I remember the first time that I had a beer from Green Flash Brewing Company. It was six years ago when I was consulting in the Baltimore-DC area, and Frisco Grill in Columbia, MD had just scored a keg of Green Flash Imperial IPA (Green Flash Brewing Co.; San Diego, CA; Imperial India Pale Ale; [...]
While Italy is widely known for its wine culture, the country has a lot to offer in the beer world as well besides Peroni and Moretti. The Italians have had a thriving craft beer industry over the last few years, and we got “A Taste of Italy” when stopping by Mr. Beery’s on Sunday. Stew [...]
Two of Florida’s premier breweries, Tampa’s Cigar City Brewing and Gainesville’s Swamp Head Brewery, collaborated recently on two barley wines. One of them, brewed on a limited run at the former, is available on tap and in bottles at their Tasting Room. Cigar City Church On A Hill (Cigar City Brewing; Tampa, FL; Barley Wine; [...]
We went to dinner at Darwin’s on 4th in downtown SRQ earlier this week, and I had the chance to try an interesting IPA that was one of the guest taps. Rogue Brutal IPA (Rogue Ales, Newport, OR; India Pale Ale; ABV: 5.8) is an award winning IPA from the Oregon brewery. It pours 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 [...]
Marzens tend to be traditional Fall beers, but I had the chance to try a different take on this beer style at Crum’s Bar and Grill recently. Cigar City Marzen Spring Lager (Cigar City Brewing; Tampa, FL; Marzen; ABV: 5.5) is also known as Cigar City Oktoberfest Marzen when it’s released during the autumn months. [...]
You can add Crum’s Bar and Grill to a growing list of exceptional brewpubs in the Tampa Bay area. Located in downtown St. Petersburg, and owned by Chris Crum and Lanette Miller, Crum’s Bar and Grill offers craft beer, food, and live music in a hip casual setting. Speaking of which, there’s 52 selections of [...]
The last time I was at the Cigar City Brewing Tasting Room in Tampa, I learned something new. Did you know that bats pollinate blue agave plants, which provide the ingredient found in tequila? So it’s fitting that I tried a double cream ale, named for the bat, that’s aged in tequila barrels. Cigar City [...]