Beer enthusiasts, assemble! This Saturday, Oct. 10, Bake’n Babes is releasing a collaboration beer brewed with Late Start Brewing and Pour House at Grand Central and inspired by the bakery’s Nutella stuffed salted chocolate chip cookies.
“I have always wanted to do a beer and have several grain bills already made for future beers!,” Bake’n Babes owner Julie Curry told Creative Loafing Tampa Bay in a message. “ I’ve always loved the beer community here in Tampa and how they always come together for a cause.”
One day, Curry got to talking with longtime friend John Loscalzo of Loko Cuisine, about the pandemic, and how local businesses are coming together. That’s when, Curry says, Loscalzo pitched the the Late Start Brewing guys (Andy Nietzel, Tyler Sankey, Jordan Copher and Nick Streeter) about doing a beer collab.
To create the Freak Shake Barrel Aged Imperial Stout, Curry brought the brewers samples of her desserts, and they made flavor profile notes.
“They really wanted to try to capture the taste of the Nutella cookie,” Curry explained.
That was done by fermenting the brew with local wildflower honey and lactose, aged in a honey bourbon barrel for 18 months before adding hand-roasted hazelnuts, freshly roasted cacao beans, Mexican vanilla, hazelnut coffee and sea salt.
The beer is set to release at 4 p.m. at Late Start/Pour House which is located in Channelside at 1208 E. Kennedy Blvd. no. 112 in Tampa.
The 750ml bottles are available to-go for $30. If you want a taste before snagging an entire bottle, Pour House is hosting a limited draft of the bubbly alongside a full lineup of Late Start beers on the day of the release.
A portion of proceeds from the sold Freak Shake bottled brews are being donated to Mary Lee’s House is a community collaboration committed to protecting, respecting and healing children of abuse and neglect in Hillsborough County.
Seeing as how bottle releases are usually popping with lines down the block thanks to the hardcore local beer lovers, make sure to wear your mask and practice social distancing.
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This article appears in Best of the Bay 2020.