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First Coast Brews Two New in one week!

Looking at Jacksonville's Newest Breweries, Tabula Rasa Brewing and Reve Brewing Company
Tabula Rasa Brewing (picture) and Reve Brewing both opened their doors in September 2018 PHOTO: Stephanie Danley

It's been a busy 10 days for craft beer drinkers in Jacksonville. We've had two Grand Openings, with several more coming soon!

Tabula Rasa Brewing opened their doors with a bang September 14. This brewery is located in the Rail Yard District, on the banks of McCoy's Creek, very near Stockton Street. The jewel of this brewery is the large outdoor bier garden, which runs along the edge of the Creek. There is a plan to clean up McCoy's creek and even create walking and biking trails along its banks. Tabula Rasa is perfectly placed to capitalize on these plans.

Room to Grow! Tabula Rasa Brewing has a large outdoor space along the banks of McCoy's Creek, part of the Emerald Necklace restoration plan. PHOTO: Stephanie Danley

Opening day was packed at Tabula Rasa, combined with a record heat day, the temperatures rose inside the taproom. Thankfully by the next weekend, they temperatures have dropped and a brand new air conditioning unit was installed to combat large crowds.

The brewery is tucked into a very unassuming building, in a very industrial area. Parking is available alongside the brewery and on Corbett Street. Because there are no homes, parking should be easy in the surrounding area. The taproom itself has an industrial, modern feel with exposed pipes and industrial lighting. The production line is separated from the tap room by a large barn door. Never fear, you can get great views to the tanks, from a line of really awesome portholes.

Peek A Boo! Beer Drinkers are treated to a view of Tabula Rasa's brewing facility through industrial port holes in the Tap Room. PHOTO: Stephanie Danley

There is plenty of seating around the bar and tables, plus the large outdoor space. A few days after the opening, several large picnic tables were placed under the trees, increasing the seating dramatically.

Grand Opening! Tabula Rasa opened it's doors September 14 to a large and enthusiastic crowd! PHOTO: Stephanie Danley

But what you want to know about is the beer, right? They offered four beers opening weekend. We tried (and loved) two of them. You know my pickiness on IPA's so I did not try the Scarlett Ibis IPA or the Dancing Palms Tropical Ale. But the Corbett Street Cream Ale and the Garcon De Soleil Belgian Blonde were right up our alley.

In particular, the Belgian blonde was a great beer. It had all the fantastic flavor of a Belgian style beer, but not the massive ABV that normally goes with a Belgian style ale. I love the Belgian style, but generally avoid them for more sessionable beers. The Cream Ale was light and refreshing, good medium bodied hot weather beer!

Tabula Rasa has plenty of room to expand for more tanks and even a canning line. PHOTO: Stephanie Danley

The production side is quite large, with enough space to easily expand into canning and distribution. While we were there, several brewers and owners of other breweries came by to offer support. It's one of the things I love about the Jacksonville (and surrounding areas) beer scene, the support and camaraderie they have for each other. It was awesome to see Amelia Island Brewing, Main & Six, Wicked Barley and Legacy Ale all there during the time we were there.

Friendly Competition at Tabula Rasa. Brewers from Main & Six Brewing, Legacy Ale Works and Wicked Barley Brewing get a tour from Ryan Peterson, brewer and co-owner of Tabula Rasa Brewing PHOTO: Stephanie Danley

As the temperatures cool, I think sitting in the beer garden will be one of the popular places in town for beer.

Tabula Rasa is open Tuesday through Thursday from 3 p.m. until 10 p.m., Friday and Saturday Noon until 10 p.m. and Sunday Noon until 8 p.m.

Grand Display! A large, antique bar back features prominently at Reve Brewing. The space is cozy and inviting. PHOTO: Stephanie Danley

One week later, Reve Brewing opened on Mayport Road in Atlantic Beach. If you don't know the area, you might miss it in a tiny strip mall near the intersection of Plaza Street. I'm not sure what I expected inside, but the antique/industrial vibe was a surprise to me. The entire back half of the space is dominated by brewing equipment on one side and an absolutely gorgeous wooden bar on the other. The remainder of the space has a large number of high top and regular tables for seating.

Parking is the trick here. The strip mall is tiny and there are very few parking places. You might want to Lyft or Uber here.

With my girlfriend Stacey, we arrived about 15 minutes early, anticipating a line. The doors were open already and we walked in and made our first selections. I was expecting great things, because this is a side venture of Eric Lumen, co-owner of Green Room Brewing. Honestly, it blew my expectations out of the water.

Sample this! The tap list is long, so you can opt for 5 ounce sample pours to find your favorite brew. PHOTO: Stephanie Danley

For Sour heads, like myself, Reve should be on your regular list. The opening weekend tap list offered a nice choice of sours, ranging from a simple raspberry Berliner to a complex Pastry Sour with Apricot, Lactose and Vanilla. On the weekends, see what the slushee machine has going, opening weekend it was a berry sour with passion fruit. Simply amazing.

The crowd quickly grew and at one point a line was outside waiting for someone to leave, before they could come in. Reve has a Crowler machine and it was put to use Saturday! To the point that the Crowling Rental folks brought in more cans. In spite of the line, everyone patiently waited to try the offerings.

Having some IPA drinkers with me, I was able to sample the Hazy IPA offerings, my favorite being the Lime Feed your Head IPA. There were several Milk Stouts, I opted for Not Myself, with Cinnamon and Vanilla, my girlfriend had Consider the Coconut, with obviously coconut. Both were very tasty, the Not Myself had a touch of cinnamon, that just deepened the Milk Stout. The Consider the Coconut? I stood in line to get a crowler of that!

Try them all! Reve Brewing opened its doors with a large taplist featuring IPA's, Sours and Stouts. PHOTO: Stephanie Danley

I also truly enjoyed the Pastry Sour, Lost in my Mind. It truly had the essence of a apricot tart, vanilla forward, not sweet, with that funky apricot on the finish. My other favorite sour was Color of Insanity, a double fruit Raspberry and Cherry Berliner Weisse with Vanilla. It was deep and complex. Tart cherry and raspberry with that warm kick of vanilla on the finish. I would drink this again. And again.

Hoppy Opening! A little hidden surprise at Reve Brewing. PHOTO: Stephanie Danley

Reve is open Thursday through Saturday from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m. They should be tapping a couple of new beers for their second weekend and something new will be in the slushee machine.

Both new breweries are worth checking out. Tabula Rasa has started some events, like Thursday night Trivia at 7 p.m., Food Trucks on Friday and Saturday and Jaguar Game Day specials on Sundays. They are offering Tailgate deals on Crowlers and specials on pints, for wearing your Jag gear.

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