chicago beer Archives – PorchDrinking.com
2022 Chicago Women’s Collaboration Brew Day Beer is Here
March 3, 2022 | Emma WargoletEach year, Pink Boots Society members across the country team up to brew a beer for International Women’s Day. The Chicago chapter met up in February at Church Street Brewing Company to brew Cosmic Nunchucks, which will be available on tap and in cans at participating breweries starting this weekend. The brew day event involved 45 women that are involved in the craft beer industry in the Chicagoland area, helmed by Chicago Chapter Co-Leaders Shana Solarte, Raiye Rosado and Katie Hofmann.
Ørkenoy | Django Pennsylvania Grodziskie
January 10, 2022 | Rachel MorrisonOften times, smoked beers can offer similar notes and flavors to beef jerky. Separately, both incredible things; combined, not my cup of tea (or beer). Thankfully, no two iterations of any beer style are the same. Enter Django Pennsylvania, a Grodziskie style beer brewed by Ørkenoy in Chicago, IL in collaboration with Live Oak Brewing out of Austin, TX. A Grodziskie is a traditional Polish style, which is a very light, smoky beer, brewed with 100% wheat malt.
Ultimate 6er | Top Chef Winners & Beer
March 31, 2021 | Emma WargoletIn honor of the Top Chef Season 18 premiere tomorrow, I thought I’d pair my top six winners with some craft beer. While always a fan of Top Chef, it has grown into a bit of an obsession during quarantine. Picking six winners of seventeen was hard enough, so other contestants are not included in the sixer, mainly because there would be no way to choose. If you love food and haven’t watched Top Chef, start watching now instead of reading this article because there are definitely spoilers (even if the spoilers are between one to thirteen years old).
Women in Beer | Stephanie Kushnir of Ravinia Brewing Co.
March 10, 2021 | Rachel MorrisonYou already know that Ravinia Brewing is coming soon to Chicago. You may be familiar with their Highland Park location, distribution throughout Chicago, or teasers for their new brewpub. If so, then you should also know the woman behind the scenes, Stephanie Kushnir. Stephanie is Head of Sales and Marketing for Ravinia Brewing. She’s getting Ravinia beer into our fridges and onto our feeds, all leading up to a highly anticipated opening right here in Chicago.
Ultimate 6er | Female Friendships to Celebrate
February 10, 2021 | Emma WargoletCelebrating friendships has always been extremely important, even more so after experiencing the trash fire of 2020. Galentine’s Day is a favorite holiday of mine, as it is a day where I can bake and craft and celebrate the incredible women in my life. I spend more time preparing for Galentine’s Day than I do most things, so knowing that this year will need to be postponed just equals more time to make celebrating female friendships extra special.
2020 Illinois Best in Beer Year-End Honors
January 15, 2021 | Mike ZollerIt’s cliche to say that 2020 was a year unlike any other but how else do you describe what was most likely the most challenging year in a long time. While breweries and organizations mainly cancelled or refashioned beer festivals and release parties, the beer continued to flow. In 2020, Illinois brewers still managed to produce an abundance of of notable beers.
Ultimate 6er | A Beer For Each Family Member This Thanksgiving
November 25, 2020 | Emma WargoletWith a deep love for family and friends and food, Thanksgiving is the perfect holiday (until someone brings up politics). It also means that afterwards, I can blast All I Want for Christmas Is You as much as I want and no one can say anything.
Brewdacris Oktoberfest Beer Tasting
September 16, 2020 | Emma WargoletAs someone who was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Oktoberfest is not just a type of beer or a festival in Germany; it’s a state of mind. With the cancellation of many Oktoberfest events, people have to be creative in their celebration. Personally, give me a day where I can justifiably drink beer and eat sausage all day and I’ll be a happy camper.
Riverlands Brewing Company | Acid Prism: Buried In Berries
July 29, 2020 | Emma WargoletStriking a balance between tart and sweet is a difficult task. Fortunately for beer lovers, Riverlands Brewing Company has done just that with their Acid Prism: Buried in Berries. A companion to their Acid Rainbow, the Buried in Berries is a bold Fruited Sour with raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, vanilla, and milk sugar.
Ultimate 6er | Beers and Books for Summer Reading
July 1, 2020 | Emma WargoletIn recent years, books written by comedians about their own lives have become extremely popular. From Amy Poehler’s Yes Please to Mindy Kaling’s Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?, these books of essays blend humor, life lessons, and important experiences into a relatively quick read. With shelter in place orders still set in place, what better way to spend your time than with a delicious beer and an entertaining book?
The below books are focused on those of BIPOC authors; you can find your local Black-owned bookstore here to support Black-owned businesses!
Ultimate 6er | Beers to Pair with Your Memorial Day Cookout
May 20, 2020 | Emma WargoletA large Memorial Day cookout may not be an option this year, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy the delicious foods that come with the barbecue. For those who are social distancing together, you can still put together a fun, albeit small, Memorial Day event. While PorchDrinking can’t do the cooking for you, we can give you the perfect pairings for those classic cookout foods! Read More
Saint Errant Brewing | Cauallier
November 19, 2019 | Ana PlefkaIt’s November in Chicago and stout season has arrived and it’s not just because Festival of Barrel-Aged Beers (FOBAB) brought a deluge of fabulous new barrel-aged beers. Rather, the 3-5 inches of snow and single-digit temperatures are really putting the city in the mood for a beer as dark as the sky at 4:45 p.m. (sigh)
Luckily, Saint Errant Brewing has an indulgent option for Chicagoans: Cauallier, an imperial stout brewed with cacao nibs and roasted peanuts. This brew starts with a dense black pour, visually preparing you for its richness. With a burnt but chocolatey aroma, the first sniff does its job of pulling you in with sweet, warm vanilla notes while still letting you know this imperial means business.
Chicago Quick Sips | April 1 Chicago Beer News & Events
April 1, 2019 | Ana PlefkaQuick 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]
Middle Brow Beer Co. Opens Its Taproom After Five Years of Waiting
January 31, 2019 | Mike ZollerMotor Row. Ten 90. Lo Rez. Church Street Brewing. Great Central. Big Chicago. After contract brewing in six different locations and putting over 20,000 miles on their cars over the past five years, Middle Brow Beer Co. finally has a home of their own.
Pollyanna Brewing Company | Foudre 1
January 16, 2019 | Rachel MorrisonWhether you’re from the Chicagoland area or beyond, you’ve likely heard of Pollyanna Brewing Company. My introduction to the brand was through their Fun Size series, which never fails to impress with all of the unique variants. While I’m familiar with the brand, I hadn’t visited either of the brewery’s two Chicagoland locations until recently when I visited and toured Pollyanna’s second location in Roselle, IL. Read More
Meet the Brewer Behind 2016 Bourbon County Proprietor’s
November 22, 2016 | Mike ZollerTwo years ago Emily Kosmal was working on recipes for chocolate milk. Today she is the creator of one of the most coveted barrel-aged stouts in the country.
Rankings for Goose Island’s 2016 Bourbon County Brand Stout
October 31, 2016 | Mike ZollerAs the calendar gets ready to turn to November there probably isn’t anyone happier than Goose Island as they get ready to release 2016 Bourbon County Brand Stout. Following a tumultuous year that featured two separate refunds of four of the six variants of 2015 BCBS, the new lineup has been announced and craft beer fans around the country are getting ready for the Black Friday release.

Chicago’s Goose Island Migration Week Comes to Logan Square
September 19, 2016 | Mike ZollerChicago’s Goose Island Migration Week comes to Logan Square September 26th thru September 30th with a full week of craft beer inspired events at a variety of locations.
The brewery has been doing Migration Weeks throughout 2016 and have visited cities not only around the United States but all over the world. Goose Island Migration Weeks have been to the UK, China, South Korea and still have plans to go to Guadalajara later this year. Migration Week has been in Chicago once before, when in June the brewery was in Lincoln Park for a week.
Revolution Brewing | Citra Hero
July 20, 2016 | Mike ZollerHeroes come in all shapes and sizes. For a while Revolution Brewing’s Hero Series was only available in bombers or on draft. Luckily for craft beer lovers everywhere 2016 is the first time that the series has made its way into 12-ounce cans. For the summer there is no better beer to crush on a hot day than Citra Hero.
Goose Island releases latest Fulton & Wood Series beer: Bee Squad
June 27, 2016 | Mike ZollerBrewed with honey and the proceeds going to help beekeeping education and training, Goose Island released Bee Squad last Wednesday night at a sold out event at The J. Parker Rooftop.
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