ABV Chicago Craft Beer Podcast
536 episodes - English - Latest episode: 20 days ago - ★★★★★ - 87 ratingsA Chicago-based craft beer podcast with beer and events reviews. Visit our website at www.abvchicago.com!
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Episodes
Episode 529 - Back to the Barrel 5
March 27, 2024 12:30 - 1 hour - 65 MBJust as the season can’t decide if it’s going to get warm or stay cold, we choose to get nice and toasty with four barrel-aged stouts we’ve gathered over the past few months from local sources. The four beers on this show ascend in adjuncts, and Craig and Ryan don’t see eye-to-eye on the rankings at all. Also, we explore different foodstuff cafe possibilities; we try not to promote *clown horn*; and we practice the ancient art of the Soul Burp. Beers Reviewed Central Waters Brewing Comp...
Episode 528 - Heavy Riff Brewing
March 20, 2024 12:54 - 1 hour - 85.1 MBSt. Louis’ Heavy Riff Brewing has built a strong local following since 2013, and their mix of experimental styles, barrel-aged beers, and rock-n-roll sensibility has started to make its way up the state of Illinois. Craig talks with co-owner Rick Hagen about the past and future of the brewery before we try through a lineup of five standout beers. Also, Ryan takes us down the Robin Williams Quotes Facebook page rabbit hole, Craig is getting spoiled by all the lactose, and we agree that there’...
Episode 527 - Local West Coast DIPAs
March 13, 2024 12:30 - 1 hour - 74.4 MBA decade-and-a-half ago, West Coast DIPAs were changing the craft beer curious into full-on obsessives, and breweries were in an IBU arms race to melt faces with hop bitterness. Recently, now that some of the haze has settled, breweries are returning to the aggressive style again - with some bringing newer juicy hop varietals to the mix, while others attempt to throw it back to the classics. For this episode, we enthusiastically drink through five locally made West Coast Double IPAs and can’...
Episode 526 - Asheville
March 06, 2024 13:30 - 1 hour - 69.3 MBThe city of Asheville may not even be in the top ten most-populated cities in North Carolina, but it might be the state’s capital for breweries. Thanks to the generosity of listeners Benji and Suzanne, we drink five beers from Asheville (and the surrounding area) that represent a wide amount of styles - and Craig is absolutely giddy about a secret Chicagoland connection to one. Also, Craig has found a secret bag that is oddly fortuitous; Ryan’s taking a week off to put on bread weight; and w...
Episode 525 - Baltic Local
February 28, 2024 15:37 - 1 hour - 65.3 MBThe Baltic Porter is making some more regular appearances in breweries’ seasonal lineups, so we find five local examples of the robust lager style to sample for this episode. We also ponder the benefits and drawbacks of barrel-aging this particular style, throw around the word “creamy” a lot, and admit we don’t always want the slow pour. Plus, Craig becomes Greg, Ryan keeps trolling the Young Sheldon podcast, and one brewery has made us almost entirely forget about a ska band. Beers Re...
Episode 524 - San Diego
February 21, 2024 13:30 - 1 hour - 61.8 MBIt’s been over a decade since Craig and Ryan have been out to beautiful San Diego, and thanks to listener Dave Adams, the podcast gets a lovely flavor vacation with beers from five of the city’s breweries. The lineup is stylistically diverse, the rankings deviate in the middle, and at least one beer surprises at every step. Also, there’s a lukewarm take on POGs from our youth; one brewer profile is seemingly inviting potential suitors; hop kief gets its introduction; and the path from Flavor...
Episode 523 - Stout Me Up
February 14, 2024 13:30 - 1 hour - 59.5 MBSometimes you want a stout that’s not sweet, adjunct-free, and stripped down to just the base style interpretation, and we were so excited to find five readily-available local examples. (No barrels, coconuts, vanilla beans, or cacao nibs were harmed in the making of this episode.) In addition to our straight stout sippin’, we marvel at Dog Surfing Championships, discover that The Alley is still around, and speculate that one brewery must’ve put a chip in Ryan’s brain. Beers Reviewed Roar...
Episode 522 - Deep Wood: On Heavenly Jacket
February 07, 2024 13:30 - 1 hour - 76.2 MBDonning our heavenly jackets for this one, we drink the final set of Revolution’s Deep Wood lineup for the 2023-2024 season. Three ‘wines and a stout make up this unsurprisingly spectacular four pack, and even through all of our nit-picking we can’t deny who is making the best barrel-aged beers in the city and state. Plus, we’re doing our part to stop the TV game show idea shortage; Craig shares his Deep Wood release party recaps (with some glaring consequences); and Ryan gets to test out hi...
Episode 521 - The SC Show
January 31, 2024 13:30 - 1 hour - 64.2 MBOur 34th state show is just as sweet as it is sour, as we tackle five beers from South Carolina courtesy of listeners Benji & Suzanne. Even though it’s a bit heavy on the tart beers, we learn about five breweries that represent a pretty good cross section of the South Carolina brewing scene. Also, Craig needs to bail someone out of the hellscape that is a community Facebook group, Ryan has stern words of warning about ranch delivery methods, and we’re attempting to flex our marketing muscles...
Episode 520 - 10 Beers for 10 Years
January 24, 2024 13:30 - 1 hour - 95.4 MBEver since January 22nd of 2014, the ABV Chicago podcast has released a new episode every single week - and nobody could be more stunned about this fact than us. To commemorate a decade of arbitrary beer reviews, brewer interviews, and tipsy shenanigans, we open ten beers from ten breweries that all also got their start in 2014. The twist is that Craig and Ryan both present their five beers to the other as a blind tasting, forcing some surprising brewery, style, and “secret theme” guesses. A...
Episode 519 - Hop Butcher: Taproom Edition
January 17, 2024 13:30 - 2 hours - 105 MBIt’s been almost three years since the announcement that Hop Butcher for the World would be taking over the original Half Acre brewery space, and it’s been a year since the rebranded taproom opened. So we take time to sit down with co-founder and co-owner Jude La Rose for a long chat about the present and future of his brewery that was recently named Craft Beer & Brewing magazine’s top Small Regional brewery in the country. We dive into formulating recipes, developing a lager program, releas...
Episode 518 - Cereal Beers
January 10, 2024 13:30 - 1 hour - 61.8 MBYou don’t turn to us for advice on a balanced breakfast, but we’re happy to spoon up five cereal-inspired beers so good that even Mikey likes it. Through clever use of ingredients (or just throwing the cereal right in the beer), these beers really test the nostalgia influence of sitting a foot from the TV in our PJs while watching Captain N: The Game Master. Also, we consider all the different ways to attack the mat, share our own cereal biases, establish our independence through Cocoa Puffs...
Episode 517 - Brandy, You’re A Fine Barrel
January 03, 2024 13:30 - 1 hour - 66.4 MBWe fetch another round of barrel-aged beers for this episode, but with a twist: all four beers are aged in different kinds of brandy barrels. We explore the world of sweet brandy barrels and how they work on different styles, and we are totally surprised by our takeaways. Also, we talk mixed drinks, New Year sugar fears, John Entwistle, cooked malt, surprising personal revelations, and Jolly Rancher complaints. (Such a fine barrel.) Beers Reviewed Third Space Brewing - Wisconsinator (Dop...
Episode 516 - Bourbon County 2023
December 27, 2023 13:30 - 1 hour - 67.3 MBRecorded on Black Friday (and previously released a month ago for our Patreon subscribers), this episode is our return to the Bourbon County lineup - after managing to get ourselves uninvited from the Goose Island media tastings. Luckily, we have our own beer sherpa in Beer on the Wall owner Ryan Tracy as he joins us to sip through all six beers in the back of his Elmhurst tasting room. Also, we measure the tasting against seeing the third Trolls movie in theaters, make plans to eat some ric...
Episode 515 - WeldWerks Medianoches
December 20, 2023 13:30 - 1 hour - 82.2 MBIn what is likely our most decadent Barrel-Aged December™ episode yet, we sample four enormous stouts from WeldWerks’ Medianoche series that are as complex as they are thick (or thicc, as the kids say). Co-founder Neil Fisher gave us some mic time back during GABF that is shared here, and he helps us understand how his Greeley, Colorado brewery’s signature stout series differs from others. Also, Craig gets some much-needed Cronch validation, Ryan’s taking a trip down Peanut Butter Memory Lan...
Episode 514 - Marked For Deth
December 13, 2023 13:30 - 1 hour - 73 MBThere’s no escaping Deth, so we gather up four of the barrel-aged Revolution stouts from this year’s Deep Wood lineup and drink with reckless abandon. It’s no shocker that Revolution is still running the best barrel program in the city, but even with the bar raised as high as it is, the beers on the show clear it with ease. Even one beer challenges our “beer of the year” title (in a crowded year of stellar Rev beers). Also, we talk about odd movie theater experiences, cream some bean salad, ...
Episode 513 - Metropolitan Forever
December 06, 2023 13:30 - 1 hour - 69.9 MBFor over 15 years, Metropolitan blessed this great city with high quality lagers and traditional German styles. They ushered in a second wave of Chicago craft brewing back when there were next to no options available. It’s safe to say that without Metropolitan, the Chicago craft beer scene wouldn’t have grown the way it did. Now Chicago will have to move on without Metro, who will be closing their doors for good on December 17th. We take this episode as an opportunity to appreciate their exc...
Episode 512 - FoBAB Winners 2023
November 29, 2023 13:30 - 1 hour - 86 MBEarlier in November, the Illinois Craft Brewers Guild put on the 21st Festival of Wood and Barrel-Aged Beers to recognize some of the breweries making the finest wood-aged beers around. We got our hands on five (out of the eleven) Illinois medal winners - and our first-ever Best of Show beer - to help us audition to become FoBAB judges some year. We share some FoBAB “by the numbers” and recap the awards with a slight angle towards our Fantasy FoBAB league interests. Also, Craig is opening up...
Episode 511 - Chicago Browntown
November 22, 2023 13:30 - 1 hour - 59.1 MBHop on the Brown Line straight to Browntown with us, as we discover a hopefully-growing local resurgence of the brown ale with five examples from Chicagoland breweries on this episode. Adjunct or not, these brown ales all have a unique angle on the style - and most would absolutely kill on cask. We also discuss the worst possible colors for mayonnaise, we consider the best brown for the Thanksgiving table, Ryan shares his true feelings about the apple orchard, and Craig am become Cronch, des...
Episode 510 - Hop Waters
November 15, 2023 13:30 - 1 hour - 55 MBCarbonated water treated with hops is pretty simple in concept, but these five breweries prove that there’s a lot of variation and skill that goes into making these “zero/zero” drinks. And it shows that no matter how well non-alcoholic beers have progressed, some drinkers looking for a dry spell just can’t quit the hops - and now they don’t have to! We get extremely refreshed on this zero alcohol show while discussing many areas of potential for this rising trend. Also, Craig needs some real...
Episode 509 - The DE Show
November 08, 2023 13:30 - 1 hour - 63.5 MBThough it might be one of the smallest states, the brewing scene in Delaware is mighty, and we’re ushering in our 33rd State Show with a lineup of five flavorful beers from five different breweries. Thanks to Ryan Tracy (and family), we’re able to live vicariously through his travelogue while sipping these delectable beers, just missing out on the coastal views and massive plates of seafood. Also, Ryan flies too close to the sun with his back scratcher, Craig’s working on the leg rolls, and ...
Episode 508 - FoBABlin’ 5: Return to FoBABlin’
October 30, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 84.6 MBChicago’s biggest, baddest and most-barreled festival is back in its 21st year, so we’re eager to FoBABble about it for the first time in four years as a lead-up to the competition. We also open four barrel-aged beers from breweries that have been FoBAB staples (and previous medal winners) to lubricate our discussions of new and returning breweries at this year’s fest, our “first pour” picks, festival attendee tips, sleeper breweries not to miss, and Fantasy FoBAB Power Rankings. Also, Ryan ...
Episode 507 - Cruz Blanca Luchadors 2023
October 25, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 87.5 MBThe seven barrel-aged beers that comprise this year’s Luchador lineup feature styles and ingredients we have rarely - or never - seen in the past, and no local “special release” lineup is getting as experimental as this one. Flavor master Jacob Sembrano is at it again, and we’re here to drunkenly rave over the barrel-aged results. There are many true “wow” moments on this one, and at least one bird that tried to ruin it all for everyone. Also, Craig has neighborhood watch concerns about bana...
Episode 506 - Torture Test: Seven Deadly Beers
October 18, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 84.7 MBWe’re indulging in our capital vices for our yearly attempt to destroy each other over bad beers, and this one features some of the most unexpected pours we’ve ever seen. There’s at least one beer here that unexpectedly brings out an extra large dose of wrath for one podcaster, and it’s not even the mystery beer in the box. WHAT’S IN THE BOX?? Also, Craig is investigating some decapitated pigeons, Ryan’s plan backfires, and we both learn to fear the SlenderCan. And make sure you stick it out...
Episode 505 - Lager Heads: Welcome to Chi-Taste-O
October 11, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 61.7 MBChicagoland is pretty gifted in lager-centric breweries, but now that trends have shifted back towards the more drinkable, almost every brewery is featuring more and more lagers. This is an extremely good thing. For this show, we do a blind tasting wherein we match a local lager-focused brewery’s beer against a local “everything” brewery’s beer along style lines and give our unbiased opinions. Our arbitrary reviews won’t prove much, but we do have an opinion on which brewery we think is maki...
Episode 504 - Amberama
October 04, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 58 MBNow somewhat relegated to an occasional fall seasonal from breweries, the Amber style is essential to the history of American craft beer as we know it. So we’re pumped to see five local breweries dabble in amber ales and lagers, and we fall in love all over again (with the beers, not each other). Also, Craig has an unexpected pet, we accidentally have a moment of real beer talk about wilds and sours, Ryan vetoes an obvious 311 reference, and we are bringing our own ludicrous drinkware to the...
Episode 503 - GABF 2023
September 27, 2023 12:30 - 2 hours - 99.9 MBWe were just back in Denver for the 41st Great American Beer Festival, and we’ve got an episode chock full of interviews and beer highlights that’s as good as gold (medals). Catch up on our beer-y travels as we hit the festival floor for about 14 total hours and stop into several great Denver taprooms and bars, sharing our experiences and regrettable food decisions along the way. Plus, we talk to a bevy of fascinating brewers and brewery owners from all over the U.S. and we hear stories abou...
Episode 502 - Barrels Out West
September 20, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 65.3 MBIn the week that we’re heading out west for a certain fest, we gather up four barrel-aged beers from West Coast breweries that are pretty well-known for their wood-aged offerings. Expectations are flipped on their head and a ringer is challenged as we pop a few actual corks for this one. Also, Craig wants in on the limited-edition mattresses; we open our minds to the possibilities that breweries can grow over the course of nine years; and we share the tales of the juggling Belgian Gueuze Mim...
Episode 501 - Road to GABF: Far Flung IL Medals
September 13, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 83.2 MBThe Great American Beer Festival is right around the corner, and since we’re attending again this year, we’re providing an audio guide to what to drink at the fest while also sipping on some previous medal winners. These aren’t just any Illinois medal winners; our four choices here are a good drive from Chicago while also representing more traditional styles. For the GABF preview, we cover what Illinois breweries are pouring, which “new-to-us” breweries have us the most excited; whose famili...
Episode 500 - Part Two, with Josh Deth
September 08, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 80.3 MBFor the second part of our big 500, we sit down with Revolution Brewing founder Josh Deth and talk about the last ten years of his brewery while sharing a rare beer from Craig’s cellar. It’s a fitting interview for this milestone, as no brewery has been featured on the podcast more - and it’s not even close. Also, we open another cellar gem while recording in the ABV West bunker for the first time since the pandemic; we discuss some of our greatest hits; we continue our wax hatred for the 10...
Episode 500 - Part One, with Jason Klein and Gabriel Magliaro
September 06, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 76 MB500 episodes is a long time to do arbitrary beer reviews, so we reach out for some help in reviewing a few beers from Craig’s cellar. We chose brewers that have been around longer than the podcast to reflect on the last ten years in craft beer, and they chose a beer from our list. For this part one of two episodes, we sit down with Spiteful Brewing’s Jason Klein and Half Acre’s Gabriel Magliaro. We also sip through their cellar selections, and open up one more in the ABV West Bunker for a sm...
Episode 499 - Blind Oktoberfests
August 30, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 64.9 MBOnce every four years, we gather up nine Märzens or Festbiers for a blind review revue as a not-so-subtle excuse to drink what might be our favorite seasonal style. And again, we have eight local takes (and one collab from a legacy American brand) on the German-style lager to help us determine our arbitrary preferences. Surprises abound and misconceptions are challenged as this extremely drinkable nine-pack has us craving pretzels in no time. Also, Ryan has inadvertently created an eight yea...
Episode 498 - The AZ Show
August 23, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 68.7 MBWe’re bringing the dry heat with our 32nd State Show, drinking through five beers from five different Arizona breweries, courtesy of listener Ryan Lamb. There’s a lot to like from this set with some essential Arizona ingredients and a few beers with heavy medal pedigree. But also, Craig’s recent Disney trip has him looking at redoing some rides; Ryan reminds us that stouts are for closers; and we finally find out what love smells like. Beers Reviewed Four Peaks Brewing Company [Tempe, A...
Episode 497 - Deep Wood Summer 3-Pack
August 16, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 63 MBRevolution is back at it this summer with a threesome of barrel-aged delights for an early kickoff to the Deep Wood series, and we take our time breaking down these complex blends to find our results to be pleasantly surprising. Also, Craig ruins going to the mall; Ryan’s having breakfast with Velveeta; and we let the barrels take it to the X-treme (and Ex-Treme). Beers Reviewed Dread & Breakfast (Breakfast Blend Ale with coffee aged in bourbon barrels) Cuvée De Grâce (Cuvée Ale aged ...
Episode 496 - Half Acre Beer Co.
August 09, 2023 12:30 - 2 hours - 100 MBWe can give a lot of credit to Half Acre co-founder Gabriel Magliaro for helping awaken the craft beer scene in Chicago. And more than 16 years later, Half Acre is still a leader in craft in the city and all over the country, so we’re thrilled to sit down with Gabriel for a deep dive into the history of his legendary brewery. We talk about how he was strongly advised against putting beer in 16-ounce cans, how opening a retail shop exposed the brand to a new audience, the evolution of their b...
Episode 495 - Hoppy Wheats
August 02, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 60.2 MBIt’s another show about highly drinkable summer styles, and this minor trend of local breweries releasing hopped-up wheat beers caught our attention enough to put five beers in front of us for review. The styles differ despite their shared ingredient, and we’re as excited about the big hops as we are comforted by the soft wheat. Also, we blue-sky some product design for Impractical Packaging Brewing Co.; Craig might drizzle some honey on that dry ramen snack; and Ryan’s just looking for a li...
Episode 494 - Private Press Brewing
July 26, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 95.9 MBBrad Clark is the man behind the highly sought-after blended barrel-aged beers of Private Press, and Craig sat down with him over some decanted barleywine to talk about the history and future of his members-only brewery. Brad shares how his background at the renowned Jackie O’s in Ohio led to some of the more daring experiments at his current Santa Cruz brewery, and how peaceful running led to him inventing an entire style. Also, he shares details about his meticulous blending process, how h...
Episode 493 - Hazy Flagship IPA Blind Battle Royale: Championship Edition
July 19, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 72.2 MBAfter six episodes and 25 beers, we’re finally putting our top 6 choices for best Chicagoland/Illinois hazy IPA to one last blind test. This showdown features four GABF gold medal-winners and two “underdogs” - and each beer impresses in its own way. Which brewery do we think is making the best cloudy juice utilizing Citra and/or Mosaic (and maybe like one or two other hops)? We’ll have a definitive arbitrary answer by the end of the show. Also, Ryan is excited about his Goop Dupe, Craig’s ou...
Episode 492 - Saisons of SARA
July 12, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 91.4 MBWe’ve been admirers of Sante Adairius Rustic Ales for a decade now, and Craig’s recent trip to California brings us back the gift of SARA saisons - and a wonderful conversation with owner and co-founder Adair Paterno. The four barrel-aged saisons on this show are about as good of a lineup of beer we’ll drink all year, so get ready for the lovefest on this episode. But the real highlight is Adair and Craig’s talk which covers the early days to their now three-location status; how the house ye...
Episode 491 - Bay Area Brews
July 05, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 66.5 MBSummer Craig is starting off strong this year by bringing back five fantastic beers from California’s Bay Area (and beyond) for us to fawn over and attempt to recreate those vacation vibes. We learn the backstories of these breweries and their unique approaches and cover other beer-ish topics like the follies of berry beers, aggressive bread, trad saisons, and the royal need for hop names. Also, Craig has discovered a new traveling superpower and parlor trick; Ryan has picked a winner in an ...
Episode 490 - Hawkeye Homecoming
June 28, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 64.1 MBRyan’s a University of Iowa graduate, and in the 15 years since his last visit, a few breweries have popped up and thrived in the area. After a weekend with the family in Iowa City, Ryan brought back five beers from the area to talk about what’s been happening with beer in the decade-and-a-half since. Also, Craig’s aghast to share Tom Emanski with an uninterested party, we’re both a bit confused over TMNT villains, and Ryan’s not mad about the algorithm figuring out he likes Mortal Kombat vi...
Episode 489 - Chicago Italian Pilsners
June 21, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 57.3 MBAnother somewhat recent trend in the world of local lagers is the Italian Pilsner, a style with only about a 30-year history that adds a bit more noble dry-hop character to something close to the Czech-style pilsner. It’s all winners on this show, except for the hosts who have to do rankings without the assistance of a large sandwich. Also, we welcome in Hot Grimace Summer, Craig’s empty hand is ever-reaching for an IPL, and Ryan’s got that soon-to-be-viral oyster cracker hack. Beers Revi...
Episode 488 - Hazy Flagship IPA Blind Battle Royale: Round 5
June 14, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 55.2 MBIn our penultimate round before the championship, we have one spot up for grabs with these fan favorite hazy IPAs from Chicagoland breweries. Bringing our grand total of hazy IPAs blind-tasted up to 25, this episode still manages to bring some surprising sights and smells - and the show’s winner isn’t exactly what we expected. Also, we workshop a brewer’s new brand concept, Ryan is dreaming of dunking on some suckers, and Craig just wants a banana shaped like a dolphin in his drink. Beers...
Episode 487 - Hoppy Lagers
June 07, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 59 MBAs we open our arms to embrace the start of summer, our empty glasses are going to need something flavorful yet refreshing. Luckily, Chicagoland breweries have been cranking out the hoppy lagers and pilsners lately, so we assemble five for this episode that are so good that they almost completely break the show. Also, Ryan speculates on banana pudding restaurants, The Queen’s death is really holding up new hop names, and Craig’s dry ramen-chomping has officially entered the canon. Beers Re...
Episode 486 - MoBAB 3: Barrel Warriors
May 31, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 62.3 MBWe’re just about halfway to FoBAB, so we are once again doing battle with the barrel featuring a roundup of beers we’ve been saving for this very episode. These four barrel-aged beers jostle around in our arbitrary rankings as we just luxuriate in their decadence for about an hour and fifteen minutes. Also, we explain why you (and Billy Corgan) just have to pay your hackers sometimes; Ryan’s got those Dairy Queen Blizzard flavor exclusives; and Craig gets called out for the snickerdoodle...
Episode 485 - Hazy Flagship IPA Blind Battle Royale: Round 4
May 24, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 59.8 MBOur quest to find the best flagship hazy IPA from Chicagoland breweries enters its fourth round, as we blindly sample through a fresh set of five to pick a winner that best fits our own personal preferences. And though our ability to guess blind beers is as bad as ever, our taste buds are finely tuned and finally ready to deliver a surprising upset on this episode. Also, we dream up some 80s-centric unexpected sports and celebrity pairings; we’re reaching for the purple stuff over the Sunny ...
Episode 484 - The NC Show
May 17, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 62.9 MBIn our 31st installment of our decade-long State Show Series, we are sampling a hop-heavy lineup from North Carolina courtesy of listener Rodney Knox. We learn about these five breweries from across the state while appreciating how difficult they make the rankings segment, in more ways than one. Also, Craig shares tales of drive-thru beer stores; Ryan’s got a weird robot obsession, and we’re sold on the idea of the Sweltzer based on name alone. Beers Reviewed Swells’a Brewing [Kill Devi...
Episode 483 - Wax Wings Brewing
May 10, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 79.2 MBThough they’re maybe not the first brewery that comes to mind when you think of Kalamazoo, Michigan, Wax Wings Brewing (est. 2018) flourished during the pandemic with their fresh hazies and complex barrel-aged beers gaining a ton of word-of-mouth momentum that saw many a beer fan traveling just for the opportunity to take home some of their lineup. Count Craig as one of those folks, as he went to Kalamazoo to snag an interview with owner Rob Hopkins and bring back a fun (and boozy) lineup of...
Episode 482 - Hazy Flagship IPA Blind Battle Royale: Round 3
May 03, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 57.8 MBA new set of five hop warriors enter the extremely flimsy ring for another blind tasting to lead us to our favorite Chicagoland flagship hazy IPA. This one features many more hops than just Citra and Mosaic, so it leads to the widest range of flavors yet. Will we agree on who moves to the championship, and will any beer make it on the bubble? Listen to find out that but also which brewery could potentially be profiting big from director K*vin Sm*th, why Craig’s making a heel turn, and how we...
Episode 481 - B4ck to the B4rrel
April 26, 2023 12:30 - 1 hour - 52.8 MBIf it wasn’t obvious from the totally easy to understand episode title, this show is a return for us to a whole lineup of barrel-aged beers from different breweries we love. We add a little blind twist to this one as all four are adjunct-free affairs: just delicious big stouts in world-class barrels. Also, Craig’s totally serious about the tater tots offer, Ryan has found The Cheesecake of Beers™, and we both have a lot of thoughts about ramen. Beers Reviewed Mikerphone Brewing (w/ Beer...