The Little Giant Brewery

In the City of Bradenton, Microbreweries and Resource Centers Can Coexist - The Bradenton Times - Free News for Bradenton, FL and Manatee County

2012-01-10T11:14:00.000-08:00

In the City of Bradenton, Microbreweries and Resource Centers Can Coexist - The Bradenton Times - Free News for Bradenton, FL and Manatee County

Forging and fostering community partnerships is crucial in this day and age.

Little Giant Brewing Co. microbrewery soon to be Manatee's first - Small Business - BradentonHerald.com

2012-01-10T10:40:00.000-08:00

Little Giant Brewing Co. microbrewery soon to be Manatee's first - Small Business - BradentonHerald.com

Thank you Bradenton Herald!

Progress. . .

2011-12-03T11:39:00.000-08:00

It may not look like a brewery yet, but it's getting there!

Hey there folks, it's been a while. . . but progress is progress and these things take time. In November The Little Giant Brewery was unanimously voted by the Bradenton Planning Commission to move forward. Great news!! The next step is to present our case for good beer in front of the Bradenton City Council on December 14, 2012. This is exciting stuff!

In the meantime we've been working on getting moved over to our new location near Mckechnie Field in downtown Bradenton. Baseball and beer will never be enjoyed this much anywhere, I promise.

But let's get back to what is most important ----- BEER! We've been working on our traditional Dusseldorf-style Alt Bier as of late, as well as the Dry Stout. They've been well received so far and your opinion is appreciated -- so come over to the brewery and try some!

Until then, support your local brewery!

Anna Maria Bayfest

2011-10-12T13:58:00.000-07:00

Anna Maria Bayfest is this Saturday -- always a good time. The best part is you can go on a beer hunt if you so choose. Little Giant Oktoberfest and Swabbie's Stout will be served somewhere on Pine Avenue. When you find it make sure to let out an "Oye, Oye Oye!!!" from the top of your lungs. People may look at you funny at first, but will appreciate the spirit of the thing. Hint: think porch party.

Yes, We Will Rise Up & Conquer the Beer Wilderness!

2011-09-07T15:52:00.000-07:00

No Seriously.

The Little Giant Brewery was born of humble beginnings in a beach shack in Anna Maria. . . A shack that could have and problably should have been condemned . . . a place known to support the life habits of Black Widows(of the arachnid variety, not the scary human kind). And lo, though we also were aware of palm rats in the rafters, they never got indulged in our grain stores, and for that we are grateful. Times are changing though and we are moving to another kind of wilderness.

Soon we will vacate our current home(a very clean place, fyi) off of Whitfield Avenue and head north into the beer wilderness of Bradenton. I, for one, enjoy the wilderness and intend to make it as habitable as possible for other beer lovers and other kind folks. Keep in touch on Facebook & Twitter for updates as we work with the Bradenton City Elders in bringing a pretty decent catalogue of beers to the region. We appreciate your support!

Very Merry Jerry Day

2011-08-03T14:33:00.000-07:00

Next stop for The Little Giant Brewery? Very Merry Jerry Day, a benefit for WSLR 96.5FM. The event is 2-6pm Sunday August 7 at the Sun-N-Fun off of Fruitville Road in Sarasota. Much music, much beer, many friends, and the music of The Grateful Dead!!!

Little Giant Black I.P.A. at the Cask Beer Expo

2011-07-25T09:16:00.000-07:00

Little Giant participated in the Cast Beer Expo at the St. Pete Coliseum this past Saturday. The good thing was there were so many great cask-conditioned beers from Florida and Georgia represented. The even better thing is that The Little Giant Brewery Black IPA took the honor of #1 Cask Ale in the judged competition. Not bad for a little artisanal brewery down here in Manatee County.

Independence Weekend & Beer

2011-06-29T14:12:00.000-07:00

Here at LGB we live by the higher ideals of Independence and Self-Determination. We will bring you the finest independently brewed ales and lagers that your palate and liver desire. We also proudly depend on the farming families who provide us with the freshest hops and the maltsters that allow us to turn barley into liquid gold. So to those fine folks that fly under the radar while we brewers reap all the publicity above ground and under -- we salute you & your efforts, Cheers!

There's a busy and super-social weekend coming up so swing by the brewery on Friday or Saturday July 1 & 2 for a Tour of Frothiness. We'll be closed on July 3 & 4 for special events, not to mention some much needed beach time.

So above you find a very, very crude and almost rude sketch of our logo. If anybody can draw my little satyr with big beer mugs better than this brewer -- you may be showered in glory. Sounds scary, I know but it will be worth your while. Get back to me on that one. This brewery is a community effort on many fronts, particularly the illustrative front.

Go find The Little Giant Brewery on Facebook, Twitter, LittleGiantBrewer@yahoo.com or at 2230 Whitfield Park Drive Sarasota, FL 34243.

O.P.P.

2011-06-20T15:32:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure what O.P.P. means to you, but I know what it means to me. And I'm down with it.

So I'm sitting here watching my wort cool down on one of those beauteous but sun-baked Florida afternoons, wondering just how warm the water is coming out of our Manatee County water lines. I'm also wondering if beauteous is a word or if I just made it up. I think Lord Byron called an ale "beauteous" once, but don't quote me on that. Maybe it was Charlie Papazianhttp://www.examiner.com/beer-in-national/charlie-papazian.

Regardless. Rather than fret the wort's going in the fermenter a bit warm I figured I'd check in with you all.

Hold on. . .

Ok, had to finish up the cool down/cleanup. Everything is good today at Little Giant Brewery. The Overhead Peeler Porter is a hell of a great beer to brew, and doesn't give me any guff during the vorlauf and lauter. I can't say the same about the American Wheat which is a little more fickle. But as the old saying goes: "It won't be easy, but it will be worth it." The porter weighs in at 16 Plato --1.066 specific gravity for you Old Schoolers out there.

As for the American Wheat, it's making it's way to a benefit concert http://wslr.org/wslr-events/ by our local non-profit community radio station WSLR 96.5FM(in stereo). Be there. That's all I'm saying.

That's it folks. . . beer is being brewed and I think it's about time for a pale ale.

Mahalo.

Summa

2011-06-03T12:30:00.000-07:00

Wow, it's been months since I've written here. Strange, since my undergraduate degree is in Literature -- you would think I would be more inspired. Anyway, here comes another missive of questionable

quality.

I am asked, often, why small brewers don't install air conditioning in their breweries. Two reasons: 1) It's dang expensive, and I'd rather spend my monies on quality raw materials. And 2) I reply with a question -- "Do you realize how big my beer-gut would be if I didn't sweat so much?"

All in good time my peoples. For now, we sweat together we imbibe together we have good times.

Today in the brewery I'm kegging a sweat-beating Kolsch-Styled Ale that is both super-super refreshing and flavorful. Imagine that -- you can brew a beer that fills the demands of both our blazing Florida heat and our refined palate. This beer was inspired by my German Butcher friend who bribed me with a 5-pound slab of double-smoked bacon. That's all it takes, Folks, for me to dig deep and crank out some love with Weyermann Malts and Bavarian Spalt hops.

Spring Fever

2011-02-23T14:30:00.000-08:00

Who has Spring Fever?

Well, if you haven't caught it yet come out to The Florida Brewers Guild Beerfest 2011 and you will surely be inflicted. The FBG Beerfest takes over Centro Ybor on Saturday March 5 from 2-6pm(or so). It's the only place where all the members of the Guild gather as a mighty & frothy force for one fantastic afternoon. Check out the details at Floridabrewersguild.org.

I've been involved with this particular beer orgy for ten years and I guarantee you a good time will be had -- even if you're a designated driver.

This years' Little Giant Brewery lineup will include Illicit IPA, BillaBock, MacDaddy Scotch Ale, Overhead Peeler Porter & one other golden and lovely libation that I'm keeping secret until the other beers run out.

OK for now, come visit the brewery when you're done working. . .

Well, I'm excited

2011-01-11T18:24:00.000-08:00

Just finished brewing the 69th batch at Little Giant. Just thought you might find interest in that. I mean I'm excited -- 69!!!! wooo. . . . Bock Bier. . . .

Moving Forward, Never Straight.

2010-12-29T11:47:00.000-08:00

I hope the holidays have treated you well -- and I hope you have treated the beer-lovers in your life even better. There is a lot of choice out there in the craft beer world and that is a great thing around this time of year -- the temperature is low and the chance of a party spontaneously breaking out is high. So make sure you spoil your friends and loved ones with some good beer.

That is my craft beer public service announcement for the year. Moving on. . .

Little Giant is officially a "brewery in planning" so while we work on our licensing would like to invite you for tours of our operation. This means we can't sell, unfortunately, but you can certainly taste our pilot batches of Pale, Porter, IPA and Wheat, with a Saison thrown in for good measure.

In order to avoid chaos tours will be available on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday afternoons around 6pm. If you would like to participate, contact me at LittleGiantBrewer@yahoo.com.

Starting in mid-January we plan on starting Beer College limited to groups of 12. Most of you have probably participated in Beer School at some of our friends establishments. I believe Mr. Beery's in Sarasota has a good one on Tuesdays. Beer College will take your Craft Brewing experience to a different level with a more formal Tasting Panel experience. The method will be similar to the Quality Assurance/Quality Control practices we like to perform in the industry. This may be strangely mundane to some fans and incredibly intriguing to others. In any case my focus is always on having fun with beer, you can be sure of that. Stay tuned for updates.

In the meantime. . .

Mahalo!

A Move is Made, and So Is BEER!

2010-11-02T21:13:00.000-07:00

The "Little Brewery on A Little Island" has moved to the big city. OK, it's not really in the big city but close enough. Operations have moved to 2230 Whitfield Park Loop Sarasota, FL 34243. Tours are available. You can get a hold of the brewery at LittleGiantBrewer@yahoo.com or at 941-962-6650. Come by and see how it's done at Sarasota and Manatee Counties' first Microbrewery. It ain't big but the beers are --- just kegged up some Billabock and the ConchShucker Pale is about ready to do the "happy dance" on your palate.

See you soon.

Happy September

2010-09-02T11:44:00.000-07:00

Hey there,

Let's make this a Happy September, Folks. If we can't be Happy, Joyous, or Jubilant then let's at least work on making it Lively. Why the request for Liveliness? Because otherwise we may melt -- it'll be 90+ degrees for another 6 weeks around here, and if we don't get up and do the Goat Dance under the full moon while drinking some cold LGB BillaBock we may not survive another month. Take my word on it.

By the way-- is it true that if doused with Craft Brewed beer, Bud Girls will melt like the Wicked Witch of the West? You may wanna try that next time you're out. Make sure to get some video & get back to me on that one.

Working on our new location down off of 301 in southern Manatee county. These are exciting times for the The Little Giant Brewery. For now we are still brewing at our Tarpon St. location. I'll try to hold on to the shack for as long as I can even after the move -- It's just too good of a place to hide from normalcy.

Ok for now, the new contact number for Little Giant Brewery 941.962.6650. Scrap the (708) number.

Mahalo

Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=112408082112090#!/group.php?gid=112408082112090&v=wall

Sunshine Mountain

2010-07-25T21:56:00.000-07:00

We may not have hills on Anna Maria Island but we have plenty of sunshine. Now we also have plenty of Sunshine Mountain Saison. Sunshine mountain is inspired by the love of good Belgian summer brews and the view from atop Leffis Key near Coquina Beach.

Debuting Saturday night at a private tasting & BBQ at the "Treehouse" in Holmes Beach, Sunshine mountain was met by comments of "pretty good," and "I like it, is there more?" Said comments are much more desirable to this brewer than the dreaded classic: "Interesting, do you have anything else to try?"

Sunshine Mountain is brewed with traditional German and American 2-row Barley Malts as well as Saison yeast. I also gave it special treatments with herbs and fruits that I will be glad to discuss with interested parties when you come to visit the brewery.

If you would like to make an appointment for a brewery tour and tasting feel free to contact me here or on Facebook or Twitter. Make the trip to Anna Maria, it's a bit out of the way but it will be worth it.

Mahalo

Hard to admit but I'll do it anyhow

2010-06-12T19:58:00.000-07:00

I love beer. Even Old Style by G. Heilemann. Just finished off the case of cans my friend Putz brought down from Chicago. Hey, It's naturally Kreusened so at least it's got that going for it. In the beer world natural kreusening is better than receiving complete consciousness on your deathbed. Believe me, I know these things.

Res Ipsa Loquitor

Aw Mama, can this really be the End??

2010-06-03T08:50:00.000-07:00

Little Giant Brewery is searching for a new home. I think anyone who has been there would agree that it doesn't get much better than 105 Tarpon but -- the powers that be are tearing it down. So, I am looking to expand production, get a bathroom and begin the next chapter of the Saga that is Little Giant Brewery. Saga, yes. It is a Saga. Similar to Beowulf but less bloody.

Well, I've been doing a decent job of keeping my head on straight during these "interesting" & turbulent times at Little Giant. Although, now that I think about it, anyone who witnessed me dive off the Rod & Reel Pier yesterday into a bait pod that was being monitored by a four-foot barracuda would probably differ in opinion. While trying to stay sane and focused(focused like a Samurai) we have brewed a couple of special selections.

The Strong Ale returns since rearing it's big, malty head last summer. A malt/hop backbone round out this 7.5ABV% Amberish Ale. Also a Saison is plodding along through it's fermentation as we speak. The Saison is getting a special treatment which I will keep under wraps until you taste it. It might be good, Heck, it might even make this long hot summer a little more bearable.

Mahalo

Craft Brewers Conference Chicago!

2010-04-06T16:26:00.000-07:00

Hi there Folks. Little Giant Brewery travels to Chicago, Birthplace of its' Brewer, to do some business and find some unique brews at the 2010 Craft Brewers Conference. Among other things, like the welcome reception at The Field Museum, I'm really looking forward to catching up with some old friends and comrades from Two Brothers Brewing Company, Abita & Metropolitan Brewing. Great folks who embody the spirit of great beer and back it up with some great brews. The Siebel Institute of Technology is hosting an alumni event as well that should be worth some laughs and tasty pints.

I'll be hitting the trade show floor hard looking for some good small-scale production brewing equipment and any other deals I can get my hands on. The timing of the conference couldn't be better as Little Giant Brewery will be growing a bit over the summer -- talks with the City of Anna Maria have begun and a slightly larger and healthier environment for the Little Giant has been chosen. Steps away from our current tarpon Street location.

Ok for now, drop me line if you want to visit the brewery. You know you are always welcome!

BEERFEST!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-03-03T09:44:00.000-08:00

We really hope to see you all in Tampa, Ybor City in particular, this weekend. Why you ask? Because Saturday, March 6th is the Florida Brewers' Guild Beerfest 2010. Beer revelers of all shapes and sizes will descend on Centro Ybor to celebrate one of Florida's best liquid resources--- BEER!!! Craft breweries from throughout Florida will pour our frothy libations from 2-6pm. Find your tickets at FloridaBrewersguild.org. Little Giant Brewery will be pouring Illicit IPA, Overhead Peeler Porter, and BillaBock. Also, if you are really committed to wetting your liver Little Giant Brewery will be attending the annual Brewer's Ball at Skipper's Smokehouse(where they smoke EVERYTHING) on Sunday March 7th. Skipper's Smokehouse is located at 910 Skipper Rd. Tampa, FL. Come celebrate Florida beer culture at it's best!

Sour Love, would you have it any other way?

2009-12-20T11:09:00.000-08:00

Ok, I'm going there. LGB is working on a Berliner Weizen. Yes, Sour Love in fermented form. After brewing a couple of traditional Hefe-Weizens I've found the inspiration to shift focus toward a classic northern German style. "Why not?" I thought as I contemplated methods of souring a beer. "What's the worse outcome?" I muttered to myself as I shuffled around the brewery late one night like some kind of confused street person. I could already see the crinkled and confused scowl of JP Taylor at the 2010 Bradenton Beer Festival as he draws the taster glass from his lips.

How to do it? I could have created a sour mash, I could have cultivated a monster lactobacillus -- Gosh Darn I could have just left the fermenter open in the brewery and let one of our home-spun Anna Maria wild beach-yeasts float in to grace/haunt the brew. Instead I thought of the infamous ChezBill Shafer, Chef of The Waterfront Restaurant, as he dutifully and lovingly creates a Tamarind puree from the raw pods -- a main component of his Bahi Ribeye marinade. Yes, folks, tamarinds are the key I think. Somewhat sweet, a lot of sour, complex. Very reminiscent of my love life.

So, let's hope for the best.

Mahalo,

Michael Wagner

Oh yes, the 2010 Bradenton Beer Festival takes place on February 6 in downtown Bradenton. See you there.

Festivus

2009-12-07T16:46:00.000-08:00

Happy Holidays to you and yours!

December finds Little Giant Breweries' progress deep into all those things that draw a brewer away from the brewhouse, not the least of which is shopping. Which is actually the least thing that has kept me out of the brewhouse since I've done so little present-seeking thus far. Procrastination is key with a mad rush near the end of the month.

Luckily, beer IS being brewed. And even more importantly it is being kegged. Recently racked is a Little Giant Brewery Amber Ale. It's malty, it's a bit hoppy, it's alcoholic and almost Imperial by nature. Once you try it you might comment that it is "West Coast" in style. But, since we are on a West Coast ourselves, let's call it "The Other West Coast" American Amber Ale. We are on the Edge of the Beer Frontier after all. Visit the brewery and try some, who knows-- you might like it.

Also, if anyone has any advice on dealing with small, development-conscious town commissions or Planning & Zoning Boards, please feel free to weigh in. It's an adventure, if you know what I mean. That's where we are at in the ever-expanding development of our little community brewery here in Anna Maria.

Beers about ready to be tapped:
LGB OWC(Other West Coast) Amber Ale
LGB FMB(Festivus Miracle Bock)
Journeyman's Hefe-Weizen

Selah & Cheers,

MW

Devil's Day

2009-10-31T12:01:00.000-07:00

Time to get a little weird for Devil's Day here at LGB. I know some folks in Sarasota are having a Spooktacular Fun time drinking the Belgian Brown Ale and the Special Reserve Imperial IPA. Me? Well, I'll be sporting my Speedo and traditional Lucha Libre wrestling mask while brewing one of my favorites-- traditional DoppelBock. Just like the monks make it over in the hills overlooking Munich. What do they wear under those tunichs anyway? A black Speedo no doubt. Have fun. Mahalo.

BillaBock, Bay Fest, Overhead Peeler

2009-10-10T18:27:00.000-07:00

It's been a heated season here in Anna Maria, and I'm not just talking about the 90 degree plus brewdays. The political season and the struggle for control of the five Anna Maria City Commission seats are making for some interesting dialogue as well as we are coming up on BayFest time again. This year it takes place on October 16 & 17, two days of music, crafts and lots of sweaty locals wearing jeans, no shirts and drinking nearly flavorless beer -- and that's just the women. Luckily, Little Giant Brewery will have a presence providing some all-malt love for the those who seek such. I'll be over at the brewery on Saturday the 17th where we'll quaff some Illicit Imperial IPA as well as a bit of Overhead Peeler Porter. All Island Realty is having an open house a block or so down Pine Avenue where the infamous British Strong Ale will no doubt create some dizzy mayhem -- I hear there is also a classic car exhibition there as well. If you run into anybody who knows Brent the Scuba Ace, ask them for directions to his open house where Little Giant Hefe-Weizen will be poured. And--if you are really brazen and wanting more Little Giant--you can attempt to crash a rehearsal dinner on North Shore drive where BillaBock will be enjoyed by a really nice couple and their family who will no doubt be in shock when you show up. Ok for now, tomorrow I'll brew some more Morning After Pils. Selah.

Walkin'. . . Shinin'

2009-09-18T09:11:00.000-07:00

It's always a good move when you take a morning walk here in Anna Maria. This morning we loaded my girlfriends' dog in the truck and headed up the island to the brewery. From there we took a walk around the north end to Bean Point and soaked in the morning sun & breeze for a minute. Butch the dog was in heaven every time we walked through the shade of the palms and pines along the way. He's a hundred-ten pound beast(around 7.8 stone for all you Brits out there). Wait, hold on, to call him a beast would not do his heritage proud. You see, Butch is mostly Argentinian Dogo. His personality is more of a brutish gentleman than slobbering beast in search of small mammal blood. He is oft misunderstood and mistaken for a pitbull, and is generally given a wide berth by the local geezers. His presence in the brewery is the stuff of legend -- I find he is most at ease when attached to a pony keg which allows him to wander but not run off. For some reason this really amuses the locals including the Sheriff. An hour walk brought us back to the friendly confines of Little Giant where Butch climbed back in the truck bed and laid down, Happy as a Dogo could be.

Well, what is the purpose of this rambling and waxing? Honestly it's the fact that I quaffed around six pints of my latest brew last night. "Big Deal!" you may say. "Six pints is just lubrication for serious beer drinkers!" This may be true and I may not be as prolific a beer drinker as I try to convince myself I am, but in light of the late night pints, I felt seriously fresh and energized this morning. I think this brew definitely makes strides toward providing my people with a beer that maximizes the quasi-therapeutic nature of fresh, locally made beer. It's gotta be the hops.

In honor of Butch, we are naming this beer the the Laughing Dogo. Think about a Happy Buddha crossed with a very very large canine who wonders why you share your bacon with him but not your beer.

Laughing Dogo is:
Malts Bill:
Canada 2-row Pale
German Munich I
Belgian Cara-Pils

Hops:
UK Fuggle
US Cascade

Chico Ale Yeast

Call me if you want some samples, I'll even provide a jug if you want.

Craft Brewers Savagely Thrive In Slumping Economy

2009-09-10T12:36:00.000-07:00

Interesting growth number for our industry. Keeping up with the economic stats of the industry gives me faith that the US Standard of living is going up and that Craft Brewing is a thriving industry. Although, it is true the sub-premium beer market(Busch, Shlitz, PBR, etc.) is booming while the US economy slumps. I shouldn't complain about this too much since my first sip of beer from my Grandfather Dziadzi's mug was Old Style formerly produced by G. Heileman. Tasty! Stats courtesy of The Brewers' Association.

* Growth of the craft brewing industry in the first half of 2009 was 5% by volume and 9% by dollars.
* Craft brewers sold an estimated 4.2 million barrels of beer in the first half of 2009, up from 4 million barrels in the first half of 2008.
* Overall US beer sales are down 1.3% in the first 6 months of 2009.
* Imported beer sales are down 9.5% in the first 6 months.
* Growth of the craft brewing industry in 2008 was 5.9% by volume and 10.1% by dollars.
* The craft brewing industry produced nearly 8.6 million barrels of craft beer in the US in 2008.
* The craft brewing sales share as of December '08 was 4% by volume and 6.3% by dollars.
* Total US craft brewing industry annual dollar volume is $6.3 billion.
* The US brewery count of 1,525 on July 31, 2009 is the highest total in 100 years. (2008 total includes breweries that closed during the year, and the July 2009 count is higher than at any time in 2008.)

Last updated on 8/17/2009

Lastly, here's a reply from IRI Data Guru Dan Wendel for a more local growth number(from Brewers' Association PowerHour teleconference in August):

8. I'm looking for annual craft sales trends for my home state of Florida. Can you give me some direction?

Answer: Craft Segment Dollar Sales are +8.6% vs. Year Ago. Case Sales are +2.4% vs. YA in Florida State Supermarkets based on YTD IRI Data Ending July 12, 2009.

LagerHead

2009-09-09T12:22:00.000-07:00

Hey there Folks, Mike Wagner here checking in from Little Giant Brewery. I want to thank all of you(all 89 of you to be more exact) who participated in the Waterfront Restaurants' first annual Beer, Wine & Salsa Tasting last Thursday. Not only did it include twelve outstanding salsas from the infamous, notably nefarious mind of Chef Bill Shafer it marked the outing of Lagerhead American Pilsner from Little Giant. Lagerhead combines old-world Weyermann Pilsner and Munich Malts with the beauteous Simcoe hop from Hopunion. I was happy to get positive feedback from the patrons who commented that it paired well with the salsas and the 90+ degree afternoon.

For those who lament the short hours I've spent at the brewery this summer all I can say is, "Be patient, my friends, the fall in temperature is near." If anyone wants a tour of the brewery and a few samples, just contact me through this page or at LittleGiantBrewer@yahoo.com.

Strange brews are on the horizon, along with some of my traditional favorites.

Mahalo,

MP Wagner
Brewer

Taskmastering

2009-08-01T11:33:00.000-07:00

सो अस इ हवे एक्स्प्लैनेद आईटी तो पोपले -- "इ हवे अ नेवर एंडिंग लिस्ट ऑफ़ तस्क्स तो अच्कोम्प्लिश तो स्टार्ट थिस ब्रेवेरी अन्दिफ इ दोन'टी अच्कोम्प्लिश थेम थे दोन'टी गेट दोने। अ फमिलिअर सेंटिमेंट फॉर अन्योने व्हो हस ताकें थे दिवे इन्तो एन्त्रेपेंयूर्शिप. For some reason, unbeknownst to the author, Hindi has become the official language of the Little Giant Brewery. If, in fact you understand Hindi you would find the Brewer/Proprietors' view of the unbelievably huge pile of tasks laying between brewing up delicious liquid treats for my publicans to enjoy and actually bringing said treats to market. You can always stop by the brewery at 105 Tarpon st. Anna Maria, FL 34216 to enjoy the brews and watch me mill around the shack doing my best impression of a taskmaster on his way to running a successful business. And if you have a special event you want Little Giant Brewery to participate in, just let me know here.

Hey! It's about time to head over to my humble shed of a brewhouse and prepare for a Sunday morning brew. As long as the lager yeast has flocculated we're brewing up another ultra-enjoyable Helles-style treat to be enjoyed on these highly temperate, sometimes hellish Dog Days of Florida's summer. Let's just say it will pair well with our slip-and-slide in the beer garden.

As a side note: I apologize to all those beer-lovers who crave double-imperial-bourbon-cask-aged-espresso-infused-chickory-honey-stouts, but it's just too goddamn hot to consider at this point -- I'm sticking with quaffable brews until the fall, and then we can roll out the barrels.

Cheers,

MW

Yeast Run

2009-07-21T06:01:00.000-07:00

How long is too long, oh Lord? How long? When do you decide to stop re-pitching your ale yeast? Maybe, if you are a gambling man(or woman), you pitch it twenty times. If you like to play it safe maybe you propogate a new pitchable amount of our microscopic little helpers after nine or ten brews. I tend to want to keep it fresh and am cutting it off at eight brews. Without a QA/QC lab set up I have only my taste buds and fermentation log to determine how stressed my yeast might be.

So, with this in mind, it's time for me to fill up my VDub Diesel and take a trip to visit Brian & Kelly up at Southern Brewing Supply in Tampa. I'll probably just get a smack pack or two of 1056 and step it up into a pitchable amount from there.

With several special events coming up Little Giant is looking to brew some tasty delights that will make otherwise gentlemanly men slobber and seemingly classy women squirm.

Come down to Anna Maria and visit the BierGaarten, we get lonely in paradise.

Brews ready to drink right NOW:
Belgian Dubbel
Hellish Double IPA
Pine Ave. Pale Ale
BillaBock
Tail-End Hefe Weizen

Soon Come: Melly's Harpy Lager