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Chicago

Discuss beer travel and regional information, including the best bars and places to check out around in Canada and around the world, and other chat that is not specific to Ontario.

Moderators: Craig, Cass

electroluminescent
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Post by electroluminescent »

I'm in Chicago right now, it seems the hot new brewery around town is Pipeworks, tough to find and they only do limited release bottlings but I've managed to track down five pretty good beers of theirs so far.. They're in Wicker Park, they aren't licsenced to sell on site yet but should be "soon". Nice guys and a cool little place they have as well.

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Cass
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Post by Cass »

New place to report in the downtown area, just north of the Loop in River North.

Called "Stout Barrel House & Galley", this used to be a nightclub but totally gutted and quite a nice bar & resto now. Good tap list with about 15-20 including various US micros including 3F, Allagash, Firestone and some of the new local micros.

Located on Clark Street just south of Clark St. Ale House. A great addition to downtown as there's not a ton of craft beer in the Loop area.

http://stoutchicago.com/beer-menu/

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Cass
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Post by Cass »

Just got back from an impromptu weekend in Chicago, and a couple of updates for the thread...

For anyone who took the L to the Publican you'd know that it was in between stops and quite a walk. Well, they did what would probably never happen in Toronto, and they added a new stop in between! So the new Morgan stop on the Green/Pink line is right around the corner from Publican and makes it super easy to get to the area now. Also, the Publican does a house-blended lambic and it's one of the best beers I've had.

Half Acre opened a tap room adjoining the brewery just a couple of weeks ago. Great space, really nicely designed and all their beers available for $4/$5/$6 depending on glass size, taxes in. No food but you can bring in your own grub. Really fun vibe and a spot that's now on my list of go-to places in Chicago. Not a very far walk from Montrose on the Brown line.

sprague11
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Post by sprague11 »

Went down by car last fall for our first anniversary. Didn't hit a lot of beer destinations (wife was pregnant) but had a great trip. Lots to do in the city (and my wife found a ton of shopping in the suburbs).

Stocked up on Pipeworks bottles at WLV Liquors. These guys can brew! The store has a ton of bottles crammed into a fairly small space. Binny's had a good selection, but some asshole swiped a bottle of Saison Brett from my cart while I was helping my wife pick out some bottles of wine to bring back home.

We took a side trip to Kenosha which included a stop at Tenuta's Deli and picked up a fair number of New Glarus bottles. Only drawbacks were the tolls along the highway (one every 10 minutes) and a massive Birch Run-like outlet that my wife insisted on in exchange for the New Glarus run. Also caught glimpse of a massive 6 Flags park between Chicago and Kenosha that ensured a trip back to the area when the baby is age-appropriate for rides.

Stopped at Three Floyds on the way up and was told that new botttles were coming out later in the week if we were stopping on the way back. Gotta give kudos for good customer service - wound up coming home with bottles of Dreadnaught bottled 2 days prior.
"A good light beer is one that doesn't taste like piss!" - Frank d'Angelo

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Cass
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Post by Cass »

Another quick update from Lolla weekend. Not a lot of opportunity to try new things but went for lunch yesterday at Jerry's on Divison St (one of their two locations). Great spot, about 20 really interesting craft taps, a bunch of bottles and a ton of sandwich options on the menu. Really nice space with lots of tables inside and a patio on the sidewalk.

Division itself makes for a great visit, as it's a really cool strip where most of the restos have patios on the sidewalk. On that strip alone is Bangers & Lace, SmallBar and of course Jerry's, along with a bunch of other places. Easy access from Division on the Blue line.

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cratez
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Post by cratez »

Cass wrote: Not a lot of opportunity to try new things but went for lunch yesterday at Jerry's on Divison St (one of their two locations). Great spot, about 20 really interesting craft taps, a bunch of bottles and a ton of sandwich options on the menu. Really nice space with lots of tables inside and a patio on the sidewalk...Easy access from Division on the Blue line.
I had mixed feelings about Jerry's.

The beer selection was among the best that I encountered in Chicago and the sandwiches were absolutely delicious, but the crowd was kinda strange and our waiter was a total douchebag. We sat on the patio and were surrounded by a bunch of Kardashian types tapping away on their phones and talking about summer fashion. Amazingly I was the only one drinking beer; everyone else was drinking cocktails.

That wasn't enough to ruin things but then the waiter essentially argued with us while we were ordering and he "forgot" to bring back change that amounted to a 40% tip. I got a definite trendoid vibe that rubbed me the wrong way, and it wasn't at all what I envisioned for a beer and sandwich spot.

With that being said, I'd like to assume it was just an "off" day there as the food and beer options are undeniably great and they still have good ratings on BA and RB.
"Bar people do not live as long as vegan joggers. However, they have more fun." - Bruce Elliott

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Cass
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Post by Cass »

Hmmm, that's odd. We went during the day for lunch before Lolla. It was totally pleasant - the server was quick and attentive - in fact I think he wanted to make sure we weren't waiting around as we were wearing Lolla wristbands.

Had 2 beers and a sandwich and it was just great. A perfect stop before the insanity that was the fest :)

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Cass
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Post by Cass »

Any Towellers heading down to FoBaB next weekend?

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Cass
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Post by Cass »

Some other nice spots in Chicago…

- Fountainhead is a cool "gastropub" type place with an excellent draught list and good food. Not too busy which is always welcome in Chicago. They also have a "Barrel Room" which is barrel-decorated back room, with an opening to the back of the main bar. Pretty cool and unique feature. Walking distance of the Half Acre Tap Room so a good one-two combo.

- In the Damen/Milwaukee area there's a new spot called Trenchermen, a bar built into an old bath house. So, lots of tile and a unique room look. Good tap list.

- After wanting to go forever I was finally able to make it to Kuma's Corner, which is well known locally for their burgers. The bar is heavy metal/punk themed, so the music matches as do the burger names. Often can be a wait but easy to stand around and have some beer. Three rotating regular Three Floyds taps which seems appropriate, along with a number of other taps. Great burgers but honestly a bit large for my tastes (10oz). Any burger is replace-able with veggie which is always nice. Also, it's near Belmont on the Blue Line so makes for a good stop (when time permits) if you're taking the train up to O'Hare.

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FEUO
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Post by FEUO »

Been to Chicago a few times in the past year or so.

Places I will recommend (mind you the city has a TONNE to offer):
- HOPLEAF An amazing tap and bottle list, and incredibly good food. I recommend the brisket and mac'n'cheese (and the rabbit sausage if they still have it on the menu).
- LOCAL OPTION Another amazing tap list, bit of a younger and more "metal" crowd. Located in the university district so thats expected.
- MAP ROOM May have the best tap and bottle list of the bunch. They also have goodies under the bar. Cozy up to a tender and just ask nicely.

As for bottle shops just hit up a Binny's or if you can go to the Beer Temple.
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TheSevenDuffs
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Post by TheSevenDuffs »

I was able to visit a few places on a trip to Chicago back in July and here are my comments:

Bad Apple - Really good burger joint with a solid tap list and a really nice bottle list. Got for dinner.

Local Option - Fantastic tap list and great vibe. Highly recommended.

Revolution - a bit disappointing. Tap list consisted of almost entirely their standard lineup. No barrel aged beers, no interesting brewery only beers. Skip it unless you have a lot of time.

Half Acre - cool little spot that's best to hit up for a pint of two after dinner.

Goose Island Clybourn - Decent place. You are bound to find a couple of interesting one-offs or brewery only beers and literally across the street from a great Binny's bottle shop. Go to Binny's and sneak in a pint at the brewpub before you head back on the road.

ckoop
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Post by ckoop »

any recommendations on where to stay? i've been before and stayed in the loop and near the mag mile but since this is a totaly beer-centric trip i'd like some good home base ideas. taking transit the whole time.

atomeyes
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Post by atomeyes »

ckoop wrote:any recommendations on where to stay? i've been before and stayed in the loop and near the mag mile but since this is a totaly beer-centric trip i'd like some good home base ideas. taking transit the whole time.
try finding an AirBnB or a B&B outside of the loop. some stuff in wicker park, but it books up really fast. plus, the subway connections are a pain in the ass out there.

I just got back. man, some nice stuff.

Local Option - some fun stuff on tap. something called Zombie Dust?...

Bangers and Lace - had Cantillon Lou Pepe kriek on tap. buh. also some other really fun stuff. out of 26 taps (i think), i'd drink a good 10 of them.

Big Star - inferior tacos to the toronto stuff. OK beer list.

Publican - great beer list. 2 lambics/gueuze available on draught. a Bruery beer on tap as well. good bottle list. killer food, killer staff, killer location. such a great place.

Empourium arcade - great video games, pretty good tap list. not as good as the other 3 bars above, but worth the visit

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Cass
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Post by Cass »

Anyone planning on going to FoBaB (Festival of Barrel Aged Beers) this year?

I'm going and I know a small contingent of local brew folks are as well.

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Cass
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Post by Cass »

News from Chicago via FB:
After 15 years, Goose Island Wrigleyville will be closing on Tuesday, September 30th, 2014. We have been operating on a month to month lease with our landlord since February 2014 with the assurance the lease would run through baseball season 2014. We are closing because we were not able to secure similar assurances that we would be able to operate through the 2015 baseball season. We want to thank our loyal customers for their support through the past 15 years and invite them to visit us at Goose Island Clybourn in Lincoln Park.
John Hall

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