Pinellas Ale Works is one of the newer breweries in the rapidly expanding St. Petersburg brewing scene. Situated in the shadow of Tropicana Field, PAW has quickly risen through the ranks with an emphasis on quality brews, culminating with a silver medal for their Milk Bone Stout and the 2017 Great American Beer Festival.
I recently spoke to co-founder Dennis Decker about St. Petersburg, territoriality, and Jim the brewery dog. 
Concrete Beach Brewing in Wynwood welcomed their newest brewmaster, Eric Hernandez, a few months ago. This former Biology major and homebrewer cut his teeth at Concrete Beach’s sister breweries in LA and NY, eventually becoming head brewer at Coney Island Brewing.
I spoke to Eric about his time in LA, moving to Miami, and rooftop gardening.
Gainesville brewery Swamphead has grown from a small, local brewery to recently rolling out statewide distribution for their core beers. Focusing on hop-forward beers and a strong adoration for the natural Florida, their brews are classic styles with incredibly flavorful recipes that are remarkably easy to drink.
I spoke to founder and brewer Luke Kemper and Marketing Director Brandon Nappy about the Natural Florida, bombers, and Tallahassee.
If you’re reading this blog, odds are you know who Jonathan Wakefield is. If not, just wait a bit and you’ll be able to find J. Wakefield Brewing beers throughout the state.
So we asked the man himself some questions about fruit, Zika, and Star Wars.
Debary-based Central 28 Beer Co. is pretty new to the Central Florida brewing scene, but they’re already starting to make a handy little name for themselves along the I-4 corridor. Between gold medals and their first can, UpRiver, well into distribution, they are poised to be much more visible in the coming years.
I spoke to Geoff DeBisshop, brewmaster and co-owner, about disc golf, Spanish restaurants, and the joy of blood oranges.
In Orlando, something very different is going down. Castle Church Brewing Community is in the final stages of planning.
It’s a brewery, of course. But it will also be a fully-functional and ordained Lutheran Church, with regular church functions.
I recently spoke to Aaron Schmalzle, brewmaster and co-owner of Castle Church, about research, donations, and 95 other things.
Drive North from the Tampa Bay area for about an hour and you come to the quaint village of Brooksville. It’s a sleepy community, hosts an annual blueberry festival each year, and sits relatively close to Weeki Watchee and its famous mermaids.
Pretty soon, it will also be the home of Inoculum Ale Works, a new brewery with two very interesting differences: The will only brew sour beers, and their primary method of distribution will be shipping directly to consumers.
For more information, I recently sat down with Nick Moench from Inoculum to discuss beer, corroding cans, green tea, and dinosaurs.
BrewPOP is a brewery, winery, bar, and craft pizza joint located in the small Central Florida city of Auburndale. If you’ve ever driven on I-4 between Tampa and Orlando, Auburndale is next to the old Fantasy of Flight.
Firmly entrenched in Polk County, they have a wide range of beers, drinks, wine, and some fantastic looking pizzas. Don’t let it’s location in front of a WalMart fool you; the tap list is lengthy and complex.
I recently spoke to Jerry Sowders, owner and brewer at BrewPOP, about the complexities of opening a facility and the joys of a catfish pizza. This is easily the longest interview I’ve ever published, and it’s well worth the read.
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