REVIEW: Craft Beer – Epcot Legacy Showplace 2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival

An annual favorite of Food and Wine goers is the Craft Beer marketplace, which as the name suggests, if you like beer, this is the place to be.  This year there are also some interesting food options to try like the Scotch Egg and Handwich (a classic from The Land pavilion in the 1980’s).  Let’s see how everything tastes in this Craft Beer Review: 2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival….

Craft Beer Marketplace:

Craft beer just like last year is being held inside the Odyssey pavilion in Future World East.  At least the old Odyssey restaurant is getting used for something these days!  You’ll find the sign here in World Showcase leading you to the right place:

Tables with umbrellas:

Can’t beat this spot imo:

 

 

 

Craft Beer Menu:

Lots of great beer options, I’d say the #1 place to go during the Food and Wine Festival.  Also there are a few interesting food options, the Scotch Egg, Zesty Cheeseburger and Cheddar Cheese Mac and Cheese Handwich, and L’Orange Cotton Candy:

Food:

• Chilled Scotch Egg wrapped in Sausage with Mustard Sauce – $4.00, DDP Snack Credit
• Zesty Cheeseburger and Cheddar Cheese Macaroni Handwich – $5.50, DDP Snack Credit
• L’Orange Cotton Candy: A mixture of Lime and Orange Cotton Candy – $4.75, DDP Snack Credit

Beverages:

• M.I.A Beer Company 305 Golden Ale, Doral, FL – $4.00
• JDub’s Passion Wheat, Sarasota, FL – $4.00
• Central 28 Trekkerbier Farmhouse Ale, DeBary, FL – $4.00
• Playalinda Brewing Company Blonde Ale, Titusville, FL – $4.00
• Florida Beer Company Passport 35 Triple Chocolate Milk Stout, Cape Canaveral, FL – $4.00
• Cigar City Guayabera Citra Pale Ale, Tampa, FL – $4.00
• Bright Horizons: Sprite® with Multi-flavored Boba Pearls (Non-Alcoholic) – $4.50
• Eastern Florida Flight – $9.00  *Ziggy Recommended
  
  • M.I.A. Beer Company 305 Golden Ale, Doral, FL
  • Playalinda Brewing Company Blonde Ale, Titusville, FL
  • Florida Beer Company Passport 35 Triple Chocolate Milk Stout, Cape Canaveral, FL
• Western Florida Flight – $9.00
  
  • JDub’s Passion Wheat, Sarasota, FL
  • Central 28 Trekkerbier Farmhouse Ale, DeBary, FL
  • Cigar City Guayabera Citra Pale Ale, Tampa, FL

Menu Review:

Let’s start out by saying the Scotch Egg at Rose and Crown is amazing, and so obviously our hopes were up pretty high for the Chilled Scotch Egg wrapped in Sausage with Mustard Sauce here.  Unfortunately they were let down pretty fast.  At first look it seems like it would be pretty good, presentation is nice!  But when tasting it we found it dry and flavorless.  The sausage was bland tasting and it was mostly breadcrumbs.  Don’t know if if was supposed to be as cold as it was served to us either, but it turned us off.  Just lacking flavor.  We’d skip it!

Like the first, the Zesty Cheeseburger and Cheddar Cheese Macaroni Handwich we were really looking forward too.  In fact it reminded me of one of my favorite snacks in any Disney park, the Cozy Cones over in Radiator Springs in Disney California Adventure, which we LOVE!  This was another letdown unfortunately.  The cone was really good, soft and chewy and buttery too!  But the Mac and cheese was just ok.  When you hear Zesty Cheeseburger Mac and cheese you think it’s going to be bursting with flavor and it just wasn’t.  Didn’t really even have that much cheeseburger in it.  Not terrible, but under our expectations.

Of course you knew we were going to try some beer here at Craft Beer, so first up was the Cigar City Guayabera Citra Pale Ale.  We thought this was really good.  It’s an American ale with a rich golden color that just begs you to drink it.  Its maltiness and full hop flavor is evident right away.  It also has a taste of citrus: tangerine, lime and pink grapefruit which is zesty and fresh tasting.  Great option and we recommend it.

 

Lastly we got the Eastern Florida Flight which includes 3 beers, locally brewed in Florida.

 

The M.I.A. Beer Company 305 Golden Ale was first.  It has a medium-light body, and is sharper and less sweet than the aroma suggests.  Plenty of hops to it with a lemony almost woody taste.  Not too bitter and pretty balanced.  Overall nice choice.

The Playalinda Brewing Company Blonde Ale was next and we found this to be nice too.  It’s full body, a little spicy, fruity and hoppy.

The last one of the flight was the one that got our attention the most and had us divided on taste, the Florida Beer Company Passport 35 Triple Chocolate Milk Stout.  Yes you read that right, chocolate!  This was really good, you could actually taste the chocolate!  Wasn’t bitter like some, but very rich and full taste.  One of the most interesting beers I had and think it’s worth trying just in the uniqueness alone even if you aren’t crazy for it!

 

Booth Summary and Grade:

Overall our trip to Craft Beer was a light letdown.  We were expecting better food than what we tried, and were disappointed in that aspect.  The beer choices are fantastic though and it’s worth a trip just for the beer alone.  The Eastern Florida Flight was great, especially the Florida Beer Company Passport 35 Triple Chocolate Milk Stout, which we loved!  Go to drink and find your food elsewhere…

If you have to get just one thing: Eastern Florida Flight

Grade:  7.5

Take a look at all of my 2017 Epcot Food and Wine articles.  I have a 2017 Epcot Food and Wine Info Guide with a complete Index of the Food and Wine Menus, The Top NEW Items for 2017, Top Food and Wine Booths and more…I want you to be able to have the best info on the Festival so you have a great time and don’t waste your time!

Your Thoughts:

I want to know what you think of my Craft Beer Review 2017 Epcot Food and Wine Festival.  Did the food let you down?  Which was your favorite item?  What did you think of the chocolate beer?  Let us know in the comments section below!

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