ABV Chicago Holiday Party Episode 100!

For the BIG 100th Episode ABV Chicago threw a holiday party, and we were honored to be included. We drink a handful of delightful beers, give our somewhat humble opinions, and catch up on 2015 happenings. Plus some random shenanigans and detours, per usual. Thanks for listening and happy holidays!

Guests of honor included us (Kim) (Hail to the Ale), Ken Getty (CHAOS Homebrew Club), Nick Burica (Middle Brow Beer Co.), Chris Betts (Transient Artisan Ales), Marie Cummins (Down the Hatch), Dennis Lee (The Pizzle), MC Johnsen (Worth 1000 Beers) and Matt Johnsen (Horse Thief Hollow and The Beer Cellar). 


LISTEN HERE: ABV Chicago Episode 100 – Holiday Party 2015


Beers Reviewed

1. Kane Brewing – Cortijo (Agave Nectar Saison Aged in Tequila Barrels)
2. OEC Brewing – Malefactus (Wine Barrel-Aged Stout)
3. Transient Artisan Ales – Black Raspberry Maigre (Berlinner Weisse)
4. Lake Effect Brewing – Imperial Stout (Bourbon Barrel-Aged)
5. BrainDead Brewing – Bent De Garde (Wine Barrel-Aged Biere de Garde)
6. de Garde Brewing – L’Hiver Melange No. 2

About ABV Chicago:

ABV (Another Beer View) is a podcast about beer and life. But mostly about beer. Beaming out from Chicago, IL. You can subscribe to their podcasts on iTunes and follow them on facebook, twitter and instagram at ABVChicago.

Your Go-To Event List for Chicago Craft Beer Week 2015

Every Chicago beer nerd’s favorite 11-day celebration is almost here, but which events should you go to? Since science hasn’t evolved to where you can temporarily clone yourself to be in two places at once, we've teamed up with some of our favorite beer bloggers to streamline your go-to events for #CCBW2015. Get your beers cheers-ing and hung over face emojis ready!

HAPPENING ALL WEEK:

Glazed & Infused serves up a one-of-a-kind beer doughnut IPD, "The India Pale Doughnut" to celebrate CCBW. Available at all locations, while supplies last between May 14-24th.

FEATURED EVENT: (3 out of 4 bloggers recommended this daily dose of fun)

BUT - Beer Under Tin (Free entry, beer and food for purchase) 
Paddy Long’s 1028 W Diversey Pkwy
Thursday, May 14th, 7pm

Beer Under Glass at the Garfield Park Conservatory rightfully gets enormous praise but there are other events going on to ring in Chicago Craft Beer Week 2015. If you don’t want to shell out the dough for a ticket, head on over to Paddy Long’s for Beer Under Tin, or “BUT.” The crew from Metropolitan Brewing and Off Color Brewing will be on hand, and rumor has it that Doug and PK from Metro will be filming an episode of their hilarious rare-beer-chug-a-thon web series, Just Keep Tastin’. 

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This year's philosphy: relax and enjoy without breaking the bank. Here are Kim (Hail To The Ale)'s top picks of 2015. Follow Kim during CCBW @hail2theale.

Temperance Trikonasana ($10 includes yoga and a 4oz taster)

Temperance Beer Co., 2000 Dempster St, Evanston

Saturday, May 16th, 1:00-2:15pm

Ohmmmmm! That's the sound of giving something good back to your body during a week of beer binging. Join Temperance for the first of their monthly yoga installments, debuting during CCBW. Proceeds will be donated to a different charity each month.

Brown Line Brews 3 Hosted by Cicerone Certification Program (Free entry with RSVP, beer and food for purchase) 

The Long Room, 1612 E Irving Park

Tuesday, May 19th, 6:00-9:00pm

One of our favorite, most chill neighborhood events of the week – featuring the breweries on and around the Brown Line stops. If you are a Certified Beer Server or a Certified Cicerone, the cool folks at Cicerone will give you a custom glass and your first beer free (first 100 guests)!

3rd Annual Women of Craft Beer Event (Free entry, beer and food for purchase) 

Riverview Tavern, 1958 W Roscoe

Thursday, May 21st, 7pm

Bigger and better than ever – 26 taps will be taken over to represent the women working in Chicago craft beer. We'll have special firkins from Temperance and Rock Bottom, a number of female collaboration beers, and the women of craft beer hanging out to chat and toast a pint. Proceeds benefit the Chicago Chapter of Dress For Success.

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Blogger and beer aficionado Jessica Murphy of Girls Like Beer Too! is no rookie when it comes to craft beer events. Below are her top recos. Follow Jessica during CCBW @grlslikebeertoo.

Craft Beerzaar (Free entry, beer and food for purchase)
Dimo’s Pizza 3463 N Clark St 
Saturday, May 16th, 11am 
Beer often walks a fine line between art and science and this event focuses more on the artisan quality of craft brewing. The fine folks at Dimo’s Pizza in collaboration with Half Acre, Penrose, Revolution, and Solemn Oath breweries are throwing a celebration of all things “craft.” A craft bazaar will be featured during the first half of the event and then, as daylight fades into evening, the party gets going with live music by local talent. Specially crafted pizza paired with a four-brew flight available for purchase. 

Blind Flights (Free entry, beer and food for purchase)
Fatpour Tapworks 2005 W Division St 
Tuesday, May 19th, 5pm 

Think you can tell the difference between pale ale and a saison? Test your beer knowledge at Blind Flights at Fat Pour Tapworks where you will receive four tastes of different beers and have to guess which they are off of a selected menu. Choose correctly, and you could win prizes! 

NW Side Craft Beer Ride (Tickets $20 for transportation, beer available for purchase at each of the participating locations)
Thursday, May 21st , 6:00 pm
While Wicker Park, Bucktown, and Logan Square have been exuding craft beer cred for years, the Northwest side is often forgotten. But not anymore. Hop on the bus at any of the participating locations (Rabbit’s, Templestowe, Christina’s Place, Breakroom Brewery, Fischman’s Liquors, to name a few) and join a pub crawl like no other. Special tappings and brews will be on hand for purchase. 

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MC Johnsen of Worth A Thousand Beers gravitates towards events with activity or entertainment involved. If you’re into that too, she recommend these ones. Follow MC during CCBW @worth1000beers.

The Beerfly Alleyfight, Eat! Drink! Watch (Tickets: $40)

The Drinking & Writing Theatre at Haymarket Pub and Brewery

Sat, May 16th, 12:00pm to 5:00pm

This truly unique event mashes together all of my favorite creative things: home brewing competition, food pairing, and art! 10 home brewers will present their beer, paired with a meal they have cooked, then an artist assigned to the pairing will share a piece they’ve created, inspired by the beer and food pairing they’ve just tried.

Goose Island’s Second Annual Sunday Funday (Tickets: $25)
Goose Island Barrel Warehouse

Sun, May 17th, 2:00pm to 6:00pm

I’m as much excited for this event’s location as for the event itself. Held in the Goose Island Barrel Warehouse, enjoy special tappings of Goose’s beers, plus a Battle of the Breweries Dodgeball tournament. As a bonus, 100% of proceeds will benefit Special Olympics.

Revolution Brewing x Stay Smooth Craft Beer Cruise (Tickets: $39)

Shoreline's dock at Navy Pier
Fri, May 22, 8:00pm–9:30pm, boarding at 7:45pm

What better way to spend a Friday evening than sailing around on Lake Michigan, gazing at the Chicago skyline, and listening to music? Plus your eyes and ears won’t have all the fun – Rev will be bringing their best beers aboard, paired with appetizers too.

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While narrowing down a calendar full of events seemed an impossible task, beer blogger Grace Weitz picked some really unique ones. Check out The Beer Mile for more events she's excited about. Follow Grace during CCBW @thebeermile.

CCBW Tuesday Brewsday: Learn to Homebrew! (Free Entry)
CHAOS Brew Club, 2417 W Hubbard St.
Tue. May 19th, 5:30pm-11:30pm
Because my 2015 New Year's Resolution was to learn how to homebrew… CHAOS, the first beer club in the nation with their own brew space, hosts monthly brew days, but this one is extra special since it’s CCBW. Education Chair Matt Omura will be taking attendees through an all grain brew. Whether you’re a novice, like myself, or a homebrew extraordinaire you’ll have a chance to check out the CHAOS community brew space, shoot the beer breeze, sample some home brew, learn a thing or two…and maybe even cross off a New Year’s Resolution.

Northside vs. Southside Tap Takeover (Free entry, beer and food for purchase) 

DryHop Brewers 3155 N. Broadway
Thu. May 21st 6:00pm-Fri. May 22nd 2:00am. 

I have to give a shout out to DryHop, my favorite neighborhood brewery and place to hang out. DryHop continually brews solid iterations of hop-centric ales, along with Belgian and experimental brews. They're featuring a Northside vs Southside gauntlet. Breweries from both areas will be “tapping in” if you will. From the Northside: newcomer Alarmist, Aquanaut and Metropolitan. In the South’s corner: Moody Tongue, Motor Row, and Marz. 

It’s My Birthday SOUR BASH (Free entry, beer for purchase)
The Green Lady 3328 N. Lincoln Ave
Fri. May 22nd 4:00pm 

I love the Green Lady, which usually hosts South of 80 during CCBW (hmm)… and I love sour beer… easy decision. In honor of Owner Melanie's Birthday, 30 drafts and 3 firkins will be full of sour deliciousness, as well as plenty of bottles and cans.

Whichever events you choose, we wish you a very happy CCBW. For the full list visit chibeerweek.com. Thank you for supporting local craft beer, cheers!

Cider Summit Chicago 2015 in Review

February 7th marked the 3rd Annual Cider Summit in Chicago, put on by SBS Import's Alan Shapiro in collaboration with Seattle Beer Collective. This year's event was upgraded to Navy Pier's beautiful Grand Ballroom, which hosted a sold out crowd of 4,000 cider fans over the 2 ticketed sessions.

With over 15 new cider vendors this year and cider makers from around the world on hand, we found this year's crowd as eager as ever to converse and learn. Even with the expanded space the crowd was thick and lines were palpable. Those in attendance were a vast range of ages and levels of knowledge, and with easily over half being women – much different (and less unruly) than your typical beer festival.

As the 3rd year attending, my strategy was to seek out as many new ciders to the market as possible. I was joined by Ken Getty – homebrewer, cider maker and President of CHAOS Brew Club and MC Johnsen – fellow designer, homebrewer, and blogger of Worth 1000 Beers.

Our friends at WBEZ's Strange Brews were recording a live podcast during the 1st session, interviewing Eric West, host of the Cider Guide Podcast. Eric created his own guide to Cider Summit, re-categorizing each entry by style, which we found extremely helpful throughout the event. You can download his list and check out his podcasts on his website.

MC (Worth 1000 Beers), Alison Cuddy (Strange Brews), Kim (Hail To The Ale).

As fests often do when you're having fun – the 3 hours flew by. Between the 3 of us we were able to sample a spectrum of styles, regions and creative flavors. While many follow traditional, century-old processes of blending regional apple varietals with yeast, there is an increasing number of cider makers taking the "craft beer approach," adding fruits, vegetables, spices, hops and even incorporating second use spirit barrel-aging.

The cider category which was once defined as dry, sweet or semi-sweet is becoming more complex and diverse. We learned that during this past week's CiderCon, the Cider Association was working to further define styles for cider, much like we see in craft beer. This will help makers, sellers and drinkers alike to better understand and communicate a proper vocabulary around cider. While it will take time to implement, it's very exciting progress!

Overall the expanded space was a huge improvement, and a thrill to see growth in the category happening before our eyes. We caught Alan Shapiro briefly and were assured that he'd be returning for the 4th Annual Cider Summit next year.

Below is a breakdown of our top cider picks of the day, all of which can be found in the Chicago market, with the exception of Troy Cider and Urban Farm Fermentory's cider, mead and kombucha, which we hope to see distributed out of Maine in the near future.

Kim's Favorites/Notes
Seattle Cider Co. (Seattle, WA) - Oaked Maple: fermented with raisins, oak chips and VT maple syrup. Full bodied and complex in flavor without losing it's cider identity. 6.9%

Worley's Cider (Somerset, UK) - Special Reserve Keeved: semi-sweet on the tongue with hints of sweet apples and caramel, sparkling effervescence lifts and dances the tannins lingering to the finish. Uses a traditional English keeving process of slow fermentation which retains natural apple sweetness. 6%

Finnriver Cidery (Chimacum, WA) - Black Currant Cider: heirloom, dessert apples and currants, semi-sweet sparkling, jammy finish. 6.5%

Urban Farm Fermentory (Portland, ME) - Amalgam: Hard Cidah & Kombucha blend. Crisp and dry with a tart, tannic finish. Currently available only in Maine and Massachusetts. 4.5%

Sheppy's Cider (Somerset, UK) - Sheppy's Somerset Draught: cider and dessert apple blend, medium body, slight sparkle. A perfect medium bodied, medium sweetness, round and drinkable cider. 5.5%

Ken's Favorites/Notes
Eden Ice Cider Co. (Newport, VT) - Eden Heirloom Blend: full-bodied sweetness balanced by acidity and tannins 10%

Troy Cider (San Francisco, CA) - Wild Fermented Cider 2012: funky and acidic with a cloudy/unfiltered appearance 7.7%

Sheppy's Cider (Somerset, UK) - Sheppy's Oak Matured Vintage: medium body, smooth lingering oak finish 4.8%

EZ Orchards (Salem, OR) - Poire: Sparkling pear cider. Smooth, juicy, fruit forward finish. 5.9%

Vander Mill (Spring Lake, MI) - Nunica Pine: Dry Hopped with Columbus hops. Light, resinous bitterness and dry, balanced finish 6.8%

MC's Favorites/Tasting Notes
Seattle Cider Co. (Seattle, WA) - Gin Botanical: This unique cider was fermented with spent gin botanicals from Batch 206 Distillery. It poured clean and clear pale yellow, with a complex fruity aroma dominated by apples and lime. Its fizzy and full-bodied flavor of orange, lemongrass, juniper, and pine finished clean and crisp, with a lingering citrus sweetness. (6.5%)

Troy Cider (San Francisco, CA) - Wild Fermented Cider 2012: This spontaneously fermented cider was a unique creation from the fruits found in old apple orchard in Sonoma County, CA. Unfiltered and barely carbonated, this cider was the color of a cloudy orange creamsicle, and smelled like a sweet and sour green apple. It tasted tart and tannic with notes of hay and slight vinegar. Delicious! (7.7%)

Finnriver Cidery (Chimacum, WA) - Saffron Cider: This clear, full bodied and savory cider was such an interesting approach to flavor. The saffron came through in both aroma and flavor amidst this sweet and juicy, apple-forward flavor. 6.5%)

Sea Cider (British Columbia, Canada) - Prohibition: Technically an apple wine, this caramel brown-colored beverage aged in Newfoundland Screech bourbon barrels had molasses added to it. Fruity-smelling, and tasting rich, sweet, and spicy, the bourbon really came though beautifully in both aroma and flavor. This warmed you from the inside with an herbal and spicy finish of candied toffee and sweet apple pie. 12%

Worley's Cider (Somerset, UK) - Special Reserve Medium: This mildly fizzy cider smelled like a funky old barnyard, was both tart and sweet with herbal qualities and had a fruity, tannic finish. 5.4%

October Beer Events We're Excited About

Women Working in Mixed Media: She's Crafty
October 22nd, 6pm
Chop Shop, 2033 W North Ave, Chicago IL
tickets $30, 2/$50

WWIMM is back in action with a new networking event in honor of Oktoberfest devoted to women working in the craft beer industry. Come meet the top women working in the field with our interactive panel, while tasting some of our favorite craft brews.
Panelist include:
Claudia Jendron - Brewer, Temperance Beer Company
Kate Bernot - Nightlife Reporter, RedEye
Kim Leshinski - Design Consultant and Event Curator, Hail To The Ale
Monica Mooney - Field Sales Representative, Bell's Brewery, Inc. (Official)




The Hirter Überbrew Homebrew Contest
Submissions due October 3rd
Judging and Awards Ceremony, October 11th, 7pm
Dank Haus, 4740 N Western Ave, Chicago IL

Only a few days remain to enter your best German-style homebrew into this unique competition hosted by Austrian Euro Craft brewery, Hirter Bier in collaboration with Square Kegs Homebrew Club and Louis Glunz Beer.  

Register your homebrew here!

Come by the DANK Haus following the Uberbrew Homebrew Competition judging for the official awards ceremony, with special guests Klaus Möller and Nikolaus Riegler – 5th and 6th generation Owners of Brauerei Hirt, makers of Hirter Bier.
 
Winners of each category will be announced as well as the grand prize winner, who will receive a $1500 scholarship to Siebel Institute. Beer and food will be available to purchase. Live music. No cover. More info here.




C.H.A.O.S. Brew Club Harvest Fest
October 18th, 6pm
2417 W Hubbard St, Chicago IL 
$30 Trial Membership

Join the C.H.A.O.S. Home Brew Club for their annual Harvest Fest, boasting over 30 beers on tap, a Thanksgiving-style buffet, raffle prizes. Oh, and a 30-day trial membership to check out their unique, brew-on-premise facility. More info.




DryHop Brewer's Evening of Pumpkin Beers
October 30th, 6pm
3155 N Broadway Ave, Chicago IL

For the second year DryHop will tap their delicious pumpkin stout "Starry Night In A Sleepy Hollow" in celebration of Halloween. They'll be sharing the taps with an extensive lineup of craft brewed pumpkin ales, including local offerings. Full list to come. 5oz pumpkin flights and food specials will be available.

Omega Yeast Labs Bring The Concept of Hybrid Yeast To Chicago

Like many of us in the craft beer industry our passions have led us down paths we never would have expected. Meet Lance Shaner; Microbiology Ph.D. turned Bio-tech Patent Lawyer turned Professional Yeast Propagator and Owner of the Midwest’s only local source for brewer’s yeast - Omega Yeast Labs. He first became interested in craft beer during college, venturing into homebrewing with his then roommate. Working in labs while in college and having the ability to propagate his own yeast definitely had it’s perks as a homebrewer. 

Back in 2012, while talking to friend and law colleague Andy Smith about his plans to open Ten Ninety Brewing, Smith expressed the challenges and cost involved in obtaining brewers yeast. Until recently breweries have only had three sources for buying liquid yeast - White Labs (based in California), Wyeast (Oregon) and Brewing Science Institute (Colorado). Only two of these providers (White Labs and Wyeast) are available at the retail level for homebrewers. Yeast being a sensitive and perishable product requires overnight delivery on ice, the shipping costs alone on large volumes can be astronomical.

It was clear to Shaner that an opportunity to provide a better solution for local brewers was in demand. Feeling disenchanted with his current career, he immediately started researching what it would take to get started. He knew if he could propagate the yeast himself and deliver a fresher, more affordable option, everyone would win. The details came together very quickly and now less than a year later Omega Yeast Labs is providing yeast to over 20 local breweries with a retail launch for homebrewers just weeks away.

With over 70 breweries and a dozen homebrew shops within a 50 mile radius, the need for yeast is plentiful. Shaner doesn’t have his eyes set on anything bigger right now, expressing how much room there is for growth locally before looking at expanding beyond the Chicago market. One of his most recent collaborations was with Ale Syndicate on their righteously named “Omega Midnight” Foreign-Style Stout. Shaner met Ale Syndicate last year during LivingSocial’s Beer Fest at Lincoln Park Zoo. They later came to him with an idea for a stout with a blended yeast strain. 

“We had a lot of fun with this beer. Omega's lab is one of the better things to happen to brewers in Chicago. We love what a big grain bill can do to a stout, but to be able to propagate the exact blend of yeast from a lab in your own backyard is awesome. We took our idea to the guys at Omega and worked with them to develop this custom blend. Our beer "Omega Midnight" is a foreign extra stout, which is a rarely-brewed style of beer. This beer's a little bit of everything. It's sweet and strangely dry at the same time, roasty, and smokey with a little cherrywood smoked malt. This is one of those beers that will mature nicely in the bottle. There were a lot of dudes involved in making this beer from Jesse Evans, Lance Shaner, Mark Schwarz, Steven Winter, John J. Hall, Raul Heredia, to our friends Jacob Huston and Jackie Boyer who helped us wax dip bottles for 8 hours straight. We love Omega Yeast Labs so much, we had to put their name on the label.” 

- Sam Evans, Co-Owner and Brewer at Ale Syndicate

Much like the collaboration with Ale Syndicate, Omega Yeast Labs' point of differentiation, in addition to cost and location, is Omega's passion for creating new yeast strains. According to Shaner, the current yeast providers are essentially acquiring and recreating yeast strains that exist in the world and many of these strains come with their share of challenges for brewers. For example Wyeast French Saison strain has a high attenuation rate, finishing very dry and peppery. Another favorite, Wyeast Belgian Saison has very desirable bubble gum, fruit and spice aromatics but is notorious for stalling out mid-fermentation, causing the brewer to have to make a number of adjustments in temperature and schedule in order to fully ferment. With his lab technology Shaner has been able to create a hybrid Saison yeast strain (“Saisonstein’s Monster” OYL-500) that has both the desired flavor profile and robust fermentation, combining the strengths of both Wyeast strains. Solving challenges like this are what truly excites Shaner, and the rest of the brewing world. Omega Yeast Labs will produce a number of popular yeast strains, however Shaner plans to continue to explore the possibilities of combining more diverse flavor profiles.

Shaner further explains that "the new technology has great significance to the brewing industry. For example, a brewer might like a particular flavor profile of a yeast strain, but would not use it in a production environment because it takes too long to drop out of the beer. That strain could be crossed with another strain known to be highly flocculant (i.e. easily clumps). Screening through enough hybrids can reveal a strain with the desired flavor characteristics and better flocculation."

In addition to the professional breweries, there has been a huge amount of interest from the local homebrewing community. Shaner has spent time in the last few months with Square Kegs Homebrew Club, CHAOS Brew Club and Chicago Brew Werks sharing yeast education and offering the opportunity to brew with the hybrid Saison yeast at the small batch level.

For more information on the over 60 yeast strains currently available through Omega Yeast Labs, please check out their catalog. Omega offers free delivery for within a 20 mile radius for orders over $150. Packaged yeast will be available at your local homebrew stores by early May. For further questions or requests, please contact them at info@OmegaYeast.com.

You can also track their latest yeast developments by following them on Facebook and Twitter.

Owner Lance Shaner, pictured with their 40 gallon brewing system.

Celebrating International Women's (Brew) Day

In celebration of International Women's Day on March 8th, Hail To The Ale and Brew Camp will be taking over the classroom for a day full of demos and fun with ladies from the Chicago brewing industry!

Join us for:

*Live Beer Making Demos throughout the day, 11am-4pm

*Special Pro Brewer Guests from the brewing industry will be joining us to talk about their experiences and share beer

*BYOB bottle share, snacks will be provided

*Donations from ticket proceeds will go toward women in need through the Chicago Chapter of Dress for Success

*This event is open to everyone - men, women, kids - the more the merrier!

Our Featured Women Homebrewers who will be LIVE BREWING:

* Nancy Rockwell from CHAOS Brew Club and the blog "Nancy Brew" www.nancybrewchicago.com

*Mary Clare Crabtree, winner of the 5 Rabbit Iron Homebrew Challenge and designer extraordinaire

*Laura Lanford, homebrewing rockstar and procurer of Movies On The Roof www.moviesontheroof.com

Tickets are available through brewcamp.com

This event is curated in collaboration with Brew Camp, Hail To The Ale, the Chicago Beer Gals Collective and the fine ladies of the Chicago brewing industry!

The Beauty of Bottle Shares

One of my favorite aspects of the homebrewing and beer enthusiast community are the endless opportunities to meet new people and share beer you might not have the chance to try otherwise. Bottle shares have become increasingly popular in Chicago and beyond, between groups of friends as well as through online communities like the Chicago Craft Beer Enthusiasts and Chicago Beer Society's First Thursdays.

The beauty of bottle shares is the ability to try small samplings of a number of beers in one sitting with the objective of broadening your palette versus having to commit to a full pint or 22oz bomber of one beer. This format has truly helped me discover on a deeper level what styles of beer I like and want to try more of.

Over the last few days I've been staring down my beer collection, trying to narrow selections to bring to Wednesday's Chicago Beer Gals bottle share. It gave me a chance to reflect on some of the great beer I've had the opportunity to drink over the last year. Below are a few of my favorites. I've also asked CHAOS Brew Club's Ken Getty, who is much more active with the group tastings and beer trading aspect, for his top 5 as well.

Kim's Top 5:

• 1) 2012 Barrel Aged Shipwreck Porter - Arcadia Brewing. Rich, dark coffee, toffee, vanilla with a silky smooth finish. Available in 12oz bottles, this is a warmer that might be hard to share!
• 2) Pumpkinator - Saint Arnold Brewing. When compiling our massive list of competitors for The Great Pumpkin Beer Challenge, we were able to trade for a bottle of this full-bodied stout with notes of cinnamon, chocolate and roastiness which went on to win the #1 spot.
• 3) Heady Topper Imperial IPA - The Alchemist. One of the most sought after IPAs of 2013, we had the East Coast connection to smuggle a few cans back to Chicago. A hop bomb with layers of citrus, peach and tropical fruit that carries through from the aroma through the full bodied finish.
• 4) Love Buzz Saison - Anchorage Brewing. This bottle brewed in Alaska was brought to share on Thanksgiving Day. Brewed with hibiscus and peppercorn, aged in pinot noir barrels it satisfied both the beer and wine drinkers at the table and was quite a conversation piece between the two.
• 5) Straight Jacket Barleywine - Revolution Brewing. Obtained on it's release date in Dec 2012, it took almost a year to break it open for the right occasion with friends. Aged in Woodford barrels, it was full bodied with notes of bourbon, vanilla, dark fruit and definitely worth the wait.

Ken's thoughts:

I am a bit of an old soul and I think I enjoy bottle shares so much because of the fact that everyone gets together for a common purpose, enjoys each other’s company while small talking and when a new beer is poured completely enjoys the moment. 

Most gatherings involving beer when friends get together seems to have either a stereo, sporting event or television nearby vying for your attention…not so, with bottle shares. I find bottle shares are typically about sharing stories, making new friends, and new-shared experiences.

While curating my list of Top Five Bottle Share Beers of 2013, it brought back many memories of good friends & good times. I hope you have similar experiences soon!

• 1) W.W.B.V . – Crooked Stave: Bottle I brought to an impromptu bottle share. Received in a beer trade and shared with five others
• 2) 2012 Eclipse Stout Series – Fifty Fifty Brewing Company (Grand Cru, Elijah Craig 12-yr, Elijah Craig 20-yr, Mellow Corn, Rittenhouse Rye, GHS Special Blend, Evan Williams, Old Fitzgerald):  A friend shared this monster Horizontal set from 2012 at a CHAOS Brew Club Bottle Share with close to 40 people!
• 3) Barrel Aged Last Kiss in Buffalo Trace Barrels – Pipeworks Brewing Company: Strong Mike is the “Master of Barrels” at Pipeworks and he has been knocking it out of the box his first three barrel-aged beers…if you have the chance jump one these beers.  First released to “Friends with Benefits” members in late 2013 and slotted for a 2014 limited release.
• 4) pseudo Sue – Toppling Goliath Brewing – This was a holiday bottle share put on by members of the Chicago Craft Beer Enthusiasts Facebook group…good times and good people!
• 5)  Everett – Hill Farmstead: A friend came back with an SUV full of Vermont beer and I happened to be on the receiving end of his generosity when he came back to Chicago.

The Great Pumpkin Beer - Recap

For those of you that haven’t been paying attention to The Great Pumpkin Beer Challenge here is a recap:

Hail to the Ale & CHAOS Brew Club's Ken Getty combined forces and cellars to put together 24 beers and divided them into three tiers of pumpkin domination. Three brackets that incorporated craft beer from across the country to determine Hail to the Ale’s The Great Pumpkin Beer of 2013
Tier 3 - New Jack O'Lantern City, Limited Distribution
Tier 2 - Patch Madness, Regional Breweries
Tier 1 - Pumpkin O.G.'s, the crew that's been doing pumpkin beers before Pumpkin Spice Latte had its own hashtag

 

The New Jack O'Lantern City tier of The Great Pumpkin Beer Challenge was dominated by 2012 GABF’s Gold Medal winner (a fact that we learned after…promise!) in the pumpkin category, Stevens Point Whole Hog Pumpkin Ale.  This beer has a great sweet malty backbone accompanied with a delicious pumpkin pie aroma that finished slightly dry. A very well balanced beer that we could have drank several more bottles from Bottles and Cans.

The Tier 2 bracket was true Patch Madness style pitting the different regional craft brewers of the United States against each other.  We were intrigued at the thought of adding a barleywine to this crowded field of various styles and Almanac Beer Co. delivered. Their Heirloom Pumpkin Barleywine is a blend of brandy barrel aged and fresh barleywine that delivers big, boozy notes with huge brandy flavor that transition to pumpkin caramel sweetness. Almanac continuously stood out from the pack to narrowly defeat Lakefront’s crisp Pumpkin Lager.

The Pumpkin OG's Tier 1 bracket has two Opening Round matches before the Elite Eight pumpkin beers are decided. Shipyard’s Smashed Pumpkin battles Uinta’s Punk’n and Smuttynose’s Pumpkin Ale looks to upset Brooklyn’s Post Road Pumpkin. Opening round winners will be announced Monday, October 28^th 2013.

The Great Pumpkin Beer Challenge

As lovers of all things pumpkin, we've teamed up with CHAOS Brew Club's Ken Getty to put together a pumpkin beer tasting of epic proportions. We've compiled 24 beers and will be drinking through the good, the bad and the extra gourdy over the next 3 weeks to determine the ultimate Great Pumpkin Beer winner. 

We'll be posting the results of each tier over the next few Thursdays, with the final winner announced on Halloween Day.

The tiers are ranked as follows:
Tier 3 - New Jack O'Lantern City, Limited Distribution
Tier 2 - Patch Madness, Regional Breweries
Tier 1 - Pumpkin O.G.'s, the crew that's been doing pumpkin beers before Pumpkin Spice Latte had its own hashtag

Which are your favorites vying for the win? Any you'd add or remove? Let us know your thoughts and stay tuned for the results!