SOLANA BEACH — Vista-based kombucha company Local Roots has expanded its footprint to coastal North County by opening its second location in Solana Beach.
The taproom, known as “Solana Booch,” opened in September in the Cedros Avenue Design District with 20 draft options, experimental hard kombucha and non-alcoholic options.
Founded in 2017 by cousins Ryan White and Joe Carmichael of Carlsbad, Local Roots saw its first cans hit shelves in 2019 with cocktail-inspired flavors, including strawberry mojito, blood orange mimosa and Cali mule.
All of the Local Roots’ kombucha is brewed at the Boochyard, their first taproom in Vista, where patrons can enjoy live music and a large patio. Thanks to success at that location, Carmichael and White knew they wanted to expand to more taprooms in North County’s coastal areas.
“We wanted to stake a claim in different communities, not just Vista, and that was why we wanted to open more taprooms,” said Carmichael. “We wanted to get into the smaller communities.”
The Solana Beach taproom offers a more intimate environment than the 7,500-square-foot Boochyard taproom. Still, the smaller space is ready to embrace crowds looking for a drink before catching a show at Belly Up Tavern down the street or wanting to try a kombucha flight with some friends.
Solana Booch has also partnered with restaurants, including woodfired pizza operation Blade 1936 and Kai Ola Sushi, to provide food options for patrons to enjoy along with their brew throughout the week.
The cousins’ passion for kombucha began years ago in their kitchens, where they were both brewing and drinking the beverage regularly due to its natural ingredients and health benefits. Kombucha is made by fermenting tea and sugar with specific bacteria and yeast, and hard kombucha is achieved by extending the fermentation process.
While home brewers make batches of kombucha in large jars, Local Roots takes the process large-scale, brewing hundreds of gallons in large commercial tanks at their Vista taproom.
“It was a learning curve,” said Carmichael. “We had guys that knew beer, and Ryan and I came in and knew kombucha on a small scale, so we came together to figure it out on a large scale.”
Much like brewing beer, the craft element of Local Roots’ kombucha means there can be slight differences in each batch, with temperature playing a big part in how it turns out. White, who has a background in molecular biology, said this keeps the process interesting.
“Each batch of kombucha is a little bit different. Seasonally was our big challenge since it brews very differently in winter and summer,” said White.
Local Roots boasts kombucha with “clean” organic ingredients, no artificial sweeteners and living probiotics believed to improve gut health and offer other health benefits.
Philanthropy is also a large part of White and Carmichael’s mission. Four times per year, Local Roots releases a “Can for a Cause,” a specialty flavor that benefits a specific organization through part of its proceeds.
The latest Can for a Cause is a watermelon, raspberry and coconut hard kombucha called Pink Panther, which will see 10% of its proceeds go toward the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and is available at both taprooms. White said this cause is especially close to his heart, as his wife is a breast cancer survivor.
Safari Ride, another Can for a Cause specialty kombucha benefitting the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, has become one of the Local Roots’ familiar flavors after finding great success in the taproom.
Solana Booch is located at 112 S. Cedros Ave. and is open seven days a week, from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday to Thursday, 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday.
