Craft beer takes center stage at Annual Taste in Inverness Event.

Craft beer takes center stage at revamped 'The Taste' in Inverness, Florida.

The Citrus County Beer Experience will offer unlimited samplings at the food and beverage showcase

The City of Inverness has revamped its annual Taste of Inverness in 2017 to enhance the enjoyment of residents and visitors. The premier addition to what is now called The Taste is the Citrus County Beer Experience, a massive tent under which a wide variety of craft beers from regional breweries and home brewing clubs will be available for unlimited sampling.

The Taste will take place Saturday, April 8, from 3 to 8 p.m. at Liberty Park, 286 N. Apopka Ave., Inverness, Florida, and will benefit the Citrus County Education Foundation.

Local entrepreneurs Kemper Willcut and LouAnn Jacobs, owners of Pine Street Pub and The Cove Pub and Grub, both in Inverness, collaborated with the City of Inverness in conceiving the idea of integrating craft beer into the annual showcase. And it won’t be the last time the Citrus County Beer Experience tent will be raised.

“The Beer Experience was put together specifically to coordinate and conduct beer events throughout Citrus County and the Central Florida area,” Willcut says.

And the homebrew clubs participating will be entering their brews into a judged competition for prize packages.

“I want the homebrewers to be a big part of this,” Willcut says. “We are giving away cash prizes and awards — that’s a big deal. “  

Those prizes are:

·            1st place:  $100 cash plus $100 gift certificate from Pine Street Pub

·            2nd place:  $50 cash plus $50 gift certificate from Pine Street Pub

·            3rd place:  $30 cash plus $30 gift certificate from Pine Street Pub

Those attending who wish to participate without sampling the craft beer will be able to enter the festival for only $5 to enjoy music from local bands, an art show and a la carte food sampling from at least 10 local restaurants and 10 specialty food trucks. None of the food offerings will cost more than $6, and beer, wine and non-alcoholic beverages will be available for purchase.

But craft beer fans who want the full Citrus County Beer Experience will pay only $20 more for unlimited sampling of the commercial and home brews throughout The Taste.

These are the commercial breweries already confirmed as participating. More will be added:

Florida breweries

·            Cigar City Brewing (Tampa)

·            Copp Brewery (Crystal River)

·            Nature Coast Brewing Co. (Crystal River)

·            Infinite Ale Works (Ocala)

·            Swamp Head Brewery (Gainesville)

·            Backyard Barn Winery & Microbrewery (Wildwood)

·            Brooksville Brewing Company (Spring Hill)

·            Miami Brewing Co. (Homestead)

·            Funky Buddha Brewery (Oakland Park)

·            Barley Mow Brewing Company (Largo)

·            Green Bench Brewing Co. (St. Petersburg)

Other breweries

·            New Belgium Brewing

·            Samuel Adams

·            Sweetwater Brewing Company

·            Abita Brewing Company

·            Terrapin Beer Co.

·            Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

·            Founders Brewing Company

·            Left Hand Brewing Company

·            Oskar Blues Brewery

·            Guinness

Plus numerous local homebrewing clubs.

WHAT: The Beer Experience at The Taste beer & food festival

WHERE: Liberty Park, 286 N. Apopka Ave., Inverness, Florida

WHEN: Saturday, April 8, 3 to 8 p.m.

WHY: Food, beer and fun! Plus, a portion of proceeds will benefit the Citrus County Education Foundation. Its mission is to support Citrus County public schools in order to enhance learning and improve personal development for present and future generations.

HOW MUCH: $5 for admission to the festival; $25 includes general admission and unlimited sampling of craft beers.

INFORMATION: TasteofInverness.com

Dunedin Brewery's Stogies & Stout: Everything You Need to Know!

 

Perhaps one of the greatest experiences a craft beer fan can have is attending a beer fest. Many breweries (and even cities) host their own festivals to honor craft beer and present patrons with a cornucopia of beer and beer styles. Most of these festivals try to cater to the masses and will have any color and flavor of beer you can imagine. But there is one festival that hones in on one particular theme: Dunedin Brewery's Stogies & Stout is the beer fest for those who like their cigars hand-rolled and their beers dark.

Dunedin Brewery is Florida's oldest craft brewery. They've been brewing solid craft beer for nearly two decades and have helped to set the standard for craft beer in the Sunshine State.

Stogies & Stout is a beer festival hosted at the brewery each year on the last Saturday in February. Apply named, the event delivers a myriad of deliciously robust stouts on tap and a hand rolled stogie to each person who purchases a ticket to the event (more on that a bit later). Stogies & Stout has become a long-running tradition for the brewery, and it's one of the best beer fests we have attended.

Stogies & Stout 2015 is just around the corner. And because we know craft beer drinkers like to be educated, we recently chatted with General Operator at Dunedin Brewery, Michael Bryant, who  additional context on Dunedin, their beer, and what you can expect at this year's 14th Annual Stogies & Stout.

Dunedin Brewery is well known in the Tampa area, but you guys seem to be under the radar a bit when it comes to the broader craft beer landscape. What should people know about Dunedin Brewery?

While Dunedin Brewery is Florida's oldest microbrewery, we do indeed fly slightly under the radar with regard to the mainstream craft beer landscape. This is mostly b/c we choose to spend our time as full-time creatives rather than full-time capitalists. While we do have plans to expand (slowly), we have never had a romantic vision of becoming a big factory. We do this to maintain our artistic clout & believe that a healthy regional/local beer scene is full of all sorts of business types--from purely creative to purely capitalistic (and everything in between).

Photo via beerbusterspodcast.com

Dunedin Brewery strives to not only craft great beer, but also enhance our local community with top notch entertainment. We believe this is important b/c nothing seems sadder than beer for the sake of beer itself. Beer is a social lubricant. But that social situation will degrade if the people are not well entertained. We do whatever we can to elevate all of this--whether it be through live music, festivals, food, comedy and/or exploring the world through travel. Everything we discover that's worthwhile, we find worth sharing with our audience.

What sets Dunedin Brewery apart? What should folks look for/expect when visiting?

The main component that sets Dunedin Brewery apart from other breweries is our focus on guests. Every individual that visits us is unique. We approach them this way. Our beer selection is ever-rotating but consistently provides a full spectrum of flavors to help each guest find exactly what it is they seek in a beer, all while encouraging them to explore new things.

Secondly, we are one of the premier live music venues in the Southeast. With a year-round calendar filled with everything from national legends to great locals, we provide an endless narrative of inspiring craftsmanship.

And of course, our beer sets us apart. We not only brewed the first beer with fruit in the state (when it was still taboo), but continue to break the barriers of trends & styles. Our goal is not to replicate ideas, but to manifest new ones. This is what we are busy doing off-the-radar.

Tell me about Stogies & Stout. Where did the idea for the event come from? It seems to have become a local tradition for many people. Can you explain how that has happened? Why the pairing of stouts and cigars?

Stogies & Stout started 14 years ago as a social gathering on our brewery's patio among a small group of beer lovers. My father (founder of Dunedin Brewery) & some other beer aficionados came together with their small collection of stout bottles/kegs. Enjoying the dark beers, they discussed them while smoking cigars (simply b/c this small group of people enjoyed cigars). The original group was less than 20 people. As the years ticked by, the event became big enough to close the entire property and host just stout lovers for the evening.

Photo we snapped at 2014 Stogies & Stout

What has made the event unique & traditional for many local beer lovers is two-fold. First, we only sell a certain number of tickets in order to keep the place from being too full. This gives the attendees room to enjoy themselves as well as eliminates any waiting in line for a taste.

Secondly, the beer selection is hand-picked by myself. Most beer festivals invite every brewery to participate, usually with standard offerings that can be enjoyed almost anytime. With Stogies & Stout, I focus on quality of craftsmanship & ingenuity. This gives us a line-up of not only strong local beers, but also nationally distributed beers that have held up against the time of growth.

One final note with regard to the tradition of the event. Most beer festivals require the brewery representatives to work the event, pouring each sample to each guest. We relieve the brewery representatives from that duty & simply ask that they come enjoy themselves for the event. This allows beer lovers the chance to meet people who work at the breweries represented & even discuss the beers on tap.

What can people look forward to this year? Any new aspects or surprise tap listings?

This year will be our 14th annual Stogies & Stout. At the current moment, we have 35 different kegs of stout from 20 different breweries (10 FL breweries & 10 nationals). This number will continue to grow up until the event, as we purchase more flavors that come available before then. Cigar choices will be provided by our long-time partner Los Blancos Cigar Company. Live music will be provide by Lingo from Athens, Georgia. $35 admission gets them access to everything above, including a commemorative 2015 S&S tasting glass. For $10 more, attendees can opt to purchase a meal voucher which will get them a plate of Smoked Brisket (or Barbecue Seitan for vegetarians), Jalapeno Corn Mac n Cheese, Braised Collard Greens & Milk Stout Cornbread.

Current Tap List:

Dunedin Brewery Leonard Croon’s Oatmeal Stout
Dunedin Brewery Braemar Milk Stout
Dunedin Brewery Midnight Sextant
Dunedin Brewery Bourbon Barrel Aged Midnight Sextant
Dunedin Brewery Single Origin Honduran Brownie Batter Stout
Dunedin Brewery Mundofolbick Imperial Stout
Dunedin Brewery Vanilla Mundofolbick (cask)
Dunedin Brewery Cookies & Croon (cask)
Founders Breakfast Stout
Founders Imperial Stout
Founders Nitro Oatmeal Stout
Founders Black Rye
Terrapin Liquid Bliss (chocolate peanut butter stout)
Terrapin Guano Loco
Terrapin / Shmaltz Reunion 12
Stone Master of Disguise Blonde Stout
Stone Smoked Porter w/ Chocolate & Orange Peel
Stone 2011 IRS Belgo
Cigar City Marshall Zhukov Russian Imperial Stout
Sweetwater 2013 Happy Ending
Barley Mow Maven Nitro
Green Bench Stay Dry Stout
Green Bench — (Apple Brandy Barrel Imperial Stout?)
Pair o Dice Hot Cocoa Imperial Stout
Nature Coast Manatee Milk (imperial coffee chocolate milk stout aged in a Jack Daniels barrel)
Breckenridge 72 Imperial Chocolate Cream Stout
Swamphead Midnight Oil (coffee stout)
Funky Buddha OP Porter
St. Pete Grateful Stout
Three Palms Hot Schtuff (stout brewed with brown sugar, cinnamon, ghost peppers)
Wynwood Pop’s Porter
Highland Thunderstruck (coffee porter)
Dogfish Head Palo Santo Marron
Dogfish Head Chicory Stout
Rogue Double Chocolate Stout
Rogue Russian Imperial Stout
Great Divide 2013 Oak Aged Yeti

Ticket Purchasing: http://goo.gl/4d4ttw
FB Event: http://goo.gl/8hVTyi

Berghoff Brewery Announces Distribution in Florida

Photo courtesy berghoffbeer.com

The Chicago-based craft brewery, Berghoff Brewery, announced plans to expand distribution of their line of craft beers to the Florida market for the first time. Partnering with Cavalier Distributing, the beers will become available throughout Florida beginning Monday, February 2. The official launch will take place at Tony’s Studio B in Lakeland on Thursday, January 29.  Cavalier will distribute:  

• Germaniac (Kotbusser Style Pale Ale) Pale – American Pale Ale | 6.3% ABV 
• Reppin’ Red – Amber Ale/Red Ale | 6.2% ABV 
• Straight-Up Hefeweizen – Hefeweizen | 5.2% ABV 
• Oak-Aged Stock Ale – Stock Ale |10% ABV; and
• Craft sodas in flavors of Root Beer, Orange, and Black Cherry.

“With a 127 year history rooted in the Midwest and growing popularity among craft beer consumers, we're excited to introduce our recently reformulated craft beers to a new market of drinkers," said Berghoff Brewery owner Ben Minkoff. "We've been closely following the craft beer boom in Florida over the past five years and think our beers will do well in supplementing this growing market," says owner Ben Minkoff, whose family has owned General Beverage Distributors for the past 80 years and purchased the Berghoff brand in 1994.  Berghoff plans to open Berghoff Brau Haus, a 20,000 square-foot brewpub in Orlando on International Drive in the fall of 2015. 

Official Launch Event/Photo Opportunity

Thursday, January 29

8:30 p.m.

Tony’s Studio B

213 East Bay Street, Lakeland, FL 33801

Live music by Banditos

About Berghoff Brewery

Berghoff Brewery is owned by Ben Minkoff and family. In June of 2013, Berghoff Brewery re-launched its entire line of beers with reformulated recipes and new labels. Minkoff consulted with brewing experts Randy Mosher and John Hannafan to create the top-notch German-style beers brewed at Berghoff Stevens Point production facility, located in Stevens Point, Wisconsin.  The first batch of Berghoff beer was brewed in 1887 by Herman Berghoff and his three brothers, Henry, Hubert and Gustav.  Demand for their beer grew with astonishing speed, and by 1890, the brothers were producing 90,000 barrels of lager annually.  During World War I, the brothers cemented their brewing company’s place in American history, changing their slogan from “a real German brew” to “a real honest brew” in honor of their adopted homeland.  In a bold show of American ingenuity, Berghoff produced soft drinks, including a root beer and a malt tonic throughout Prohibition, and was the first to return to production and sale of alcoholic beers when the Volstead Act was repealed, pouring at The Berghoff, the first liquor license to be re-granted in Chicago. For more information about Berghoff, visit www.berghoffbeer.com.

About Cavalier Distributing

Established in 1992 by Founder and President George Fisher, Cavalier Distributing is one of just a handful of U.S. distributors with a portfolio comprised exclusively of specialty imports and American craft beers. Headquartered in Cincinnati, the company employs more than 200 people dedicated to bringing better beers to consumers throughout Ohio, Indiana and Florida. The Florida operations are based in Lakeland.

Enter to Win Free Beer Fest Tickets!

Every Wednesday, I will be giving away a free ticket to the Jacksonville Craft and Import Beer Fest, held on May 16 from 6pm-9pm. Tickets are limited to just the first 2500 tickets, so the event will definitely sell out!

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Visiting Tomoka Brewery

I had the pleasure of stopping by Tomoka Brewery, one of North Florida's newest craft beer breweries. Tomoka is located in Ormond Beach, FL, which is just minutes from Daytona Beach.

Tomoka is a place I had been trying to visit since the opening in 2013, but my work and family schedule made it difficult to make the 90 minute drive from Jacksonville. Nonetheless, I am glad that I was finally able to visit Tomoka and taste some of the delicious pizzas and, of course, beer.

The brewpub is conveniently located and within walking distance of the beach. Although I visited on a cold day (for Florida's standards), I made a mental note to come back in the summer and make use of the brewery's optimal proximity to the water.

The pictures are hazy because my daughter put a filter over my lens and I didn't catch it until later.

Tomoka just received their Federal license to brew and sell their own beer this past week. So, during the time of my visit, I wasn't able to order any beers that were solely brewed by them; although I did try a collaboration beer they brewed with Due South Brewing Co. out of Boynton Beach, FL. The collaboration was an imperial brown ale called, Ginger Snap Imperial Brown Ale.

Just like it sounds, the beer was a sweet and malty ale with subtle notes of ginger, toffee, and brown sugar. It served as an excellent dessert beer after I devoured an order of gravy and cheese covered french fries, which were the appetizer to the pizza I ordered--the Spanokopizza: a pie that's topped with spinach, garlic, onions, mozzarella, feta, and butter. YUM!

My visit was pleasant and I know I need to come back. Owners Jen and Peter are great people. They are avid supporters of the craft beer community in Florida and are just generally good people to be around. Peter even came out from the back of the kitchen to snap a quick photo with my daughter and me.

That's me in the middle, proudly wearing the "Drink Beer from Here" @hopcloth shirt.

If you're in the Daytona Beach area, be sure to stop by Tomoka for a good meal and great beer. I will definitely be back once they have their own beers flowing from the taps.

Cheers!

Cigar City Invasion Pale Ale

Brewery: Cigar City Brewing Co.
Location: Tampa, FL
Style: Pale Ale
ABV: 5%

Cigar City had some fun with this one. The back of the can tells the story of a city that's been invaded and under siege for the last century. Out of options, CCB joins forces with the blasted buccaneers and brews up a tropical pale ale that's sure to please patron and pirate alike!

Invasion is a session ale that pours a cloudy yellow with a decent sized fluffy head.

The aromas are all hops: pine and citrus. This smells like a hop bomb...much hoppier than I would expect from a pale.

Taste: The first sip is full of grapefruit. It's tart at first, but then I get the tropical sweetness from various fruits. The finish includes more citrus notes--I get a lot of lemon zest that's balanced with a piney bitterness.

The headline around this beer is hops. The hops literally invade every aspect of the palate as this beer is consumed. However, there is complexity here. I noticed a yeasty-wheat aftertaste with the lemon zest. And call me crazy, but I pick up some fresh cilantro too.

I appreciate the folks at CCB calling out that this beer should be consumed fresh. The hop flavors literally make this beer and time does not treat hoppy beers well. However, I have one piece of critical feedback: if I am expected to drink this fresh, make sure I can read the date that's printed on the can. I think this one says it was bottled on Nov. 25th, but I can't be too sure.

Overall: This is a sessionable beer at just 5%, but I question whether it's something I could continuously drink by the pool. While it's light in alcohol and calories (estimated at only 150), the citrus, pine, and zest make this beer a bit too abrasive for a session beer. But if you're looking for a beer that packs a punch in the mouth but not on the waistline, you've found your match!

Mapping the Rise of Florida's Beer Market

I recently came across this article by The Jax Beer Guy about the rise of craft beer in America. His blog mentions a post originally published by The New Yorker which includes an interactive online map illustrating the rise of the craft beer industry in America. The map is pretty cool, and I recommend you taking a look at it via the link below.

Mapping the Rise of Craft Beer.

But what was most exciting to me was how the map shows the growth of the beer industry in Florida and possibly even foreshadows what is to come for the Sunshine State. Take a look at the screen shots below.

This first map shows what most craft-loving-Floridian-beer-nerds already know: Florida is a bit of a desert when it comes to claiming big-production craft breweries. None of the top 50 breweries (in terms of size) call Florida their home.

In my opinion, that isn't nearly as important as the next two images I am going to show you. This next picture shows the fastest growing breweries in the US. Floridians will be happy to see one of their own among the list:

As you can see, Cigar City ranks 16th among the fastest growing breweries in America. Anyone who has been to the brewery knows how impressive this is. The brewery just recently expanded its facility and production capabilities. CCB's growth, I believe, is largely prompted by demand, demand created by the deliciously satisfying beer that the brewery produces on a consistent basis. 

I think Cigar City has paved the way for future Florida breweries. They have proven that even in a region of the country that has been a bit reluctant to accept craft beer, you do not have to compromise the quality of your product to be successful. 

Speaking of future Florida breweries, check out this next image:

The image above shows that Florida is doing its best to level the playing field. This map, which was taken from 2012, shows 9 new breweries. If the map was updated, there would be a dozen more for 2013. Just this year, I have witnessed two breweries open their doors in North Florida: Aardwolf Brewing and Tomoka Brewery.

I also think it's worth noting where this map shows a high concentration of new breweries being built. The greater Tampa area is exploding onto the beer scene, probably thanks to Cigar City's success on a State and National scale.

As 2013 closes, let's raise our glass to the growth of craft beer in America and hope 2014 continues the trend. And it will.

7venth Sun Root Down Stout

Brewery: 7venth Sun Brewing Co.
Location: Dunedin, FL
Style: Imperial Stout
ABV: 8.3%

7venth Sun is a young brewery that held its grand opening less than two years ago. However, with the owners having past experience working for breweries like Anheuser-Busch, Sweetwater, and Cigar City, there's no shortage of beer knowledge and brewing credentials. Oh yeah, and to up the ante, all their servers are certified cicerones! 

I visited 7venth Sun over the Thanksgiving Holiday for their bottle release of Root Down Stout. I was fortunate enough to meet up with a good friend, Alan (@SuwanneeRefugee) who was the one who originally tipped me off about the release. I've said it before, but if there's one thing I love about the craft beer culture more than the beer, it's the people. Good beer is almost always accompanied by good people. Now back to the beer...

This particular bottle is labeled no. 289/500. Root Down Stout is an Imperial Stout brewed with sweet potato and spices aged on vanilla bean. The label is simple, but appealing. There's an "indie" vibe about the design that screams "Drink Local." I appreciate that.

The pour is black with a tan head that keeps its retention.

The aroma is strong coffee, caramel, and allspice.

The taste is full of coffee--bold and dark roasted. The coffee is followed by a creamy sweetness (possibly from the sweet potatoes) and a spicy finish. The more I sipped on this beer to find the sweet potato and vanilla, the more I got lost in the roastiness of the coffee. There's a slight acidic aftertaste (probably from the coffee) and a mild kick from the booze. But as much as I tried, I couldn't taste the sweet potatoes or vanilla.

This is a full bodied beer. No doubt about it. The mouthfeel is very creamy, almost frothy, at times. This is your thickest, darkest, boldest latte at its best.

Overall: I think this would do well to sit for a year in the cellar. The flavor profile is nice as it is, but I would like to see the various layers become more apparent on the palate. I really didn't detect the sweet potato because the coffee and spices are so overpowering at this point. Cellaring would do this beer good.

Cheers!