Brewfest Tallahassee

What a shock when I pulled up to my desk to write this entry and realized its been a year since I last blogged about a beer experience. My slacking is not because I've stopped enjoying the finer beers in life, but more about inspiration and life's other priorities.

A big example would be my recent move to Tallahassee with my wife after she accepted a job at Florida State University. So for the past month I've been wondering what is the beer scene like in Tallahassee. I wasn't crazy to think that this small southern city could compare to the beer mecca that Philadelphia has become, but this is an opportunity to check out some of the southern breweries that don't make it up north. When I started a beer and bar search I came across the Brewfest Tallahassee. The Tallahassee Sunrise Rotary organizes the fest as a fundraiser and I believe this is their 4th year doing it. The range of breweries represented seemed pretty good. Although the people at the stands were beer reps and volunteers, none of that meet the brewery opportunities like in Philadelphia. Not like I would let that stop me from checking out the brewfest (and embarrassing enough, its my first). Since it was my first I have nothing to compare it to, so I just went with the flow and had a great time meeting and drinking with people from across the Big Bend area. We all were able to enjoy selections from:

Abita Brewing Company*, Anheuser-Bush/InBev, Bell's, Bending Imports (Distributor), Blue Point Brewing Company, Boulder Beer, Brooklyn Brewery, Cigar City Brewing*, Erie Brewing, Gordon Biersch Brewing, Harpoon Brewery, Kona Brewing, Lazy Magnolia Brewery*, Leinenkugel Brewing, Magic Hat, Magners Irish Cider, Merchant de Vin (importer), Michelob, Narragansett Beer, Orange Blossom*, Oskar Blues Brewery, Red Brick Brewery*, Red Hook Brewery, Republic National (Distributor), Rogue Brewing, Sam Adams Brewery, Sea Dog Brewing Company, Shipyard Brewing Company, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, Southern Tier Brewing, Stone Brewing, Summit Brewing, Swamp Head Brewing*, Sweetwater Brewing*, Terrapin Beer*, Victory Brewing, Widmer Brothers Brewing, and WoodChuck Ciders.
(*denotes local brewery)

My beer sampling was limited because Tallahassee is a suburban type city; super limited public transit, roads not safe for biking and not pedestrian friendly. So I was responsible for driving me and my wife home safely from brewfest.

Our sampling was a mixed bag, but a few beers did stand out. And now for the beer list:

Blue Point Toasted Lager
Blue Point Blueberry Ale
Brooklyn Champagne Ale (thumbs up)
Gordon Biersch Uberbeir Cask
Harpoon UFO Hefeweizen
Kona Fire Rock Pale Ale (thumbs up)
Kona Pipline Porter (thumbs up)
Orange Blossom Pilsner
Orange Blossom- Toasted Coconut Porter
Radeberger Pilsner
Red Hook Eisbock 28
Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout (thumbs up)
Samuel Smith Nut Brown Ale
Swamp Head Big Nose IPA
Swamp Head Cottonmouth Belgian Wheat
Sweetwater Georgia Brown
Terrapin Rye Pale Ale
Terrapin Hopsecutioner
we also tried beer from Kona or Red Hook that may have been an Amber (thumbs up)

What an initiation into the Tallahassee beer world. I look forward to sharing my experiences and thoughts on my beer explorations in the South.