*This looks like a crew we'd like to drink with!*

By Sean Tuohy

Since Daniel Ford got to rejoice in interviewing a brewery from his beloved Astoria, N.Y., it was only fair that I got to chat with one from my old neck of the woods.

So pull up a Tim Dorsey novel, park yourself on the beach, and have a drink with Miami’s Wynwood Brewing Company, makers of South Florida's first craft beer.

Cheers!

Sean Tuohy: Give us a little background on your history and how you started brewing.

David Rodriguez (head cellarman/assistant brewer): I started brewing after graduating high school out of necessity to make beer because I couldn't legally purchase it as well as to experiment with different ingredients.

ST: Wynwood area has a lot of history in Miami. Why did you pick this location for the brewery?

DR: We chose Wynwood because it is an up and coming neighborhood. The entire district is covered head to toe with incredible graffiti murals and street art. There are many young professionals creating businesses here and there is a very prevalent "mom and pop" mentality with these local businesses. Also, Wynwood is a Puerto Rican barrio so it definitely falls in line with our owners' heritage.

ST: You are Miami's first craft beer. What does that honor feel like?

DR: Being Miami's first production craft brewery means that we will set the standard for local craft beer. It is a tremendous honor and one that doesn't come without hard work to build and maintain our reputation.

ST: Craft beer is not the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Miami. Why did you pick the Magic City as your location?

DR: We felt that Miami is the last frontier for craft beer in the Florida as well as the United States. There are many local breweries throughout the country and for some reason Miami has zero. You can find breweries in Tampa, Jacksonville, Orlando, etc. but none here. We are happy to be the first but we won't be the last. There are already two other breweries in construction here in Wynwood with an additional two to four more in planning. Also, there are two breweries in construction over in Doral. Miami needs an identity when it comes to craft beer and we are here to create that.

ST: For a newbie what beer would you recommend them to start with from Wynwood?

DR: Beer is very personal; it depends on the preferences of the drinker. I would recommend a tasting beginning with La Rubia, which is our Blonde Ale, followed by Pops Porter and the Wynwood IPA. Different people tend to gravitate towards different beers and I wouldn't judge someone to drink a lighter beer just because it was what they were raised on.

ST: What was your biggest mistake brewing?

DR: Not buying a bigger brewhouse! We currently brew 15 barrels at a time (465 gallon batches) and since opening in August have outgrown our current equipment. In February, we tripled our capacity by adding more fermenters and conditioning tanks. The demand is huge!

ST: Could you describe your beer in one sentence?

DR: "A work of art in every glass." Cheesy? I'm not sure…you be the judge.

ST: What does the future hold for Wynwood? Will our readers be able to find you nation wide soon?

DR: Soon we will be bottling some of our barrel-aged beers. Currently, we are aging a wheat wine in petite syrah barrels (been aging since December of last year) as well as a Belgian golden strong aging in Bulleit Bourbon Barrels. These beers will be bottle conditioned in 750ml wine bottles with cap and wax. Also, we will be most likely expanding our operation to an additional building. Lots to come.

ST: If you were in Prohibition times, do you think you’d be bootleggers?

DR: That or we'd move to the Bahamas! I can't imagine it would be easy to hide an operation like ours.

ST: If you were stuck on a deserted island with just one case of one of your beers, which one would it be and why?

DR: Magic City Pale Ale. It’s our brewmaster's recipe of a very quaffable pale ale with medium bitterness and juicy hop flavors and aroma. Sitting at 5.6 percent , this is something I can drink a lot of.

To learn more about Wynwood Brewing Company, check out its official website or follow the brewery on Twitter @WynwoodBrewing.

Happy Hour Archive

*Majestic and smooth...Kentucky Bourbon Ale*

By Daniel Ford

Not long ago, Sean and I had a brainstorming session at Hugh O’Neills, our favorite watering hole in Malden, Mass., following an afternoon of marathon podcast recording.

I was struggling to choose a beer, but my eyes kept coming back to one brewed by the Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co.

“How’s the Kentucky Bourbon Ale?” I asked our waitress, as one does during moments of boozy indecision.

“A lot of people order it,” she said. “It’s good.”

Well, with that hard sell how could I not try it?

I wasn’t disappointed. The beer came to me ice cold and it poured nicely into the handsome pint glass I was given. It was refreshingly sweet and smooth, with an oaky finish usually accompanied by hard, brown liquor in a heavy glass.

By the time I finished my second bottle, a new idea for Writer’s Bone was born. We couldn’t be more pleased to start our Friday Happy Hour series with the brewers of Kentucky Bourbon Ale.

Nathan Canavera, the brand manager for Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co. , answered some of my questions recently and made me very, very thirsty.

Cheers!

Daniel Ford: Your company has a lengthy and colorful history. Give us a little background on that history and how you started brewing and distilling.

Nathan Canavera: Much too much to list, check out this video.

Daniel Ford: Kentucky is known for bourbon. What kind of relationship do you have with the community and how have they reacted to what your brewery has to offer?

NC: When we began brewing our beers after we bought the brewery in 1999, it was a much different landscape than craft beer is today. Craft beer and brew pubs were not on every corner. We had a very grassroots approach to pouring beer at every event that would let us in the door. At that time, and for years after, the yellow fizzy water was the choice of brew for central Kentucky. We built a craft following locally with sponsoring what events we could afford and Lexington was very supportive. Years later, we came upon what is now our flagship, Kentucky Bourbon Barrel Ale, and like you said, Kentucky is known for bourbon and it has taken off like wildfire for us!

DF: How did the idea for your Kentucky Bourbon Ale come about?

NC: The video goes over that a bit, but with Dr. Pearse Lyons history of both whiskey and coopers, as well as his background with Jameson in Ireland, he had a connection with the use of barrels. Fast forward to the brewery where we have barrels on display and we are tripping over barrels here in Kentucky, where there are more barrels with bourbon aging than people. Seems like a no brainer!

DF: All of your products have won multiple awards. Which award are you most proud of?

NC: I think the Silver Medal at the World Beer Cup in 2010. This came at a point where we were really beginning to see our growth take off and had opened into Ohio. This award put our brands on the map nationally and it was a huge honor to receive amongst our brothers and sisters in the craft community.

DF: You’re on Facebook and Twitter, and also manage a blog on your website. What’s your social media strategy and how has it helped build your brand?

NC: Funny enough I started our Facebook and Twitter pages years ago before they were seen as business pages. It was a way to engage customers and get feedback at little to no cost. Now, as you mention, it requires strategy, full-time upkeep, as well as individuals with writing skills far surpassing that of a simple beer guy. That being said, we still view social media as our direct line to the consumer—an open arena for good, bad, fun, silly, and serious discussions about our brands, our industry, and our competitors. Our goal is to keep our friends and followers as up to date as possible on everything in our world as well as answer any and all questions or concerns they may have. We know how much work went to getting to where we are today and how important our loyal supporters are to our success.

DF: If you were in Prohibition times, do you think you’d be bootleggers?

NC: Much like the Lexington Brewing Co. did in Prohibition, I feel like we would have been just like they were: brewing low/non-alcohol beers, but still brewing beer on the side. They were later busted and on one sad day the streets of Lexington were flooded with beer.

*Beer filling the streets during Prohibition*

DF: If you were stuck on a deserted island with just one case of one of your spirits, which one would it be and why?

NC: Our new Rye, Town Branch Rye would be it for me!! The spicy notes of this whiskey, as well as its higher proof (100 would last longer on the island), would make this easy to enjoy while deserted…hopefully I wouldn’t have to share!

DF: What’s next for Lexington Brewing and Distilling Co.? What does the future look like?

NC: Hopefully we can continue to see the growth we’ve experienced over the last 14 years, we look for continued expansion into new territories while still back filling the territories we currently distribute within and filling in the gaps in our footprint. Our spirits are slowly following in the footsteps of the distribution of the beers that had a good six-plus years head start. As always, we need more pots and pans to continue to grow and these are all great problems to have!

DF: Name one random fact about your company.

NC: Dr. Lyons, our owner and original brewmaster, was the first Irishman to gain a formal degree in brewing.

To learn more about the Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co., visit its official website, like its Facebook page, or follow the brewery on Twitter @KentuckyAle.

Friday Happy Hour With Miami's Wynwood Brewing Company

Happy Hour Archive

Friday Happy Hour With Lexington Brewing & Distilling Co.

Happy Hour Archive