Midwest
The Bottlehouse Brewery & Meadery | Spring Gruit
July 12, 2018 | Kevin Risner
In the Cleveland, OH area, there are breweries that most of the locals and others who are not so local mention right away as must-visits. The Bottlehouse Brewery and Meadery has become a steady favorite for many craft beer fans. This taproom and brewery has been receiving a larger number of recommendations from those who have experienced the beer, the mead, the cider and the sours created over the past six years.
Today, the beer gracing the spotlight is a more exotic ale, one that has received a bit more press this past year. It also happens to be on tap and in bottles this month, so the time was ripe to share this beautiful beverage with a wider audience. Let me introduce you to The Bottlehouse Brewery and Meadery’s Spring Gruit.
Chicago’s Illuminated Brew Works Pays Tribute to Anthony Bourdain
July 11, 2018 | Paul Lewis
I’ll admit that I didn’t start watching Anthony Bourdain’s show, Parts Unknown, until after he tragically took his own life on June 8th. I was late to jump on the bandwagon, but once I saw what the hype was about, I was hooked. I binged the entire series on Netflix in a few days. As someone who enjoys writing about beer, food and travel, it was only natural to admire someone who gets paid to eat and get drunk in some of the most beautiful and exotic places on earth.
Chicago Quick Sips July 9-22
July 9, 2018 | Mike Zoller
Quick Sips is our way of highlighting beer events, tap takeovers and other notable beer news around the city of Chicago, IL. If you’d like to submit something to be included in the next Quick Sips, please email us at [email protected].
2018 Bourbon County Labels Hint Possible Neapolitan, Horchata, Reserve Variants
July 9, 2018 | Mike Zoller
While there are still 137 days until the 2018 batch of Goose Island’s Bourbon County Stout will be released, the hype has started with the approval of a variety of labels by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau last week.
Pipeworks Brewing | Jones Dog Sundae: A Stout for Summer
July 5, 2018 | Paul Lewis
Jones Dog Sundae from Chicago’s Pipeworks Brewing Company is a stout made for summer drinking. This sweet milk stout with natural flavors comprised of chocolate, vanilla and strawberry was brewed to be the boozy, liquid version of Neapolitan ice cream — the perfect warm weather treat!
Hoof Hearted Brewing | Konkey Dong Double IPA
July 3, 2018 | Anna Scott
This is my first official summer in California. Seattle gets warm, but with the level of sunburns I have gotten has skyrocketed! I mean, where are the clouds? Where is the rain break we get in the PNW?
How do we beat the heat? Beer! What else am I supposed to do? Beer is a whole lot cheaper than an AC unit… or at least that’s how I’m justifying it. Therefore, the only way to beat the heat is to drink some Hoof Hearted Brewing.
Brickstone Brewery | Brickstone APA: The Beauty of Amarillo Hops
July 2, 2018 | Mathew Powers
About 60 miles south of Downtown Chicago, in a town of roughly 18,500 people, one will find a superbly crafted American Pale Ale (APA). You remember APAs, right? Craft beer drinkers used to consume multitudes of them a few decades ago. Well, they still exist, and they are as good as ever, exemplified by Brickstone APA from Brickstone Brewery in Bourbonnais, IL.
Chicago Quick Sips | June 25
June 25, 2018 | Mike Zoller
Quick Sips is our way of highlighting beer events, tap takeovers and other notable beer news around the city of Chicago. If you’d like to submit something to be included in the next Quick Sips, please email us at [email protected].
Fretboard Brewing | Mellowship India Session Pilsner
June 25, 2018 | Craft Beer Joe
In a culture that is often obsessed with the notion of “more”, craft beer has fallen victim to chasing high ABV and over-hopped beers. But the real truth is, that … Read More
Surly Brewing Upping its Chicago Presence With Three Summer Beers
June 21, 2018 | Mike Zoller
Last year Surly Brewing made it clear — Chicago was a market they wanted to have a stronger footprint in. They switched distributors in January from Windy City Distributing to Lakeshore Beverage, AB-InBev’s High End distributor, and have subsequently made an immediate impact on the Windy City’s craft beer scene.
Why Patio Season in the Midwest Means More
June 19, 2018 | Taylor Laabs
Oh, summer. As a native Minnesotan and current Chicagoan, I have a mixed relationship with the best season of the year. I’m used to rationalizing the cold, the rain, the snow, more cold…and even hail, endured during roughly nine months of the year, knowing that the sweet embrace of 70 degrees and sunny skies is right around the corner. Unfortunately, summer in the Midwest can be as fleeting as the last drip of Lager in your glass, which is why Midwesterners go so crazy for the nice days: because there are so few of them. One of my favorite summer activities is patio drinking. It’s a staple pastime that tans the skin and bloats the belly as you sit outside sopping up suds and some much-needed Vitamin D. Much like its inhabitants, the breweries of the Midwest also rejoice when the first summer forecast comes into the picture. Patio season can even start before Memorial Day – I’ve seen Chicago breweries unveil their patio chairs on an unseasonably sunny day in March. And guess what? That patio was filled. We asked several Midwestern brewers why patio season is so special for their brewery and for their patrons.
Fast Facts on Revolution Brewing’s First Ever Sour: Freedom of Speach
June 18, 2018 | Taylor Laabs
Chances are, the last Revolution Brewing beer you had was probably from their Hero IPA line – or even a Rosa or Pils knowing both are a staple of summer. That might not be the case for much longer. Revolution is diving head first into the sour beer trend with the release of their first-ever sour, Freedom of Speach. The session peach sour gets its tartness via kettle souring and comes in at a sessionable 4.5% ABV, meaning that it will add some variety to any cooler you’re packing this season.
Hopewell Brewing and Metric Coffee Release Cold Brew Session Coffee Ale
June 13, 2018 | Mathew Powers
The collaboration beer, Hopewell Brewing x Metric Coffee Cold Brew Session Coffee Ale, marry two increasingly popular American brewing trends — craft beer and independent roasters (coffee).
Most of the PorchDrinking.com audience is well aware of craft beer’s growth in recent years. However, one may not be aware that 59% of coffee consumed daily is classified as “gourmet,” according to the 2017 NCA report on National Coffee Drinking Trends. That was the first time in the report’s 67-year history that the number exceeded 50%.
Narrow Gauge Brewing | SHB: DDH Citra
June 12, 2018 | Niel Stender
One of the first things that happened on my return to St. Louis after a two year absence was a receipt of a Narrow Gauge Brewing SHB: DDH Citra. By receipt I mean it was forced upon me. And by forced upon me, I mean a friend insisted I try this new (to me) beer. Before I could ask about this acronym-soup of a beer, I had a sip and promptly forgot my crude thought on what SHB: DDH might mean. Read More
Carillon Brewing | Coriander Ale
June 6, 2018 | David Nilsen
I don’t have a pretty photo of Carillon Brewing Company‘s Coriander Ale to show you. Carillon’s beers and, more importantly, the brewing techniques used to craft them, are from a time when the appearance of beer was only just beginning to matter with the emergence of pale malts and clear glassware. Their anachronistic visual appearance—often a bit murky—is part of the authenticity of enjoying a flight of beers inside Carillon’s reproduction 1850s barn brewery on the grounds of Carillon Historical Park, a living history museum by the banks of the Great Miami River in Dayton, OH.
Inside the Tank | Empirical Brewery
June 5, 2018 | Mike Zoller
A lot has changed over the past year for Empirical Brewery. They moved to self-distribution, the brewpub, just a stones throw away from the taproom, is in full-swing, and they are moving from bottles to cans. There’s a lot of great beer coming out of the small taproom in Andersonville so we went out there and spoke with CEO Bill Hurley and Head Brewer/Taproom Manager Jacob Huston about Empirical, craft beer in Chicago and the industry in general. Read More
Michigan Beer Chronicles Part 3 | Touring the Caves of Founders Brewing
June 5, 2018 | Taylor Laabs
There’s few things darker than standing in a pitch black cave. The lack of light heightens your other senses immensely. As the lights went out in the famed Grand Rapids barrel storage cave of Founders Brewing Co., my nose lit up with the smell that any barrel-aged beer fan should be familiar with—bourbon. Founders’ head cellarman Jason Heystek is used to it by now, just like he’s used to scaling the rows of bourbon, tequila and wine barrels that line the former gypsum mine. Five minutes into our tour of the caves, Jason had already found a comfortable seat on-top of a KBS barrel. Much like the booze-soaked liquid that warms the body, Jason exudes a sense of comfort and enjoyment that reverberated throughout the group, making our tour almost 90 feet underneath Grand Rapids, a truly unforgettable experience.
We Threw a Beer Instameet… Here’s How It Went
June 4, 2018 | Adam Rozanas
Minnesota has a thriving craft beer scene.
With some 150 craft breweries from top to bottom of the state — and more popping up faster than … Read More
Scorched Earth Brewing Company | Barrel 76 Red Flanders
June 4, 2018 | Mathew Powers
Somehow, suburban Chicago’s Scorched Earth Brewing barreling program remains off the radar for most beer drinkers, which leaves this writer befuddled. Certainly those in the Chicago region with a nose for barrel-aged beers should make it a high priority to seek all forms of Scorched Earth brewing alchemy. One of the brewery’s latest releases, Barrel 76, is a Flanders red ale aged in French oak wine barrels with Montmorency cherries and Madagascar vanilla beans. Traditional, yet innovative. Sophisticated, yet rustic. Tart, yet a bit sweet. The beer serves as an example for what craft brewing is all about.
Six Observations From Illinois Craft Beer Week (ICBW)
June 1, 2018 | Mathew Powers 1
The inaugural Illinois Craft Beer Week (ICBW) replaced the former, annual Chicago Craft Beer Week (CCBW), but both the kick-off and closing festivals took place on Chicago’s north side, and most of the intra-week events occurred within the nation’s third-biggest market, which also happens to be where the vast majority of Illinois breweries operate. So, as they say, “A rose by any other name.” Nevertheless, the 2018 version is in the books and once again demonstrated that the enthusiasm for craft beer remains high. There are nuances to the industry and week-long festivities worthy of mentioning, so let’s take the time to note a few observations made during ICBW.
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