The best week(end) starts Thursday with National IPA Day, a hoppier day of the year than usual for the popular beer style, followed by National Mead Day, which falls on Saturday. To celebrate, follow this roundup of taprooms and bars around the bay with events and deals in store for the drink holidays.
All events take place under the day they're listed unless otherwise noted.
IPA DAY
The Ale and the Witch At this celebration of hops, the Witch will feature $4 single IPAs and $5 double/imperial taps all day. IPA beer cheese dips will also be on hand — while supplies last — for $3, and live music later in the night will come from Barney Waterbury and Leta Woloshuk of the Urban Gypsies. Free, money for beer and food. 3 p.m.-midnight. 111 Second Ave. NE, St. Petersburg, 727-821-2533, thealeandthewitch.com.
Brew Bus Brewing All 20 draft lines in the Seminole Heights brewery's tasting room will feature IPAs for the occasion. Expect beers like Brew Bus's blueberry and white oak IPAs, plus mango pepper and raspberry variations from Florida Avenue Brewing Co. Each pour will be available in growlers and crowlers, too. Free, money for beer. 4-11 p.m. 4101 N. Florida Ave., Tampa, 813-990-7310, brewbususa.com.
Willard's Tap House "All Hail the IPA! Mightiest of the Ales!" proclaims Willard's. Get here for a crash course in IPAs, which, according to the Tap House, is "often criticized for a lack depth and dimension." Everything from English to session IPAs will be showcased. Free, money for beer. 4 p.m. 12500 Starkey Road, Largo, 727-581-8600.
World of Beer Westchase WOB is set to present tons of local and limited IPAs, including Angry Chair Limited, Rock Brothers Rebelution IPA and Cigar City Continental Drift. Free, money for beer. Aug. 7, 3 p.m.-2:30 a.m. 9525 W. Linebaugh Ave., Tampa, 813-852-2337.
MEAD DAY
American Homebrewers Association Try the AHA's official Mead Day recipe for blueberry mead, a semisweet honey wine from the 2015 National Homebrew Competition. Pick up necessary ingredients from your neighborhood homebrew supply store — St. Pete's Avid Brew Company, Southern Brewing & Winemaking in Seminole Heights, and Clearwater's HiFi Homebrew and BBQ Supply among them.
Cigar City Cider & Mead This year, share your mead with friends at this cidery and meadery's bottle share from 1 to 3 p.m. Mead master Jared Gilbert has also developed a lineup of creative recipes to feature on tap, including offerings like the Barrel-Aged Moose Blood (vikings blood), Strange Bedfellows (dry black mead) and El Presidente (oak-aged pyment). Check out the full list of nectars on the Facebook event. Free, money for mead. Aug. 6-7, 11 a.m. 1812 N. Tampa St., Tampa, 813-242-6600, cigarcitycider.com.
This article appears in Aug 4-11, 2016.