March 29, 2016 – Craft beer lovers rejoice! The folks who brought you Brew Cruz and the Santa Cruz Beer Trail are launching a passport program that is packed with information and includes deep discounts on beer and food at local breweries. “There are so many local craft breweries that we felt it was time to establish an organization that could showcase it all,” says co-founder Bryce Root.
Ten Santa Cruz area breweries are participating in the first passport season, which begins May 9 and runs through September 30. Keepsake passports—to sell for $25—include useful facts, history and special passport deals at each brewery.
“This is not going to be a cookie-cutter corporate passport, it’s very Santa Cruz style and very specific to our region,” says Root. “It will feature a local artist’s homage to craft beer and lots of beer geekery.”
Co-founder Annie Pautsch—who operates Brew Cruz—is providing much of the information contained in the passport, as well as frequently-updated brewery news on the Beer Trail website.
Free beer is not one of the passport perks, because that violates ABC licensing. But Root guarantees that the value of the passport will far surpass its cost. “This is something very special that any local craft beer fan will want to have,” he says.
He hopes that the Beer Trail Passport will encourage locals to discover new micro-breweries in different parts of the county. For out-of-towners it will serve as an introduction to the Santa Cruz craft brew scene. To reach visitors they are partnering will local hotels and the folks from Visit Santa Cruz.
Participating breweries include:
– Corralitos Brewing Co.
– Discretion Brewing
– East Cliff Brewing Company
– Highway 1 Brewing Company
– New Bohemia Brewing Co.
– Santa Cruz Ale Works
– Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing
– Seabright Brewery
– Seven Bridges Co-Op Brewing Supply
– Steel Bonnet Brewing Company
Passports will be sold online at www.SantaCruzBeerTrail.com beginning in May. To be among the first to find out about the exact release date, be sure to sign up for their email list.
About the author
At Edible Monterey Bay, our mission is to celebrate the local food culture of Santa Cruz, San Benito and Monterey Counties, season by season. We believe in sustainability, and we believe everyone has a right to healthful, clean and affordable food. We think knowing where our food comes from is powerful, and we hope our magazine, website and newsletters inspire readers to get to know and support our local growers, fishers, chefs, vintners and food artisans.
