National IPA Day | Midwest Region Roundup

West Coast, East Coast, New England… Midwest? Yes, here in the land of tornadoes, Great Lakes, major rivers, sweeping winter cold fronts, barbeque, corn, wheat and sausage, we like our IPAs, too. Heck, hops are even grown here in abundance. In the Midwest, as in every other region, IPAs remain the most prominent form of craft beer served, and there are many worthy of having them over and over again.

The difficult part is picking only a few that represent the Midwestern IPA scene. We can’t name them all, but we at Porchdrinking.com can provide a small taste — pun intended — of what the Midwest offers.

Check out the rest of our #IPAday regions:

Northeast | Southeast | Mountain | Pacific Northwest | Southwest

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Ultimate 6er | Six Perfect Beers for Camping In The Midwest

When summer hits, people find just about any reason to spend time outdoors. For many that means camping. While camping can mean something different for each person, I think we can all agree that craft beer is a perfect companion for spending time in the great outdoors. Canned craft beer is especially ideal because it is lighter, easier to recycle and doesn’t break like glass bottles.

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South East Craft Beer Fest Becoming a National Must-Attend Event

Two years ago I bemoaned the downward tailspin of craft beer festivals in a piece I penned: Have Beer Festivals Jumped the Shark. It seems in large part that a majority of them have done just that. Two years later, I could expound on an even greater litany of festival organizer faux pas, ranging from a failure to support breweries the day of the festival, to hooking up kegs to the wrong draft lines (I’ve actually seen this happen).

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Event Recap | Warped Wing Trotwood Derby

One of the highlights of each year when I was between the ages of 10 and 12 was the annual AWANA Pinewood Derby (AWANA was like Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts for church kids—I had a weird childhood). I would give my dad an impossible car design on paper, he would do an impressive job of cutting that design from a three dimensional block of wood, and then on a Saturday morning in February—car in hand and hopes high—we would head to the track to get our asses squarely kicked. We never won anything and never came close, but it was a lot of fun. Read More

Brewery Showcase | Kinslahger Brewing

In a craft-beer world abound in ales, a brewery focused on lagers can reap the benefits of exploring a whole new world of brewing innovation and experimentation. And that’s what you’ll find at Kinslahger Brewing in the Chicago suburb of Oak Park, Illinois,
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Lagunitas Acquires Minority Stake in Short’s Brewing

Stop me if you’ve heard this before. A large conglomerate beer company is acquiring stakes in a smaller craft brewery. This scenario must feel familiar as acquisitions both large and small are all that seem to dominate headlines nowadays. Today’s news involves Short’s Brewing, the third largest brewery in Michigan (behind Founders and Bell’s) announcing a partnership with Lagunitas U.S. Holdings (LUSH) which involves a 19.99% equity stake in the company. The Short’s acquisition comes just three months after Lagunitas Brewing announced that it had sold the remaining 50% of its shares to Heineken (Lagunitas originally sold the first 50% of its operation to Heineken in 2015).
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Dovetail Brewery Celebrates One Year of Business Plus Other News

Dovetail Brewery, one of Chicago’s most unique micro brewers, recently celebrated their one year anniversary in their Ravenswood brew spot on Malt Row. Dovetail has accomplished a lot in one year and have differentiated themselves from competitors due to their unique open fermentation, European-brew style of lagers, pilsners and hefeweizens.

With a year under their belt, the good folks at Dovetail are doing what any ambitious new microbrewery does: expand, whether that is via increased distribution or new brew styles. Here are a few recent summer announcements you might have missed. Read More

Illinois Brewers Guild President Discusses Welles Summer Fest and Illinois Craft Beer

Once the Illinois Craft Beer Guild (ICBG) event that effectively served as the closing ceremonies to Chicago Craft Beer Week (CCBW), the festival held at Welles Park in Lincoln Square now enjoys the title of Summer Beer Fest. On August 5th, fans can drink beer, gaze upon the large gazebo, listen to live music and purchase food.

We chatted with Danielle D’Alessandro, president of the Guild, to talk Welles Fest, clean water and all things Illinois beer.

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Transient Artisan Ales | Czech Yourself

Summer’s here and in full swing, so going to the beach or hanging around outside are two common activities most people do while drinking beer. Since most people don’t want to wreck themselves, a good idea would be to Czech Yourself with Transient Artisan Ales‘ first lager.
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Event Recap | Windy City Smokeout

The Windy City Smokeout was sold out this year and, after experiencing the event on a sunny Saturday afternoon in Chicago, it’s easy to see why. Music evokes many powerful emotions within people, but there are few greater sounds on a hot summer day than the melodious tunes of a country band. Couple that with copious amounts of craft beer and delicious barbecue, and you have an event that is worth every penny.

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Upland Brewing Company | Petal to the Kettle

Upland Brewing Company in Bloomington, Indiana is well known for their wood-aged sour beers. While those are distinct and worth trying, they brew plenty of other tasty beers. I’m a big fan of sours, so when I got my hands on their latest kettle sour, Petal to the Kettle, I was excited to have an easy drinking version to add to my cooler for the summer. It did not disappoint.

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Grand Rapids Beers Made With Tea

Tea and beer have an awful lot in common. They’re both brewed, they each have options for everyone, and often they act as an alternative to coffee.

For years, brewers have been using tea during the brewing process, and it’s proven a success. Here in West Michigan, a few breweries have come up with some lovely beers that celebrate proper relaxation. Read More

Dancing Gnome | Better One or Two

Dancing Gnome has been regularly canning their delicious beers and last week they released one of their DIPA’s, Better One or Two. I’m sure a few of us have seen … Read More

Fast Facts on Lucky Dorr, Wrigley Field’s New Craft Beer Paradise

Wrigley Field is many things, but it has never been an ideal place to indulge in some local craft beer – until now. Opening this week at the beautiful Park at Wrigley complex, Lucky Dorr offers Chicago craft beer lovers a myriad of delicious, local options along with hand-crafted food from Chef Matthias Merges that are sure to leave many baseball fans with a smile on their face before they even enter into the hallowed grounds of Wrigley Field. Here are the fast facts on Lucky Dorr.

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Ultimate 6er | Chicago Summer Ale Varieties

The dog days of summer are upon us. With every drop of sweat comes a need for refreshment, and what better way to achieve that relief than with a beer? The citrus-laden and coconut-flavored brews are just begging to be enjoyed under the summer sun. Here are six summer ale selections to help carry you through July and onto the season’s dog days.

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Dovetail Brewery | Hefeweizen

The Chicago metro area certainly has a multitude of beers available for consumption these days, given its now 175+ breweries in operation. But, every once in awhile, a beer comes along that inspires a beer writer such as me to, well, write about it. This time, the beer comes from the mad geniuses of Chicago’s Dovetail Brewery. The Dovetail motto, “We brew like monks (minus the vows),” notes its dedication to traditional, continental European-style brewing methods and that is why the Dovetail Hefeweizen is one of the best you’ll ever have.
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Chicago’s Headquarters Beercade and 3 Floyd’s Present Rick & Morty Beer Event

For all Rick & Morty fans who have ever dreamed of visiting the Blips & Chitz arcade-themed building, the nostalgia-tinged craft beercade hosts an event inspired by the characters of Rick & Morty with beer pairings from 3 Floyd’s Brewing.

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Brewery Showcase | Scratch Brewing

Nestled in the woods of southern Illinois, among the dips and low hills of a surprisingly wild region of the state, sits one of the most innovative breweries operating in the American craft beer scene today. That innovation, however, comes by way of ancient tradition. Owners and brewmasters Marika Josephson and Aaron Kleidon aren’t pioneering cutting edge brewing technologies or using explosively flavorful new varieties of experimental hops. Rather, they’re reviving the use of ingredients and techniques that humans have used for centuries to make beer. Foraging among the underbrush of their wooded property for edible bark, nuts, fruits, flowers, roots and mushrooms, and growing yet more ingredients at their brewery garden, the folks at Scratch are bringing unexpected flavors to beer drinkers lucky enough to make it to their rustic property.

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2nd Shift Brewing | Hibiscus Wit

Is there a beer out there that has had such a profound effect on you that you remember everything about the first time you sipped it? I do.
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Cider Showcase | Cidergeist (Rhinegeist) Bubbles

ABV: 6.2%

Full disclosure – I have never been much of a cider drinker. My friends can all attest that whenever we head out to a bar, I’m sticking to beer. Whether it’s the cloying sweetness of some or the champagne dryness of others, I haven’t quite had the best luck when it comes to craft ciders. So when I was recently offered a can of Bubbles by Rhinegeist, needless to say my past experiences prompted me to accept with some hesitation. Luckily, any and all hesitation was obliterated as soon as I took that first sip. It was amazing.

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