Cigar City Brewing might be the most well known craft beer company in Tampa, however their brewing facility is actually a bit out of the way, and difficult to visit for many visitors to the city. Luckily there are several breweries in downtown Tampa that are walking distance from popular tourist attractions. Among them are Magnanimous Brewing Company and Woven Water Brewing Company, both of which are located a short distance from the Tampa Riverwalk.

Magnanimous Brewing Company earned its name after one of the founders heard the word “magnanimous” as a teenager. He thought that the word sounded cool, and after learning what it meant, felt that it described a value to aspire towards. Years later, the word came in handy when it was time to start a craft beer company. Among their easy-going, session beers is Zurg, which is a Czech-style lager with a light, almost chamomile taste and aroma. It’s uncomplicated and easy to enjoy, and availability in cans means that it’s the ideal beer for the beach.

Zurg Czech-Style Lager

More intense, are the many hazy India Pale Ales that they have on tap. The most well known of these is Juice Lord which is double dry hopped with Citra and Mosaic, and sometimes available as a double IPA, a triple IPA, and an extremely intense quad IPA. They also make a double dry hopped IPA using only Citra, and another one using only Mosaic which are ideal for enjoying in a flight alongside Juice Lord as they assist in understanding the aroma and character of each individual hop variety, and the effect on the beer.

Another called Dead End Friend is a double dry hopped, double IPA with Pacific Sunrise, Krush, and Mosaic hops that is a collaboration with Coppertail Brewing Company located in nearby Ybor City. It’s very fruit forward, and led by aromas of orange blossoms and ripe grapefruit zest which is then followed by sweetness and juiciness in every sip.

One of the many Hazy IPAs from Magnanimous Brewing

A few blocks to the north is Woven Water Brewing Company, who also offer a range of Hazy IPAs. Their strongest and most intense one is Counterglow, which is a Quad IPA IPA brewed with Mosaic Incognito, and dry hopped on four hop varieties selected for their fermented fruit aroma. Their flagship Hazy India Pale Ale is Lucid; which is described by the company as a blurry IPA brewed with Citra and Simcoe hops. It’s dry, and lightly herbal with an almost vegetal taste and strong notes of lemon oil.

Woven Water Brewing Lucid Hazy Imperial Pale Ale

The lemon flavor continues with Cattivo, a sour ale conditioned on Sicilian lemon and graham crackers that is inspired by lemon meringue pie. The citric acid and lactic tang is perfectly balanced by the graham cracker flavor and smoothness from the lactose. Another Woven Water beer inspired by pie is their Mixed Berry Tart Fusion, which is a smoothie sour conditioned on three types of berries, kiwi fruit, and lactose.

Cattivo Lemon Meringue Pie Sour Ale

Their pumpkin ale on the other hand is not a take on pumpkin pie, and instead it pays homage to another iconic autumn treat; the Pumpkin Spice Latte. It’s an English-style porter called Solace, that is conditioned on coffee and pumpkin spices. It’s slightly sweet with some rich roasted coffee notes, and a hint of cinnamon and nutmeg on the finish. In terms of similarity to an actual pumpkin spice latte, it is reminiscent of one that has an additional shot of espresso.

Woven Water Pumpkin Spice Latte Stout

Slightly similar, but stronger is Emanate, an Imperial Stout conditioned on hazelnut, coconut, vanilla, and coffee. The hazelnut and coconut manage to bridge the gap between the darker notes from the roasted malt and coffee, and the sweet flavor from the vanilla. This leads to decadent notes of chocolate coated hazelnuts, caramel, and toasted cacao nibs in every sip.

Imperial Stout from Woven Water Brewing Company in Tampa

After enjoying beer at two Tampa breweries, the ideal place to head next is Armature Works. Located along the waterfront, this building was once a storage hub for streetcars, but it now functions as a food hall. It’s the perfect spot to enjoy a Nashville hot chicken sandwich from Butcher n’ Barbeque or a Cuban sandwich from Hemingway’s Cuban Cuisine while watching the sunset.