Mellody Brewing

New to me, again

The Oldsmar Tap House is a new beer bar in the area that is quickly becoming a favorite of mine.  It has by far the best beer selection I have seen thus far in the Tampa area.  Tony, the owner, buys things he likes - and hell he knows and likes good beers.  My first night there we went on a drinking tour of Belgian triples and true English IPAs.  We topped of the night with a Belgian Kriek.  It was heaven, and it is always hard to drive home from heaven, sober or not.

I write about this because as you know I had first started this path to beerdom with the dream of opening my very own beer bar and using the proceeds to eventually open Mellody Brewing.  When that didn't seem possible, I decided to start this web site and start the ever up hill battle to opening my own brewery.  My last two visits to the Tap House have proved to me that this area is definitely ready for its own craft brewery.  I also spent last night refining my taste for Belgian beer again.  Over the last few months I've been on an American IPA trip that was never ending.  I knew I was in trouble when I had a Belgian style ale from St. Somewhere, something I would usually love and was not impacted the way I usually am.  My friends all loved it, me...not so much.  I think my pallate changed.  Anyway, I am not looking to brew Belgian style ales, or the mainstream American craft beers, I'm thinking more just outside the box.  I felt the need to get back to my roots though and the Tap House has made that possible.

I'm still alive...

Just an update, things still moving - just been too busy with real work, and visitors to sit and post.  We'll be back to our regularly scheduled postings soon enough.  In the meantime enjoy this:

Being an Agent of Change

Tampa has been known to be a beer wasteland, well I guess you could say that about Florida in general. When I moved here over a year ago, I searched Beer Advocate for beer bars, and breweries.  To my surprise, there were really none listed.  Sad, but true.  Since I've moved here a small beer movement seems to be taking root.  The World of Beer (which I have written about) opened up and is doing great business.  The stores locally are carrying more craft brews, and now even more pure beer bars are opening up.  I know I have touched on this before, but I keep coming back to it since it does seem now more than ever here we're at the cusp of change. 

Mellody Brewing Company would like to enable and further this culture shift by doing the following:

• Beer Tastings
• Friday BBQs at the brewery
• Concerts
• Sponsorships
• Community Outreach
• Beer Fests
• Use of Local Ingredients (hops maybe, anyone interested?)

That's just to name a few. Being part of the change here and leading the way would be amazing.  Hope we can get things moving so we aren't too late.

Event planners needed, apply within.

Sant' Yago Stout

Seems the Sant' Yago Stout was a big hit on Saturday night.  I received many compliments.  I had some good conversations with people too, some who apparently read this blog (HELLO!!)  I went for a light stout, something not too heavy, closer to a brown ale, but with stout flavors and texture.  The carbonation was a bit low, but had good mouth feel and smell.  The low carbonation was a result of using small C02 cartridges, not the tank - but all was well.  The Sant' Yago Stout (name seems to be sticking) is a mix of chocolate malt, roasted barley and dark roasted crystal malt.  The stout was lightly-hopped with Cascade hops and fermented with Irish Ale Yeast. 

I will have to replicate this one again I have a feeling we might have a hit.  If you had some Saturday, drop a comment, let me know what you thought.

Mellody Brewing Gets Knighted

The first keg of Mellody Brewing Saint Yago Stout will be on tap at the Saint Yago Illuminated Knight Parade; the end of the Gasparilla festivities in Tampa.  Now, this isn't an offical thing, but we'll be on tap at a house party there.  Branded and everything.  Guerilla marketing...pictures to come.  I hope it is well received.  This is my own blend of specialty grains, lightly hopped and brewed to result in a light yet flavorful Stout. 

This is a small gathering of friends, yes - but I'll be on hand listening to comments, and networking to hopefully spread the word on my business plans.  Potential investors beware.  Future customers, enjoy!

Label Me Will Ya?

I sat today in the old school barber shop I go to every few weeks for the helmut trimming.  I sat there and noticed for the first time a vast collection of beer bottles lined up above the mirror behind the old men cutting everyone's hair.  There were bottle of Miller High Life, 1669, and a bunch I have just never seen before.  There were probably over 100 bottles, all neatly aligned and never dusted.  I could see the dust evenly layered around the necks of all the bottles.  I sat, probably at the dismay of the men in front of me as I starred above their heads, examining the labels.  Some simple, some complicated, some metalic, most not.  One thing was in common, these old bottle all proudly display the name of the beer, the brand name.  Not the marketing name, not the style.  Grolsh, 1669, Guinness, etc.  Not, Downtown Brown Ale, High Life, etc.

As I took my seat in the chair there was an odd moment.  I sat still, and closed my eyes, sitting thinking what would I see my labels looking like - in my minds eye.  Now, at this point the various fishing stories, dirty jokes (like the one where one barber says, I had a woman banging on my door for 2 hours last night.  I finally unlocked it and let her out) all ceased as Barbara Steisand begins to sing, "MEMORY, ALL ALONE IN THE MOONLIGHT!!"  Wait, is this really happening?  The tough man cutting my hair begins to hum along..."DAYLIGHT!!! I MUST WAIT FOR THE SUNRISE!!!"

Needless to say all visions of Mellody Brewing labels was erased from my memory as this occured.  I sat in utter silence wondering what the fuck was going on.  Was I still buzzed from those Guinness I drank last night? Unfortunately, no.  "TOUCH ME!!! IT SO EASY TO LEAVE ME!!" Barbara continued, and all I could think was really...I'm all alone and no one gets to see this with me.  I closed my eyes again, trying to get back on task, the song ended and Mike (the joke telling Barber manning the chair next to me) says, "Man, I do love that song, what's it from...oh yeah. That broadway show, pussy...CATS."

The crowd erupts in laughter and manhood is restored.  Have another one fellas, and stick it up above the mirror.

Experience Needed (Part 2)

Well, as you read earlier I've been cruising the beer world websites in search of possible alternatives to get into the craft beer industry. Ya know, find some real world experience. Some leads are paying off. I have what will probably be a go-nowhere phone interview with a pretty well established brewery in New England. I'm not getting my hopes up, but an interview can't hurt anyone - right?

Meanwhile, I've also been running some numbers on going to brewery school, and some other numbers on rising costs of overhead in the industry and even more numbers on loans. It's in the numbers someone said, right? The numbers are daunting, but we'll keep chipping away till we crack something open. Either way, we'll continue documenting here as long as I see people reading. Most of you are friends, so hello!! For friends and others, keep your fingers crossed that I'll come across something that will move us a bit farther along soon.

Until then, some thoughts upcoming on casks, extreme beer and session beer - as well as more of what I've been drinking.

Cheers!

Experience Needed

I've been cruising beer job sites, brewery sites, etc.  Common element, "experience needed."  I don't have any industry experience so trying to crack into the industry while not cracking in on my own with my own business is looking daunting.  Now, don't fret - I haven't given up on the dream.  I'm just thinking that sometimes there are multiple routes to a destination.  It might be I make the brewery happen now, it may be in 5 years after getting industry experience somewhere.  The right opportunity might be the career I need to feed the need...but I need someone to give me a break!!  I've applied for jobs in various areas and fields and there's a select few I'd really want, but only time will tell I guess.  I gave a few the link to this site to show my passion for the industry, here's to hoping that isn't a mistake!! 

What all of this has made me wonder though is as we get older and more ingrained in a career track, how easy is it to break into something new?  How does one make the break while not sacrificing all they have worked for?  Maybe it depends on the industry or one's experience.  It definitely takes sacrifices and compromises.  An accountant can easily switch industries, but that isn't a true career change.  As you can see the internal struggle continues on how to make this happen.  But one thing is for sure, I am in need of experience and not just the drinking kind.

Go Long (or maybe it should be wide)

That's right friends, it is time for Americans to drink light beer, consume large amounts of chips and dips and sit around and watch TV. Apparently, Super Bowl Sunday is the largest "in-house" party event for Americans. That's why I'll be headed out...to avoid the crowd at my house. It is also the day when we eat the most potato chips and consume the most dips. From The Seattle Times article, "Super Bowl snack stats to whet your appetite'" By Stephanie Dunnewind here are some Super Bowl food stats to crunch on:

11 million: Pounds of potato chips Americans munch on Super Bowl Sunday. They eat an additional 8.2 million pounds of tortilla chips and 3.8 million pounds of popcorn.
— Snack Food Association (past figures)

18 people: Average attendance at a Super Bowl party.
— Hallmark's Party Express

36.6 percent: Increase in sales of frozen breaded mushrooms pre-Super Bowl. Sales of frozen shrimp rise 29 percent.
— ACNielsen

$237.2 million: Amount spent on soft drinks (diet and regular) at grocery stores during 2005 Super Bowl week.
— ACNielsen

1,200 calories: Amount the average Super Bowl watcher will consume while snacking. To burn that off , it would take walking for four hours or running an hour and 45 minutes.
— Calorie Control Council

30 percent: Increase in sales of processed-cheese loaves the week before last year's Super Bowl. Flavored snack-cracker sales jumped 68 percent.
— ACNielsen

2 million: Number of pizzas Pizza Hut expects to prepare on Super Bowl Sunday, a 39-percent bump over an average Sunday. Frozen pizza is also a top Super Bowl seller at grocery stores.
— Pizza Hut, ACNielsen

$11.8 million
Additional sales of beer (regular and light) during 2005 Super Bowl week.
— ACNielsen

30.4 million: Pounds of snack food Americans consume on Super Bowl Sunday, twice the average daily amount.
— Snack Food Association (past figures)

Wow...now that's pure Americana if you asked me. That' all the time for research today, I'm off to drink some good beer, and eat some good food while watching the game at World of Beer.

Burden of the Middle Class

A recent HBR Working Paper states, "Entrepreneurs are, on average, significantly wealthier than people who work in paid employment. Research shows that entrepreneurs comprise fewer than 9 percent of households in the United States but they hold 38 percent of household assets and 39 percent of the total net worth. This relationship between personal wealth and entrepreneurship has long been seen as evidence of market failure, meaning that talented but less wealthy individuals are precluded from entrepreneurship because they don't have sufficient wealth to finance their new ventures." (Cost of External Finance and Selection into Entrepreneurship, Ramana Nanda - 2008.)

Preaching to the choir brother.