New Holland Brewing | Dragon’s Milk Reserve Orange Chocolate

As Chicago barrels toward a week of historically cold temperatures, I was eager to get out to my local Binny’s and stockpile some dark, heavy stouts to keep me sane as I prepare for a week filled with cabin fever. Read More

Zipline Brewing | Bourbon Barrel-Aged The Stout

When the chill of winter sets in, in the Midwest, we all pile on the layers. Wool socks, scarves, non-ironic stocking caps. But with the sun still setting before you can make it home from work, there’s one more trick to help warm you up – bourbon. One sip warms you from the inside out and takes away that chill that never seems to subside.

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Beer Showcase | Omnipollo Hypnopompa

It’s a marshmallow world in the winter and what better way to commemorate this season than a stout brewed with… marshmallows? As an avid maker/consumer of Rice Krispie treats, if you tell me something has marshmallow in it, I’m immediately excited, like “when it was your birthday in school and you got to bring in treats for the class”-excited. Luckily the Swedish, who know a thing or two about endless freezing nights, have crafted a liquidized Stay Puft in the form of Hypnopompa to warm our innards on a chilly winter’s eve.

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What We’re Drinking | December 28, 2018

We are officially in the middle of the holiday week, and it’s probably time for a nice break from all the festivities. Here is what your favorite PorchDrinkers are enjoying this holiday season, it’s time for another installment of What We’re Drinking.

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Wooden Cask | Corruption

When it comes to defining the character of a brewery, there are a lot of decisions to be made, the most important being the type of beer that will be brewed. And Wooden Cask Brewing knew that providing the same modern styles as other breweries wouldn’t make them stand out; it also didn’t represent who they are.

So to gain recognition and embrace their favorite styles, Wooden Cask brews traditional styles that are often overlooked as other breweries are making hazy IPAs and pastry stouts.

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Captain Lawrence Brewing Company | Fudgie the Beer

Who didn’t have a Fudgie the Whale cake for one of their birthdays while growing up? Thanks to Carvel and Captain Lawrence Brewing Company, the iconic ice cream cake has made its way into a beer.

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Sidetrack Brewing Co. | Dark Engine Stout

As the first frost approached in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Sidetrack Brewing tapped their cask-conditioned Oatmeal Stout called Dark Engine Stout. This unassuming neighborhood pub in downtown is the only brewery in Albuquerque that serves cask ales from beer engines.

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We Asked Brewers About Brown Ales vs. Porters

Ah, ’tis season of winter beers. As the days and nights turn colder in the northern parts of the nation, the bite in the air invites us to turn from the lighter beers of summer to the bigger, bolder and richer beers designed to be sipped by the fire, enjoyed with hearty menus or served at warmer temperatures.

The three most popular winter styles, outside the realm of barrel-aging, involve stouts, porters and brown ales. While most can adequately describe stouts, the differences between porters and brown ales are often misunderstood. To better understand the styles, I asked some breweries in the St. Louis region to provide clarity on the topic.  Read More

Cruz Blanca Brewery Launches Sour Program in Chicago’s West Loop

Chicago’s West Loop neighborhood is home to some of the city’s most iconic restaurants. From Girl and the Goat to Au Cheval, followed by an endlessly growing list, it’s a Chicago hot spot for eating but also drinking. While there are a lot of places to get great cocktails in the West Loop, the craft beer scene is also becoming more prominent in the area and starting to make a name for itself. Read More

Epic Brewing | Quadruple Barrel Big Bad Baptist Barrel-Aged Stout

Epic Brewing has been a mainstay in Salt Lake City, UT since its genesis and as they continued to grow, added a Denver location in 2013. Their burgeoning beer roster is host to innovative beer that steers the entire industry in a new direction, as well as iconic anchors that satisfy the staunchest of purists. However, Big Bad Baptist, their iconic barrel-aged stout, has become the centerpiece that preaches to the ethos of both categories.

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New Holland Brewing | 2018 Dragon’s Milk Reserve

When you hear New Holland Brewing you probably think of Mad Hatter IPA or perhaps more commonly, Dragon’s Milk. The barrel-aged Stout from the Michigan brewery has become an industry staple amongst the craft beer world and with a consistent recipe and proper barrel-aging, this beer is a go-to during Stout season.

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FIRST TASTE | 2018 Bourbon County Stout

If Greg Hall hadn’t been at a Beer, Bourbon and Cigar dinner with Jim Beam’s Booker Noe when Goose Island was nearing its 1,000th batch of beer, who knows if we would have Bourbon County Stout today?

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Goose Island Announces 2018 Bourbon County Stout Lineup

Eight different Bourbon County Stout variants will be available come Black Friday this November, however, the official announcement from Goose Island had several surprises.

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Revolution Brewing Announces 2018-19 Deep Wood Series

While the calendar might say August, the 2018-19 Revolution Brewing Deep Wood Series announcement shows us that barrel-aged season is just around the corner. 

After an incredibly successful 2017-18 release which produced some of the best barrel-aged beers released from any Chicagoland brewery, Revolution is going big this year with a release of ten different beers.

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Firestone Walker | Mocha Merlin: Who Says Winter Has to End?

Firestone Walker Brewing Company, California’s Central Coast brewing behemoth, has become a frequent visitor to the Colorado craft beer scene. With hazy memories of tasters at past beer festivals, I eyed a can of Mocha Merlin with hesitant hope.

Sure, the hearty coffee-infused stout is a beer intended for the cold season — a great beer to warm you up as you sip from your chalice in the (Game of Thrones’) Winterfell Great Hall — but why must winter ever end? Recent posts on various “beer check-in” websites show that the beer continues to be enjoyed, even as the weather turns more summer-like each day.

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What We’re Drinking | April 20, 2018

Hope everyone is ready for some smoking good beers…get it?! Cause it’s 4/20? Yeah, I don’t care either. What I do care about is some of the tasty brews that are starting to peek out before spring weather greets us all – Saisons, IPA, and fruited beers! In case you aren’t in a place that is hitting 60+ degrees Fahrenheit, crack that heater, put on a pair of shorts, crack a cold one and see What We’re Drinking.

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Ultimate 6er | Packing Up & Moving Out

Let me start by saying that I’m currently in the process of writing this Ultimate 6er while packing up and moving, so I hope that earns me a bit more credibility with this post. There is nothing that’s needed more than a beer while moving, and six beers is probably a good number to have at the very minimum.

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Dry Dock Brewing Co. | Coffee Stout

Being the type of guy who thoroughly loves learning, I recently decided to pursue my Master’s degree. I often second guess my reasoning for adding this onto my already hectic schedule. Even though I know that it will open future options and career endeavors I think subconsciously I enjoy being a life-long college student. My weeks have been transitioning to early morning wake-ups and late night study sessions. A couple months ago, I found myself at my local Starbucks, head in a book, and stressing over a late assignment and my favorite Americano was motivating me as much as I expect. I packed up my bag and headed to my local Aurora brewery for a beer to take my mind away from my never ending studying.

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Lil Beaver Steals the Show at Chicago’s Stout Fest

All the big names were at the Goose Island Brewpub for the return of Stout Fest. While well-known and established breweries like Half Acre, Pipeworks, Goose Island and Revolution were pouring some great stouts, it was a small brewery from Bloomington, Ill. that stole the show.

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More Brewing | Henna S’MoRE (Batch 3)

Rarely do I geek out over a specific beer. There’s a lot of great beer out there and getting to live in Chicago, we get the next “must-have” beer more often than not. But when I had More Brewing’s Henna Batch 3, I had a beer that I knew was truly special.

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