in LA (although we definitely smell more coming), Rob Rubens opened his speakeasy-style tasting room and brewery/distillery in El Segundo this year. So far, they’ve made some pretty tasty beers and a small collection of spirits: vodka, gin and a white whiskey.

Cellador Ales

Maybe one of the most anticipated breweries, certainly one of the quietest, this small brewery is operating all the way up in North Hills slowly turning out some really innovative oak aged beers. They don’t have a tasting room yet, but you can find their liquid in small format bottles around LA (they’ll be in large bottles soon). Look out for Firegold – A funky farmhouse ale brewed with Mosaic and El Dorado aged with oranges & orange peel in a French Oak Puncheon.

State

They just put beer out in the marketplace but their taproom isn’t open yet, so they JUST made the cut to be part of the class of 2017. This Gardena brewery also just got Robert Sanchez from Kinetic Brewing to come and serve as their Brewmaster. Be on the look out for lots of fun beers in 2017.

Scholb

Started by Patrick Schulz and Jason Kolb (blend their two last names together and you get…. “Scholb”… Ta-da!) this two-family brewery opened up about 50 yards away from Absolution in Torrance and instantly became a fan favorite. It’s a one of the friendliest taprooms you’ll find anywhere, filled with well made beers, smiling bartenders and locals.

Zymurgy

Does this mean the LA Beer scene has come full circle? Zymurgy Brew Works, located in Torrance (of course) is a DIY Brewery and taproom. You can now brew your very own beer alongside professional brewers who assist you in every aspect of production.

Beer tours are great for bachelor parties. Make sure to pair the beer with these ridiculous bachelor party supplies: https://samevaginaforever.com/

Los Angeles Breweries — Brouwerij West in San Pedro

New brewery in LA — Frogtown Brewery in LA

Cosmic Brewery in Torrance

*Breweries with a “*” have brewed before this year, but they opened their taprooms full time in 2016.

Just as we thought we were out of the heat, it sucks us back in again. We should have seen it coming. September gets hot and we can’t avoid it unless we get outta town. For that, we recommend a day trip to Ventura, CA to sip on some of the fine craft at Topa Topa Brewing Company.

Located just 60 miles North of Los Angeles, you can drive there in about an hour, but why rush. You’re going to enjoy taking the coastal route. It’s prettier than the 101, there’s less traffic and you can make a pit stop at Neptune’s Net for an early lunch of clam chowder and oysters. Their seaside seafood shack open daily 10:30am to around 8:00pm.

Alternatively, you could take Amtrak directly up to Ventura. The Pacific Surfliner departs from Union Station and takes a little less than 2 hours. Trains depart daily at 7:50am, 9:20am and 12:30pm. Tickets are $24 each way, which is way cheaper than an Uber, and the train drops you off at the Ventura Station (VEC) a mere 1,000 feet from the brewery (that’s .2 miles). Just make sure you catch the last train back to LA at 7:37pm otherwise you’ll be trapped in Ventura drinking beer all night.

One of the most shocking things about Topa Topa is that the brewhouse and taproom isn’t tucked away into the back of an industrial park like most Southern California breweries. It’s actually located in a part of town suited for eating and drinking. You know, like a normal business. You’ll find the location right off of the 101 just as soon as the freeway hits the beach.

As soon as you hit the parking lot and see the “Park Here for Beer” printed on the concrete, you get the first sign that that this team knows what they’re doing and you’ll be in good hands.

The taproom is humble in size with a small interior space and a wraparound exterior space, which is where you’ll want to sit to waft the sea air intermittently between your sniffs of their various IPAs. At the time I visited, they had 11 beers on tap: a Pilsner, Belgian Strong Pale, Saison, Cali Common, Pale Ale, Session IPA, West Coast IPA, Nelson IPA, Double IPA, Coffee IPA (I got a growler), and a Nitro Milk Stout with Vanilla Bean.

The beers are top notch and poured with the utmost care. I got my first flight (Nelson IPA, Cali Common, Coffee IPA and Saison) and I remarked to the bartenders that I had never seen four flight glasses in a row that had such consistent head and carbonation. The bartenders replied that they had just taken a class from one of the owners about the importance of beer head, glass cleanliness and maintaining carbonation which is the kind of dedication that elevates breweries to a higher status.

For my second flight I ordered the Milk Stout, Pilsner, Belgian Strong Pale and Double IPA. They were all stellar, but from the day the Milk Stout stood out for it’s elegance, the Pilsner stood out for it’s clarity and clean profile, and the Coffee IPA stood out because it’s a Coffee IPA and it was more balanced than it should be.

You’re likely to run into one of the owners, as I did, or a local business taking the day off early, as I also did. The brewery has only been open since early 2015 and while there are other breweries in the area such as Anacapa, Madewest, Poseidon and Surf, the idea of a local taproom is still somewhat of a new one to Ventura.

If you get hungry, order pizza from next door Tony’s Pizzaria to be delivered right to your picnic table. Or if you were regretting not stopping at Neptune’s Net earlier, you can opt to head over to Spencer Makenzie’s Fish Tacos, a Ventura staple, for world famous fish tacos and more beer (they have Topa Topa’s Chief IPA on tap).

You’re full, you’re happy, you’re buzzed and you’re not quite ready to leave, so after your stay at the Topa Topa taproom, you will probably be inclined to visit the beachside Surfer’s Point Park to take in the sunset. Grab a bottle of water and make the eight minute walk to the beach to soak in the last of the day’s rays and call this tiny trip a success.