ABV Chicago Craft Beer Podcast

Who says you need a cocktail to drink tropical in the hot heat of summer? We found five different styles of beer that all fit nicely under a (miniature paper) tropical umbrella, and no one will have to call the TropCops on you for bringing them to the beach. Also, we meet Mr. America and his secret weapons; Craig has a baffling reaction to one of the beer names; Ryan is readying the CurdBurglars for some squeaky cheese discussion; and now we have to add Ube to the list of things that we need to taste more.

Beers Reviewed

Pipeworks Brewing - Round of Tropical Margs Mango (Sour ale w/ mango, guava, peach, lime, and salt)

Third Space Brewing - You Be You (Tropical pale ale)

Cruz Blanca - Coco Frio (Lager w/ coconut and pineapple)

Lakefront Brewery - Tropical Rabbit (Tropical IPA)

Phase Three Brewing - Mana Wahine (Stout w/ coconut, coffee, and ube)

These annual Revolution Deep Wood summer releases seemed to start off as fun little experimental takes on some of their core beers, but these days, they are truly bringing the heat with some of the best stuff they'll release all year. This lineup of four is just outstanding - with more than one that could be in our top ten Deep Wood beers of all time. On a similar note, we talk about unexpected brands we're weirdly loyal to; we get lost in the liminal backrooms of the beer forums; Craig finally shares his matcha review; and our algorithms are going absolutely nuts right now. coffeeberrybeer.

Beers Reviewed

Supermassive Café Deth

Mixed Berry Supermassive Café Deth

Double Barrel Straight Jacket

Peach Apricot D.B.V.S.O.J.

The IPA will NEVER DIE, and neither will this series of blind tasting podcasts if we can successfully find more beers that fit our criteria. Thankfully, listeners Benji & Suzanne went to California and brought back some all-West Coast, long-made IPAs to deepen our ongoing quest to find the country's best, and our scoresheets are showing high numbers on this one. We also discuss the deep thoughts of great philosophers (like a toddler in a shopping cart); Craig might've had a Mosaic breakthrough; and we share our overall Top 35 lists of every IPA we've drank through this series - and boy do we feel silly about some of the names at the bottom.

IPAs Reviewed Blindly

North Park Brewery - Hop-Fu!

Societe Brewing Co. - The Pupil

Ballast Point Brewing - Sculpin

Elysian Brewing - Space Dust

Highland Park Brewery - Hello, LA

As a brewery whose name acknowledges their wandering ways, Saint Errant has finally laid some roots in a familiar spot in Evanston - and we are excited to sit down with our old friends (and co-owners) Brent Banks and Roger Cuzelis to talk about their new taproom and expanded production. We dip a little into some shared nostalgia - and their reintroduction of some Temperance beers into the market - but we're just happy to discuss all the growing pains and early opening successes that should have any Chicagoland beer drinker excited for what's to come. We also talk about pilot batches, niche brewery-world jobs in high demand, English beers, serving methods, meaningful collaborations, new hop products, the label artist/brewer relationship, and of course, barrel-aged beer in boxes.

With the impending 250th anniversary of this country of ours (AMERICA), we celebrate the only way we know how: by drinking three IPAs and three Belgian Trappist beers that are only united by three common colors. We sample the Reds, Whites, and Blues of Lombard, Illinois' Noon Whistle Brewing and Chimay, Belgium's Brasserie de Chimay in a side-by-side that frankly makes no other sense (and creates a real boondoggle in rankings.) We get a bit nostalgic in a different way as we feel some 2012 coming back to us; we get some real superstars for our own patriotic backyard wrestling celebration; we entirely ignore proper chalice use; and we're just looking for someone to validate our chocolate.

Beers Reviewed

Noon Whistle Brewing - Hop Prism Red (Red IPA)

Noon Whistle Brewing - Hop Prism White (White IPA)

Noon Whistle Brewing - Hop Prism Blue (American IPA)

Brasserie de Chimay - Chimay Première: Red (Belgian Dubbel)

Brasserie de Chimay - Chimay Cinq Cents: White (Belgian Tripel)

Brasserie de Chimay - Chimay Grande Réserve: Blue (Belgian Strong Dark Ale)

You can thank the lager renaissance for allowing this nerdy and delicious mixed 12-pack to exist, and Revolution absolutely knocks it out of the park with this one. Along with the four different lagers under the "Cold Time" brand, we add in a throwback Wit just for kicks - and we can anticipate many coolers full of Rev this summer. But also, we debrief on the first ever tornado delay on the podcast (and the legion of dads keeping an eye on it); we introduce Chunky Boy Lagers™ into the mix; and we create our ultimate dream mixed Revolution 12 pack.

Revolution Beers Reviewed

Cold Time (American Lager)

Cold Time Dry (Japanese Rice Lager)

Cold Time Amber (Amber Lager)

Cold Time Extra (Export Lager)

Bottom Up Wit

While more and more craft breweries streamline their releases to reflect what's popular and marketable, we're happy to see when others make weirdo quick sours that include unconventional ingredients - and we're here to celebrate four of those types of beers. For this one, we try to abandon our fears and embrace the tart while learning a bit about what we prefer off of these quickly-made abnormal sours. Also, Ryan's ready to market an invention that'll change how you wash your face; Craig was secretly hoping for a smoothie; and we relive the horrors of that one Genesis music video. (You know the one.)

Beers Reviewed

Mikerphone Brewing [w/ Xul Beer Company] - Land of Transfusion (Fruited Sour w/ Concord grape juice, lime juice, and ginger)

Neuronova Brewing - Solstice Fires (Berliner Weisse w/ blueberry, marionberry, and loganberry)

Dokkaebier - Kimchi Sour (Sour w/ Kimchi culture, ginger, and gochugaru)

Stillwater Artisanal/Freigeist Bierkultur/Meinklang - Organic Ancient Grain Sour

Bare knees and tight tees on patio dads call for some hopped-up brews to pair with that carefully-curated summer vibes playlist, and we're here sampling a half dozen interesting locals. We're also considering what makes warm weather food vs. cold weather food; we're having a hell of a time ranking our favorite hops; and we are admittedly a little biased against gazpacho. Four out of five dentists agree - and we don't even like that fifth dentist.

Beers Reviewed

Revolution Brewing - Anti-Zero (Non-Alcoholic IPA)

Old Irving Brewing Company - Billy Goat (IPA)

Saint Errant Brewing - Rivers of Suggestion (IPA)

Brutalist Brewing Cooperative - Aisle of Pine (IPA)

Half Acre Beer Co./Allagash Brewing Company - Daisy Cutter Crown (IPA)

Half Acre Beer Co. - Double Daisy Cutter Evergreen (Double IPA)

It takes a certain level of trust in a brewery to join a membership program - and we have full faith in everything Milwaukee's Supermoon does, so Craig's re-upping every year he can. We get to sample the four quarterly, limited releases for members of Supermoon's Cellar Society from last year, and it's downright spooky how good they all are. Also, Ryan just might have to fight a bird, Craig is uncertain about mushrooms, and we are proposing that next year Rob make a bad beer, just to see what it's like.

Beers Reviewed

No Sudden Moves (Flanders Oud Bruin-style Sour aged in oak w/ Montmorency cherries)

Golden Teacher (Mixed Culture Saison w/ Sencha Green Tea & Chanterelle Mushrooms)

Zig Zig (Mixed Culture Saison aged in French oak w/ red currants and red wine grapes)

Cellargeist Reserve (Gin Barrel-aged Mixed Culture Saison w/ Tahitian Vanilla Beans)

While American craft breweries are cycling back to showing English appreciation, what's going on with craft beer from England? Thanks to friend & listener Ryan Lamb, we get to sample beers from five London breweries that prove that there's no loss of quality across the pond. We get the stories behind each of these producers while appreciating the subtle differences in their presentation that make us respect the British way. But also, Ryan is mad at Guy Fieri for tarnishing the name of dad jokes, so it's still the same old ABV Chicago.

Beers Reviewed

Signature Brew - Studio Lager (Pilsner)

Bianca Road Brewing Company - EASY (Session IPA)

Anspach & Hobday - London Black (English Porter)

Pretty Decent Beer Co. [collab w/ Apollon] - Spinning Plates (NEIPA)

The Kernel Brewery - Export Stout