Straight to Ale Florida Panhandle Launch

Just recovering from Back Forty's arrival in Pensacola? Well, there's no rest for the wicked. Next week is launch week of Straight to Ale Brewing to the Pensacola area. Straight to Ale is located in Huntsville, Alabama and they pride themselves on being "Southern Born. Southern Brewed"

Want to learn more about Straight to Ale before the launch events? Draft Magazine featured them as a "Brewery to Watch" earlier this year. Mod Mobilian also just covered Straight to Ale in their new "Drink Local" series.

DRINK LOCAL episode one STRAIGHT TO ALE brewery Huntsville, AL from ModMobilian.com TV on Vimeo.

Straight to Ale's current regular lineup of beers consists of:

They also brew seasonals and special "occasional" beers. Hopjacks' own "beer geek" Tim Dohms recently reviewed Monkeynaut in one of his weekly reviews.

There are multiple events being held throughout the week to celebrate the roll-out of Straight to Ale to the area. We will update this post with more information regarding these events as its released.

  • Tuesday, June 18th
    Launch Party
    World of Beer - Palafox
    Straight to Ale happy hour all night.

  • Wednesday, June 19th (6pm - 12pm)
    Fishale Taphouse & Grill
    Pint Night & Launch Party
    Okay, so not exactly in the Pensacola area but we hear this is a must visit for craft beer lovers when near Panama City Beach. Receive a pint glass when you buy a Straight to Ale beer and meet brewery representatives.

  • Thursday, June 20th
    Launch Party
    Mellow Mushroom (Destin)

  • Friday, June 21st (8:30 pm)
    Launch Party / Devil Costume Party
    Hopjacks Pizza and Taproom - Downtown
    A chance to meet the owners and brewers of "Straight to Ale" and receive free brewery products and Schwag. Two of Straight to Ale's seasonal beers will also be on tap, He Ain't Hefe Weizenbier and Stop Work 689 Kolsch. Everyone is encouraged to dress as the devil for this costume party, there will be prizes for the best costumes.

  • Saturday, June 22nd (3 - 6 pm) Can Jam
    Wine World - Destin
    Meet Straight To Ale's Head Brewer and owner Dan Perry at this event. Chan's is also giving away three golden tickets for Cigar City's Barrel Aged Hunahpu Imperial Stout and a pair of Maui Jim sunglasses. Multiple deals: $3 for cans, $4 drafts, $4 build your own burrito. Musical entertainment provided by Hotel Oscar. There is a $5 entry fee.

Back Forty Arrives in the Panhandle

We were happy to recently hear that Back Forty Beer Company based out of Gadsen, Alabama would soon be distributed to the Pensacola area. Well, the time has arrived and you can join others in welcoming Back Forty to the Pensacola area. This week Hopjacks Downtown, World of Beer Palafox, and the Atlas Oyster House are all holding events to welcome this Alabama craft brewery to Pensacola.

Back Forty's current beer lineup includes the following:

Monday, June 10th, Hopjacks - Downtown is holding their official Back Forty Brewing Company launch party. Members of Back Forty brewery will be present from 7 pm - 9 pm and all of their above listed beers will be available for you to try. This is also a pint night, so you get to keep the glass after your first purchase and re-fills are $1.00 off for the rest of the night.

On Tuesday, June 11th, WoB Palafox is also holding a Back Forty pint night. Another chance to try there brews, take home a glass, and of course get more loyalty points!

Also on Tuesday, June 11th, Atlas Oyster House will be holding the final Atlas Beer Class (A.B.C) of the semester starting at 6pm. Back Forty will be the featured brewery for the event which includes appetizers, sample beer tastings, and a meet and greet with Back Forty Brewmaster Tripp Collins. Reservations required (Call Lauren 850.516.2324) and cost is $20 per person.

Atlas Oyster House Event Flyer

Try and make it to at least one of these events this week and give Back Forty a proper welcome to Pensacola!

Sweetwater Brewing's 16th Anniversary Party

Hopjack's Event Flyer

Sweetwater Brewing recently celebrated their 16th birthday and they're bringing the party to Hopjacks - Downtown this Friday, March 1st starting at 9pm.

They're bringing some great party favors Sweetwater 16 Anniv. Glasswareincluding limited edition "Sweetwater 16 Anniversary Glassware". These unique glasses will go quickly so don't show up fashionably late if you hope to acquire one of these beauties.

Of course, what type brewery birthday party would it be without some celebratory beer? Sweetwater decided that this special occasion required an equally special brew. They will be bringing a keg of their latest Dank Tank project "16th Anniversary Ale" which Sweetwater describes on their website as:

The brewers went out of the box with this super heady limited-run Dank Tank release. With a license to brew, they stepped on the gas and whipped out a racy Red Wheat Wine (say that five times fast). This beer rips down the road at 11% ABV, fueled by a 45% wheat bomb and an after-burner hop shot of Amarillo, Willamette, Nelson Sauvin, and US Goldings creating a brew that is sure to raise some hairs.

Head down to Hopjacks Friday night and wish Sweetwater happy birthday. We look forward to many more years enjoying this southern breweries libations.

Hopjacks Beer Tastings with Tim Dohms

Did you miss this past Thursday's Southern Tier Beer Tasting with Tim Dohms at the Nine Mile Hopjacks? We have good news. Hopjacks is holding more tastings on Thursdays from 5-7pm. Each event will be held at a different Hopjacks establishment and either feature a brewery or a theme. The schedule for upcoming tastings is:

All of these tastings are free to attend! So mark your calendars to attend at least one, if not all, of these great tasting events.

Sweetwater LowRYEder IPA Launch Party

This Tuesday November 20th, Sweetwater Brewing Company is holding a LowRYEder IPA launch party in Pensacola at not one location but at all three Hopjack locations.

As described on Sweetwater's own websites, LowRYEder, a Bronze medal winner at the Great American Beer Festival, is:

A flame throwin’ Rye IPA ignited by a 25% shot of rye malt and capped by a booty hoppin’ blast of Mt Hood and Centennial hops that makes this IPA bounce!

And for those interested in the "specs" on this IPA:

Grains: 2 Row, Rye Malt, CaraRye, Rye Flakes, Munich
Hops: Columbus, Mt Hood, Centennial
Dry Hop: Centennial, Mt Hood
ABV: 6.2%
IBUs: 45

RateBeer gives the LowRYEder an 83 overall / 88 style and Beeradvocate gives it an 85 (The Bros an 83).

The scheduled start time for each location is:

They will be holding glassware and other shwag giveaways.