Take a Seat at Green Bench Brewing: A Review

It was a quiet Thursday night, people in scattered groups enjoying a few after work beers.There was a crisp breeze keeping cool those who decided to sit outside on the fine wooden tables under hanging string lights.

I was excited: another brewery review. It's been over a month since I visited Rapp Brewing in Seminole. Now, I'm just a little closer to home. For this week I decided to visit

Green Bench Brewing Company

Green Bench is pretty easy to find, at 1133 Baum Ave, right off of Central Ave. Just outside of Downtown.

I'm not really into the hustle of the bar scene that is prevalent in downtown St Pete. More often, I would rather sit and have a nice conversation with good people. This brewery caters nicely to that with their outside beer garden.

Photo credit: Keep St Pete Local

November is a great month to get down there: sitting in a lawn chair with a cold beer, the crisp air and a slightly cloudy sky, make for a serene night. Green Bench also runs a few movie nights on the brick walls that line the beer garden. Here's a link (They even have a Walking Dead night if you're into that sort of thing)

Connected to the beer garden is a over-head covered patio with long wooden tables. Groups can gather and get goofy, discussing the merits of IBC Root Beer's "crafty-ness"

Moving inside there is a lot of space. Along the front wall are long windows that face Central Avenue. The bar also has glass windows that expose the brewery behind it.

Photo Credit: I Love the Burg Blog

Now, all of this is great. I mean, atmosphere counts for so much when you're looking for a place to drink with a few friends. But, let's talk about something that's more important... How is the beer?

This is the Sunshine City IPA

They have a constant rotation of fantastic beers. A few shout outs are the Surrealist IPA, a sour IPA made with grapefruit; their Middle Eastern Brown ale, crafted with Yemeni spices, dates, raisins and allepo peppers which gives it a subtle almost curry spice; and their Stay Dry Stout, which is one of the most drinkable stouts I've ever had.

With a 15 barrel system it is no wonder they have so many beers on tap.

Green Bench is also reaching out into distributing their beer around the country. They have signed a deal with Shelton Bros. Distribution to get their cans out into retail stores. Right now, if you're in certain parts of Florida you can find Green Bench beers in ABC Liquor and Total Wine.

But, I have to say the most impressive piece of equipment in the brewery is their foeder.

This foedor is made of Oak wood, more specifically 75% French Oak, and 25% American Oak. This foedor will be used to craft their Belgian ales, with a specific Belgian strain of yeast.

The nice thing about using the wooden foeder is that with each brew, the yeast will soak into the wood saturating it, and over time the beer taste will become more complex. 

Touring Green Bench was incredibly fun, and I have to thank Matt O'Conell for showing me around the brewery. He was informative and patient with me. 

Here is a quick look at the cans to come! I've been seeing them pop up around town, and hope to see a lot more: