Our first round: The Release of the Bayboro Blonde Ale!

Being a beer lover and a University of South Florida in St Petersburg (USFSP) student made this weekend extremely exciting.

3 Daughters Brewery, who has partnered with the school  to create a brewers arts certification program, renamed one of their flagship beers after USFSP.

The original name of the beer was the Beach Blonde Ale, and the new name for a short time is:

The Bayboro Blonde Ale.

If you’re a Florida resident you’ve most likely seen the little yellow can on Publix shelves. John Savitsky, 3 Daughters’ Chief Operating Officer stated that the Beach Blonde has reached over 260 stores and is now served in 2,000 outlets across Florida.

The Bayboro Blonde Ale has its own tap handle and will be served under the new name inside the 3 Daughters tap room for the month of September. Better yet, the Bayboro Blonde will be served at USFSP’s own bar The Tavern for the rest of the year.

This is the new tap handle. The dog on the label is Alberta, the service dog for Journalism & Media Studies Department Chair Deni Elliott. D. Ed.

So, to celebrate this pairing of these two entities I filled up my 64oz growler (now legal in Florida!) with the brew.

The beer was officially released at the USF Block Party held on September 12^th. I attended to cover the release of the beer and the festivities.

This is Tom! He runs The Tavern (USFSP's own bar) and will be serving Bayboro Blonde Ale all year!

I must say that the Bayboro Blonde Ale is extremely refreshing. Running around the USFSP Block Party, I had two chances to rest and enjoy a pint of the ale. I’ve had some experience with wheat beer, but I find it difficult to pick one as easy to drink as the Bayboro Blonde. The beer is very smooth without the hint of hoppy-ness that has become so prevalent in many craft beers.

I toured the Block Party with a few friends, who notoriously refuse the delicious and refreshing taste of beer. But, as an experiment I had one of my none-beer-loving friends try out the Bayboro. She was surprised by the cool smooth taste, and asked for a second sampling!

Finding interview subjects for my coverage of the actual event, I excitedly located bystanders with a glass of the golden beverage and asked them how they were enjoying the beer. Many were excited by the prospect of having a beer dedicated to the school. Some had never tried it before, and I think all were delighted by the taste.

They even served beer in the Student Life Center of USFSP! The first time any students had ever heard of USFSP serving beer on campus.

It was a ton of fun talking to people about the Bayboro Blonde Ale. I met some fellow beer lovers, and we gushed over the aspect of getting a Bayboro Blonde Ale from the 3 Daughters breweries’ tap room.

I will definitely be grabbing some more of the Bayboro Blonde either at the tap room, or between classes at The Tavern!

Here's Michael, and he's got beer for all of us!

I also wrote an article for the USF St Petersburg Crow's Nest. You can read that here!