CoffeeBeer >> Pint Pleasures >> Chicago 6


Back in May of this year I spent a week in Chicago, specifically to visit my old friend Robert and to meet his new Spanish Pointer, Orfeo. Orfeo and I instantly fell in love with each other--and, of course, it was wonderful to see Robert again after all these years. As Robert was working two jobs at home, I had the days to explore Chicago on my own. Having visited the city twice, back in the 1990s, I knew there was plenty of good food and things to see. But I had no idea Chicago had become such a spectacular beer town.

The third largest city in the United States after New York and Los Angeles, Chicago is famous for many things. It's the birthplace of the skycraper, House music, slam poetry, deep dish pizza, the Chicago-style hot dog, and baseball's Wrigley Field. It's also the home of Chicago blues, and it's where gangsters like Al Capone operated during the Prohibition-era 1920s.

Robert lives in the trendy neighbourhood of Andersonville, which was a good starting point for my explorations. I began my first day having a light breakfast at a local cafe and doing a little shopping, and as I was walking back to Robert’s flat, I became completely drenched in a sudden heavy thunderstorm. So after I dried out at his flat, I headed back out in the humid heat to find some lunch and my first proper pint in the city. Not far down Clark Street I found Hopleaf. I sat at the bar and had a pint of Zombie Dust Pale (6.5% ABV, 3 Floyds Brewing Company, Munster, Indiana). An American pale ale hopped with 100% Citra hops, this was such a fine, fine introduction to my Chicago beer experience; it was a really proper single-hopped brew done well. The lengthy beer menu featured a full page of Belgian brews as well as a full page of US craft beers, mostly from Chicago breweries. There was also a page called “Michael’s Secret List”, which described some very interesting farmhouse saisons, wild beers, and barrel aged madness. Hopleaf's beer menus appear to be printed fresh every day, which was more than exciting for a proper beer lover like myself.

Hopleaf was opened in early 1992 by Michael Roper, who gained his experience at the former Bronx Bar. The food menu uses local farms, organic ingredients when available, and they use the Monterey Bay Seafood watch for a guide to purchasing their seafood. They also use seasonal vegetables and engage in whole-animal butchery and in-house pickling. Their mussels, which are from Prince Edward Island in Canada, are served in either Wit Beer or White Wine, and they did look delicious. But as I wanted a light lunch, I went for the house-smoked salmon dip with rye crostini and pickled onions, which was excellent, and there was even a small dill pickle on the plate, which I always appreciate. Their food menu also features Welsh Rarebit, pork belly, poutine, a cheese board, Reuben brisket, Amish chicken, pan seared Atlantic salmon, a sausage plate, and roasted cauliflower. So basically there’s something gorgeous for everyone and all tastes. And here it is right here in Andersonville, the trendy LBGTQ capital of Chicago. What a perfect start to my Chicago brewery exploration. How could I possibly top this? Well, let’s see...

Later that afternoon I headed to the Bowmanville neighbourhood located a mile west of Andersonville. The afternoon was still very balmy and windy, but the clouds had moved away and it had turned quite sunny. I arrived at Spiteful Brewing Company fifteen minutes before it opened at 3:00, but I found a nice shaded seat in the front patio, where I was joined by a couple of other early imbibers.

At precisely four minutes past the hour Customer #1 entered the pub, followed by Customer #2, and then me. It was nice and cool inside. I took a seat at the bar, and instead of going for a pint I followed Customer #2’s lead of ordering a flight of four 5-ounce pours. The first leg of my flight was Pequods Session IPA (4.5% ABV). Hopped with Citra, Mosaic, and Simcoe hops, this offered that surprisingly appealing sweaty character that I got with my first taste of an El Dorado-hopped beer, but with a great darkly wake-up pine bang, obviously from the Mosaic. For such a relatively low-ABV session IPA, this was rather heavenly and OOMPH!y. It was a bit like riding in a convertible on a windy day with a Spanish pointer in your lap.

The second leg of my flight was Corporate Lemmings Hazy IPA (5.5% ABV), hopped with that combination of Citra and Mosaic that can be amazing if done just right. And again I was hit with an OOMPH! So it was two OOMPH! brews in a row. I mean, normally when I think about corporate things, I often picture lemmings stampeding from Parking Lot C into a windowless building where they obediently report to their desks for exactly eight hours of work. But once again the Mosaic in this beer rescues it from ordinariness. So is Mosaic a rebel hops? As I sipped this I thought back to my former Los Angeles ska-punk band days, as well as my computer programming job in aerospace, and how I would have loved to have dry-hopped all the corporate lemmings around me into exquisite Mosaic non-ordinariness.

Then I moved on to Tangerine IPA (6.2% ABV). Hopped with Citra and Amarillo with fresh tangerine added, this is like a glass of breakfast, and it’s just a nicely easy-drinkable mixture of hops for anybody afraid of stepping over the line and experiencing hop heaven. But the tangerine juice makes this far more than just easy-drinking.

My final leg was Spiteful IPA (6.2% ABV). A West Coast IPA hopped with Amarillo, Citra, and Nelson Sauvin, this was, oh god, yes! Yes! More! Harder, harder! These hops tasted like they’d been grown just outside in the garden.

Before I finished my flight, the barman brought me a sample of the just-tapped Stubborn Sally Hazy Pale (6.0% ABV), which was soft, juicy, and easy-going. As opposed to the four gold-coloured ales in my flight, this one was actually lemon yellow in colour and dry-hopped with Simcoe, Citra, and Amarillo. I also had a quick taste of Working for the Weekend (7.9% ABV), a double IPA hopped with Mosaic and Citra, and not the least bit suggestive of boring corporate types.

On another morning I caught the Red Line down to Millennium Park to see Cloud Gate, the giant mirrored torus created by Anish Kapoor. Nicknamed the Bean, this stainless steel sculpture was inspired by liquid mercury, and I couldn’t help wondering, if it were at all possible to create in our 3D world, what a 4D Klein bottle sculpture like this would look like. But then I do tend to think of things like that a lot.

As it was too early to head back up to a brewery in the North Center area, and the day was turning quite warm, I decided to cool off a bit by checking out the riverside. After being traumatised by the giant TRUMP tower looming over the north side of the Chicago River, I definitely needed a quick half with an untainted river view, and fortunately the Chicago Brewhouse was convenient there. As it’s mostly a restaurant, and the patio was quite busy, I sat myself at a small table directly next to the river, facing two iron bridges under which tour boats cruised by--and thankfully with my back to the disturbing edifice.

I decided on a half pint of Old Irving Beezer Hazy IPA (6.0% ABV, Old Irving Brewing Company, Chicago, Illinois). Double dry hopped with Citra and Mosaic, this was extremely acceptable for a riverside refresher. This beer was a Gold Medal Winner in 2019 for the GABF’s Hazy IPA category. I was served by Christian, who was very nice. Because of obvious confusion as to table locations, another waiter came along and mistakenly offered me a plate of chicken tacos and then returned a moment later with some nachos, at which point I explained that I had just stopped for a beer. But I have to admit the food did look pretty good.

Later that day I boarded the Brown Line from downtown and headed way out to the area south of Andersonville to visit the intriguingly named Hop Butcher For The World. This is a little bit of a low-profile place, so I nearly walked past it. When I entered and approached the bar, the first thing I noticed was that they offer 5-ounce, 10-ounce, 16-ounce, or 20-ounce measures. So for wandering beer explorers like me, I could have a couple of tasters rather than a full pint. I took a seat at the bar and went for two 5-ouncers. The first one, Alemerica the Beautiful (6.0% ABV), was an American Pale Ale brewed with Brewers and caramel malt, tangerines, and Mosaic hops. And ooh, yep, yesyes, it was heavenly and imparted a good Mosaic whomp!. My other choice was Money in the Bank Hazy IPA (6.5% ABV), hopped with Simcoe, Strata, and Mosaic. A collaboration with Pierce Tavern and Fuller House, this made me feel like I was sipping a tropical melon bath stirred with a bit of guava-ish tree trunk.

I also had a preview taste of Tavern King (8.0% ABV), a DIPA hopped with Citra, Vic Secret, Mosaic & Nelson Sauvin, which tasted like tangerine, as well as a taste of Unwind Your Mind (7.5% ABV), a hazy DIPA with Mosaic, Motueka, and El Dorado. This offered tropical fruit with citrus, so it was a bit like swinging from the branch of a lemon tree in the jungle. I also sampled Welcome to Luna (6.5% ABV), a WCIPA with a new hops called Luna. And it was wonderfully pine-resiny. I ended up getting another 5-ouncer of Maxell & Coney Go To The Ball Game (7.75% ABV), brewed with Citra, Mosaic, and Bliss Process Nelson Sauvin hops. This offered more tropical hoppiness. “Take me out to the hop fields...”

Fortunately, with the small glasses and the tasters, I floated out of there having had a total of only about a pint and a half of beers. But what a wonderful time I had.

On Friday, my final afternoon in Chicago, I once again took the Brown Line from downtown back to Damen, where I caught a bus and then walked for a while. I finally reached a huge car park, where I spotted tall brewing vats off in the distance, next to which I could make out a “Half Acre Brewing” sign over the door to what was obviously the taproom. Hallelujah! I said to myself. I could sure use a pint right now!

When I walked into the taproom of Half Acre Brewing, I found myself in a warm, friendly wood-framed setting, with the mounted head of a bear watching over a wide row of beer taps. I took a seat at the bar and pored over the menu, finally deciding on a pint of Daisy Cutter (5.2% ABV). A pale ale offering dank citrus, with edges of pine and biscuits, this was a delightful beer, just up my favourite tropical/citrus/dank alley. While I was enjoying my pint, a handful of true craft beer lovers started to enter, obviously happy that their work week had just ended. I guess that’s why it felt like such a happy place. A barman who had just started work asked me what I was drinking, and when I told him it was Daisy Cutter, and that my Bay Area friend Rick and I had it in the East Bay the previous year, he was really excited and pleased to hear that because he loves it himself. When I decided I wanted to end my session with a half of their Pony Pilsner, he bought it for me.

Pony Pilsner (5.5% ABV) is Half Acre’s house pilsner. Hopped with Noble hops, it was both bready and mildly zingy. I would love to have tried more of their beers, but I had things to do.

Half Acre offers flights and also 10-ounce, 16-ounce, and 20-ounce pours. They also sell snacks, burgers, popcorn chicken, gumbo, katsu sandwiches, and a PupCup, whatever that is, for dogs. Thursdays are Trivia Nights, Wednesdays feature Burger Specials, and on Fridays, Tappy Hour is from 1:00-5:00pm. I felt so happy in this place, and I realised that it would be my final Chicago brewery for this trip. All that means is that I’ll probably have to come back sooner than later for another visit.

Finally, I want to make a brief mention of Jimmy’s Pizza Cafe, where I treated Robert to a final meal until I next return. Jimmy's, which is actually a family pizza restaurant, specialises in New York-style thin-crust pizza, which both Robert and I prefer to the classic Chicago deep-pan style. Jimmy’s is a pretty casual and cavernous place, with a long take-away counter in the front, a child’s play area over on the left, and some seating, both picnic table-style and tall table style, elsewhere. We took a seat at a tall table over by the side window, as far away from the screaming kids as we could get. Fortunately this place offered a small selection of draft crafts, as opposed to, say Chuck E. Cheese’s. So that was a good omen for the quality of the pizza. I got myself a pint of West Coast Hero (8.0% ABV, Revolution Brewing, Chicago, IL), a DDH West Coast IPA nicely hopped with Simcoe, Centennial, Cascade, Amarillo, and Citra hops, and the two of us shared a Build-Your-Own pizza with garlic, black olives, and spinach, and Italian sausage on Robert’s side and jalapeños on my side. Our pizza was served on a towering pedestal set between us, and we were given paper plates and plastic cutlery. I did feel as though we were being treated like children; but at least the pizza and the beer were both good. And perhaps, if we cleaned our plates, we’d be allowed to go on the Cups and Saucers.

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PUB UPDATES:

  • TWO SHEDS, SHEFFIELD: One afternoon I enjoyed a pint of Cappadocia Floaty Ale (4.6% ABV, Triple Point Brewing Company, Sheffield, South Yorkshire). Malted with oats and wheat, and hopped with El Dorado, Cashmere, and Wolf hops, this is described as tasting like peach, tangerine, and pineapple. And YAYAYOOM! It is a very sensual brew. Once I spotted that wonderfully catchy name I had to have a taste of it, and I was happy I did.

    Another time I had a pint of Henge (4.4% ABV, Triple Point), which is described as a Druid Ale. And it’s just so good that it’s become one of my favourites here. I do hope they get it in often, as other people like it as well. I also had a taste of Cardon Cactus (4.2% ABV, Abbeydale Brewing Company, Sheffield, South Yorkshire) which was very nice, but it just wasn’t Henge.

    On another visit I had a taste of Kahuna (4.5% ABV, Beartown Brewing, Congleton, Cheshire). A passion fruit infused cask pale, this was nice and drinkable, lightly hopped. But I ended up going for a pint of Ellava Bear (4.6% ABV, Beartown). An Aussie Hopped Pale, also on cask, this is lightly hopped and bitter, and it was very good for soothing my exhausted stressed-out soul.

    Later I had a pint of Flavedo (4.5% ABV, Atom Beers, Kingston-upon-Hull, East Yorkshire). And hey, this citrus pale is a decent little beer, I must say. It’s simply hoppy. But it’s an Atom beer, so of course it’s good.
  • HALLAMSHIRE HOUSE, SHEFFIELD: I’ve tasted many things at this favourite pub of mine since I got back from America. A few weeks after I was back in Sheffield, I was suddenly faced with becoming the carer of a stroke victim. So the Hally, as we call it, has been a very comforting place for my breaks away from the hospitals and the house

    When I first returned in June, before the stroke event, I had a pint of Factotum (4.0% ABV, Pomona Island Brewing Company, Salford, Greater Manchester). This is a nice smooth pale, not exactly exciting but dependable. On another visit I had a taste of Rider Grove Summer Ale (4.2% ABV, Kelham Island Brewing Company, Sheffield, South Yorkshire). A collaboration with Full Circle Brew Co of Byker, Tyne and Wear, this is a really pleasant cask ale, in the same ballpark as Kelham Island’s Easy Rider. Then in July, I stopped in and had a pint of Hoppy Pale (4.2% ABV, Oakham Brewing, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire). This is a Hop Alliance collaborative with Thornbridge, and hey, it’s a very decent cask ale, traditionally hoppy.

    At the beginning of September, I revelled in cask pints of California Sun (4.5% ABV, Thornbridge Brewing Company, Bakewell, Derbyshire). Manager Doug was looking forward to this one as well. And it’s just a wonderful hoppy copper beer. What more can I say? On my next visit, although it was way too high in ABV for me to risk drinking in the pub, I had a cheeky taste of High Fives IPA (5.9% ABV, Verdant Brewing Company, Penryn, Cornwall). A collaboration with Thornbridge, this was pretty amazingly amazing, fully full in hoppy flavour, and truly truly good. What a temptation! I suppose one could come in and just have a half pint of this and nothing else. But I wish I could find it in a can to take home…
  • WALKLEY BEER COMPANY, SHEFFIELD: Back in July I had a couple of keg halves. The first one, Peach Melba (4.3% ABV, Pilot Brewery, Leith, Scotland) is a sour ale with raspberry and peach. And it was really nice! I think the Scots have got sour beers down pat. My other half was Steez Pale Ale (4.2% ABV, Yonder Brewing, Radstock, Somerset). Now, this is just a good pale keg beer, hoppy and so drinkable I continued with another half. On my next visit I had a pint of Plant Vibes Hazy Pale (4.2% ABV, Shiny Brewing Company, Derby, Derbyshire). Hopped with Southern Cross, Citra, and Ekuanot, this was quite Yep!

    In early August I had to go for a cask pint of American Five Hop #91 (4.3% ABV, Blue Bee Brewing Company, Sheffield, South Yorkshire). Having had only Versions 10, 14, and 31, I’ve missed most of these always fine creations, so I definitely had to try this one, seeing as how they’ve gone so far. This one was hopped with Citra, Amarillo, El Dorado, Columbus, and Idaho 7, and it’s probably the best version I’ve had. It was nice and cellar-cool as well on this warm, muggy, and emotionally stressful day.

    On a later visit I had a pint of What Gives? (4.4% ABV, Burning Sky Beer, Firle, East Sussex). An American pale ale with Chinook, Centennial, Antanum, and Columbus hops, this made me say “Yes!” It made me yearn for the USA, which I will hopefully be able to visit again next year, somehow. I also had a taste of Pavo (3.8% ABV, Squawk Brewery, Manchester). A pale ale with Mosaic hops, this was a good solid brew. A week later I enjoyed a pint of We All Smile We All Sing DDH Pale (4.3% ABV, Farm Yard Ales, Cockerham, Lancashire). I sipped this easy drinking hoppy pale while chatting with my French friend and giving her old Lab the love that he deserves.

    On a Sunday when I met my friend Mike for a catch-up, I was surprised to find a familiar face behind the bar whom I hadn’t seen in years: Josh, the head brewer at Sheffield’s Blue Bee Brewing. I first went for a pint of Tuesday Nights Pale Ale (4.6% ABV, Nothing Bound Brewery, Bewdley, Worcestershire). Hopped with Nelson Sauvin and Mosaic, this was really nice. And then I decided to have a second pint, this time of Citra Single Hop Pale (3.8% ABV, Blue Bee Brewing Company, Sheffield, South Yorkshire). And it was a very nice cask ale with that always pleasant citric hops. Mike, who isn’t drinking at the moment, had two cans of low-ABV IPAs. The first one, Chug IPA (0.5% ABV, Mash Gang Brewing, London) a hazy IPA hopped with Citra and El Dorado, was surprisingly satisfying for an IPA, with a good tropical hops burst. His second can, Half Day Hazy (0.5% ABV, Heaps Normal Cold Beer, London), wasn’t quite as spectacular, but perhaps it was just because it followed the Chug. Both tasted quite satisfyingly hoppy to me.

BOTTLED/CANNED BEER UPDATE:

  • In Chicago:
  • Maximus (9.0% ABV, Lagunitas Brewing Company, Petaluma, California)). This is a double IPA with Simcoe, Cascade, and Centennial, richly malted with wheat Munich malt, and English Crystal and described as having notes of pine, resin, and bittersweet citrus. It went very well with sushi at 11pm after my flight from Atlanta to Chicago, while I caught up with my dear creative-thinking friend Robert and his pretty amazing Spanish Pointer, Orfeo. At that strength, it was far better to drink it at 11pm than at 11am.
  • Zombie Dust (6.5% ABV, 3 Floyds Brewing Company, Munster, Indiana). Single hopped with Citra, this beer was alleged to be one’s only respite after the zombie apocalypse. So I knew I was safe sipping this safe hoppy brew.
  • Back at Home:
  • Soundwave Continuum Futuristic IPA (6.0% ABV, Siren Craft Brew, Finchhampstead, Berkshire). On the can it says this is “Inspired by West Coast IPAs with Columbus Cryo, added concentrated Abstrax terpenes, and advanced hop products Hyperboost. Next gen brewery science." It’s definitely got tropical and pine notes, so as far as I’m concerned it’s a very nice beer. morning as today’s after-work choice, and at the time I had no idea it would end up an AAGGGHHH! sort of day.
  • One Eye.(7.0% ABV, Tooth & Claw Brewing, Hartlepool, County Durham). After one hell of a day, starting with getting a lot of constructive stuff done and then dealing with major traumas, I relaxed with a nice strong can of this, which describes a bit how I’m feeling. When I popped open the can, the room filled with an aroma I could almost taste. The taste itself is amazing with leftover jackfruit curry and daal. It brings to mind bitter gooseberries and Philippine mahogany.
  • Backroads IPA (6.2% ABV, Nothing Bound Brewery, Bewdley, Worcestershire). After having fresh neon colours put in my hair (green, turquoise, purple, magenta, silver-white, and charcoal grey, to be exact) and coming back home to a nonresponsive housemate, this is where I wanted to go. And it’s just a nice fruity hoppy hazy brew that comforts the inside of my mouth.
  • Liquid Visions Dive Bar Sunshine IPA (6.0% ABV, Brewdog Ltd, Ellon, Aberdeenshire, Scotland). I arrived home from my first day back at work for weeks and found recent-stroke-victim Andrew sitting on the kitchen floor, unable to get up, with his breakfast fry-up all over the floor. Fortunately he wasn’t hurt, and his mind was all there--but he’d been sitting on the floor for over four hours, hungry, with no breakfast and a very hurt pride, and his hopes for a speedy recovery temporarily shattered. So I gave him all of the leftover Thai curry that we were going to share, simply because his appetite has been really good and I could find something else. After we got him up and out onto his sofa, I reminded him of the two-steps-forward-one-step-back progression of recovering from a stroke. And then I settled back with a can of this beer. It’s a fine beer, leaving sunshine visions on my palate. This is really excellent! It’s an Oomph! Yum! beer. And it inspired me to tell Andrew that he’s doing great and will get better and better. Yes, this is a positive, optimistic, inspiring brew.