The Beer Traveller

First & only stop in Illinois was the well know Goose Island Brewery. I was told by Kara (patron @ Asylum Ale) that the location by Wrigley Field was the most happening location so that would be where we were going. We missed it the 1st drive-by & I see think was over stimulus of being in MT & SD for too long.

As soon as we exited the truck, we met 2 guys from Paramount Merchants. They informed me they are also in the beer industry & recommended some good local bars. Goose Island was not bad, but just not what I expected. Not sure what i was expecting, but it just was (looks-wise). Food wise, I got Bratwurst the size of a baby’s arm & Melissa got a cheeseburger & cheese fries. Both were excellent.

Beer wise, they were about average, a lot of Drinkables & Likables w/ only one Exceptional. Almost more important than my own thoughts were my sister’s (a avid Labatt’s Blue drinker). I thought the Liquid Inspiration Ale was a Likable Oatmeal Stout w/ a little funky after-taste. Melissa felt that it was a cross between Dayquil & NesQuick. No doubt she will be bringing a new perspective to beer tasting.

I was curious to try one of Goose Island’s reserve specialty’s, a Belgian called Matilda. I felt that it was 2 sweet for a Belgian, but Drinkable. Melissa’s 1st thought on her 1st Belgian…”Holy Crap…how can people drink that shit!”. Their 2nd reserve specialty was another Belgian, a 9% called Pere Jacques. I thought they aced this one; not only was it my favorite of theirs, but I gave it an Exceptional. Melissa thought this was their worst.

Goose Island was a decent brewery, but they don’t exactly have much competition in the area. We got out to the car only to find it had been left unlocked. Luckily everything was still in there. To all thieves reading my website, we will not be making this mistake again.

Great Dane reminded me a little of the Elysian in Seattle, in that they have 3 locations & a shit load of beers. They serve sample trays from 1 to 10 beers, but this wasn’t going to do me any good considering they had 18 beers to try.  I was also pretty sure that by this time in the day I didn’t need 18 x 5oz of beer.  Megan (bartender) was amazing & knew just what I needed; she than met my needs. They had a large upstairs bar & dining facility, but I had to bee-line it to the lil’ boys room to rid myself of the remnants of Ale Asylum.  There was a sign pointing downstairs to The Beer Garden…I knew this was where I belonged.  This is also where they had Megan locked-up, down in the basement.
At this point my taste buds were a little worn out so this was going to be a challenge.  Eighteen more flavors to stimulate my senses before giving WI a 2nd chance on the camping front.  With 18 beers, you would think these guys were half-assing everything but they surly had some winners.  Now I hope I get this names right, but my writing starts getting a little sloppy this time of the night.  Unsure if it’s b/c I see double or just that my hand starts shaking at the sight of 18 more beers. 

Exceptionals included Stone of Scone Scotch Ale (try saying that 18x when you’re drunk), Texas Speedbump IPA, Black Watch Scotch (cask), & Old Glory APA (cask).  Amy (server) was cut & popped a squat next to me to shoot the shit w/ Megan.  She seemed to have her swerve on in regards to beer knowledge.

The highlight was after 2 other breweries & about 12 of Great Dane’s 18 beers I noticed that one of the beers she gave me was wrong.  After the wonderful service I was receiving, I felt it necessary to call her out on it.  Better yet, I was able to tell her which one it was rather than what she had it as.  I think she had some doubt until Amy stole the next swig & said…”he’s right!”.  I felt like I had just been drafted to the pros.

Great Dane definitely had a lot more going on upstairs than down in the dungeon, but I’m guessing the service wouldn’t compare.  Great place w/ great service & great beers.

Ale Asylum was one of the breweries that Jaime recommended.  It was located in an office park surrounded by ‘normal’ offices.  The inside was that of cosmopolitan billiards room w/ a dark twist.  A pool table, darts, & high bar tables.  They also had an outdoor patio, but I never made it out to that. 
I met Tony & Kara, both avid beer drinkers.  I think Kim was actually more up on her game than Tony, but both great peeps.  Congrats Kara for being the quickest guestbook entry after receiving the link.  Angela started my process, but I spent more time talking with the other bartender, Tovah (a fellow NY’r).  Also met patrons Scott, Shawn & wife Paula, Kim, & Sandy.  Sandy reminded me of the female version of Norm (but much better looking) when she mentioned she’s in there about 5x/week.

AA makes some quality & potent beers.  Overall, their beers ranked a little higher with only their Gold Digger Blonde falling into the Drinkable category.  Three out of the 9 received an Exceptional;they were Contorter Porter, Happy Ending Belgian, & Madtown Nut Brown.  Their Hatha-Weizen had a strong, but good banana flavor while their Hopalicious Pale was more like an IPA.

Odd location, but it was obvious they knew what they were doing & their regulars backed them 100%.

I was under the impression that I had found a new brewery to add to www.goodbeermaps.com. I was looking for Dells Brewing Co.; turns out they’re one in the same. Cool looking place constructed of large logs (i.e. log cabin) w/ lots of seating (for 600) & lots of dead animals on the wall.

Ben the Bartender served me well & even Beata the non-beer drinking waitress came over to chat. The beers were just ok/average. Ones that stick out were the Raspberry Creme Ale, that tasted like H2O’d down Kool-Aid. It was Likable; no beer flavor, but not too fruitty/sweet either. Jaime also makes an excellent Stout.

Jaime Martin is the brewer for Moosejaw & the first woman brewer that I’ve met. Ben called her to come down & meet me. She stopped down w/ her assistant Jonathon. We chatted for quite a while until she had to get back to work, but offered me a tour once I got done w/ my beers. She ended up finishing her day before I finished my beers & came down to have a beer w/ me.

She’s got an interesting history; went to school for brewing, but no-one would hire her. She work as an apprentice here, for free, for 5 months before her boss batted for her getting paid. After a while scrubbing floors & other shit labor, she finally worked her way up to brewmaster. She informed me that WI Dells has the most water parks/capita of anyplace in the world. She also said this was where the 1st water park started.

I also got the lowdown on making beer, beer types, hop situation, mergers/acquisitions, & many other things. Thanks for the chat Jaime & keep up the good work.

Great Waters was the climax of my trip to Minnesota.  It seems like the bars just kept getting better (unless I was just getting drunker). In all honesty I don’t know if these guys were catering to The Beer Traveller T-shirt or if they treat all their customers this way, but I received VIP treatment to the max.  Not only do they brew some awesome brews, but they don’t foget the details when it comes to accurately tasting beers as well. First sign that these guys know what’s up is the fact that they only poured me 3 beers at a time for my sampling. They wanted me to try them fresh off the tap.  Now I know a lot of folks say beer is served colder to cover up things, but they guys only wanted consistency in my tasting.  I’m not sure if I’m an asshole, difficult, or just extend my welcome but just about all my stops lately have involved a changing of the bartenders.  Liam started off by only pouring the original three.  Paul later came over & was amazing in regards to answering my questions & treating me like 1st class.  I believe Liam was also floating around.  So now you’re wondering if they can brew beer…they absolutely can! I’ll admit it was the end of the day & this was my last stop, but 4 out of their 9 beers scored my Exceptional. Cywren Saison = fucking amazing.  Giant Star IPA, Kaizerweizen Hefeweizen, & St. Peter Pale Ale (cask) all received my highest rating.  The other 5 brews received Likable; there wasn’t 1 Drinkable or Undrinkable in the lot.  More detailed reviews will be coming shortly when I can get some more time.  Don’t worry I took copious notes (not always legiable) to accuratly record my experiences.  The other detail I noted was delivering a iceless water w/o my asking; it’s a lot like laundry, nobody discusses the rinse cycle but it’s an intricat part. Giant Star was one of the original pours of the night, but Chuck recommended saving that for last.  When I was on my last round, Chuck proactively dumped my IPA to get me a fresh one.  These guys are top notch & their beers were rated independatly of all the ass kissing I received.  Keep up the great work!

Barley John’s Brew Pub was the polar opposite of Town Hall regarding looks.  It appeared to be a little cafe/sub shop up on a lil’ hill outside of downtown. Quaint is good!  Inside appeared to be a converted diner, but behind the bar was pure brew pub.  Samples were larger (6 oz) than usual & served in Pilsner glasses.

Jim started me off & said he was fairly new here.  That didn’t change the fact that I bombarded him with questions hoping to get answers.  Later he tagged Hultman (yea, it took me a few times to get this right) in.  Hultman had a wealth of knowledge having been there for a while; he also was a big beer advocate.

Unfortunately they too were out of a couple of their beers. They could only provide me w/ 3 samples, but the 13.5% Dark Knight Barley Wine made up for alcohol consumption. Unlike some of the other Barley’s I’ve had, this reaked of booze & tasted like a mix drink.  Aroma alone will get you railing.  They call it Dark Knight…I’m thinking more like Dark forgetful night.  Hultman informed me that the yeast is the tricky part when brewing this AV%.  Something Sam Adams specializes in.

Wild Brunette had a unique, but tasteful, flavor due to the use of MN wild rice.  Now we all know bud has been known to use rice, but Barley John’s does it right.  Highlight of the trip was the Old Eight Porter.  Perfect combo of chocolate & roastiness w/o tasting burnt.  This one gets an Exceptional, while the Wild Brunette gets a Likable, & Dark Knight receives a drunkable Drinkable.

Another thanks to Hultman & Jim.  Wishing this place had more of their beers as I’m pretty sure I would have been pleased.

Town Hall Brewery is located in a historically old building on a street corner in downtown Minneapolis. They have a huge outdoor patio, but I choose the inside as it’s easier to pester the bartender.  The inside is amazing w/ vaulted metal ceilings & the smell of history.  Brandon the Bartender seemed to be having an off day, but hooked me up w/ a succulent sampler.

It was soon decided that it wasn’t quite as succulent as it looked.  There was nothing bad, but nothing great either.  I would classify their overall selection as safe or average; w/ all beers given a Drinkable or Likable rating.  They’ve managed to secure some hops as was evident in both the Masala Mama IPA & Evolution Ale (EVO in the cask).  Both beers should be reserved for hop-heads only; Ryan was unsure of the IBUs, but I’m guessing their up there.  Although average, there were some brews that stuck out.  The Cara Java is a coffee brew that has an amazing coffee flavor.  As a current Seattlite, I know my coffee.  This brewed was instantly reconized as being brewed w/ exceptional coffee; this was later verified as Peace Coffee by Brandon.  It was only given a Likable b/c it tasted more like a coffee bean than a cup of coffee; trival but true.  The other stick-out was American Blueberry Wheat, a seasonal.  This was worlds away from Northern Lights Bluebeery Creme.  It wasn’t overly fruity, but still had the distinct blueberry flavor.

I’m thinking this would be a great spot to hit @ night.  No idea on the food, but the beer is good enough to stop for. 

Detour caused a few wrong turns & some tours of sketchy neighborhoods, but I finally got to The Herkimer.  From the outside, it looks like an Irish Pub, but their beers are purely German. If you’re a local that likes variety, this may be the place for you.  They brew 17 different beers & use keep 6 on tap at any one time.

The brewmaster is from Germany & the beers are all German Lagers.  They had some equipment issues & had to scrap some beer so I only tried 5 of their brews.  Unfortunately I was not a fan; the one exception being the High Point Dunkel which received an exceptional.  The 2nd place finish was the Red Flyer Marzen, which is said to be the employee favorite.  The Dunkel Weiss was undrinkable with the other 2 beers falling in the drinkable category.  Full reviews will be coming soon.

On the upside, Iowa Ryan gave 1st class service w/ a smile.

Granite City has a plain front & a boring name, but their food & Beer are quality & complimented by a tastefully done interior.  Jesse was working the bar & forthright in her favorite brews.  Other than her taste regarding wheats & wits, we are pretty similar in what we like & dislike (macro American lagers). 

Brother Benedicts Bock took my 1st place in sampling.  A mouth watering maltiness helped seal the deal.  Duke of Wellington IPA was the King of hoppiness without overdoing it.  The bottem of the list was the Northern Light Lager.  Jesse explained it as “closest to a domestic” as she served it up; she was right, too bad I can’t stand domestics (macro-brewed).

Again this bar sported a mixing of the brews, but this time actually marketed it as it’s own beer called Two Pull.  The mixing of Northern Light Lager & Brother Benedict cheapened Benny & brought some taste to the Lager.  My thought…why ruin a good thing.  The mix ranked down w/ the Lager as Drinkable.

The only downside to the whole experience was the G’damn smokers.  We all know that some states are behind others & SD is no exsception when it comes to smoking in public places.  I grew up w/ smoking parents, smoking sisters, & smoky bars (NY).  Since I have lived on the left coast, I have truly appreciated smoke-free zones.  Granite, you’re like the Two Pull; one half ruined by the other half.

After driving hung-over, the last thing I wanted was to start beer sampling.  Sometimes you just have to take one for the team!  I pulled in to Rapid City to find Firehouse Brewing Co.  I actually passed another Sanford’s Pub & Grub; part of me really wanted to stop & try their other 2 beers, but between being hung-over & my last expereince I made the executive decision to skip that stop.

Firehouse appears to be exactly that, an old brick firehouse.  It’s a large 2 floor establishment w/ an outside patio.  The boys @ Crow Peak warned me not to expect much in reference to the house beers, but I always try to keep an open mind when drinking…sometimes the drinking opens it further.

Michelle (bartender) gratiously greeted me w/ a sampler of all their beers.  The boys @ Crow Peak were right.  The Firestorm Ale was the only Likable of the bunch.  Brown Cow Ale, Eagle Pale Ale, Prodigy, Smoke Jumper Stout, & Wilderness Wheat were all given a Drinkable.  The food & the service, on the other hand, were great!