1992 was a rough year for a West Marin man named Tony Magee.

He lived in Lagunitas, a few miles past Fairfax on Sir Francis Drake. He was newly married and broke. Actually worse than broke: he owed back taxes after his ad-agency clients ordered less printing.

That Christmas, his little brother gave him a homebrew kit.

Magee brewed on his kitchen stove in February 1993, and by the end of the year he would have a licensed brewery.

“At that point I could either pay back income taxes or invest what I had in starting a new business. So with $35,000 I bought some brewing equipment and started Lagunitas. The taxes eventually got paid,” he told Fortune in 2018.

He named it after home. He loved how the word Lagunitas sounded, and how it looked in print.

Magee kept his day job selling commercial printing. “I’d get up at 3 o’clock in the morning,” he later told The Brewer Magazine. He’d brew until 9 a.m., then head off to sell printing.

Then came the Thanksgiving incident.

Wort had boiled over and dripped down the back of the stove. On Thanksgiving night, it caught fire and ruined dinner. His wife, Carissa, asked him to move the brewing elsewhere.

A move was already in the works since the County wasn’t going to let him run a brewery at home anyway. So he moved just down the road, into an old building in Forest Knolls.

Some of the first customers were West Marin favorites: the Papermill Creek Saloon in Forest Knolls, the Sand Dollar in Stinson Beach and the Pelican Inn at Muir Beach.

One of the first beers was Dogtown Pale Ale, named for a West Marin stagecoach stop. That’s how a dog ended up on the label. Not someone’s pet, a piece of Marin history (though Magee based its look on Petey from The Little Rascals).

Then came the septic incident, which would be the final straw for Marin operations.

Fairfax’s White’s Hill is the end of the sewer line, so the rest of the San Geronimo Valley is on septic. One day kettle runoff overflowed the septic tank and seeped into the apartment next door. The yeasty septic ooze kept going, right down Sir Francis Drake. Neighbors and officials weren’t going to put up with it.

In 1994, Lagunitas Brewing Company moved to Petaluma, and the rest is beer history. Lagunitas IPA arrived in 1995 and took off.

Then Heineken came calling. “Nobody knows where Lagunitas is,” Magee once said. By 2015, the brewery named for it was reportedly worth $1 billion.

Even though the brewery left Marin more than 30 years ago, it never gave back its name, and is still a Marin success story.

p.s. Any Wikipedia editors here? The first sentence on the Lagunitas Brewing Company page needs a correction. It says “The Lagunitas Brewing Company, founded in 1993 in Petaluma, California…” then a few sentences later says “The brewery was founded in 1993 by Tony Magee in Lagunitas, California.” Let’s give Marin proper credit!

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This Christmas classic with local dancers performs at Novato High’s Center for the Arts. Shows are Saturday and Sunday, December 5-6, at 1pm and 5pm, from $35, the best seats are going fast.

What’s the deal with a second show? The 8pm is nearly sold out, so the Luther Burbank Center just added a 5pm on Saturday, November 14, and good seats are still left at $98.

The “Stick Season” singer brings his folk-pop singalongs on Wednesday, May 19, 2027. The presale starts Tuesday, and general sale opens Thursday.

Because leaving Marin might take more planning. Look for our Marin events in the Wednesday email.

Lagunitas debuts a hazy, tropical spin on its classic A Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ with first pours, cans to go, special flights, free airbrush tattoos and live music from The Gold Souls Band. Saturday, November 14, noon-8pm, free entry.

More than 60 pieces, billed as an authenticated collection, including Girl with Balloon and Flower Thrower. Opens Friday, November 13, and runs through the New Year, Wednesday-Sunday. Prices vary.

Sip from 30-plus tea makers, including the Republic of Tea, which started in Marin. The ferry drops you at the door. Saturday and Sunday, November 14-15, starting at 10am, about $32 with a porcelain tasting cup.

More than 250 indie makers kick off holiday shopping season with ceramics, knitwear and jewelry. Saturday and Sunday, November 14-15, 11am-5pm, free.

More than 50 makers, artists and vintage sellers, plus live music, at the Barlow. It’s a good excuse for lunch in Sebastopol. Sunday, November 15, 11am-4pm.

Please note that this property isn’t associated with the banner sponsor above or Marin Buzz in any way. It is just a unique home you might be interested in seeing, for entertainment purposes only!

5955 Shoreline Highway, Bolinas, CA 94924

Remember the Lagunitas dog mascot inspired by Dogtown? Here’s your chance to live in a this West Marin town with a population of 30.

This early-1900s farmhouse sits on four acres in the old hamlet, which was called Woodville for a while. It’s surrounded by Point Reyes National Seashore and the Golden Gate National Recreation Area, and the Olema Valley and McCurdy trails are close by.

The main house has 3 beds, 1 bath and 1,781 sq ft. There’s also a one-bedroom guest house with a loft and a wood stove, a 7,000 sq ft pole barn once used for roping and sheltering horses, a paddock, a workshop, a vintage ranch windmill, and its own well.

What I find interesting is this property hit the market at $4.5M over two years ago. It was marked contingent at $3.4M last year, and now is listed at $2.6M. Is now the time to jump in?

View the listing

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Thanks for reading. We will be back with the regular events and activities email Wednesday morning!

— Allison + Brian