"We missed last week, so we are back with a show that takes a look at the lighter side of craft beer - Lagers. Chuck Fort talks about the style and provides his expertise, while The Landlord, and friend if the show John Karwoski, provide their consumer input. We randomly selected 6 lagers from Chicago-area breweries, crack open the cans, and pass arbitrary judgement. It's a refreshing break from hops, haze, or heavy stouts and we think you should keep a 6-pack of at least one of these in your fridge at all times!"

"We've done our share of testing chain store beers, and it seems this time we did it in parallel with the Chicago Tribune, who got their article out before this show...great minds and all that! In this podcast we take the Costco variety pack of 4 styles, add a couple of Trader Joe bombers, and pull in Chuck Fort, Ken McMullen and TJ Bachorz for their views on the quality and taste. Who the base breweries are may have an affect on if they are rated highly or just meh. Listen in and hear our thoughts, but grab a local brew first!"

"It's our Valentine to all you wonderful listeners, and we pull in a couple of romantics to talk V-Day celebrations, and pairings of special dinners and craft beers. We've got Chuck from Church, Ed from Pollyanna, and Tom Ryan from Lemont in the pub studios, making eyes at the Landlord, and supping downs a few Valentine brews. Dan from Metal Monkey and Oliver from Dry City send us a couple of words of wisdom for their Valentines, and The Yankee calls in from Ohio with heart-shaped pizza toppings and a kiss for The Brit! Love you all, kiss kiss!"

"We've made it! 300 podcasts under our belt and we've still only scraped the surface of the craft beer world. In this edition, we take the opportunity to round up some of our regular brewers and consumers for a tasting of Big Barleywines. It's a great evening with Ken McMullen, TJ Bachorz, Chuck Fort, Steve Kamp, Travis Beard, John Karwoski. Tom Ryan and the Pub Staff! Thanks for everyones support to get us to this milestone!"

"Wibby Brewing is fast becoming the place to go for classic lager styles, and we call up owner/brewmaster Ryan Wibby to chat with him about his brewery and beers. As we chat, we sample one of their special offerings, a Russian Imperial Lager with 4 variants, called 9-toed Nihilist, the name paying homage to The Big Lebowski. Chuck Fort and Ken McMullen join The Brit for a great conversation!"

"It's a visit to Bloomingdale this week, as we settle down in the Snug at Wolfden Brewing to chat with Kris and Katie Wolf, and discover how they turned a 150-year old house into a brewpub that not only has great beer, but great ambience as well. Listen in, then head out there and experience it all for yourself! Cheers!"

"It's the first podcast of the New Year, and we are reporting from a cask ale event from The Firkery, and hosted at Skeleton Key. It's a cavalcade of craft brewing celebrities and friends of the show, all being corned by The Brit. And the tables are turned at the end of the show as the lads from Midwest Brew Review turn their camera on him. Happy New Year folks!"

"Part 2 of our Central Illinois beer show, plus we hear about FOBAB winning Holy Moly, and raise our glasses for our traditional Christmas toast. Finally, we play the Pub's rendition of The Night Before Christmas which we hope will bring the spirit of the season to the entire family. We will see you again after the holidays, so until then Happy Holidays and Cheers!"

"This week we are back in the Brit and Yankee pub, and we have part 1 of a bumper show, which recorded so long we decided to break it up into 2 shows...that, and it's the holidays and the pub staff are swamped with revelers and holiday parties! It's 3 brewers and 3 consumers tasting brews from some of the perhaps lessor-known Illinois breweries that can be found in the Bloomington and Champaign areas of the state, and finding some little gems among them! In this show we have Triptych, Big Thorn, and Blind Pig, and we will continue next week with more and some Christmas cheer!"

"We have a different episode this week where we visit the Naperville Red Arrow Taproom, and learn about self-serve craft beer. Owner and founder Joe Tota is our host and with my co-host, Ken McMullen, we learn about how it all works and how they embrace independence and support local brweries. Candied bacon strips make a welcome appearance and a great pairing for our samples, while we chat about craft beer topics and trends. If you haven't been to one of their two locations, you need to try it out!"