Jax Beer Week is quickly approaching and the calendar of events for the week is filling out nicely. As you may recall, in previous years the week was held in May as a lead up to the Jacksonville Craft and Import Beer Festival. But, this year the event is being managed by The Jax Beer Society, a group of local craft beer industry insiders such as distributors and brewers along with members of the public who have joined to support the local Jacksonville beer scene. The group sponsors monthly gatherings at local breweries to preach the gospel of good, local craft beer and convert new followers.
Events for the week are still being scheduled, but the current roster leaves little to be desired
Saturday, November 7
Brew Five Points (1024 Park St.) kicks the week off by serving a brunch featuring Founders Breakfast Stout and items made of spent-grain from the brewing process. Members of The Jax Brewing Society and ticket-holders for the Mash In event held later in the afternoon receive 10-percent off purchases. Brunch begins at 9:00 a.m.
The official Jax Beer Society kickoff event is the “Mash In” that will be held at Engine 15’s new downtown production brewery (601 Myrtle Ave.). The event will feature beers from all local breweries, food tucks, live music and more. General admission tickets are $35 and VIP tickets that include access an hour earlier, lunch and special beers are $55. Tickets may be purchased online here.
Jacksonville’s local amateur brewers club – Cowford Ale Sharing Klub (CASK) – will be set up in front of Just Brew It (2670 Roselle St.) for a demonstration on how the world’s favorite alcoholic beverage is brewed. The event coincides with the store’s 10-year anniversary and will include a crowd-judged homebrew contest. More information is available on Just Brew It’s website.
Tap takeovers are a staple of any beer week and Jax Beer Week is no different. The new kids on the block at the Beaches, Really Good Beer Stop (323 10th Ave. N.) will feature 10 local craft beers on tap for growler and crowler fills all week. See the store’s website for more details and hours.
Swing by Earth Fare (11901 Atlantic Blvd.) for a taste of SweetWater brews.
Sunday, November 8
TBD
Monday, November 9
Join the fun folks at Alewife Craft Beer & Bottle Shop (1035 Park St.) for A Night of Mead. The event will feature mead – also called honey wine – from B. Nektar Meadery and local mead producer Harris Meadery. The fun starts at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $33 and can be purchased online here.
Kickbacks (910 King St.), one of the anchor bars in the King Street Beer District, will feature beers from local brewery Engine 15 from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Boynton Beach brewery Due South will be featured at Beer:30 San Marco (1543 San Marco Blvd.) from 5:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Kitchen on San Marco (1402 San Marco Blvd.) has not been open long, but they have already garnered a reputation as a great place for farm-to-table food paired with great craft beers. The Jax Beer Week, they will offer daily specials on local craft beers paired with unique nibbles.
The Hourglass Pub (345 E Bay St.) will feature daily tap take overs that include three collaborative brews.
Tuesday, November 10
For those with a sweet tooth, Alewife will host a beer and dessert pairing starting at 6:30 p.m. Funky Buddha will provide the beers while desserts will come from locally-owned restaurant Moxie Kitchen and Cocktails. Tickets are $38 and available online here.
German-themed bar and restaurant Hoptinger (333 1st St N.)in Jacksonville Beach will feature an Aardwolf pint night with six of the brewer’s beers on tap and a free glass. The event takes place from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m.
Highland Brewing Company will serve Breakfast for Dinner at Mellow Mushroom Avondale (3611 St Johns Ave.) from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. The event will feature the brewery’s Black Mocha Stout, Thunderstruck and Gaelic Ale that were aged with maple chips.
Think you know your beer? Prove it at Engine 15 (1500 Beach Blvd.). Put on your thinking cap and beer goggles and get to E15 for Beer Trivia from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Noting goes better with a cold beer than a great burger. Burgerfi (108 Riverside Ave.) agrees and will offer four Intuition Ale Works Specialty brews on tap and several can selections for just $3. Want to pair your brew with a delicious burger? Pony up $7 and it is yours! The event goes from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Due South Brewing heads north from Boynton Beach for a special tapping at Kickbacks from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Tenacious Tuesday brings a special rare or one-off tapping at Pinglehead Brewing Company (14 Blanding Blvd.)located inside Brewer’s Pizza.
The Silver Cow (1506 King St.) plays host to a special tapping of three collaborative brews beginning at 7:00 p.m.
Wednesday, November 11
Drink and help the whales. Green Room Brewing Company (228 3rd St. N.) will host a special tapping of Vanilla Imperial Stout from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. A portion of the proceeds from each pint sold will go to the Sierra Club to help with Right Whale preservation.
Beer and cheese go together like, well, beer and cheese. Indulge in a decadent pairing of five delicious artisan cheeses paired with equally delicious Cigar City beers and ciders. Alewife is hosting the event at 6:30. Tickets are $33 and available online here.
Roll out the barrel at Engine 15 for Barrel-aged beer night. Try selections from the E15 stable of brands that have been aged in a variety of barrels from 5:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Kitchen on San Marco pairs four brews from Green Bench brewing with a la cart menu items.
The age old question of whether to drink beer or wine with dinner is finally put to the test with a Beer vs. Wine dinner a Royal Palm Village Wine & Tapas (296 Royal Palms Dr.) in Atlantic Beach. Diners will enjoy five dishes paired with Engine 15 beers and Stacoe wines. Tickets are $65 and can be obtained by calling (904) 372-0052.
Thursday, November 12
Science! Beer science that is. Join the folks at Alewife for an evening of discussion about barrel aging and wild yeast. There will be plenty of samples, too. Tickets are available online here.
For those of you who were not fortunate enough to get a ticket to Cigar City’s Hunahpu’s Day this year, this event is for you. Head over to Poe’s Tavern (363 Atlantic Blvd.)in Atlantic Beach for a Cigar City tap take over that will include such hard-to-find and highly-coveted beer as Hunahpu’s Imperial Stout and Marshal Zhukov’s Imperial Stout. The tapping begins at 6:00 p.m.
Bring in your MaB stein for $8 fills at Engine 15 from 5:00 p.m. to midnight. Don’t have your own MaB, nut one of E15’s.
Proof Brewing Company of Tallahassee is taking North Florida by storm. Try some of their tasty suds at two tasting events. From 5:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. grab a pint at Grape & Grain Exchange (2000 San Marco Blvd.) Then catch up with the gang at Kickbacks from 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. for more.
Bold City Brewing Company will invade The Silver Cow for a tap takeover from 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.
Rain Dogs (1045 Park St.) will feature the brews of Ballast Point Brewing Company. Look for taps pouring The Big Eye, Grapefruit and Habanero Sculpin and bottles of The Commodore.
Friday, November 13
Breweries from the four corners of Florida will take to the taps in the Intuition Ale Works (720 King St.) brewery bar. Beginning at 5:00 p.m. guests will be able to taste beers from Miami’s Wynwood Brewing, Tallahassee’s Proof Brewing, Tampa’s Cigar City Brewing and two Jacksonville breweries – Engine 15 and Aardwolf – as well as Intuition’s regular lineup of brews.
The art of the pub crawl is not lost on Jax Beer Week. But, this year the crawl has a twist. Lumberjackies Pub Crawl will see the women of Jacksonville’s craft beer scene dress up as lumberjacks and leading fellow crawlers to stops in Riverside including M Shack, Alewife, Rain Dogs, Silver Cow and Dahlia’s Pour House.
Saturday, November 14
Start the last day of Jax Beer Week with a hearty brunch at Brew Five Points. Beers from Aardwolf will be featured and used in several offerings. Enjoy White Russian Stout Speedballs, Ermah Gourd Pumpkin Waffles and spent grain pastries.
The final event of Jax Beer Week 2015 is the Florida Brewers Guild Barrel-Aged and Sour Fest. Sour heads and barrel-aged aficionados will be in heaven tasting brews from over a dozen local and Florida craft breweries. Tickets for the event that will take place at Intuition Ale Works from 2:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. are $35 for general admission and $50 for VIP (one hour early entry, chance to participate in discussions). You can purchase tickets online here.
