The Atlantic Current: The Beer Issue - May/June 2018

TH E ATLANTI C

May – June 2018 | Issue 34

Coastal Culture | Palm Beach & Broward County

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CONTENTS

THE BEER ISSUE 16

Mathews Brewing Company Lake Worth’s first brewery producing great product straight out of the gate.

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Guide To Small Local Brewers A look at local breweries that bring big flavor off small systems.

Photo: Chris Hill

30 Interview with Matt Cox of Copperpoint We sit down with local industry veteran Matt Cox to discuss progress, trends and obviously, craft beer.

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The Coffee Side of Coffee Infused Beer Scott Angelo, owner of Ocean Coffee, gives us insight on how a roaster approaches a coffee infused craft beer.

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CURRENTS 36

FOOD Tucci’s Pizza

40 MUSIC The Heavy Pets’

Latest Album, Strawberry Mansion

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ART How I Got The Shot With Chelsea Erwin

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SNAPS Ron Heavyside’s Memorial Service And Paddle Out

Cover photo: Ben Hicks

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PUBLISHER Dustin Wright | Dustin@theatlanticcurrent.com

ASSOCIATE EDITOR Danny Wright | Dan@theatlanticcurrent.com

PUBLICATION DESIGN Richard Vergez | richardvergez.com

PHOTOGRAPHY Ben Hicks | bocaratonphoto.com

CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Chelsea Erwin Chris Hill

WRITERS Darien Davies David Rolland Adam Sheetz

ADVERTISING 561-716-6286 | info@theatlanticcurrent.com

OUR CREDO We believe coastal South Florida is one of the most desirable locations in the world, and we consider it a privilege to highlight and promote everything and everyone that exemplifies our lifestyle. The core of our model is local business partnerships and supporting our community. The amount of local talent is immense, from professional athletes to world class chefs, artists, musicians, and entrepreneurs. This talent deserves recognition, and we make these people and what they do the cornerstone of our content at The Atlantic Current.

Want to reach our 28,000+ readers? Call or email today to learn about how we can drive our readers to your business.

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Copyright 2018 by the Atlantic Current LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without permission is prohibited. The Atlantic Current is a registered trademark of The Atlantic Current LLC.

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COMMUNITY

LOCAL N EWS Damn Good Beer Bus Rolls Into Broward County

MAY/JUNE 2018

By now you’ve likely heard about the Damn Good Beer Bus. Better yet, you and your beer loving friends have hopped on to take a tour of local breweries around Palm Beach County. If you reside farther south, in Broward County, you’re in luck. The Damn Good Beer Bus is coming your way. Hot DAMN! “It’s an exciting move for us, and one that has been on our radar for several months now,” said Owner, Jonathan Breines. “To be in this position is extremely validating because it wouldn’t be possible if our concept wasn’t proven over the course of the last year, throughout Palm Beach County.

The challenge of starting from having a minimal presence to building your brand in a new market will definitely be a challenge, but one we eagerly look forward to tackling” For the initial stages, DGBB will be offering private tours only in Broward County. “The thought is to slowly and organically grow into Broward.

Once we feel all the kinks are ironed out and the demand is there, offering regularly scheduled public tours would be a natural addition, like how we do both in Palm Beach County.”

Right now in Palm Beach County, DGBB holds tours in 3 geographic areas (loops): North Palm Beach, Central, and South End. Each tour features stops at 3 breweries (along with samples), local crafts on the bus, and of course, transportation. And, you’ll pick up some knowledge on how crafts are made. The tours last 3-4 hours. All the details you need, ticket prices, and pick up locations can be found on their damn good website, damngoodbeerbus.com. You can book your tour online, if you want.

Best of luck to Johathan and the Damn Good Beer Bus Team as they roll into Broward. If you have questions, or want to learn more about a public or private tour, call 561-906-7212 or email info@damngoodbeerbus.com @damngoodbeerbus

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Community Greening Continues Their Urban Forestry Initiative

With the vast amount of open spaces in our community, you would think there would be more fruits, vegetables and more growing around town. Community Greening, whose mission is to promote “a collective effort to improve our environment for people and nature” mobilizes individuals and groups that want to make a real difference by creating green spaces that are “clean, healthy, and beautiful.” How is this accomplished? By planting trees — lots of them! Co-founders Mark Cassini, Matt Shipley and their team have already completed their first project, and with their sights set on more growth (pun intended), they recently landed a $20,000 grant from TD Bank’s “TD Green Streets.”

Community Greening plans to use the grant to plant 100 trees in the space in front of Spady Elementary along Lake Ida Road. Yes the possibility exists to make “Spady more shady” but that’s not the point. The point according to TD Bank’s Head of Environmental Affairs, Joseph Doolan, is to “improve air quality, capture carbon emissions, and enhance the quality of life.”

Big congrats to our friends at Community Greening on their progress and props to TD Bank for shelling out the support. To find ways to get involved, visit communitygreening.org. @communitygreening

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EVENTS The Wildfire Band @ Boston’s on the Beach — Delray

13 Mother’s Day Brunch @ Dada — Delray

Trew Music School Recital

@ The Funky Biscuit — Boca

Sunfest

Machine Kid

4 Orange Blossom Jamboree Pre Party @

Kai’s Music Garden — Indiantown

Surfer Blood

@ Voltaire — West Palm

Unlimited Devotion

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

Joey Calderio

@ JB’s On The Beach — Deerfield

10-13 Mercury/SeaVee Pompano Beach Saltwater Shootout

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

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Uproot Hootenanny

The Firewater Tent Revival & The String Assassins

@ Boston’s on the Beach — Delray Beach

5-6 Fort Lauderdale Air Show @ Ft. Lauderdale

Beach

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@ Kelsey Theater — Lake Park

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7th Annual Delray Beach Craft Beer Fest @ Old School Square

Josh Miles (Brunch Afternoon Show) @ Guanabanas — Jupiter

6 JM & The Sweets @ Voltaire — West Palm

Zach Deputy

@ Kai’s Music Garden — Indiantown

James Taylor w/ special guest Bonnie Raitt @ BB&T Center

Uproot Hootenanny @ The Fish Depot — Boynton Beach

The Future Prezidents

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

@ Mathews Brewing Co. — Lake Worth

G. Love

@ Funky Biscuit —Boca

12 Brewhouse Gallery 4-Year Anniversary Block Party!

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Bob Dylan Birthday Celebration feat. Big Brass Bed @ Funky Biscuit — Boca

17 Steely Dan with special guests The Doobie Brothers @

Coral Sky Amphitheater

The Funktion: Public Sounds @ Voltaire

— West Palm

18-19 Justin Timberlake

@ American Airlines Arena

18 Music On The Rocks:

Poor Life Decisions

@ 129 E. Ocean Ave — Boynton

@ JB’s On The Beach — Deerfield

Lucas Bohn

@ Old School Square — Delray

The Helmsmen

Completely Unchained (Van Halen Tribute)

@ Galuppi’s — Pompano

Smoke on the Water BBQ Feast and Competition @ Espanalde Park — Ft. Lauderdale

Sprockets and Spokes Custom Bicycle Show @ Brewhouse Gallery — Lake Park

19-20 Dania Beach Arts and Seafood Celebration @ Frost Park

20 Uproot Hootenanny @ Deck 84 — Delray

Last Word

@ JB’s On The Beach — Deerfield

22 Blue Tuesdays @ Boston’s on the Beach — Delray

Buster Shuffle Two-Tone Ska

@ Voltaire — West Palm

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The B-Side Band

Top Dawg Entertainment: The Championship Tour feat Kendrick Lamar @

Micah Scott

The Funky Nuggets “Reunion”

@ Mathews Brewing Co. — Lake Worth

Coral Sky Amphitheater

@ JB’s On The Beach — Deerfield

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

G. Love

The Tritones feat.

Marcus SoFlo Live

@ Coral Sky Amphitheater

Street Photography Candid Portraiture

CBDB @ Guanabanas

@ Mathews Brewing Co. — Lake Worth @ Kai’s Music Garden — Indiantown

@ Old School Square — Delray

Alan Jackson

@ Brewhouse Gallery —Lake Park — Jupiter

The Cube Guys

@ Voltaire — West Palm

@ Coral Sky Amphitheater

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Lion & EaglePub 10 Year Anniversary

Copperpoint Brewing Company 3-Year Anniversary Party

— Boca

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Las Rosas

@ Voltaire — West Palm

She Wants Revenge Uproot Hootenanny

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New Planets

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

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@ Boston’s on the Beach — Delray

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Elastic Bond

@ Respectable Street — West Palm

Monday Night Reggae

MAY 3-6

— Deerfield

@ The Fish Depot — Boynton

Big Medizen

BREWHOUSE GALLERY 4-YEAR ANNIVERSARY BLOCK PARTY Ok, let’s start with 3 stages of live music. A band lineup that includes Brett Staska, Raised By Wolves, The B-Side Band, Summer Gill, Rogue Theory, Neverglades, and The String Assassins to name a few. The new mural unveiling. Tons of local craft beers, food trucks, and more. It will be the kind of celebration the Brewhouse Gallery and Kelsey Theater are known for. 1pm-midnight, and it’s free to attend. 720 Park Ave, Lake Park @brewhousegallery

Homegrown Sinners Duo @ JB’s On The Beach

— Boynton

Kenny Chesney 25 Tritones

@ Mathews Brewing Co. — Lake Worth

Uproot Hootenanny @

Sons and Daughters Winery — Lake Worth

Bryce Allyn Band

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

>>

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EVENTS Diogo Das Virgens @ JB’s On The Beach — Deerfield

James Judd

Citizen Badger, Mona Lisa Tribe, Cardinal Moses, Mood Swing

Inna Vision

JL Fulks @ The Duck

@ Boston’s on the Beach — Delray

@ Voltaire — West Palm Tavern — Boca

Forever Eric (Eric Clapton Tribute) @ Boston’s on the Beach —Delray

@ Old School Square — Delray @ Guanabanas — Jupiter

Big Medizen 3

JP Soars and the Red Hots @ Voltaire

— West Palm

26 Guavatron @ Guanabanas

— Jupiter

BIG BOI @ Revolution Live — Ft. Lauderdale

Original Video Game Console Night @ Brewhouse Gallery — Lake Park

Moonshiners @ Mathews

COPPERPOINT BREWING COMPANY 3-YEAR ANNIVERSARY PARTY

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Amphitheater

LOTOS Music Festival

Suicide Commando @

It’s hard to believe that Matt Cox and the crew at Copperpoint have been putting out exceptional brews for 3 years! But they have, and it’s time to celebrate. They’ll be boasting six special releases along with special releases from local and non-local breweries. Also on site will be three of the top local food trucks, plus live music from JM & The Sweets and Artikal Sound System. It all goes down from 1-8pm. 151 Commerce Road, Boynton Beach | @copperpointbrewingcompany

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The Spam Allstars

Sekond Nature @ JB’s On The Beach — Deerfield

@ Mizner Park feat Cypress Hill, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Everlast, Inner Circle, The Pharcyde, and more

Bryce Allyn Duo

@ Mathews Brewing Co. — Lake Worth

Camp Ray

Brewing Co. — Lake Worth

John Fogarty w/ ZZ Top @ Coral Sky

Respectable Street — West Palm

Monday Night Reggae @ Boston’s on the Beach — Delray

TIMECOP1983

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

10 Photography Critique & Geek @ Brewhouse Gal-

Spider Cherry Duo @ Mathews Brewing Co. — Lake Worth

JM and The Sweets @ Guanabanas — Jupiter

@ Voltaire — West Palm

@ Respectable Street — West Palm

lery — Lake Park

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Rhythm and Grooves

Maroon 5

Spider Cherry

Blue Tuesdays @ Bos-

@ Mathews Brewing Co. — Lake Worth

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

ton’s on the Beach — Delray

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7-10

All Arts Open Mic

2018 Mercury SeaVee Pompano Beach Saltwater Slam

Mindi Abair And The Boneshakers (2 shows)

@ Brewhouse Gallery — Lake Park

Justin Jeffreys @ Mathews Brewing Co. — Lake Worth

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Skillin Jah & Artikal Sound System

@ The Fish Depot — Boynton

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

June 1 Moska Project @ Kai’s

Music Garden — Indiantown

— West Palm

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@ Mathews Brewing Co. — Lake Worth

@ BB&T Center

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Uproot Hootenanny

Monday Night Reggae @ Boston’s on the Beach — Delray

20 Mighty Mystic

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

@ The Fish Depot — Boynton

Daryl Hall and John Oates @ BB&T Center

28 Canvas and Cocktails

@ Old School Square — Delray

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Blue Beatles

Krazy Train Acoustic Show

Disbarred (Chris Cornell Tribute)@ The Kelsey

@ Voltaire — West Palm

@ The Kelsey Theater — Lake Park

@ Mathews Brewing Co. — Lake Worth

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Luke Bryan

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Theater — Lake Park

Slip and the Spinouts

@ Old School Square — Delray

Respectable Street 31 Year Anniversary Block Party

Spred The Dub

Cosmic Barley: Guavatron

JC Dwyer & The Blackbirds 2

The String Assassins

@ Boston’s on the Beach (afternoon show)— Delray

The Flyers

The Helmsmen

@ Voltaire — West Palm

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Uproot Hootenanny

@ Brewhouse Gallery — Lake Park

@ The Duck Tavern — Boca

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

@ Funky Biscuit —Boca

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The Kinected 9

Player One Peep Show: A Burlesque Show For Gamers

@ Kelsey Theater — Lake Park

The Hunts

@ Old School Square — Delray

Katchafire

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

16 Ordinary Boys: A Tribute To The Smiths Presents “The Queen Is Dead 32nd Anniversary” @ The Kelsey Theater

— Lake Park

Abbe Davis

@ The Duck Tavern — Boca

The Funkabilly Playboys

@ Boston’s on the Beach — Delray

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@ Coral Sky Amphitheater

Sprockets & Spokes Custom Bicycle Show @ Brewhouse Gallery — Lake Park

22 Weezer w/ The Pixies @ Coral Sky Amphitheater

Little Bird and the Ries Brothers

Firewater Tent Revival @ Guanabanas — Jupiter

30 An Evening With….

Killer Queen @ Culture Room — Ft. Lauderdale

Resinated

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

@ Guanabanas — Jupiter

View the latest events at theatlanticcurrent.com/events

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LAKE WORTH’S FIRST BREWERY IS OFF TO THE RACES Mathews Brewing Company

By Darien Davies Mathews Brewing Company is the brain child of David Mathews and, at the risk of sounding like Hannibal Lecter, it tastes delicious.

Mathews is a professional civil engineer turned brew master and brewery owner, and has a dedicated passion for perfecting the craft of a good craft brew.

MAY 3-6

Mathews’s future as a brew master innocently began one morning before work when he was eating breakfast and watching TV. He stumbled upon the Sam Adams LongShot American Homebrew Contest and watched two Florida home brewers win, and was instantly hooked. >>

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“They were showing you how to brew beer at home,” said Mathews, owner of Mathews Brewing Company in Lake Worth, Fla. “Immediately, I decided I’d like to try that.” At that time, which was back in the early ‘90s, Mathews said the only non-mainstream beers out there were mainly Sierra Nevada Pale Ale and Pete’s Wicked Ale. So, he fingered through the Yellowpages, found a homebrew shop in West Palm Beach, shelled out enough green to create a brewery in his garage, and never looked back.

“A couple of guys in the Palm Beach Draftsmen Homebrew Club showed me how to brew with all grain, and then it was over,” Mathews said. “I started entering a bunch of contests, won a bunch of medals, and just kept going.” He spent about 20 years home brewing before he took the big leap and sold his engineering business.

Today, he is proud to have his own independent brewery, and you can certainly tell. In addition to dreaming of and creating each beer recipe, he’s put incredible detail into the environment in which you enjoy it. The entire indoor tap room is air conditioned, and there is an outdoor Beer Garden with a stage for live music and a huge covered patio with plenty of seating for you and your four legged friends. He even purchased two lots just steps from the front door so you don’t have to hassle with parking, and provides a food truck Wednesday through Sunday so can enjoy some bites with your pints. There’s also complimentary valet parking Thursday through Saturday for your regal pleasure.

“A lot of my life is in here,” Mathews said. “I wanted to do things people haven’t done in South Florida. I think our beer is different because I’m still a home brewer at heart, or a ‘soul brewer.’” He even used his original brew dog, Dakota, as his logo.

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The quality of the beer is his top priority and he unsympathetically states, we “don’t rush the beers – the beers tell us when they’re ready.” He brews all beers to style, meaning that the Black Metallic Stout is made with ingredients from Ireland/Great Britain, and he spares no expense to achieve authentic quality. Each pint of beer drools with unique flavor and it’s easy to appreciate the love behind it.

His first recipe as a home brewer was an English Pale Ale, but some of his current favorite beers on tap are the New England Style Florida Haze, Radius, Florida Hop Juice, and the Junk Yard Dog Brown Ale. He has big plans for the future and is looking forward to brewing up a Kettle Sour and Milkshake IPA, and just had some Jack Daniels whiskey barrels delivered where he plans to age a special beer for a year (count me in).

Because his brewery is something out of a space magazine, he is able to manage all parts of the brewery process. “Temperature is a big part of the brewing process,” Mathews said. “We control it to a gnat’s ass with an automated computer program.”

He has a reverse osmosis system that he uses to produce the water for the brewery. He also has a DME Brewing Solutions system that is 100 percent computer operated and is the “brains of the system.”

A self-proclaimed “music guy” and lover of science fiction, he named all of his tanks after bands (Weezer, Green Day, Nirvana, etc.), and commissioned an artist to paint a huge mural of the Silver Surfer inside the tap room. “I want people to have fun here,” Mathews said. >>

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So come in, order a pint, and relax. He loves to see people enjoying his beer and having a good time. Just make sure you finish your beer (or else).

“I’m all for trying crazy stuff,” said Mathews. “I’m ready to push the envelope. This is it. I love brewing.”

And good thing he does. He forced himself to visit basically every brewery in Tampa (his hometown) and South Florida (tough life), and found something he couldn’t shake in Pompano. He met with Adam from Bangin Banjo Brewing to look at their brewery system and was surprised at that time to find their No. 1 seller was a Cream Ale. Mathews went back to his brewery and whipped up the recipe for his Sweet Emotion Cream Ale in about an hour. Not only was it their No. 1 seller (Florida Hop Juice and Florida Haze has since taken the No 1. spot), it also nabbed him the 2018 Best Florida Beer Contest Bronze Medal.

“At the time I made the recipe, I had only drank a handful of cream ales, but after the beer was brewed, I probably drank enough cream ale for a lifetime in one month,” said Mathews. Mathews Brewing Company also picked up another 2018 Best Florida Beer Contest Silver Medal for his White Goblin Belgian Witbier.

“This is a lifestyle. You live it and breathe it,” said Mathews. “If I don’t want to drink it, I don’t serve it. I have a passion for brewing the best beers we can make.”

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Another portion of his hobby is to brew beer the traditional way, which is why he’s so drawn to cask ales. “Cask ale is always the first beer I try if a brewery has it on tap,” said Mathews. He usually has two to four cask beers on tap at any time, and proudly serves his Florida Cask Ales via the natural carbonation process.

In addition to having food trucks and a massive beer list for your gullet’s complete pleasure, they also feature great specials throughout the week and live music every weekend with rotating bands.

Mathews is also powering full steam ahead with canning and distributing, which isn’t surprising when you take into account his drive and dedication to the nectar of the gods. He recently signed a distribution contract with Gold Coast Beverage Distributors, so be on the lookout.

So after all of this, what’s next?

“We are just trying to get our beers in as many restaurants, bars and stores in the Palm Beach County area,” Mathews said. “We will start with our Accelerate IPA, White Goblin Belgian Witbeer, Florida Hop Juice and Florida Haze.” Obviously, he hopes you enjoy.

Oh, and FYI, the Wi-Fi password is budsucks.

130 South H Street, Lake Worth @mathewsbrewingco

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YOUR GUIDE TO SMALL LOCAL BREWERS PRODUCING

BIG FLAVOR

BY DAVID ROLLAND

PROSPERITY BREWERS Opened in early 2018 in the middle of Boca Raton’s new warehouse district at ROC Urban, owners Dominick Peri and Ken Gross have set out to share their passion of craft beer with whoever is fortunate enough to pass through their doors. Set in a 2,200-square-foot warehouse with 900 of those feet reserved to be a tasting room and lounge, they have four permanent beers and a smaller rotating cast of special releases created by their chief brewer, Cameron Donisi with the menu offering a wide range of constantly rotating recipes from 12 taps. The year round brews include Clutch Plate IPA, Derrick the Barman English Mild Ale, Intra-KOLSCH-tal, Behind the Chalet Saison, R-1 Coffee Stout, and their Hefeweizen, Hef A-U. Others include their signature ‘Mexican Hot Chocolate’ Imperial stout brewed once a year with cocoa nibs, vanilla beans, cinnamon & ancho chile. A crowler machine will be installed around June 1st to allow you to take Prosperity with you.

4160 NW 1st Ave #21, Boca Raton @prosperitybrew TH EATLANTICCU R R E NT.COM

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Photo: Chris Hill

INVASIVE SPECIES BREWING

BANGIN’ BANJO BREWING COMPANY

This Fort Lauderdale taproom is owned by four partners who have extensive history in the South Florida beer scene. Brothers Jordan and Chris Bellus previously founded Laser Wolf Craft Beer Bar, Josh Levitt brewed at MIA Brewing, and finally, Phil Gillis brewed at Funky Buddha/Copperpoint Brewing. Only open for a year, they have already racked up a Best New Brewery award from Sun-Sentinel. Brewed on a 5bbl direct fire system the owners pieced together themselves, they take pride that their creations are only available in their taproom. Favorite varieties include Phil’s Pilsner which is dry-hopped with Cascade, Bloodhouse, a Belgian style Saison with blood orange and black pepper, and Conchita, an oatmeal stout brewed with locally roasted Well’s Coffee.

Childhood friends Adam Feingold and Matthew Giani opened this Pompano Beach favorite in 2014 after years of experimenting in their hometown of Boca Raton and during university days in Gainesville.

The pair found their unique name in honor of their first successful brew they made as a birthday present for a banjo strumming friend in The Bangin’ Banjo Black IPA. The brewery is a 3 BBL electric brewhouse from Stout, Tanks, and Kettles. Besides a selection of seasonal beers that rotate throughout the year, Bangin’ Banjo has four staples that visitors can savor year round. The staples are Cypress Creek Cream Ale, Odin’s Revenge Belgian Red Pale Ale, Hop of the Muffin IPA, and Moodoo Voodoo Stout, an ale that suggests coffee and cream or sweetened espresso.

726 NE 2nd Ave, Fort Lauderdale @invasivespeciesbrewing

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3200 NW 23rd Ave #500, Pompano Beach @banginbanjobrewing

FOUR UNIQUE VENUES. ONE INCREDIBLE EXPERIENCE. Our mission is to offer innovative experiences for our community through the art of food + beverage. Let us host your private event, gathering or holiday party.

damngoodhospitality.com

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DEVOUR BREWING CO. What began as a home brewing hobby in owner’s Chip and Trish Breighner’s kitchen, has since its opening in 2015 become a Boynton Beach staple. The brewery is located in a 2,640 square foot, fully air conditioned warehouse. Devour first got the attention of local beer nerds with Fruity Loops, a 5.4% blonde ale. From there Chip began experimenting with New Style IPA’s, which led to Visual Chaos, a 6% IPA. If you’re looking to go darker, try out their Coffee & Cream Brown Ale. 1500 SW 30th Ave #4, Boynton Beach, FL @devourbrewing

NOBO BREWING COMPANY Launched by brothers Steve and Tim Dornblaser, NOBO opened as a brewery and taproom in the heart of North Boynton Beach in March of 2017. The 1,800 square foot space offers a wide variety of flavors and brews. In honor of their German heritage, you’ll find beers like their Old School Hefeweizen still brewed by the 1516 German Beer Purity Law, the Reinheitsgebot. They spice things up with a Jalapeño Honey Blonde Ale that’s made with local orange blossom honey and fresh Jalapenos. They offer a diverse and wide selection including a Basil IPA, a French Vanilla Coffee Pot Porter made with fresh in-house roasted coffee and fresh vanilla beans, along with 14 other options from high ABV Imperial Stouts to New England IPA’s.

2901 NW Commerce Park Dr, Boynton Beach @nobobrewing

ODD BREED WILD ALES Odd Breed Wild Ales is one of just a handful of breweries in the country focused exclusively on producing beers fermented with a unique blend of wild yeast and bacteria and aged in oak barrels.

Odd Breed was founded by Matt Manthe and Daniel Naumko, and opened for business on November 25th of last year. Unlike most beers that should be consumed within just a few months of production, Odd Breed beers are naturally carbonated in Champagne bottles and will age gracefully for years like a fine wine. Many of Odd Breed’s beers are refermented with local tropical fruit like Mango and Passionfruit, providing a unique, Florida influence unlike anything else in the country.

50 NE 1st St, Pompano Beach @oddbreedwildales

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LAUDERALE BREWERY OOKAPOW BREWING & TAP ROOM COMPANY As you can sense from their name, LauderAle is located in Fort Lauderdale. Owners Joey Farrell and Kyle Jones hatched the business over drinks one night and it didn’t take long to find success. LauderAle earned a gold medal at the 2016 Best Florida Beer Championships, and a silver medal at the 2017 event. Even a greater honor was bestowed on their coconut-flavored porter, C Porter which was given a gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival held last year in Denver. LauderAle’s taproom features an eclectic calendar of activities including yoga, brunch, live music, and full moon parties with fire-breathing dancers. The brewery operates on a three vessel, electric fired, three barrel brewery, producing over 80 barrels a month that are fermented in SS conical fermenters.

3305 SE 14th Ave, Fort Lauderdale @lauderale

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Opened last year in West Palm Beach by Damian Ramos and Jeff Singletary after the pair met on the craft beer festival circuit, Ookapow has found its niche as WPB’s first nanobrewery. Prior to that, Damian was home brewing in New York for over ten years. Today, Ookapow’s 1,700 square foot space is open so that the single-barrel brewhouse shares the same space as the taproom. Their focus is small batch hand crafted artisan ales which are featured on a continually rotating 15 tap system. Some of the interesting selections include Peanut Butter Porter, Wee Heavy Scotch Ale, Bourbon Barrel Nitro Stout, Passion Fruit Blonde and Milkshake IPA. While they picked their name from the 1995 Angelina Jolie movie Hackers, they are hopeful the word Ookapow will become better known for the sensation of feeling satisfied from a pleasant brew.

1142 Old Okeechobee Rd, West Palm Beach @ookapowbrewing

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Q&A WITH MATT COX

OWNER AND HEAD BREWER AT COPPERPOINT BREWING COMPANY

There’s been an incredible amount of change in the last 10 years and it’s shocking to see how the market’s grown and how we’ve grown in our businesses and abilities. It’s fun to look back and say, hey, remember when we used to do simple things like this. It’s a different game now. It’s funny to think of ourselves as veterans in the South Florida industry. All in all, we’re just a couple guys brewing beers. We help as much as we can with new breweries opening up. Give them recommendations and help bring them up and make sure they don’t make mistakes, because we want everyone to put out a good quality product and any way we can help by doing that, we’re always happy to help.

That aspect of the local craft beer industry is very different than most businesses. Can you explain why that is?

Matt: It is counterintuitive to business. A lot of people in normal business don’t understand that.

They think you’re sharing secrets and sharing intellectual capital. Obviously, we’re not giving anyone the exact recipes to our flagship IPA, but if there’s tips, tricks, techniques, sharing ingredients when they’re running short…it’s a very common thing. Everybody wants to make sure that there’s good product on the market. When there’s better product on the market, you’re going to benefit everybody. You’re going to create a stronger local crowd of craft drinkers if there’s good product out there. Local doesn’t always mean it’s good, local means it’s local. Our goal is to create a very strong quality local product.

Starting out, did you ever really see your own brewery being a possibility?

When did you first start brewing?

Matt: I started as an apprentice in about 2000 at Big Bear Brewing in Coral Springs. Eventually I took over operations there.

What sparked your interest in craft beer?

Matt: It just kind of always was something that interested me. A long time ago I bartended at Brewzii in Boca Raton. I became friends with Fran (Andrewlevich, now part owner of Tequesta Brewing Company and Twisted Trunk) there during that time. I got into home brewing a little bit, but I always had the desire to do something on a bigger scale.

Are you surprised to see where the craft beer culture has gone to in South Florida?

Matt: I think it’s in a good place now. Finally we have a good buzz about craft beer in South Florida. It always seems Florida and South Florida is about ten years behind the national curve… it takes a long time for trends to hit down here. I like that there’s excitement around craft beer in South Florida right now. There’s some really good breweries putting out some good product. I’m kind of surprised at the direction that craft beer market has taken…there’s some really off the wall stuff going in craft beers right now. But that’s kind of where the market is on everything right now — fun flavors and non traditional ingredients and stuff like that. For me, when you see people putting in wacky ingredients…glitter, gatorade,

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stuff like that…it’s surprising to me. I’m kind of a purist and I like real beer first and to always taste the true beer behind it. Not be covered up with blue food coloring and glitter or stuff like that. The novelty thing is fun, but for me I’m a purist. For me it’s flavor first.

What’s your approach when it comes to recipes?

Matt: When we design recipes and make a new style of beer we think to the end game, to the flavor we want to produce, and backwards engineer to achieve that flavor. You always know what you want to set out and do. Surprisingly from the first batch of Copperpoint Lager we’ve never really changed it. The flavor came through good, clean and true to what we were looking for. IPA’s and stuff like that depending on new crop years of hops, we’ll adjust a little up and down if we want the malt body to be a little higher or lower…we’ll make small tweaks here and there. It’s always flavor first, so we make very small tweaks from batch to batch to slowly get to the goal we’re looking for…we’re open to change, but we want quality and consistency.

What’s it like these days when you get together with Fran (Andrewlevich) to look back on the progress you both have made?

Matt: It’s fun when we get to sit down and relax and have a beer together and look over the past 15-20 years and see where the market and beers used to be, where the market’s going.

Matt: When I started out, I was just interested in how to brew on a commercial scale. I learned the craft and got better and better. I started helping people out who were opening their own breweries or having trouble in their own operations. The more confidence you build, the more confidence it gives you to start an operation from scratch. After 10 years or so, I started to see it as something that I could go off and start on my own and have the knowledge and confidence and know-how to do that.

How did your lineup of beers come to be?

Matt: It’s just, at the end of the day, the kind of beers I like to drink. What we want when we’re done with the work day and get to sit down and drink a beer. What we really make, myself and everybody in general, is what you really gravitate toward are the things you like to eat and drink.

When you’re passionate about something, that’s what really is going to come through. At the end, everyone has their preferences and that’s what they gravitate toward. We’re not chasing trends, or what’s hot in 2018. It’s what we appreciate.

What we truly, truly love to do is what we’re going to do.

If you could only drink one of your beers for the rest of your life, what would you choose?

Matt: For me, the beer that we make here is the Das Pils. We make a very hoppy German pilsner.

What we say here is that it’s fun for one, and it’s also fun after six or seven. It’s a low ABV beer, it’s

got a really nice balanced character. There’s a good amount of hop in there. It’s a very light and refreshing hop bitterness, full hop flavor, one that you can sit around with a group of friends and have a few. It’s got a bold flavor at a low ABV. On the business side, what have been some of the main hurdles to overcome?

Matt: We essentially run two separate businesses here, the taproom and brewery. Trying to run two businesses in parallel at the same time is definitely challenging. It’s gotten easier since Laura (Matt’s wife) has come in and taken charge of the back office operations and also keeping an eye and running the front of house operations like scheduling, creating events, things like that. Running two separate businesses at the same time to make sure you’re adequately staffed, not over or under, and make sure you’re running each of those separate businesses with good efficiency has been much easier because we have such a great staff here.

How has overcoming that changed the way you operate Copperpoint?

Matt: It gives me more time to focus on the beers that we do, and the new beers we have coming down the pipeline. It also allows me to spend more time with creativity and creating new fun stuff. Looking forward to seasonals. Every week we do the one-off beer, which takes a significant amount of time. It forces creativity and pushes you to do new fun stuff. It’s staying in the brewery, focusing on the beers, and making sure we’re putting out stuff that’s not only good but also fun and innovative.

Some owners can take a step back from the brewing process once systems are in place.

Has your involvement changed in the brewery at all since then?

Matt: I’m still out there every day. I brew every single batch of beer. We have a good team in the brewery that understands how important the small details are. Daily we’re on the same policies, procedures and always giving everything the time it needs. It may slow us down a couple hours a day to make sure we maintain those standards, but we’re going to do everything in the highest quality as we can. We’ve got a good team and when you have a good team, it’s easy. If you have people who don’t care about the brand or quality of the brand, it’s going to be more difficult to maintain, but we’ve got a great team that works well together so it makes it a lot easier.

As far as beers go, what’s new on the horizon?

Matt: We’ve gotten into a pretty good barrel aging program, and were doing different styles of beer in oak, not just big imperial stouts. Lighter styles like saison in a cabernet wine barrel. We did bock, our “Baby got Bock”, in Angel’s Envy bourbon barrels. We’ve never put a lager in a barrel before and it was a fun project. It came out really, really good and we’re excited about that project. We’re starting to brew a lot more sours here, which is a new learning experience.

It’s a whole different way of brewing because you have to understand the souring, bacteria, time and temperature. At each brewery it’s going

to be a bit different as you understand how the bacteria works because the bacteria acclimates itself to the brewery conditions. It’s kind of a watch and learn process to see what works the best and what creates the best flavor profiles.

Kind of standing back and seeing what happens.

When we put beers in oak, people ask when it will be ready. There’s really no time table for that.

It could be six months, eight, twelve, sixteen months. We don’t know. You taste and when it gets there, you’ll know.

You’re starting to play around with New England Style IPA’s and the results have been great so far. As a traditionalist, what’s your take on the hazy beer craze?

Matt: I’m kind of in the middle of the road on that beer style. At first I was very resistant because it’s an odd style of beer and one that traditional brewers haven’t embraced. As the brewers get better at making that style of beer, the flavors are more balanced and more drinkable. So I slowly started to warm up to it. We’ve done a few here now. For all the beers we do, we try to keep them balanced and drinkable, no matter if it’s a 4% blonde ale or a 10% imperial stout. Not something you only have two sips of, or too sugary sweet, syrupy or insanely sour. We want you to sit down and have a beer, and drink the whole beer and consider having another one. The response has been very good. We’re going to, as of now, make a rotating NE style hazy IPA. We do a lot of different style IPAs but we really like the flavor profiles of those beers and they’ve sold very well so were going to run with that. It gives us some fun creativity in the brewery and it opens up Copperpoint to that rapidly growing market of the hazy, cloudy IPAs. You’ve got a pretty big space next door. What are the plans for expansion and distribution?

Matt: Long term the plan is…so we have almost 10k square feet in that north space. A third will be for canning line and keg cleaning area. A quarter will be a new walk in for packaged products. So if we run a thousand cases of cans we’ll have a place to put them in the walk in. Also for barrel storage because we want to increase our oak aging and barrel aging program.

As a pretty stark contrast to other local breweries, you decided to takes things slow and strategic when it came to canning and distribution. Why is that?

Matt: We wanted to introduce the brand to the market and get a good local following within that market. We weren’t trying to send out the beer to Atlanta, Wisconsin, and Los Angeles as soon as we open. We want to make sure the beer we put out is exactly as we like it. We wanted to make sure we could keep up with our local market before we expanded to other markets.

We wanted to grow in a slow and very calculated manner and so far we’ve held exactly to that and it’s worked well for us.

Does it ever feel like work?

Matt: I never wake up and say “I don’t want to go to work today” but it’s definitely work. Early mornings, late nights. There’s days we’re in the brew house for 15 hours a day. It’s definitely work, but

it’s not something that I wake up and I don’t want to do. There’s nothing else that I want to do as a career and it’s still fun and interesting. After all these years, it’s still something I want to do on a daily basis.

Where are you guys on the trendy, off the wall beers that are going around these days?

Matt: It’s not really our focus. Our focus is typically on high quality traditional beers…that’s what has driven our sales. We’ll do fun stuff week to week and if that really catches on, we’ll do more. Experiments we do for one off Wednesday like Cold-Brew Coffee Lager has become one of our staples in the taproom because it’s such a great beer. Often times at the end of the day, that’s what I’ll find myself drinking. The stuff that’s insanely sour, or with artificial flavor or extracts, or with glitter floating around it, is not really my thing.

People are putting in powder Tang, marshmallows…that’s not my thing. We look at the clarity, foam retention. We want to make sure the beer is good. We look at the beer and want ingredients that are natural and true. We take a lot of time and we spend a lot of money to do that. You can call up an extract company and get a small bottle, put in a few drops and be done with it, but we try and use all natural ingredients and make sure the flavor is very bright and true to what we’re looking for.

If you could go back to when you first started brewing, what advice would you give yourself?

Matt: It’s hard to say because I took so long before I jumped in to the operation here that there’s no massive missteps that I can look back over the years and see. Everything has been slow and calculated and I’ve made sure that before we make a jump or increase production that we know exactly what we’re going to do. I would say take your time, learn the craft. If you don’t know how to do something, call up someone who’s been in the industry a long time and ask them.

How is the future looking for Copperpoint?

Matt: We want to grow the brand in a strategic manner and open up new markets when we have the capacity. We have the space, the biggest thing, and the infrastructure, which is the second biggest thing. We’ve built out in a manner where when it’s time to expand, we’re ready to do that and we don’t have to cut apart the entire brewing system and cooling system. Everything is ready for expansion now that we have the canning line coming in. We bought is a high-speed canning line and that can put out enough product where if we needed to supply the entire state of Florida, we can do that. We have the square footage for storage for that as well. We can effectively stay in this building forever. We’re not looking for a second location for a production facility.

We achieved that when we took over the north space…we have sufficient space. It’s building a team to grow the brand and keep the quality of the product.

To read the full, uncut interview: Visit theatlanticcurrent.com/matt-cox-interview

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THE COFFEE SIDE OF COFFEE INFUSED BEER

How Oceana Coffee Helps Merge Two of America’s Favorite Drinks

by David Rolland

W

hile not quite reaching the level of popularity of peanut butter and jelly, the craze of coffee infused beer has shown yet again that two great flavors can prove to be even greater together. For the last eight years Scott Angelo’s Tequesta based company Oceana Coffee has provided the beans for several coffee infused beers for brewers like Tequesta Brewing Company, Twisted Trunk, Civil Society, Brewzii’s, and West Palm Beach Brewery.>>

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Once they decide which particular type of coffee to use, Angelo brings the brewmaster several samples of the same coffee using different roast profiles. Once that matter is settled Angelo roasts the coffee a couple days before the delivery date so the coffee can rest and develop. Angelo said from the dedication to his craft he can appreciate how particular a brewmaster might be to get their beer just right. “As a roast master we really have to understand what the brewmaster is looking for and deliver exactly that. Of course as a roaster I like to think that the coffee plays a solid role in the brew and I think that it’s important for the coffee to play its role, add good aromatics, great flavor and be there to add an extra dimension to a great brew.”

“All good things start over a beer of course,” Angelo said about how the process of mixing coffee with beer proceeds. “We always start out chatting with the brewmaster to understand the flavor profile of what he is looking for and how much he/she wants the coffee to play a part. From there I bring samples of what I believe are good matches as well as bring samples of other coffees close to compare.

Whether they want the coffee to play a body role or a flavor role.

We also decide the method that they are going to use to infuse the coffee. This is a very important factor for us and deciding on the roast profile.”

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For the beer side, Scott claims he has ”been lucky enough to have worked with Matt and Fran of Tequesta Brewing Company and Twisted Trunk for the last 8 years. They have produced some amazing coffee beers and even infused beers like their DeChancellor with coffee, “Espresso Chancellor” has been a huge hit. My favorite so far has been their Golden Nitro Stout.” Angelo said he savors sampling the fruits of his collaborations, but thinks the boundaries of coffee infused beers have just been scratched. He has one combination in mind that he thinks would make people wake up and smell the coffee. “It would be interesting to see a fruit forward style coffee used like an Ethiopian or Rwanda coffee in a lighter beer.” We assume it won’t be long before a local brewer accepts the challenge.

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[CURRENTS] FOOD | MUSIC | ART | SNAPS

TUCCI’S PIZZA COAL FIRED GOODNESS IN MANY FORMS

BY DARIEN DAVIES

L

et’s face it. Pizza tastes great at all times of the day, regardless if it’s 4 a.m. when you’re beer burping, or at 2 p.m. when your aunt decides to split the check. Thankfully for us, we can omit the Papa John’s and Pizza Hut pizzas because we have a clutch pizza locale that is welcoming, delicious and exactly what we’re looking to shove in our gourd. Tucci’s Fire N Coal Pizza is one of the area’s best pizza (and more) places that is located in a tiny stand-alone building tucked just south of Mizner Plaza in Boca Raton and is perfect for lunch, dinner, takeout and more.

Alberto Aletto, the owner, is a first generation Italian American who believes in hard work and integrity. He and his wife Melanie have three kids: Luca, 12 years old; Dominic, 9 years old; and Giada, 5 years old. Alberto knows that he won’t have to search far for what it means to be an honest business owner. This is coming from a person who accidentally sideswiped a car (to avoid another car) en route to our interview, and who was late so he could wait around to let the owner know what he did. He still showed up to our meeting with a smile (I was late, too), to boot.

Alberto’s family moved to Boca Raton when he was 8 years old. He always thought that he was going to join them in the jewelry industry, which he did for several years, but switched gears when he was 30 years old.

“As soon as I left school I knew I wanted to be in the jewelry business,” said Alberto. “I knew that whatever I did after that had to be fruitful.” After around fifteen years in the jewelry business, he decided it was time for a change. And thankfully he did, because he crafted a delicious little gem of a pizza joint, which can be difficult to find in South Florida.

He opened up in a location that previously housed a pizza shop, and quickly made it his own. His parents are from Naples, Italy and (obviously) had to approve of all recipes before he dished them out of the kitchen. >> 36

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FOOD

Their No. 1 seller is the Margherita Pizza, which is made with the unassuming ingredients of Buffalo mozzarella, tomato sauce and basil ($19.95 small), but tastes so stupid good that you’d think the ingredients have been elevated by either compliments or soft petting.

“My mind is going 100 mph at all times,” said Alberto. “I always say to my wife that you have to learn to follow before you can lead. If you don’t know how to take directions, how can you give? If you think you know everything, you won’t learn anything.”

They cook their pizzas at 750 degrees for about seven minutes and stick to the nonfancy pizza renditions.

This includes being more than a boss.

Alberto understands how important it is to show his guests a good time, show his team members a good time, and educate guests about the importance of the char.

And what about fresh eggs dropped into the middle of the pizza? “We never had eggs in here,” said Alberto. “If it’s not done right, it’s not good. The egg can either be undercooked or overcooked” and both are awful.

Thankfully, he knows the difference. And so does his team. The majority of his team members have been with him since the beginning – nine years ago – and he swears they can sling pizzas better than he can.

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“The char is part of what we do,” he said.

“It’s not traditional New York or Italian style. It’s Tucci style.”

And it is, especially when you meet this foul-mouthed and chill-but-intense, happy-about-life Italian, who named this restaurant after himself: Albertucci, aka Tucci (little Albert).

“I have a great time with my employees,” said Alberto. “I pride myself on ingredients, consistency, passion and integrity” (which is overused and underdone) to provide an elevated experience for his guests.

He has a small crew but a big heart, which you can easily see when you visit on a Sunday night and have to stand at the intimate bar while waiting for your to-go food. But, you end up talking to a few people who are about one degree of separation apart from you, and who share their beer with you so you are available to taste more than you ordered.

Bottom line: Tucci’s is much more than a destination for delicious pizza. So visit soon and bring me leftovers.

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MUSIC ART

ALBUM REVIEW

THE HEAVY PETS - STRAWBERRY MANSION

BY DANNY WRIGHT

I’m a music nut. Always have been. Most of my waking hours are spent digging into streaming service’s high-res audio to listen to stuff I’ve loved all my life or researching new music and artists I’m just learning about.

through it quickly the first time, trying to catch what tunes could be “hits” or what songs hit me immediately as great. Then, I’ll really listen, sometimes playing a cut 3-4 times to absorb everything the tune offers.

I heard The Pets had a new album out and I was anxious to give it a listen. I’ve been hooked on this band since I got their last album, The Heavy Pets, several years ago (on vinyl, mind you).

So, I punched up Spotify and there it was.

Strawberry Mansion by The Heavy Pets was worth the wait.

The album opens with “Higher” which instantly reminds me of an Allman Brothers/Sea Level vibe before it transitions to a reggae rhythm that carries the song to the end. Next up is “Shahryar’s Rage,” reminiscent of a jazzy Wet Willie or Little Feat tune with

Usually when I want to critically listen to a new album, I’ll breeze 40

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>>

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MUSIC

Photo: Slightly Skewed Photography

a sweet guitar and keyboard interplay. You know this song could go into a full blown jam at any time.

The acoustic “Second Sky” slows things down and includes a nice change of pace syncopation midway through before easing into a jammy guitar sequence. A really nice tune. The mid-tempo “Real News” is up next which rolls along as an instrumental ‘til about midway through then kicks into high gear with soaring guitar and impactful lyrics. If there’s a protest song on the album, this is it.

The title track “Strawberry Mansion” is a straight-ahead rock song that features a tight guitar solo near the end. “The Ibis” begins with a nice keyboard progression and settles into a late 70’s-ish prog-jazz sound that transitions to a keyboard driven style which The Heavy Pets pull off effortlessly. Nice interplay from everyone in the band and a great tune to turn up the volume and roll the car windows down to.

Reggae rhythms return with “Carry The Man,” a light hearted tune with a nice message. The soulful “Rainy Days” follows with some signature Pet’s interplay from all the guys. Next, the super charged, rollicking “Invisible Coyotes” builds to a blistering guitar solo at the end.

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Strawberry Mansion concludes with the beautiful, powerful “Holy Holy” which opens with a mournful, horn backed melody and then transitions as The Pets channel their inner Beach Boys/ Brian Wilson. A tasty sax solo dominates the middle of the song before they head into yet another time change heavy on keyboards ala Jan Hammer. I found myself waiting for a takeoff into a big jam but the boys throttle back to bring “Holy Holy” in for a safe landing. You should catch this tune live on You Tube.

I recall the days of listening to albums, where there was a logical beginning, midpoint, and ending — a complete story from beginning to end that was taken as a whole piece of work, if you will. The Heavy Pets have accomplished this and more with Strawberry Mansion. The album rises and falls with a rhythm and feel that carries you musically and emotionally from start to finish. This is a great piece of work.

Check out Strawberry Mansion on Spotify @theheavypets

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ART

HOW I GOT THE SHOT W/ CHELSEA ERWIN

My name is Chelsea Erwin and I am a destination wedding, fashion and underwater photographer. I’m lucky enough to travel all over the world to photograph in love couples! I am based in South Florida where I live with my husband on a farm with our goats, pig, dogs, cats and bunny. I have been shooting photos for as long as I can remember and started my business about 10 years ago.

This photo was taken in Exuma in the Bahamas for Taylor Buczynski and Ryan Heavyside’s engagement session, or as I call them adventure sessions. The Bahamas is known for its beautiful water and I knew I wanted to capture something a little different. When you think of the Bahamas you might not envision beautiful white cliffs. Ryan and Taylor told me about a unique island just a quick boat ride north of Staniel Cay. This little island has tiny iguanas all over it, in fact if you look closely 44

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you can see a little guy chilling on the beach. We hopped on the boat to head over to the island and once we got close I noticed the beautiful white cliffs and knew I had to get a shot of these somehow. To get this shot I threw my camera into my SPL waterhousing and swam out into the middle of the water.

I wanted to get the water and the entire cliff into the shot.

The water in Exuma is so clear! Typically I like to shoot in late afternoon light but shooting in the mid day sun in the Bahamas really makes the water come alive. This day the sun was bright and the water was so clear it looked like a pool. I had Ryan and Taylor walk slowly across the waterline and waited until they were in the right spot. The funny thing was I didn’t even notice the little iguana on the beach until I started editing the photo.

Sometimes you just get lucky! @marislifestylephotography

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SNAPS

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