Beer Review - Surabat Valley Harvest Brew

Surabat Valley Harvest Brew

I’m a pretty big Star Wars fan…but I have no idea where Surabat Valley is!

Apparently, it’s a tiny settlement on Battuu known for its wildness and remote location. It’s named after Ariana Surabat, an explorer who helped discover Batuu and helped establish it as an important trading post in the Other Rim. And as someone who has read books on Galaxy’s Edge and been there several times, well this is all new to me! This shows that while Disney created a unique Star Wars world, they may not have set up a story to share the land's secrets. But hey, is “Surabat Valley Harvest Brew”, the secret gem of Star Wars’ beers?

“Surabat Valley Harvest Brew” is a 4.5 ABV, 7 IBU gose kettle sour style beer. It is described as tart, salty, with a watermelon flavor. Honestly, many kettle sours for me can be fundamentally just tart and puckery. I have friends and family who love these styles, but for many of them, I grab it, my lips pucker and I’ve had my one sip. “Surabat Valley Harvest Brew” for me however didn’t create the physical puckering. It does have a light tartness to it, which let me know it is gose. It also has a light watermelon flavor to it that is matched with saltiness and reminds me of being a kid and sprinkling salt on fresh-cut watermelon. And then the third flavor of beer backs up the entire brew, yes it has beer flavor in this beer.

The brew is crafted by Terrapin Beer Co., which also makes “Hawkes’ Grog Ale”. While they may not have the corner on sci-fi specialty beers, they do seem to own the corner on fruity-styled space beers. “Surabat Valley Harvest Brew” does a much better job of featuring the fruit than Avatarbeer, which is shockingly still not blue.

The warning is always, sour can mean lots of things. Some sours, like gose and berliner weisse, can be truly puckery and too much for some. But if you have been buying a lot of sours loaded with fruit or milkshake style, they could be more like a fruit juice or smoothie, so read your menus carefully. This beer is not a smoothie, it’s a beer.

Who Drinks This? You’re at Oga’s Cantina or picking up a Ronto Wrap at the stand on Batuu. Batuu is always hot, there are two suns. So you want something refreshing, light, and fruity, this is your beer. It does have tones of beer, but it’s not going to weigh you down in the same way as a “Bad Motivator IPA” my favorite Star Wars beer. Sour fans, of the puckery kind, can also enjoy it as they will get that tartness. For some, it could be an entry-level sour-style beer. It is worth a try, but likely not for everyone.

But if you want a beer that screams Star Wars lore, you will likely ask yourself Ariana who and reach for a different galactic brew.

Brewery Review - Ten10 Brewing Company

 

A brewery or the local water hole?

As I thought about spending more time drinking in Orlando, honestly websites were pretty sketch on what the best breweries were, what they specialized in, and where were the best places to visit. With friends suggesting Ten 10 Brewing Company, even though I have been reading about breweries for a year…I knew nothing. I wondered what was in store with this mystery brew.

The outside was a fairly beige bland building displaying just a few, not super large signs alerting visitors that Ten10 was inside. It fits into the surrounding block, with some street-side parking, and a matching building that felt like I was in a more established Orlando neighborhood. The busy interior made me feel like I just walked into an older local joint, even older than its 2015 establishment. If I didn’t know this was a brewery, I may have defaulted to assuming it was a neighborhood bar. And I will continue to say local, local, local…this felt so much like a joint where folks who lived nearby could walk over, sit down, and order a drink using the well liquor. And with me seeing a sign for Marlot, well maybe there were mixed drinks to order. There were wine and non-alcoholic options. Seriously, if you have a Marlot sign there MUST BE Marlot available, right?

I went for two drinks. First, was the stout that my guide wanted, “Santa’s White Christmas”, a Golden Stout with a 7% ABV and a 0 ABV. I love big stouts and porters, I do not generally enjoy white stouts, with my old local giving my most consistent experience. This one was sweet and pleasant, though I would not say stout. Maybe the golden color confused my pallet. It was solid, maybe my favorite of the three white stouts I have drunk. Maybe by this time next year, that number will be up to four!

Santa's White Christmas

For a second drink, I grabbed “East West IPA”, an American IPA, with a 7% ABV (hey a theme), and 65 IBU. Allow me to say this dark straw-colored liquid does 100% of what it must do. East West is the flagship IPA that every brewery needs. It’s a standard hop-flavored bite, that is a standard IPA. I’d argue that it’s Cigar City’s “Jai Lai”, Surly’s “Furious”, or Founder’s “All Day IPA”. Every brewery needs one. When they fail to produce one, I worry about the production side of the house. But here it is, a beer that tells me this is a solid brewing staff who understand the assignment. And regardless of what my drinking companions believe, many people like IPAs and it’s because of flagships like “East West”. 

East West IPA

There are food options, gourmet hot dogs and sandwiches. I was told that the spent grain pretzel was wonderful, and it would have been a great addition to go with “East West”. Everyone loves, or should love, a really big soft warm pretzel.

Who Drinks Here? Did I mention that Ten10 feels super local? I don’t think you will find a unicorn beer on these taps. And it’s definitely not a must-visit for tourists who love craft beer. Instead, I think if you want to feel like you are escaping the tourist traps of Central Florida, Ten10 Brewing Company will offer you a local feel and the beer that scratches a craft niche. My visit was on a mixed night of friends and bad news, and the local feel pre-gamed me for a solid night. I can see myself visiting again, especially to get a pretzel!

Beer Review Lägermaiz

 

Lägermaiz Next to World Showcase Lagoon

I love running down a rabbit hole!

When this day started I thought I would write a history on corn beer or Chicha de Jora. I mean, the grain in some locations is traditionally chewed to prepare the mash. And in the United States, we have often debated the use of corn as a supplement to grain in our beers. Is your pilsner secretly hiding corn? Only your brewer may truly know! Corn and beer is just an interesting topic.

As I’ve looked at the drafts available at La Cantina de San Angel in Epcot and found myself intrigued. On my last visit, I grabbed the Hercules draft which is "Lägermaiz", a corn-based beer. Okay, this is clearly not a chewed corn beer, as it’s a very light yellow with no cloudiness. "Lägermaiz" is a crushabale 5 ABV with no IBUs. The taste to me came off as a light lager (beer which tastes like beer) with a touch of sweetness from the corn that pleased me as a boy from the Midwest. It was smooth and pleasing overall. I think this is accessible to drinkers on all levels as it’s not bitter and is very refreshing. 

Ignore corn, I was introduced Hercules or Hercules Brewing was a mystery to me. Compañía Cervecera Hércules S.A. de C.V. is a Mexican brewery that I have never heard of! Their website is only in Spanish but shows a lot of canned beers to choose from, pictures of an outdoor seating area, and some delightful photos from around the city. They are images that make me want to take a vacation to Mexico! Since I don’t speak Spanish and am lazy, I asked Chat GPT to tell me about the brewery..and then I laughed again:

“Compañía Cervecera Hércules S.A. de C.V. is a Mexican brewery company that produces and markets various types of beer. Here are some key points about Compañía Cervecera Hércules:

1. Location: The company is based in Mexico.

2. History: Compañía Cervecera Hércules has a history of brewing beer, likely dating back several years.

3. Products: The company produces a range of beer products, which may include different styles such as lagers, ales, and specialty brews.

4. Market Presence: While specific details about their market share or distribution network are not provided, Compañía Cervecera Hércules likely competes in the Mexican beer market alongside other well-known breweries.

5. Mission and Values: The company likely has its own mission statement and values that guide its operations, focusing on quality brewing, customer satisfaction, and possibly social responsibility initiatives (OpenAI. (2024). ChatGPT (3.5) [Large language model]. https://chat.openai.com).”

Every company should have mission and values right? Maybe AI is a little behind on taking over the Earth!

But seriously, this is what I love! I know very little about Compañía Cervecera Hércules S.A. de C.V.! But Epcot is introducing me to a beverage and brewery that I’ve never run into in my entire life. And with a small number of check-ins and ratings in Untappd, my bet is Epcot is a place where many are stumbling onto this brew. To me, this is part of the mission of Epcot, bringing the world to guests and helping us see a larger connected world! This is exactly what I am looking for at Epcot Festivals and don’t get enough of. Bravo Mickey!

Who Drinks This? There are so many options. If you are in the Mexico Pavilion, let’s say awaiting a showing of Luminous, "Lägermaiz" is refreshing and a good beverage to wash down a dinner or pre-nighttime speculator evening nightcap. If you are a beer nerd who likes to sample various styles and different new to you breweries, you can use this beer to check off two items. And finally, for those super into the mission and spirit of Epcot, cheers!

Brewery Review - Tactical Brewing Company

This is not a drill!

Tactical Brewing Company keeps popping up on my list of too-visit Central Florida craft breweries. As a lover of Imperial Stouts, they seem to be one of the few breweries that always have an Imperial on tap. And those beers generally seem to be rated fairly well. It is an Orlando-based brewery that seems to brew good beers and have something I want.

Tactical Brewing Company is located in a target-rich area for beer hunters. The building feels like you are entering an up-and-coming shopping and dining district full of activity and new buildings. It feels modern, open, and welcoming. It is not a barracks. The brewery itself has a modern feel, full of light, though a little cramped when full and loud. The founders are veterans, passionate about their beer and creating “Strategically Chaotic Beer” which could explain why an Imperial always seems to be on tap as it’s not a style for everyone! The tap room also has military embellishments and decorations in an understated manner that would welcome all beer nerds including the hipster kids. It is a nice balance of representing the brewery and its values, but not a spot only painted in greens or red, white, and blue. The bathroom, yes I mentioned the bathroom, was super clean and strategically chaotic in its decorations which made me laugh.

The Way We Rust

But, how is the beer? This was not my first stop! Being someone who advocates always drinking responsibly, I ordered just “The Way That We Rust”, a 12.5% ABV Imperial Stout with vanilla, cocoa nibs, and pecans. The battle plan was executed well, giving me a lot of sweet and nutty flavor. It was more than enough for me to say, yes, I will return to have more of their Imperials. It is nice to have an option in Orlando that is consistent with this style. My drinking companion, who does not enjoy Imperials, found “The Way That We Rust” to be sweet enough that she enjoyed it. For her enjoyment, she grabbed “Mo Muggles Mo Problems”, a Butter beer-inspired sour with a crushable 5% ABV. It may not have been my favorite boozy butter beer with some sourness coming through. But it may not be fair to compare it to a seltzer-style butterbeer, where the style adds nothing to the flavor making the brewing technique easier to camouflage. 

Haze Cult: Ahhhroma

Second Sips: I returned on a Saturday to chase down an Imperial Target. I grabbed the “Seeker in the Dark” an 11% ABV collaboration with Cerebral Brewing in Denver. I know I go around hyping bourbon barrel beers, but rum-enhanced imperials can be really sweet fun. This stout was aged on rum-soaked amburana and had flavors of toasted coconut, cinnamon, clove, and star anise. If you don’t like black licorice, well you’re wrong, but everything about matched my order of battle. I found it really sweet, and enjoyable, but since I had recently had a Bourbon County Stout Biscotti variant, I didn’t bring a bottle home. I also grabbed a “Haze Cult: Ahhhroma” an IPA with only one hop, Ahhhroma, which was solid and drinkable but not my favorite hazy.

I may not be ready to say that Tactical Brewing is my favorite craft brewery in Orlando…yet. But it has all the markers of a potential favorite that I can include in my drinking plans with it serving as an outpost where you can recon for other beer operations!

Who Drinks Here?: If you are in Orlando and want to add a beer search to your vacation, Tactical Brewing Company is a good base to launch your attack from. It is near other locations where you can continue your campaign, making it a good waypoint. The menu has a lot to offer at almost any time, including for Imperial fans like me. And the vibe is welcoming. Or if you just want to sample what the Orlando beer scene has to offer, Tactical is a good target.

I may not be ready to say that Tactical Brewing is my favorite craft brewery in Orlando…yet. But it has all the markers of a potential favorite that I can include in my drinking plans with it serving as an outpost where you can recon for other beer operations!