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A couple weeks ago was the latest iteration of the North Miami Brewfest, put on by and benefiting the Chaplin School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at Florida International University. This year, the popular festival was at NoMI Village--a wonderfully designed, relaxed event space in the heart of North Miami Beach, just off Interstate 95. As usual, this is one of the best beer festivals in...

Since being founded in 2008, Swamphead Brewery has grown well beyond its Gainesville home to become a major beacon of craft beer in Central and North Florida. With a combination of craft beer, environmental care and consideration, and a killer taproom, Swamphead shows no signs of slowing down. To learn a bit more, Producer Steve and I visited The Wetlands (that killer taproom) and sat down with Sh...

I can hardly think of a building in Florida more apt to house a brewery than a 100+ year old ice plant with its own aquifer well on a tree-lined street in a college town. This is Cypress and Grove, named for the old intersection on which the brewery sits (now known by the decidedly less colorful 10th Ave. and 4th St.). We sat down with founder and owner, Gary Heil, to talk about the brewery, it's...

It's time once again for the Treasure Coast Wine and Ale Trail Festival! This annual festival celebrates everything about the growing craft beer, wine, and now distilleries in Martin, St. Lucie, and Indian River counties. Last year, we visited the festival and spoke to representatives from all three counties. This year we are back and speaking to the breweries themselves! We spoke to Derek Gerry a...

In Part  Two of our time at High Springs Brewing in High Springs, FL. , we speak to Head Brewer and Co-Founder Kiffin Ayers and brewer Evan Ekasala about  some of the legal issues facing Florida's breweries and how they are hoping to help turn the tide. This includes recent visits to Washington, DC and visits from their local representatives, hoping to change state laws and enact new federal ones,...

High Springs in Alachua County is known primarily for the nearby springs and for a good amount of antiquing stores. But since opening a few years ago, High Springs Brewing has become a central meeting point for the city. In Part One, we speak to Head Brewer and Co-Founder Kiffin Ayers and Brewer Evan Ekasala about creating a brewery in this North Florida town, revamping an old ironwork studio for...

Welcome to Ocala, home of the Ocala National Forest and Horse Capital of the World! While either of those would make an excellent theme for a local brewery, Hiatus Brewing instead decided to make their brewpub operation more of a tropical oasis in the middle of North Central Florida. On today's episode, we speak to Hiatus Brewing co-founder and brewer, Lucas Frank, about his medical background and...

Welcome to a busy episode of the Florida Beer Podcast! For the past 30 years, the Center For Great Apes in Wauchula, FL. has cared for orangutans and chimpanzees that were rescued or retired from medical research, private homes, the entertainment industry, and more. To celebrate and bring awareness to their mission, they are hosting a series of events in Florida along with releases of three beers...

SFL Hops is a south Florida (obviously)-based beer organization disseminating information, organizing meetups, and doing so much more. One of their recent events was the SFL Hops Beer Fest, a beer festival and homebrew competition that was held this summer in June at Riverside Market South. They were gracious enough to invite us, and we were smart enough to bring our recording equipment to learn m...

Heard any interesting news about Funky Buddha Brewing? For Episode 150, we are heading to Oakland Park for a super-sized episode with Funky Buddha Brewery owner (re-owner?), Ryan Sentz. Interestingly enough, we recorded this right after their 10th anniversary--also the day they signed the paperwork officially repurchasing the brand from Constellation! We had a nice conversation about the humble be...

For as long as I remember in Florida craft beer, Orange Blossom Pilsner has been there. OBP and the company that makes it, Orange Blossom Brewing, is the brainchild of brewer Tom Moench, brewed for and firmly rooted in the central Florida brewing community. On today's episode, we spoke to Tom about the creation of OBP and its sister brands OBP2 and City Beautiful IPA, brewing at BrewHub in Lakelan...

Boca Raton's Barrel of Monks has been thrilling beer drinkers since 2015. If you haven't listened to Part 1, go back and listen! Their specialty is Belgian-style ales, and that focus comprises the vast majority of the styles and recipes coming out of their tap room and production facility.   We spoke to two of the founders, Bill McFee and Kevin Abbott, about how they met, bringing Belgian-style al...

Boca Raton's Barrel of Monks has been thrilling beer drinkers since 2015. Their specialty is Belgian-style ales, and that focus comprises the vast majority of the styles and recipes coming out of their tap room and production facility. We spoke to two of the founders, Bill McFee and Kevin Abbott, about how they met, bringing Belgian-style ales to Boca Raton and South Florida, the joys of proper bo...

There is nothing like a good Florida Rum... A quick stone's throw from Walking Tree Brewing (literally, if you play MLB) in Vero Beach is Indian River Distillery, Florida's newest distillery! Opened by Ray and Mandy Hooker earlier this year, Indian River Distillery has opened with an initial spread of rum, corn whiskey, vodka, and a lot more currently aging away for us to enjoy in the future. As c...

We are back in Sebastian, FL with Mash Monkeys Brewing! Situated on the anchor end of a strip mall in front of a car repair shop, Mash Monkeys has been serving up some of the most fantastic beers in the Treasure Coast since 2018. We spoke to brewmaster and co-founder, Derek Gerry, about the amazing beers they've been making, the love of craft beer in Sebastian, and the rather interesting story beh...

Last year was the first Mezcal Lauderdale event, and it quickly became one of our favorites! This year, we decided to bring the recording equipment to give you a great feeling of the event for yourself. We spoke to representatives and owners from Mezcal Santo Gusano, Mezcal Amaras, Mezcal Rosaluna, Cuentacuentos, El Viaje Raicilla, Xicaru, and Granja Nomada. PLUS, I also have a special interview w...

We are back with Part 2 of our interview with Pete Anderson from Pareidolia Brewing. In this episode, we speak to Pete regarding his time with the Florida Brewers Guild working on helping to change some of Florida's laws to make things more equitable for Florida's craft brewers. Listen in... Host:   David Butler  of the  Florida Beer Blog Executive Producer:   Jaime ("Jemmy") Legagneur, Chief Enth...

Finally, Pete is on the show! If you've been listening to the Florida Beer podcast, you will have heard about Pete Anderson, Owner and Brewer at Pareidolia Brewing. We finally visited the brewery in Sebastian to hear from the man himself where all of his brewing magic happens. In Part 1, we spoke to Pete to learn more about the creation of Pareidolia Brewing, bringing craft beer to Sebastian, and...

It's always an exciting time to scope out a new brewery! That's why, when taking a look at breweries in Miami to go interview on a recent trip, I was amazed and intrigued to see the brand new Magic 13 show up on my radar. The brainchild of Co-Founders Richard Fayad, Ricardo Romano, and head brewer Jean Taboada, Magic 13 is exactly the swanky, cool vibe of a brewery and taproom Miami loves. With a...

Welcome to a special episode of the Florida Beer Podcast! North Palm Beach's Stormhouse Brewing recently held their 2nd Anniversary Brewfest, and we sent Florida Podcast Network Lead Content Producer, Amber, out to record some interviews with happy festival goers. We'll hear what she thought of the event and hear what attendees thought as well! Listen in to this bonus episode featuring our guest h...

Mezcal Lauderdale is back! Last year this amazing festival launched to rave reviews. We were able to go, and it was an absolutely fantastic time: very well-organized, a lot of fantastic expressions to try, and a ton to learn!  Since the event is back, we welcomed organizer Andrew Martineau to the show. He'll tell us about his personal mezcal journey, how well last year's event was received, and ev...

From the shadow of the Abraxas craft beer bar on Miami Beach, a new civilization has risen ... Lost City Brewing Co. Daniel Morales is one part of the team that brought this North Miami brewery to life. Listen in as we interrupt his brew day to talk about the founding of Lost City, building a brewery in North Miami, and their love for Belgian beer styles.   Listen in... Host:   David Butler  of th...

It's been almost 2 years since Stormhouse Brewing opened in North Palm Beach, and how time has flown! To celebrate, they are throwing an anniversary brewfest on Sunday, May 21st, 2023. There will be beers from around the state, artisans, activities, and animals from this year's beneficiary, Busch Wildlife Sanctuary in Jupiter. We welcomed Stormhouse co-founder and co-owner Josh Brinzo to the podca...

While Florida is best known for rum, a lot of other spirits are finding a home in the Sunshine State. Two of those spirits are Victor George Vodka and the fantastic Fort  Mos é  Bourbon. Both are the brainchild of industry veteran, Victor Harvey. We recently sat down with Victor to understand his impetus in creating both brands and how advertising two distinctly different spirits with two very dif...

We are back again with Mitch Steele, Co-Founder, brewmaster, and COO at New Realm Brewing in Atlanta. If you haven't listened to Part 1 of our interview, we strongly recommend starting there!  In this  episode, we  continue the discussion around  creating and developing New Realm Brewing along Atlanta's famed BeltLine, preferred beer styles in the Peach State, and the development of a distillery a...