I had been hearing great things about Green Bench for quite some time.  Even while at other breweries in St. Pete, customers were telling me that I had to go to Green Bench and that they had some unusual and great beers.  Therefore, I had to make sure that I made it there.

My big problem with Green Bench is that it sits next to a police station– not an ideal location for a brewery.  However, that complaint has nothing to do with the beer.  I do find that some of their beers are just too unusual and they tend to go toward the sour side, which is not to my taste.  However, I can see why many others rave about these beers for the fact that they are unusual and they are quite good for sour beers.  They do have a wide selection of beers on tap at the brewery, so it is possible to find something for everyone. 

The Saison de Banc Vert has a herbal nose and is a bit sour with a Belgian undertones.  It is a very drinkable, summertime beer.The Whitted White IPA has a hint of hops also with Belgian undertones.  Skyway Wheat is very hoppy for a wheat beer. I don’t think I would recommend it to a wheat beer drinker but might be more suited to a pale ale or IPA lover.  If I had not know this was a wheat, I would have guessed it was a strong pale ale as the hops did overwhelm the wheat.  Le Banc Belge has good Belgian flavor. The Happy Hermit Pale Ale was a favorite with slight hops on the nose and a nice malty, slightly toasty taste.  Colliding Galaxies is apparently a collaboration with a local brewery here, Point Ybel (see previous blog posts).  It was a sour double IPA that was quite sour but did have the taste of hops, once you got past the sour. It wasn’t my favorite but I met several people who raved that this was the best beer at Green Bench.  Surrealist IPA was one of those beers that I am sure someone loves but it definitely wasn’t me.  Earlier that day I had eaten a grapefruit that was a bit rotten and all I could think of when I drank this beer was that grapefruit.  Not a fan of this one, but hey we can’t all like everything. The Saison de Banc Noir was also a Belgian inspired beer with a good herbal flavor– guessing at coriander.  Stay Dry Stout was coffee on the nose and burnt on the taste just like a good stout should be. Spring Bloom Double IPA was much better than the Surrealist with hints of lemon and grapefruit.  The Green Bench IPA had all the flavors to be expected in an American IPA but had a bit more malt than is typical; however, not a bad beer.

So what do I think of Green Bench… definitely worth a stop especially if you want to try something a little bit different or unusual.  Its always good to see a brewery that does a bit more than the pale ales, IPAs, stouts and porters.  Even if you find it is not really your thing, you have at least expanded your palate and experienced a new aspect of the craft beer world. 

I also have to mention the atmosphere here.  The place was hopping on a Saturday night and who doesn’t love a lively, casual bar filled with lots of beer lovers.