10 must-try craft brews to cool down a steamy day on the Space Coast
In heaven there may be no beer, but there’s plenty of it on Florida’s Space Coast, where first-rate brewers have outlasted fad and fashion to become stalwarts of the food and beverage scene.
Friday is International Beer Day, and what better way to celebrate than with a craft brew made just a few feet away from where you're sipping it?
Whether you're looking for table-service meal with the option of craft cocktails or a casual hangout with a food truck parked out back, you'll find it. One of our local breweries even has a fenced-in dog play area.
You don't need to wait until Friday to celebrate. Here are 10 places where beer is brewed on site, plus some of our favorite cold ones for a hot afternoon:
321 Lime House at Carib Brewery
200 Imperial Blvd., Cape Canaveral, 321-728-4114, caribbreweryusa.com
321 Lime House is the beer garden/tap room side of Carib Brewery (formerly Florida Beer Co.) which, like so many breweries, offers entertainment, open mic nights, trivia, tours and all sorts of other things entertaining. But more than anything, it offers beers like 4.5% alcohol-by-volume (ABV) garnet-colored Kriek Lambic, or sour cherry Belgian brown ale.
More on Carib: Cape Canaveral brewing operation transitions from Florida Beer Company to Carib Brewery
Beachfly Brewing Co.
513 Barton Blvd., Rockledge, 321-305-6865, beachflybrewing.com
Beachfly has five core beers as well as rotating brews, one of which is Weather or Not, a 5% ABV, “fall-flavored” blond stout, the mixture of which includes cocoa nibs, fresh-roasted coffee, vanilla and pumpkin pie spices. Beachfly also has informal appetizers, sandwiches, wings and desserts. And when the weather is nice, let your four-legged pal enjoy the doggie play area.
Bugnutty Brewing Co.
225 King St., Cocoa, 321-452-4460, bugnutty.com
The Red Tails were the legendary Tuskegee Airmen, African-American pilots in World War II nicknamed after their P-51 Mustangs, tails of which were painted red. One of Bugnutty’s latest offerings is Red Tail Squadron, a double India Pale Ale, said by its creators to be “chock full of Flight 7cs hops, making it bold and relentless, like members of the Red Tail Squadron.” It’s one of many beers, ales and ciders brewed at Bugnutty, which also serves a variety of wines and non-alcoholic beverages as well as light, informal foods.
Dirty Oar Beer Co.
329 King St., Cocoa, 321-301-4306, dirtyoarbeercompany.com
520 Extra Pale Ale is described as a “light-bodied ale with pine and grapefruit notes, accentuated by Mosaic Incognito,” at 6.2% ABV. Beer and wine are to be found in one of Cocoa Village’s most congenial hangouts, and although it doesn’t have a kitchen, food trucks rack up sales in back of the beer garden behind the building. Dogs are welcome too, and dog-related events happen quite often there.
Hell n’ Blazes Brewery
1002 E. New Haven Ave., Melbourne, 321-821-4052, hellnblazesbrewing.com
Located in a 120-year-old building just east of the railroad tracks in downtown Melbourne, Hell n’ Blazes is a full-service gastropub with a bar that features premium spirits and cocktails. It also is a leader among brewers in the area, with regular favorites as well as seasonal brews, 25 wines and a cider. The 5.6% ABV Hurricane Repellant is described as “Berliner Weisse . . . A kettle-soured German wheat beer aged on mounds of pineapple and piles of coconut to make a tropical brew that wards off tropical storms, or worse.”
More on Hell 'n Blazes: Cheers! Melbourne brewery earns Best Florida Beer title in state competition
Intracoastal Brewing Co.
653 Eau Gallie Blvd., Melbourne, 321-872-7395, intracoastalbrewingcompany.com
Intracoastal, a stalwart among local microbreweries, has made its reputation as laid-back and family-friendly, not to mention Intra Eats, its much-respected food seller, and its long list of ever-cycling brews. Orange-A-Peel is a hefeweizen (German-style wheat beer) made with Florida oranges that has “mild banana and clove notes from the Bavarian yeast, balanced by a light malt backbone”. . . when available. If it’s available; Intracoastal cycles often.
Leader Brewing
2350 Commerce Park Drive, Palm Bay, 321-327-2043, leaderbrewing.com
The people who own Leader Brewing describe themselves as “veterans with a long history of getting things done,” and “things” includes non-alcoholic beers. Other local breweries love their “near beer,” which has an ABV of 0.5% or less, and it is available from noon to 4 p.m. every second and fourth Saturday in Leader’s tasting room. Leader's latest is its new Belgian Wit NA craft beer, available only in the tasting room.
More on Leader Brewing: Palm Bay brewery brings craft non-alcoholic beer to the Space Coast
Mash Monkeys Brewing Co.
920 U.S. 1, Sebastian, 772-571-6283, mashmonkeysbrewing.com
Mash Monkeys has become one of the stars of the beer-and-food scene in Indian River County, with a variety of beers as well as wines and Route 11 potato chips, which come in flavors like Chesapeake crab and dill pickle. A hot weather favorite is 5.1% ABV H.A.F.O. Persian Lime Cream Ale, which is treated with Persian limes and described as “crisp, light and refreshingly fruity.”
Playalinda Brewing Company Brix Project
5220 S. Washington Ave., Titusville, 321-567-5974, playalindabrewingcompany.com
This is the Playalinda brewery — and it is a brewery — where you go to have a good, creative meal as well as a cocktail or, better yet, one of the year-round or specialty beers that are too numerous to count here. Barn Light Saison, a saison being a Belgian-style pale ale that usually is highly carbonated and fruity and/or spicy, was named after Titusville’s own Barn Light Electric, from which Playalinda’s classic lighting fixtures came and which is owned by Bryan and Donna Scott, who also own Playalinda. This Barn Light is spicy, with a touch of green apple tartness, at 7% ABV.
Playalinda Brewing Company Hardware Store
305 S. Washington Ave., Titusville, 321-225-8978, playalindabrewingcompany.com/taprooms/hardware-store
A few miles north on Titusville’s main drag (U.S. 1) is the Hardware Store, which predates Brix and also is a microbrewery. There you enjoy your beverages, games and conversation inside the 100-year-old former hardware store, with its stamped metal ceiling and dark wood furnishings. It is unique here, with light foods and a tap list all its own, which currently includes Space Case, an American hopped “big” pale ale that is 7.5% ABV. No one ever complained about Playalinda Hardware’s big pretzels either.
Not just about the beer
“Brewery” does not mean “adults only,” nor does it mean “venue with things alcohol-related only.” In fact, some breweries in Brevard County have gone out of their way to make children feel welcome; at times, Intracoastal Brewing Co. looks more a playground than a lounge, the beer garden behind Dirty Oar has the look of a family picnic area and Beachfly is a favorite with kids as well as adults.
And then there are people who will do the driving, safely, or who simply do not care to imbibe alcohol.
The brewers understand, and the same facilities that produce porters and stouts sometimes also do sodas and soft seltzers. They include:
Beachfly: Kombucha and draft root beer
Bugnutty: Draft root beer
Mash Monkeys: Cold brew coffees
Playalinda, Brix and Hardware Store: Playalinda Craft Root Beer
Dowling is a freelance food and lifestyles writer based in Melbourne. Join the conversation at facebook.com/groups/321FlavorWhereBrevardEats.
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: 10 must-try Space Coast craft brews, plus root beer and kombucha
