Tampa Greater Metro
Cigar City Brewing
After flying in to Tampa, the first stop of my beer-cation was at Cigar City. They had a decent sized taproom with 25 beers on tap, of which 3 were guest beers. Additionally, for the non-beer lovers, there were 4 types of wine to choose from. Inside the taproom were a couple of coolers - one that had bombers for club members only and the other with a nice selection of vintage bomber for on-site consumption only. In a second area next to the taproom, you could grab a nice variety of swag, get growler fills and choose from a wall of coolers (pictured at right) for some beer to bring home, like I did. It was a great place to begin what turned out to be a long and great day of beer enjoyment! Location: 3924 West Spruce Street, Tampa Updated Nov '18
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7venth Sun Brewery
Next stop was 7venth Sun. Unexpectedly, this turned out to be one of my favorite breweries on this trip. I was here in the mid-afternoon so there was only a handful of people enjoying beer. This gave me a lot of time to chat beer with the bartender and learn about their history. They also have a taproom in Dunedin, which is the original location. This location opened late in 2017 and sports a 15-barrel brewing system with a emphasis on barrel-aged beers. Many of the barrels are located on one side of the taproom along with a few small foeders. It was hard to pick a favorite here, but I especially enjoyed their berliner weisses and whiskey barrel-aged ales. The taproom is large and simple with picnic table seating. There is a long bar that runs most of the width of the taproom. I highly recommend sampling their beer in a uniquely spril-shaped holder. There were 28 beers on top as well as a selection of bottles and cans in their cooler. The pours are decent sized which give you a good feel for the flavor and quality of their beer versus sampling in a 4-ounce mouth splash. As mentioned, I had a great chat with the beer-tender who was extremely knowledgeable about beer in general, but also about beer in Florida, especially the Tampa-St. Pete area. I hope I can get back here soon. Location: 6809 North Nebraska Avenue, Tampa Updated Nov '18
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Hidden Springs Ale Works
Downtown Tampa brewery serving up to 20 uniquely named brews. I mention the unique names because so often I run into the same beer name over and over again at different breweries. I like the creativity and uniqueness of putting some thought behind the names. There was a nice variety of styles available - definitely something for everyone. Beer flavor and quality was above average. The taproom had a large bar and beer hall style tables. No food served, but you can bring your own from nearby local restaurants. Location: 1631 North Franklin Street, Tampa Updated Nov '18
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Tampa Beer Works
Small strip mall brewery with a 5-barrel brewing system serving up to 15 taps of beer. There were a lot of IPAs on the menu but also stouts and a Florida Weiss. The beers were all very enjoyable and above average flavor and quality. Interestingly, their first attempt at opening a brewery quickly failed. But not giving up, rebranded and hired a new head brewer. I'm glad they did because it was worth the visit. Location: 333 North Falkenburg Road, #407, Tampa Updated Nov '18
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