Tallahassee’s Brew Scene is Hopping

From humble suds to IPAs, Tallahassee’s craft-brewing scene is hopping. The Capital City is creating brews with heft such as Mango Wit, Red Cloud IPA and Heffy Liftin. And—its crafting ales with local personality such as Miccosukee Honey Orange Wheat, G-Street Blonde, Eightfive-0 Pale Ale and Chamber Goat, which is brewed with coffee from Lucky Goat, a local roastery.

Brewed in Tallahassee, many of these local libations are award-winners, and the concoctions keep coming.

Every year, Tallahassee’s Proof Brewing Co. and DEEP Brewing Co. continue to win medals for their creations at beer competitions all over the world. Tallahassee’s Growler Country, the state’s first dedicated growler filling station, earned the distinction of “Best Beer Bar in Florida” during CraftBeer.com’s annual Great American Beer Bars competition. The city’s newest brewery, Ology Brewing, has quickly made a name for itself and was the only Florida brewery to make Beer Advocate Magazine’s list of the” Top 50 Best New Breweries in the Country.”

By all accounts, Florida’s Capital City is fast becoming a star on the craft-breweries map. The city’s local breweries, craft-beer taprooms and opportunities to indulge keep expanding, born from home-grown interest in brewing and the good times it fosters.

The back stories of Tallahassee’s craft breweries are as compelling as their beers. Hop onto Tallahassee’s ale trail and find out for yourself.

The breweries include:

DEEP Brewing – Former diver Ryan S. LePete pours small-batch ales and lagers that pay homage to historic European and American styles while continuing to explore unchartered waters. His year-round flagships include Spear Pressure Golden Ale (in a British style), Reef Dweller IPA (with a nod to the West Coast), and Sous La Mer Saison (Belgian-inspired farmhouse ale). Seasonal and limited releases include Narcosis Imperial Stout, Scapa Flow Scotch Ale, and Morning Boat Coffee Stout, poured with locally roasted Lucky Goat Coffee.

Lake Tribe Brewing – Father and sons Connor, Jesse and Jason Ross named the company after their YMCA Indian Guides tribe name. Flagship brews include Red Cloud IPA (bold and 7.4% ABV), and Beckster’s Wh’ell Behaved Wheat which “pairs perfectly with lighter foods” such as sushi, fruits and cheese. A recent addition is “Abroad,” a heavy-hitting wheat wine inspired by and brewed with Spanish vino tinto (red wine).

Ology Brewing – Ology Brewing Company is an experimental brewery focusing on reviving old-world recipes and creating small-batch ales. Ology recently launched their Sour Beer Program, focused on bringing mixed culture, barrel-aged American sours to Tallahassee and putting the city at the forefront of the country’s sour beer movement. Stop in and taste brews such as Sensory Overload IPA and the dark and roasty Quantum Stimuli.

PROOF Brewing Co. – Proof drives the local craft-brew train. Its star brews include a pale ale named for the region’s area code, Eightfive-0 and the crowd-pleasing citrus infused Mango Wit – both distributed throughout the state and available in 6-packs. Their Creatures in the Dark Stout (rated the #1 stout in a blind taste test by Paste Magazine), utilizes raw cocoa nibs and whole vanilla beans, creating a dense and chocolaty flavor profile. Proof has earned numerous medals from the Best Florida Beer Competition alone, as well as other distinctions at the U.S. Open Beer Championship and the world renowned Hunaphu’s Day. Run by Byron and Angela Burroughs, the brewery recently expanded and is now at home inside a 34,000 square-foot former Coca-Cola Bottling Company building on South Monroe Street. The new space has allowed for greater production and features an expanded tasting room, retail store, private event space, kitchen, and beer garden.

Popular craft-beer watering holes that feature local brews include:

• Growler Country, Florida’s first dedicated growler filling station and rated the “Best Beer Bar in Florida.”
• The Brass Tap, in Midtown and on Gaines Street
• Fermentation Lounge (brewing for itself under the name Fool’s Fire)
• Madison Social
• 7^th Hill Taproom
• Township

Tallahassee’s brew-tastic events for craft-beer fans include Brewfest, Proof Florida Tap Invitational, various Oktoberfest events, and Beer Mile, a 1-mile summertime run/walk through Tallahassee’s Beer District with tastings at four sites.

Stay up-to-date on Tallahassee’s brew news and events by following Tallahassee Beer Society on social media. You can find the TLH Beer Society on Twitter and Instagram at @TLHBeerSociety, or on Facebook at Facebook.com/TLHBeerSociety.