3rd Annual Beer Culture Summit Set for November 4-7 in Chicago

Tickets are now available for the third annual Beer Culture Summit, which takes place November 4 7, and will feature some in-person events after going all digital last year. 

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An Ode to the Fall-Time Classic | The Pumpkin Beer

Every Midwesterner is familiar with the ritual. A stiff, cool breeze pushes through the air, alerting you to the change in seasons. A familiar crunch of dying foliage and an ominous whiff of bonfire – or maybe it’s grill smoke from the tailgate – fill the senses. The squirrels start moving a bit slower and look a bit rounder.  Maybe today I’ll get a hot coffee. Maybe this morning is the time to pull out the sweatshirt from its slumber. It’s time for Fall and everything it has in store. Fall is objectively my favorite time for seasonal beers. You get Oktoberfests, Wet Hop IPAs and more – you also get a heavy dose of pumpkin beers. While the Oktoberfest style might have the most celebrated history, the pumpkin ale has a unique story as well, and the booming seasonal style doesn’t show any sign of slowing down. 

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Cullen-Harrison Act of 1933 | National Beer Day

“I think this would be a good time for a beer,” exclaimed Franklin Roosevelt after signing the Cullen-Harrison Act on March 22, 1933. Though the passage of the 21st Amendment in December 1933 fully ended the nation’s temperance experiment, the Cullen-Harrison Act allowed for the legal sale of low-alcohol beer (and wine). It went into effect on April 7, 1933, a day we commemorate as National Beer Day.

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Ultimate 6er | A Beer Journey Through the Decades

Our country has gone through tough times before – wars, economic strife, pandemics, and political upheaval. So, as we move deeper into the 2020s, a decade with its own inauspicious start, we thought it would be nice to look back and different periods of history through the lens of craft beer. A Beer Journey Through the Decades starts during the 1920s and ends at 2020. Each decade presented society with difficulties, yet each era also had its good moments and offers evidence that 2020’s misery won’t last forever.

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Beer & Book Showcase | The Two Hendricks: Unraveling a Mohawk Mystery

Eric Hinderaker’s The Two Hendricks Unraveling a Mohawk Mystery discusses two men during the eighteenth century who played significant roles towards maintaining the Iroquois Confederacy amid a French-English rivalry regarding their mutual goal to control North America. Their history, somewhat hidden within broader narratives, at one point included a belief the two were only one person. Hinderaker discusses each men’s lives while also informing how the two men’s history merged (as well as why that could not have been possible). The elder took a trip to London and met the Queen. The younger met with several prominent British colonials. The discussion of both men’s lives provides a lens into the Anglo–Iroquois alliance, notably as it pertained to their place within the British – French struggle.

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COVID-19 | Finding Inspiration in Irish Women on St. Paddy’s Day

The craft beer industry ordinarily revels in St. Paddy’s Day celebrations—everyone is Irish on March 17. And on this St. Paddy’s Day, it behooves us all to remember the Irish’s resolve and endurance. Indeed, Irish and Irish Americans have routinely dealt with periods of enormous difficulty due to famine, disease, imperialism and racism. And we can especially look to Irish women for inspiration as they have shined brightly during the most challenging times, both on the Emerald Isle and in America. So, as we find the beer world, and the entire human race, at a crossroads, we can find inspiration in those Irish women. As Mother Jones once proclaimed: “Pray for the dead and fight like hell for the living.”

Since the COVID-19 pandemic has us indoors this St. Paddy’s day, here are four inspiring Irish women to celebrate the holiday. And, at the end, this Irish-American in Chicago will provide a little commentary and also mention a special beer that, while untraditional, captures the essence of Irish women’s tenacity and compassion — we can all use that right about now.
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Inaugural Beer Culture Summit Aims to Educate Chicago Beer Fans

It’s only fitting that the city with the most breweries would host a first of its kind conference exploring craft beer from the culture, history, diversity, and everything in-between. Chicago will be hosting the inaugural Beer Culture Summit on October 24-27, organized by The Chicago Brewseum.

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Chicago’s Beer Denotes its Rich Labor History

Chicago developed its big shoulders through the effort of those who toiled and labored, initially for little pay and having to endure horrendous working conditions. Railroads, meatpacking, printing and construction … Read More

Three Notch’d Brewing Company | Minute Man New England Style IPA

ABV: 7% | IBU: 20

Have you ever had an incredible taproom-only beer and wondered if it’ll ever come back? Three Notch’d Brewing Company out of Charlottesville, Virgina is all about producing exciting, innovative new beers on a weekly basis. The brewery has even expanded this philosophy at their satellite taprooms in Harrisonburg and Richmond thanks to dedicated small batch managers. And the greatest success to come from this the yearning to create, is the New England Style IPA, Minute Man.

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The Franklin Myth | “Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy”

Ben Franklin never wrote, “Beer is proof God loves us and wants us to be happy.” Despite numerous sources, such as Pinterest, Twitter and your local tee shirt guy, the quote — now this may shock some of you — started on the Internet and then numerous people shared it without bothering to check for its accuracy. WHOA! What’s next, fake news stories? Say it ain’t so, Internet Joe!

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Event Recap | Pike Brewing’s Piketoberfest

Piketoberfest is a meeting of gregarious souls in a historic venue. A celebration of the simplest things that have brought joy to humanity for millennia: Community. Food. Beer. Music. No need for a cherry on top when your emotional sundae bowl is overflowing with goodness.

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Goose Island Beer Co. | Brewery Yard

When drinking your favorite craft beer, how often do you think about the history behind it? To be honest there isn’t a lot of history behind most craft beer. In an industry that isn’t very old and more typically focuses on the new and exciting release, history often doesn’t make its way into craft beer. But Goose Island’s Brewery Yard is one beer that features a unique and interesting historical tale.

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Bad Tom Brewing

Bad Tom Brewing Co., formerly Double Barrel, is a new brewery in Cincinnati that offers a delicious array of beer and a history so deep, so ruthless, and so bad that you are immediately captured in the infamous tale every time you visit.

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