Tag Archives: Six Row

South of 80 2.0: The Wrapup

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It’s something you don’t quite realize until you’re finally drinking beers at the event itself just how much effort can go in behind the scenes to get one of these Chicago Craft Beer Week events set up.

I’m not saying that as a point of pride for myself or anything – but I do know that this year took a lot of work to pull off, from the brewers, to the distributors, and to ourselves as well. If you’re distributing credit anywhere, the absolute Lion’s Share of it should be directed straight towards Ryan, who herded these brewery cats going all the way back to last year and beyond.

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Any time you bring in new brewers that don’t currently offer beers in Chicago there are some extra strings to pull and thankfully, they were all pulled appropriately enough in order to bring some super-cool breweries to the city for the first time. Which was fantastic, because they were all awesome.

For a full evening at The Green Lady on Tuesday, as rains seemed to threaten constantly (but never quite arrive), it was a little piece of downstate. We got to compare notes on beers, talked about breweries, try some stuff that we’d never tried before, learn more about brewers that we’d previously only known through reputation, and generally bask in the mid-week CCBW glow of good beer.

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Oh, and we got to pass Das Boot for some extra beer karma as well to raise money for public school teachers in tornado ravaged Moore, Oklahoma. And it was also awesome of Melani Domingues, owner of The Green Lady, to match some of those proceeds as well.

At the end of the evening (well, the end for me anyways), I was wondering how well this had worked out in comparison to last year’s event. I hadn’t realized that for 2012, there were only three bartenders behind the bar, whereas Melani had all 5 of her folks plus a door guy in attendance and we kept them all pretty busy for hours, which seems like a pretty solid turnout to me.

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Judging from some of the feedback we received on Twitter, South of 80 2.0 was a hit.

If I had to gauge interest, I’d say the big hits among the crowd were the Arugula Rye from Scratch, the Strawberry/Raspberry Sour from Destihl; Urban Chestnut’s Zwickel and Winged Nut, in equal parts, and we all really seemed to enjoy the Strawberry Honey Weizen from Six Row and the Blood Orange Hefeweizen from Rolling Meadows, which seemed to keep getting better as the night went on.

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What’s more important than that, though, is that everyone from all attendees to brewery reps to bartenders to beer bloggers to owners seemed to be having a really good time. For that, we thank you all.

We would be remiss if we did not single out and thank the following: Melani at The Green Lady for clearing out half of her taps to make room for fifteen fantastic beers from downstate Illinois and the St. Louis area, our distribution partners Chicago Beverage Systems and Donnewald Distributing and – of course – the breweries for entrusting us to be the first to introduce their beers to Chicago.

ANNOUNCING: The South of 80 2.0 Tap List

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In advance of our second annual Chicago Craft Beer Week event celebrating the unknown and under-the-radar breweries south of Interstate 80, we present to you the tap list for South of 80 2.0.

This list includes a diverse selection of beers, many brewed using old school and even old world techniques. From sessionable IPA’s and blonde ales, to higher ABV offerings like a beer brewed with maple sap in lieu of water and a Belgian Tripel – you’ll be hard-pressed to find a more unique selection of beer, under one roof, during Chicago Craft Beer Week.

All beers listed below will be available in flights and full pours.

Destihl (Bloomington, IL)

  • Strawberry Blonde Ale (5% ABV) – A fruit beer made by adding generous quantities of strawberries to a blonde ale base beer. Golden-strawberry blonde color, crisp/dry palate, light body, low hop characters & bitterness and light malt & fruit sweetness.
  • Deadhead Double Red Ale (9.1% ABV) – Imperial Red Ale featuring intense hop bitterness, flavor and aroma balanced by high notable alcohol content, fruity esters and caramel malt character.
  • Saint Dekkera® Reserve Sour Ale Series Strawberry/Raspberry – Aging since March 2012.
  • Saint Dekkera® Reserve Sour Ale Series Lambic – Aging since July 2011.

Rolling Meadows Brewery (Cantrall, IL)

  • Blood Orange Hefeweizen (5.8% ABV) – A hefeweizen, brewed with blood oranges, is the first beer brewed by the mothers of Rolling Meadows’ head brewers. Enjoy its fruity aroma, bright mouthfeel and hints of raspberry and grapefruit.
  • Lincoln’s Lager (6.5% ABV) – A dry, pleasantly hopped lager, perfectly sessionable and a favorite from last year’s South of 80.

Scratch Brewing (Ava, IL)

  • Acer Saccharum (9% ABV) – Named after the Latin for “Sugar Maple,” this beer is brewed entirely with maple sap in place of water, from trees harvested in southern Illinois. This beer is dark and malty, with cherry and fruit esters and a light smokiness the result of being brewed over a fire and adding several pieces of hot granite to the boil.
  • Arugula Rye (6% ABV) – Rye porter bittered with organic arugula from all seasons farm in Cobden, Illinois, and blended in the fermenter with roasted arugula root, giving the beer a roasted coffee-like aroma.
  • Blonde Gruit (4.5% ABV) – A gruit bittered and flavored entirely with plants other than hops, including dandelion, dock, ginger, nutmeg, and orange peel. Spicy, ginger aroma gives way to a green, tea-like tonic with low bitterness.

Six Row Brewing Company (St. Louis, MO)

  • Strawberry Honey Weizen (5.2% ABV) – Light on the palette and in color, our Strawberry Honey Weizen is designed to give you just a hint of fruit followed by our traditional German wheat beer breadiness.
  • Red Eye (5.5% ABV) – A “session IPA,” medium copper in color, crisply bitter but slightly drier than your average IPA. We’ve finished and dry-hopped it with Galena hops for a mellow, earthy flavor and aroma.
  • Belgian Style Tripel (8.7% ABV) – Brewed for Six Row’s third anniversary. This dry example of a Tripel was brewed with a Trappist yeast making a gorgeous golden ale fit to enjoy for a birthday.

Urban Chestnut Brewing Company (St. Louis, MO)

  • Zwickel (5.1% ABV) – Our flagship lager, pronounced ‘zv-ick-el’, is an unfiltered, unpasteurized, German classic that finishes as a smooth-drinking, naturally cloudy bier.
  • Winged Nut (5.7% ABV) – It’s a little on the flighty side at 5.7% ABV and it’s a little on the wacky side because we brew it with finely milled chestnuts, Willamette hops, and we ferment it with a Bavarian Weissbier yeast strain. All of these nuances contribute to its ‘nutty’ personality.
  • STLIPA (8.1% ABV) – We pronounce it “sta-leep-ah”; you pronounce it how you like. STLIPA, which is the acronym for St. Louis India Pale Ale, is a double IPA brewed with Sterling, Cascade, Mt. Hood, Willamette and Chinook hops.

South of 80 2.0 takes place Tuesday, May 21st starting at 7 p.m. at The Green Lady in Lakeview and is free to attend.

Special thanks to our distribution partners, Chicago Beverage Systems and Donnewald Distributing, for helping make this event possible.

 

South of 80 2.0 Snapshot: Six Row Brewing Company

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SixRow_logoIn the days leading up to our second South of 80 event during Chicago Craft Beer Week, we wanted to make you a little more familiar with our featured breweries, since we know that news from downstate doesn’t tend to get a lot of play up here. Today we take a look at a brewery that saw such overwhelming support from craft beer drinkers during last year’s South of 80 they began distributing their beers to Chicago full-time after the event: Six Row Brewing Company.

With as much going on in the St. Louis craft beer scene, it’s a little surprising to us that we don’t see more beers from that region here in Chicago.

Certainly the biggest fish in that Missouri barrel is Schlafly (at least for the moment) who has been pretty up front about their lack of intent to distribute to Chicago, although they have noted the possibility of opening a tap room in the city.

Also worth mentioning is Urban Chestnut, unavailable here for now though poised to take over as STL’s biggest player in the craft beer game once their recently announced expansion takes place. We’ll have more about them in just a bit.

All the more reason we’re quite pleased to have Six Row Brewing Company rejoining us for this years South of 80. It was just after last years event that they decided to join the Chicago scene full-time and distribute to the area through our event distributor, Chicago Beverage Systems.

Perhaps you’ve seen their Whale, a wheat pale ale, or their underrated DIPA (that you may recall we had on tap and on cask last year) in their golden-yellow labels on shelves around Chicago? We’re proud to have been the catalyst for that, and we’re equally proud to have Six Row back once again for this year’s event.

BeerAdvocate raters call the brewery ‘Exceptional,’ the Riverfront Times says they’re one of the best brewpubs in St. Louis, and in 2011 they even earned a nod from the New York Times.

Also close to our heart: They brew porter year-round, seasons be damned. Ranging from a whiskey barrel porter (a “gotta have it beer” according to Sauce Magazine), a vanilla porter (why isn’t this a more popular style?) and they even have a bacon porter that you can find on cask later this week if you choose to visit their brewpub in Midtown, St. Louis. Did we mention that we love porters?

We’ll release the full draft list later this week, but allow us to tease you a little further with this offering to be available at South of 80 2.0 and for the first time in Chicago: Six Row’s Strawberry Honey Weizen.

From the brewery’s tasting notes:

Strawberry Honey Weizen ABV: 5.2%
With summertime rapidly approaching we offer you a slightly sweeter offering with this beer. Light on the palette and in color, our Strawberry Honey Weizen is designed to give you just a hint of fruit followed by our traditional German wheat beer breadiness.

We had heard about this last year and we were crossing our fingers that it’d be available once Chicago Craft Beer Week came around again – and here it is.

Will we see you at South of 80 for this and many more fun Six Row brews? If so, “Like” us on Facebook – we’ll be releasing the tap list there FIRST later this week.

A reminder: While many Chicago Craft Beer Week events require tickets for admission, South of 80 2.0 is free to attend: just show up, drink the beer and enjoy. It’s our pleasure to help facilitate new and interesting brewers to come to Chicago; all we ask is that you join us to enjoy their efforts.

South of 80 2.0 takes place Tuesday, May 21st starting at 7 p.m. at The Green Lady in Lakeview. Beers from multiple downstate and St. Louis breweries will be on hand, many available in Chicago for the first time.

While there are many events taking place throughout the week, we do hope you’ll join us for a beer and help us raise a toast to the under-appreciated and under-recognized brewers that exist South of 80.

Downstate Brewers Invade Chicago Craft Beer Week for the Triumphant Return of “South of 80″ ***UPDATED***

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Organized as part of this year’s Chicago Craft Beer Week to recognize and celebrate the beers created by downstate or St. Louis-area breweries, the nationally recognized craft beer website GuysDrinkingBeer.com and Chicago beer destination The Green Lady are excited to announce the followup to last year’s successful “South of 80” beer event, affectionately called “South of 80 2.0.”

This year’s event will take place at The Green Lady on Tuesday, May 21, starting at 7 p.m. Representatives from five breweries are expected to be on hand to show off their creations, many of which have never been available in Chicago before – some of which have never even been north of I-80, the demarcation line that has come to “define” Northern Illinois from all points south.

This year, GDB and TGL are excited and proud to announce the brewery lineup for this year’s downstate-focused event as follows:

Six Row Brewing Company (St. Louis, MO):SixRow_logo

Last year’s South of 80 was the first time Six Row poured in Chicago, and that event proved to be so successful, Six Rows beers are now being distributed by Chicago Beverage Systems; their DIPA and “Whale,” a wheat pale ale, can be found throughout the city.

After introducing their flagship brews in 2012, Six Row plans to bring some unique and never-before-seen beers to Chicago for South of 80 2.0.

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Scratch Brewing Company (Ava, IL):

We’re really excited to introduce these brewers to Chicago.

Scratch Brewing is a farm-to-table brewpub creating beers out of locally foraged products like mushrooms and nuts. Scratch is the brainchild of a trio of southern Illinois homebrewers and their beers are, without question, some of the most unusual we’ve ever seen, which is not something we say lightly. Scratch pulls ingredients like arugula, maple sap and cedar branches from the brewpub’s farm and utilizes old school techniques like brewing outdoors over and open flame. The world likely hasn’t seen brewing experiments like these.

GDB co-creator Ryan Hermes says Scratch is redefining the “farm-to-pint”, movement. “Expect a fresh take on traditional styles creatively brewed using unique ingredients that are grown on their very own farmland,” said Hermes. This will be the first time Scratch’s beers will be commercially available outside downstate Ava.Take note while they’re here – we expect you’ll soon be hearing a lot about them.

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Rolling Meadows Brewery (Cantrall, IL):

When Chris Trudeau came to town last year and introduced his Abe’s Ale, Lincoln Lager and Springfield Wheat, brewed on their family farm outside of Springfield, they lived up to the high expectations set by this self-distributing capital city brewery.

This year, Rolling Meadows returns in the midst of a stretch where they released a barrel-aged version of Abe’s Ale, won a Good Food Award and have started sprinkling their beers around Chicago. This time around, Rolling Meadows will treat Chicagoans to popular downstate seasonal as well as a South of 80 favorite.

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Urban Chestnut (St. Louis, MO):

Since opening in 2010, Urban Chestnut’s brews have practically taken over St. Louis. This brewery’s beers have proven so popular they recently announced plans to expand their capacity; soon they’ll be able to exceed even the production levels of St. Louis’ flagship current reigning craft brewer, Schlafly.

Currently ranked as an “Exceptional” brewery by BeerAdvocate and praised as one of “The Best Beers of the Future” by Esquire Magazine, this will be Urban Chestnut’s very first foray into Chicago.

Destihl (Bloomington, IL):Destihllogo

Destihl, a hallmark brewpub of central Illinois, gained national attention at the 2011 Great American Beer Fest. The then, little-known brewpub based in downstate Normal brought along six of its signature sour beers which drew huge crowds and created a coast-to-coast buzz. Those of us who live in Illinois know about Destihl’s remarkable sours, the creation of CEO and Brewmaster Matt Potts, which is why we’re pleased to announce Destihl as a late-addition to the South of 80 2.0 lineup.

Many of you have likely encountered Destihl at beer fests across the state, but this will be the first to time – ever in Illinois – that Destihl’s beers will be on tap, at a bar, that isn’t one of Destihl’s brewpubs. No tiny three ounce samples here, unless you want a flight. You’ll be able to get full pours of Destihl’s beers at South of 80 2.0.

Specific draft lists for each brewery will follow as we grow closer to the event.

The Green Lady opened in 2011 under the direction of Melani Domingues, former manager of one of New York City’s best craft beer bars, the Ginger Man. Inspired by the Scottish spirit that’s both protector and demon (depending on your perspective), TGL’s draft list is always among the best in the city featuring unique beers from around the midwest and beyond.

GuysDrinkingBeer.com started in 2010 as a way for three friends to write about the beer they loved drinking, and since then has become a noted source for beer reviews, brewery news and advocacy for the issues in Chicago’s craft beer scene that they believe in. Since their start three years ago, they’ve earned praise from Chicago Magazine, the Huffington Post, Chicagoist.com and just last month the site was recognized by Saveur Magazine as one of the country’s best beer or wine blogs.

For more information, contact:

Ryan Hermes
Creator and Editor, GuysDrinkingBeer.com
ryan@guysdrinkingbeer.com

Karl Klockars
Co-Creator and Social Media Manager, GuysDrinkingBeer.com
773-769-7139
karl@guysdrinkingbeer.com

Melani Domingues
Owner, The Green Lady
773-525-5571
thegreenladychicago@gmail.com

The Year in Beer – Chicago and Beyond, 2012

Posted on by under Beer News

Now that 2012 is coming to a close, we thought we’d go back and poke through the archives and the year of news to break down exactly what happened in one of the most crazy, busy, insane, explosive, expansive, interesting years in Chicago brewing history.

January 1, 2012: Happy new year, y’all! Hopefully something interesting will happen in the world of Chicago beer this year…

January 3: Hot on the heels of the opening of Barrelhouse Flat, we waste zero time declaring Lincoln Avenue as Chicago’s best drinking street, and we stand by that claim.

January 24: Slumbrew officially debuts in Chicago. We liked their porter.

20120128-112009.jpgJanuary 30: Ryan presents a talk to the Associated Beer Distributors of Illinois, and tells them why craft beer is so awesome. (Okay, it’s more expansive than just that, but just go read the post.)

February 15: Via the A.V. Club, we get our first look at Goose Island’s 312 cans, which were released just weeks later in early March.

March 6: Pipeworks Brewing officially releases their first beers, Ninja Vs. Unicorn and End of Days. Josh Noel at the Tribune said they debuted “to the drinker’s equivalent of a standing ovation,” while when we tried the End of Days we called it “portrait art versus Jackson Pollack. It’s Rush’s 2112 versus the Misfits.”

March 26: Lakeview gets a little more interesting when Eater announces that Dryhop Bistro & Microbrewery is planning to open up on Broadway in a former “adult novelty” store. Collaborations between the Dryhop guys and other Chicago brewers follow throughout 2012.

March 22: Over in Indiana, the “Three Floyds” Amendment is signed into law.

April 1: Happy birthday to us! We turn two, and we wonder why we decided to pick April Fools Day as a birthday knowing full well that the internet goes all silly every year on this date.

April 2: This is no joke: Ravenswood’s Argyle Brewing announces that they’re now Begyle Brewing. More on them later.

April 10: In what has to be the biggest beer news of the year, Tony McGee announces via Twitter that he’s planning a massive 250-bbl brewhouse for his Lagunitas Brewing, to open in Chicago in late 2013.

April 12: Pretty much cementing that cider was going to be the big new thing, Greg Hall debuts his Red Streak at an event at the Hideout.

April 16: New Chicago Beer (who changed their name from New Chicago Brewing in October 2011) announces that they’re leaving The Plant, the vertical zero-waste farm that had been much of the focal point of their startup. They’ve been barely heard from since.

April 26: The Chicago Tribune posts a feature about Three Floyds, in which they mention that Nick Floyd is scouting spots for a Chicago-based brewpub. Unsurprisingly, Chicago beer fans freak the eff out immediately.

April 27: We announce our “South of 80″ event at The Green Lady, followed by the southof80tap list announcement a couple of weeks later.

May 3: Alderman Amaya Pawar sends out what remains the most awesome beer-related tweet from a Chicago politician.

May 17: Chicago Craft Beer Week kicks off with Beer Under Glass at the Garfield Park Conservatory. Many hangovers ensue.

May 19: They started pouring at events for Chicago Craft Beer Week a couple of days earlier, but since their taproom officially opened on this date, we’ll call this the “official” start date for Solemn Oath in Naperville, one of our favorite new breweries to emerge onto the scene this year (based on names of beers alone).

June 7: The Illinois Liquor Control Commission cites Anheuser-Busch for violating the Illinois Liquor Control Act. Lawyers, suit up.

June 19: Fountainhead finally opens their rooftop patio, with one of the most extensive canned beer menus in the nation. We visited and reported back, saying ”[we] can’t think of a better place to sit outside and drink a craft beer;” Stockyard Chicago dug it as well.’

June 22: Atlas Brewing Company opens their doors.

July 2: Four words: Big Hurt Beer, reviewed.

July 6: Had you ever heard of One Trick Pony brewing south of Chicago before this date? Well, we had, but you probably didn’t until we posted this tale of FOIA-ing, ILCC tracking, and generally tracking down all the info about this under-the-radar brewer.

SPOTTED SADDLEAugust 2: Hopothesis Brewing Company officially debuts at the Beer Bistro, pouring their Hopothesis IPA.

August 8: Oskar Blues enters Chicago with a flurry of events not seen since Stone started pouring in Chicago.

August 10: Here’s something pretty much no one expected: Goose Island’s John J. Hall heads to the South Side to take over as Brewmaster of 5 Rabbit.

August 12: The Detroit Free Press announces that Michigan’s apple crop was virtually wiped out this year; terrible news for cider producers. We check in a day later with Paul at Vander Mill Cider to get his take.

August 18: The Oak Park Micro Brew & Food Review takes place, which is also the first official event for Begyle Brewing. We preview the event here.

August 24: Anheuser-Busch announces that they’re taking Goose Island national, making them one of the few craft brands available coast to coast. On the same day, Ryan sits down with Ike Orkutt of Hopothesis to talk about their new brew, as well as that “7% sessionable beer” comment that a number of people seemed to take issue with.

hopothesisipaAugust 28: Speaking of Begyle, they ride a wave of press about their opening, their Kickstarter campaign and their Community Brewery Subscription model that includes a nice profile on Center Square Journal, an interview on Aleheads, oh – and with us, too.

September 4: Fall Beer Freedom Day arrives. The city rejoices, opening harvest ales, pumpkin beers and Oktoberfests en masse.

September 27: A suburban state lawmaker introduces a bill in the IL House to bring homebrew back to beer festivals in the state.

October 1: Central Illinois gets to experience the greatness of Great Lakes Brewing Company, as they expand their distribution network out from greater Chicagoland. On the same day, news breaks that Dogfish Head and Louis Glunz distribution are going to fight it out in court.

October 15: Another major west-coast brewer announces plans to come to Chicago on this date, this time it’s Deschutes. Their beloved Black Butte Porter, among others, will be released in early January. On the same day, breweries in Illinois cart home nearly a dozen medals from the Great American Beer Festival.

October 19: On the heels of our South of 80 event, Six Row Brewing out of St. Louis announces it’s coming to Chicago.

October 29: Binnys quietly announces that Kona Brewing would be coming to Chicago and Chipotle not-so-quietly announces they’ll be carrying 5 Rabbit’s beers at their Chicago-area restaurants.

October 31: Happy Halloween! The ILCC says that Anheuser-Busch can keep their 30% stake in City Beverage. Other distributors? Not super happy with that decision.

November 2: Half Acre opens their tap room, making Lincoln Avenue and North Center even more of an awesome place to drink beer. (Remember when we said Lincoln Avenue was the best drinking street in Chicago? This cements it). We also go all Nostradamus on the City Beverage vote.

November 5: We get the skinny on downstate brewpub Destihl’s plans for a production brewery.

November 7: Chicago based Revolution Brewing inks its first distribution deal outside of Illinois.

November 12: Brewery Vivant debuts in Chicago. Their “Triomphe” remains one of the best Belgian Pale Ales we’ve had.

November 16: Just 3 months after Greg Hall splits to brew at 5 Rabbit, John Hall steps down as CEO of Goose Island.

November 21: fierisbeers2Following the Schadenfreude of the New York Times review, how could we not go to Guy Fieri’s Times Square restaurant and drink their beer?

November 23: Our friends at 4 Paws Brewing announce they’ve nailed down a space for their production brewery on N. Wolcott, just a hop-skip-jump from Metropolitan Brewing on Ravenswood. With that squared away, they announce their goal is to be pouring at Chicago’s Craft Beer Week 2013.

November 27: Completing the “people leaving Goose Island” trifecta, the Tribune breaks the story that John Laffler is departing Goose to partner with former Two Brothers brewer Dave Bleitner on their new project, Off Color Brewing. They promise “very bizarre beer no one has heard of or knows about” which immediately appeals directly to us. These guys shot to the top of the Breweries to Watch List 2013 (which doesn’t exist, but if it did, they’d be up there).

December 5: Spiteful Brewing’s first offering, GFY Stout, hits shelves around Chicago. (Our review can be found here.)

December 12: The “Best Beer In The World” hits shelves for a hot second or two; we call it the #Westypocalpse and grab a 6′er for ourselves as well. Good luck with the roof, you crazy brewin’ monks, you.

December 17: The end of the year doesn’t mean that news can’t be made. Today it was announced that the city’s biggest independent craft beer distributor, Windy City, with dozens of accounts with top name craft beer makers, has sold itself to Reyes Beverage, where it will be sibling to Chicago Beverage Systems.

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