Revolution Brewing’s Deep Wood Series Gets Major Overhaul

If you’re in Chicago in November you’ll find a never-ending lineup of great barrel-aged beers being released seemingly every week. In addition to constant releases, you also have FoBAB in the beginning part of the month. This year, one release to not overlook is Revolution Brewing’s Deep Wood Series which gets released Nov 17.

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FoBAB—A National Barrel-Aged Party

Barrel-aged beers are the dope suits of the brewing world—looking good and ready for a party. Across the nation, brewery’s special releases and anniversary parties frequently involve something from a barrel, and bottle share parties are routinely marked by ice-filled buckets of barrel-aged whales. The Festival of Barrel Aged Beer (FoBAB) involves a sea of brewing alchemy; it’s the A-list party of brews. One will find special beer after special beer produced by some of the nation’s best breweries and barreling programs.

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Chicago Quick Sips | November 6

Quick Sips is our way of highlighting beer events, tap takeovers and other notable beer news around the city of Chicago. If you’d like to submit something to be included in the next Quick Sips, please email us at [email protected].

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Event Preview | 2017 Festival of Wood & Barrel-Aged Beers (FoBAB)

With the 15th annual Festival of Wood & Barrel-Aged Beers (FoBAB) less than a week away, the weeks and months leading up to this year’s event have been different than in the past. With a price increase and the Illinois Craft Brewers Guild releasing the brewery lineup before the event for the first time ever, there seems to be more talk about FoBAB than in recent years.

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FoBAB Releases Brewery Lineup for First Time Ever

To celebrate the 15th anniversary of the Festival of Wood & Barrel-Aged Beers (FoBAB), event organizers have released the complete list of breweries that will be pouring prior to the event for the first time ever. While the specific beers can’t be listed due to the competition and judging aspect tied to the festival, more hype has been added for the November event as festival-goers now have a preview of what’s to come.

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Drake’s Brewing Co. | Tart Breaker Sour Blonde

Drake’s Brewing Co has been releasing a steady stream of 500ml bottles of specialty brews this year and their newest, Tart Breaker, is out to steal your heart. Members of Drake’s ’89 Club, named after the year they were founded, are able to snap up bottles a week before the public.

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PorchDrinking’s Weekly Atlanta Beer Beat | August 2, 2017

The Atlanta Beer Beat sheds light on news of brewery openings, special tappings, firkins and one-off batches, bottle releases, dinners, pairings and more!

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SweetWater Brewing Co. | Belgian Rose

The Woodlands Project opened early this year and has already amazed and bewildered our tastebuds with taproom exclusives and merely one bottle release, “Through the Brambles,”—until now. After much anticipation over what the project would yield next, and when, SweetWater Brewing Co. announced it is releasing “Belgian Rose” this weekend. Read More

Goose Island Set to Release Four New Beers

On Monday July 3, Goose Island will have its largest release of the year. Alright, maybe there is a bigger release in November; but Goose will release four new beers into the market on Monday. 

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Dry Dock Brewing | Barrel-Aged Funk & Sour Series: Cassidae

ABV: 6.1% | IBU: 8
Last year, Dry Dock Brewing Company announced the launch of their Funk & Sour series, which features crowd-pleasing favorites from South Dock’s barrel-aging program. The series includes more than 80 barrels, which consist of mostly wine and some whiskey, and are dedicated to sour, Brett and mixed fermentations. I was able to get my hands on Batch No. 2, called Cassidae, a sour Brett saison that was bottled August 19, 2016.
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Birrificio del Ducato / Oxbow | Oud Brunello

Featured photo credit: Birrificio del Ducato.

ABV: 7%

Two years ago, back in the summer of 2015, I traveled to Italy. While I am normally a beer drinker, in Italy I … Read More

Event Recap | Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.’s Burly Beer Fest

PorchDrinking closed out winter with Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. and the North Carolina Craft Brewers Guild during their Burly Beer Fest on Saturday, April 1st. The festival featured 113 different beers with some really rare and special offerings available from 55 different breweries from all across the country. According to Margo Metzger, the Executive Director of the North Carolina Craft Brewers Guild, Burly Beer Fest “raised $10,000 to support [the] guild’s mission to make North Carolina the best place to brew beer (and drink beer) in the nation.” Combine all that was available with the general atmosphere provided by the grounds around Sierra Nevada and it was easy to relax, enjoy yourself and sip some huge beers in a proper send off to winter all in support of a great cause.

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Journey into the Woodlands

SweetWater Brewing Company has always pushed an image of nonconformity. Its latest venture, The Woodlands, is no different. Over the last 20 years, SweetWater has focused on growing its brand, and as founder Freddy Bensch explains “We have capacity under control, and can give more time to projects we’ve always aspired to do.” Bensch continued, pointing out, “We’re always challenging ourselves to evolve and master our craft.” The Woodlands is the physical manifestation of the brewery’s vision to push its practice and, as Bensch finished, “…make some really phenomenal beers.” So it was in this spirit of innovation and mastery that the Woodlands was born.

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Goose Island Set to Release a Variety of New Beers

Goose Island is getting ready to release a variety of new beers throughout the next quarter and into the rest of 2017. From a new Fulton & Wood Series beer to a lot more barrel aged beers, I went out to Goose Island to try the new releases and taste the results of their experimenting. Read More

Founders Brewing Co. | Frootwood Barrel-Aged Cherry Ale

ABV: 8%

You won’t find the best beer from Founders Brewing Co. in Grand Rapids, Michigan — you’ll find it below Grand Rapids, where barrels of goodness hibernate in caves. For example, each April, the famous Kentucky Breakfast Stout (KBS) arises from its slumber and seeks to conquer the palates of beer geeks everywhere. And this year, for Founders Brewing’s 20th Anniversary, several special beers are emerging from those caves, too. So, let us talk about the first release, a barrel-aged cherry ale from Founders named Frootwood.

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The Bruery to Release Chocolate Rain to the Public

Featured photo contributed by The Bruery

The Bruery’s forecast calls for a 100% chance of rain… Chocolate Rain that is, and we couldn’t be more excited. What began as a single cask of beer that was released in 2009 for a Black Tuesday release event has since become a, wait for it, legendary brew that members of The Bruery’s exclusive beer societies have enjoyed. But for the first time on March 24, Chocolate Rain will be pouring for all. Read More

Odell Brewing | Elephunk Imperial Wild IPA

ABV: 9.9% | IBU: 33

Funky doesn’t begin to describe Odell Brewing Elephunk Imperial Wild IPA. This delicious boozy palette puncher is indeed a wild ride. It’s weird. It’s complex. It’s funky with a “p-h.” Yep, it’s PHunky.
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Horse Thief Hollow | Buffalo Trace Barrel-Aged Cinnamon Girl

Image Courtesy Horse Thief Hollow Brewing Co.

ABV 9.8%

People love eating breakfast. Hell, they love it so much it actually co-opted another meal of the day (lunch) to make the super popular brunch. While some have the time to make a hearty breakfast meal, others must run out the door with little time to eat cereal. With a few exceptions (Raisin Bran and Cheerios for example), you’re going to sound like a 5-year-old when you tell someone what you had for breakfast, though. How do you avoid that social situation? Read More

Listermann Brewing Co. | Bourbon Barrel Aged Chickow!

We have a special beer here in Cincinnati, one in which is hard to pass up when you find it and has more delicious variations than Lady Gaga’s wardrobe. Listermann Brewing Co. is the proud father of Chickow!, a Hazelnut Double Brown Ale weighing in at a hefty 10% ABV. It has grown from a local favorite to being nationally recognized at the 2016 Festival of Barrel Aged Beers in Chicago. Listermann brought home two medals this year with their Barrel Aged Chickow! Not only did it win gold in the category of Speciality/Experimental beer, but it won the highest award of being Best in Show! Read More

Oskar Blues Releasing Rum Barrel-Aged Death By Coconut & Ten Fidy

As craft beer continues to grow, some of its biggest breweries, brewers and even beers have begun garnering cult-status followings. 2016 has been an especially massive year for cult-ish following beers … Read More