Updates!

Well, folks, we have lots of new events on the horizon!

Momo's has a new beer on tap - Rocket Rye Pale Ale. Perhaps the most exciting news, though, is that they actually sent out an email about it! HOLY JEEBUS!

Next, in chronological order, don't forget that Proof is having a cask of Oskar Blues Deviant Dale's IPA on Wednesday, March 21st (that's this Wednesday!) at 8pm, along with a glassware giveaway. It's a special double dry-hopped cask and they're getting this cask before the cans of this brew even hit our market! Expect to see me there, as I want to be one of the first to try this brew! This brew is dry-hopped with Columbus and people have been saying it's quite dank. The cask will happen in the upstairs bar.

Speaking of, the hot topic as of late is when Proof Brewing Company will start brewing and when Golden Horn will be brewing again. Long story short, they're both waiting for the Feds to approve some stuff and nobody is really sure. There is a lot of red tape when it comes to businesses and the government does not help the matter.

Fermentation Lounge announced that on Friday, April 13th (Friday the 13th!) they will have an event titled "Friday the Firkinteenth" (personally, I would have went with Firkteenth, Thirkinth, Thirkinteenth, Thirkeenth, or something of that sort, but we're splitting hairs here). They will have 4 casks (yet unannounced) that night. Let's just hope they don't get plugged, tapped while the spout is on, and the spouts aren't broken (just kidding, gents!). Depending on what they get, you can bet to see me there as well.

Lastly, I promise to get my Golden Horn interview up later this week. I had a great time talking to those guys and we certainly had some interesting conversations!

Cheers!

Hey!

I just wanted to say that I've been out of town for a few days, but the calendar on the right should be up to date for now. Momo's new wheat beer is still on tap as of a couple of days ago, and both Ferm and Proof have a lot going on this week with parties and St. Patrick's Day and all that!

Cheers!

New Beer at Momo's!

I just received word that Momo's has a new beer out - Back Nine Wheat Ale. I won't be able to snag any of this until Wednesday or so, but go give it a shot!

Cheers!

New brew at Momo's!

Momo's has announced that they will have a new brew on tap - Momo's Nightowl Oatmeal Stout. However, they have to wait for the Cream Ale to kick. I just called and they still have the Cream Ale on tap but expect it to run out by the end of the day. I'll be stopping in tomorrow to give the new stout a try!

Proof has a glassware giveaway to celebrate Sweetwater's 15th Anniversary next Wednesday at 8pm. If you buy a pint of this... imperial ESB, I guess you'd call it... you keep the glass!

Cheers!

New Beer at Momo's

Hopnosis Double IPA! I'm excited to get over there and try it!

New Beer at Momo's

Man, this town ceases to exist during Winter break... no special beer events for us geeks.

Luckily, Momo's came out with a new beer.

I found out because they put out a press release, a television commercial, sent me an e-mail, posted it on Facebook, and wrote a nice article for their news page.

Just kidding.

They didn't do anything - as always.

I did get this hilarious e-mail from Darren (darn1207 on RateBeer):

From: Darren
To: Daniel
Saturday, December 17, 2011 9:15 PM

Subject: I'm winning yo.

Attached:

(click for larger image)

For those of you out of the loop, myself and Kevin (PorterPounder) are the Mack Daddies of Tallahassee when it comes to rating brewpub beers. We've rated every one... until now. And you know what, Darren? Mark (Aurelius) rated it right after you, so GET OFF YOUR HIGH HORSE! WINKING EMOTICON!

I'll get it soon enough. In the meantime, let's talk Momo's.

They've gone out on a limb here, folks. A cream ale. Ironically, all of the college kids are out of town... what's the deal? This is the best local beer idea since Cerveza Lima. In the meantime, I'll buy this for the same price as two pints of Momo's version:

Just kidding... a little.

CHEERS TO FRESH LOCAL BEER!

New Brew at Momo's

Momo's has tapped their Blackjack Stout, which I am currently enjoying. Not too shabby!

State of the Beer Union Address - Tallahassee

Times... they are a-changin'.

2011 has most definitely been an interesting year for the beer scene in Tallahassee. Two new breweries are open, operational, and pumping out brews. Several new breweries are on the horizon, and rumors point to even more in the future. More and more people are embracing craft beer, homebrewing, and locally made brews. Tallahassee might not be the next Portland, but I have to say - things are looking up.

I'd like to begin with a re-cap of the breweries that are operational today. The first brewery to release beers was Golden Horn Brewing Company housed inside Fermentation Lounge. The last operating brewery in Tallahassee was Buckhead, which closed in 2003... wow. No fresh beer in Tallahassee for 8 years... Needless to say, everyone was thrilled when Fermentation Lounge opened their doors that first Wednesday to serve Golden Horn beers, and I was no different.

As you may remember me posting, they got off to a bit of a rocky start. I had plenty to say about how things were going... I have to say now, though, that Golden Horn has really started stepping it up. I still hate getting served 10oz pours in wine glasses for 4-5 dollars, but the beers have been getting better and better. Just yesterday I was lucky to hit their most recent release and try a tasty chocolate oatmeal imperial stout and a chipotle ale. These were hands down two of my favorite brews that they've made, and I've had a good time over the past few months getting to know the brewing team. They seem to be good people doing the best with what they have available to them. However, I do still wish the prices weren't so high, and I just can't wrap my mind around why they would ever open a brewpub that only brews 10 and 20 gallon batches. Regardless, they were the first to open up in town, and we're all very glad they're around. Even if they just keep making 10 gallon batches of weird brews, I'll still be there every time.

Market Street Brewpub, housed inside Momo's Pizza (Market Street location - get it?), was the second brewpub in town to start serving fresh, locally made beer. They boast a 3-barrel system (at least - I think they may have a 7-barrel fermenter or tank), which means they have beers on all the time and for longer periods of time than Golden Horn. They also have a much different philosophy - putting out classic styles that are drinkable. I could barely believe my eyes (and mouth!) the first time I sat in a Tallahassee brewpub drinking a locally made IPA. Wow, now that's a feeling. I've since had every beer they've released, and I continue to bask in the glory that is sipping on a fresh pale ale while devouring a slice of pizza the size of a small aircraft.

If I had to make a complaint or two, and I do, I have to say I'm annoyed by their marketing... or should I say lack of marketing. They never say anything when they tap a new beer. So far I've gathered that it always happens on a Sunday, but the timing so far has been erratic. Every time I've learned about a beer on tap, it has been because a friend or co-worker sends me a text, or I simply call them and ask. Also, though I enjoy them thoroughly, I have yet to be blown away by one of their brews. They are classic, drinkable, and go well with pizza, but I'm a beer nerd. I want them to put out an IPA that is dripping with so much hop character I sink away into a blissful hop coma until drool froths from my mouth and someone has to slap me back into reality. Until then, though, I will remain happy to go every couple of Sundays to enjoy a fresh, classic brew with 10,000 calories of pizza.

"I wanna know who's gonna pay for this - I spilt beer all over it when that car smashed into me."

So what does the future hold for Tallahassee beer?

Well... a lot of things, I hope. We know for sure that Proof is going to be opening a brewery downstairs, probably early next year, which will be awesome. Other than that... we mainly have rumors. Mike's Stone Baked Pizza was supposedly going to start brewing, but it's taken longer than expected, and my sources tell me it's probably not going to happen. There are also rumors of a couple of other homebrewers in town joining forces with local business owners to open brewpubs in or around the Midtown area, but nothing is 100% yet, of course.

Other than that, there are also rumors flying that Pensacola Bay will be either starting another location in Tallahassee or possibly moving here completely. I, for one, would be completely happy without them. Every single beer I've had by them has been awful, and though I don't have personal experience, many sources tell me the brewers are... shall we say... giant d-bags. I'd be completely okay with them not moving into town, though I hate to turn away fresh local beer. If you've ever had their brews or talked to them - you know what I'm talking about.

"But we have never measured progress by these yardsticks alone. We measure progress by the success of our people. By the jobs they can find and the quality of life those jobs offer. By the prospects of a small business owner who dreams of turning a good idea into a thriving enterprise. By the opportunities for a better life that we pass on to our children.

That's the project the American people want us to work on. Together."

Cheers!

New Momo's Beer?

Unconfirmed of course, as is the Momo's way, but a friend passed on to me last night that he was told Momo's would be tapping a Pale Ale "sometime this weekend." If they follow tradition, it will be tapped Sunday evening. We shall see!

UPDATE: The Blue Chair Pale Ale went on tap Sunday!

Huge News from Proof

In a recent e-mail, Proof dropped a couple of big bombs on the beer community, but let's get a few smaller updates over with first.

UPDATE: A co-worker told me Momo's threw a new beer on tap, and a call verifies so. It's a light, golden honey ale and the girl on the phone told me it's called "Honey Bear Ale." Cute. Now start telling us when you PUT YOUR BEERS ON TAP!

Fermentation Lounge is having the next haus bier release with Golden Horn Brewing Company this Wednesday, the 26th at 5pm. They are releasing a Spiced Pumpkin Beer and a Pale Peach Ale (peach pale ale). Normally I'd post the descriptions, but we have more important news to get to (no offense, Ferm dudes). Instead, check out their blog.

Proof is celebrating their 3rd birthday that same Wednesday with a Sweetwater event at 8pm. They will be tapping the new Dank Tank - Ghoulash, an imperial black IPA. There will also be a glassware giveaway as always.

The biggest news, however, comes in Proof's latest subscription email:

"We are in the process of expanding by adding:
A new bar and bar area!
A Biergarten!
22 more taps for a total of 50!
Dedicated beer engines for Cask Ale!
A BREWERY - with full scale brewing operations commencing soon!"

HOLY SHIT!

Let's read that again. 22 more taps? 50 total taps? Casks?! A BREWERY?!

Obviously, I knew about this a long time ago, but I have been keeping my mouth shut until the news was officially announced. Since that information is a bit scant, allow me to fill in a bit. Proof is currently in the process of turning their basement into another bar. This bar will have 22 more taps (making the total 50 with the current 28 upstairs), bottles, and liquor, but no macros (sorry, brosefs). Additionally, I believe some new bartenders and beer loving bartenders will be working down there (ie: myself, hopefully). So hopefully within the next couple of months (I'm not sure of the open dates), you will be able to come enjoy a beer served by yours truly! Additionally, you could take that beer outside and enjoy it in the biergarten. Crazy!

A BREWERY?!

Yep. I'm not sure exactly when this will be implemented, but I'm pretty excited. Proof has some good people in mind to help out with this, and again, I'm hoping one of them is yours truly. Who knows, someday you may be able to come to Proof and enjoy a beer served by me that I helped make! Yikes!

Well all of this is definitely good news, and I'm certainly excited!

Cheers!

Stone Event at Proof

Finally some beer events are happening in Tallahassee! We've been in a bit of a slump...

Momo's tapped their new IPA on Sunday, eventually dubbing it "Sunburst IPA." It's not bad, but it's nothing special. I was hoping for a bigger hop kick, but I'm sure it goes down easy for the masses... which is good for their business, I'm sure. You can see my rating, and a few others, here.

Proof announced their next big event, which is centered around Stone Brewing Company. There aren't a ton of details, but they're promising two casks, 2011 Double Bastard, and a glassware giveaway. I think that may be one random Wednesday that I don't have orchestra rehearsal, so depending on what the casks are, you may just see me there!

Cheers!

Momo's IPA

Word of mouth tells me that Market Street's (Momo's) IPA was tapped today. The words came from the mouth of an employee of the Tennessee Street location that supposedly talked to the owner. Their website doesn't say anything about it, but what else is new. I just made a quick call and verified that the brew is in fact on tap.

I have to say it again... why are they being so weird and secretive about this? The guy that told me the above information told me the owner plans to always tap these on Sundays, probably about 2 weeks apart depending on the beer that is made. I have no idea why they don't tell anyone or announce it!

In other news, Proof is having a Blue Point glassware giveaway on Wednesday, October 19th at 8pm. I'm told the pint glasses are blue, which is pretty cool. Also of interest to the tickers is that they will be tapping Blue Point's Oatmeal Stout, which hasn't been in this town before to my knowledge. Woot.

UPDATE: Ferm's beer releases are a week behind from their original schedule, so the next two will come out on Wednesday the 26th. I may have been harsh at first, but they've definitely stepped it up as of late. Up next is a spiced pumpkin beer and a peach pale ale. Not super excited about either (I'm definitely over pumpkin beers, and I don't like peaches) but I'll be there nonetheless!

Cheers!

Boring Fall

Well... I was hoping to do a local updates post, as I haven't been as dedicated to this blog lately due to school, but there's really nothing to update.

Brewfest Tallahassee is over, the latest Fermentation Lounge Haus Bier release is over, and Momo's has tapped their first beers... shoot.

I was at the Homebrew Den recently (they're the brewers at Momo's), asked about their new IPA (that's what I was told they're brewing next), and was given the now stereotypical response of "I dunno - a couple of weeks maybe?" I still have no idea why they're keeping all their beers a secret. It's weird.

Fermentation Lounge has a few events going on these days, but nothing that caters to beer nerds. If you're into weird movies, hipster music, or BS Oktoberfest events, then I'll let you read their blog to see what you want to hit up. Their original release schedule for their haus biers says they will be doing the next one on October 19th with a pumpkin beer and some sort of IPA. At the time they were contemplating peach, but they haven't updated since.

No word from Mike's Stone Baked Pizza or the other venture in town on 6th Avenue, but I'll certainly update when I get any information. I've sent out a few texts and Facebook messages to see if there is any news.

I've narrowed down a logo for some t-shirts and will be making some soon. If you want one, do let me know by commenting on here, contacting me on Facebook, email, or whatever. They will be simple iron-ons and I will only charge you what it costs me (probably like 5 dollars). Make sure to tell me your size.

Cheers!

My Adventures in Homebrewing

Ah, another day, another boring class. That means it's time for a blog entry. Contenance Angloise? Eh, I'll take a beer.

Before we get started, a bit for the locals.

-Don't forget the weekly tasting at New Leaf on Saturday
-Fermentation's original release schedule says they're releasing a new Golden Horn beer on October 1st, but they haven't said anything else about it as of yet
-Momo's didn't release any beer this weekend, and myself and all sources were basically told, "I don't know. A couple/few weeks."

Now, let's talk homebrewing.

I've thought about writing about my adventures in homebrewing for awhile now, but I don't really know what to say... and I still really don't, so I'll ramble a bit and hopefully figure something out.

I suppose I should mention how I got started... that part's easy - my older brother, Calvin (pictured). He is completely responsible for beginning my interest in beer in general, let alone homebrewing. He's been doing it for years, and when I once asked him why people drink beer (I used to hate beer, but I just didn't know what was out there), he said something to me along the lines of, "It's not that you don't like beer - it's that you haven't had the right beer." The rest is history.

Before I got started, and I'm not 100% sure on these facts, I'm sure I brewed with my brother a bit, and possibly a few other people, and then started getting into commercial beer. My wife (girlfriend at the time) actually made the leap into homebrewing for me (a trend we'll see again later) by getting me a Mr. Beer kit for Christmas one year. After making their horrible first recipe, I immediately sought my brother's advice and started making my own recipes with his help. Unlike the Mr. Beer kits suggest, I started boiling, adding specialty grains, adding extra hops, using real adjuncts (fruit, etc.) instead of extracts, pitching liquid yeast, and so on.

Eventually I grew out of the kit and my roommate and I at UNI got a bunch of equipment and went to town, brewing quite a bit. I jumped into full 5-gallon extract brewing, bought a bigger pot, and started experimenting. My first full 5-gallon batch was a coffee Russian imperial stout, part of which I set aside and aged on Jack Daniels-soaked toasted oak chips. Go big or go home, I guess. This started to be my trend... I never really brewed anything normal, and my roommate at the time didn't help that fact. I started brewing fruit beers, coconut porters, and we both brewed a ton of weird ciders - many of which turned out... less than awesome. We even brewed a blueberry mead in honor of a famous visiting euphonium player. My roommate found a clone recipe for one of his favorite witbiers and we sent it to Calvin's hometown competition - the Drunk Monk Challenge - and didn't tell him. Him and his wife were both surprised when our names got called for a 3rd place ribbon in that category. To this day it's the only competition I've ever entered, for no specific reason, honestly. I also got involved with a homebrew club in town, CRAZE, and had a good time getting to know some of those guys, though at the time I was not nearly as experienced as they were.

For awhile, this kept going. I brewed a lot of extract 5-gallon batches over the next couple of years, even a coconut porter and a raspberry wheat for table favors at my wedding. I brewed with lots of different people as well - relatives, friends, fellow local homebrewers, etc. As always happens with homebrewers, I eventually felt the need for more control over my recipes and wanted to go all grain... but never wanted to purchase the equipment. My wife again made the leap for me by purchasing me an all grain ingredient kit for my birthday this summer... so I had to get the equipment right? Several hundred dollars later and I was happily pumping out my first all grain batch - an extremely hoppy IPA. I currently have a cooler type 3-tier system complete with a 10-gallon hot liquor tank, 10-gallon mash tun with a false bottom, and my old 8 gallon mega pot. I've since made two batches and already have several ideas for my next batches - with thanks to my wife, friends, and others.

The setup

The first IPA I made (pictured) turned out awesome. I would venture to say it is one of the best, if not the best, beer I have made to date. When I first tasted it I posted on Facebook something about how it tasted like pine dipped in caramelized grapefruit, or something like that. The hop character is very tasty, and I'm pretty proud of the beer. So far the people I've shared it with seem to enjoy it as well, but who knows. After that I wanted to try my hands at a more sessionable beer, and I took inspiration from a hoppy wheat beer of my brother's I had tasted recently. I took his recipe, altered it a bit, and produced what is a light, but tasty and slightly hoppy, wheat beer that is just under 5% and goes down like heaven on a hot day. Coupled with its sweet, hoppy aroma from loads of Centennial dry-hopping (pictured below), it's pretty dang good. Honestly, both of these brews had an ulterior motive for their production, but I won't get into that now. So far those are the only 2 all grain batches I've made, but as soon as I get a free day from work and school, more will be coming.

Dry-hopping the wheat
So what's next? Well, there is a coconut porter recipe I've made several times (though never all-grain), and I have a pretty awesome idea for it... imperial coconut porter! On top of that, I found out recently that I can get Palm Ridge Reserve Whiskey barrels through a distributor where I work... whiskey barrel aged imperial coconut porter! Yes, you read that right. If I can pull that off... this beer could be awesome. What's great about Palm Ridge Reserve is that it's local, high-quality, and the barrels are 5-gallons! It's like they're begging homebrewers to use them! Will do.

Palm Ridge barrels
Well, that's all for now, folks. Feel free to comment on here or email me with questions or anything you may have to say! This weekend I will be attending the Barrel-aged Hunahpu's release at Cigar City Brewing in Tampa, so you can expect a post about that next week.

Cheers!

Local Updates

Well, folks, can you tell that school has started? I can.

In fact, I'm literally typing this blog in class. 12th century counterpoint? Eh, I'll take a beer.

In the near future I intend to write up a post about my adventures in homebrewing, both past and upcoming, but for now, a few local updates.

Momo's still hasn't updated anything on their website, but a co-worker told me he saw wort pumping last time he ate there. If anyone has any more information, feel free to comment on here. I know a couple of you get out that way more than I do.

I've also been checking Mike's Stone Baked Pizza's Facebook page and haven't seen anything at all about brewing. I'll probably shoot the brewer a text sometime soon.

For the tickers out there, I'm told that Tomahawk has Yuengling Oktoberfest on tap, oddly enough.

Fermentation Lounge announced via their Facebook that they will be tapping a beer from a brewery they've never had before on Friday or Saturday... for free. Nuts. I asked on their FB what it will be - my guess being Thomas Creek since that started showing up in town, but they also mentioned getting a keg of Liefman's Oud Bruin, so it may be that, but I don't know if they've had Liefman's before.

UPDATE: They responded on their Facebook "Intuition." I can only assume they mean Intuition Ale Works from Jacksonville, which I've never had. Sweet.

They've also started beer education, dubbed "Beer 101," on their blog. They're very brief, somewhat generic, and seemingly random as well, but it's nice that they're doing it nonetheless.

As for other events, don't forget about the Gordon Biersch event at Proof on the 21st and the upcoming Golden Horn releases at Ferm in October.

Cheers!

A Flood of Breweries

Fermentation Lounge may have opened the gate, but it seems we're getting more and more news and rumors these days. We all remember the "Mad Mullet" Docker's disaster, then we got confirmation that Momo's and Mike's Stone Baked Pizza are trying to brew, and now we have even more.

For a long time now there have been rumors flying about a brewpub opening on 6th Avenue around/across from Bamboo House, but it was always a vague rumor and I always passed it off as "I'll believe it when I'm sitting there with beer in my glass" kind of thing. One of the Golden Horn brewers told me on Wednesday that this is becoming a reality. Someone he knows named Brian is going to be the brewer (he was also there, but I was on my way out so I didn't get a chance to talk to him). Apparently a local business owner (I believe he said the owner of 5th Avenue Taproom, but I can't remember - I had always heard Jasmine) is running the operation. They are getting a 3-barrel system, which I'm sure is a lot like Momo's, if not the same one.

Momo's Brewing Equipment
As I get more details, I'll certainly post here. We'll see what happens, and we're all still awaiting the opening of Momo's and Mike's. Pretty soon there is going to be a TON of fresh local beer - AWESOME!