Stone Brewing, the largest brewery in Southern California and the 8th largest brewery in the United States, has made its way to Shanghai with a wide variety of hoppy lagers, floral IPAs, and sneakily-strong stouts. With a focus on craft beer and world-inspired cuisine, this brewery is sure to make some major waves across the up-and-coming craft beer scene in China.
This opening marks the first taproom by an independent American craft brewery in all of China, thus raising the bar for craft beer standards in Asia.
After opening as a small microbrewery in 1996 in San Diego, founders Greg Koch and Steve Wagner grew the brand into an institution and flagship craft beer company by focusing on sustainability and sticking to the roots of the art of brewing.
Stone Brewing has since been listed 11 times on the Inc. 500 | 5000 Fastest Growing Private Companies and has been twice named the 「All-Time Top Brewery on Planet Earth」 by BeerAdvocate magazine.
The Shanghai Tap Room joins a growing list of other global taprooms located across San Diego, Napa, Richmond, Virginia, and Berlin. With a goal of developing the craft beer scene and increasing appreciation for America’s craft breweries across the world, Stone Brewing brings a fully-fledged U.S. craft brewery experience to Shanghai-ers.
The taproom features 30 taps with rotating guest beers from the world’s most sought-after breweries, 300+ cellar beers from across the globe, Stone’s year-round beers, plus a wide selection of beers only available at Stone Brewing locations, including special releases and, most importantly, a painstakingly designed flux capacitor tap system. What the hell is a flux capacitor? As a die-hard 'Back to the Future' fan and Marty McFly advocate, I couldn’t love the name of this cold chain delivery system of US craft beer to China any more.
The flux capacitor was the core component of Dr. Emmett Brown’s time-traveling DeLorean time machine in the 'Back to the Future' movie series, and at the same level of cool (pun intended), it is the first-ever tap control panel system in Asia that allows Stone Brewing to calibrate carbon dioxide and nitrogen mixes and to adjust pressure volume of each tap to customize the conditions and temperature (maintaining all beer temperatures between 2°C and 8°C at all times) of every pour.
But the taproom is so much more than just your average spot to drink beer. Similar to the other large Stone Brewing locations across the world, the Shanghai Tap Room will bring an elevated craft beer experience to patrons by featuring live music, lawn games, hosted beer festivals behind the tap room and summer monthly block parties with their neighbor, the Cannery.
The space comfortably fits roughly 100 people inside and an additional 30-50 outside, with the interior incorporating industrial metal components, a fireplace lounge, warm lighting, and a large graffiti wall. The vintage furniture and reclaimed wood offer guests a visual experience as nuanced as the beers, which thankfully are available for takeaway sale in bottles and growlers. Purchase your favorite beverages along with other Stone Brewing merchandise, such as their extensive list of hot sauces, BBQ sauces, and dips that feature their beers as main ingredients.
While the beers are the star of the show, the globally-inspired cuisine is not to be placed on the back burner. From starters to salads to mains, there are great options no matter your appetite.
Starting with the Crispy Rice Spicy Tuna (RMB 58), large chunks of sashimi-grade tuna are layered on top of thin slices of creamy avocado, and crunchy toasted rice. With a good kick of heat from the spicy mayo and hot peppers, the sweet eel sauce brings everything together for a standout bite.
At first, the Duck Confit Spring Rolls (RMB 78) don’t appear to be more than your standard fried spring rolls, but I was quickly proven wrong after the first bite. Reminding me of a Thanksgiving meal, the tender pieces of duck acted as the yin to the crispy spring rolls』 yang, and paired expertly with a sweet, hoisin-like cherry port dipping sauce.
When I think of a match made in heaven, spicy hot wings and a cold, hoppy beer are near the top of the list, and the Angry Wings (RMB 78) are no exception. These meaty chicken wings are coated in a crispy layer of breading before being smothered in thick Korean Gochujang sauce that you can’t avoid getting all over your fingers and face. The slow, satisfying burn of the hot sauce makes it easy to take down all five wings down in the blink of an eye.
Pause before diving into the mains with another hop-focused beer. The Stone Tangerine Express IPA finds a delicate balance between fruity and hoppy. This refreshing, amber-colored ale balances the floral and sour characteristics of both the hops and pineapple simultaneously in each gulp. At 75 IBUs (International Bitter Units), this beer is great for those looking for a hit of bitter in a sessionable summer IPA.
Do not skip out on the Stone Brewing BBQ Burger (RMB 98), a rookie mistake that I myself almost made. Easily my favorite item on the menu, this solid burger nails it at being exactly what you’re signing up for. A 170-gram fresh wagyu beef patty is topped with legit hearty cheddar cheese and American-style thick cut maple bacon.
With a generous slather of crushed avocado and grilled onions, along with a topping of tempura-fried jalapeños and bacon-BBQ jam, this is a down-and-dirty, greasy burger done right, and easily one my favorite burgers in the entire city. For a side, choose between crispy tempura-fried onion rings are salty smashed potatoes.
If you order any of the meatier mains, make sure to pair it with the Stone Totalitarian, an Imperial Russian Stout coming in at a whopping 10.6% ABV. This beer has strong coffee notes on the nose balanced by slightly sweet, smooth and rich flavors. There is no overpowering single aroma in this booze-forward beer, making it oh-so-drinkable despite its sneakily-high alcohol content. It is seasonal though so it may not always be available!
Don’t miss Stone Brewing’s upcoming launch party this Thursday, July 26th starting at 6:30pm, which will feature 28 beers on tap, DJ Skinny Brown from Shanghai-based POPASUDA Sound, and tattoos by Shanghai Tattoo. All who attend will receive a complimentary beer as well as raffle tickets for every subsequent beer purchased which can be redeemed for prizes that include unlimited beer for a year!
Stone Brewing
Address: 1107 Yuyuan Lu, near Jiangsu Lu
WeChat: StoneBrewing
Hours: Sunday to Wednesday, 11:30am-12am; Thursday to Saturday, 11:30am-2am
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