Craft Brewery reviews – Supping Suds with Philosofiers

“‘Twas the Night Before Xmas” or “A Craftbeer Christmas in Florida”

It’s been a while since I chimed in via blog, so I felt it was time to sit down and play a little catch-up with anyone who is still interested. No doubt like me you have been hustling and bustling about getting ready for the holiday season. Today has actually been one of our coldest this year and while we don’t have any snow you would certainly think by the way that everyone is dressed that we were in the Arctic. Of course, when you’re used to 70s and 80s the 20s does feel like the Arctic.

A couple weeks ago, while everyone else was starting their Christmas shopping and going to holiday parties, I was on the road headed to the southernmost part of the continental US, Key West. Another organization down there had reached out for help with some of their procurement and inventory procedures and, through a Municipal group my organization is a part, of had reached out to me and a couple other folks to assist with these concerns. Being the Stout-hearted (see what I did there) fellow I am how could I resist, especially since it included a free trip to the Keys. When any organization wants an outside look at their processes a Peer Review can cure what Ales you (did it again). As this was my first participation in the Peer Review process, on either side, I was a little unsure of what to expect but knew that helping out a sister organization would help our standing within the industry and I could also bring back information that would help us as well. While there are standard practices in the industry everyone has a way of doing things a bit differently. Seeing other practices and having thorough discussions with others can bring ideas you might not have considered.

I arrived in Key West a bit after 5 PM on a Monday, got checked in then met other members of the review team in the lobby. We discussed the process and the issues at the organization we were visiting then went to a local restaurant, Chico’s Cantina, on Stock Key, where we met members of the host organization for dinner.

Chico’s is a local Cuban place that is really known for their seafood tacos and other seafood dishes. I was tempted by the Yellow Tail Snapper dish they had but then I saw the Yucatecan Style Grilled Pork Chops described I had to have. They are 2 center cut pork chops, marinated in Achiote and seasonings, then grilled and topped with onions. They had the normal Mexican beers on tap but had a small section that said nothing but “Craft Beer”. When I asked, all they had for Craft was Jai Alai from Cigar City Brewing in Tampa, which I have already had many times, so I had the Dos Equis Amber instead as that goes well with spicy food. Everyone at dinner introduced themselves and we all participated in small talk throughout dinner and after. When we were finished, we headed back to the hotel and some of us headed to the bar to have a couple more libations and get to know each other some more. The discussions were anything but business, but I got a sense of who the other team members were and what to expect from the process.

The next morning saw the team meeting in the lobby for coffee and discussing how we wanted to approach the review process. Once we felt comfortable with our game plan, we headed over to the host organization and started our workday. We started by touring their new warehouse and looking over their materials layout. Then we moved into a conference room and started reviewing their procedures. By mid-morning we start interviewing the staff, first warehouse then procurement personnel. And while I can’t go into details here, I can say that I was very impressed with the amount of dedication I saw in these employees. To a person, everyone we talked to, while they might have had different ideas of how to approach an issue, all seemed dedicated to doing their jobs to the best of their ability. They were a real credit to their organization and would be to any that they belonged to.

For lunch we took a short walk down the street to a local landmark called Hogfish Bar & Grill, where we each had different dishes and were all pleased with the results. Supposedly, as the locals tell it the Bay of Pigs invasion was launched from that location.

At the end of the day, we returned to the hotel, where I checked my business emails and sent replies, the. Met downstairs at the bar so we could take the bus to downtown Key West and Duval Street where we could explore the night life. We ended up doing a little walking then ended up at Sloppy Joe’s a world renown Bar/Restaurant where we ate dinner.

I ordered a Sloppy Joes Pale Ale as I was sure it would go well with their world-famous Sloppy Joes Sandwich. And, of course, I was right. My team members had Casidillas and one had wine and the other a diet drink. All of enjoyed the meals. And I loved the atmosphere. It’s been a while since I hung out at a joint that had a house band that played good music and I had to yell at my table partners so they could hear me. The atmosphere of the place is awesome, festooned with flags from all over the world and various eclectic decorations including a look alike section with a multitude of folks who look like Papa Hemingway.

After dinner we walked around downtown some more to see what we could see. Now that I am an older fella I am much more interested in the history of places and would like to go back there again during the day and take some of the tours not available at night. But I am also still young enough to enjoy some of the evening activities available. After walking around, we went back to hotel and had another round of drinks. Then I retired to bed.

The last day we again went back to the organization and finished up our interviews with staff members, this time management. Again, folks who wanted to do good work but needed direction. In the afternoon we took our findings to the review committee and filled them in on what we found. The discussion involved a lot of back and forth and to be honest I am a terrible note taker, so I was really taxing my memory. I actually found this to be both draining and rewarding at the same time. At the end of it though I believe we did a good job for them, and I am hoping the results will give them good direction.

After we were done that afternoon, we were free to do what we wanted. Since i wasn’t leaving until the morning I was definitely taking the hotel bus back into town again. I had my eye on a specific distillery and a brewery to visit.

I arrived back downtown at 5:20 PM and Papas Pillar Distillery closes at 5:30. I hot footed it across the street from the bus stop and was able to get in before they closed for the day. Even though it was the end of their day they were gracious enough to offer me a couple of samples and then make sure that I received the Veteran discount they have for customers. Great service from these folks.

From the distillery I walked a few blocks down and turned left a couple more to get to the First Flight Island Restaurant & Brewery. I found a seat at the bar and ordered a flight of their three Flagship beers and two seasonals. And a dish of their mac and cheese.

Of the beers I liked the Maverick IPA and the Old Town Scottish Ale the best. And the mac n cheese was excellent. I really liked the atmosphere of the place and its connection to the beginning days of Pan Am Airlines.

I had enough walking and decided to head back to the bus stop and then on to the hotel. Once there I met some other folks from the Peer Review Process and we had one last libation together and talked some shop before heading to our rooms.

In the morning I packed up and headed back up US 1 toward the mainland. My plan was to stop at my younger sisters home in Coral Springs on the way home and stay there for a couple days. I stop at another brewery on the way back up and had an early lunch.

Florida Keys Brewing in Islamorada is definitely a Florida Beer company. If the decor and location didn’t clue you in, then the beers certainly would. After enjoying the flight with my tacos from a local vendor. I grabbed some six packs to-go to share with friends and family later. I thought all of their beers were pretty solid in style and flavor and were tasty. I would definitely stop there again if the opportunity comes up.

I continued from there up to Coral Springs and arrived a couple hours later. My brother-in-law was working from home. So we chatted a bit between his phone calls and waited for my niece to get home from school and my sister to get off from work. It was good seeing them as we hadn’t been able to meet in person since before COVID struck, around three years ago.

That evening they took me to see my first in person hockey game at Pantherland and see the Penguins play. My brother-in-law is a Pens fan and had the Crosby shirt to prove it. The only drawback to the night was the fact that Coors was the official sponsor of the arena The silver bullet could be had everywhere. So, I had one and regretted it instantly, as I couldn’t taste anything but water when I sipped. I tried having a Blue Moon, but they didn’t have any at that location. I ended up going downstairs to get a real beer and stopped at the Funky Buddha stand got the Gloves Off IPA which was tasty. And at the end of the first period, I found a Blue Moon at another vendor but was kind of disappointed as it couldn’t stand up to the Buddha.

The next day was Smoking day. My Bro-in law had started the smoker the night before, so we hung around and worked the smoker most of the day, smoking a pork roast. While hanging around I sampled some more beers I brought up from Florida Keys brewing. Great little examples of good beer to wash away the painful memories of the Coors I had.

The next day took their new dog, a 9-month-old Black Lab mix to the dog park to wear her out. In truth I think she wore me out a bit. Then we watched Croatia beat Morocco in the World Cup for 3rd Place.

Sister Iris, Stella the Black Lab mix, and Madison my niece.

Then we cooked some of the leftover pork on top of tortilla chips with other toppings and it was delicious. And before we came back and did that we stopped and got some groceries and I procured some holiday beers to consume with our food.

If you have never had these, you have to get them. They are awesome beers any time of year but taste better to me at the holidays.

The next morning my brother-in-law drove about an hour to pick up some Empanadas from an Argentinian bakery. And I have to admit they were probably the best Empanadas I have ever had. These had a very light and flaky crust with a great texture. They went great for brunch and were appropriate as we were watching Argentina play France in the final. Argentina was up 2 – 1 around Noon when I had to leave to come home. I found out later the final score and that I really missed the action.

I got home around 5:30 which was too late to pick up Tucker from the boarding place. So, I had to pick him up the next day. Some of you reading this may have wondered about him since I mention him so often throughout my various posts. I really couldn’t take him with me as he would have been too much with the new pup at my sister’s house. Instead, I boarded him with a company called Pet Paradise. Located in Newberry, they offer everything I needed to feel he was being taken care of. Worth the money.

Which brings me up to today. I finished Christmas shopping this morning so after lunch I went to one of our locals to imbibe and work on this blog a bit. Blackadder has their Making Spirits bright event which included discounts and, more importantly, all you can drink Gluhwein (spiced mulled wine for those who don’t know).

I started off with a mug of Gluhwein, which I believe Sissy makes herself, and a glass of Aventinus Weizendoppelbock, which is a great doppelbock. And the Gluhwein kind of enhanced the flavor. Then I went with one of Chris’ new brews, Raiders of the Lost Oak, which is an Imperial Coffee Stout. Really great flavor, and again, the Gluhwein enhanced it.

When I finished with them, I picked up some bottles of the Raisers to share with family on Christmas Day, then went home and cooked some homemade lasagna for dinner and served it with a salad and a Belgian Quad – Practise What You Preach, from Bierbrouwerji De Koningshoeven.

That about covers the last two weeks. Merry Christmas to all… and to all a great beer choice.

Papabear

Daft Cow – New Craft Beer Gem in Alachua County

Those of you who live near or visit Gainesville or Alachua County will be glad to hear of a new brewery that just opened. The name alone will draw you in as it makes you wonder what kind of place this could be.

Daft Cow Brewery is having their Grand Opening this weekend (July 1 -2) and as someone who made a trip there yesterday after work, I have to say it’s a welcome addition to the local craft beer community.

If you need to know this brewery would currently be classified as a Micro-brewery. It is definitely not set-up for bottling or canning at this time and has a small footprint. But the beers they have come up with are of good solid quality. I look forward to seeing what they produce in the future.

But it’s location in San Felasco Tech City certainly gives it a good base to operate in and grow with as well. I believe just the populace of the City of Alachua on their own could keep it busy enough to thrive but being only a few minutes from the northern parts of Gainesville will allow craft beer hounds (such as myself) to frequently make an appearance.

Besides the unique logo and the very sleek design inside there is also charm in little touches to the décor. And I really like the look of their flight carriers (but that could just be the carpenter in me).

Tap Menu

But the most important aspect of any brewery is the product. Does it taste good and make you want to come back?

The answer to that question concerning Daft Cow is an overwhelming “Yes!!’

I can elucidate that with just the examples I had last evening.

Ed’s Ale – a Cream Ale, has the malty feel of a cream ale but a little more hoppy taste giving it a more drinkable and satisfying flavor that most cream ales.

Bull Ring – a Brown Ale, has a nice roasted malt flavor without the over-nuttiness that some brewers try to force into a brown ale and a clean finish. A good solid example of a brown ale.

Liquid Therapy – a Hazy IPA. A lot of Hazy IPAs out there are focusing so much on making them hazy and hoppy that they overdo one of both aspects. This is one is lighter on the hoppy side than most Hazy IPAs and has a little bit more citrus flavor but without feeling like your swallowing back orange pulp in your beer.

Below is a quick video for the business from their Facebook page for a quick preview. The location they picked was carefully researched and thought out and has been a process over the last 18 months (or so I am told – I didn’t actually get a chance to talk to the owners). But they did well as the San Felasco Tech City site is constantly growing and bringing in new business. And it offers the brewery an opportunity for expansion down the road if they want to do that.

https://fb.watch/e02XYpSKIM/

There is no food kitchen at the brewery but there was a food truck last night and I expect that with the turnout they will continue to have you will find a food truck most nights. You may even find a restaurant or something nearby in the future as there is still plenty of room in the expanding site for new businesses including a food business.

I highly recommend stopping by and checking this place out. Even if you live on the southside side of Gainesville it is worth the trip.

Papabear

Gainesville Craft Beer Week 2019 – Local Craft Beer Sites to Visit While You’re Here

For all of you out-of-towners who may not have been to Gainesville before, the following is a listing of Gainesville locations for Craft Beer. I will break it down by breweries, craft beer businesses with food, and craft beer bars. FYI – The order that I am listing them in is not indicative of any preference. Besides as with all things craft… your taste vary.

Breweries

If you’ve never been to Gainesville before then you’re in for a treat. While we may not have a lot of breweries, the ones we do have been bringing home medals from state and national events for a few years. So while the quantity of breweries may be low the quality is way above the normal.

Swamp Head Brewing – This is the Big Daddy in this town. They were the first production brewery in Gainesville and have brought home both national and state medals for their ales. Located of off south 34th Street this place is the largest brewer in Gainesville. They started as as the only large scale brewer which was an innovation in Gainesville. Then they kinda of tapered off on the innovation until the last year or so. Now they are putting out really good experimental styles. As well as their flagship ales.

First Magnitude Brewing – Two local couples started this brewery with the idea that the springs in north central Florida were of the First Magnitude in quality water. They carried that idea of quality into their recipes for beer. They have also been bringing home medals at both the state and national levels for a few years. Where Swamp Head started out as hop heavy and varied on that, First Mag came at it from the style of the beer they were making and focused on making it the best of that style that they could.

Blackadder Brewing – Unlike the first two listed, Blackadder is not a production brewery, they don’t do canning and only bottle limited releases. Their primary business is as a microbrewery/pub. But they do that very well. The pub has been modeled after some olde style English pubs, certainly an influence from Chris and Cissy’s adventures to beer breweries and pubs in Europe. They brew they own ales, usually having 8 on tap and many of them in a Belgian or German beer style, and also feature over twenty other taps of guest beers which are always from a very good quality brewer.

Cypress & Grove – The newest homegrown brewery in Gainesville has actually moved into an old abandoned ice house where large blocks of ice were shipped to back before refrigeration came into being. They started out slow with a half dozen flagship brews, of which I thought their Porter stood out. They have since had some very good examples added to their line-up.

All of these are great examples of homegrown craft beer. Warning: none of them have kitchens for food preparation but there is almost always a food truck or two on sight.

Big Top Brewing – This company started in Sarasota and have now expanded to Pensacola and right here in downtown Gainesville. When they first opened they were limited to the beers brewed at their Sarasota location and shipped to them but they have recently gotten all the papers approved for brewing to commence in Gainesville. So some of the beers at the local location will only be available there. This brewery also serves food. And their are unique spin on some old bar food classics are worth sampling.

Non-Brewery Craft Beer Bars

I will break this out by those who do and do not serve food. And I will also only include those that I have been to as I can’t honestly recommend a place I haven’t visited on my own. And while there a quite a few restaurants in Gainesville that have some of our local breweries on at least one or two taps, I will focus more on those that have multiple taps of CRAFT beer. So for all of you Bud Light/Miller Light/Coors Light drinkers… You’re on your own.

Serving Food

The Top – It isn’t the name that puts them at the top of the list (pun intended) that is purely coincidental. They are one of the oldest existing businesses in Gainesville that have a really great selection of Craft Beer and they have some of the best food menu items available. Not to mention the uniquely Floridian décor and the great service this place is one I always enjoy visiting.

Public & General – A little hidden gem in the northeast part of Gainesville, and probably the closest to the Hoggetown Beerfest location, is a little pub called Public & General. I like to frequent this place at least once a week for lunch but I also occasionally make an early evening visit there. While the among of taps is not as vast as some others the ones they have on tap contain really good beers. And they have a great bottle selection to choose from as wellas some great wines. The menu is limited but the selections on it are great and flavorful.

Crafty Bastards – This establishment is only a few years old but features a great selection of craft beers both on tap and in bottles. Their food selection is pretty good and you will find some original recipes from the area. They rotate the tap selections frequently and I can honestly say I haven’t had a food dish there yet I haven’t liked though I haven’t had them all.

Curia on the Drag – This little Curious collection of unique bric-a-brac, coffee shop, diner, and craft beer is something that needs to be seen. Especially if you like kitschy décor and flavors. I haven’t been there in a while but I keep hearing goods things and think I need to go back soon.

World of Beer Gainesville – They have a wide selection of craft beers though I do see some influences from the ABInBev distributor. The last time I went it didn’t seem like the tap rotation was that frequent. But it has been a while since I have been there. The food selection is fairly good and it’s the only place in town (that I know of) where I can get Schnitzel. It isn’t the greatest Schnitzel I have ever had but it will do until I can perfect my own recipe or find someone better.

The next three are local Pizza places I have included because not only do they carry craft beers on their taps they also have great food menus.

Satchel’s Pizza – A fire wiped Satchel’s out for a brief period a couple years ago, but they have come back better than ever. They served fresh made pizzas with Satchel’s own tomato sauce which I love because it has just a slight hint of spice in it. I also am a big fan of their house salad. If you get the chance try both. I can also recommend the Calzone and they have a great wine selection as well. Oops!!… I almost forgot to mention the back part of Satchel’s – Lightning Salvage where you can find many paraphernalia that will remind you of your childhood. And they have local talent playing on the back bandstand. Satchel’s is the only place I have ever been where the dessert menu is brought out to you on a ViewMaster 3D viewer for you to choose from. If you have to ask what a ViewMaster is then you can move along now. Great section of craft beer featuring Florida beers, but be forewarned that the draft beer selection inside the restaurant and in the Lightning Salvage area are sometimes different.

Big Lou’s NY Style Pizzeria – The name says it all, NY style pizza with a classic marinara sauce and your choice of toppings. They also have other Italian dishes, excellent salads and garlic rolls. Great wings and sandwiches and a centrally located venue in downtown. One of my favorite places if I am working downtown at lunch time. And at night they carry a good selection of beer both on tap and in bottles.

V Pizza – Another option for downtown they have stone fired pizza as well as a good salad selection and great wings, but they also have a lot of other selections on the menu which I haven’t tried yet. Nice crispy crust and a good selectin for toppings for both their pizzas and calzones.

Now I will includes some other really good restaurants that also serve craft beer.

Dragonfly Sushi – So you should guess that this is a Sushi place and they have some really great food. They also have a decent craft beer selection but more importantly they have a wide variety of Sakes, which in my mind is a craft product that deserves much more attention. This place definitely deserves a visit if your in a Sushi frame of mind.

Ker’s Winghouse – Located on Archer Rd, this is what some would consider a Hooters clone, though I think the food is better. This location currently runs 15 beer taps and about 8 are holding craft beer, and four of those are local.The craft beer selections are actually pretty good. If you’re looking good wings and sandwiches, a decent beer list and a wait staff dressed to please then this is your place.

Hogan’s Great Sandwiches – If your in the mood for a great sub, then you have to stop at Hogan’s on NW 13th Street. Great deli meats and cheeses and of the best add ons loaded into great bread. This place has the best subs in town, in my opinion and they have a little bar at the back called the Fallout Shelter (the original name of the business was “Hogan’s Heros” which of course was a play on the 60s TV show about WW2 POW commandos – thus the name of the bar) that serves along with some Macro brews and good selection of craft beers.

Miller’s Ale House – I list this one reluctantly because it is a popular spot. But my reluctance is due to the fact that several of their beers they have identified as “Craft” may have started out that way but now they have been bought out by ABInBev. They do have some independents who have bigger brewing power, like Sierra Nevada and Sam Adams, but in my opinion it’s not a craft beer restaurant. However, depending on the dish the food can be pretty good. Your mileage may vary.

Now I will give you a short list of bars that specialize in Craft Beer but do not serve food. However, they are okay with your bringing your own food in if you desire. But then you could just go there for a good drink.

Gainesville House of Beer – If you have been reading this blog at all then you know that I frequent this location a lot. They keep a good rotating tap going and the downtown location for me is really convenient. The staff are very knowledgeable and if you visit frequently they learn what your likes and dislikes are over time. They also have their own line of craft beers brewed at their original location in Dunedin, which is then shipped to Gainesville. They usually have a pretty good showing of Florida beers.

Hop Top – This place is one of those little hidden gems that locals know about but may not get a lot of business if it weren’t for word of mouth. Not a grandiose location but what they do have that is great and keeps getting better is a great selection of craft beers both on tap and bottled and the taps rotate fairly frequently. The staff that I have encountered know the product pretty good nd have been fairly helpful it guiding me to a good tasting craft beer.

There are other restaurants and bars in town but their beer selections are often one or two craft beers and some high end Macro Beers so they can charge more. They will have delicious food and then serve it with ordinary beers. That can be a crime in my book. And the wait staff’s knowledge of these beers is hit and miss. If you’re lucky you get a waitperson that has knowledge of craft beer because they like it themselves. If you find something you like I haven’t mentioned in here then let me know so I can investigate.

A little bit of sad news. If any of you are looking for either Tall Paul’s Brewhouse/Alligator Brewing or Brass Tap, I’m afraid both those businesses have closed. The reasons why have been speculated on but all I will say for certain is that we lost two great resources of craft beer. Hopefully others can fill their place.

One last thing….

Cheers!!

Papabear

Cypress & Grove Brewing and Indigo’s Homemade Ice Cream – New FLavors in Town!!!

So part of my July 4th weekend was spent doing the usual, grilling food and spending time with friends and family. Part of this involved visiting a couple of new places in Gainesville as well as some of our regular haunts.

On Friday, June 30th, the Maestro and I met up at First Magnitude to begin Supping back some Suds and begin some earnest Philosophying. I started off with their Dunkulla Weizenbock which was a great example of a good roasty Weizenbock flavor. I also sampled their Kemp’s Ridley Radler and it tasted good but sweeter than I expected. But the highlight for me at First Mag that evening was their New England Style IPA Trop Hop, which had strong citrus and floral notes in the nose but a great IPA flavor with a clean finish, a very refreshing beer.

While there, the Maestro and I started up a conversation with two other gents, both Gator Alumni and one was visiting for the first time in many years. We discussed a lot of the changes that had happened around town since he had been here last. Then they eventually told us they had just left another brewery called Cypress & Grove Brewing that had just opened up.

Now I knew there was a new brewery opening, that was originally going to be called Rainstorm Brewing but they had to do a name change for some reason, but I never heard the new name. But when these gents told us where it was located I knew it was the same place. So the Maestro and I wrapped our conversation and decided to head over there and see what offerings they had available.

In the interim, Rowdy and the Cooler had texted us to see if we were still at First Mag so we told them where we were headed and said to meet us there.

Cypress & Grove has only had a soft opening so far and is still undergoing some construction. For instance the AC was not installed yet the night we went and they have a large game area where they will probably have Corn Hole games and other games set-up. But without the AC it was very hot in that section as well.

They had a small list of beers available, but they also had a wine and some of their own seltzer water with flavoring for any young ones. The beers listed included a Blonde, a Pale Ale, an IPA and a Stout. They haven’t come up with any catchy names yet so if you go to look the beers up on Untappd it’s just under the brewery name for now.

I started out with their IPA which had a pretty good flavor and finish. I would definitely order it again. The Maestro said they same about their Pale Ale. My second glass was their Stout which had a traditional Stout flavor and reminded me of a Guinness. I have to be careful when trying Stouts anymore as more and more folks are putting out Chocolate Stouts and Barrel-Aged Stouts and a normal Stout really doesn’t compare to those. But if you like Guinness you will probably like this one.

I asked some folks on the staff and the Grand Opening will be in August sometime. By then I suspect they will have the AC in place. But if you can take the heat I would recommend stopping by and trying some of their fare.

After our second beer there I was hungry and suggested we adjourn to Satchel’s for dinner, which the Maestro, Rowdy and the Cooler all agreed was a good idea.

Our wait at Satchel’s was short and we were shown to a table pretty quickly for a Friday evening. We decided to share a small house salad and do a Democratic large pizza. I call it Democratic because it includes 4 toppings and there were four of us present so we each got to pick a topping and each had a veto power over a topping. Democracy in action on a holiday weekend celebrating our liberty’s….

Sorry, I just felt a lump forming in my throat.

To accompany the pizza I ordered the Big John’s Apricot Wheat from Bold City Brewing. I gotta tell you I love Satchel’s, but that night the pizza, salad and beer combination really hit the spot. I left completely sated.

The second part of this blog story takes place the Monday after this visit on July 3rd. I worked that day and had a cold come back on me over the weekend so plans I had to visit a new Ice Cream shop over the weekend had been delayed. I was originally going to try and bring my sister, her husband and the kids with me, but since I didn’t go out on the weekend and this is kind of on my way home, I decided instead to see if they offered to-go quarts, which they do.

Indigo’s Homemade hasn’t been open a year yet and I actually discovered them through Twitter. But I have to say, when you first walk in the door it’s got a very nostalgic feel to it. The décor is definitely 50’s style with that old soda shop look to it. In the background you hear music from the 50’s/60’s and can see the accompanying videos on a couple of flat screen TVs.

The ice cream is in large container’s under a glass display where you can easily see them. I don’t remember the exact number but I am guessing they had 24 different flavors of ice cream to choose from. They have a waffle iron on the back counter where they make their own waffle cones. And they have enough homemade syrups and toppings to make any dish served very personally tailored.

I talked with the lady behind the counter while she filled my quarts and found out that the ice cream is made locally by a company in Tampa, but it is fresh made and uses local ingredients, except for the Caramel which comes from Peru and the chocolate in the Dutch Chocolate, which is one of the quarts I ordered. The other two were Vanilla and Strawberry Cheescake. The service was great and the décor was very well done.

The real test though came later that night after dinner. I decided again to play Democracy and give every flavor a chance at impressing me. Unfortunately, it is next to impossible for me to try and have something like ice cream without Tucker catching wind of it, no matter how hard I try. So the entire time I was scooping and sampling he was right there watching.

Now some of you may ask with 24 flavors available why I would order Vanilla. I like Vanilla, particularly good Vanilla. And I have to tell you this is good Vanilla. Really good flavor and the texture is very smooth and that buttery-creamy texture that homemade ice cream should have. It was sweet without having that over-sweet flavor that a lot of store bought ice cream has.

The Strawberry Cheesecake doesn’t just taste like strawberry cheesecake, it has chucks of strawberries and cheesecake in it. And the Dutch Chocolate doesn’t taste like store-bought milk chocolate ice cream, but dark chocolate from the Black Forest Region of Germany. Rich flavor without being sickeningly sweet with a creamy texture. I gotta say I loved all three and am looking forward to another bowl this evening.

I definitely recommend stopping by Indigo’s Homemade. I certainly will again and the next time I want one of their homemade waffle cones.

Just an FYI I couldn’t resist letting Tucker lick the bowl. And he wants more too.

Papabear

Celebrate the Season with Blackadder Brewing Company!

If you have read my blog before you have probably seen my mention of anticipating the opening of new Brewery in Gainesville, Blackadder Brewing Company! Well, the day has finally arrived and they have opened and in my opinion, it was worth the wait!

Last Friday, a little before 10 AM I got a message in my email that Blackadder was opening it’s doors that day (see above). I sent a pic of the email out to my fellow beer bacchanalians and suggested this for happy hour that afternoon.

Unfortunately, I immediately succumbed to a flu bug going around town, (fever, chills, aches, digestive disorders, etc.) and ended up going home early that day. I told the crew I wouldn’t make it but to send me pics or the new place so I could see how it had turned out. The Doctor, Rowdy and the Maestro both obliged with the following:

While I was kinda ticked that I was too sick to make it to the opening day festivities, I was certainly glad to see that the business had a good turn out for their first day.

If you don’t know anything about Blackadder Brewing Company here is a quick quote about the owners/brewers from their website Blackadder Brewing:

“Chris and Sissy Hart have been married for 20+ years. Sissy is a Gainesville native and Chris has been here since coming to the University of Florida in 1987. Brewing has been a part of their lives for over a decade. For more than 6 years, Chris has worked at and managed the local homebrew supply shop and is a BJCP judge. Both Chris & Sissy are active members of Gainesville’s homebrew club, the Hogtown Brewers. Collectively, they have earned over 30 medals in beer competitions throughout Florida and the US. Their love of creating craft beer and sharing it with others led to the establishment of Blackadder Brewing Company. They look forward to sharing their award winning beers with the Gainesville community. “

Whether you bother going to the website or not (and I would recommend you do) all you really need to know is that they not only know good beer, they make good beer as well.

Now it really took me a few days to get over the bug I caught. I was pretty much sick all weekend and while I went back to work on Monday I was still drained physically of any energy. But by Tuesday I was feeling much better. Well enough that after work I headed over to the west side of town to do some Christmas shopping for the niece and nephew at Toys R Us, which is just west of the Oaks Mall. After I was done there, I decided to stop by Blackadder on the way home and see how it was.

If you are trying to find Blackadder, the address is 618 NW 60th Street, Suite A. It’s on the Southeast corner of the same building that is home for Honey Baked Ham, McAllister’s Deli and Painting with a Twist.

As you approach the business you will easily see the sign on the front, and they have a front and side entrance.

Once you enter you immediately feel like you have stepped into something much akin to an Olde World Pub. The tables are Pub style, and the wood brace accenting, fireplace and chandelier definitely lend themselves to that feel.

At the bar you can see they took their time in decorating and picking out the right look for that area. The dark wood cabinetry, raised white accent paneling and Olde World Style map behind the bar go great together.

But now let’s talk about the best part… The Beer!

First, it looks like they have around 40 taps available. I know they had 4 of their own brews (signified by the Blackadder tap handles) and well as two sodas they brewed themselves as well. But they also had a wide selection of good quality craft beers.

But I didn’t care about the other craft beers. You see I have had samplings of their beers before at some Beerfests and other activities and I know the kind of quality they are capable of producing. So I went their flight deal, which includes a sampling of all of their taps.

That evening they were serving the following from right to left in the pic above:

Prince Ludwig the Indestructible: which is a lager with really good flavor. If you or someone you know is not that familiar with craft beers I would recommend this as an introductory beer.

Zakziskie: A Smoked Wheat Beer. The smoke definitely hits the nose when you bring the glass up to the lips, but the smoke flavor combines with the wheat and almost makes it taste like a Belgian, in my opinion.

Warm Cockles: This Old ale is very tasty and you can tell it has a higher ABV. Loved the flavor! I would put this up against Founders Dirty Bastard, maybe even the Backwoods Bastard. This was probably my favorite of the evening but it was close tie with the next one.

Riders of the Lost Oat: This was an excellent stout! It was smooth tasting with a good mix of coffee and chocolate flavors!

I can’t think of any reason why you wouldn’t want to go to this establishment. It has a great atmosphere, a great staff that knows the product and good quality selection of beers to choose from. The only drawback for me is that it isn’t closer to my side of town, but for this place I will make an exception and brave the traffic.

One little disclosure statement: If you sit at the left hand side of the bar and look up on the wall you will see a plaque with some names on it called the Blackadder Founders Club. My name is one of those on that plaque. But I do not receive any funds or profit from the business and am not associated with it in any way other than as a patron. I donated some funding to their Kickstarter campaign because I wanted to see another brewery in the Gainesville area and I always like to see a small business get a good start.

In my opinion, it was money well spent.

Papabear

Predictions for the coming year in Craft Beer

Okay, so “Predictions” is probably too strong a word to use for this particular article. Why don’t we try “Intuitive Guesses” instead, as some of what I will put down into words this time will be 100 % accurate and some, at best will be 50/50.

Let’s throw a 100 percenter out first…

ABInBev will purchase more craft breweries around the US this year. BAM!!

Okay, that was an easy one, especially considering they keep making overtures to multiple breweries. And I believe I read that they stated in their corporate newsletter something to the same effect. So if it is really a surprise to anyone that they will continue this strategy you need to wake up and change your name to Rip Van Get-a-clue.

100 percenter #2…

New Craft Breweries will keep opening throughout the year. BAM!

During recent months craft breweries have been opening at a rate of almost two a day nationally. Even if the Macro Brewers keep purchasing Craft Breweries they won’t be able to outpace that rate. So there will be even more new beers for all of us to try out there.

In fact I have read that Gainesville will be on the receiving end of a new brewery by the name of Rainstorm Brewing in the coming year. We will also be home to a new brew Pub with a Micro Brewery as part of the business, called Blackadder Brewing, supposedly this May.

50/50 percenter #1…

New Craft Beer Tap Rooms and businesses will continue opening up throughout the year. BAM!!

Again this is not news to me as I have already read or heard about this from other local sources. Gainesville recently received a Buffalo Wild Wings which will serve craft beers alongside the macro beers that most sports establishments feature. World of Beer, which has a business west of Gainesville in the Town of Tioga is opening a new business (I believe with a different franchisee) in Gainesville just off of Archer road at the old Hooters location. Hopefully there will be others as well.

100 percenter #3…

Beerfests will abound. BAM!

Okay, I did that one with my eyes closed. But they weren’t closed when I got invites to the FBG Beerfest in March and the Hogtown Craft Beerfest in April. And you can be sure there will others I will try to attend throughout the year. Maybe even outside of Florida this year.

50/50 percenter #2…

Social acceptance of craft beer and those who consume it will continue to grow. At first craft beer lovers were referred to as Beer Geeks, but as more people become introduced to it I believe more people will appreciate the different styles and flavors that are available to them. Two years ago you saw an increase in ciders and meads. Last year you witnessed the rise of barrel aged and sour beers. I am hoping Porters and Stouts will begin coming back stronger, but that is a personal preference, not a prediction.

I believe social acceptance will grow because more and more craft breweries are becoming involved in community events and charities. Yoga classes, Wildlife and Environmental Charity Events, Political Fundraisers, and other fundraisers for various charities are constantly popping at breweries and brew houses. I don’t see that trend waning, in fact I see the opposite happening.

So that is my Craft Beer Pred… umm… Intuitive Guesses for the coming year.

Oh yes… here is one more. One last 100 percenter…

I believe I’ll have another. BAM!!

Papabear

Craft Beer Lover’s Are More Socially Conscious

Tucker with Rowdy at the Pints for Puppies event at Gainesville House of Beer

First let me clarify the title of this article by stating that I have no empirical data or documented evidence to support that claim. It is merely an opinion, and being that I am a craft beer lover it is a biased opinion at that.

But what I have been observing first hand over the last few years is that the interaction between Craft Beer Breweries, tap rooms or beer houses, and their patrons is much more community oriented that my recollections of the interactions with the Macro Beer Breweries and their related distributors.

My experiences of interactions with Macro breweries or the representatives has been basically like one of their beer commercials. Sporting events, or athletic related events, BBQ or Chili cook-offs, NASCAR, and of the course female swimwear contests seem to be the focus of their community interaction.

Don’t misunderstand me, I know that at least one of them has done things like donating canned water to disaster areas and I’m sure that there are some really good folks who work for them. But it seems that for the most part their focus with customers is generally whatever increases the profits for the company and their stockholders. But then that really shouldn’t surprise me. As demonstrated by the numerous craft brewery acquisitions and the impending merger between ABInBev and SAB Miller the bottom line appears to be their final deciding factor.

But the focus of Craft Breweries and Craft Beer Tap Rooms when dealing with events around their communities is much different. Now every business wants to make a profit. Let’s face it without profits it won’t be long before these businesses no longer exists. But there comes a point where profits need to give way to the needs of the community that these businesses live in and rely on. And in this aspect most Craft Beer businesses (whether breweries or tap rooms) excel far above their Macro Beer counterparts.

A perfect example was my most recent visit to Gainesville House of Beer. They hosted an event called Pints for Puppies. The idea was to raise funds for a new dog rescue Loving Hands Rescue. The idea being that $1 of each pint you purchased would be donated to this group. They also had beer specials and were accepting donations in cash or the form of supplies that the rescue could use for the puppies.

The Brass Tap on Archer road recently hosted a fund raising event for Operation Cat Nip, which is a program to help spay or neuter feral cats to help keep the population from growing. They also have teacher appreciation night every Friday offering discounted drafts to local teachers.

All of our local breweries, Swamp Head Brewing, First Magnitude Brewing and Alligator Brewing (located inside Tall Paul’s Brew House) are often involved in fund raising for various purposes. Ranging from environmental causes, charity events, political fund raising and even hosting yoga.

And the crowds that turn out for these events are inspiring. Even folks who may not normally patronize a craft beer business turn out for them because it helps the community. And there are other businesses in town that do similar fund raising events involving craft beer. Forgive me for not naming them all here. But you may have read about them in my other blog entries.

And while Gainesville is generally considered a liberal leaning college town where you might expect this kind of activity, from what I can tell of happenings in other towns with Craft Beer related businesses, this is not a liberals only activity. You see it happening all over the US wherever craft beers businesses have been popping up.

All I can say it I find it very inspiring and gratifying to part of a community (I refer to the Craft Beer community – not just Gainesville) that is so giving and concerned for the people, animals and environment around them.

Cheers to you all (that’s from Tucker too) and keep up the great work!!

Tucker likes good craft beer too. Don't worry I know hops are bad for dogs. This is a Hefeweizen and he only likced the mpty glass. — Tucker likes good craft beer too. Don’t worry I know hops are bad for dogs. This is a Hefeweizen and he only licked the empty glass.

Papabear

How Barrel-Aged and Sour Beers Make You End Up In Your PJs in the Street on a Saturday Night (A Review of Florida Brewers Guild Barrel-Aged & Sour Beer Fest and Gainesville Roller Rebels Pub Crawl)

So last Friday (November 13^th) our group of Craft Beer enthusiasts decided to gather together at the BrassTap on Archer Road for our regular Friday Happy Hour. The Maestro and the Doctor both made it there first. They talked Allen (the owner) into taunting me with a picture of a beer (see below), saying “Here’s looking at you.” Now I was already on my way and didn’t recognize the number so I didn’t reply. By the time I arrived they had started to head for the patio and claim a table outside. Not long after me Rowdy showed up and our Philosophying began for the evening.

My first craft beer that night was a Dunkles Hefe Weizen from Tucher Brau. It was a very good example of a Dunkel with a nice roasted malt flavor and a smooth aftertaste.

Allen pulled up a chair and joined us and not long after the Deck-Orator arrived as well. So we put another table alongside ours so discussion was not hindered by any inter-table distances. We began catching up with each other and finding out what was new.

My second draft of the evening was a Hop Nosh IPA from Uinta Brewing. The IPA lovers in the group thought this was pretty good and while I thought it was okay with a nice smooth aftertaste it was a little hoppier than I care for.

My third choice of drafts was the Jefferson Stout from Lazy Magnolia Brewing. It was supposedly going to have a little sweet potato flavor but I couldn’t taste any. I did taste a light stout flavor but that was all.

As we were working on our last round I mentioned that I was going to Florida Brewer’s Guild Barrel-Aged & Sour Beer Festival the next day and asked if anyone wanted to go with me. Rowdy said she would go but I had to agree to go to the PJ Pub crawl for the Gainesville Roller Rebels.

I agreed, though I was reluctant to do so because the idea of wearing PJs in public bothers me. But I agreed at any rate and said I would text her in the morning and let her know where we would meet up for the trip. Everyone else in the group had other plans.

So I met up with Rowdy at Hogan’s Heroes Sandwich Shop on NW 13^th Street and found her paying attention to the most well-behaved dog I have ever seen in the back of a strange pick-up truck. This little guy was not chained or leashed and would not leave the bed of the truck, but he was happy to be getting the attention that Rowdy was giving him. And as we turned to go inside he stayed right where he was and ducked back down under the truck side to stay out of the sun.

We wandered inside the sandwich shop and walked back to the bar to order our sandwiches. If you have never been to either of Hogan’s Heroes locations then you owe it to yourself to do so. In my opinion, they have the best subs in Gainesville. Both of them have a sandwich shop in the front half of their respective buildings and a little bar at the back end. The décor is World War II related and being a Veteran feels nice to me. During the work week if I come in for lunch I never make it to the back, but after work or on the weekends nothing goes better with one of their sandwiches than a nice cold draft. Most of the draft beer selections are the normal American Lager variety, but they do have one or two local brewery fares along with Newcastle Brown and Guiness on tap as well as some European brews in bottles.

Rowdy and I each ordered a sandwich combo which included an 8 inch sub, choice of chips and a drink. We both ordered the same sandwich but she had a cider with hers and I ordered a Stump Knocker from Swamp Head with mine. It wasn’t long before our orders arrived and we enjoyed a nice little lunch before heading out to Jacksonville.

When we left I followed Rowdy back to her place and she retrieved her traveling accoutrement, jumped in my truck and we headed out to Jax. I decided to avoid the traffic associated with driving from Gainesville to Jax by the normal route of going through Starke and instead headed up 121/231 through Hidden Lake, Brooker, Lake Butler and Raiford until we reached I-10 and then headed east into Jax. It was a lot less traffic and much more scenic. We listened to the gator game as it was playing while we drove.

When we got into Jax I knew I had not been to Intuition Ale Works before and wondered what kind of area it was in as parts of Jax aren’t too bad and are in fact really nice and others you start looking for the fastest way to the interstate. As we left the interstate it started to look like we weren’t necessarily in the best part of town. Like most new craft breweries starting out, Intuition started their location in an industrial section of town in an older warehouse. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing but sometimes these areas are surrounded by not so prosperous housing. As we headed down King Street we came upon a set of railroad tracks and literally, on the opposite (notice I didn’t say “wrong”) of the tracks was the warehouse where intuition is located. Right after you crossed the tracks they had the road closed off with a vendor truck and you could see a crowd back behind it.

I turned left there and found a parking spot not too far away where it looked like other attendees were parking as well. Then Rowdy and I grabbed our beer sampling gear and headed out. We went to the check in and received our sampling glass and the list of breweries and their available wares (see pics below)

Then we walked around and began sampling and talking with the various vendors on site. below are some pics from the event.

I can tell you that there were a lot of great barrel aged beers there. And I was really surprised at how good the sour beers were. Most of the sours beers I have had up until that event were so sour that you really couldn’t taste any other flavors. That was not true with most of these.

The following is a small sampling of those that really stood out to me:

Darwin Brewing Co., Bourbon-barrel-aged big Deal; Due South Brewing, Barrel Aged Mariana Trench; Engine 15 Brewing Co., Barrel Aged Simcoe; Funky Buddha Brewing, Cabernet Barrel Aged Nikolai Vorlauf; Intuition Ale Works, Tres Brujas; Orchid Island Brewery, Citron – Cabernet Barrel Aged Saison; Proof Brewing Co., Fruit Punch Blind Fate – Berliner Weisse; Tampa Bay Brewing Moose Wood – Barrel Aged Barleywine & Capt. Skully – Rum barrel Aged Imperial Pumpkin Ale; Tomoka Brewing Mint Julip Southern Sour; Zeta Brewing, Cabernet Michaelmas and their Bourbon Michaelmas; an what I consider the two best examples at the fest, both from Wynwood Brewing, NSDLA – Barrel Aged Barleywine and BA 100 Barrel Aged American Strong Ale.

Please keep in mind that as we sampled more we were probably being a bit more lenient but the beers kept tasting better and better.

We decided to get some food before we left and stopped at the FunkaDelic Food Truck. Rowdy got a fish sandwich and I got a burger and we split an order of fried beets. The sandwiches were good but I have to say I have never enjoyed beets so much in my life as I did the ones they served.

We started our trek back to Gainesville around 5:30 and got back around 7:00.

After I dropped Rowdy off I headed back to the house to check on Tucker, my dog, and rest up a bit before heading out to meet her and the Doctor downtown for the PJ Pub Crawl. To be honest, after I took Tucker for a walk, I settled down in the recliner and he jumped up and snuggled with me. It was enough for me to fall asleep for a bit. Rowdy’s text telling me where to meet her and the Doctor is what woke me up.

So I jumped up, took off my clothes and put on my PJ’s and a robe (it was chilly out) and headed for downtown. Now the previous year’s Pub Crawl had a Lumberjack theme which I can slide into very easily. I’m a middle-aged white guy with a beard, work boots and jeans and all the plaid shirts I could want. I even own a couple of axes so Lumberjack is an easy theme for me to do. But PJs in public is not my cup-o-tea. So along with the t-shirt and PJ bottoms I wore my silk Kimono, going for the Hugh Hefner look. I actually got more than a few complements on it.

The pub crawl started at the Midnight on Main Street at 8:00 and we got there around 8:30. The Pub Crawl hits five downtown bars, with 45 minutes at each bar and one complimentary draft beer at each. So we got at the Midnight with enough time to check in with the group and finish a beer. As I recall we had three to choose from and I ordered the Shock Top Belgian White.

Our next stop was Tall Paul’s Brew House just up around the corner on 2^nd Avenue. I had a little disagreement with a bouncer about whether or not I had to pay a cover charge to get in. I ended the disagreement by saying “Dude, I’m with the pub crawl! Look at the way I’m dressed! Would I put this crap on to go out on the town??!!” Luckily, he saw my point and we didn’t have to get any deeper into the disagreement. Unfortunately, the beer they selected for us at Tall Paul’s was the Narraganset Lager, or as Rowdy likes to call it, Nasty Ganset. I don’t know who chooses the beer for these things, but that one just has to go. And if you’re a Narragnaset fan good for you, but leave that in Boston where it belongs.

From Tall Paul’s we meandered over to Loosey’s where they were also having Karaoke. A couple of the roller derby gals and one of our gents tagging along sang a couple of renditions. At least here they served a decent draft beer in the form of a Yuengling Lager. Of course that is just my opinion. And being a PA boy it is only natural for me to like that beer.

The next stop on our tour was one of our old standbys, Gainesville House of Beer. HOB is also one of the gathering places for after the derby matches and one of the Meetup groups I belong to meets there after their monthly meeting as well. Not to mention our occasional treks to there (See last blog about Homecoming). I knew HOB would have a good beer available for the group. Especially since Rowdy had already discussed the beer list with Alex, the manager. I had a stout from local brewery First Magnitude, I believe it was the Drift but I’m not certain.

The next and last stop of the crawl was supposed to be the High Dive, which is where we ended up last year and a lot of dancing took place. But I looked at Rowdy and said, “I think I’m done.” She looked at me and nodded her head and I knew she was done too. With the all the beers we sampled earlier and the last few on top there was definitely no dancing in my future. The Doctor said, “See… That’s why I didn’t go the beer fest with you.”

Let me end this article by saying that I don’t regret going to either event, doing both in the same day can be taxing, especially when you get to my age. Next year I hope the Pub Crawl falls on a day when there is no nearby beer fest. But if it does it could be another long day.

I hope this little story is an entertaining Thanksgiving Eve respite. Enjoy your holiday and drinks some beers. I will write again after the weekend is over.

Papabear

Unwinding with BrassTap, Roller Derby, Satchel’s Pizza and Craft Beer

A couple of weeks ago, my work week was hectic and not only mentally but physically demanding. By the time Friday rolled around I was exhausted and ready for the weekend. The phone signals don’t reach me in my office so when I left for the day my phone did it’s normal blow up of email, text messages and app notifications.

One app notification in particular caught my attention. According to Untappd, the Doctor had just toasted one of my check-ins of craft beer. If he was toasting, that means he was checking in as well. So I looked it up real quick and sure enough he was supping a craft beer. So I toasted it and waited for a response.

A minute later I got a text message inviting me to join him at BrassTap. I replied I would join him as soon as I got home and checked on the dog and changed clothes. Not long after that the Maestro sent out a text to the group suggesting happy hour at certain spot. The Doctor told him where he was and Maestro was all for it so the two of them were already seated and supping suds when I arrived.

The regular hand shaking and “Howdy-dos!” were exchanged while I sat at the bar with my friends. The bartender approached and we exchanged greetings as well. Luckily I’m there regularly enough that he knows me and my taste buds because when he asked what I wanted to drink I asked “What’s new?” He knows what I like and steered me toward Ballast Point Brewing’s “Victory at Sea”, an Imperial/Double Porter. It has really smooth coffee flavor with hints of chocolate.

The Doctor, Maestro and I philosophyed for a bit, then I had Bold City Brewery’s 1901 Amber Ale, which I thought was a well-balanced ale. I could taste some hops but they didn’t over shadow the slightly roasted malt flavor of a red ale.

The last beer I wanted to be lighter as I usually start light and work my way darker, but this time was reversed. The bartender recommended First Magnitude’s Cool Pond Belgian Blonde, which I had to agree with him was really good and finished well for the set.

The Maestro had another appointment and had to take his leave of us. After the Doctor and I finished our last beers we talked a bit then parted ways until we would meet again the next night at Rowdy’s Roller Derby Bout. Unfortunately he wound up not being able to make it the next day.

The next day I went to a fish fry at O’Leno State Park then headed back in time to get changed and head out to meet Rowdy at the Alachua Country Fairgrounds where the roller derby was held. If you have never been to Roller Derby you need to go at least once. Once you understand the rules and how points are scored it makes easier to understand and root for your team. While the teams were warming up I found Rowdy and said good luck to her then went and purchased a Swamp Head Brewery Stomp Knocker poured from a pitcher. That was the only craft beer they were selling there, though they had cans of your normal American lagers.

I spent the couple hours rooting for the Gainesville Roller Rebels, to no avail, as the Dub City Rollers were Amazons and kicked butt. Though I don’t think they made as many points as they wanted to.

After the bout I found Rowdy and asked if she wanted to go the after party they were having at Gainesville House of Beer. She said what she really needed was food so the nearest place that had good food and craft beer that I could think of was Satchel’s Pizza. Rowdy liked the sound of that so I went to get in line for a table while she helped her teammate’s clean up.

If you’ve read any of my previous posts you seen me mention that I don’t like lines and that I will usually not wait for any lengthy time to get a table. Well, there is an exception to every rule, and Satchel’s is it. If you have never been to Satchel’s then you must be new to Gainesville as it is one of the most well-known local restaurants and has almost a cult following. And not without reason.

Satchel’s is known for their pizzas, calzones and salads. They have other items too, but these three things they do very, very well. They also have one of the most unique atmosphere’s you will ever see. Right in front of the restaurant is an old VW bus parked that has sit in the same spot forever. In fact it is actually used for seating guests outdoors. They have indoor and outdoor seating with the whole building kind of decorated in a 60’s deck/patio theme. At the rear of the restaurant is Lightning Salvage, which sells paraphernalia from the 50s, 60s and 70s like the magnetic rolling yo-yo, superballs, flash travel card sets, etc. I could spend hours in that place just looking around. Check out their website at www.satchelspizza.com

In fact, while I was waiting for my table to open and Rowdy to arrive I went to Lightning Slavage and ordered a craft beer at the bar there, First Magnitude’s Drift Mild English Ale, then spent the next 20-30 minutes just looking at the junk they sell (When I say junk in this instance I don’t mean it in a negative connotation. After all one man’s junk…) and thought about the some of the items I remembered from my youth that they sold there.

After a bit Rowdy showed up and about five minutes later our table was ready. We both ordered a craft beer, (I ordered First Magnitude’s Ursa American IPA), and a salad. Then I ordered the Major Calzone and Rowdy ordered a custom calzone. Our beers and salad arrived not long after and we caught up and ate and supped some suds. After we were done with our dinner and got our to-go boxes, the waitress brought over complimentary deserts in the form of cookies. I think Rowdy snagged a chocolate chip, but I couldn’t swear to it because I was eyeballing the macadamia nut. And I ate that cookie with delight, it was one of the best I ever had.

If you haven’t been to Satchel’s Pizza before, one word of caution, they don’t accept credit cards there, but there is an ATM machine which will charge you a fee for using. Luckily my bank refunds those fees for me, because I forgot to bring enough cash with me. Rowdy and I said our goodbyes and were on our separate ways home. But it was a weekend well spent with friends and craft beer.

If you haven’t been to Satchel’s what in the hell are you waiting for?! GO… NOW!!

Papabear

A Fish Fry & Winghouse

A friend of mine invited me to a fish fry last weekend. He is an avid fisherman and didn’t have room left in his freezer from all of the fish he had caught so it was time to cook some of it up to make room for more. Whatever the reason for it, I love good fried fish so I was definitely going.

Interesting root growth at O’Leno State Park

A pavilion at O’Leno State Park was rented and invites were sent. Since it was an outdoor event I decided to bring my dog Tucker with me. I knew he would enjoy not only the ride out but the change of scenery. Not mention there was an enite population of squirrels and lizrds that hadn’t met his wrath yet.

If you ever have the opportunity to visit O’Leno I would recommend going. It is a little bit of a trip from Gainesville (about an hour from my house) but not too far to make the trip bothersome. And the scenery is great. It located off of US 441 north of High Springs and is next to the Santa Fe River. In fact there is a swimming area and plenty of spots for fishing as well. And some very scenic spots that you may not see in other areas of Florida.

I mention the fish fry even though no craft beer was consumed there to get to the following point.

The friend mentioned above is the male half of the Loverbirds couple I have mentioned in a previous post. While there I noticed a sign indicating an impending marriage between him and his lady-love. After talking to his better half I was informed that their nuptuals were in fact happening very soon. So I decided that a proper send-off for my friend was in order.

I arranged a short notice bachelor party for him this week. Most of us in attendance have been to more than our share of these and in all honestly we’re a little old for the girl popping out of the cake routine. I figured just an opportunity for us to get together, BS, eat and drink a few beers was really all we needed. But seeing a pretty girl wouldn’t hurt any either. We may be older but we ain’t dead.

So I figured Winghouse would be a good place for us to go. They have enough variety of food that it should fit most peoples needs. They have about a dozen beers on tap and quite a few more in bottles. They also have a liquor license so shots are available as well as some mixed drinks. And there are plenty of flat screen tvs around so any sporting event we might have a particular interest in would be available for us to look at.

The boys night out being photo bombed in the background.

If you have never been to Winghouse, it is very similar in concept to the popular Hooters chain of restaurants. Winghouse is not as nationally known as Hooters and outside of Florida and Texas I am unaware of any locations, but that doesn’t mean they won’t expand in the future. The main draw (foodwise) are the wings, which explains the name, but they also have other foods (burgers, sandwiches, fries, salads and other delicious selections. The wing sauces are pretty good and they have enough variety to satisfy most palettes, and you can mix the sauces to your liking. And considering that the only two Hooters restaurants near Gainesville havve closed, it’s really nice to have Winghouse in town.

I mentioned beers on tap above and they do have a few craft beers in that mix. Though I have not seen any changes in their draft selection in a while, they do have at least one local (Swamp Head) as well as a couple of others (at the Gainesville location Sam Adams, Fat Tire, Magic Hat, Goose Island, and Blue Moon – please don’t pick up the Blue Moon controversy here).

And like Hooters, Winghouse employs young women as their wait staff, clad in garments that hug their figures very closely. But they also have a great attitude and a friendly disposition.

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Sorry… I spaced out there for a moment.

One of my friends was in the hospital a while back so I bought him one of the Winghouse calendars and asked one of the waitresses who worked there and made it into the calendar (Kendall pictured below) if I could take her picture for him. She not only posed for the pic but as I recall wrote a little get well note in the calendar for him.

Winghouse Kendall — Kendall with the signed calendar

When Swamp Head Brewery was at their original location, I used to stop by Winghouse almost on a weekly basis as they were on the way back. Since Swamp Head has moved I don’t make it by Winghouse as frequently, but that doesn’t lessen my opinion of their food or service.

This visit was another good example.

We sat around philosophying, drinking back cold drinks and eating. I motioned the waitress over and whispered that my friend was getting hitched and I wondered if there was anything they can do for the occasion. I know for birthdays they will usually gather the wait staff around the individual and sing and clap a little birthday ditty. She said she would see what she could do.

After a bit the waitress walked out with two large scoops of ice cream, each topped with a marachino cherry, and both with chocolate drizzled over them. She said this desert is called “The last strange pair of boobies you will ever see!”

That kind of fun humor is the atmosphere you usually find at Winghouse. The food is good, the service is good and the scenery is great.