Cigar City Brewing- The Trials and Tribulations of Opening (And Operating) a Brewery in Florida
Or: How To Open (and run) a Craft Brewery in 7000 Easy Missteps........ Contact Us: info@cigarcitybrewing.com
Cigar City Brewing
295:Why not just stay the night?
For anyone traveling from far away, or even across the bay to come to our tasting room for events, or just for an evening of fresh local craft beer we now a corporate rate at a local hotel with a complimentary shuttle. Next time you are considering a stay close by check out the Wyndham
Tampa Westshore, they are offering us a special rate which can be booked
by clicking the link here: http://tinyurl.com/WyndhamTampaCigarCity
We've provided them with this flyer at their front desk too, so look for it if you are there and tell them to point that van in our direction!
Don't forget, This Saturday!
Starting at 11am, our newest barrel aged release will be available for sale in the tasting room.
Might be a good time to take advantage of that special hotel rate..
We've provided them with this flyer at their front desk too, so look for it if you are there and tell them to point that van in our direction!
Don't forget, This Saturday!
Starting at 11am, our newest barrel aged release will be available for sale in the tasting room.
Might be a good time to take advantage of that special hotel rate..
Cheers!
The CCB Crew
The CCB Crew
294: Imperial Milk Porter to be released next Saturday!
It's finally ready and we can not wait to share it with you!
The first release of our Imperial
Milk Porter aged in Stranahan's Whiskey Barrels is to be released next
Saturday, July 23rd at the brewery. $20 a 750mL.
Sales will start when the tasting room opens at 11am.
There will be no bottle limit.Don't forget:
Today at 3pm we will be tapping a firkin of Cookies n' Milk, and a keg of Milk Porter stop by for a few.
Tomorrow at 1pm we will be joined by the Mr. Beery's crew in Sarasota for a special tapping of Joe's IPA aka "Limoncello IPA".
On Tap in the Tasting Room:
Jai-Alai IPA*
Maduro Brown Ale*
Humidor IPA
White Oak IPA *
Tocobaga Red Ale
110k+OT
El Lector Dark Mild*
Oatmeal Raisin Cookie*
Minaret ESB*
Hillsborough River Dry Stout*
Xenu Honey Cream Ale*
Big Sound Scotch Ale
Table Saison*
French Oak Jose' Marti
Guava Grove
Puppy's Breath Robust Porter*
*Growler Fills available
Jai-Alai IPA*
Maduro Brown Ale*
Humidor IPA
White Oak IPA *
Tocobaga Red Ale
110k+OT
El Lector Dark Mild*
Oatmeal Raisin Cookie*
Minaret ESB*
Hillsborough River Dry Stout*
Xenu Honey Cream Ale*
Big Sound Scotch Ale
Table Saison*
French Oak Jose' Marti
Guava Grove
Puppy's Breath Robust Porter*
*Growler Fills available
Cheers!
The CCB Crew
293: U.S. Open Beer Championships
The results are in from the United States Open Beer Championships, this year we took 4 gold medals, one silver, and one bronze! All of these medals also got us 2nd place in the judging for Grand National Champion. Click here for the full press release.
These kinds of accolades can only be credited to the fantastic brewery crew we are very fortunate to have around here working hard to make and package our products.
Here's a medal recap-
Gold:
Maduro Brown Ale
Dirac Imperial Stout
Big Sound Scotch Ale
Hunahpus Imperial Stout
Silver:
White Oak Jai-Alai IPA
Bronze:
Humidor IPA
Here is the link to the press release and full list of medal winning beers again: http://www.usopenbeer.com/
Cheers!
The CCB Crew
292:The Order Of The Red Banner
Alright so here's the deal:
On this very special night we will empty out our walk-in cooler and host a dinner in a more "traditional" Russian environment, i.e. the blistering cold!
Attendees will receive the appropriately official CCB Siberian head gear fit for the tundra to keep everyone warm, but also so we can take a bunch of pictures of all in attendance wearing funny hats!
Here is a look at the hat if you didn't already see it on Facebook.
Once we begin, we will dive into a 5 course meal of authentic Russian cuisine surely to consist of Borscht, Blintzes, and other traditional fare from the Motherland. The exact menu will be announced shortly, but be assured the only thing missing will be the vodka and with the beers we will present you won't be missing it!
In addition to this wonderful meal paired great beer, hosted in the appropriate climate, complete with a furry hat you didn't have to hunt for yourself; all attendees will receive 2 bottles of this years release of Marshal Zhukov ahead of anyone else AND will be able to choose a growler of their choice from a selection of very rare offerings here at the brewery.
(Of these growler offerings, expect very rare stouts, barrel aged goodies, and perhaps something even beyond that depending on what we find aging around the brewery.)
Due to the space inside the cooler (i.e. "Little Moscow") we will allow ticket sales for the first 30 people. Tickets will be $100 and will be all inclusive.
How do I get tickets to this magnificent event you may ask?
All reservations can be placed by emailing travis@cigarcitybrewing.com. You will be required to fill out a Credit Card authorization form and either fax or email it to us for your reservation to be completed.
Limit 2 tickets per comrade.
Выпьем за то, чтобы у нас всегда был повод для праздника!
(May we always have a reason to party!)
The CCB Crew
(May we always have a reason to party!)
The CCB Crew
291: Puppy's Breath, Firkin Friday, and even more on tap in the Tasting Room!
Making it's appearance this Friday:
This special release, an English Style Robust Porter with forward notes of bittersweet chocolate, moderate notes of caramel and toffee, and a gentle hop bitterness is sure to please. Available for a limited time only, find it on tap in the tasting room and accounts around Tampa Bay.
Also to help celebrate it's release this week's cask for Firkin Friday will be a Chocolate Cherry Porter made with Puppy's Breath as it's base, Rainier Cherries, and Cacao Nibs. The firkin gets tapped around noon and is sure to run dry pretty quickly! Stop by for a few.
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On Tap in the Tasting Room:
Jai-Alai IPA*
Maduro Brown Ale*
Humidor IPA
White Oak IPA*
Tocobaga Red
110k+OT (Batch 4)
El Lector Dark Mild*
Porcini Brown Ale
Cubano Espresso
Minaret ESB*
Hillsborough River Dry Stout*
Xenu Honey Cream Ale*
Big Sound Scotch Ale
Florida Cracker White Ale*
Jose Marti American Porter*
Guava Grove
Table Saison*
Guest Tap: Tequesta Brewing Company's Chancellor
*Available for growler fills
As you might have noticed we have added a few more taps, we're now up to 18! In addition to that we have added a growler filler for our most popular fills and named him Phil. Here's a shot of Phil in action!
As of this week in addition to Jai-Alai IPA and Maduro Brown Ale we now have 5.2 gallon kegs of Hillsborough River Dry Stout available for sale in the tasting room. It might be a dark beer, but it's still the perfect taste to sip away the summer nights with!
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Looking for a fun, beer filled weekend activity? Check out the Tampa Bay Brew Bus, Tampa's First and only bus tours dedicated to our favorite subject BEER! They've got a great line-up of tours scheduled all around Tampa Bay to breweries, bars, festivals, pubs, and even a baseball game! Go to www.tampabaybrewbus.com for more information.
(Tampa Bay Brew Bus is not affiliated with Cigar City Brewing, we're just spreading the word about a great new local business!)
This special release, an English Style Robust Porter with forward notes of bittersweet chocolate, moderate notes of caramel and toffee, and a gentle hop bitterness is sure to please. Available for a limited time only, find it on tap in the tasting room and accounts around Tampa Bay.
Also to help celebrate it's release this week's cask for Firkin Friday will be a Chocolate Cherry Porter made with Puppy's Breath as it's base, Rainier Cherries, and Cacao Nibs. The firkin gets tapped around noon and is sure to run dry pretty quickly! Stop by for a few.
______________________________________________________________
On Tap in the Tasting Room:
Jai-Alai IPA*
Maduro Brown Ale*
Humidor IPA
White Oak IPA*
Tocobaga Red
110k+OT (Batch 4)
El Lector Dark Mild*
Porcini Brown Ale
Cubano Espresso
Minaret ESB*
Hillsborough River Dry Stout*
Xenu Honey Cream Ale*
Big Sound Scotch Ale
Florida Cracker White Ale*
Jose Marti American Porter*
Guava Grove
Table Saison*
Guest Tap: Tequesta Brewing Company's Chancellor
*Available for growler fills
As you might have noticed we have added a few more taps, we're now up to 18! In addition to that we have added a growler filler for our most popular fills and named him Phil. Here's a shot of Phil in action!
As of this week in addition to Jai-Alai IPA and Maduro Brown Ale we now have 5.2 gallon kegs of Hillsborough River Dry Stout available for sale in the tasting room. It might be a dark beer, but it's still the perfect taste to sip away the summer nights with!
_______________________________________________________________
Looking for a fun, beer filled weekend activity? Check out the Tampa Bay Brew Bus, Tampa's First and only bus tours dedicated to our favorite subject BEER! They've got a great line-up of tours scheduled all around Tampa Bay to breweries, bars, festivals, pubs, and even a baseball game! Go to www.tampabaybrewbus.com for more information.
(Tampa Bay Brew Bus is not affiliated with Cigar City Brewing, we're just spreading the word about a great new local business!)
Cheers!
The CCB Crew
290: It's Back!
Mark your Calendars!
Saturday August 20
Saturday August 20
More details to be revealed soon..
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On Tap in the Tasting Room:
Jai-Alai IPA*
Maduro Brown Ale*
110k+OT
Oatmeal Raisin Cookie*
Cubano Espresso
Minaret ESB*
Hillsborough River Dry Stout*
Tocobaga Red Ale
Xenu Honey Cream Ale*
Big Sound Scotch Ale
Florida Cracker White Ale*
El Lector Dark Mild*
White Oak IPA*
Guest Tap:
Tequesta Brewing Company Chancellor Kölsch
*Growler fills Available
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We've heard from our friends at the Tampa Bay Brew Bus that there are a few spots left on the bus for this Saturday's tour to St. Somewhere, Lagerhaus, and a few other spots. Go to tampabaybrewbus.com to reserve your seat!
Cheers!
The CCB Crew
The CCB Crew
289: Tocobaga Bottles, Hoptomic, and Summertime fun!
We'd like to congratulate Eric Swanson for winning our contest to design the label for our latest bottle release! Eric's submission was chosen from over 60 label designs from local artists. Here it is, just in case you have not seen it yet.
750mL bottles of Tocobaga are now available in the tasting room. Stop by and grab a few!
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Coming up on the 18th of June from 2-6pm we will be participating in the 1st annual Hoptomic Bitter Beer and Food Fest at Stratz Center for Performing Arts in Tampa. Come out and enjoy samples of beers from ourselves and a bunch of other great breweries whose beers are available in the local area.
Tickets are $58.50 and proceeds will benefit Stratz Center for Performing Arts. Click here or on the logo for tickets and more information. It's Father's Day weekend this week, what could be a better treat for dad this close to his special day? Not much if you ask the dads we know!
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Looking for a fun, beer filled weekend activity? Check out the Tampa Bay Brew Bus, Tampa's First and only bus tours dedicated to our favorite subject BEER! They've got a great line-up of tours scheduled all around Tampa Bay to breweries, bars, festivals, pubs, and even a baseball game! Go to www.tampabaybrewbus.com for more information.
(Tampa Bay Brew Bus is not affiliated with Cigar City Brewing, we're just spreading the word about a great new local business!)
________________________________________________
750mL bottles of Tocobaga are now available in the tasting room. Stop by and grab a few!
________________________________________________
Coming up on the 18th of June from 2-6pm we will be participating in the 1st annual Hoptomic Bitter Beer and Food Fest at Stratz Center for Performing Arts in Tampa. Come out and enjoy samples of beers from ourselves and a bunch of other great breweries whose beers are available in the local area.
Tickets are $58.50 and proceeds will benefit Stratz Center for Performing Arts. Click here or on the logo for tickets and more information. It's Father's Day weekend this week, what could be a better treat for dad this close to his special day? Not much if you ask the dads we know!
________________________________________________
Looking for a fun, beer filled weekend activity? Check out the Tampa Bay Brew Bus, Tampa's First and only bus tours dedicated to our favorite subject BEER! They've got a great line-up of tours scheduled all around Tampa Bay to breweries, bars, festivals, pubs, and even a baseball game! Go to www.tampabaybrewbus.com for more information.
(Tampa Bay Brew Bus is not affiliated with Cigar City Brewing, we're just spreading the word about a great new local business!)
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We've got the White Oak IPA and lots of great offerings available for growler fills, don't forget to bring your quarts and gallons on your next trip for a fill or two!
Cheers!
The CCB Crew
**ON SALE IN THE TASTING ROOM**
Are you flying your CCB colors? Have you got our signature CCB military style cap, a necessary uniform for all of those supporting the cause? They come in tons of different colors, even in 3 different types of camo! Usually $15, we will offer them for $12.50 for a limited time so if you haven't got one, or even if you do and want another color now is the time!
Are you flying your CCB colors? Have you got our signature CCB military style cap, a necessary uniform for all of those supporting the cause? They come in tons of different colors, even in 3 different types of camo! Usually $15, we will offer them for $12.50 for a limited time so if you haven't got one, or even if you do and want another color now is the time!
Cheers!
The CCB Crew
288: Scavenger Hunt Winners, Nielsbohrium, and more!
First of all we'd like to thank everyone who turned up at the Tasting Room last week and helped to make American Craft Beer Week a success! We had a blast and we sure hope you did too whether it was here with us or at your own local craft brewery. There were lots of events taking place all across the United States and for small brewers this shows us that as a whole we are gaining strength and support from more people around the country.
Of all the events and activities that took place last week, the Scavenger Hunt was one of the ones that we are having the most fun wrapping up. The pictures are great! We had about 6 people/groups finish the entire Scavenger Hunt with Grant Gebhart and Sean McFarland finishing first on Tuesday. Grant and Sean win some very special bottles from our own cellar for their accomplishment, as does our runners up Alicia Rogers and Amanda Smith who finished shortly after! For all who participated we hope you had fun experiencing Cuban food, Tampa's history and culture, and of course craft beer. From the pictures we received it looks like you did!
On Saturday we released Nielsbohrium and there is still some left available at the tasting room, we're sure it will go pretty quick so if you weren't able to make it here to grab your bottles on Saturday stop by and get a few.
We've released a some new beers in the last few weeks in the tasting room and to our distribution network we hope you'll enjoy them. Most are available on draft only at this point but we are doing growler fills of many of them here at the tasting room.
On Tap this week:
Jai-Alai IPA*
Maduro Brown Ale*
Tocobaga Red Ale
Guava Grove
Big Sound Scotch Ale
Florida Cracker White Ale*
Minaret ESB*
110k+OT (Imperial Red Ale)
Jose Marti*
El Lector Dark Mild*
Hillsborough River Dry Stout*
Oatmeal Raisin Cookie*
Guest Tap:
Swamp Head Wild Night Honey Cream Ale
*Available in growlers (Quart and Gallon)
Wednesday June 1st we will be officially releasing Tocobaga Ale in bottles and unveiling the bottle artwork and it's creator. The first 80 bottles sold that night will be signed by the artist and Joey to commemorate the event and all of the finalist's submissions will be here in the tasting room and will remain through the month of June for you to check out.
Cheers!
The CCB Crew
Of all the events and activities that took place last week, the Scavenger Hunt was one of the ones that we are having the most fun wrapping up. The pictures are great! We had about 6 people/groups finish the entire Scavenger Hunt with Grant Gebhart and Sean McFarland finishing first on Tuesday. Grant and Sean win some very special bottles from our own cellar for their accomplishment, as does our runners up Alicia Rogers and Amanda Smith who finished shortly after! For all who participated we hope you had fun experiencing Cuban food, Tampa's history and culture, and of course craft beer. From the pictures we received it looks like you did!
On Saturday we released Nielsbohrium and there is still some left available at the tasting room, we're sure it will go pretty quick so if you weren't able to make it here to grab your bottles on Saturday stop by and get a few.
We've released a some new beers in the last few weeks in the tasting room and to our distribution network we hope you'll enjoy them. Most are available on draft only at this point but we are doing growler fills of many of them here at the tasting room.
On Tap this week:
Jai-Alai IPA*
Maduro Brown Ale*
Tocobaga Red Ale
Guava Grove
Big Sound Scotch Ale
Florida Cracker White Ale*
Minaret ESB*
110k+OT (Imperial Red Ale)
Jose Marti*
El Lector Dark Mild*
Hillsborough River Dry Stout*
Oatmeal Raisin Cookie*
Guest Tap:
Swamp Head Wild Night Honey Cream Ale
*Available in growlers (Quart and Gallon)
Wednesday June 1st we will be officially releasing Tocobaga Ale in bottles and unveiling the bottle artwork and it's creator. The first 80 bottles sold that night will be signed by the artist and Joey to commemorate the event and all of the finalist's submissions will be here in the tasting room and will remain through the month of June for you to check out.
Cheers!
The CCB Crew
287:Blind IPA Tasting Results/Swamp Head Tap Takeover
Congratulations to Jensen Roth for winning the Blind Tasting! Jensen got 2 of the 5 correct and called "the ringer" out so I guess that counts for something too.. Here's the list for those who participated and are wondering what the hell it was they were actually drinking:
1) Bell's Two Hearted Ale
2) Harpoon IPA
3) Sam Adam's Noble Pils-- This was our ringer, quite a few were able to pick this beer out as the one that did not belong but no one was able to name it.
4) Left Hand 400 Pound Monkey
5) Ballast Point Sculpin IPA
6) Cigar City Brewing Jai-Alai IPA
*Tonight*
Starting at 5pm we will change out all the taps and host our good friends from Swamp Head Brewery in Gainesville. There will be 8 different beers on tap and they will all be available in pints and for quart sized growlers fills. Here is the lineup:
Don't forget! Tomorrow night (Wednesday) is Movie Night in the Tasting Room starting around 6:30pm we'll be showing two "beer centric" tales that are both entertaining and informative! Add fresh beer, popcorn, and candy and it's sure to be a fun night!
2) Harpoon IPA
3) Sam Adam's Noble Pils-- This was our ringer, quite a few were able to pick this beer out as the one that did not belong but no one was able to name it.
4) Left Hand 400 Pound Monkey
5) Ballast Point Sculpin IPA
6) Cigar City Brewing Jai-Alai IPA
*Tonight*
Starting at 5pm we will change out all the taps and host our good friends from Swamp Head Brewery in Gainesville. There will be 8 different beers on tap and they will all be available in pints and for quart sized growlers fills. Here is the lineup:
- Wild Night Honey Cream Ale
- Cottonmouth Belgian Wheat Ale
- Stump Knocker Pale Ale
- Midnight Oil Oatmeal Coffee Stout
- Big Nose IPA
- Smoke Signal Smoked Porter
- Blackwater Black IPA
- Catherine's Passion Imperial Russian Stout
Don't forget! Tomorrow night (Wednesday) is Movie Night in the Tasting Room starting around 6:30pm we'll be showing two "beer centric" tales that are both entertaining and informative! Add fresh beer, popcorn, and candy and it's sure to be a fun night!
Cheers!
The CCB Crew
The CCB Crew
286:American Craft Beer Week update
American Craft Beer Week begins today and we couldn't be more excited!
Below is a list of events we will be doing each day, we hope you will be able to spend some time with us throughout the week and participate in at least a few of these fun events!
Below is a list of events we will be doing each day, we hope you will be able to spend some time with us throughout the week and participate in at least a few of these fun events!
Today/Monday- To kick off this week's events we will start with the first ever Cigar City Scavenger Hunt. This will be mostly a photo scavenger hunt along with a few other objectives that will ask you to bring things to us. Anything we will be asking for you to bring to us will not be expensive and most things will be free. When you gather these items for dropping off at the brewery please put them in an envelope with your name, phone number, and email address on them. For the photos we ask that you either upload them in Facebook and share the album with us, or upload them to another photo sharing website and email us (travis@cigarcitybrewing.com OR info@cigarcitybrewing.com) a link to the page. When uploading your photos please name the album "CCB PHOTO SCAVENGER HUNT" so we know they are for us and be sure to put captions on the pictures. There is no cost to participate and the winner will be the first person to complete all the objectives OR who ever has completed the most objective by the end of the week.
The winner will be announced by the beginning of next week and they will receive a seriously rare collection of Cigar City Brews from our secret stash.. Here are the clues and objectives:
- Get your picture taken with this famous Cuban National Hero who spent time in Tampa around the turn of the 19th Century.
- Convince the bartender at your favorite bar to let you pour your own CCB Brew. –Not applicable to the CCB tasting room.
- Take a picture of yourself eating a Cuban sandwich.
- Get a picture of yourself enjoying a pint at another local brewery in Tampa Bay.
- Get your picture taken with your favorite CCB bartender or employee. Tell us why they are your favorite.
- Bring us a beer coaster from another American craft brewery. Extra Points for more than one and for coasters from local breweries.. NO DUPLICATES!
- The Maduro Brown Ale pairs well with two of our favorite Cuban foods. Get a picture of you eating one of them. HINT: It’s not a Cuban Sandwich that was the other objective!
- Get a picture of someone wearing a T-Shirt from Cigar City Brewing in public. It can’t be taken at the brewery! Extra Points for another picture with someone wearing the shirt for another local brewery.
- Bring us an ingredient used in the making of beer.
- Bring us a photo of you drinking an IPA. (other styles?)
- Get a photo of you drinking a CCB brew at Tropicana Field or Bright House Field
- Get a picture of you with the Sulfur Springs tower.
- Get a picture of a Jai-Alai player. Can be a current or former player, they are around you just have to find them!
- Get a picture of someone rolling a cigar.
- Get a picture of the building that once housed Florida’s oldest brewery. Hint: It's near Ybor City
- Find Cigar City Beer on the shelves of a grocery store and take a picture.
- Use your empty Cigar City bottles, cases, coasters, etc. to make art! You can make something and bring it to us, or just take a picture.
- Visit an authentic Tocobaga Indian Mound and get a picture.
- Find Cigar City beers in a gas station.
- Get a picture of yourself enjoying a CCB beer on or near the water. It can be on the beach, on a boat, on a dock, etc.
Also happening today will be our Blind IPA tasting- Think you know your IPAs? We'll see.. Try six different beers and select from our list of many which ones you think are which. The cost will be $6, and person who is closest to choosing all correctly will also win a collection of beers from our own private collection. It all goes from 5:30pm-7:30pm.
Tuesday will be the Swamp Head Tap Takeover, at 5pm we will host Luke from Swamp Head and change almost all the taps in the tasting room to pour a seriously sick collection of beers from this very special brewery from up the road in Gainesville. Growler fills will be available of selected Swamp Head brands, and we will keep Jai-Alai IPA and Maduro Brown available as well for pints and growlers just in case you just have to get your fix!
Wednesday is Movie Night! Join us for 2 beer geek selections "Beer Wars" and "The American Brew" along with popcorn, candy, and BEER! We will begin with the first movie at 6:30pm and do a short intermission between the two movies.
Thursday we will host a Cheese and Chocolate Tasting, come and try your favorite Cigar City brews paired with a selection of artisan cheeses and chocolates. This tasting is free of charge and will run from 5-8pm.
Friday is Grain to Glass with Ben Romano, our pilot brewer. Ben will be brewing 2 batches on our pilot system and guiding participants through the process of making beer from start to finish. The are two sessions, morning and afternoon. The morning session is full, but there are still spots for the afternoon session which will begin about 2:30pm. To reserve your space email travis@cigarcitybrewing.com.
Saturday We will release Nielsbohrium a very special collaboration we did a few months ago with Mikkeller. This Imperial Sweet Stout brewed with raisins has been mellowing in rum barrels for a few month and is ready to go! The release will begin with the opening of the tasting room and will continue until it runs out. Bottles will $20 and there will be a limit of a case (12 bottles). Also on Saturday we will have lots of very special beers from both Milkkeller and us on draft so come out and have a few!
Cheers!
The CCB Crew
