Stone Enjoy By IPA hits the Sunshine State

Posted on May 16, 2013 by Gerard Walen

Stone Enjoy By 224x300 Stone Enjoy By IPA hits the Sunshine StateIf you’ve been around to the right bottle stores or pubs, you may have noticed that Stone Enjoy By 05.17.13 IPA has made its way to The Sunshine State. Brewed with 13 different hop varieties, this beer is designed to be enjoyed on or before the date printed on each bottle in order to fully experience the beer’s hop-forward flavor and aroma. But there’s only one day left to enjoy it because they mean it: Any remaining bottles left on the shelf will be pulled on May 17.

That doesn’t mean we can’t look forward to the next release.

Stone Brewmaster Mitch Steele implemented several hop infusion techniques while brewing Stone Enjoy By 05.17.13 IPA, including “hop bursting,” which adds copious amounts of hops to the end of the boil process to maximize the intense flavors and aromas of hops in the brew. Traces of resin, peaches and tropical fruit are evident in the aroma while the taste brings on an onslaught of hop bitterness.

Stone was kind enough to send a sample bottle to Beer in Florida, and it was amazing. The hops seem to dance on the tongue, bouncing around like a 5-year-old who washed down a dozen Pixy Stix with a liter of Coke for one of the most pleasant beer-tasting experiences I’ve ever had with an IPA.

According to Stone’s interactive map, most of the distribution is in the “I-4 corridor” and South Florida.

But North Florida, the Panhandle and other areas that missed out on this release of “Enjoy By,” you can let the Escondido, California, brewery know that you want it.

Stone is measuring interest for the beer through the company’s social media platforms: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and the Stone Enjoy By IPA website. Beer enthusiasts can express their desire to have Stone Enjoy By IPA back in their city or state by using any or all of the aforementioned social media sites. Hopheads are encouraged to comment, tweet, post and share with fellow craft beer fans using the hashtags #EnjoyBy #FL. All engagements can be viewed in real time at the Stone Enjoy By IPA website.

Here are some notes supplied by the brewery.

Name: Stone Enjoy By 05.17.13 IPA

URL: stonebrewing.com/enjoyby/

Stats: 9.4% ABV, 88 IBUs

Availability: Limited 22-ounce bottles and draft, beginning the week of April 15

Hops bill: Ahtanum, Calypso, Super Galena, Simcoe, Delta, Target, Amarillo, New Zealand Motueka, Citra, Cascade, New Zealand Nelson Sauvin, Australian Helga and Australian Galaxy

 

Tasting notes, provided by Stone Brewmaster Mitch Steele

Appearance: Golden with a creamy white head.

Aroma: Intense dank hoppiness, resin, peaches, and hints of tropical fruit are all evident in the aroma.

Taste: Smooth malt up front, quickly dissipating into a massive onslaught of hops. The dankness and peach notes come through strongly.

Palate: Smooth with hints of alcohol, and a perfect balance of bitterness and dryness on the back end.

Overall: We took the opportunity with this beer to use several interesting techniques we’ve learned during our many years of brewing great double IPAs. The result is an intense dry beer with very little malt sweetness, but with plenty of malt flavor to provide a background to the enormous…or shall I say “ginormous” hop character. Hopping, as might be expected, was over the top. First, the brew was mash-hopped with Ahtanum, one of our favorite hops that is the signature hop in our Stone Pale Ale, after which we kettle-hopped with a very small dose of Super Galena hop extract for bittering. Then, using a technique known in homebrew circles as “hop bursting,” we loaded up very heavily on the flavor hops at the end of the boil and in the whirlpool. Simcoe, Delta, Target and Amarillo were used in the late kettle hop. Citra, Calypso, and Cascade were used for the whirlpool hop. As you can clearly tell, this beer was super hoppy even before we dry-hopped it, but then we went for it … dry-hopping with two pounds per barrel total of a blend of Southern Hemisphere hops, predominantly Nelson Sauvin, Galaxy, and Motueka. Drink extra-super-dank-and-tasty Stone Enjoy By 05.17.13 IPA well before its shelf life to maximize the pungent glory that this beautiful, intense hop profile provides.

 Suggested food pairings, provided by “Dr.” Bill Sysak

Appetizers: Guacamole, kimchi, salt and pepper shrimp (or tofu), sausage-stuffed jalapeños

Main course: Chicken-fried steak, Merguez sausage, gumbo, chile relleno, Thai drunken noodles

Dessert: Carrot cake, peach cobbler, ginger spice cake, pumpkin cheesecake

Cheeses: Parmigiano-Reggiano, extra aged Cheddar, Rogue Creamery Caveman Blue, Mimolette

Cigars: Alec Bradley Trilogy Authentic Corojo, Altadis U.S.A Edición Limitada, Camacho Select

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Bringing BeerCity USA to Tampa; It takes a community

Posted on May 6, 2013 by Gerard Walen

BeerCityTPA cover IV Bringing BeerCity USA to Tampa; It takes a community

 

Editors note. This post is an updated version of a similar one last year.

The BeerCity USA poll went live Tuesday morning, and we’ve been furiously tapping away at the computer keys to get the word out about the #BeerCityTPA campaign to bring the title to the Tampa Bay area.

First, if you haven’t voted yet, click here and vote for Tampa, then come back and learn how you can help spread the word.

We are not going to talk here about how Tampa deserves to be BeerCity USA. Our love for Florida and its craft beer scene is well-documented. Neither will we put down the current BeerCity USA title holder, Asheville. It’s a beautiful town with a great beer community.

Rather, this post is about strategies and benefits.

Strategies

The #BeerCityTPA campaign is fueled by social media. Share, share, share and it can grow exponentially.  Here is a short custom link that you can use for Twitter: http://bit.ly/BeerCityTPA13.  Send that out with the #BeerCityTPA hashtag. Put the link on your Facebook page and encourage your friends to vote.

BeerCity USA 2013 REVISED 200x300 Bringing BeerCity USA to Tampa; It takes a community

Our friends at JJ Taylor Distributing Florida have put up this poster at various craft beer establishments in the Tampa Bay area. Scan the QR code and VOTE TAMPA!

We created a Facebook Fan Page at www.facebook.com/BeerCityTPA. Please like it, and we’ll try to keep it updated with the campaign’s progress. Note: Unlike previous year, we will not be able to track the number of votes during the campaign.

We also filmed a short video at the Cajun Café Bayou Spring Craft Beer Festival last year, in which several Tampa Bay area craft beer brewers and industry folks answered the question: “Why Should the Tampa Bay area be the Next BeerCity USA?”  You can view and download the video here.  Please feel  free to share and embed the video on your websites, blogs, Facebook pages, etc. We don’t ask for credit or linkbacks. It’s for all of us.

The poll is set up so you can only vote once per computer. Don’t many of us have access to more than one computer?  And a smartphone? ‘Nuff said.

Benefits

Asheville has made the most of the BeerCity USA title during the past four years (it tied with Portland, Oregon, in 2009, the first year of the unscientific poll, and with Grand Rapids, Michigan,  last year). It’s a source of community pride, and the city uses the title to market itself as a destination.  Now, many of you Floridians might think, “We’ve already got enough damn tourists around here,” but the fact is our economy is based on their dollars, and in these economic times, we could use all of those we can get.

Sierra Nevada, New Belgium both announced last year that they are building new breweries in the Asheville area, and Oskar Blues has already opened its East Coast brewery there. Did having the BeerCity USA title help? Well, it certainly didn’t hurt.

Naysayers may call it a “bogus poll” – it’s without a doubt unscientific – but most of those negative remarks come from locals in the losing cities.

Most importantly, it’s a chance to show the world we mean business, that we’re proud of what our once little beer scene has become, and a chance to come together as a community. Not just our beer community, but everybody.  I think Charlie Papazian said it best in his post announcing the poll:

BeerCity USA poll highlights the spirit of support local, small town and big city Americans generate on behalf of their communities. BeerCity USA is not a measure of beer quality, number of breweries, volume of beer enjoyed nor any kind of “best-of-show” measurement.

It’s an indicator of the coherent nature of beer communities. It celebrates and recognizes the importance of responsible enjoyment and social interaction. One could take a look at the numbers from many perspectives: economic impacts, breweries per capita, regulatory impact, beer consumption, comparative share of craft beer from craft brewers, blue versus red, winning baseball teams, stadium beer offerings, jobs created, big versus small, etc.

But at its core BeerCity USA measures a previously unheralded aspect of beer enthusiasm: Local support of the final sum which is the enthusiasm for beer choice, diversity, flavor and accessibility. Most importantly it highlights “beer” as the meeting place.

This is why the “royal we” has been used in this post. It’s not about one person, one group or even one city. It benefits everyone.

We hope the entire state gets behind this effort, from Key West to Orlando to Pensacola, because as it is often said, “a rising tide lifts all boats.” (We exempt Jacksonville, which again landed on the ballot this year through an admirable write-in effort during the nomination process.)

Are we underdogs? Certainly.  But ask Joe Namath, the 1980 U.S. Olympics hockey team or the ragtag rebels of the Revolutionary War. Sometimes underdogs win.

Vote early. Vote often. Vote Tampa!

 

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May the Fourth be with brew

Posted on May 3, 2013 by Gerard Walen

This first weekend of May will be a great one for beer lovers across Florida. Three beer festivals are set for Saturday, which is also the national Big Brew for homebrew clubs.

Here’s a quick look.

The fifth annual Cajun Café on the Bayou Spring Craft Beer Festival

P1030198 150x150 May the Fourth be with brewWe’ve sung the praises of the Pinellas Park restaurant’s biannual gathering of craft beer lovers before. If you’re looking for a break from the usual festival offerings, here’s where you need to be. Owner Paul Unwin buys and stores beer throughout the year to share, including many rare and special release brews that are otherwise unavailable in Florida. Follow the Facebook page to keep track of the list. Tickets are limited and available here. The last Fall Festival sold out at the door.

Hogtown Craft Beer Festival

hogtown logo 150x150 May the Fourth be with brewIn its second year, this Gainesville fest has already gained a reputation as one of the better ones in the state. It takes place in the Kanapaha Botanical Gardens, and will feature 11 “pods” featuring local, national and regional breweries and local craft beer businesses. Each pod will also have a “small plate” dish to pair with the beers from that pod. Download the festival’s Passport, which includes a map, which pod each brewery in which each brewery is located, and the beer and food plates offered. The festival is organized by The Hogtown Brewers, a Gainesville homebrew club, so one of the pods will feature homebrewers and brewing demonstrations to celebrate National Homebrew Day. Tickets available here.

New Times Brew at the Zoo

image 5 150x150 May the Fourth be with brewThis fourth annual festival in Miami does not feature the wide array of craft beers that the others do, but there will be a slew of activities for entertainment. Hip-hop fans should love the music: Grammy Award-winning Naughty by Nature are the headliners, along with opening act and veteran rapper Luther “Uncle Luke” Campbell, once a member of Miami’s infamous 2 Live Crew. Local homebrew clubs will be pouring samples as well. Buy tickets here.

Big Brew

P1030327 150x150 May the Fourth be with brewTo celebrate the art of brewing, the American Homebrewers Association encourages member clubs to hold public brewing events to help teach the community about how to make beer and answer questions. It takes place on the Saturday nearest National Homebrew Day, May 7. Plenty of clubs and homebrew supply stores in Florida will hold events. You can find more information and a list Big Brew events on the AHA website.

As much as I’d like to attend all of these, I am but one man who has not invented a cloning machine – yet. I’m casting my lot with the Hogtown festival, and helping my friends from Copp Brewery pour their beers. (Pod 6, “Gainesville Area”). Drop by and say hi.

 
still v1 May the Fourth be with brew

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Another Eggs & Kegs brunch set for Cigar City – and there will be more

Posted on May 2, 2013 by Gerard Walen

Eggs and kegs 2 300x232 Another Eggs & Kegs brunch set for Cigar City and there will be moreThe Eggs & Kegs brunch at Cigar City Brewing in Tampa sold out quickly when it was held during Tampa Bay Beer Week.

Now there’s another chance – and I’ve learned there will be even more chances later this year.

An Eggs & Kegs is scheduled to take place during American Craft Beer Week, on Sunday, May 19.

The food this time, once again provided by Chef John Loscalzo of Loko Cuisine, will be paired – and prepared – with craft beer from Cigar City and Highland Brewing of Asheville, North Carolina.

In an exclusive to Beer in Florida, Loscalzo announced that Eggs & Kegs will be a regular event at Cigar City from September to May on the first Sunday of each month, and there may even be some brews down the road with culinary-inspired brunch flavors.

The beer-infused brunch on May 19 will include a four-course Cuban- and Celtic-inspired menu, a pint of beer, cider, or LOKO’s blood orange and guava beermosa, fresh brewed espresso from Felicitous Coffee and Tea House, and a Cigar City smoked salsa bar.

Here’s the menu:

Drunken Breakfast Brisket & Bacon

Felicitous espresso & spice oven roasted brisket, Cigar City Cubano Espresso Ale au jus,  Cigar City Maduro Ale caramelized onion bacon marmalade (on side).

Scotch Egg Papa Rellena

Cross between a Scotch egg & Spanish papa rellena! Crispy mashed potato croquette stuffed with a hard boiled egg, Highland Devil’s Britches IPA peach Sriracha hot suace (on side).

Mocha Dulce de Leche & Sea Salt French Toast

Baked French toast with maple cinnamon cream cheese custard, Highland Black Mocha Stout dulce de leche, coarse Celtic Sea Salt.

Cuban Caprese Salad 

Fresh mozzarella pearls, grape tomatoes, green grapes, shaved red onion, marinated in cilantro lime mojo pesto.

Tickets are $25 and can be purchased online here or at the Cigar City tasting room (cash only). Buy them quick; this one is also expected to sell out.

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