Drive past the massive Princess Cruise ship in the harbor, glide along the harbor under the palm trees at the Port of Los Angeles, and feel at the edge of the world.

Then, twin big warehouses are on the right. One holds CRAFTED at the Port of Los Angeles and an event space. The other warehouse has a huge sign proclaiming that Brouwerij West [pronounced brewery] is coming in Spring 2015. Both buildings reside next to a large park.

Considering the pace of brewery construction, it should come as no surprise that I was there to see plans for the space and not the opening. Enter the building to see the potential and why Brouwerij West will be quite a draw. The U.S. Navy constructed this cavernous warehouse at the tail end of World War II and never used it. Now the building will hold a café, bar, bottling line, and the brewery.

The big selling point is the environmental steps they’re taking. The building will be 100% solar powered. Panels will cover 120,000+ square feet of roof, generating around 1 megawatt of electricity. That’s more than one brewery will need. More like 200 homes!

Wisconsin based Aegir Design modeled the Mash Filter Brewhouse on a Belgian style brewhouse, which will add further green cred. Think French press, but with ingredients for beer. It will use “about 30% less [water] than traditional brewhouses.”

Brouwerij West could be one of the most environmentally friendly breweries in the U.S. when it is up and running. The new (hoped for) open date is July.

San Pedro will soon be the home of a cutting edge brewery on the edge of the ocean.

Your Beer of the Week is another San Pedro product, Port Town Brewing Hefeweizen. Hefes don’t get much love in our hop crazed beer world. Anytime a well-made Hefe is available, you should give it a shot. This is a classic style and one that you can enjoy regularly.

The weekly Homework assignment is to find your own “Best Of” (insert style here). Make as many notes as you can or just jot down the words that best describe why this style is your favorite. This will give you a good benchmark. Compare new beers and see how new breweries in Los Angeles contrast to, say, your favorite Saison or Porter. Who knows? Maybe your favorite Dubbel is made here in town.

Find more of Sean Inman’s writing on his blog, Beer Search Party.