And the Special Keg for the Anniversary Party is...

CIGAR CITY'S HUMIDOR SERIES IPA!!!! That's right for the first time in South Florida you will be able to get this rare beer ON TAP! It was a gold medal winner at the 2009 Great American Beer Festival in the Wood and Barrel Aged Category. This is Cigar City's Jai Alia IPA aged in cedar and is simply amazing. If the lineup before wasn't enough this just brought it to another level. Here is what the Cigar City beer lineup is... so far:

ON TAP:

Jai Alia IPA

Patio Tool Irish Stout

Humidor Series IPA

BOTTLES:

Big Sound Scotch Ale

Hunahpu Imperial Stout

All of these beers have ratings of A- to A+ on Beer Advocate so you don't want to miss out on any of these. This could also possibly be the only time you will ever even get to try these beers. There will also be some great beer specials and giveaways that we are going to keep a secret so you will just have to show up to find out. I hope to see you all there to celebrate the One Year Anniversary of the South Florida Beer Blog.

Friday, May 7th 8:00pm

Abraxas

407 Meridian Ave

Miami Beach, FL

New Times' Brew At The Zoo- Beer Lineup

Miami New Times' Brew At The Zoo will be held this Saturday, May 1st at the Miami Metro Zoo. This is the first beer festival in Miami in many years and hopefully it won't be the last. The VIP tickets for the event are already sold out so if that is any indication the turnout should be be enough to make this a yearly occurrence. Tickets are still available so you can still make it and say you were there from the beginning. If you were wondering what you will be tasting at the festival a list has just been released and here it is:

Harpoon

Brooklyn Brewery

Blue Moon

Leinenkugel's

Sam Adams

Sierra Nevada

Drifter

Bud Light Golden Wheat

Woodchuck Draft Cider

Magic Hat

Monk In The Trunk

Holy Mackerel

Titanic Brewing

Gordon Biersch

Flying Dog

Zoo Brew

Land Shark

Florida Beer Co.

Narragansett

Magner's Cider

Becks

Polar

Hofbrau Beer

Grolsh

Estrella Damm

Kilsen Beer

Delicias de Mundo

Presidente

Cusquena

Aguila

Famosa

Peroni

Cristal

Corona

Modelo

Mike's Hard Lemonade

Sparks

Food will also be available for purchase. Oh, yeah, and also the fest isn't actually in the zoo so you won't be sharing a stiff one with the giraffes. You can get a site map and schedule here. Tickets are still available to purchase here for only $25 or you can buy them at the door for $35.

Saturday, May 1st 5:00pm-11:00pm

Miami Metro Zoo

12400 SW 152 Street
Miami, FL 33177

One Year Anniversary Party Announcement

Friday, May 7th, South Florida Beer Blog will be celebrating its One Year Anniversary at Abraxas in South Beach. It will be a special celebration full of surprises, giveaways, and rare treats. The night will also kick-off the Cigar City Brewery weekend at Abraxas. There will be taps of Jai Alia IPA, Patio Tools Dry Irish Stout, and possibly a surprise third. We'll also have bottles of Big Sound Scotch Ale and....wait for it....HUNAHPU Imperial Stout – rated #8 BEER IN THE WORLD!!!!! How's that for a rare treat? With your first purchase of Hanahpu you will get the Cigar City snifter glass it is served in for FREE, just make sure you tell them you're there to celebrate with South Florida Beer Blog. More info coming up so keep your eyes peeled. I hope to celebrate this momentous occasion with all of you so make sure to mark your calendar.

Friday, May 7th @ 8:00pm-?
Abraxas
407 Meridian Ave
Miami Beach, FL
(305)534-9005

Himmarshee Bar & Grille Beer Dinner

If you are familiar with Himmarshee Bar & Grille in Ft. Lauderdale you know that they have been doing wine dinners for a while. This Monday, April 26th at 6:30pm, they will be holding their first beer dinner. With the help of Whole Foods, Himmarshee has put together a very impressive four course beer dinner for the very low price of only $29 with tax and tip included. I will be there so be sure to come by and say hi.

Menu:
First Course: Crisp Masa Encrusted Chimay Cheese with cranberry-orange marmalade
Beer: Holy Mackerel

Second Course: Maple-Chipotle Braised Duroc Pork Belly, Forever Baked Beans & Applekraut
Beer: Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA

Third Course: Surf N' Turf Gnocchi(braised shortrib, Maine Lobster, , oven dried tomato, pincholine olive)
Beer: Brooklyn Brewery Local 1

Dessert: Pineapple Upsidedown Cake with cream cheese ice cream
Beer: Dogfish Head Midas Touch

Call Himmarshee to make a reservation.

April 26th, 6:30pm
Himmarshee Bar & Grille
210 SW 2nd St.
Ft. Lauderdale, FL
(954)524-1818

Earth Day Beer Specials

So here it is. I'm letting you all in on one of the great hidden gems in Miami. If you have been looking for a place that has a great view right on the water, inexpensive drinks, and a laid back atmosphere this is the place for you. UM's Wet Lab Bar at the RSMAS Campus on Key Biscayne is just that place. Located right next to the Miami Seaqarium it is not the most conventional bar but it could well be one of your new favorites. It is located on a college campus, it is only open Wednesday- Friday from 5:00pm-12:00am, and the prices are the cheapest craft beers I've seen. Craft beers on draft will only $3.25 and even top shelf liquor drinks will only cost you $4.25. You can't beat it! And since it is Earth Day and the campus is for the Marine and Atmospheric Sciences what better place to celebrate it. For Earth Day they are having one of the best specials I've heard in a while of 2 of Southern Tier's 422 Pale Wheat Ale for only $4.22. The Southern Tier 422's packaging is made from 80% recycled materials and is totally recyclable. Head on over and enjoy the great scenery and great priced beer and take in the beautiful views that we have here in South Florida. Happy Earth Day.

Wet Lab
4600 Rickenbacker Causeway
Miami, FL 33149

Brooklyn Dark Matter and New Location for Burger & Beer Joint

Since I first posted my review of Burger & Beer Joint a few months back things have blown up for them. They are constantly one of the busiest restaurants/bars in Miami, they have been featured on the Miami edition of Man Vs. Food, been featured in tons of publications, and things aren't stopping for them either.

First off, they are one of the only locations in South Florida where you can pick up some of Brooklyn Breweries very rare Dark Matter. This is an American Brown Ale that is aged in Woodford Reserve barrels. The beer comes in at a 7.5% ABV but is still very drinkable. It pours a nice dark chocolate brown with not much of a head. The aroma gives me hints of caramel, vanilla, and some maple. The taste is similar with a bit of chocolate as well. For being aged in bourbon barrels I wasn't getting as much bourbon taste as I usually get from bourbon barrel aged beers. This is a good start for people not used to the style though. The mouthfeel is rather light for what I was expecting. Overall a great beer that is worth heading over to Burger & Beer Joint to try before this one time only brew is gone.

Second, Burger & Beer Joint is opening a new location in Brickell. They are opening in the former location of Blu's Pizza in Mark Brickell Village. The sports bar will be increased to about 2000 square feet with more outside seating for dinning. Look for it to open sometime this summer.

Burger & Beer Joint
1766 Bay Rd.
South Beach, FL
(305)627-EATS

Review: Sierra Nevada Rhymes Wit

I always love trying a new beer. It makes it even better when I get to try it with the person that was involved in brewing it. This past Friday at Abraxas I got to have one of those rare times I get to try the beer with the brewer. Diego, owner of Abraxas, was invited to Sierra Nevada's Beer Camp this past February to work with others that were invited to Beer Camp to brew what would become Rhymes Wit. Abraxas is one of the only bars in the country that you will be able to try this beer at. Rhymes Wit is a Belgian style Wit beer that is available on draft only. The beer has a nice tan hazy color to it with a small amount of puffy white head. Placing my nose into the cup I picked up the pleasant smell of citrus with a slight bit of pepper. The taste is is very similar to the aroma with the pepper moving a little infront of the citrus. The citrus is not quite as evident as you think it would be but is the perfect level for me. The nice light mouthfeel made this a very easy drinking beer. Rhymes Wit left me with a juicy after taste that made me want to come back for another sip. Overall, this was a great wit beer and for a first attempt brew an amazingly pleasant surprise. There is only a very limited amount of this beer available so make sure to head over to Abraxas sooner than later before it is gone. You won't be disappointed.

Top 50 Breweries for 2009

The Brewers Association announced yesterday the top 50 breweries based on beer sales volume. They have two lists, one for independent craft companies and one for all breweries. The highlighted breweries are the ones you can find in South Florida.

Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies

(Based on 2009 beer sales volume)
Rank Brewing Company City State
1 Boston Beer Co. Boston MA
2 Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. Chico CA
3 New Belgium Brewing Co. Fort Collins CO
4 Spoetzl Brewery Shiner TX (Shiner)
5 Pyramid Breweries Inc. Seattle WA
6 Deschutes Brewery Bend OR
7 Matt Brewing Co. Utica NY (Saranac)
8 Magic Hat Brewing Co. Burlington VT
9 Boulevard Brewing Co. Kansas City MO
10 Harpoon Brewery Boston MA
11 Alaskan Brewing Co. Juneau AK
12 Bell’s Brewery, Inc. Galesburg MI
13 Kona Brewing Co. Kailua-Kona HI
14 Full Sail Brewing Co. Hood River OR
15 Stone Brewing Co. Escondido CA
16 Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Milton DE
17 The Brooklyn Brewery Brooklyn NY
18 Abita Brewing Co. Abita Springs LA
19 Summit Brewing Co. Saint Paul MN
20 Anchor Brewing Co. San Francisco CA
21 Shipyard Brewery Portland ME
22 New Glarus Brewing Co. New Glarus WI
23 Great Lakes Brewing Co. Cleveland OH
24 Rogue Ales/Oregon Brewing Co. Newport OR
25 Long Trail Brewing Co. Bridgewater Corners VT
26 The Lagunitas Brewing Co. Petaluma CA
27 Gordon Biersch Brewing Co. San Jose CA
28 SweetWater Brewing Co. Atlanta GA
29 Firestone Walker Brewing Co. Paso Robles CA
30 Victory Brewing Co. Downingtown PA
31 Flying Dog Brewing Co. Frederick MD
32 BJ’s Restaurant & Brewery Huntington Beach CA
33 Odell Brewing Co. Fort Collins CO
34 Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurants Louisville CO
35 BridgePort Brewing Co. Portland OR
36 Lost Coast Brewery and Cafe Eureka CA
37 Big Sky Brewing Co. Missoula MT
38 Stevens Point Brewing Co. Stevens Point WI
39 Mac and Jack’s Brewery Redmond WA
40 Karl Strauss Brewing Co. San Diego CA
41 The Saint Louis Brewery, Inc. St. Louis MO
42 Blue Point Brewing Co. Patchogue NY
43 Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurants Chattanooga TN
44 Oskar Blues Brewery Longmont CO
45 North Coast Brewing Co. Fort Bragg CA
46 Breckenridge Brewery Denver CO
47 Utah Brewers Cooperative Salt Lake City UT
48 Saint Arnold Brewing Co. Houston TX
49 Boulder Beer Co. Boulder CO
50 Bear Republic Brewing Co. Cloverdale CA

Top 50 Overall Brewing Companies

(Based on 2009 beer sales volume)
Rank Brewing Company City State
1 Anheuser-Busch InBev St. Louis MO
2 MillerCoors Brewing Co. Chicago IL
3 Pabst Brewing Co. Woodridge IL
4 D. G. Yuengling and Son Inc. Pottsville PA
5 Boston Beer Co. Boston MA
6 Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. Chico CA
7 New Belgium Brewing Co. Fort Collins CO
8 Craft Brewers Alliance, Inc. Portland OR (Kona and Red Hook) 9 Spoetzl Brewery (part of Gambrinus) Shiner TX
10 High Falls Brewing Co. Rochester NY
11 Minhas Craft Brewery Monroe WI
12 Pyramid Breweries (part of IBU) Seattle WA
13 Deschutes Brewery Bend OR
14 F.X. Matt Brewing Co. Utica NY (Saranac)
15 Magic Hat Brewing Co. (part of IBU) Burlington VT
16 Boulevard Brewing Co. Kansas City MO
17 Harpoon Brewery Boston MA
18 Alaskan Brewing Co. Juneau AK
19 Bell’s Brewery, Inc. Galesburg MI
20 Goose Island Beer Co. Chicago IL
21 Kona Brewing Co. Kailua-Kona HI
22 Full Sail Brewing Co. Hood River OR
23 Stone Brewing Co. Escondido CA
24 Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Milton DE
25 Iron City Brewing Co. Pittsburgh PA
26 August Schell Brewing Co. New Ulm MN
27 The Brooklyn Brewery Brooklyn NY
28 Abita Brewing Co., L.L.C. Abita Springs LA
29 Summit Brewing Co. Saint Paul MN
30 Anchor Brewing Co. San Francisco CA
31 Shipyard Brewing Co. Portland ME
32 New Glarus Brewing Co. New Glarus WI
33 Great Lakes Brewing Co. Cleveland OH
34 Rogue Ales/Oregon Brewing Co. Newport OR
35 Long Trail Brewing Co. Burlington VT
36 The Lagunitas Brewing Co. Petaluma CA
37 Mendocino Brewing Co. Ukiah CA
38 Gordon Biersch Brewing Co. San Jose CA
39 SweetWater Brewing Co. Atlanta GA
40 Firestone Walker Brewing Co. Paso Robles CA
41 Victory Brewing Co. Downingtown PA
42 Flying Dog Brewing Co. Frederick MD
43 BJ’s Restaurant & Brewery Huntington Beach CA
44 Odell Brewing Co. Fort Collins CO
45 Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurants Louisville CO
46 Straub Brewery Saint Marys PA
47 BridgePort Brewing Co. (part of Gambrinus) Portland OR
48 Lost Coast Brewery & Cafe Eureka CA
49 Big Sky Brewing Co. Missoula MT
50 Stevens Point Brewery Co. Stevens Point WI

John Bull's Dogfish Head Dinner Postponed

The Dogfish Head Dinner scheduled for tonight at John Bull English Pub has been postponed till May 6th. They apologize for any inconveniences.

Abraxas Celebrates 3rd Anniversary with FREE BEER

That is correct. You did read the title correctly. Abraxas will be celebrating it's 3rd Anniversary this Friday night, April 16th, from 10:00pm-5:00am. The night will start out with Abraxas usual Friday night 2x1 happy hour from 5:00pm-10:00pm. When the clock strikes 10:00pm though the free beer starts flowing. The beer that Diego and the fine folks over at Abraxas will be serving isn't just any beer, but a very rare beer. They will be tapping a keg of their exclusive Sierra Nevada Rhymes Wit (Belgian style White Ale). Last February, Diego took part in the Sierra Nevada Beer Camp #20 and this beer is the result of their brewing efforts. This beer will only be available at the bars owned by the participants in the Beer Camp and at the Sierra Nevada Brewpub in Chico, CA. - that is a total of 10 bars in the entire country!

I can guarantee there will be a few other special beers being poured that night as well. This is an event that you don't want to miss.

Friday, April 16th
Abraxas
407 Meridian Avenue
Miami Beach, FL 33139
(305) 534-9005

4/14 Sam Adams and Dogfish Head Beer Dinners

It looks like restaurants in South Florida are finally coming around to pairing beers and food. The flavor profiles in beer are so vast and can be paired with so many very interesting foods that beer dinners have been some of the best meals I've ever had.

There are two great restaurants hosting two great breweries beers on Wednesday, April 14th. Novecento, in Coral Gables, will be hosting the beers of Sam Adam and John Bull English Pub, in West Palm Beach, will be hosting the beers of Dogfish Head(ed. John Bull Dogfish Head Dinner postponed til May 6th). Both menus look amazing and you couldn't go wrong with either. Here is more info on both.

Novecento Sam Adams Beer Dinner
Menu:
Course 1: Seafood Ceviche- Shrimp, calamari, octopus, and fish marinated in lime juice, red onion, Peruvian yellow peppers , and yuca chips.
Paired with Samuel Adams Summer Ale

Course 2: Pizza Con Arugula Y Prosciutto- Pizza with arugula, mozzarella, and prosciutto crudo
Paired with Samuel Adams Pale Ale

Course 3: Beef Tenderloin Uncle Sam Style- Diced beef tenderloin marinated in Sam Adams Boston Lager, Dijon mustard served with caramelized onions and stuffed baby Croquets
Paired with Samuel Adams Boston Lager

Course 4: Linguine Putanesca- Linguine in a classic spicy red sauce with shrimps, Kalamata olives, and capers
Paired with Samuel Adams Boston Ale

Course 5: Dessert- Brownie with Vanilla-Cream Stout infused ice cream and chocolate ganache topped with Cherry Wheat infused cherries
Paired with Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat

$40 per person. Call to reserve your seat today.

April 14th 7:00pm
Novecento
121 Alhambra Plaza
Coral Gables, FL 33134
(305) 444-7701


John Bull Dogfish Head Dinner
Menu:
Course 1: Reception- Grilled Salmon Salad with House Pesto and Asian Pork with Mango Chutney
Paired with 60 Minute IPA

Course 2: Salad- Mixed Baby Field Greens with Candied Walnuts, Carrots, Anjou Pears, Shaved Red Onions, and Stilton Cheese served with a Lemon Thyme Vinaigrette and Grilled Foccacia
Paired with 90 Minute IPA

Course 3: Appetizer- Herb encrusted Lamb Chops with a Fig and Port Wine Reduction
Paired with Raison D'Etre

Course 4: Entree- Grilled Veal T-Bone Steak with a Red Onion Risotto Finished Crisped Applewood Smoked Bacon and Wilted Greens
Paired with Palo Santo Marron

Course 5: Dessert- Individual Flourless Chocolate Cake with Fresh Berries and a Mocha Creme
Paired with Indian Brown Ale

$50 per person. Call for reservations.

April 14th, 7:30pm(postponed til May 6th)
John Bull Irish Pub
801 Village Blvd
West Palm Beach, FL 33409
(561)697-2855

U.S. National Beer Day Today

Today is U.S. National Beer Day. Today is the day that Prohibition was repealed on April 7, 1933. Here is more info from Wikipedia on today.

"The beginning of the end of Prohibition in the United States occurred as a result of the Cullen-Harrison Act and its signing into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on March 23, 1933. Sales of beer in the U.S would become legal on April 7, 1933, provided that the state in question had enacted its own law allowing such sales. The beer had to have an alcohol content less than 3.2% (4% ABV), compared to the 0.5% limit of the Volstead Act, because 3.2% was considered too low to produce intoxication. People lined up outside breweries and taverns in order to legally buy beer for the first time in over 13 years. April 7 has been called "National Beer Day" and April 6 "New Beer's Eve."


Make sure to have one today...just because you can.

This Week's Beer Events

TUESDAY

Cervezas, South Miami- Beer Tasting at Cervezas in South Miami from 7:00pm-9:00pm. $20 gives you the opportunity to try all of the beers listed below (plus a few suprise beers, maybe some limited Cigar City Beers, provided by the beer czar, Cesar)

Dogfish 60min

Dogfish 90min

Dogfish Burton Baton

Avery The Reverend

Avery Hog Heaven

Victory Storm King

Victory Golden Monkey

Flying Dog Horn Dog

Flying Dog Raging Bitch

Dales Pale Ale

Magic Hat #9

A great Selection of 10 big beer's celebrating American Craft brews like no other! The other 5 beer's are as follows.

Krikak - German Lager

Peak Organic

Palma Loca

PBR

Zipher

E-mail cervezasmiami@hotmail.com to pre-order a ticket for the event.

Cervezas
5833 Sunset Drive
South Miami, FL 33143-5219
(305) 397-8125

WEDNESDAY

Abraxas, South Beach- Join the Abraxas staff along with the resident beer expert, Chris Montelius, from Fresh Beer, for their next bi-weekly BJCP Beer Style Tasting at Abraxas from 8:00pm-12:00am. The $15 price includes 12 3oz samplings and all of the featured beers will be available on special for the entire night. This is a great way for people to try something new and... maybe find a new favorite. As usual, they will supply Tasting/Rating sheets and water for those that are a bit more serious about the tasting experience.

Beer lineup:

Hacker-Pchorr Gold (Germany) - Munich Helles

Einbecker Pils (Germany) - German Pilsner

Shiner Black Lager (TX) - Schwartzbier

Avery White Rascal (CO) - Belgian Wit/White Ale

The Bruery Saison Rue (CA) - Belgian Saison (w/ rye)

Caracole Amber (Belgium) - Belgian Amber Ale

Peak Organic Espresso Amber (VT) - American Amber (w/ espresso)

Bell's Two Hearted Ale (MI) - American IPA

Dogfish Head Aprihop (DE) - American IPA (w/ apricot)

Rogue John John Dead Guy Ale (OR) - Whiskey Barrel Aged Maibock

Flying Dog Horn Dog (MD) - American Barleywine

North Coast Old Rasputin (CA) - Russian Imperial Stout

Abraxas

407 Meridian Avenue

Miami Beach, FL 33139

(305) 534-9005

THURSDAY

Total Wine, Boyton Beach- From 4:00pm-6:00pm, Matt from Shipyard will be pouring some tasty samples of Shipyard and Sea Dog beers. Stop by, drink some beer, say hello.

Total Wine

850 North Congress Avenue

Boynton Beach, FL 33426

(561) 731-5411

Barracuda Beer Tasting Tonight

If you are lucky enough to have tomorrow off for Good Friday here is a great way to get your long weekend started tonight. Barracuda in Coconut Grove will be having their biweekly beer tasting hosted by Fresh Beer's Chris Montelius. $20 will get you an unlimited tasting of 40+ beers along with some chicken wings to snack on. This is a great way to try a bunch of different beers you haven't had a chance to try before. And if you have been to any of these beer tastings before you know you are always in for a big surprise with some special hard to find beers thrown in. The fun starts at 7pm-9pm.

Thursday, April 1 7:00pm-9:00pm
Barracuda

3035 Fuller St
Miami, FL 33133

(305) 448-1144