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Indigenous Draughts

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By KURT LOFT | The Tampa Tribune

Published: October 18, 2007

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Ale or lager?

For anyone with a tongue for fine beer, the choice is as critical as paper or plastic, charcoal or propane, Republican or Democrat. History ferments with impassioned distinctions between the two brews, whether sipped in Dublin or Dunedin, Tynemouth or Tampa.

But distinctions are less important during October - the official beer-drinking month - than enjoying both pours at the local brewpub, where indigenous, handcrafted draughts reign superior over their mass-produced cousins.

Given the choice between a six-pack of Budweiser from the supermarket or an Iron Rat stout from the Tampa Bay Brewing Co., most people would go with the former. The rest of us know better, as we appreciate what four simple ingredients - water, hops, yeast and barley - become in the hands of a true suds surgeon.

"I attack the brewing of the beer from the perspective that this is my personal tap house and beer supply," says David Doble, brewmaster at the Tampa Bay Brewing Co., which operates a 10-barrel brewing system in Ybor City. "I brew beers that I really like to drink and enjoy myself, and I brew them to the way I interpret the traditional style of the beer."

Doble underscores the attitude of three brethren brewpubs in Tampa, Dunedin and Sarasota that make beer not for the masses, but local tastes. Those tastes range from sweet to bitter, malty to hoppy.

The three brew houses craft their beer in much the same way a small vineyard creates a boutique wine, evident in such classics as Pipers Pale Ale, Midnight Pass Porter and Shark Fin Stout. The flavors of clove and banana dominate Doble's latest batch of Wild Warthog Weizen.

"Our philosophy is just to give people something different to drink," says Vicki Doble, who runs the Ybor brewpub with son David. "More people are becoming beer connoisseurs, and more people are drinking a selection of different beers instead of just one style."

Doble's pub has a big following: Its Mug Club of 650 members pay $55 to join and own a personalized drinking vessel kept clean and ready behind the bar. Along with a lot of thirsty tourists, the Mug Club members help consume 100 barrels each month - about 3,000 gallons of beer.

On average, a batch of Ybor-born beer takes eight hours to cook, five days to ferment and another 10 days to chill and condition.

And yeast is a big deal. With ale, the yeast ferments on top of the liquid; with lager, the fermenting yeast stays on the bottom. Ales ferment and age quickly at warm temperatures, while lagers mature slowly at cool temperatures. The temperature also determines the type of yeast to be used.

But little of this matters to the novice beer drinker, who views an ale as more robust and a lager as clean and less filling.

"It's all about personal taste," says Vicki Doble, who traces her devotion to beer back to Liverpool, England, where she was born. "I love pale ale, while somebody else loves stout. But I could drink oatmeal stout by the gallon."

The Dunedin Brewery barely acknowledges the lager crowd, making only one lighter beer, an Imperial Pilsner. All the rest of its annual and seasonal creations are ales, and many hold their own each year in the Best Florida Beer Championship, including Highland Games Ale, Leonard Croon's Old Mean Stout, Celtic Gold, and a wheat-style concoction bursting with the flavors of Oregon apricots.

The brewery also makes a large quantity of beer and sells much of it off premises, technically making it a microbrewery rather than a brewpub.

"You get more variety with ales, and they're more hearty," says Kevin Norris, who works the bar. "Lagers are light and take a long time to ferment. So we're pretty much an ale house."

A large selection of both hold court at the Sarasota Brewing Company, which pumps out more than 200 gallons of handcrafted liquid a week under the watchful eye of brewmaster Vince Pelozzi. Shortcuts are not part of his repertoire.

"I'm more of a traditionalist when it comes to styles," he says. "For instance, I make my wheat beer with coriander. I strive for something that's clean and has a lot of flavor, but no off flavors."

Like most master brewers, Pelozzi creates a mental picture of a style of beer, then goes after it.

"I have an idea in my head of what I want it to taste like, so I don't have to spend a lot of time doing trial batches," he says. "Nothing stays the same. Every year's crop is a little different because beers are living products."

READY FOR A PINT?

Tampa Bay Brewing Co.

1600 E. Eighth Ave., Ybor City

11:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, until 11 p.m. Friday and Saturday, closed Sunday

(813) 247-1422; tampabaybrewingcompany.com

Dunedin Brewery

937 Douglas Ave., Dunedin

4 to 11 p.m. Tuesday, 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. Wednesday, 11 a.m. to 1 a.m. Thursday, 11 a.m. to 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday, closed Sunday and Monday

(727) 736-0606; dunedinbrewery.com

Sarasota Brewing Co.

6607 Gateway Ave., Sarasota

11 a.m. to 1 a.m. Monday through Saturday, noon to 1 a.m. Sunday

(941) 925-2337

BEER FEST

Want to taste a variety of fine, handcrafted brews? Then check out the third annual International Beer Fest, Saturday from 7 to 11 p.m. at Centennial Park, 1800 Eighth Ave., Ybor City. Tickets are $25 at the gate. (ID is required, and no one younger than 21 will be admitted). Proceeds will benefit the Humane Society of Tampa Bay.

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