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.

South Loop Brewing Launches Two Collaborations

This Wednesday, July 24th South Loop Brewing Company will debut their first two beers, brewed in collaboration at Lake Effect Brewing at The Weather Mark Tavern (1503 S. Michigan Ave, Chicago).
Event info

“Red skies in the morning, sailor’s warning”

“Red skies at night, sailor’s delight.”

Or so the ancient rhyme goes. It’s a mariner’s rule of thumb for forecasting the coming day’s weather and it dates back well over 2,000 years. Sailors used it to predict what kind of day they were in for on the water. Lake Effect Brewing Company and South Loop Brewing Company used it as inspiration behind their latest: a split-mash double beer collaboration.

“Sailor’s Warning” is an 8.3% ABV Imperial Ruby Red Ale. It’s full-bodied and boozy (not unlike sailors) with a biscuity, creamy, almost cask-conditioned mouthfeel. A complex, earthy bitterness from Falconer’s 7C and Zythos hops should greet your tongue and stay with you to the cold, dark bottom. You’ve been warned.

“Sailor’s Delight” is a refreshing, 5.1% ABV sessionable red ale. Lighter in both color and body than “Sailor’s Warning,” this delight (pun intended) was cleanly hopped with Magnum and delicately spiked with vanilla beans in a way that makes calm waters and beautiful sunsets even more enjoyable. Go ahead, kick your feet up for this one.

About South Loop Brewing: 
At present, South Loop Brewing Company consists of three gentlemen - Jeremiah, Jude and Jason, running a homebrewing operation and a dream to bring the community of craft beer to the South Loop. Since they're not 100% funded yet or licensed, they are free to collaborate with other licensed brewers, but not release beers in their own facility just yet. "We intend to get there through a Kickstarter campaign slated to launch this September, but it was important to us to get actual beer on tap so friends, family and strangers alike could try our handiwork before we asked them to help us fund a brick-and-mortar brewery," says Jeremiah.

The two-beer collaboration "Sailor's Delight" and "Sailor's Warning" were brewed with Lake Effect Brewing Company, is their first. Jeremiah shared that "the response and support so far has been exciting and extremely motivating. We're really looking forward to tapping those kegs and seeing what people think."

They aim to continue gaining momentum with more collaborations. You may see them brewing their own original recipes at other friend-breweries to get their beer into market sooner, but the end goal is a production brewery with a taproom and shop in South Loop proper. They've already scouted a handful of locations that could eventually be home, and are excited and hoping for the best with the ability to reach the Kickstarter goal.

Many of South Loop Brewing's beers are inspired by and named after South Loop-related areas or roads: "India(na Ave.) Pale Ale," "Solidarity Stout" and "Hop Monster of the Midway," to name a few. They want to have fun with beer names and styles, but also intend to tell a story about the South Loop when and where possible.

We look forward to much more from these guys in the near future!

April Craft Beer Events

Ommegang Game of Thrones Release Party - The Beer Bistro 1061 W. Madison, Chicago, Illinois
Join Ommegang to celebrate the release of Iron Throne Blonde Ale. They're also tapping Gnomegang (collaboration with Brewery A Chouffe) and Duvel Rustica (collaboration with Duvel).
Tuesday, April 2nd 5:00pm
www.thebeerbistro.com


Ommegang Game of Thrones Tapping - Fountainhead Chicago 1970 W Montrose Ave, Chicago, IL
Tapping limited released Ommegang Iron Throne, Art of Darkness and Gnomegang
Tuesday, April 2nd 6:00pm
www.fountainheadchicago.com

Local Beer Showcase - Atlas Brewing Company 2747 N Lincoln Ave, Chicago, IL
Featuring the beers of Lake Effect, 18th Street, Spiteful, DryHop, Begyle, and Flesk Brewing. Sample fresh local beers and talk to the people who made them! Tickets
Thursday, April 4th 7:00pm
www.atlasbeer.com

"Visit Us at the Rabbit Hutch!" - 5 Rabbit Cerveca 6398 W 74th Street Bedford Park, IL
Join 5 Rabbit Brewery for a tour of their brand new brewery for tasting, snacking, music and mingling. They want your help to find the perfect cheese pairing for HUITZI, their Midwinter Ale, and have a go at some hands-on experiments to find the perfect combination of fruits and spices for the new summer series, PALETAS. They're also giving a sneak preview of their spring seasonal MISSIONARIO, a strong wheat beer brewed with Muscat grape juice and a hint of almonds.
Saturday, April 6th 2:00pm - 6:00pm
www.5rabbitbrewery.com

Beer Academy - Experimental Styles Goose Island Clybourn 1800 N Clybourn Chicago, IL
On the last Wednesday of each month Goose Island  offers a Beer Academy class to learn about a different beer theme. Enjoy a sample of different beers from various craft breweries. Tickets $20. To RSVP call (312) 915-0071
Wednesday, April 24th 6:30pm
www.gooseisland.com

Dark Lord Day - Three Floyds Brewpub 9750 Indiana Pkwy, Munster, IN
FFF infamous festival celebrating the one day release of Dark Lord Day Russian Imperial Stout is set for it's 9th year. This ticketed event is SOLD OUT - all of the "day of" details can be found at www.darklordday.com
Saturday, April 27th 10am