There’s something to be said for a brewery that becomes synonymous with not just one, but two distinctly unique styles. Though it’s quite another when that same brewery approaches every style they brew with an eye for quality, first and foremost. For over 8 years now, J. Wakefield Brewing has done just that.
The story of J. Wakefield Brewing begins with it’s founder, owner and brewer master, Jonathan Wakefield taking on a new hobby, or at least testing one out with a Mr. Brew homebrew kit that he received as a Christmas present from his wife in 2005. His passion for cuisine and a desire to brew historically dormant and uncommon styles propelled this new found interest, eventually turning his hobby into a profession.
Wakefield knew he was on to something with the creation of a Berliner Weisse conditioned on Dragon Fruit and Passion Fruit in 2012, as he explained a few years back to Florida Beer Blog:
“As my home brewing began to evolve, I experimented with local fruits and other ingredients. The combination of these two fruits really worked. Joey Redner from Cigar City, happened to be at a party at my house, after a University of Miami/Florida State
football game and tasted my home-brewed version of what would become DFPF. He asked me to come up to Tampa and brew it on one of their pilot systems for
their first Hunahpu’s Day. We’ve been serving at that event since.”
The style, long dubbed Florida Weisse, in many ways became the foundation of the brewery which officially opened in 2015. DFPF (as well as Miami Madness) has since become a top rated version of the style on Beer Advocate and Rate Beer, a benchmark for the rise of the Fruited Berliner concept across the US.
While variations of this style caught everyone’s attention and cemented the success of the brewery, Wakefield’s love of cooking up big adjunct stouts is just as pronounced. Since opening the brewery in the Wynwood Arts District of Miami, they’ve created at least 211 different beers – at least 84 of which are denoted as variations on the Imperial Stout style, or 30 more than the sum total of different IPAs they’ve created.
Yet what has given J. Wakefield staying power, despite the huge uptick in new breweries and an ever growing demand for new styles, is their dedication to sourcing only the best ingredients, never using extracts, and freshly processing their fruit and adjuncts in-house.
It’s for all these reasons and more that we’re overjoyed to have seven different J. Wakefield beers available in Oregon for the first time! These begin arriving at locations in Beaverton, Hillsboro, the Southern Willamette Valley, and Portland today, then the Bend area next Tuesday. Here’s what to look for:
- Barrel-Aged Down To Split ~ a THICCC and creamy collaborative Stout brewed with our homies at The Eight State Brewing Co. & DSSLVR. We pulled from the DTS base last year and let it sleep in VSOP Cognac Barrels for over a year. We then conditioned it with an INSANE amount of Wild Thai Banana, Toasted Coconut, Roasted Macadamia Nuts, Cocoa Nibs, Strawberries & Tahitian Vanilla. 14%
- Dropping Dimes ~ We stay Dropping Dimes when it comes to our Hazy Game! This one is no different, another banging DDH HAZY DIPA hopped up with an insane amount of Sultana, Sabro & Vic Secret. 8%
- Hawaiian Dreams ~ The Whipped Series has returned! We present Hawaiian Dreams, a tropical fruited sour brewed with loads of Pineapple, Orange, Lemon & Vanilla! A touch of Lactose was added alongside the addition Spirulina for that wild blue color! 6%
- Mental Haziness ~ a juicy DDH hopped hazy IPA with a straight forward fruity pebble nose. We loaded this hazy with Motueka & Pacific Sunrise hops. A soft and pillowy mouthfeel with notes of ripe melon, peach & citrus will all make sense after on sip. 6.5%
- Hops 4 Teacher ~ a generously Citra hopped India Pale Ale for a citrusy and juicy tasting experience with notes of grapefruit and passionfruit. 6.5%
- Shorts & Hoodies ~ Shorts and Hoodies, that’s how we rock winter time in Miami for the 2.5 days of cold weather. This fruited sour was loaded with Mango, Oranges, Cardamom & Vanilla. 6%
Content for this article sourced from J. Wakefield Brewing, Florida Beer Blog, Craft Beer and Brewing, and Tasting Table.
Day One Distribution 