Abv Chicago Craft Beer Podcast

For too long we’ve neglected beers from the Eastern seaboard, so we’re dedicating this episode to The Bay State. We sample beers from three Massachusetts breweries, and everything is coming up great (like the mid-aughts Toronto music scene, according to Craig). We pitch a few beer concepts and a show idea for the real “Uppers and Downers,” then Craig shares about how German bratwurst changed his life. Oh the burning!   Craig 1. Tree House Brewing Haze (DIPA) 2. Trillium Brewing Night and Day (Imperial Stout with cold brewed coffee) 3. Tree House Brewing Lights Out (APA) 4. Night Shift Brewing Cape Codder Weisse (Berliner Weisse with cranberries and orange zest) 5. Trillium Brewing Vicinity (DIPA) 6. Night Shift Brewing Mainer Weisse (Berliner Weisse with blueberries and cinnamon sticks)   Ryan 1. Tree House Brewing Haze (DIPA) 2. Trillium Brewing Night and Day (Imperial Stout with cold brewed coffee) 3. Tree House Brewing Lights Out (APA) 4. Trillium Brewing Vicinity (DIPA) 5. Night Shift Brewing Mainer Weis

Chocolate is the subject of Middle Brow Beer Co.’s latest homebrew contest, and for some reason, they let us help pick a winner. We’re joined by Nick and Bryan from Middle Brow, and we taste and talk about five of the best beers out of the 23 submitted by local homebrewers. While deciding on which beer will be commercially brewed, we talk oak spirals, MTV, vanilla beans, Beechwood-aging, wax, post-contest success stories, and This Year’s Prop. Plus, the Middle Brow guys share some details on some upcoming releases with Dark Matter, Jimmy Whispers, and much more. Oh, and lots of nut jokes.   Homebrews sampled include:   Pecan Brown Ale with cocoa nibs Chocolate Rye Saison Chocolate Hazelnut Porter Imperial Oatmeal Stout with coffee, hazelnuts, and vanilla bean Imperial Oatmeal Stout with cinnamon, vanilla, and cacao nibs, aged on bourbon oak spirals

It’s Mardi Gras time, and we’re tasting a carnival of Voodoo Brewery beers. We review six (plus one) beers from the Meadville, Pennsylvania brewery, and we end up having one of our best drinking experiences ever recorded. In this episode, you’ll also hear about Craig’s trip to Voodoo, why Ryan might be leaving the podcast, and our virulent support of the Anti-Waxer movement. Plus, a trio of barrel-aged beers brings about some of the more memorable - and lascivious - reactions we’ve had in a while. For us, every day is Fat Tuesday!   Mutual Rankings! 1. Pappy Van Winkle Black Magick 2. Buffalo Trace Black Magick 3. Laird’s Apple Brandy Black Magick 4. Voodoo Love Child 5. Big Black Voodoo Daddy 6. Wynona’s Big Brown Ale

Version:1.0 StartHTML:0000000105 EndHTML:0000006128 StartFragment:0000002472 EndFragment:0000006092 To celebrate the birth of his daughter, Ryan got to assemble his show his way, and he did a hell of a job. Six local beers are reviewed, and all are pretty great. Both men drink for the first time in a while, so expect to hear the following: Ryan shares his love for Waka Flocka Flame’s cough drop commercials; Craig forgets about oatmeal and words in general; BCBS is Kanye, and we realize that we are jumping the shark. Also, Ryan learns how to curse again after a few weeks off, and Craig shares a story about how he was rejected by a rising star brewer. Sadly, no Derk Lerd.     Craig   1. Goose Island Bourbon County Stout (2009)   2. (tie) Pipeworks Crimson Snapper and Arcade Winter Slayer   4. Off Color Dino S’mores   5. Une Année/DryHop The Devil’s Reign   6. 18th Street Rise of the Phoenix     Ryan   1. Pipeworks Crimson Snapper   2. Goose Island Bourbon County Stout (2009)   3. 18th Street Rise of the P

Version:1.0 StartHTML:0000000105 EndHTML:0000006555 StartFragment:0000002472 EndFragment:0000006519 We finally release this much-ballyhooed old episode, and it’s one for the books. Back in the Spring of 2014, we drank seven Dark Horse special release beers, and things did not go well. Sometimes the expectations we have for certain episodes do not match the outcome. And in this one, what starts as steadily-growing disappointment ends in a profane crescendo of anger-filled rankings. We do have a hell of a time along the way, and Ryan finally stumps Craig in a game: “Real Dark Horse Beer Name or Something I Just Made Up.” Bask in our suffering!     Craig   1. Bourbon Barrel Plead the 5th (2013)   2. Sarsparilla 666 Bourbon Barrel Root Beer Stout   3. Bourbon Barrel Plead the 5th (2012)   4. Brandy Barrel-Aged 4 Elf   5. Louie’s Long Polymer John Donut Ale   6. Beer is Dark XIII Anniversary Ale   7. Bourbon Barrel 3 Pairs of Legs     Ryan   1. Bourbon Barrel Plead the 5th (2013)   2. Louie’s Long Polymer Jo

It’s no secret that we love Missouri breweries, and we’re delighted to try four beers from 2nd Shift Brewing. In this short show we manage to cram in our usual beer reviews, a thorough discussion of yellow candy, a few songs from Craig, and a sneaking suspicion that we have been drugged. This one ends with a tingle!   Ryan 1. Liquid Spiritual Delight 2. Art of Neurosis 3. Albino Pygmy Puma 4. Mullineaux   Craig 1. Liquid Spiritual Delight 2. Art of Neurosis 3. Mullineaux 4. Albino Pygmy Puma

Version:1.0 StartHTML:0000000105 EndHTML:0000005622 StartFragment:0000002470 EndFragment:0000005586 We’re clearing out Craig’s cellar on this episode by drinking the first five beers Revolution Brewing released under their Deep Wood series. We learn valuable lessons about aging barrel-aged beers, distinguishing dark fruits, and drinking five high-ABV beers before attempting to make sense of rankings. Craig pulls back the curtain on some of our recording secrets, and Ryan does stuff with prunes. This episode is not for suckers, fools, or ho-hum emcees.     Ryan   1. Very Mad Cow (2012)   2. 3rd Year Beer   3. Straight Jacket (2012)   4. Bean Gene (2013)   5. Mean Gene (2013)     Craig   1. Very Mad Cow (2012)   2. Straight Jacket (2012)   3. Bean Gene (2013)   4. 3rd Year Beer 5. Mean Gene (2013)

Now that we’re a year old, we can finally drink like grown-ups, while still behaving like children. So we attempt to class up the joint by drinking six fancy beers from Cantillon and inviting Ken Getty to join us. Listen in as Craig handles some actual research while trying not to fumble his lambic basket (literally and figuratively). Ken explains why Cantillon’s brewing methods are so hard to reproduce, and why these fruited lambics are so important to drink fresh. Ryan mostly gets heartburn. Oh, and you might not want to listen if the term “Fou’ Foune” offends you. Happy birthday to us! Ryan 1.   Fou’ Foune 2.   Lou Pepe Kriek 3.   Iris 4.   Lou Pepe Framboise 5.   Lou Pepe Gueuze 6.   Cuvée St-Gilloise Craig 1.   Fou’ Foune 2.   Lou Pepe Gueuze 3.   Lou Pepe Kriek 4.   Cuvée St-Gilloise 5.   Iris 6.   Lou Pepe Framboise Ken 1.   Fou’ Foune 2.   Lou Pepe Gueuze 3.   Iris 4.   Cuvée St-Gilloise 5.   Lou Pepe Kriek 6.   Lou Pepe Framboise  

For this milestone episode, we revisit the inimitable Hill Farmstead by drinking and reviewing seven more beers. We reminisce on some of our favorite beers and episodes from the first 49 and reach an unprecedented level of, uh, professionalism by the end of the show. The beer is as good as the content is ribald. Here’s to another 50 episodes of craft beer irreverence!   Ryan 1. Arthur 2. Damon (Bourbon Barrel Aged) 3. Damon (Port Barrel Aged) 4. Beyond Good and Evil 5. Vera Mae 6. Jimmy 7. Everett   Craig 1. Arthur 2. Damon (Bourbon Barrel Aged) 3. Beyond Good and Evil 4. Vera Mae 5. Damon (Port Barrel Aged) 6. Jimmy 7. Everett

Winter is awful, and usually, so are winter seasonal beers. So we’re surprised to have some great ones on this episode with a few standout locals. We share our New Year’s resolutions and then take a lot of strange diversions along the way. There’s also an announcement of an exciting home brew contest with Middle Brow. Then, Ryan eschews traditional “research” by “making stuff up” and Craig admits he doesn’t know smells from flavors. Grab a beer, turn us on, and join us on our polar bear rug by the fire. (Clothing optional.)   Ryan 1. Upland Bourbon Barrel Warmer 2. Anchor Winter Wheat 3. Middle Brow A Hundred Miles Off    4. Slapshot White IPA 5. Anderson Valley Winter Solstice 6. Bell’s Winter White Ale   Craig 1. Slapshot White IPA 2. Anchor Winter Wheat 3. Upland Bourbon Barrel Warmer 4. Middle Brow A Hundred Miles Ooff 5. Anderson Valley Winter Solstice 6. Bell’s Winter White Ale

As a gift to you, we brought back almost all of our guests from the first year for a holiday party recording. But since Ryan was absent, Craig took his one mic and brought people together to review some beers. In this episode, we sit down to share some of the audio from the party while tasting some new local stouts. There will be beer reviews and drunken talk of broken Prius locks, slash fiction, Kermit impressions, and Craig’s hatred of nature. The guest list includes Chris Betts (Transient Artisan Ales), Nick Burica (Middle Brow Beer Co.), Marie Cummins (Down the Hatch), David Sullivan (Supple Knuckles Massage Parlor), Matt LaFleur (LaFleur Illustration), Dennis Lee (ThePizzle), Kim Leshinski (Hail to the Ale), and Ken Getty (CHAOS Brew Club).   Beers Had By Craig and Ryan:   Une Annee Feats of ******** Half Acre Big Hugs (2014)   Holiday Party Beers:   Transient Whiskey Barrel Presque Mystic Chardonnary Barrel Fermented Saison de Garde Cran Bu de Garde Kiwi Bu St. Bernardus Christmas Ale Pipeworks Santa

We unbox five Firestone Walker anniversary ales and try to dissect these complex barrel-aged beer blends through our arbitrary reviews. We also experiment with our own beer blends and feel the effects of these potent potables before we even hit our third pour. Thus, at some point, we make it our mission to raise awareness of...something I’d rather not type (or Google image search). Prick up your ears! Beer Rankings (with personal blend percentages) Ryan 5. XVI (10%) 4. XVII (15%) 3. 14 (20%) 2. XV (20%) 1. XVIII (35%) Craig 5. XVI (5%) 4. XVII (15%) 3. XV (20%) 2. 14 (25%) 1. XVIII (35%)  

In this episode, we discuss the fine art of craft beer labels with artist and homebrewer Matt LaFleur. We each bring a few beers to taste based on their label art, and Matt shares the stories behind the labels he has created for Arcade, Transient, and Middle Brow. We hit other topics like marketing, the overlap of art and craft beer, and homebrewing as an excuse to make beer labels.  Our tastes in artwork and beer vary wildly, but by the end Craig gets mad about art and announces that he’s a lumbersexual. Just like always.   (Beer Rankings) Craig 6. Arcade William Wallace Wrestle Fest 5. Solemn Oath Ravaged By Vikings 4. Pipeworks Cherry Truffle Abduction 3. Firestone Walker/Three Floyds Ol’ Leghorn 2. Off Color Le Predateur 1. Transient Wayward   Ryan 6. Solemn Oath Ravaged By Vikings 5. Firestone Walker/Three Floyds Ol’ Leghorn 4. Arcade William Wallace Wrestle Fest 3. Pipeworks Cherry Truffle Abduction 2. Off Color Le Predateur 1. Transient Wayward   Matt 6. Arcade William Wallace Wrestle Fest 5. Pipeworks

It’s been a long, stupid week in craft beer thanks to Bourbon County madness, so we wanted to find some substitutes to feed those cravings on a budget and a whim. We review five bourbon barrel-aged beers that are pretty easy to find. It mostly doesn’t work out well. We talk about other barrel-aged beers that regularly inhabit shelves and whether or not length of aging makes a difference. Then the belligerence begins and we use bizarre aroma descriptors, discuss “Battletoads” erotica, and recklessly bash a few breweries in the process. There’s no substitute for our hilarity! Sorry. Ryan 1. Hoppin’ Frog Barrel-Aged D.O.R.I.S. 2. New Holland Dragon’s Milk 3. FiftyFifty Eclipse Four Roses 2013 4. Central Waters Headless Heron 5. Abita Bourbon Street Imperial Stout Craig 1. Hoppin’ Frog Barrel-Aged D.O.R.I.S. 2. FiftyFifty Eclipse Four Roses 2013 3. New Holland Dragon’s Milk 4. Central Waters Headless Heron 5. Abita Bourbon Street Imperial Stout

Episode 44 - Bourbon County 2014   With another Black Friday approaching, we sat down to sample most of this year’s Bourbon County lineup, and things get soulful. If you’re looking for divisive opinions or a contrarian stance on the corporate-owned hype machine that is Bourbon County, then you’ll be disappointed. These beers are delicious. And Goose Island gave them to us for free. We share tales of Black Fridays past, and we divert briefly to talk barrel-aging temperatures, autobiographies, the Sad Reality of Baudoinia Fudgy, and Craig’s ideas on how to improve the BCBS label. There’s also five minutes of Brett Porter talking about this year’s Bourbon County Coffee variant, since Goose Island forgot to send us that beer. If loving Bourbon County is wrong, then I don’t wanna be right.   Craig 1. Proprietor’s Bourbon County 2. Bourbon County Vanilla Rye 3. Bourbon County Brand Barleywine 4. Bourbon County Brand Stout   Ryan 1. Proprietor’s Bourbon County 2. Bourbon County Vanilla Rye 3. Bourbon County Brand St

On the day after FoBAB, we muster up the strength to recap our night of sampling barrel-aged beers at one of the country’s premier beer events. We also load up on electrolytes and review some common hangover remedies. We’ll share some of the positives and negatives about the new venue and discuss our favorite beers of the night, including beers from Off Color, Temperance, Upland, Fremont, Goose Island, and more. Not only do you get to relive our FoBAB, but you’ll hear Ryan’s virgin coconut water experience, Craig’s surprising enthusiasm for Pedialyte, and the flavor nightmare that is V8 Original. Doctor, ain’t there nothing I can take?   Craig 1. Pedialyte Mixed Fruit 2. Gatorade Lemon Lime 3. Nice! Spring Water 4. Vita Coco Coconut Water 5. V8 Original   Ryan 1. Pedialyte Mixed Fruit 2. Nice! Spring Water 3. Gatorade Lemon Lime 4. Vita Coco Coconut Water 5. V8 Original    

Version:1.0 StartHTML:0000000105 EndHTML:0000007416 StartFragment:0000002693 EndFragment:0000007380 Pipeworks has rolled out more barrel-aged beers, and we invite general public nuisance Dennis Lee to drink them with us. In addition to reviewing the beers, we let Dennis talk about his blog, depression food, black truffles, and the term “foodie.” There’s also a cogent discussion of how experimentation could be impacting Pipeworks brand loyalty and the general overvaluation of barrel-aged beers. Then Dennis sings as Korean Lorde after sous-viding us a poached egg. This is real life.     Craig   1. As You Wish   2. Murderous   3. Over the Line   4. The Coqui   5. The Delicatessen     Ryan   1. Murderous   2. As You Wish   3. The Coqui   4. Over the Line   5. The Delicatessen     Dannis Ree   1. As You Wish   2. Murderous   3. Over the Line   4. The Coqui   5. The Delicatessen  

Version:1.0 StartHTML:0000000105 EndHTML:0000006666 StartFragment:0000002470 EndFragment:0000006630 This compilation of appreciation for Russian River’s wild, sour, and funky “-tion” beers ends in much exultation. We drink eight different beers, many aged in wine barrels, and experience much elation, with some acidification. We share some listener feedback, Ryan gives tips for vegetarian craft beer drinkers, and Craig plays a few rounds of “Name That Russian!™” What a country!     Craig   1. Beatification   2. Framboise for a Cure (2013)   3. Sanctification   4. Supplication   5. Consecration   6. Temptation   7. Damnation   8. Redemption     Ryan   1. Beatification   2. Framboise for a Cure (2013)   3. Consecration   4. Sanctification   5. Supplication   6. Temptation   7. Damnation   8. Redemption  

Version:1.0 StartHTML:0000000105 EndHTML:0000004852 StartFragment:0000002471 EndFragment:0000004816 The brewers at the Goose Island Clybourn brewpub embrace experimentation, and they take on their riskiest one yet when they invite Ryan and Craig into the brewhouse to record. Brewmaster Nick Barron and brewers Jacob Sembrano and Jon Naghski share five of their incredible one-off beers and the inspiration, experimentation, and technique that went into each of them. They’ll also discuss their farmer’s market series, upcoming releases and FOBAB goodies, the world’s most obscure Simpsons reference (seriously), and what it’s like to make bourbon barrel-aged beers in the location where it all began. Pull up a stool, and remember to tip your bartender.     Beers Enjoyed and Discussed:     Pineapple Brettanomite   Gorman’s Biere de Garde   Vainglorious   Cran Bruin   Grimm Vicar  

Founders Brewing Company has been influencing the way Midwesterners drink for almost two decades, so we show our appreciation by drinking their beers to excess. We review eight diverse 12-ounce offerings from the Grand Rapids brewery, only pausing briefly to play a little Founding Fathers trivia. Well, actually, the beers are so good that we get obscenely inebriated and talk about Craig’s DJ name, fond Breakfast Stout memories, getting Hop Fades™ for FoBAB, and who’d win in a fight between us. It’s that kind of show, folks!   Ryan 1. Backwoods Bastard 2. Breakfast Stout 3. Imperial Stout 4. Mosaic Promise 5. Dark Penance 6. Devil Dancer (2012) 7. KBS 8. Harvest Ale   Craig 1. Breakfast Stout 2. Dark Penance 3. Imperial Stout 4. KBS 5. Backwoods Bastard 6. Devil Dancer (2012) 7. Mosaic Promise 8. Harvest Ale