Brew Review – Pleading The Malternative by Grand Central Brewhouse

It is always a great day for the blog when I get to write about a brewery that is new to us.

And such it is with Grand Central Brewhouse, one of the amazing breweries that makes up the Grand Central District of St. Petersburg.

Brew Review – Beer For Bombs by 26 Degree Brewing

It is rare to have a beer whose name can be taken so literally.

Knowing full well that I have readers at pretty much every wavelength of the political spectrum, I still hope that every reader can agree the current situation in Ukraine is horrendous. To see the loss of life and the utter destruction based on nothing more than the whims of a dictator is heartbreaking, but it’s also been affirming to see how much most of the world immediately came to support those in the fight against Russian occupation.

Brew Review – Pastrynator by Hidden Springs Ale Works

Put a bear in lederhosen and apparently I’m hooked.

There’s a lot to unpack with this vaguely German sort of black forest melange, so away we go. First of all, I am sure I am missing something with the name Pastrynator (Doppelbock, 9% ABV).

Brew Review – Escoozy by Beat Culture

I have to wonder how far the name of today’s beer will travel.

Beat Culture is no stranger to using fun, quintessentially Miami phrases as the names for their beers. It’s how some of their top releases are named, and it’s how I was able to understand where the name comes from immediately once I managed to actually say the word Escoozy (Saison, 6% ABV).

Brew Review – Coconut Pastelito by Beat Culture

I utterly adore Cuban Cuisine.

It’s much more than just the standard Cuban sandwich (which I am rather fond of), but an utterly mind blowing way of crafting amazing tastes and flavors with an array of ingredients that are new and novel (at least for people like me).

Brew Review – Clermont Champions Lager by Suncreek Brewery

There’s a fairly common cadence to Saturday mornings in the Central Florida triathlete community.

Stop one is to head to Universal to do 1 or 2 km in the water at Doc Lucky’s Lake Swim (and if you know, yes, I am on the wall).

There are some people that leave their cars and jump on a bike, but most of us grabbed our bikes and headed to Winter Garden to ride the West Orange Trail.

Brew Review – Salt and Lime Lager by Unbranded

Unbranded Brewing is a beast of a facility.

Sure, it’s nestled near the back of a large industrial complex in the more colorful area of Hialeah. In fact, we passed by one of the filming locations for one of my favorite Gente De Zona music videos on the way there.

Brew Review – Hollerbach’s Kolsch by 3 Daughters Brewing and Hollerbach’s Willow Tree Cafe

My knowledge of St. Pete far exceeds what I know of Sanford. And if you asked me for a city in Florida that has an authentic German dining experience, the recently permanently shuttered Hofbrauhaus in St. Pete would probably be second or third on the list, behind the obvious Epcot tag and Black Forest in Naples.

But I need to add Sanford to that list, and Hollerbach’s Willow Tree Cafe. Opened in 2001, the award-winning restaurant is the brainchild of Theo and Linda Hollerback, and was greatly inspired by Theo’s time in Germany in the 1970’s.