The first time I ever went to the Funky Buddha Lounge I had something called the Maple Bacon Coffee Porter. Except there was no long lines and nobody showing up at 4 a.m. and waiting by the door (like there are now when it's available) - it was me, my wife , and a couple snifters of a drink unlike any I'd ever had before it. It had a sweet molasses and maple nose, a chewy almost syrupy consistency, and the taste had hints of smoky bacon and lingering coffee. It was breakfast in a glass. I honestly couldn't believe those flavors were possible to recreate in a beer, let alone successfully. But it was. Ryan and the guys at Funky Buddha seem to do this time and time again - recreating familiar tastes and smells in beer - like their no crusts, a peanut butter and jelly brown ale, and their chocolate cherry porter, both of which taste exactly like their names.

What I found the most interesting was the importance of family and camaraderie in the brewery. Fermenters named after family members and family dogs, two brothers running the show, and a sense of family between the employees who worked even through a 30 minute power outage to make sure that what needed to get done got done. Even through their rapid rise in popularity, they're guys that haven't forgotten where they came from and haven't grown any egos or illusions of grandeur. Still, they do what they want to do how they want to do it and don't make any apologies for it. It's why they've grown so fast and been propelled into international acclaim and why everyone wants a bottle of the infamous maple bacon coffee porter and it's why they'll be around pushing the boundaries in South Florida for a long time to come.

We hope you enjoy listening to our conversation as much as we enjoyed having it.

Cheers!

Craft Commander