We feel old. Sidetrack, the little brewery that could, is turning 10 years old this month.

It feels like just yesterday that we were making our first visit to the quaint taproom on Second Street between Lead and Coal. But no, it really has been a decade of good times, chill vibes, and tasty brews.

I caught up with owner Pilar Westell and head brewer Cordell Rincon last week for their Look Back/Look Ahead Series interview, plus to preview the upcoming 10th anniversary celebration that is set for January 24.

As we have done for all of these stories, it is built around three basic questions, asking what was the biggest challenge of 2025, the biggest accomplishment, and the goal/aim/hope for 2026.

“Those first two (answers) are probably the same as far as big challenges by switching over owners and definitely a big accomplishment, too,” Rincon said.

Westell, who also owns neighboring Zendo Coffee, bought Sidetrack from original owners Dan Herr and Anne O’Neill over the summer. Westell said she has been learning ever since.

“I think for me one of the biggest challenges is just getting to learn all the different nuances of what it means to brew beer,” she said. “I mean, Cordell is just this plethora of knowledge, and I’m slowly learning about all of the millions of things that go into brewing beer. But then I think also, just really trying to figure out ways to engage with the community, you know, and continue to come up with ideas for how to get people to wanna come and hang out and participate in in being here, right?”

One way to do that, of course, is to keep the steady stream of different beers flowing. Both said that Rincon has quite a few new brews in the works.

Under Westell, Sidetrack has also increased the number of weekly and monthly events. So far, those have been well received by the brewery’s consistent clientele.

“The beautiful thing about Sidetrack that I’m learning is that there’s this really great group of regulars that come in pretty much every day,” Westell said. “And, I think for me, one of my goals is to just expand that group, right? I’d like to have more regulars.”

For the most part, being small has helped Sidetrack avoid some of the bigger challenges that have affected the industry, Rincon said. That in turn has also been a bit of an accomplishment.

Now Sidetrack gets to celebrate a decade in business. The event will include Hawaiian BBQ on the patio, plus a special batch of English mild ale with help from an old friend.

“We’re bringing Dan back to brew the beer with Cordell,” Westell said. “We’re gonna do a bunch of fun 10-year anniversary merch, including some temporary tattoos that I’m so excited for.”

Other events coming up will of course include Adobe Disco performing every First Friday, and the Cask Festival is also on the horizon for the spring.

“So yeah, we’re in good planning for that,” Rincon said. “That’s going to be big, that’s the fun one. So hopefully we keep expanding on that.”

Throw in weekly trivia and the start of weekly karaoke, and there is certainly plenty to do now at Sidetrack on a regular basis.

“I think we’re excited for a lot in the future,” Rincon said.

“We’re getting into, I think, a pretty good groove,” Westell added.

A groove is a rare thing these days in the brewing world, so we are quite happy to see Sidetrack find one. A big thanks to Pilar and Cordell for the quick interview before I had to get to the day job, that’s really a night job, but I digress.

See some of you at the anniversary party. Keep an eye out for even more details as we get closer to the 24th.

Keep supporting local!

— Stoutmeister