Abv Chicago Craft Beer Podcast

Some of Chicago’s best new breweries don’t bottle yet, so we went to five of them and brought back growlers! Marie Cummins joins us from the Down the Hatch beer blog and Chicago Craft Beer Enthusiasts. She comes through with much-needed food-pairing help, recaps her Kegs for Kidneys experience, talks about her favorite Chicago brewery, and explains why she’s so popular in the Ukraine. Craig and Ryan just try not to sound stupid. Someone’s gonna get punched in the stomach!

It’s a frenzy of 4 Hands beers as we tackle eight unique offerings from the St. Louis-based brewery. We have our first threeway (of beer) and we try not to make eye contact. We talk a little Pipeworks (of course), Craig rants about the Esquire network, and Ryan speaks ill about the sacred cow that is The Barenaked Ladies. We also drink lots of delicious beers. Let’s get handsy.

Pipeworks does a lot of things well, and weird beers are near the top of that list. We try five of their unique brews with unusual ingredients or unexpected style crossovers and discover that they’re all pretty awesome. Relive our cautious whiffs and relieved sips! Craig gives us the highlights of his busy Chicago Craft Beer Week. We also bring back the game that has changed the world of podcast beer reviews as we know them, Beers Against Humanity. Oh, yes, this one is way out there. (Fun play at home game: drink along and try to keep up with our rapidly diminishing sobriety! You have 59 minutes!)

Everyone loves a sequel! We drink 6 more double imperial pale ales in this episode, reaching new levels of palate destruction and inebriation. We jump in our own Mystery Machine and try to solve the hop secrets in some of these brews, Ryan unleashes a little Three Floyds rage, and Craig reveals to us all that he is, indeed, a God. (Because we’re busy celebrating Chicago Craft Beer Week, this episode was recorded two months ago. Enjoy!)

We kick off Chicago Craft Beer Week with Chris Ferguson from Bee’s Knees, a food company specializing in craft beer snacks. Along with five nut varieties, we open five local beers based on pairing suggestions provided by Bee’s Knees. Chris answers a lot of our questions about his business and helps us understand why his nuts are so damn good with beer. Intelligent dialogue ensues, until we all get drunk and Craig and Ryan bring it crashing back down. Also, we talk about what we’re looking forward to for Chicago Craft Beer Week. It’s a tasty one, so NUT UP.

We’re staying up late with four Tired Hands Brewing Company growlers, near-fresh from PA! After a day of drinking at the Mash Tun New Wave Brewer’s Bash - which we reminisce on throughout - we pull it together long enough to review and rank beers from RateBeer’s #2 top new brewery in 2013. We’ll talk Kurt Vonnegut, Stephen Tobolowsky, and our intentions to copyright “Hopularity.” I’m a horse.

We give wheat a chance with six different Chicago-area breweries that feature warmer-weather friendly wheat! There are a variety of styles, an enlightening history of wheat, and even some lemon bars made with Off Color’s Troublesome. We also ruminate on the novelty-shirt-friendly question, “What Would Jesus Drink?” (It’s probably Three Floyds.) This episode features music from Chicago’s own Oblivion, because that’s what Ryan wants.

Episode 14 - Lawson’s Finest Liquids   There are pancakes on the table to compliment the five beers we drink from Lawson’s Finest Liquids, and we use some of their maple syrup beers in the cooking process. Dennis joins us to help choke down the flattest flapjacks ever made, and yes, there will be some harmonizing. Listen for a surprisingly apt comparison to Brendan Fraser, Dennis shilling for White Castle, and a shocking confession about pickles. World Star!   Ryan 1. Maple Tripple Ale 2. Double Sunshine IPA 3. Maple Barrel Aged Fayston Imperial Stout 4. Fayston Maple Imperial Stout 5. Maple Wheat Ale   Craig 1. Maple Tripple Ale 2. Double Sunshine IPA 3. Fayston Maple Imperial Stout 4. Maple Barrel Aged Fayston Imperial Stout 5. Maple Wheat Ale   Dennis 1. Maple Tripple Ale 2. Double Sunshine IPA 3. Maple Barrel Aged Fayston Imperial Stout 4. Fayston Maple Imperial Stout 5. Maple Wheat Ale  

Spring has sprung and saisons are the beer of the season! We drink 6 different saisons from Chicago-area breweries and talk baseball and flowers and bunnies and shit. We also share some listener feedback and hold a little saison history lesson. And be prepared to be moved by Craig's delicate and beautiful singing voice. Taste the refreshment!   Ryan 1. Middle Brow The Life Pursuit 2. Une Année/Bangers and Lace Frères 3. Haymarket The Saison Also Rises 4. Only Child Le Perfectionniste 5. Pipeworks Catch of a Lifetime 6. Revolution Coup D’Etat   Craig 1. Une Année/Bangers and Lace Frères 2. Middle Brow The Life Pursuit 3. Haymarket The Saison Also Rises 4. Only Child Le Perfectionniste 5. Pipeworks Catch of a Lifetime 6. Revolution Coup D’Etat

Four hoppy delights from Alpine Beer Company star in this episode, as Craig and Ryan try to rank them from best to less-than-best. Also, Craig shares some tips for beer trading and other ways of acquiring hard-to-get releases. Ryan finds a way to get really drunk on four relatively lower alcohol beers. Join us as we do some Alpine skiing – and it ain’t snowin’!   Ryan 1. Duet 2. Nelson 3. Alpine Ale 4. Pure Hoppiness   Craig 1. Nelson 2. Duet 3. Pure Hoppiness 4. Alpine Ale

C'est une célébration de Une Année ! We drink 5 beers from one of Chicago’s best new breweries. Ryan tells his car accident story, and Craig drops some Remedial French 101 on us. There’s also a Bee’s Knees Food Company appearance as we snack on some of their Curry Curry Peanuts. Écouter avec joie!   Ryan 1. Sanguinaire 2. Austere 3. Sanguinaire Première 4. Maya 5. Life Beyond Death Craig 1. Maya 2. Sanguinaire Première 3. Austere 4. Sanguinaire 5. Life Beyond Death

Things get funky with Crooked Stave in our 10th episode. We try six of their barrel-aged offerings - many with that funky Brettanomyces leading the flavor train. Hear why Denver-based Crooked Stave is one of the best artisan breweries going, and let the funk take you over. Big thanks to our friend Marek for the reserve society beers!   Ryan 1.      1.Raspberry Dark Origins 2.      2. Origins 3.      3.Vielle 4.      4. Bourbon Barrel Cherry Origins 5.      5. Persica Blend #1 6.      6. Persica Blend #2   Craig 1. Raspberry Dark Origins 2. Origins 3. Bourbon Barrel Cherry Origins 4. Persica Blend #1 5. Vielle 6. Persica Blend #2   Ryan’s Top 6 songs with “Funk” in the title from this episode 1.     1.  Funky President – James Brown 2.      2. Get the Funk Out Ma Face – Brothers Johnson 3.      3. Bad Motherfunker – Rose Royce 4.      4. Funky Stuff – Kool and the Gang 5.      5. Everything I Do Gohn Be Funky – Lee Dorsey 6.      6. Do You Wanna Funk? – Sylvester

Half Acre Beer Company is a Chicago craft beer luminary, and we invite Dennis to try 6 of their beers with us. Dennis brings his experience as a food writer to the show and makes us eat a Subway Flatizza and drink Boone’s Farm Fuzzy Navel. It was horrible. But the show is great, and so are the beers. It gets so weird.

In January, we sat down with Central Waters' Brewers Reserve beers to commemorate their 16th anniversary. No infections here! We fawn over 6 bourbon barrel aged beers, Craig shares his account of the 16th anniversary party, and we invent more band names. Hear our thoughts on 2014 Peruvian Morning and what should have been. Rankings Ryan 1. Peruvian Morning 2. 16 3. Bourbon Barrel Cherry Stout (2013) 4. Bourbon Barrel Barleywine 5. Bourbon Barrel Stout 6. Bourbon Barrel Scotch Ale Craig 1. Peruvian Morning 2. Bourbon Barrel Barleywine 3. 16 4. Bourbon Barrel Stout 5. Bourbon Barrel Cherry Stout (2013) 6. Bourbon Barrel Scotch Ale

We drink six German-style beers from Chicago-area breweries. Listen as we talk about local breweries, traditional German styles, lederhosen comfort, German drinking games, and our favorite albums by Robot Dong. Prost!

Craig just came back from San Francisco, and he brought some beer back with him!  Craig also spins yarns about his trip and we try to diversify our advertising porfolio with Nabisco and Tums.  Let our mouths take your ears to the wild, wild west. Rankings Ryan 1. Rare Barrel SKUs Me 2. Sante Adairius Maiden Fields 3. Hopocalypse Black Label TIPA 4. Russian River Blind Pig IPA 5. Hopocalypse White Label DIPA 6. Speakeasy Syndicate No. 1 Craig 1. Sante Adairius Maiden Fields 2. Rare Barrel SKUs Me 3. Russian River Blind Pig IPA 4. Hopocalypse Black Label TIPA 5. Speakeasy Syndicate No. 1 6. Hopocalypse White Label DIPA

We send off the Pipeworks Ninjas (in name) in style by throwing them a retirement party for the ages. To complement these massive double IPAs, we taste two varieties of delicious Bee’s Knees nuts. We also play the new beer reviewing game that we invented that’s rapidly going viral: Beers Against Humanity.  Rankings: Ryan 1. Australian Summer Ninja 2. Citra Ninja 3. Marilime Law Ninja 4. Centennial Ninja 5. Cascade Ninja 6. Simcoe Ninja    Craig 1. Citra Ninja 2. Australian Summer Ninja 3. Simcoe Ninja 4. Marilime Law Ninja 5. Cascade Ninja 6. Centennial Ninja

Six of the most beloved double IPAs are on the menu for this show, and we drunkenly try to make sense of how to rank them. Also, we talk about Craig’s travelling philosophy, and Dennis stops by the microphone to do the only two impressions he can. Plus, Ryan gets really drunk and lets Craig know his true feelings about their friendship. Rankings Craig 1. Russian River Pliny the Elder 2. Surly Abrasive 3. The Alchemist Heady Topper 4. Pipeworks Citra 5. DC Brau On The Wings of Armageddon 6. Lagunitas Sucks Ryan 1. Pipeworks Citra 2. Surly Abrasive 3. Lagunitas Sucks 4. The Alchemist Heady Topper 5. DC Brau On the Wings of Armageddon 6. Russian River Pliny the Elder

We put four Chicago barrel aged beers to the test.  Plus our first contest and the debut of our theme song! Rankings Ryan and Craig (same) 1. Haymarket Clare's Thirty Ale (crowler) 2. Revolution Deth's Tar 3. Local Option Morning Wood 4. Two Brothers/Solemn Oath Brotherhood of the Barrel

We take one for the team and imbibe five Hill Farmstead beers, plus one Grassroots brew.  Plus Craig talks about his trip up to Hill Farmstead during the summer and there's more male moaning than ever should be recorded.  Ever. Beers Clara Sankt Hans (Grassroots) Phenomenology of Spirit (2013) Twilight of the Idols (2012) Birth of Tragedy (2012) Genealogy of Morals (2013) Rankings Ryan 1. Genealogy of Morals 2. Birth of Tragedy 3. Twilight of the Idols 4. Phenomenology of Spirit 5. Clara 6. Sankt Hans Craig 1. Birth of Tragedy 2. Geneaolgy of Morals 3. Twilight of the Idols 4. Clara 5. Sankt Hans 6. Phenomenology of Spirit This episode is dedicated to Craig's dad, who passed away right before the recording of this episode.