The Festival of Wood and Barrel-Aged Beers came in late November this year, and we have another episode to add to our wall-to-wall coverage of Chicago’s best beer fest. As has become a delicious tradition, we have gathered medal winning beers from this year - but with a totally sessionable twist. Three gold medal winners, one bronze, and one Best in Show gives us a lineup of 4 that’ll go down as one of the best we’ve done. Also, we break down FoBAB winners by the numbers, recap our festival highlights, and replace the Elf on the Shelf with Craig on the Keg. 

Beers Reviewed

Milieu Fermentation - smol. (Barrel-aged mixed culture table beer)

Off Color Brewing - Funky Beer for Tacos (Gose fermented with wild yeast aged in lime gin barrels)

Cruz Blanca Brewpub - Tepache Cowboy (Mexican lager aged in añejo mezcal barrels with pineapple and spices)

Half Acre Beer Co. - Orin (Bourbon and brandy barrel aged strong ale)