Cigar City brewing beer that tastes like Tampa

TAMPA, Florida (AP) — When a friend gave Joey Redner a taste of a beer that had been aged with Spanish cedar — the wood used to wrap and box cigars — he knew it was an idea worth stealing.

The aroma and flavor instantly reminded the then avid home brewer of his hometown's historic Ybor City and the hand-rolled cigars Tampa is famous for. And he knew that if he ever owned a brewery, his beer needed to evoke the same memories.

"It just blew me away because when I smelled it, it was like waking down 7th Avenue in Ybor City, walking past a cigar shop," said Redner, who now owns Cigar City Brewing. "It was a win/win. It was good and it really pinpointed it on the map as coming from …