Figueroa Mountain Brewing Company

Lore & Background

The company opened for business over Thanksgiving weekend in 2010. Father and son duo Jaime and Jim Dietenhofer opened the brewery in a converted warehouse in Buellton, California, that housed the company's brewing operations and a small taproom. Jason Courtney served as the company's first brewmaster. The company, drawing inspiration from the surrounding landscape, named itself after the local Figueroa Mountain and named its beers for characteristics of the surrounding region.

In 2013, the company opened its first expansion with a second taproom in Santa Barbara, California. Further expansions followed with taprooms in Los Olivos, California, and Santa Maria, California, in 2014 and Arroyo Grande, California, and Westlake Village, California, in 2015. By 2017, the company claimed to be brewing beer 'around the clock — 22 and a half hours every day — to keep up with demand.' In 2019, the company announced a collaboration with Dean Norris related to his portrayal of the fictional character Hank Schrader in the popular television series Breaking Bad.

By the end of 2019, the company was reportedly producing 23,145 barrels of beer annually and expected to produce up to 27,000 barrels by 2022. On October 5, 2020, however, the company announced that it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, citing the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and that it intended to reorganize and continue operating the business post-bankruptcy. As of June 2022, the company remains in bankruptcy. In June 2022, the company announced that it was acquiring new taprooms in West Los Angeles, Westwood, Echo Park, and Sherman Oaks.

Reader's Guide

Figueroa Mountain Brewing Company's significance lies in its rapid expansion across Southern California and its subsequent financial restructuring. The brewery grew from a single converted warehouse in Buellton to multiple taprooms in Santa Barbara, Los Olivos, Santa Maria, Arroyo Grande, and Westlake Village within five years of opening. Its production reached 23,145 barrels annually by 2019, with ambitions to hit 27,000 barrels by 2022. The company earned industry recognition, including a gold medal at the 2014 Great American Beer Festival, the world's largest commercial beer competition for U.S. beers. Its beers, such as Danish Red Lager, Davy Brown Ale, Hoppy Poppy IPA, Hurricane Deck DIPA, Lizard's Mouth IIPA, Paradise Road Pilsner, and Stagecoach Stout, reflect the local landscape through their names. The company's bankruptcy filing in October 2020, attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic, marked a turning point, though it continued operations and even announced new taproom acquisitions in June 2022. As of October 2022, the company remains in bankruptcy reorganization, illustrating the challenges faced by craft breweries during economic disruptions.

Did You Know?

• The brewery is named after Figueroa Mountain, a local landmark in California.
• The company's first brewmaster was Jason Courtney.
• In 2019, the company collaborated with actor Dean Norris, known for playing Hank Schrader on Breaking Bad.