San Diego Beer Week: Ten Days, 150+ Breweries, One County
Ten days, more than 150 independent breweries, and no single venue — San Diego Beer Week runs November 6–15, with limited releases, tap takeovers, food pairings and brewery tours across the county.
Overview
For ten days in November, the county's craft beer scene stops competing and starts collaborating. San Diego Beer Week runs November 6–15, 2026, hosted by the San Diego Brewers Guild, and it pulls in more than 150 local breweries.
There's no single venue and no one ticket. It's a countywide programme of individual events — limited-edition releases, tap takeovers, food pairings, brewery tours and educational sessions — spread across ten days and as many neighborhoods as there are breweries.
What You Need to Know
When: November 6–15, 2026 — ten days
Where: Countywide, at participating breweries and venues across San Diego
Who's behind it: The San Diego Brewers Guild
Scale: 150+ local breweries
Cost: Varies by event — individual events are ticketed or priced separately
Info: San Diego Brewers Guild
What Actually Happens
Four things make up most of the calendar:
Limited-edition beer releases. Breweries save things for this week — one-offs, collaborations, barrel-aged projects that only exist in November.
Tap takeovers. A bar gives its lines over to one brewery for a night. It's the easiest way to drink deep on a single brewery without driving to their taproom.
Curated food pairings. Restaurants and breweries build menus around specific beers.
Brewery tours and educational sessions. The part people skip and shouldn't. If you've ever wanted to understand what you're drinking, this is the week the people who make it are actually available to explain it.
Why It Matters Here
San Diego is a top destination for craft beer, and Beer Week is the clearest annual demonstration of why: independence and scale at the same time. Over 150 breweries in one county, nearly all of them independent, running their own events for ten days.
The Guild frames it as a showcase of creativity and community spirit, and the format bears that out — this isn't one organization putting on a festival, it's 150 businesses agreeing to do something interesting in the same window.
How to Do It
Pick a neighborhood, not a brewery. Trying to cross the county chasing individual releases will cost you the week in traffic. North Park, Miramar, Ocean Beach and Vista each have enough breweries within walking or short-ride distance to fill an afternoon.
Check the calendar before you go. Because every event is run by its own brewery, times, prices and ticketing differ. The Guild publishes the full schedule; individual events sell separately.
Go to at least one educational session. They're the thing you can't get any other week of the year.
Plan a ride. Ten days of beer events, and the whole county participating. Rideshare or a designated driver, every time.
It's 21+. Everything involving beer service requires ID.
FAQs
When is San Diego Beer Week 2026?
November 6 through November 15 — ten days.
Where is it?
All over San Diego County. There's no single venue; participating breweries and venues each host their own events.
Who runs it?
The San Diego Brewers Guild.
How many breweries take part?
More than 150.
How much does it cost?
It depends entirely on the event. Some are free to walk into, others are ticketed. There's no single Beer Week pass.
What kinds of events are there?
Limited-edition beer releases, tap takeovers, curated food pairings, brewery tours and educational sessions.
Is it worth going if I don't know much about beer?
Yes — the tours and educational sessions are built for exactly that.
For more of what's on around the county, browse our full event calendar.
