Like Minds Establishes Production Brewery In Chicago

Justin Aprahamian, a James Beard award winning chef and owner of Sanford Restaurant in Milwaukee, WI, and long-time industry consultant John Lavelle have announced their plans to open Like Minds Brewing in the West Town neighborhood of Chicago. The brewery, a former Goose Island storage facility is located at 1800 W Walnut St. just northwest of the Lake and Ashland Metra stop.

John and Justin's shared interests extending beyond beer into art, music and writing incorporate many of their favorite artists into the Like Minds brand – including Grammy Award winning graphic artist Rob Jones, as well as Jason Edmonton and Kevin Tong. 

Label artwork by Jason Edmonton (left) and Kevin Tong (right). PHOTOS: Like Minds

Justin’s culinary background gives him a unique and fantastic way of imparting flavors into beers that are outside the realm of traditional brewing norms. A large part of the philosophy of the brewery will be taking a very thoughtful and seasonal approach to its beer making. They will be using ingredients at their height of freshness and making beers you’d want to be drinking at that time of year. The late summer launch will include a Cucumber Kolsch to be featured along with staple recipes for Dialekt (Kolsch style), Nighthawks (Oatmeal Stout with Intelligentsia Coffee) and Horehound (7.2% IPA). 

For Chicago production, Like Minds has enlisted veteran brewer Matt Brower, formerly of Dogfish Head, as Head Brewer. Matt’s technical command of brewing accompanied by Justin’s recipe development allows them to step outside the box of traditional brewing while maintaining well made, quality beers. Also from Dogfish Head, they are excited to have Zach Houlahan joining the Like Minds crew as VP of sales and coordination of distribution. 

The Brewhouse buildout at 1800 W Walnut St. PHOTOS: Like Minds

Like Minds has partnered with Chicago Beverage Systems in the metro area for distribution. More information on beer availability and launch events will be available in the coming weeks. For now, make sure to follow their progress on Facebook and Twitter.