Green beer...but not really

San Diego, Cali. - This week was spring break for University of Arizona students and I took the opportunity to get out of Arizona. I packed my bags and headed for San Diego, Cali. A trip to a local brewery is the inspiration for this week’s blog.

Located about 40 minutes from San Diego, Stone Brewing World Bistro and Gardens is paving the way in green technologies. But, you wouldn’t necessarily know it at first glance. The reviews all rave about the brewery’s world famous beers brewed on site, the gourmet dishes and impressive structure but few talk about the brewery’s green practices.

“Everything we use is all natural,” said general manager Jim Hurley. The property is home to an impressive a one-acre beer garden used for water reclamation and purification and the occasional after dinner stroll.

From the outdoor beer garden to the bathrooms, Stone is thinking green. “We done use any paper towels,” said Hurley. The waterless urinals in the men’s bathroom also help conserve water and surprisingly do not smell, according to my boyfriend who was quite impressed.

The food was delicious and all organic and locally grown. There are even local farmers that grow specifically for Stone Brewery.

The restaurant and brewery offers the queen of all green dinners once a month. “We do ‘Fresh’ dinners where everything is fresh to us the day of the dinner,” said Hurley.

As my friends and I stood in the garden after our meal we looked from the beer garden towards the massive glass and concrete structure offering a view of the silver brewing vats in the background. It’s looked like an adult equivalent of Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Factory, the only thing that was missing was a beer waterfall.