They can advertise against it all they want, but Epcot’s Food and Wine Festival is more of a draw for locals that it is for tourists. If you go there, and I recommend you do, you’ll notice then at the event basically turns into Club Epcot in the evening, chock-full of twenty and thirty-somethings drinking a lot of alcohol carrying around more little finger plates than you can shake a stick at.
The beer selection has wavered between excellent (some years) and other years being pretty lousy. 2019, for somebody like me that is really only interested in local stuff, isn’t the best. To be sure, there’s a lot more now than when they originally started, but they have lessened the number of local offerings just a bit.
I hadn’t expected on getting anything, but there was one booth that caught my eye. Actually, it was an entire apple pavilion situated in Canada, Appleseed Orchard. If you’re familiar with the park, they actually shut down O Canada for the event, putting up a miniature fall festival with wines, some apple foods, and a couple beers as well.
It was pretty popular, as the members of the Leaven Brewing Mug Club I met there can attest to, grabbing a flight with less than 45 minutes before having to catch their bus back home to Riverside. That flight they (and I) got was all from breweries in Florida:
Apple Trappe (Belgian Tripel, 10% ABV) from MIA in Doral –
There’s a nice, faint Belgian funk on the nose. As you drink, there’s a really peppy, solid malt feel with a fun apple sweetness, just a touch on the Gala and Fuji side.
Apple Pie Beer (Wheat Ale, 4.6% ABV) from Playalinda Brewing in Titusville –
Playalinda’s Apple Pie beer has an aroma that makes you practically taste the warm crust, and that taste also combines a warming, brown sugar, nutmeg, and cinnamon sweet red apple quality in the beer. It’s so delicious, you could almost serve the beer a la mode (there’s an idea…)
Green Apple Ale (Fruit Beer, 5.1% ABV) from the Sea Dog Brewing facility in Clearwater –
The apples here are most definitely green. It practically assaults you with that big tart green apple aroma and a slightly bitter flavor that is awash with Granny Smith.
I did not expect to get a beer at all, and I ended up getting a flight. Have there been more beers at other event in years? Of course. Was getting three beers with an interesting thematic link between them a welcome surprise? Of course it was. And I liked all three, so that was great as well.
I do wish they had the movie playing, though. It was always a favorite of mine.
Drink Florida Craft,
Dave
@floridabeerblog
floridabeerblog@gmail.com
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