New beer. New atmosphere. New philosophy. That’s what’s been going on inside a brewery in East Tampa’s manufacturing district since January.
Though Tampa Beer Works technically emerged from the defunct ESB Brewing at 333 N. Falkenburg Road, they bear little resemblance to each other. ESB’s change in ownership and beer philosophy prompted partners Francis Booth and Grayson DeGraff to make some adjustments. The new brewery’s launch was originally slated to coincide with Tampa Bay Beer Week next month, but DeGraff decided to pull the trigger early.
Featuring chalkboard art, various board games and plenty of seats, the around 600-square-foot tasting room is more open; DeGraff said it had a “kind of dark, English pub scenario” going on before. Once the weather gets warmer, shade sails will join the new live-music stage outside, and a five-barrel brewing system has allowed Tampa Beer Works to transform from a nanobrewery into a microbrewery.
Plus, the beers are different.
As DeGraff put it, ESB’s offerings didn’t fit with what they wanted to create, and now, the focus is American craft beer.
Tampa Beer Works head brewer Bob Hunt said he’s more creative in his brewing style, describing it as artistic but still controlled. Hunt has incorporated ingredients like cranberries, Florida strawberries and mandarin oranges into his creations, and there’s a core lineup of four to five brews, as well as rotating guest taps and one-offs.
With its Snowbird pale ale, a breakfast stout called Pappa Bear, the Hopped & Loaded double IPA and others, the brewery aims to appeal both to beer nerds and to those just getting into the scene.
“That’s the vibe we’re trying to create here,” DeGraff said, noting that each beer has a story behind it.
According to him, Tampa Beer Works plans to go to market with one or two beers driven by Florida and by what people don’t see everywhere, such as the Hopped & Loaded. First it’s off to kegs and craft beer bars, then to distribution. In 24 to 36 months, the brewery is also looking to move to a “much more vibrant” location. (There are pros and cons to having no frontage on a main road, after all.)
In addition to its headquarters, the brewery will be pouring at the annual Florida Brewers Guild Craft Beer Festival in downtown Tampa as part of Beer Week. TBW is using a “more grassroots movement” — like word of mouth — to get its name out there.
“That’s when you get people coming back,” DeGraff said.
This article appears in Jan 28 – Feb 3, 2016.