Former FWB resident starts beer business

Just two months after breaking into the beer business, a former Fort Walton Beach resident is bringing his brew home.

Fred Block, who graduated in 1985 from Choctawhatchee High School, started brewing his own beer as a hobby eight years ago. Now his BottleTree Beer will be hit store shelves and restaurants in his old stomping grounds in two weeks.

Block said he began marketing his beer in April by sending out samples to local stores and restaurants near his home in Campobello, S.C. He said it’s been a whirlwind adventure since then.

“In my mind it seems like it’s been a year, but all this has happened in just two months,” Bock said of his first order that came in June. “For me, it was like watching grass grow.”

Right now, Block said he wants to make only a signature beer. He described it as a Belgian blond for its light color and its lace, or the foam the forms at the top of a glass.

Local Tony Giordano, who said he has known Block for more than 30 years, said BottleTree Beer is a good brew.

“It’s very good beer,” Giordano said. “I really like the flavor. It’s not too dark, not too light. It kind of tastes like an imported beer. People around here are really going to like it.”

Since June, Block has distributed his beer in South Carolina, North Carolina, Alabama and now in Northwest Florida. He said he wants a presence throughout the Southeast.

He said if his first batch is successful, he will add two more flavors.

Initial brew reviews have been favorable.

“I haven’t had anyone say, ‘Eh, I don’t like it,’ ” Block said in a telephone interview from his hometown. “So far, people are really enjoying it. We’re now trying to get our name out there so this can take off.”

Block said he hopes his beer is successful enough for him to move back to Okaloosa County eventually. He said his job in engineering doesn’t allow him to be close to his parents and family.

“Maybe I’ll be able to create my own job and make my own way home,” Block said. “I’m hoping if this is successful that I can literally just ship myself home.”