USA, TX: Islla St. Brewing Co. to open its doors in San Antonio on January 4

Double pale ales made with freshly baked strawberry and pineapple empanadas. A brown ale made with toasted coconut, coriander and Mexican caramel. Or how about a beer made with pink pan dulce that is the first of a line of Selena-inspired suds?

These are among the creative beers from the mind of head brewer Joaquin Peña of Islla St. Brewing Co., and they will be ready for public consumption at 4 p.m. Friday, January 4. Located near the intersection of O’Connor Road and Wurzbach Parkway on San Antonio’s Northeast Side, the opening of the newly constructed brewery is the culmination of a three-year process that started in Peña’s garage and has been followed closely by the Express-News.

Islla St. will offer 10 types of beer on the tap wall, including flagships that will be regularly featured, as well as room for rotating and seasons beers. All of the beers are brewed on site.

“We want to be the peacock, with beers that you won’t find anywhere else,” Peña said.

Co-owner Josh Peña, Joaquin’s brother, manages the tasting room and provides the narrative how many of the beers on the menu are rooted in family stories. The room is decorated in honor of the Peñas’ late grandfather Ricardo Peña, who lived at 1606 Islla St. in Corpus Christi, and is painted the same light blue color as his home.

Islla St. beer will be exclusive to tasting room pours at first, with growler fills and cans set to debut at a later date. Josh Peña also is working on limited distribution of the beer to other San Antonio area operations, but he said the focus will always be on the tasting room.

“It’s very important to maintain control of the product and make sure we are serving the beer the way it was intended to be enjoyed,” he said.

Islla St. has been building beer inventory for the past few weeks and has entertained a few limited groups for tastings. After Friday’s launch, the tasting room will be open Thursdays through Sundays.

Islla St. Brewing Co., 11911 Crosswinds Way, no phone yet. Hours: 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Thursdays, noon to 10 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, noon to 8 p.m. Sundays.

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