Hey all! My wife and i are heading to Chicago for a long weekend, and I was wondering if anyone can suggest some good beer to try while we are there. I read up on Piece Brewing and will check that out. I’m hoping to find some three Floyds also. We may also do the Goose Island tours. Thanks! :cheers:
I really enjoyed a 3 Floyds beer called Zombie Dust. My cousin brought me a 6 pack from a trip he took over there last week. The language from their website states : This intensely hopped and gushing undead pale ale will be ones only respite after the zombie apocalypse. 6.4% ABV 60 IBUs
As for visiting 3 Floyds check this out:
http://www.3floyds.com/brewpubIts located at 9750 Indiana Parkway, Munster, Indiana 46321
Just for a reference point, Google maps says its about a 40 min drive from Navy Pier in Chicago.
Enjoy!
I get anything from Goose Island Brewing Co every time I’m in Chicago. They have a selection of vintage ales that are fantastic, I believe most of them are Belgian’s. Both “Matilda” and “Sofie” are worth trying, although I prefer “Matilda”.
Have one for me! :cheers:
Revolution Brewing has only recently landed on my radar, and I think they might be a brewery to watch. I’ve only had their porter and saison, but both were great.
If you’re going up north, Half Acre is one of my favorite breweries in Chicago. They just recently opened a tap room.
Agreed that Goose Island is always worth a stop-by. Personally I prefer their Clybourn Ave. location to their Wrigleyville one.
Goose Island is making a lot of their bottled beers in other places, so be choosy. They have a kegged only beer called Green Line - that’s still local, only sold in kegs.
ANYTHING from 2 Brothers in Warrenville, west of the city - sold in a lot of places.
Brand new brewery in Lombard, also western suburbs, called Flesk. They have a saison and an IPA available in bombers and in a few bars. Not a saison fan, but it tastes right.
And yes, I think Revolution is the one to watch. Recently tried their IPA, Wit, and Porter in cans - all great.
The Revolution Brewpub is a must, IMHO. It’s two stops away from Piece on the Blue Line, so it’s easy to hit them both. Order the bacon-fat popcorn, you won’t regret it.
There’s also the Map Room in the neighborhood, which is one of the city’s premier beer bars – cash only, BTW
Metropolitan is an interesting local brewery only brews lagers. I like their alt a lot.
Zombie Dust is a must!! And Goose Island is now owned by AB Inbev. Most of their stuff isn’t brewed in the Windy City anymore.
Zombie dust is a must to find we I get down there, hopefully I can don’t a good liquor store by my hotel, so I can rake some back with me.
Piece was on my list of breweries to visit. I will totally add Revolution to the list. Thanks for the heads up that they are both on the blue line! The map room sounds sweet also. Thanks everyone!
[quote=“BrewingRover”]The Revolution Brewpub is a must, IMHO. It’s two stops away from Piece on the Blue Line, so it’s easy to hit them both. Order the bacon-fat popcorn, you won’t regret it.
There’s also the Map Room in the neighborhood, which is one of the city’s premier beer bars – cash only, BTW
Metropolitan is an interesting local brewery only brews lagers. I like their alt a lot.[/quote]
Goose Island on Clybourn is my favorite. They’ve got like 31 flavors and you can get samplers to try 5 or 10 different kinds. The food also is very good.
When I lived in Chicago I did really like Piece’s Golden Arm kolsch (but I wasn’t as into craft beers at that time).
But if you want to go beyond beer, Chicago now has a distillery FEW Spirits (well evanston). Next time I visit, I would like to check this place out. http://fewspirits.com/
http://halfacrebeer.com/
Seriously, Half Acre does not make a bad beer. I haven’t made it to the tap room yet but they have quite a few beers available in stores in both cans (16oz 4 packs) & bombers (22oz bottles). If you like hoppy beer, their Daisy Cutter Pale Ale is a must.
Two Brothers Brewery out of Warrenville makes some great beer as well. Also, there is a small brewery by the name of Pipeworks Brewery. You cannot actually go to the brewery yet as they are still quite small and not open to the public, but you can find quite a few of their beers in stores & bars. They make some pretty good beers that are just a little different. They have one called Close Encounter Hoppy Double Stout that is awesome. Ninja vs. Unicorn Double IPA is harder to find but equally as tasty.
If you do not have them in your area, check out Binny’s Beverage Depot. It is the main “big” liquor store out here and they carry probably 150 different beers. They have new stuff going on the shelf almost daily.
The two Goose Island brewpubs weren’t part of the purchase; they’re still independently owned and brewing locally. They have some sort of contractual agreement to share the trademarks and recipes, but they also have some beers that are only made in the brewpub. Assuming you’re going to the brewpub to check out some of their more interesting stuff and not just chug Honker’s Ale, they’re still very much worth a visit.
Hop Leaf and The Firkin have a very good selection of beer on tap and bottled.
Been to two brothers…decent I suppose; I favored the beer that had the blood orange in it.
Can’t really comment on “what’s on tap”, but whenever I get a chance to hit a Benny’s liquor place, I spend at least a few hundred bucks on beers that I can’t find up here in the Northland; fill a few boxes with belgians and throw em my cellar.
+1 on Binneys if you need packaged goods
The Clybourn location has a Binny’s right behind it so you can maximize your time in the city. I prefer that one to the Wrigleyville location.
Zombie Dust goes fast when it hits the shelves, so you may have a hard time finding it. Hopleaf had it on tap as of 1/15. I love Hopleaf but it’s a little farther out of downtown than some of the other places mentioned.
Agreed. For both the Goose Island and the Binny’s.
For the full experience make sure to hit Revolution’s Tap Room on Kedzie. Smell the wort boiling while enjoying a fresh brew. Only open wednesday through Saturday so plan accordingly!
http://revbrew.com/brewery:cheers:
Thanks for all the responses! Good thing we are flying there and taking mass transit/ taxis everywhere, because if I hit all these I think ill be drunk! Now I need to pack another suitcase or plan on sending beer home fed ex. It sounds like there is a lot of great beer in the windy city. :cheers:
Careful - there is also a lot of great wind in the beery city!
