It was a very festive St. Paddy’s Day yesterday. I started out at Shakespeare’s, said hi to the gang, and had a couple of pints with my corned beef & cabbage. From there, I headed down to the very busy Gulf Gate area to meet my friends Steve and Bill. We started and finished at [...]
In the mix ‘n match world of beer, there’s the Black & Tan (Guinness Stout + Bass Ale), Black Velvet (Guinness Stout + cider, e.g. Strongbow), & Shandy (Harp Lager + Sprite), among others. But have you ever had a Flash Gordon? The brainchild of beer aficionado John “Flash” Gordon and Shamrock Pub bartender Jackie, [...]
As I write this, we are 3 days away from St. Patrick’s Day. In addition to the usual holiday classics – Guinness, Beamish, Murphy’s, Harp, Killian’s etc., may I suggest a few additional brews to get your Irish up? Celtic Fury (DuClaw Brewing Co.; Bel Air, MD; Irish Dry Stout; ABV: 5.5): Refreshing with a [...]
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 [...]