The Auld Allance was an alliance forged between Scotland and France, lasting from 1295 until 1560 when the Treaty of Edinburgh was enacted. And it’s also the namesake of an ale that was collaborated on by two of Tampa Bay’s elite breweries. Cigar City Auld Alliance (Cigar City Brewing; Tampa, FL; Scotch Ale / Wee [...]
Had a chance to visit a couple of Jacksonville breweries that had been on my radar. The first, Bold City Brewery, caught my attention when I sampled a bomber of their 1901 Red Ale (Bold City Brewery; Jacksonville, FL; American Amber / Red Ale; ABV: 8.0), a robust and complex ale with big notes of [...]
During our trip to Jacksonville this past weekend, Anne and I decided to drop by one of the country’s premier gastropubs. Situated in the Riverside section of the city, which has a Portland like vibe to it and houses such notable craft breweries as Bold City and Intuition Ale Works, Kickbacks Gastropub has 84 craft [...]
I received several samples this past week of an IPA that is part of Newcastle’s Limited Edition Series. Having enjoyed several of the Scottish brewery’s offerings in the past, including New Castle Brown Ale and especially their John Courage Amber Ale when it was available in the U.S., I was more than curious to give [...]
My friend Brad and I attended the Bradenton Brewskis homebrewers meeting last Thursday at the invitation of Allen Bavry, who Anne and I had met along with his wife Cindi while having dinner at Brasserie Belge in downtown SRQ last month. We enjoyed hanging out with the group, which was founded in 1991, and talking [...]
Anne and I went up to Cajun Cafe On The Bayou in Pinellas Park on Saturday to attend their annual Fall Craft Beer Festival. Rated by RoadTripsforBeer.com as one of the country’s Top 10 Fall Beer Festivals, this event featured more than 100 homebrew, craft, and imported beers. Tampa Bay is fortunate to have a [...]
We stopped by BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse in Pinellas Park on Sunday for dinner, and noticed that they had an abbey ale as the special on draft. Beer Advocate had it listed as retired, but BJ’s is brewing it again. I can definitely attest, after a couple of pints, that everything’s back to Normal! BJ’s [...]
It’s an annual right of passage at the beginning of February that two world renowned Imperial IPAs make their mark upon the craft beer world. The first, Russian River Pliny The Younger (Russian River Brewing Co.; Santa Rosa, CA; Imperial India Pale Ale; ABV: 11.0), has become the Holy Grail for many beer enthusiasts. While [...]
With the explosion of the craft beer industry, it seems like ales and lagers are giving wine a run for its money as the drink of choice. In fact, many breweries have started to age their ales in oak barrels which give them a distinct wine like character. This “crossover” is producing beers that appeal [...]