Drink Local Florida Blog

We had a chance to visit Good Liquid Brewing Company's new Lakewood Ranch Waterside location. Many were sad to see the original location close, but here's the good news: The new location is great, a brand new brewery will takeover the old space, and there are plans to open a Good Liquid distillery in Waterside plus a new brewery in North Manatee county. Here's what we know so far.

The Craft Beer Ballers hosted a Brew-A-Session where we discussed the trends and what's new across the Tampa Bay, Orlando and Bradenton / Sarasota beer scenes. We also played Marry, F, Kill: Craft Beer Edition.

Here are some holiday gift ideas for craft beer drinkers and homebrewers, ranging from fairly obvious to things most would never think of. You might just want to get some of these for yourself!

Applying economics to the craft beer industry to discuss shortages, such as when exclusive, limited release and one-off beers sell out. Alternatives are discussed, but here we argue that the current sales strategy, despite resulting in shortages, is a better outcome for many to most consumers.

Imagine owning equity share in one of your favorite craft breweries or distilleries. Believe it or not, it is achievable. In this article we discuss investing directly in craft beer, wine and spirits with equity crowdfunding, investing the vendors that supply local craft producers, as well as investing in the "big guys" with stakes in Florida craft beer.

The Craft Beer Ballers hosted a Florida Craft Beer Roundtable discussion earlier in September on Facebook Live. If you missed the live streamed event, you can view the recording here.

As a native Floridian (3rd generation) I really appreciate when Florida’s history is included in Florida beer and brewery names. Big Top Brewing Company does just that with their American Pale Ale named after Chichi Okobee.

They sold out immediately online but what was left of these beers is/was available for draft pours at Corporate Ladder's taproom. I was fortunate enough to try Xenomorph Blood, RedRum, Desert Station Double Vanilla Intangible, and Desert Station Bananas Foster - all imperial sours. Here are pictures and a brief description of each.

I was originally going to meet Johnny and Kevin, the Craft Beer Ballers and hosts of the Balls and Brew Podcast, at Bay Cannons Brewing Co. in Tampa but we moved our conversation to Zoom. That didn't stop us from enjoying and discussing Florida craft beers. See the discussion on YouTube.

What makes a local craft beer? Admittedly, it’s somewhat of a gray area, but it’s an important point to address. This website was created to list every local brewery, distillery, cidery, meadery and winery in the Sunshine state, but what does “local” mean? It's not the same for everybody.

During the COVID-19 crisis I've been buying beer in large quantities directly from local, craft microbreweries. One weekend I decided to turn these packaging materials into something my kids could play with: a parking garage for toy Matchbox or Hot Wheels cars. Here are the steps and materials needed to do this yourself.

What if you could help protect Florida's ocean waters, coral, turtles and other marine life just by drinking Florida craft beer? Would you be on board? Now's your chance. Here's information on how you can help, the causes you'll be supporting and how these beers taste.

We made a trip to Keel Farms Agrarian Ale and Cider, where Keel and Curly Winery is also on-site. Here's a brief review of the experience along with the beers and cider we tried. This visit was just a few weeks after re-branding under the Keel Farms name.

LauderAle Brewery started canning and selling 4 pack pints at their brewery and tap room earlier this year, and two more were recently added to their take-home list: the Double D Imperial (Double) IPA and Indigenous Basterd American-style IPA. Both would make great stocking stuffers. We try and review each.

In a six-by-two block area of St. Petersburg, between Central Ave. and 1st Ave. South, there are four craft breweries partnered with the Tampa-St. Pete Pub Pass. We visited all four. Here's walking directions on Google Maps plus our quick overview of each brewery and the beers we had.

Checkout our interview with Johnny and Kevin, hosts of the Craft Beer Ballers Podcast. We talked all things Florida beer and had a sampling and review session of several craft beers, including two Florida beers we brought with us. The full interview is on CraftBeerBallers.com.

Just in time for college football season, we've compiled a list of alumni group watch parties hosted at Florida breweries. We looked at watch party locations across the state for the Florida Gators, Florida State Seminoles, Miami Hurricanes, University of South Florida Bulls and University of Central Florida Golden Knights.

The Lunch Money Pale Ale applies the hazy, New England style of IPAs to a pale ale, while the Monkey Road Red is a red or amber ale that is double dry hopped (DDH), a technique typically reserved for IPAs. Learn more about each and this craft brewery.

Article defining the characteristics of Florida Whiskey that also provides the recipe and directions for making an Old Florida, a variation of the classic Old Fashioned cocktail using primarily, if not entirely, Florida ingredients.

South Beach Brewing Company will open their tap room, on South Beach, in the late Fall. In the meantime they have four, soon to be five, beers you can pick up in bottles or cans (for the beach or pool) with distribution across the south Atlantic coast of Florida, from Jupiter down to Key West.

I've already got my VIP ticket for Corporate Ladder Brewing Company's 1 year anniversary party. You should join me there, at their brewery in Palmetto, on Saturday May 25th. Here are seven solid reasons why.

Beer and Sunshine, a craft beer podcast and YouTube show, interviews Drink Local Florida founder Justin McDonald. In two short video interviews we discuss what Drink Local Florida is all about and some of our favorite Florida beers. See the clips on YouTube.

All hockey and beer fans who want to help the Tampa Bay Lightning celebrate their silver anniversary can do so by toasting to the hockey club with a pint of Big Storm’s “The Lightning 25” craft lager, which will be available at Amalie Arena and in the Tampa Bay area via distribution.

Likely after receiving a cease and desist letter, Motorworks takes a jab at the brand or company who claimed infringement. Previously known as their Indy IPA, Motorworks devised a new acronym for their well-known, 6.9 percent ABV India Pale Ale style beer: the Intellectual Property Ale.

A short story about how a trip to Germany opened my eyes to wonders of local beers, expanded my horizons beyond IPAs and introduced me to the fresh hopped brews like a Kölsch, which are best brewed and enjoyed locally. This post also includes a list of some Kölsch  style ales brewed locally in Florida.

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