making HEADlines:
JAX BEER WEEK 2017: NOVEMBER 4-11
Jax Beer Week kicks off November 4 at Jacksonville PorchFest. The Springfield music fest will also offer a beer garden, highlighting beer from local Jacksonville breweries. Over 20 different beers in a variety of styles will be available. Beer trucks will pour beer in Klutho Park, and the beer can be enjoyed while walking around the neighborhood listening to the music on front porches.
The main beer list at PorchFest includes local favorites from Bold City Brewery, Engine 15 Brewing, Green Room Brewing, Aardwolf Brewing, Veterans United Craft Brewery, Intuition Ale Works, Pinglehead Brewing, Zeta Brewing, Wicked Barley Brewing and Atlantic Beach Brewing. Several beers by popular Florida breweries Cigar City Brewing and Funky Buddha Brewery will also be served. Additional beverage options include ciders from Engine 15 and Cigar City, and a variety of wines. Beer will be available from noon-9pm. Beer will be sold by ticket per individual cup, at $5 each.
Collaboration Beer: Local Jacksonville area breweries, including Hyperion Brewing, Veterans United Craft Brewery, Atlantic Beach Brewing and Zeta Brewing, recently brewed a Jax Beer Week collaboration beer, the SouRed Society, at Intuition Ale Works. According to Intuition Head Brewer Andrew Cattell, the beer is a dry-hopped sour red ale, similar to last year's collaboration beer. The beer is expected to be available at PorchFest, and look for it around Jax.
In addition, Jacksonville brewery-in-planning Legacy Ale Works will offer complimentary samples (while supplies last) of two of its beers, a spiced red ale and a dunkelweizen, according to brewery co-owner Liz Jacobs. For a Q&A interview with Matt and Liz Jacobs before their first local tasting earlier this summer, click here.
PorchFest Sponsors and donor Patrons will also enjoy a designated VIP seating area near the main stage. Between 5-6pm, the VIP tent will offer a complimentary VIP Happy Hour featuring hors d'oeuvres and beer tastings from local breweries-in-planning Legacy Ale Works and Strings Sports Brewery, along with Hyperion Brewing and Main & Six Brewing.
PorchFest hosted a pre-party at Sweet Pete's Candy in Downtown Jax on Thursday evening, November 2, which featured beer samplings by Legacy Ale Works, Strings Sports Brewery, and Hyperion Brewing.
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With Matt and Liz from Legacy Ale Works:
Dunkelweizen and Spiced Red Ale in hands.
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With Colby and Trevor from Strings Sports Brewery.
That could be a go-to Blonde Ale right there!
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| Sweet Stout with Troy of Hyperion Brewing. Sweet! |
Also happening on Saturday, November 4: new brewery Main & Six Brewing Company officially opens its doors to the public with a Grand Opening celebration, beginning at noon. Check out the new brewery before you even get there, with a behind-the-scenes pre-opening early look, along with an interview of co-owner Dennis Espinosa. The brewery held a soft opening on Friday night, November 3, to get ready for the huge opening day ahead:
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Irmafest: Oktoberfest beer named after, well, you know.
A malty marzen with a nutty character.
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Finished tap room: see the before photos.
Tables are all refinished now.
Note the hexagon floor -- see the pre-story!
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We need a beer!
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Big Jim California Common:
named after the local steam whistle.
Malty and hoppy at the same time.
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Look for tappings, takeovers, and tastings all over Jacksonville and Jax Beach throughout the week. A calendar of events can be found on the "Tap This" page right here on brewnymph.com.
On Sunday, November 5, join the crew from the up-and-coming Strings Sports Brewery at Hyperion Brewing, where both breweries will introduce their collaboration beer, a Sweet Potato Brown Ale. Also on Sunday, Alewife hosts its annual Jax Beer Week Bottle Share.
And, going retro for a minute: there were two new beer releases on Friday, November 3: Atlantic Beach Brewing's first bottle release of its new Cafecito de Cuba; and Southern Swells Brewing's first can releases: Truth Juice DIPA, and In a Galaxy Really Really Close By IPA - check those out on the new video "Let's Get a Beer, Florida!"
That's just for starters, and there are even more events going on all week. Your weekly calendar just filled up!
Happy Jax Beer Week! See you around Jax this week!
Cheers,
Linda Johnson,
Certified Cicerone®
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April 11, 2018: It's been just about a year, and two Jacksonville-area breweries have gone from planning to opening to operating and getting over that first-year hurdle. As they celebrate their one-year anniversaries in May and head into Year Two, catch up with the "former" newbies, Atlantic Beach Brewing Company ("ABBC") and Hyperion Brewing Company ("HBC") on what that first year's been like for each of them.
Over in the Springfield neighborhood of Jax, Hyperion Brewing introduced the community to its "Bold, Rebellious Beer" concept, with constantly-rotating taps. Through the course of the year, owner Alex McKeown and the brewery staff have engaged the local community in a number of hosted events, along with tapping over 200 new beer recipes. Listening to its customers, Hyperion will bring several of the most popular beers on board on a regular basis in Year Two. 
