USA, CA: Backstage Brewing Co. holds soft opening in Sacramento

Guests got a quick Christmas Day introduction to a new brewery on Sacramento’s Broadway corridor. But the official opening for Backstage Brewing Co. is still some time off following that soft opening, the Sacramento Bee reported on December 30.

The brewery is at 2425 24th St., adjacent to Real Pie Co., on the northern edge of Curtis Park. The business is owned by husband and wife team David and Dana Herrera.

The location formerly housed Hoppy Brewing Co. until it went out of business in 2023. Despite significant challenges in the beer industry, David Herrera said he saw opportunity as the former brewery left its equipment behind.

“Everything was there, and (the former owner) was trying to sell it but couldn’t because breweries are just shutting down left and right. Nobody’s really buying much of that stuff right now,” he said.

Besides his work at the brewery, Herrera is an executive vice president at Colliers, where he has been involved with numerous commercial real estate transactions in the downtown/midtown grid, including many restaurants and bars.

While Herrera is passionate about beer, he is not a brewer himself. He teamed up with twin brothers Cory and Kale Coppin to make Backstage’s beers. The Coppins began as home brewers, and have done some collaborations with other breweries. The team has been producing and canning beers in the Curtis Park facility for nearly a year.

“Right now, we have a Sound Check IPA. It’s lighter on the hops, and we’ve had good feedback on that one from customers and at the California Brewers Festival,” Herrera said.

“Then we have a blonde ale that’s called Groupie Blonde Ale. We have another one called Pelotero. It’s our Mexican lager, and pelotero means baseball player or soccer player in Spanish.”

Backstage Brewing has been showcasing its beers at brewing events and has cans and kegs in limited retail and bar locations.

While the brewery is operational, the team is not ready to fully open the doors to the taproom just yet. Their challenge is to ramp up production to meet demand. Each beer takes a few weeks to complete.

“We’re just kind of taking our time and being patient on what we’re producing to make sure it’s good. That’s our biggest focal point, making sure that we’re producing good beer,” Herrera said.

In addition to the existing brewery and taproom, Herrera plans to open a beer garden by the same name at 1812 D St. in midtown’s New Era Park. The location is an existing recording studio. Herrera says he expects that to open in another two to three months.