The next stop of festival season brings us to Tampa, FL for this years Sierra Nevada Beer Camp. I haven’t been to Tampa in years and Guy and I were met by nothing but southern hospitality from the moment we got into town. It is something that is lost in most big cities these days. We drove in around lunch time because the festival did not start until 5 pm. As always we like to try at least one local brewery and find a bottle shop before a beer festival. We decided to go to Angry Chair Brewing. We had tried their beer earlier in the year at Brewvival in Charleston and we wanted to try more of their offerings. We were so glad we did. This small brewery is in the Seminole Heights District of Tampa and was outstanding! Everything we tried was better than the next. The winners included Ascension American IPA, The Awakening Milk Stout, their Red Ale and the hands down favorite Fionn Porter Hazelnut Coffee. A must stop when anyone visits Tampa.
We were running a little behind so we skipped the bottle shop this go round and headed to check into our hotel and then to get a bite to eat before Beer Camp. We decided to go to Holy Hog BBQ in downtown on E. Kennedy Blvd. We sat outside at the bar and I ordered a Cigar City Jai Alai IPA to go with my pulled pork and veggies. Always a good choice when in Florida. They had several craft beer offerings. We both were pleased with our food and the service from the polite staff. We finished up and walked a block to Curtis Hixson Park where the festival was to be held. A beautiful waterfront park along the Hillsborough River.
I attended the last Sierra Nevada Beer Camp in Mills River, NC in 2014. I knew what to expect and just as before I was pleased as soon as we walked up. Sierra Nevada knows how to put on a beer festival. I had compiled a list of beers I wanted to try. As usual I have too many on my list. I try to get to them all but realistically that is not possible. I leave off beers that I already have tried. I know that there are beers at the festival that are stand out but I like to find the new ones. I love the heat so this was right up my alley. It was a little warm to say the least when 5 pm finally got here. So on to the winners for us. In no particular order they were Cigar City Hunahpu’s Stout, Funky Buddha Maple Bacon Coffee Porter, Smog City Coffee Porter, Abita Bourbon Street Coffee Stout, Proof Guava Passion Fruit Evil Kiss Berliner Weisse, Rapp Chocolate Peanut Butter Stout, Tampa Beer Works Get Falked! Double IPA, and Coastal Empire Southern Delight Praline Amber.
We left the festival and headed back to our hotel for the night. It was another great festival enjoyed by all. I can’t wait to see where Beer Camp will end up next time. Tampa was a great host city and we would not hesitate to return. Until then I hope to see everyone at the next beer festival.
Cheers!
Jason
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