Funky Buddha Brewery Reveals 2020 Release Schedule

Posted on by mashingin

tartshakewebmockAnother week brings with it another wave of beer calendars, and this one is kicking off with the 2020 Release Schedule from Funky Buddha Brewery (Oakland Park, Florida).

In keeping with our approach to beer calendar season, we have posted Funky Buddha Brewery’s full 2020 Release Schedule below for you to thumb through at your own pace. With that said, there is a good amount of news (both on and off the official schedule) that we would like to clue you in on first.  Let’s get at it:

  • Chant Repeatable IPA will join Funky Buddha’s Year-Round portfolio in February.  Low in calories and carbs but high on hop flavor, Chant is a supremely crushable ale that channels notes of citrus, mango, and pine from the addition of Mosaic hops. Chant IPA will be available in 6-packs of 12 oz. cans and on draft.  ABV – 4.2%  IBUs – 27
  • The 2020 Goodness Series will consist of two new offerings and two returning favorites: Tart Shake **NEW** (Feb-May): Milkshake sour ale with black currants, passion fruit, vanilla, and lactose; Cosmic Trip **NEW** (May-Aug): Hazy IPA with starfruit and galaxy hops; Sweet Potato Casserole (Aug-Oct): Spiced ale with sweet potato, vanilla, and spices; Last Snow (Oct-Dec): Creamy porter with coconut and coffee. All Goodness Series offerings will be available in 6-packs of 12 oz. cans and on draft.
  • The Mixology Series will return in 2020 with three new cocktail-inspired beers: Paloma (Feb-May): Tequila barrel-aged tart ale with agave nectar, grapefruit, lime, and sea salt; Negroni (June-Sept): Chardonnay barrel-aged ale with herbs and botanicals; Old Fashioned (Oct-Dec): Bourbon barrel-aged rye ale with orange peel, herbs, and botanicals.  All 2020 Mixology Series releases will be available in 4-packs of 12 oz. bottles and on draft.
  • Funky Buddha’s line of Limited Releases – bold, innovative beers that marry culinary-inspired ingredients with time-honored technique – will return with offerings like Maple Bacon Coffee Porter (statewide distribution), No Crusts Brown Ale, Sticky Nuts Blonde Ale, Rum Barrel-Aged Coquito Imperial Cream Ale and several more.  These beers will be released throughout the year in the South Florida market with availability in 4-packs of 12 oz. bottles and on draft.  Keep an eye on Funky Buddha’s social media channels for updates and exact release dates.
  • The Living Barrel Series is also scheduled to return with an array of small batch, barrel-aged beers. A majority of these releases will remain in the tap room with a few being released to the South Florida market.
  • Funky Buddha Brewery plans to launch a new line of Natural Hard Seltzers in 2020.  Made with real agave nectar, pure cane sugar, and natural fruit flavors, these premium beverages offer a guilt-free alternative with a clear purpose. The seltzers will be launched in variety 12-packs consisting of bright, refreshing flavors like Lush Key Lime Cherry, Tropical Mango Guava, Crisp Pink Grapefruit, and Juicy Blood Orange. With only 90 calories, 1g carbs, and 0g sugar, these bubbly bevies are a perfect pair to an active and enlightened lifestyle. 12-packs will be available in the South Florida area starting in March.

That should just about cover all the items that we wanted to go over, but there is still plenty of fun stuff left for you to find on the calendar below.  Make sure to give it a good look so that you can be fully prepared for the year ahead with Funky Buddha Brewery.  Prost!

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Funky Buddha Brewery Puts Last Snow in Cans for 2019 Release

Posted on by mashingin

lastsnowwebmock2019Funky Buddha Brewery (Oakland Park, Florida) has officially announced that its fan-favorite Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter will be available for the first time in 6-packs of 12 oz. cans when it makes its Seasonal return in mid-November 2019.

Released each year as an “ode to that special time in . . . Florida where the needle dips just south of 70° – even for the briefest of moments,” Last Snow is a “rich and creamy” American Porter “layered with coconut and freshly-roasted coffee.”  Coming in at a smooth 6.4% ABV, Last Snow boasts a “taste that recalls a winter wonderland – even if that’s just a state of mind.”

If you happen to be unfamiliar with Last Snow, you are missing out.  Check out the accolades this tasty brew has racked up over the years:

Last Snow is scheduled to hit the Tap Room at Funky Buddha Brewery on November 16 and will enter distribution shortly after the on-site release.  You can expect to find this Seasonal offering available in 6-packs of 12 oz. cans – a new packaging format for the 2019 release – and on draft at select craft beer-friendly establishments located in Florida, Alabama and throughout the rest of Funky Buddha’s distribution footprint.  Prost!

Vital Information for Last Snow from Funky Buddha Brewery

Release – Seasonal/Goodness Series; mid-November – December 2019
Style – American Porter
ABV – 6.4%
IBUs – 35
Added Ingredients – Coconut & coffee
Suggested Food Pairings – “Stilton cheese, Roquefort, porter-braised beef, fresh Gulf oysters, Texas-style smoked brisket, Kansas City strip-steak with broiled asparagus, corned beef & cabbage with bacon, tres leches cake, black forest cake with coconut ice cream”
Availability – 6-packs of 12 oz. cans & draft
Beer Finder – https://funkybuddhabrewery.com/beer-finder

Funky Buddha Brewery Unveils 2019 Release Schedule

Posted on by mashingin

cosmicwebmock2019Just when you thought it was over, the unrelenting beer calendar blitz sneaks back in at the end of the week with a look at the 2019 Release Schedule from Funky Buddha Brewery (Oakland Park, Florida).

As is the case with all beer calendars around here, we have published Funky Buddha’s full 2019 Release Schedule below for you to study whenever you happen to have a spare moment.  With that said, we typically try to keep any highlights as brief as possible, but these will be a bit more lengthy due to the fact that Funky Buddha is seriously going all out this year by introducing a plethora of new offerings, beer series and packaging formats.  These are all incredibly good things that you should be stoked to find out, so let’s get at it:

  • Debuting in March, the Box of Buddhas Mixed 12-pack of 12 oz. cans will include “three each of Floridian, Hop Gun, and Vibin’; plus three cans of an exclusive rotating seasonal from memory lane that will not be available in any other packaging. I Want It Now! will be the first to hit the pack in Spring before bringing back Blueberry Cobbler and Sweet Potato Casserole as the year goes on.”  Claiming the distinction of being Funky Buddha’s first ever variety 12-pack, The Box of Buddhas will be available Year-Round.
  • Transitioning to 6-packs of 12 oz. cans in 2019, this year’s Goodness Series will include the following Seasonal releases: Cosmic Journey, a Hazy IPA with guava, papaya, and mosaic hops (February – May); Key Lime Pie Tart, a Berliner-style wheat ale with key lime juice, cinnamon, and vanilla (May – August); Bonita Applebum, an Apple pie-inspired brown ale with apples, cinnamon, and vanilla (August – October); and Last Snow, a Porter with coconut and coffee (October – December).
  • 2019 will see the launch of Funky Buddha’s Mixology Series, a lineup of Limited Release offerings that “recreate classic cocktails by using alternate fermentables, natural ingredients, and barrel-aging techniques.”  The 2019 Mixology Series will include Manhattan Double Rye Ale, a blend of Whiskey barrel-aged double rye ale and Wine barrel-aged Belgian ale with herbs and botanicals (February – May); Margarita Gose, a Tequila barrel-aged gose with agave nectar, lime juice, and sea salt (May – August); White Sangria Saison, a Chardonnay barrel-aged saison with grape must, apples, and peaches (August – October); and Zombie Ale, a Rum barrel-aged red ale with fruits and spices (October – January).
  • Juicy Smalls, an East-side IPA with Denali, Mosaic and Amarillo hops, will join the Little Buddha Small Batch Series in June.  This Limited Release brew will be packaged in 4-packs of 16 oz. cans.
  • S’More To Love, a Smoked Porter with cacao nibs, cinnamon and vanilla, will turn up in September as another new Little Buddha Small Batch brew.  This one will be available in single 16 oz. cans.
  • The brewery’s Living Barrel Series will see a new addition in December: Mocha Smuggler, a Bourbon Barrel-Aged Imperial Porter with cacao nibs, coffee, and vanilla.  Mocha Smuggler – and all other Living Barrel Series releases in 2019 – will be packaged in 22 oz. bottles.

Alright . . . that’s everything that we wanted to gloss over, but there is still quite a bit of information left for you to discover on the calendar below.  Give it a good look and settle in for another exciting year of beer with Funky Buddha Brewery in 2019.  Prost!

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Funky Buddha Brewery’s Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter Returns

Posted on by mashingin

Lastsnow22ozbottlenew (2)Funky Buddha Brewery (Oakland Park, Florida) has officially begun the limited release of their fan-favorite Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter as of September 17.

Released twice a year as Funky Buddha’s way of bookending both ends of Florida’s “colder” months, Last Snow is a “rich, creamy porter . . . layered with coconut and freshly-roasted coffee for a taste that recalls a winter wonderland.”  Big in flavor but still clocking in at a reasonable 6.4% ABV, Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter is the perfect beer to help all those in the Sunshine State get through the harsh sub-75° temperatures headed their way.

Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter is available now in Funky Buddha’s tap room, and will hit distribution any day now.  You can expect to find this Limited Release offering available in 22 oz. bottles and on draft at select beer-focused retailers, bars and restaurants located throughout Funky Buddha Brewery’s statewide distribution footprint in Florida.  Prost!

Vital Information for Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter from Funky Buddha Brewery

Release – Limited/Little Buddha Small Batch, September 2017
Style – American Porter
ABV – 6.4%
IBUs – 35
Added Ingredients – Coconut & freshly-roasted coffee
Suggested Pairings – “Stilton cheese, Roquefort, porter-braised beef, fresh Gulf oysters, Texas-style smoked brisket, Kansas City strip-steak with broiled asparagus, corned beef & cabbage with bacon, tres leches cake, black forest cake with coconut ice cream”
Availability – 22 oz. bottles & draft
Beer Finder – https://funkybuddhabrewery.com/beer-finder

 

 

Funky Buddha Brewery’s Last Snow in the Forecast for Late February

Posted on by mashingin

lastsnow22ozbottlenew-1Funky Buddha Brewery (Oakland Park, Florida) has officially announced that Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter is expected to make its biannual return beginning on Sunday, February 19.

If you happened to read my Tasting Notes on the September release of Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter and have been eager to give it a try, your next opportunity is fast approaching as Funky Buddha Brewery prepares to release it once again later this month.  Brewed as a Little Buddha Small Batch release that acts as “an ode to that special time in Florida where the needle dips just south of 75,” Last Snow is a 6.4% ABV American Porter “layered with coconut and freshly-roasted coffee for a taste that recalls a winter wonderland.”

Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter will officially release in 22 oz. bottles and on draft in the Funky Buddha taproom on Sunday, February 19.  Shortly after the taproom release, this limited offering will then be distributed to select craft beer establishments throughout the state of Florida.

To add a little variety to your Last Snow experience this time around, Funky Buddha plans to also release two barrel-aged variants of this fan-favorite brew.  Bourbon Barrel-aged Last Snow and Rum Barrel-aged Last Snow will hit the brewery taproom and limited distribution in early March.  Stay tuned for more information on these two.

With each release, Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter is guaranteed to disappear from shelves and taps with a quickness.  Be sure to touch base with the folks at your favorite bar/bottle shop, follow their social media accounts for release updates, and just stay vigilant so that you do not miss your chance to lock down a bottle or pour of this delicious Porter when it hits later this month.  Prost!

Vital Information for Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter from Funky Buddha Brewery

Release – Limited/Little Buddha Small Batch Series, released biannually in February & September. Next release scheduled to begin on Sunday, February 19
Style – American Porter
ABV – 6.4%
IBUs – 35
Added Ingredients – Coconut & freshly roasted-coffee
Availability – 22 oz. bottles & draft
Suggested Food Pairings – Red Thai coconut curry, stilton cheese, Roquefort, porter-braised beef, fresh Gulf oysters, Texas-style smoked brisket, Kansas City strip-steak with broiled asparagus, corned beef & cabbage with bacon, tres leches cake, black forest cake with coconut ice cream

Tasting Notes: Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter from Funky Buddha Brewery

Posted on by mashingin

lastsnow22ozbottlenewTasting Notes returns to completely obliterate the midweek hump by taking a look at Last Snow Coconut and Coffee Porter from Funky Buddha Brewery (Oakland Park, Florida).

Released twice a year -typically in February and September – as a Little Buddha Small Batch offering, Last Snow is Funky Buddha’s way of book-ending the harsh, sub-70 degree “winters” experienced in Florida.  This “rich, creamy Porter” is brewed with “coconut and freshly-roasted coffee for a taste that recalls a winter wonderland.”  Although packed with flavor, the beer’s surprisingly low 6.4% ABV creates an easy-drinking experience that you can enjoy all season long.  Since Last Snow happens to be one of Funky Buddha’s more popular releases, odds are that bottles from this last release have all been bought up by now.  Hope still remains though.  I have recently seen this brew available on draft at a few beer bars and growler stations around Tampa, and Funky Buddha has it listed as “On Tap Now” at the brewery’s taproom.

Alright, enough talk.  It’s time to open this bomber, pretend drinking this beer is “work” and take down some Tasting Notes!

Tasting Notes for Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter from Funky Buddha Brewery

Appearance: Last Snow fills the glass with an incredibly glossy black, completely opaque body.  Held to direct light, the color holds with just a tinge of rusty brown presenting itself at the extreme edges of the liquid.  The beer is too dark to identify a carbonation level.  The pour produced two fingers of light brown foam.  This head is loose and eventually dissipates to allow the beer’s darkness to shine from all angles.

Aroma:  As my nose approaches the glass, I am delighted to be greeted by a spot-on toasted coconut aroma.  This note is rich and downright intoxicating.  Roasted coffee and fine chocolate soon emerge to swirl about and provide an added level of decadence to the coconut.  A slight caramelized brown sugar presence then develops to round off an aromatic profile that is ridiculously reminiscent of German chocolate cake.  Simply amazing.

Taste: The luxurious, rich and flavorful toasted coconut icing you find on German chocolate cake leads the way, but the beer then begins to take on another identity as it opens up.  The coffee assumes a larger role here by providing a hefty dose of beautiful roast and subtle bitterness.  Dark chocolate rides that bitterness out and lays down a bit of sweetness as well. Caramel, toffee and bit of hazelnut finishes the experience off.

Mouthfeel:  Medium bodied with a moderate carbonation level, this Porter proves to be much lighter than you would ever expect.  The beer does cling to the palate a bit, but this is a welcomed characteristic because it allows you to bask in each and every note provided by the flavor experience.  The ABV is surprisingly light and well hidden.  Notes of coconut and coffee linger as the aftertaste.

Final Thoughts:  So . . . yeah, I can easily declare that Last Snow Coconut & Coffee Porter is one of the best flavored Porters I have encountered during my lengthy craft beer journey.  Until now, I have never experienced such a fresh and clean coconut flavor in a finished beer.  Usually there is a bit of a plastic-like, artificial character to the coconut that just can’t seem to be circumvented.  This is not the case here because Funky Buddha obviously figured it out and absolutely nailed it.  The coconut note would be enough to sell me on this brew, but then we have that coffee presence.  Coming across beautifully roasted and high-end, the aromatics and flavors of the chosen coffee are the perfect complement to that coconut.  The final surprise – and possibly the most impressive feat achieved by this offering – is that so much flavor was stuffed into a pretty low ABV Porter.  So many breweries would have pushed this thing to the area of 10% or above without a second thought, but not Funky Buddha.  It is clear that they took their time with Last Snow, laid it down gently in the sweet spot, and effectively killed it with laser-guided precision.  I want more.  Now.  Please?  Prost!

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