Drink Local Florida Blog
New Lager and Session IPA from Darwin Brewing Co. Raise
Money for Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium, Carried by
Winn Dixie Across the Entire Sunshine State
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 posted a live video on Instagram while visiting Darwin Brewing Co. in Bradenton on a beautiful Saturday in February. Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium was on-site promoting two beers from Darwin: the Reef Revival Session IPA and Leatherback Lager. These beers are available on draught and six-pack cans at Darwin's brewery and taproom while Winn Dixie is carrying these six-packs statewide. Each six-pack sold generates a 50 cent donation to Mote Marine Lab, with 25 cents each coming from Darwin Brewing Co. and Winn Dixie.
The
event at Darwin Brewing Co.
was a great time (sorry if you missed it). Mote Marine
Laboratory & Aquarium gave out Tervis cups, bottle openers,
stickers and coupons to visit their aquarium near Lido Beach.
Gilly the shark, Mote Marine Lab's mascot, was also there at the
dog- and kid-friendly brewery. The place was packed as many
baseball fans enjoyed some craft brews before heading over to
the first spring training baseball game of the year at LECOM
Park across the street. Printed on both beer cans is the slogan "Beer Worth Savoring. Oceans Worth Saving." We couldn't agree more. Here is a little more information on each of these craft brews:
The Reef
Revival Session IPA is made with Cascade hops
to provide some floral and grapefruit/citrus notes. Session IPAs
refer to IPAs with a lower ABV making them “sessionable,”
meaning you can drink more than one (but not too many) and not
have to worry about taking an Uber. This beer is sessionable
both in ABV, at 5 percent, and in terms of bitternes, at 26
IBUs. It’s enough to provide a well-balanced hoppy flavor but
maintains a refreshing and light feel overall. It’s a great
Florida-lifestyle beer that is perfect for the beach, boat or
pool when you crave refreshment more than bitterness but still
want some hop flavor.
The Leatherback
Lager is crisp, refreshing and full of
flavor. It has a heavy malt profile and more hops than your
typical lager. It is brewed with noble hops and is listed at
33 IBUs, which is up there for a lager. Noble hops can refer
to a handful of specific hop strains, and most home brewers
know they can be a little pricier than other varieties. But
you get what you pay for and these are high quality. The noble
hops shine through in this one. It is refreshing and light
enough to enjoy out in the sun while providing enough hops and
malt to satisfy the more experienced palette. I hope this is a
year-round release because I could drink it all summer, which
is 9 months of the year in Florida. Both of these beers from
Darwin Brewing Co. are great, but if forced to pick a favorite
of the two it would be the lager. If you haven’t been to Darwin Brewing Co. in a while, it’s time to go back. They recently brought in a new Brewmaster named Blue. We had great conversation with him while at the taproom and really like the new recipes he’s concocted. Darwin is now releasing a new beer every Thursday, showcasing Blue’s personality and innovations in craft beer.
In case you are not familiar with Mote Marine Laboratory &
Aquarium, here is information about just some of what they do
to help Florida's waters and marine life. This will help
provide context for what the 50 cent per six-pack contribution
will help to support. Since these beers from Darwin have
themes related to reviving coral reefs and sea turtles, we'll
focus on some related endeavors.The importance of Florida’s coral reef tract cannot be emphasized enough. Coral reefs support a plethora of biodiversity and also help protect shores from storms and erosion. If we lose too much of it, many species of marine life will lose their home which will have devastating ripple effects throughout the entire food chain.
Over-development,
water pollution and stoney coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD)
are taking their toll. Here are pictures showing exactly how
Mote Marine Labs is helping to reverse these devastating
impacts. If you visit Mote Marine Laboratory Aquarium you can
see their land-base coral nursery where species of coral are
incubated so coral polyps can reproduce and begin new
colonies. When these colonies grow large and healthy enough,
Mote Marine Lab scientists out-plant sections to help
revitalize Florida's coral reef tract
You
will also see the efforts of Mote Marine Lab and their
volunteers if you visit Lido or Siesta Key beaches.
Leatherback and other sea turtles nest and lay their eggs in
the Florida sand. Mote Marine Lab has led extensive efforts to
educated the public not to inadvertently harm these nests and
safely marks these nests off to alert beach-goers of their
location. Mote Marine Lab has made strides in invoking changes
to reduce light pollution near the shoreline, which confuses
turtle hatchlings who rely on moon light and it's reflection
off the ocean to find the water. Mote Marine Laboratory &
Aquarium scientists and biologists also put forth a great deal
of effort and resources into rehabilitating marine life, such
as with Spock and Scotty, two sea turtles they rehabilitated
and released back into the ocean.Posted: February 29, 2020
