HeadFlyer Brewing | Vanilla Bean Porter

HeadFlyer Brewing holds a special place in my heart. When it opened in April 2017 in my then neighborhood of Northeast (Nordeast) Minneapolis, the brewery instantly became one of my go-to watering holes for happy hours, celebrations and just the everyday beer. It’s one of my happy places.

Things are a lot different now than they were in 2017 in a whole host of ways. However, as they approach their third anniversary, the high quality, thoughtful and flavorful craft brew coming out of HeadFlyer remains steadfast.

So, as we face uncertainty and discomfort, I used this opportunity to turn to a beer that provides me solace — HeadFlyer’s Vanilla Bean Porter.

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Dogfish Head | Vibrant P’Ocean

Dogfish Head Brewery continues to be one of my favorite breweries in the country due to their unrelenting pursuit of brewing daring beers that challenge and excite the average beer lover. Sometimes, these beers fall flat and the flavor notes don’t mesh like they should, but most times, they create something new and inventive that makes me take notice. Their newest offering, Vibrant P’Ocean, which was done in collaboration with the nearly two centuries old Brouwerij Rodenbach, falls into the latter category. 

The new blended Sour Ale combines the mastery of both breweries in pursuit of a drinking experience that feels familiar and emblematic of two breweries separated by thousands of miles. Vibrant P’Ocean comes in at 4.7% ABV and is composed of a two-year, foeder-aged sour from Rodenbach mixed with a Dogfish Head kettle sour brewed with pilsner malt, malted wheat, elderberry, elderflower, sliced lemons and Belgian fleur-de-sel. I was lucky enough to get a few cans of this new beer from Dogfish Head recently – here are my thoughts. 

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Birds Fly South Ale Project | Rustic Sunday

What’s better on a Sunday afternoon than kicking back with a craft beer? This rye farmhouse ale by Birds Fly South will make you wish that every day was a “Rustic Sunday.” Read on to discover what makes this beer so approachable, crisp, and tart, and why it calls for soaking in every moment on laid back, lazy afternoons. Read More

ManRock Brewing Co. | Get Him A Hoppy Bag

The year 1984 brought some of our favorite classics to the big screen. Ghostbusters, The Terminator, Footloose, Sixteen Candles, Gremlins, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Revenge of the Nerds, and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom made their appearance, but none resonated with audiences quite as much as The Karate Kid. Featuring a story line of a teenager navigating adolescence and dealing with bullies, The Karate Kid became the fifth highest grossing film that year.

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Lone Pine Brewing Company | Chaos Emeralds

Lone Pine Brewing Company is a not-to-be-missed brewery that quickly grew from a small hole in the wall spot to a major player in the New England craft beer scene. Lone Pine opened in Portland, ME’s East Bayside neighborhood in 2016; by 2019, they grew enough to warrant a major expansion in Gorham, ME. Lone Pine is known for its vibrant hop-forward American ales and, over the course of two years, Lone Pine has worked to create what they call the “quintessential NEIPA with boutique hops.” The offspring of that labor of love is their award-winning Chaos Emeralds Double IPA featuring Galaxy and Mosaic hops.
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HOMES Brewery | Cat Person & Peaked

Over the past three years, HOMES Brewery out of Ann Arbor, Michigan, has quickly become one of the most buzzed-about breweries in the country. Two shining examples of their proficiency with hoppy beers can be found in Cat Person and Peaked.

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Device Brewing | Auto-Tune

Located in Sacramento, California, Device Brewing  has been a part of the craft beer scene for some time now (seven years to be exact). In that time, the brewery went from a single small production space and taproom to opening its third location in Sacramento. While not always considered the trendiest brewery in town, Device has always been known to produce high-quality beers. The brewery previously focused on consistent, year-round offerings, but has recently revamped their approach to include more one-offs.

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Roughhouse Brewing | Sordid Nature Dark Saison

On a recent trip to Austin, Texas, my wife Jenna and I paid a visit to Roughhouse Brewing in nearby San Marcos. Alex Pasternak, co-founder and creative lead, was gracious enough to show us around the brewery during off hours and let us sample some Roughhouse beers, including their Sordid Nature Dark Saison.

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Slice Beer Company | Turbo Nectar Hazy Double IPA

Slice Beer Company opened their doors in the fall of 2019. The brewery is led by two guys that are well known in the Northern California beer scene, Zack Frasher and Russ Yeager. Frasher was previously the head brewer for Moonraker Brewery and Russ was the marketing director and beer program manager for Old Town Pizza.

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Bonneville Brewery | Redline Irish Style Red Ale

Thirty-five miles west of Salt Lake sits Bonneville Brewery. The brewery sometimes gets lost in Utah craft beer conversations because it’s outside the capital city and it’s been brewing award-winning beers going on eight years now, which often means it’s excluded from the new-school–cool-kids-club.

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Hedgehog Brewing | Hop and a Skip

For many of us beer aficionados, spending an afternoon at a brewery, brewpub or tap house is a common treat. A time to relax with friends and family while tasting the newest beers that may or may not be distributed. For people like this, myself included, it’s easy to forget that many breweries rely solely upon distribution.

Taprooms can be a cash cow for breweries. These direct to consumer sales increase profit margins by cutting out third-party distributors and retailers. Some breweries start and end their business model with a high-profit taproom, while others wait to use the taproom profits to launch distribution. Other breweries like Hedgehog Brewing in Cedar Park, Texas, save the taproom for last.

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East Branch Brewing Company | East Branch Schwarzbier

Walk into any taproom and you’ll have a high chance of finding an IPA, Stout, Pale Ale, or another style with which you have grown familiar. While East Branch Brewing Company usually has some of these popular offerings on their draft list, they also mix in other, lesser known but just as tasty options. The perfect example is the East Branch Schwarz. Read More

Stoudts Brewing Company | Gearshifter IPA

A trip down the beer aisle will often set your heart aflutter and provide a flash of inspiration, but a recent sighting of Stoudts Gearshifter IPA incited more of a sinking feeling. With the impending retirement of the legendary Carol Stoudt, this six-pack was less about joy or reverie and more about quiet reflection.

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First Magnitude Brewing | Ursa American IPA

It’s not often that I find myself traveling back to my old college town of Gainesville, FL but when I do I make it a point of stopping into at least one of the breweries on each trip. First there was Swamp Head, but then First Magnitude Brewing Company came onto the scene in 2012 and the Gainesville brewery scene continues to grow. I was delighted at my first stop in First Magnitude’s tasting room: It was just so versatile and inviting! There is a large warehouse-style brewing area where they have some picnic tables, an intimate (and air-conditioned) indoor tasting room and bar and a spacious outdoor area where kids can play and their parents can sit and catch up under the shade. I sat down with Ursa, their flagship IPA, and took in the surroundings.

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BottleHouse Brewery & Meadery | Rising Star Stout

It’s not a shock that I’m a fan of BottleHouse Brewery & Meadery. I’ve shared this love before when I wrote about one of their award-winning ales in 2018. Since it’s Stout Month, I felt it appropriate to share another stellar example from the Cleveland area and one of my personal favorites: Rising Star Stout.

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Wolfden Brewing | Zombie Kolaczki

I travel all over Chicagoland for my job,  and work trips out to the suburbs offers me the chance to stop by a local brewery off the beaten path that I otherwise would overlook. Recently, I found myself lost in Bloomingdale, Illinois and it was here that I discovered the hidden gem of Wolfden Brewing, located in an old, haunted, building built-in 1851.

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Stickmen Brewing Company | S.M.A.C. Triple IPA

It’s been well established that Portland is a bustling beer mecca. Good beer is so easily accessible; often one can walk three blocks in any direction and accidentally run … Read More

Saugatuck Brewing | Peanut Butter Porter

Maybe it’s the nostalgia of the classic peanut butter and jelly sandwich we all enjoyed growing up. Or perhaps it’s because peanut butter and beer is an incredible combination- when executed correctly. Whatever it is, I can’t stop thinking about Saugatuck Brewing Co. Peanut Butter Porter.

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Brazos Valley Brewing Company | Slippin’ Into Darkness Russian Imperial Stout with Coconut

There is a myriad of possibilities when it comes to making use of coconut. You can put a lime in one and drink ‘em both up, or even bang two empty halves together whilst galloping the length and breadth of the land in search of knights who will join you in your court at Camelot. However, if you’re a brewery, you can do what the clever folks at Brazos Valley Brewing Company in Brenham, TX did and add coconut to an already delicious Russian Imperial Stout. Not since the Samoa Girl Scout cookie has coconut made something as delicious as Slippin’ Into Darkness with coconut.
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Fairhope Brewing | (Take The) Causeway IPA

Fairhope Brewing has been on the map in Alabama since I moved here back in summer 2015. They are constantly pumping out a variety of styles and unique additions to their lineup. They have, however, always had one that particularly stood out to me: (Take The) Causeway Double IPA.

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