Fort Point Tap

San Francisco’s only rock and roll beer festival, The Bay Brewed, is back for a fourth year of pairing outstanding local beer and local music! Taking place at The Chapel on March 29, 2015, this year’s festival offers performances by four great San Francisco Bay Area bands and unlimited tastings from ten San Francisco breweries all day long thanks to the SF Brewers Guild. Between now and the festival, we’ll be previewing each of the participating breweries, giving a bit of history and talking about some of our favorite brews from all of these great San Francisco beer makers.

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Considering that I knew nothing about the brewery ahead of time, I was downright floored last year by how much I enjoyed a pint of the KSA from Fort Point Beer Company. It’s a refreshing, eminently drinkable Kölsch that — unlike a lot of lighter brews — also has a full, nuanced flavor. Fort Point describes their creations as “balanced, thoughtful beers,” and the KSA absolutely nails that aesthetic.

Opening at the beginning of 2014, Fort Point’s brewery may be hidden away in a former army building at the Presidio, but its kegs can now be found in an increasing number of restaurants, bars, and cafes around the Bay Area. In addition to the KSA, their main offerings include an IPA, a wheat beer, and the Manzanita smoked altbier, which was a winner at the 2015 Good Food Awards. Fort Point also produces a special beer for Tosca, a testament to how well their beers pair with food.

Add up these facts — the awards, the partnerships with acclaimed restaurants, and my above testimonial — and you’ve got the makings of a young SF brewery you should definitely check out. To learn more about the brewery before sampling their beers at The Bay Brewed, watch this video from the SF Weekly: