For years Brewmaster Josh Wilson has been crafting great beers in Sarasota, Florida and for years his friends have been enjoying his art.  It made complete sense to form Big Top Brewing Company to bring those artfully crafted beers to everyone. When we started Big Top Brewing Company, there were no craft breweries in the Sarasota area and we set out to fix that. We have a great town, with a great history, and the only thing missing was that great local beer.

We wanted to compliment Sarasota’s historical associations with The Ringling Circus, performing arts, great architecture, the best art and design schools  and world renown tourism. The best way we could do that was to craft beer that our home town can be proud of. With brewing, tasting, and entertaining happening at our location on Porter Way in Sarasota, we plan to continue the tradition of the arts and help Sarasota add beer town to its identity. Come step under our big top and see for yourself. Big Top Brewing Company artistically crafts world class beers, inspired by our passion, integrity, and the history of our home town.  

Who We Are: Calusa Brewing is a family-owned and operated start-up craft brewery based in Sarasota, Florida. We are committed to creating quality brews inspired by Florida’s rich aquatic heritage & culture. The Calusa Brewing Tasting Room is now open Thursday-Sunday. Visit our 8,500 sq ft Brewing Facility & one-of-a-kind Tasting Room at 5701 Derek Avenue in Sarasota, FL. We are proud to feature Calusa Craft Beers, French Roast Coffee & Florida's Top Food Trucks. Where We’ve Been: We’ve been a lot of places and are most thankful that our experiences have led us back to Sarasota to chase our dreams! The idea for Calusa began while Geordie and Vic were stationed in San Diego, California. There, we witnessed a craft beer explosion and immediately started talking about being able to bring it home someday. Unfortunately, dozens of mediocre malt extract boils later, we realized neither of us possessed the patience or know-how to create truly exceptional beers. Enter Jason: An avid Southern Californian home brewer, science nerd and general all-over Beer-Wizard, he exhibited the qualities we knew we wanted in a Head Brewer. It helped that his Bavarian Hefe and Saison were killer. Over 65 batches later, we are beyond excited to share them with you! Where We’re Going: We trust that integrity combined with hard work will be the key to our success. We are committed to quality and creativity, and can’t wait to go on this ride with you all. Please stay tuned, and feel free to follow us on various social media for updates along the way. … and Why Calusa? The Calusa were Native Americans who inhabited Florida’s Gulf Coast. Simply, the Calusa embodied what we love about ourselves and our home. They were a fierce, intelligent people who had a tremendous respect for the water and for Florida’s natural resources. We admire those traits and strive to walk in similar footsteps.