One of the state's oldest beers is making its return to Tampa.

Driving the brews: La Tropical, which originated in Cuba and Ybor City, is celebrating its Tampa relaunch at a private event on Thursday, the company's representatives tell Axios.

• La Tropical will be sold in cans and on draft at local restaurants, bars, and supermarkets throughout Florida's west coast.

Why it matters: The beer's shutdown after more than 70 years was preceded by the Cuban revolution. When Fidel Castro nationalized the economy, armed soldiers took possession of the La Tropical brewery.

• "They knew about managing a brewery what I knew about going to the moon," its last master brewer, Julio Fernandez-Selles, said, per the company's website.
• Florida Brewing Company, which was contracted to make the beer in Ybor City, shut down in 1961, citing the Cuban embargo and new Florida competition from larger brewers.

Flash forward: Attorney Dale Swope bought the Florida Brewing Company building at 1234 E. Fifth Ave. in Ybor City in 1999 and spent three years renovating it after it sat empty for four decades.

• In Miami, Manny Portuondo, the great-great-grandson of Federico Kohly, who owned the land the Cuban brewery was built on, sought to resurrect the beer as the CEO of Cerveceria La Tropical in Miami. Tampa will be the brewery's second distribution location.
• In 2017, Heineken invested in La Tropical, buying the majority of the brand, per the website.

What they're saying: Portuondo said in a statement to Axios that the new beer pays tribute to Cuba and Florida's shared history.

• "The rebirth of Cerveza La Tropical represents a dream come true," he said.

The key to hurricane prediction could be lightweight drones and new satellite technology.

What's happening: Drones can explore some of the fiercest parts of a hurricane and send back real-time data, while satellite developments can give forecasters a better look at storms from above, Axios' Andrew Freedman and Jennifer A. Kingson write.

Why it matters: Seesawing forecasts and delayed evacuations for Hurricane Ian may have contributed to deaths in Florida — and have spurred soul-searching about how to do better.

• Better forecasts will be increasingly vital as climate change makes for more intense and wetter hurricanes, which undergo rapid intensification — like Ian did shortly before its devastating landfall.

Where it stands: Today's monitoring systems are good at predicting a storm's track but struggle to anticipate intensity changes.

• To improve predictions — particularly about intensity — scientists need more information about hurricanes' relatively small core.
• Right now, those are mainly sampled by human-flown Hurricane Hunter aircraft.

What's happening: In recent firsts, uncrewed airborne and seaborne drones have transmitted live data and video from inside these violent storms, including areas off limits to Hurricane Hunters.

• The drones complement advanced satellites (including a planned private-sector network) and a new hurricane forecasting model the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) aims to adopt next year.

Go deeper

🏡 The city of Tampa is looking at allowing more accessory dwelling units (aka mother-in-law suites, granny flats, garage apartments or tiny houses) to help ease the shortage of affordable housing. (Fox 13)

🏆 The St. Pete Pier received Urban Land Institute's Global Award for Excellence — one of six developments from around the world, and one of two in the U.S., to get the honor. (Tampa Bay Times)

🎢 Universal Orlando theme parks drew bigger crowds than three of the Disney World parks last year, according to a new industry report. (Florida Politics)

The Tampa Bay Lightning have reinstated Ian Cole after a NHL investigation found no evidence to support the sexual abuse allegations against him. (WFLA)

🦻 Adults with mild to moderate hearing loss can now buy hearing aids without a prescription online and at stores nationwide. (Axios)

Indigenous activists drenched Tampa's Columbus statue in blood over the weekend.

• Florida Indigenous Alliance and American Indian Movement members have been protesting against the statue for three decades, adding the blood gesture to their annual protests in the last three years.
• Check out Justin Garcia's story and Dave Decker's photos in Creative Loafing.

💼 Check out who's hiring on our Job Board.

1. Communications Manager at Florida Department of Citrus.
2. Manager Accounting, Revenue Share & Royalty at Fanatics.
3. Director of Research at Florida Cancer Specialist and Research Institute.

Want more opportunities? Check out our Job Board.

Hiring? Post a job.

After begging his father, "I wanna drive Zamboni, please," at a post-All-Star Game press conference in February, Carter Stamkos now has his very own Zamboni.

State of play: The three-year-old was surprised last week with his own Kool Karz NHL Zamboni Ride-On Toy.