Craft Beer Week
Jennifer Kainz of The Onion Pub & Brewery in Lake Barrington serves a Summer Wit Belgian White Ale at Beer Under Glass at Garfield Park Conservatory during the kickoff of Chicago Craft Beer Week in Chicago. (Scott Strazzante, Chicago Tribune / May 14, 2013)
By Josh Noel Tribune reporter
11:41 a.m. CDT, May 14, 2014
It's starting to seem as if craft beer has been around forever. Of course there's fresh, creative, locally made beer everywhere we go. Of course it comes in styles that both date back generations and barely existed a year ago. Of course there is a Chicago Craft Beer Week, and it gets bigger ever year.
Reality check: The event is a mere 5 years old. But the 11-day event, which kicks off Thursday, has grown with a swiftness that mirrors the industry it celebrates. During the past three years, it has grown from 25 breweries and 320 events to the anticipated 2014 totals of 60 breweries pouring at 550 events. More than 350 bars, restaurants and brewpubs are taking part.
"There's a lot of excitement on a lot of levels this year," said Pete Crowley, owner of Haymarket Pub & Brewery and president of the Illinois Craft Brewers Guild. "More bars and restaurants are participating than ever. More out-of-state brewers are sending rare stuff. And this is the first beer week for a lot of the new local breweries. They're pretty fired up."
Illinois is up to about 85 breweries, and many of them will be pouring beer sometime, somewhere during the next 11 days. Events will be staged across the city and suburbs, and more are worth attending than can be listed here. As of press time, these are some of my picks for events worth considering. All are free to enter unless noted. Further details, times and updated information are available at chibeerweek.com. Events are subject to change.
Thursday
•Beer Under Glass, the annual kickoff event, is the bucolic intersection of craft beer and Garfield Park Conservatory's (300 N. Central Park Ave.) thick, calming greenery. The event has sold out quickly in years past, but, as of this writing, VIP tickets ($90) remain available. More than 50 breweries will be pouring. 6:30-9:30 p.m. (VIPs get in at 5:30 p.m.)
•Beer week is at heart a celebration of drinking locally, and three events celebrate this fact: Monk's Pub (205 W. Lake St.) features an all-Chicagoland tap takeover; Emporium Arcade Bar (1366 N. Milwaukee Ave.) taps a selection of statewide beers; and Bigby's Pour House (1649 Algonquin Road, Rolling Meadows) gives love to the suburban breweries, turning over all 20 of its tap handles to Two Brothers, One Trick Pony, Tighthead, Solemn Oath and more.
•Another now-annual ritual is Small Bar's (2049 W. Division St.) Chicago Doet Belgie, which includes an array of locally made, Belgian-influenced beers, including brews from 5 Rabbit, Three Floyds and Transient Artisan Ales. Food options will appropriately include steamed mussels and pomme frites.
•Whose beer is best: Illinois, Michigan or Wisconsin? The Battle for Lake Michigan at Links Taproom (1559 N. Milwaukee Ave.) will (sort of) settle the question. Eleven beers from each state will be tapped, and the one that runs out first gets the coveted Golden Asian Carp Trophy. The event begins Thursday and lasts until first-, second- and third-place finishers are determined.
Friday
•DryHop (3155 N. Broadway) taps its first sour beer, a collaboration with Goose Island. Also on tap will be five of Goose's most sought-after beers — the "sisters" Lolita, Juliet, Madame Rose, Halia and Gillian.
•Countryside Saloon (2501 E. Ballard Road, Des Plaines) turns its taps over to Off Color, which will tap three beers, and Three Floyds, which will also tap three beers. Plus, there will be a collaboration between the breweries.
•Half Acre is a busy working on its new brewery, so it will be quieter than usual this year. But to celebrate, it is releasing one of its most popular beers — Galactic Double Daisy Cutter — on draft only at the brewery (4257 N. Lincoln Ave.) when it opens at noon.
Saturday
•Pipeworks has one of the city's most devoted followings, which makes its tap takeover at Emporium Arcade Bar (1366 N. Milwaukee Ave.) rather intriguing — and potentially very crowded. A whopping 25 Pipeworks beers ("the most in one place, ever!") will be on tap.
•Fountainhead (1970 W. Montrose Ave.) hosts its annual Local Cask Day, which features cask beers from at least six local breweries.
•Transient Artisan Ales aren't the most abundant beers in the city, but they're impressive. Village Tap (2055 W. Roscoe St.) will tap eight Transient beers and prepare a menu to pair with the brews.
•Louisville's Against the Grain and Brooklyn-based Evil Twin take control of the taps at The Bar on Buena (910 W. Buena Ave.) with some of their rarest offerings, including ATG's Bo & Luke, an imperial stout aged in Pappy Van Winkle bourbon barrels. An Against the Grain brewer will be on hand from 2 to 4 p.m.
•Michael Kiser of the excellent Good Beer Hunting website leads a North Side walking tour to three home brewers who will offer tastes of their beers and discuss their brewing processes. The event ends with a bottle share in Kiser's backyard — so bring something good. 1-5 p.m. $15