Southern Swells is two years old! It's insane how fast the time has flown.
Located in Jacksonville Beach, Southern Swells is a craft brewery and taproom focused on New-England IPAs, Heavily Fruited Sours, Imperial Stouts and Mixed-Fermentation (It’s also right next to a mini-doughnut bar!)
They hosted their 2nd anniversary party on Saturday and pulled out all the stops with eight releases including a Barrel Aged Imperial Stout with Habanero Peppers, Chocolate, Vanilla Beans & Cinnamon and an amazing double milkshake IPA collab with Ology, a brewery from Tallahassee (but more on those later).
It’s no secret that everything they touch turns to gold, just ask Katherine and Brian Weiss. They decided to tie the knot on Saturday and head over to Southern Swells right afterwards…wedding dress and all.
He’s retired military and she’s a self-declared Navy brat. Katherine said that the Southern Swells was one of the places her and Brian would hangout before they got hitched, so having her wedding party there just made sense. “I love local and I love this place so it just worked out… it’s so awesome how breweries in Jacksonville can bring anyone from any walk of life together” How awesome! Congrats to the hoppy couple.
Okay back to beer. Southern Swells released some baddies on Saturday with the highlights really coming from all the great juicy IPA’s.
Beers released throughout the day included:
- "Two Year Anniversary" IPA w/ Mosaic & Nelson Sauvin
- "Twice Picked Citra" Double IPA w/ Citra
- "In A Galaxy Even Closer By" Double IPA w Citra & Galaxy
- "Diamonds in Snowstorms" IPA w/Passionfruit, Guava & Lactose brewed with Ology Brewing Company from Tallahassee.
- Rye Whiskey Barrel-Aged (RWBA)
- Bourbon Barrel-Aged (BBA)
- BBA w/ Bold Bean Coffee Roasters Coffee
- BBA w/ Habanero Peppers, Chocolate, Vanilla Beans & Cinnamon
We didn’t stick around for the BBA's due to late timing but we did get to try some of the beers that were tapped earlier in the day. Here are some of the highlights.
1. "In A Galaxy Even Closer By"
Double IPA with Citra and Galaxy hops, 8% ABV.
LOOKS: (Besides amazing?) Cloudy, milky orange, mimosa-esque.
SMELL: The Galaxy hops bring out a tropical nose with tons of passion fruit and mango. Hops are very present and assume a piney dankness.
TASTE: Creamy upfront, with a big hoppy mouthfeel. Notes of peach, passion fruit and citrus. “Hops meets rind” acidic lingering on the mouth.
2. "2nd Year Anniversary"
IPA with Mosaic and Nelson Sauvin hops. 6.4%
LOOKS: Lighter than "In a Galaxy..." but still has a juicy orange color to it.
SMELL: Nelson Sauvin hops are really interesting. Nelson Sauvin’s name is derived from the Sauvignon Blanc wine grape which gives it similar characteristics. This beer smelled tropical and fruity but with a level of back-end dryness
TASTE: Drinkable and refreshing. Loads of citrus. Mouth feel is carbonated and slightly hoppy. My friend Heather picked up on the Nelson Sauvin stating that the beer had a "champagne-like" aftertaste.
3. "Diamonds in Snowstorms"
IPA with passion fruit guava and lactose, 6.8% abv. Collaboration with Ology Brewing in Tallahassee, a brewery notorious for their NE IPA's and fruited Berliner, Juice Lab.
LOOKS: Juicy, golden haze.
SMELL: Sharp, creamy and surprisingly tart. Passion fruit heavy on the nose, some guava on the back end.
TASTE: The lactose adds a level of smooth while the fruit adds a velvety acidic tanginess. This beer has serious drinkability. The fruit juices levitate to the roof of your mouth and stay there from start to finish. This beer was amazing.