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Episode 162 - Illinois Craft Beer Week 2025 Preview (feat. Ray Stout)
44 Plays4 days ago
This week our old friend Ray Stout of the Illinois Craft Beer Guild joins us to discuss Beer Under Glass and other happenings for Illinois Craft Beer Week.
Beers on this episode:
Half Acre Beer Company - Akari Shogun
Hop District Community Brewing - Rebello
Hopewell Brewing Co. - Sharp
Grab your tickets for Beer Under Glass 2025 here:
https://www.universe.com/events/beer-under-glass-at-harris-theater-in-downtown-chicago-tickets-HVPGBK
Theme music provided by Myke Kelli (@mykekelli)
Outro music provided by @FluidMinds
Check out all our episodes at www.themaltinghour.com
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Transcript
00:00:01
Speaker
I'm assuming that's coming back. Man, you already know. Friday Night Flights. I do. You told me to remember. I put it on
Welcome Back Ray Stout to Discuss Illinois Craft Beer Week 2025
00:00:08
Speaker
the calendar. just This week, we welcome back Ray Stout to discuss Illinois Craft Beer Week 2025. This is episode 162 of The Malting.
00:00:18
Speaker
What's the haps on the hops? Got yeast, that's peace. This the molten hour where we talk about our drink and tell you what we think every other week. And if we get drunk, well, we might slur our speech.
00:00:28
Speaker
Got the gift of gab, the friends who wish you had. Join us for a drink. Join us for a laugh. Time is never wasted. When you're getting wasted? The molten hour here. People, people, take your places.
00:00:38
Speaker
People, people.
Joking About Feeling Like Family
00:00:44
Speaker
Welcome to the Malting Hour. am one of your hosts, Tony Gillick, joined always with... Brandon Winninger. And to his right, no stranger to the podcast, our friend... Ray Stout. Welcome back, Ray. Hey, you know, I think we're getting to the point where I feel like a cousin. You know, i see you guys absolutely twice a year during holidays. We have a great time. And we think about, like, oh, i love those guys. I'll i'll see them when ah the next Beer Fest runs around. You know, they just... ah I know you you didn't go last year...
00:01:12
Speaker
You have any intention of going to Riot Fest this year? The lineup is absolute fire. yeah you know Although we saw Green Day last year, and we also saw Blink last year, so I think that Weezer Day, that Saturday, might be the the prime day for the Stout family. Well, if ah you end up going, I will seek you out
Riot Fest Excitement and Band Lineup
00:01:29
Speaker
or I'll text you. think the only band I probably haven't seen is Green Day.
00:01:33
Speaker
um and i was looking i was thinking about doing just the the single day ticket too but like i spent way too much money i don't have any money we did uh green day at wrigley last year and it was it was ah spectacle oh i'm sure it was it it was just so cool ah you know but weird al is playing every day so that's that's the dad yeah weird al is the no effects of this year where they play it all years. And I'm okay with that. Yeah, so am i Yeah, there's there's there's a lot of other... Welcome to the Riot Fest Hour.
00:02:02
Speaker
There's a lot of other bands in the like the smaller print that I grew up listening to that I also have never seen or it's been forever. mean, Chicago's Screech Weasel is playing, and they're playing my favorite album from them, My Brain Heard, so i'm really excited about that. Bad Religion's playing Suffer.
00:02:20
Speaker
So there's you there's a bunch of bands that I want to see. The Tossers are going to be there, too. Are they? Yeah. Are they on the list? I don't know, but they they shared the list and said, we're going to be there. And I don't know if they said what day, but I was like, man, I love the tossers.
00:02:32
Speaker
I know Dropkick Murphys are there. They are. I'm excited see them. Me too. But yeah, there's plenty to go see. So I will, you know, I'll find you. That's the only time I went to Beer Fest that I think I would see you.
00:02:43
Speaker
And I'll tell you, much like Riot Fest, you know, craft breweries, you know, sometimes the headliners are awesome, but it's those people who are down the list really, really rock it. I like the way you just kind of reeled that in. a nice my ah I'm on the clock. yeah it' My thing was just to tell Tony to shut the fuck up. yeah Normally that's what Let's move this along. Or I open up the thing of cheese balls and eat more. And it's like, continue talking. Tony can't talk with cheese balls in his mouth. Challenge accepted.
Beer Under Glass: The Start of Summer
00:03:11
Speaker
Well, Ray, it's that time of year and we asked you to come back because it's time for Beer Under Glass again. Super exciting, guys. So Craft Beer Week returns to Illinois. And so kicking off May 9th for a week full of fun and extravagant festivals and releases and collaborations. And yeah, Beer Under Glass coming back on on the ninth and We're super excited. I think we've said it maybe every year that that kind of marks the beginning of summer for us because...
00:03:41
Speaker
That's when the weather starts kind of shifting. like it's I don't know. i've I've come to look forward to it. It's like the first like nice day I normally take off when it comes to work. Or I take like you know leave early. And it's like, ooh, great. Can't wait to go.
00:03:53
Speaker
Yeah, my world's changed. It used
New Venue for Beer Under Glass: Rooftop of the Harris Theater
00:03:55
Speaker
to be that. But now that the kid's in school, it's like, all right, whenever you're done, dude. like gotta get through that kindergarten sometimes it's good to be me sometimes it's good to be me and i'll tell you yeah speaking of good days we're we're excited that's back outside yeah and so you know we were we were at the union station for the past couple years great venue um but you know you're you're in a train station and it gets congested and it gets loud and so um we've been looking for another opportunity to dip our toe back into the beautiful may weather and
00:04:25
Speaker
you know We found a really great home at the the rooftop of the Harris Theater overlooking Millennium Park. You know can't think of a better location. No, that's pretty badass. that's I don't have any questions. why't you just talk this whole time? I was i was only about to be like, so it looks like we've moved.
00:04:41
Speaker
but Yeah, so I was going to say, did you guys know that... last year that you were to start looking or is it something that kind of came up like, you know, upon further review, maybe we should start. You know, we we we always keep our eye on the horizon, right? And we always, and I think more importantly, we listen to the people who attend the
Benefits of the New Venue
00:04:59
Speaker
fest. So, you know, what we heard from from a lot of our our attendees is that, hey, we really missed the outside area and also we need more bathrooms sure so you know and uh the rooftop the harris yeah some the top of the building yeah that's right and that's how you get not invited back that's the competition we're standing up yes
00:05:22
Speaker
and so you know we're so we're're we're stoked for a new location and fresh start and some some beautiful weather Yeah, i'm I'm hoping that the weather is cooperative. It seems like, yeah, knock on wood. That's okay to knock on wood. We can pick that up on the mic this time.
00:05:37
Speaker
um Yeah, so tell us a little about the little bit about this space. I don't really know anything about it. I know where it is. That's not all I know. Yeah, so it's it's it's a beauty it's a beautiful spot. And so you you go upstairs above the Harris Theater. We'll have a lot of the entryways, but you know there is ah a large tent, kind of big enough for 1,000 people under the tent.
00:06:00
Speaker
But also there's a massive green space around it. So you know the vision for this festival is kind of like... you know in the tent out the tent kind of hanging out in the park vibe and you know we're uh we're capping tickets at 1100 attendees and we're actually only only 200 tickets away from that so people are pretty stoked that's a lot of people on a roof yeah it's a lot of people on a roof it's rated for that they promised us and so you know we're we're excited to to to kind of use the space to the best of its abilities and really give people an experience that you know you don't necessarily really find anywhere else you know you know our phobab yeah we have an outside component but it's mostly inside it's also november you know bundle up yeah but you know this this this is an opportunity for for for our brewers to you know bring some of the most coveted beer from across the state and you know and and and show them to consumers who are are excited to kick off craft beer week
00:06:53
Speaker
Yeah, i've I've come to really enjoy... i mean, it's a beer fest, so... But i I recently just went to a beer fest up in Kenosha that is a beer and cheese festival.
00:07:04
Speaker
And it's it's funny because I've been to other beer festivals. Like, I mean, Great American Beer Fest, it's kind of hard to compare that to other things. But I'm just thinking about when we used to do the Great Lakes Beer Fest in Racine.
00:07:17
Speaker
That was great. There's just something about... the Chicago and or Illinois beer fest that I, maybe it's just because I feel like I'm at home. That probably has a lot to do with it. and i feel a little bit more comfortable like in my element, but I do like, I always feel comfortable and welcome. I don't feel like, you know, like, Oh, Hey, there's all these people. I don't know. Maybe it's just because i think, well, it's also, you don't, I think for like, we go to a lot of,
00:07:42
Speaker
Not every beer fest, but we we we we get around. And when it's in chicago i think when it's in Chicago, i feel less pressure to stay for the entire thing. It's like, all right, I've been here for two hours, three hours. I'm like, I've i've had enough. I can go. you know And like that was the first year we went to Great American Beer Fest. It was like, we've got to stay the entire time. like we've got to get you know We came all the way out here. And the next time we did it, we're like, eh, whatever. Yeah, we decided to...
00:08:11
Speaker
instead of i think that's I think it maybe has a little bit more to do with our maturity of going to a beer festival as well. of like you don't we didn't have to We don't have to drink every single beer that's there. Yeah.
00:08:22
Speaker
No, we might. a shorter amount of time. But, you know, I think you're right. Well, I mean, at Union Station, we were literally timing, like, the 730 train and, like, grabbing our beers, drinking, drinking. It's like, all right, oh, somebody's offering us cans. Right, we'll take a can on the train. Right. We're just, like, booked on the train. and then But, then i mean, that was perfect. i mean that was I mean, that was a sweet spot just because, obviously, you We were convenient to that train. Obviously, that wasn't the same for everybody. But I know i know i do know a lot of people came in that way.
00:08:52
Speaker
But it was just nice to be like, get in there early. do what you need to do. Like, talk to people. Like, that's what we loved. And I think that's what we end up doing more than anything at a lot of these fests is just talking to people. Because I feel like beer under glass, it probably, you know... when When I say I had, like, ten beers, like, that's, like...
00:09:12
Speaker
lightweight for some people and like we're there for like three hours but um yeah we had 10 seconds we spent so much so much time just talking to people because i mean i think that's the interesting thing like you run into know breweries that we've interviewed in the past people that we haven't and just talking and connecting and like you know learning about the beer because it's it's an environment where people are actually like the brewers are there or like the reps are there and they're just super excited to talk about the beers that they're serving and it's but there's no other way
Unique Brewer-Attendee Engagement at the Festival
00:09:40
Speaker
you can get that kind of experience. you know, I fully agree. it You know, what sets it apart, it really is a fest by the brewers and for the brewers. And, you know, I think that's what sets it apart, you know, and all our events apart from a lot of these kind of for-profit or park district fests that pop up throughout the state or throughout the country is that, you know, we're we're really intentional about standing up a really great experience for the attendees, but also,
00:10:04
Speaker
you know offering the brewers an opportunity to attend a festival that like they think is fun also you know and and that's and and but a bug is a great example of that is that you know they're they are the brewers sitting behind the jockey boxes pouring the beer right and so and it's not necessarily the in the summer in turn that you get at some of these other festivals and so um you know take your time talk to these folks this is this is something that they really spend a lot of time and energy and attention detail on and you know They're excited to talk about it. And so and I know where our attendees are too. That's why it continues to sell out every year. That's why we continue to look for bigger and bigger spaces and continue to make it a little bit better every single year.
00:10:46
Speaker
Yeah, I was going to piggyback off that. The other thing was that like... For us, at least, like we've going to these events and, you know, like FOVAB, especially, know, Bug and FOVAB, we've come to know people while doing the podcast. And so we run into them and we don't see all the time. And it's nice to, you know, it's it's like it's.
00:11:06
Speaker
It's almost feels like a reunion of sorts, but also, like I said, like the kicking off of like, you know, nice weather. You're it's, it's like a holiday. Like you said, you know it' it feels like that. It's like, Oh, Hey, Oh, how's going? Like you meet up for a little bit. Like, all right, at the next one. Yeah. Bye.
00:11:19
Speaker
Yeah. And the, you know, the, the, the word is out on the VIP sessions. i blame you guys for talking it up to so probably somewhere in the neighborhood of 50 or so VIP tickets left. So, Yeah. listen up They're sold out. They're money yeah and in honesty. The VIP stuff is is is awesome. It is nice to have that bit of extra time, um you know, especially if there are specific beers that you want to try or a specific brewery that you want to visit that, you know.
00:11:47
Speaker
draws a large crowd that maybe you you know haven't tried something from or haven't tried something from them lately. yeah I think it's a huge benefit to to get there a little early. and And I'll tell you, we haven't yeah we haven't seen the beer list list yet, but from the brewers I talked to,
00:12:02
Speaker
People are bringing some heat. Really? so Yeah. And so for those yeah VIP folks, it'll be pretty easy to to figure out which ones are which. You'll see you'll see the lines. and but But again, you know in terms i mentioned lines. you know In terms of this festival, we purposefully cap tickets to offer an experience that you know people aren't just...
00:12:23
Speaker
waiting around for for beer right because that just sucks and we want to make sure that you know that the folks that are attending this festival that are you know donating their their money to us um have a have an awesome experience yeah lines and lines are never i don't feel like bug or phobab they've ever been an issue the only time phobab is like after the awards you know then people go and like line up for those But, you know, I sit back and I laugh and i was like, I had that during the VIP hour. You fool. You stupid bastards. Should have paid the extra money.
00:12:57
Speaker
And I'll tell you that, especially at Fobab, we know we know you know little bit in advance who's going to win. So we're already rejiggering volunteers to have more more hands pouring that it wins awards. so We've done this a couple times, na so we're ready.
00:13:14
Speaker
I've got to give a shout-out to Katie Carrier, who's my associate director, who is the beer fest queen, who really is kind of the the the driver behind a lot of our events. like I get to do the shiny podcast stuff and the legislation, and she she's in the trenches really kind of lower working out logistics. The first time I've ever heard anyone say the legislation was the shinies. live in that and...
00:13:38
Speaker
i live in that world And I'm like, but bit no it's a I know about that. it's, I'm getting dull-eyed and jaded from the amount of time I'm spending in Springfield. But yeah, no, Katie does an awesome job. And, you know, and, you know, just even what goes into a beer festival, right Because I don't think everybody even understands how much logistics go into this. Oh, yeah. you know going Going to Union Station, you know, one of the biggest problems we we ran into is we were we were unloading brewers on, like, Jackson.
00:14:05
Speaker
And trying to get kegs out of cars, and getting like run over by bicycles and cars whizzing by. And so, you know, like even the location and everything that goes into it needs to be such a well orchestrated machine. And, you know, the rooftop of the Harris Theater is just offers such such a such a perfect environment for for everything.
00:14:24
Speaker
Before we keep talking, Ray, you brought a beer. What is it that we are drinking right now? So I'll tell you, I I. I had a well-orchestrated four-pack of beers from kind of all over the state of Illinois.
00:14:38
Speaker
i even had the new Wrexham Lager from Distill ready to go, which they're brewing now. um But I left it at home. And so luck luckily... I thought about you guys and I was like, you know what? No, I don't deserve it. I i forgot it.
00:14:52
Speaker
So you are treating us like things. I was rushing to get here because I was so excited and I left it in the refrigerator. I'll allow it. And then my wife called me and said, hey, you left your beer here. And so luckily we have 300 breweries in the state of Illinois.
00:15:05
Speaker
I wasn't very far from Hop District Brewing in LaGrange Park. They are an awesome small brewery with no distribution at this point, actually looking to open a second location in Brookfield to start their distribution engine.
00:15:18
Speaker
And so they're a great story of a growing brewery. And so this is Ribello. This is their Italian Pilsner. It's in a Crowler, fresh off the line. I think it's the the the most recent beer that they've released and 5.3 and, you know, very delicious. You know, I was yeah i went through that really quick.
00:15:36
Speaker
It's a good first beer. Yeah, absolutely. It's it's funny because i was, my first sip of this, I wasn't sure what it was. um I'm dumb. when I'm not that great when it comes to guessing beers, people may know listening to this podcast. We may try to figure out styles and stuff sometimes.
00:15:52
Speaker
Sometimes my hand needs to be held. But I was like, oh, what is this? And I was like, oh, it's kind of bitter. Oh, it must be like my my brain was like, oh because of bitterness. I've been drinking a lot of IPAs.
00:16:02
Speaker
So my brain was like, oh, bitterness, IPA. And I was like, that's not an IPA. like I'm literally having this internal dialogue while we're all talking. And hearing Italian Pilsner, I know was like, that makes way more sense because it it it has that type of like noble hop presence that's not found in IPAs. fan no and you know Often, I should say they're ah They're a great class three brewery. A class three brewery.
00:16:25
Speaker
is able to sell wine and spirits. And so they have just started into that foyer. They also have limited self-distribution so they can build up their marketplace. And so one of the pieces of legislation we're working on is to expand self-distribution for Class III breweries because right now it's capped at...
00:16:42
Speaker
200 barrels and just so folks know that's about eight kegs a week right you can't really run a business on selling eight kegs a week and so we're looking to grow that a significant amount for for brewers for for specifically for small brewers to kind of compete uh in this kind of modern iteration of of the craft beer industry because you know what what we're seeing and i don't want to be too big of a downer here is but 40% of the tap handles in the state of Illinois are open right now.
00:17:09
Speaker
So people are moving away from draft beer specifically. And so, you know, there's a massive opportunity for for for small independent breweries to reach reach consumers unlike unlike before.
Legislative Efforts for Small Breweries
00:17:20
Speaker
um So, you know, some legislation working on is is targeted at just that. And so Hop district District is a perfect example of a brewery that would benefit greatly. There's about 100 others in the state of Illinois that are in the same exact spot where they just can't grow.
00:17:33
Speaker
It still baffles me. That every time you come on, I hear about all this legislation. then why Why is it just not like... And I know why, but it's like... It just kind of seems like common sense stuff. Like, oh, that's going to help grow businesses? Let's do it. Let's do it, right? Yeah. Let's do it.
00:17:49
Speaker
you know And so we're working very hard. Very, very hard. And so hopefully we're going to get to a point where we yeah we offer these folks a runway to... kind of distribution you know what we're also seeing you know to get kind of a little nerdy because that's that's what i like to do um you know we're not seeing distributors pick up craft brands at at the level they were you know even three three years ago and so you know to to establish a marketplace and to reach consumers and and try to prove out your brand a little bit is something that distributors are looking at before they sign distribution agreements with craft breweries and so you know this legislation provides an on-ramp to that so
00:18:23
Speaker
But we can we can get back to craft beer week if you want. Yeah, I mean, I think yes we always we always touch on the legislation because I do think it's important because, you know, going to these events, you know, buying your tickets, that's what this money is going to to help, is to help out, you know, you guys to to go ahead and get these legislations passed and and help the community that we all love and enjoy very much. I mean, I feel like I've...
00:18:49
Speaker
More recently, I have ventured out more. like i've I've made it more of an effort to to go places. Now, some of them are going to the same place a lot, but I'm still going out a little bit more instead of just you know going to beer on the wall, grabbing some cans, and and kind going home.
00:19:05
Speaker
But yeah, I think i think we we can get back to the legislation. yeah but i think and you know It's important. i will I will say that's that's exactly where the funds for beer under glass go to, right? Lobbyists are expensive. Lawyers are expensive. PR teams are expensive.
00:19:20
Speaker
And all of that money goes to support these initiatives that are helping small local breweries continue to to thrive here in the state of Illinois. The production numbers just came out from the Brewers Association for the state yesterday.
00:19:31
Speaker
And so we were down to 399,000 barrels. that That number's back up to 420,000 barrels. So we're starting to make more beer here in the state for the first time in a long time. you know Despite the the number of tap handles dedicated to yin-ling these days.
00:19:47
Speaker
It's new and exciting. That's right. I mean, you know, it is nice, and i will say this, the only place I've i've got it in a tap two places, but for some reason, the one place I like it the most and has become a guilty pleasure of mine is Miller's Ale House over in Norwich, the chain.
00:20:02
Speaker
I really enjoy going there. Their food is, you know, it's like a... High-class Applebee's. Thank you. Thank you. but there was something about the first time i when i had there when i had the yingling on tap i'm like i forgot how good y can do this i'm like this is the first time i've had yingling on tap this is really good probably not the first time but this is really good and then i got their you know zinger fry mountain it's uh you know i i i threw i threw a little shade but they are they are a very well established independent craft brewery
00:20:34
Speaker
um continuing to grow their footprint but you know i think i think you're right brandon is that there's there's initial hype phase and then it kind of it levels back down to reality a little bit well i mean it's you go every store has got it like stacked they've got signs like we have yingling and it's like Cool.
00:20:51
Speaker
Like, I bought Yingling because we did ah an episode on it. Like, we bought, got everything that they were distributing, and we talked about all of those beers, and, like, I still have a ton of it left. I'm like... I don't need to buy yingling for a while. yeah um But anyways, we're not talking shit about it. So with with beer under glass, um what is like the approximate number of breweries? So we have 95 breweries this year, which is nothing to shake its stick at. No, definitely. And so that, you know by my count, is the second largest beer festival in the state of Illinois behind FOBAP. And so we're super excited. Each brewery is bringing...
00:21:31
Speaker
two to four different beers. You know, Moore Brewing is bringing their Mindy. They're bringing all sorts of cool stuff. and so you know, all all across the spectrum from kind of lagers to barrel-aged beers. And so um it it truly is ah it is a showcase of of what we do super well here in the state of Illinois. Yeah, and that's ah you made the point, like, people are bringing lagers and barrel-aged. Like, that's the nice thing about Bug is for people that, you know, may shy away from Fobab because they're like, oh, I don't like barrel-aged beers. And like, oh, that's what a lot of these beer fests are about is, like, big beers. No, like...
00:22:08
Speaker
there's no say that has the lager lounge now yeah well thank you but like you know we've had ciders at bug we've had you know ah we've had lagers we've had some bourbon we had berke yeah we had we did have bourbon um there's meteries coming right and like that's yeah that's right that's the the kind of stuff that we really like to showcase yeah you know especially for somebody
Diversity of Beer Styles at the Festival
00:22:30
Speaker
who's kind of on the outside looking at in on craft beers like oh i don't like those bitter ipas right and they just equate all of craft beer to just that style of beer and like for better or worse yes it is the the largest you know category in the craft beer industry um but you know and the state of illinois we are making kick-ass lagers in the state of illinois we are making really awesome west coast ipas and pilsners and you know kind of everything under the sun
00:22:56
Speaker
um You know, both in in Nouveau and traditional styles. And, you know, the Bug is really a showcase um of all of that. Is there any breweries that are coming that have not been to Bug before? Oh, now you're testing my memory here. Yeah. You know. Brandon's coming with the hard ones. You are. hard energy stuff. Your answer could just been like, yes, and then we move on. I'll tell you. But I would have been like, who?
00:23:18
Speaker
No, we we do get new breweries every year, right? Because there are there are new breweries opening up on a regular basis. And some of those new faces are are going to be at Bug. And some of the old stalwarts are going to be there, too. And so it really is an opportunity to you know take a trip across the state without the drive yeah yeah which is which is nice and and i'm glad you said that because you know one of the things like i said i've been trying to to branch out and and go to more places i what i'd like to do this summer what i'm planning on doing is like on weekends kind of maybe just taking like a weekend trip and go someplace but it's brewery specific and obviously going to stay there yeah going because i do want to try like you can't stay at the brewery dude
00:23:56
Speaker
oh no no shit uh no but staying whatever in city or town or or whatever and and kind of you know it's it this will this is kind of what i'm i'm going to use bug for is oh let me check out some places maybe that i'm interested and if they're there get a chance to try their their beers first and you know before i go to the facility and you know try a whole bunch of other stuff and see what's going on in the town That's why really do love Bug because that's exactly what it spurs, right? It's that exploration. And so also kicking off Crap Beer Week, we're bringing our passport back. And so that's an awesome opportunity go get some passports. I'm going to go crazy in the past. Get your passport on.
00:24:34
Speaker
And so you know those will be available to pick up at about 200 breweries across the state. um Those go super fast. yeah And so if if if folks are interested in getting a passport, you know go those first couple of days or else they're going to be gone. and Take them around the state with you. Collect stamps.
00:24:50
Speaker
And, you know, obviously we we we do gift cards with it and everything like that. But, you know, it's more about the experience. yeah It's more about exploring. And, and you know, go out to go out to the Quad Cities, right? And hit up four or five breweries. You know, drive Route 66 and hit up 30 breweries, right? Like that's the kind of stuff that we're...
00:25:07
Speaker
We're trying to incentivize, you know obviously not the driving and drinking, but right you know get a designated driver. hit 30 breweries one day. Or go down to Bloomington. There's like seven in Bloomington normal, And you could spend a day down there and spend the night and get yourself some Rex and Lager at Distill.
00:25:24
Speaker
Hey, look at that. Bring it back up again. Yeah, I mean, that's and that's kind of the idea of what I had like in in mind of doing that type of trip was go check out you know a handful of breweries stay the night there and and even on my way back like maybe take a different route to come back home and stop at one yeah i mean even even even down but even downstairs right like you know scratch brewing is definitely a pilgrimage for people who who are into the beer scene or you know drove drive over towards st louis there's five or six breweries like right right there um that are doing all doing really awesome stuff and you know um it's it's it's such a cool
00:25:59
Speaker
community that you'll you'll really find kind of a welcoming home in virtually every one of these places you'll stop at. Absolutely. And i think it's something we've always stressed about, especially the local beer community here in Chicago, is that A lot of it feels very just friendly and and and welcoming.
00:26:18
Speaker
Yeah, no, I would say both the consumers, but also within within the community itself. It's it's definitely one that is is is overly supportive of each other. It's definitely one that you know people ah really...
00:26:31
Speaker
are are looking at it as a rising tide raises all ships right and so you know that's one thing that i've been lucky with our guild is that there's such strong buy-in from our members on our legislative work but also our our promotional work our events you know you know we have some good events coming up this summer um that you know ah it's it's just super cool we're we're definitely definitely excited i always look forward to craft beer week here brandon we're out of time there It's time for a break. Fucking knew it. Man, my internal clock told me so.
00:27:02
Speaker
We'll be right back.
00:27:05
Speaker
And we're back. Welcome back, everybody. We're here joined again with Ray Stout. We are talking about beer under glass and Illinois k Craft Beer Week. We've covered a lot of beer and Well, actually, hold on. Hold the phone.
00:27:18
Speaker
Brandon, what are we drinking? i have a phone. Dude, what we drinking? We are drinking Akari Shogun. It's a hoppy wheat beer from our friends at Half Icker Brewing.
00:27:29
Speaker
So I think this is fairly new. I think it was just released, if maybe not last week, this week. It's very... You know, I haven't had a hoppy wheat beer in a long time. And wheat beers were one of the first... that We were just talking during the break. We were talking about homebrewing. And wheat beers were like the first styles that I would brew because I felt like it was very easy to do. It's got a very... Almost a simple...
00:27:55
Speaker
recipe to follow and wheat beers, you know, are, but I think of like 312, you know, yeah yeah here in Chicago. That was, you know, one of the first wheat beers that I probably ever had. And so having that in mind, i was like, oh, i want to make something like this, something that's light.
00:28:10
Speaker
Light drinking, but there's a nice body to it because wheat you know provides a little bit more body to a beer. And so a hoppy wheat to me was interesting because I didn't i was i was i was staying away from my IPAs for this episode because of the dank episode that we did.
00:28:24
Speaker
The dank first start. I needed a break. And that was the last time I had IPAs and then had a miss on that one real bad. We don't need to bring it back up. um because Oh, no that's uh but yeah i went for this one also like their the can design is very cool what are you guys thinking of this as a happy wheat beer Interesting.
00:28:48
Speaker
I know. I like... Is this... No, I feel like I've had this before. No, no. I meant just like it was just released. this but I don't think it's newbie. No, no, no. Yeah. like I think the canon date was April 8th on the bottom. But yeah. Pretty fresh.
00:29:02
Speaker
I mean, this is this is one I've had... i know I've had in the past. And I love that... like that The wheat body, like, it's it's super smooth. It's slightly bitter.
00:29:14
Speaker
um And then you get that sweetness that comes through, too. Like, I i mean, wheat beers in general, again, I think even before I got in a craft beer, it was like... you know, the German wheat beers or whatever, like stuff like that I would get into. Or it's like, is Blue Moon a wheat beer? Is that, I think that that was one too. That was my first one for sure. Yeah.
00:29:34
Speaker
You know, so it was like, that was like my, my, my entrance into getting away from like the Bud and the, you know, Miller Lite that my dad always drank. You know, and I was, i had Blue Moon. i was like, whoa. I was like, people put orange in beers? And I'm like, and then and then i remember going to like, um,
00:29:50
Speaker
There used to be a bar in Lincoln Square called Hooten Bar, and it was this old-school German bar. And, like, I had a Julius Echter, and they put an orange in that. I'm like, this is a million times better than Blue Moon. I'm like, this is amazing. but But I like the hoppy aspect to it because it's you know it's lighter. it's not It's not like a punch in the face like and you know some IPAs.
00:30:11
Speaker
um Yeah, really well-balanced and fun to drink. Yeah. I'm to throw out there real quick before I get to you, Ray, is that the last time I had this was in a big old bomber in 2016. Wow, that's a throwback. Yeah. So that's kind of cool. It's been around for a while.
00:30:26
Speaker
Yeah, it definitely definitely has. I'll tell you, this is this is the kind of beer you could drink a million of. Yeah. You know, it's it's super smooth, very easy drinking. The team at Hat Baker is continuing to kind of go above and beyond. Okay.
00:30:40
Speaker
You know, and they're and they're they're really showing, know, what a craft beer can, craft brewery can grow into, right, and still kind of keep its local heart. um And, you know, i've i've I've been so impressed with them as an organization, um you know, both ah kind of their environmental commitments and their social responsibility commitments, but also, you know, the fact that they continue to make awesome beer and they continue to be involved in the guild in so many different ways so cheers to half acre for sure i think i uh i think the last time you were on we had is that when i i had a turtle beer yeah the turtle beer oh that's right that's right oh like that's a little tradition now when you come in guess have to have a half acre beer yeah i was just gonna say that you know half acre does continually make fantastic beer and each time something new from them comes out or
00:31:28
Speaker
Not necessarily new, but as they're, you know, that time of year where certain beer comes out, I tend to to grab. And I think when they just really recently you had released Beer Hates Astronauts, I get that every year. You know, I get one can of that at least or a four-pack.
00:31:42
Speaker
And some of their leadership team, you know, still with Half Acre, but also spun off and created Suncatcher Brewing, which is one of the newest breweries in Chicago. And, you know, talk about nice weather. They probably have one of the best patios I've seen in the Chicagoland area. Gotta to go. Get ready. i gotta go.
00:31:58
Speaker
so So speaking of ah new breweries, we were talking, before I interrupted myself, we had talked about beer under glass. Let's get a little bit into Illinois Craft Beer Week a little bit more. Maybe like what else is, you know, things that are planned. We talked about the passport, things like that.
00:32:12
Speaker
Yeah, so we have the passport program coming back and off Craft Beer Week. You know, this year this year we also have Pint Day, this this this year's pint class great created by ah Matt Panetti who does a lot of art for various various breweries.
00:32:27
Speaker
Probably the most notably, he does a lot of the art at Skeleton Key Brewing. but um So that's the vibe, but we really had him do this really, really cool kind of neon inspired glass that's going to be available.
00:32:37
Speaker
um We're going to have it at Bug, so you could purchase it at Bug, but you know there's going to be breweries across the state that have it as well, so go seek it out. It's a pretty cool 17-ounce cooler glass. and you know Doing neon-inspired Illinois graffiti. it's its I dig it a lot. I think it's my favorite one so far. I i think that...
00:32:59
Speaker
i use I have a bunch of beer glasses like we probably do. ah The three of us probably have more beer glasses than we like to admit. Even getting rid of someone. So like, God, I still have so many glasses. So many. i have, ah i just, I moved recently and I have lot of cabinet space. And so I have where my beer glasses are.
00:33:18
Speaker
And then I have another section where I have, those are like my beer glasses, and the craft beer with glasses are there. Because you know you can you can break out a pint glass of mine I got from someplace, wherever, that's fine.
00:33:31
Speaker
But there are a handful of glasses where I'm like, please don't break this. Don't break it. Yeah, yeah let me let me break it so I can be upset instead of you breaking it and me being like... Dude. Yeah, they're they're the it's the fourth iteration of our pint glass, and I would have brought you some, but we haven't even got them yet. I've only seen samples, and they're they're cool AF, and so I'm super excited. That's right. We'll just have to to brewery. Bug. We'll be there at Bug.
00:33:54
Speaker
Come find me. I know i know a guy. Okay.
00:33:59
Speaker
But also, you know, during Craft Beer Week, you know the idea around Craft
Celebrating Breweries Across Illinois
00:34:04
Speaker
Beer Week is this year is like, how do you make Craft Beer Week fun? Right. And so I've heard from, you know, different different kind of, you know, beer personalities in different states. And the kind of question is like, are Craft Beer Week still worth Right.
00:34:19
Speaker
Right. And, you know, my response to that is, heck yes, because, you know, it's not necessarily, you know, about, you know, getting beer that you can't get because Craft Beer Week is just so, Craft Beer is just so widely distributed now. But it really is an intentional time where we could kind celebrate this industry, right? Celebrate the fact that, you know, we have this thing in Illinois that supports 16,000 jobs, that is making a award-winning beer, that...
00:34:45
Speaker
virtually in every town across and city across the state. right you know um and it And it really is a celebration. And you know this year, the the theme that we're working on is Craft Beer Week is for Everybody. It's not just a celebration of breweries.
00:34:59
Speaker
It's a celebration of our retail partners. And so we're seeing more and more retailers kind of plan craft beer weeks um our craft beer week events i'm actually working with uh multiple destination bureaus and tourism bureaus to kind of hold hold up their ale trails and their events during craft beer week because it really is a ah statewide party and we want to get back to that you know and people always remind me you know oh what are we going to do god dodgeball at goose island again like ah the heyday of of was chicago craft beer week then you know it's just grown so far and so i recently was talking to mike pallin and microphone brewing and he's interested in kind of standing up ah a little bit of a committee to kind of you know reinvigorate some of the kind of the the activations around craft beer week that you know we we lost during covid that never really made it back sure and so you know that that's what i'm most excited for this year
00:35:54
Speaker
That's awesome to hear because little things like that, I think, depending on where you live, whether you decide to travel a little further or go to a brewery you haven't been to, the breweries in your neighborhood within your area where you live, speak, it's good thing.
00:36:11
Speaker
If something's going on you're probably more apt to go out and do it if you're already there anyways, but it makes it more of like, oh remember when they did that last year you know during Craft Beer Week? That was great. Look forward to going to that type of event again or or maybe finding a place to find out what other breweries are doing other places have planned for it.
00:36:27
Speaker
Yeah, and you know and and social media is where a lot of that information is being shared right now. So you know go out and follow your your favorite breweries on social media or follow all breweries on social media. Follow the Guild on social media because we're to reposting you know all the events that are going on um in addition to some of the cool stuff that we're doing.
00:36:44
Speaker
um so you know the idea is just to spread the word far and wide and just have people kind of get out there and and get to their get to their tap rooms you know you say it's this the kickoff the summer so let's party man absolutely i can't wait so excited well that being said too so you know with craft beer week um i know there's other events that kind of come up during the summer um One specifically, Friday Night Flights. Yes. um I'm assuming that's coming back. Man, you already know.
00:37:12
Speaker
Friday Night Flights. I do. You told me I'm here. I put it on the calendar. just Friday night Flights is coming back to Gallagher Way. That's awesome. i Real quick, I had so much fun last year going.
00:37:26
Speaker
We went together, Braden. Yeah, was there. I was there. But yeah, that was and so much fun. And anybody who has a chance to go and do it, go and do it. I'll tell you So why I really love Friday night flights. First of all, it's at...
00:37:40
Speaker
in gallery way at like the foot of wrigley field yeah right so you can't get a more
Return of Friday Night Flights to Gallagher Way
00:37:45
Speaker
iconic setting we intentionally do two sessions so it's um you know so you have plenty of room to space out we have 36 breweries we keep the tickets cheap tickets are only 30 bucks to get in there that's great um you know uh and and you know You get an opportunity to hang out in the summer. We always have a DJ.
00:38:02
Speaker
And so it's it's coming back on ah on June 6th this year. So Friday, June 6th. So mark your calendars. Tickets are going go on sale right after Bug. Sweet. And so let's get through Bug. Then we'll move to Friday Night Flights. But, you know, we had 1,400 people come through last year. And that's that's nothing to shake a stick at. And why breweries love Friday Night Flights and why I love Friday Night Flights is that, you know, it's it's that Wrigleyville crowd, which isn't necessarily kind of your...
00:38:29
Speaker
hardcore craft beer enthusiast, right? It's generally younger, more nightlife oriented people that may be like taking their first you know deviation into craft beer. Like I'm sure they've had IPAs before, but, you know, trying new styles and hanging out and, and, and Wrigleyville, it's, it's such a cool event. And there's, there's nothing really else like that.
00:38:50
Speaker
Do you guys look at this is my wife's in my head now. She does like survey research. If you guys look at like demographics of like the folks that are coming in and whatnot, and I'm specifically asking like Friday night flights, um,
00:39:04
Speaker
like Do you get a lot of the neighborhood people there? like Friday night flights, yeah. so Friday night flights, a lot of the people that come to Friday night flights are are are obviously the people who follow our socials, but yeah you know people who are just out in Wrigleyville and see a Friday night event and they're like, what the heck is this? yeah And they walk up and they buy a ticket and we keep tickets open all the way through the event until we sell it out. and so So a lot of it is is is is people who are literally stumbling upon it for the first time. yeah We do some good media around it so people people find it in different ways. but you know what what i really i I also geek out on kind of data and demographics, and I looked at some far some of our buying habits, and you know it's it's it's funny, but it's not. that most The people who are buying the tickets for two or more people tend to be tend to be women.
00:39:52
Speaker
And so, you know, my wife will say this because we're the planners. And so, you know, we've been there now thinking about like ah adjusting our marketing strategies to account for like women are the ones that are that are planning these events. Like guys are coming because they're cool.
00:40:05
Speaker
But, know, you need that planner. The events are cool, not the guys. Yeah. Well, they're cool, they're there. Yeah, yeah, exactly. what youre cool um But, you know today like you know, if you look at Fobab, the crowd is traditionally kind of, you know, like, they look a lot like us. Yes. Right?
00:40:22
Speaker
A bunch of fat guys. A bunch of chubby guys. Yeah. No, you know but Friday night flights tend to be a little little younger, a little more lively. Bug is just all over the map. It's such a different like experience. that and and We have such a far far-reaching you know media presence around Beer Under Glass where you know we have brewers going on TV on a regular basis. I'm doing radio and awesome podcasts like this talking about it. As I was mid-yawn. I wasn't yawning because of you. I'm yawning because I didn't get much sleep last night.
00:40:54
Speaker
I was going to say that when you mentioned Bug being like all over the place, I feel like I see... different age brackets, more so at BUG from like old to young, more than any other of the events that I've gone to from the guild. Yeah, without without a doubt. And you know, and one thing that we've been really kind of like paying attention to is how do you build like a diverse audience, right? How do you reach out to people who are traditionally underrepresented in the brew space, you know?
00:41:23
Speaker
And so we've been working with some some of our awesome, you know, black owned brews like Funky Town or Moore's Brewing. And so, you know, how do we how do we get the word out to those folks? because you know I feel like for a long time, you know black and brown people have been like kind of an afterthought in craft beer and beer in general. you know So you know how are we intentional about including them and creating spaces that you know they feel comfortable? And so that's what that's what Bug is really all about it's about. It's about creating those spaces and creating those opportunities for people to to hang out together. And you have you have a room of 1,100 people who may never meet again, but you know you're going to meet some friends.
00:41:58
Speaker
Yeah, absolutely. Which is funny, like like you said, you know, and a festival like, you know... I'm pouring my first time. No, no, you're okay. You're the guest. You were very nice with the other pourers. You get this one, buddy.
00:42:14
Speaker
Like you said, you know like Fobab, it's a lot of guys like us. You know, there iss there is some... it's been It's becoming more diverse, obviously. ah But I was going to say that what i noticed...
00:42:26
Speaker
from Friday Night Flights last year, i think it was very obvious that it wasn't just guys like us there. You know what mean? There was a lot of... I wouldn't say it was like Bug, but there was definitely a different group of people, a different you know groups of people represented. it felt like a you know a lot of people were there on a date night. Yeah, exactly. Couples were there, like groups of friends were there. think that's the only fest where I saw, like you know you guys are like 23 or 24 for sure. ah You don't normally see them at... at you know yeah
00:42:57
Speaker
Which is crazy because like at that age, it's like you walk up to Friday night flights. Oh, 30 bucks. And it's like, oh, you can drink for you know whatever. Go to bug. Go to.
00:43:08
Speaker
ah but like I'll tell you from a value proposition. you know, I don't know. I know what's going on, but I also don't know. I also don't know what's going on with these 20, 24, 25, 26 year old drinkers. Cause you know, if somebody told me is that you can go to a festival and drink,
00:43:25
Speaker
every single drop of all the beer that you could possibly want and it's $55, I would say, hell yeah. Right. And so, you know, but we're not necessarily seeing that with, with the, with the younger demographic of drinkers here. And, you know, there's a lot of data that Gen Z is abstaining from alcohol. A lot of that skewed because a lot of Gen Z is not even old enough to drink alcohol yet. And so, um, you know, there, there is a push to kind of alternative beverages, you know, THC beverages and And also, you know, spirits-based beverages. And so, you know, and what what we're seeing, and, you know i think I might have said this to you guys before, is that people aren't necessarily drinking. There's no more just beer drinkers anymore, just wine drinkers. You know, people are drinking based on occasion.
00:44:04
Speaker
And, you know, Bug is a great occasion to drink some beer. Absolutely. yeah So is Friday Night Flies. So is Friday Night Flies. That's right. And again, like the price point of it is just insane. and you know it's It's right where you're at, easy to get to, public transportation. it's i mean, it's Wrigley Field. you know It's right there, right outside Wrigley Field.
00:44:22
Speaker
It's easy to get to. And know and I love me some craft breweries, but you know you you go in there and you hang out for a while, you're spending $30 or $40, right? So for that, you could have... a three or four hour fest where you yeah you're a kiddding kid in a kid in a candy store absolutely and you're sampling different beers from from different breweries and just like any other festivals you know you you can find a place like oh you
Discovering New Breweries and Beers at Festivals
00:44:44
Speaker
know what i keep forgetting about this place or i have never tried this place or i've i've never heard of this place you know it gives you an idea of like next time maybe i'm out i'll go here or i'll buy this beer from this brewery or i'll least you know start following them and
00:44:56
Speaker
you know who knows next time i see them at a fest i'll i'll seek them out so just speak absolutely yeah it's always in a you know a chance just to explore i think and i mean that's how we've found some of our favorite breweries is just going to the fests and like trying stuff yeah and like and i'm not even just like localizing it like great american beer fest is an anomaly in itself because it's breweries from all across you know the nation but like you don't You hear of breweries and you know, like, oh, this one does good things. This one does good things. But, like, the first year we went is, I think we... That may have been the first time I had Weldworks.
00:45:33
Speaker
Yes. think and I are Weldworks. And, like, it was just, um like, blown away. But, like, literally everything we had was amazing. We went back this last time and it was like... I had a great beer there, and then I had another one, and i was just like, eh, not as great.
00:45:48
Speaker
Yeah, it's not even knock them. Not a knock to them, but it was just like the flavor didn't do for me. But what they had that first time, everything was just knocked out of the park. It even pushed us to try other breweries. We realized we were running...
00:46:03
Speaker
almost an identical route each time we would go in and know the same entrance there and then you the first day we spent some time there second day we probably just spent the least amount of time because then we hung out with the guys from older ring yeah kind of shenanigans and then sunday after the awards we the original plan was all right we're just gonna have a couple and then we're gonna go which turned into that was the day we drank a lot yeah the the i'm only having a couple is always kind of a code word for we're about to about to tie one off and that's the thing like i honestly like we had dinner reservations that night and we still went yeah we still went had old passions there that was great i'm sure they were very excited to see you guys
00:46:45
Speaker
Oh, no, like, so at first I thought, I'm like, oh, like, we look like, because we went back to the hotel. We slept yeah for a little while, and then we went to dinner, and then with we were just wearing our shitty clothes, because it was, it's the oldest steakhouse in Denver, but Buckhorn Exchange. Oh, sure, sure. yeah So we strolled in there, and it was kind of dead when we got in there, so we sat down. We got there at the right time. And then, like, it filled up, and it was like families and stuff like that, and I'm like, I don't feel so I guess these kids throwing shit on the wall. we're good He had to yell at me for not throwing stuff at the stuffed bears.
00:47:17
Speaker
Yeah, I'll tell you know, we've we've been talking about like trying different, different beers at Bug and like exploring breweries that way. But, you know, I was looking at the three beers that we we just drank tonight and like, you know, I've been to all of those places and like the taproom experience is completely different at all these places. And so,
00:47:33
Speaker
That's why checking them out in person is such such ah such a cool opportunity to do that. Half Acre is such like a really well-established brewery, and they have it kind of down to a science, and you kind of feel that when you're in that brewery, but you know they really know what they're doing. Their food program is point and everything under the sun. Hopewell is just like you walk in there, and you're like, this is really thoughtfully crafted and designed, and you feel like you're in a very intentional space, and there's lots of plants and you know light. and And then like, you know, a Hop District and in LaGrange Park, you know, you walk in there and you feel like you're like a community hub, right? It's like people with their kids running around and like, have get into the kids in the brewery conversation. I am broken in brewery, by the way. yeah um But, you know, there's games and there's family tables and like, it's just like every place is just so different. And it's, it's so worth checking them out because, you know, you'll find your spot.
00:48:23
Speaker
Absolutely. I, i I love going to different breweries, but I also love going back to the ones that I love. Yeah. Like, that I really enjoy. and you know, Old Irving being so close to where we live has become the one that we go to the most. I was there last night. nine now I know. I almost went. I had to make my steak. Clark was there. had make my steak rice bowl.
00:48:45
Speaker
I had to do it. But, yeah, like you said, you know you find yours, and, like, I'm still... Every now and then, you know, reminding myself, oh, like there was one, forget me, it was like in February.
00:48:56
Speaker
I decided, you know, I'm going to go to a handful of breweries. It turned into three breweries. I started Alarmist, then went out to Double Clutch, then came back to Revolution and was home. You know, it was kind of like, oh, just make a little day thing out of it, you know, and had food over at Double Clutch and had a couple of beers at, you know, Alarmist and one at Revolution because by that point I was like, I need to stop.
00:49:15
Speaker
Yeah. But yeah, you're absolutely right. Like even, you know, um this weekend um I decided because the weather is going to be nice and and sit outside and there's a like ah That's the other thing too All these breweries normally have their own events. And that's other thing I've been trying to do is looking at the weekend events that breweries have because...
00:49:33
Speaker
almost every brewery has something. It could be like, it's bingo. Or here's, you know, there's a food truck that's going to be here. Or there's a pop-up there. I'm going to Hubbard's Cave. I was going to tell you this about I'm going to Hubbard's Cave on Sunday because they've got like some small local artists, like 25, not necessarily artists, but vendors. Yeah. yeah And they're going to be there. And I didn't, I didn't realize they had Tavern Pizza now in there.
00:49:57
Speaker
I want to have their brisket pit-tappered pizza. I didn't know that was thing. That's thing? Yeah, exactly. See? You didn't know it either. You stay around going Sunday. Yeah, I guess you guys are going come join me. I'll let you know when leaving. think Beck's doing something, so... guess With Benjamin. Woo, guess you're me! Yeah, so things like that. You know, I think it's... it's It goes just beyond like it's a good – I feel like an event like Friday Night Lights and Bug and even Fall Bab, it could be a good jump off to be like, oh, this place is interesting. I'll follow them. I'll buy their beer. Now I'm going to to their tap room.
00:50:24
Speaker
Oh, they have things that go on. Oh, all these things are great. Oh, this is – it just kind of builds and builds and and you find out you're a part of this you know community that you just discovered. you know we're we' we're at a place where it's it's not enough just to make good beer.
00:50:39
Speaker
I say this all the time, and I probably said it on this podcast, but it's it's it's good beer and yeah right and. So it's good beer and you know a cocktail menu, or good beer and awesome food, or good beer and a place, awesome environment, or good beer and you know music bingo, right or something like that. you know A bunch of breweries out in the western suburbs put ah for the masters put together kind of ah a nine-hole mini golf course.
00:51:05
Speaker
That's awesome. right and like That's the kind of stuff that I think is just so cool and innovative that this industry is doing. i wish they did it during Craft Beer Week, but hopefully they do it again. you know and so that's That's the kind of stuff that like it's getting people interested and into the tap rooms and experiencing um You know, these these these these really kind of tactile um opportunities to to to see where this product is made and meet the people who are making it and, you know, enjoy a really world-class beer and, you know, maybe get ah maybe get a bus smash burger made by a local restaurant or a pop-up.
00:51:38
Speaker
The best part it is, is bringing some beer home for the next day or maybe that night. Yeah. No, definitely. Definitely bring home bring home beer. And, you know, and and, you know, even if you're not buying ah beer to go from breweries, buy them from your local retailers. Right. This this industry, these small businesses are not decorations. Right. And the moment that we take the craft beer industry for granted in the state of Illinois and are not intentional about supporting it, that's the moment where we see breweries close.
Importance of Supporting Local Breweries
00:52:04
Speaker
And, you know, we've seen breweries close in this state. Yeah.
00:52:07
Speaker
um you know We've seen breweries open, we've seen second locations open, but you know this is not this is nothing unique to Illinois. ah The Brewers Association announced this is the first time in, I think, over the past 20 years that there's fewer breweries operating in this in the country than when this the year started. and you know In Illinois, that we started with about 305, we're down to about 301, right? And so we've seen some some breweries close, we have some breweries in planning, but you know when when people are making their buying decisions you know i i'm a broken record on this but you you need to support local yeah you know absolutely a lot of the stuff that i i do get when i go to beer on the wall i focus on all the local stuff places maybe i can't get to or you know like i said i'm trying something new for the first time also i am holding this can in my hand from hopewell it is sharp their japanese style dry lager and i bought this well i saw it on beer on the wall's website
00:53:01
Speaker
When I was looking for beers I wanted to get for this episode, and obviously the can design reminds, I think, all of us of the old VHS cassette. Oh, definitely. 100% that's what they were going for.
00:53:12
Speaker
And it is so awesome. And to top it off, this beer is fucking delicious. Yeah, it was really good. I really, really, really, really like this. Like, I want to go and get an un-four pack, or get a four pack of this. Yeah. no that's it's fantastic beer. I'm glad you grabbed It's super clear, and it's just, this is...
00:53:32
Speaker
Man, this... i'm not You know, again, sometimes we do comparisons. You know, we like to rate things on here. I will say this. This is my favorite beer the night. I'll tell tell you, it is one that holds up to food very, very well. I was saying before we started, I had it at Sun Wild Barbecue with some Peking Duck, and it was just... It cut right through the fat, and was just, like, phenomenal. And some beers are...
00:53:54
Speaker
are are just like wines are better with food and this is a great beer but i would say this one is is even better with you know some some some greasy chinese food i'm upset it's late as it is because there's nowhere i can go to get this right now if i wanted more but it's probably a good thing that i don't have any more at home because i'd probably go home and be like I have a couple more. It's light enough for for a Thursday or whatever day this airs.
00:54:16
Speaker
That's true. Monday, whenever. You know what? And that's the thing. like This is 5% beer, and it does... I mean this i don't say... it It's not definitely not a light beer, but to me it feels like this could easily be like you know a 4%. No, I mean it felt crisp, refreshing. yeah you know the The hoppiness on it was like yeah on point. like Not overly hoppy.
00:54:39
Speaker
And it it does have that, like, it's subtly sweet, but i it hit that dry note, too. So it's a good beer, man. I think that's my first time having and I enjoyed it.
00:54:49
Speaker
I would have loved this with my meatball sandwich that I made tonight for dinner. Perfect for that. Absolutely. Good job, Hopewell team. Thanks, Hopewell. Keep making good beers. um Is there any other things you wanted to hit on? I mean, i know we've talked a lot. We did a little bit legislation. Yeah, we did some legislation. We talked a little bit about summer activities. You know, one thing I didn't mention, and stay tuned for this because we'll be doing our full release on more details around this, is that on On June 10th, we are going to open up our our golf outing for the first time ever to craft beer enthusiasts. For the past six years, it's kind of been a ah Brewers only invitational opportunity. but
00:55:30
Speaker
you know we need we need to use it as an opportunity to kind of showcase our products and showcase our members and so you know if you are uh if you are a golfer and a listener and you want to play golf with a brewer and have a full day of craft beer and sunshine it's it's really it's a really cool opportunity so um we'll be announcing details about that uh in the next few weeks you know know i think about there's enough people at my job who do golf and they do a lot of golf holidays wonder if i can convince them to be like hey guys so A little team team building thing with around golf and gravity. We should just have it set up. We're like, hey, you could like we could be a team. and like You guys want to golf at the malting hour? like Hey, I love that. That's great. You could do an episode. We'll have the TASCAM. We'll mount it to the little golf cart. It's not a bad idea, Brandon. I'm in, you guys. yeah I'll sign guys up. Perfect. Perfect. I'm running out days off, but this is worth it.
00:56:21
Speaker
Yes, I'm scheduling way too many things. Show up with hockey sticks. We're ready to party. excuse I will wear my Blackhawks jersey. Oh, Bruins jersey or bust, right? Yeah, like happy. True, true. And just, you know, I would say more so than our stuff, summer is an opportunity for you to go out and explore the craft beer scene.
00:56:43
Speaker
Indeed. um go and Go and do that already. Yeah, and we will... Like you said, I mean, tickets are going. Tickets are going. So if you want to come to Bug, go to illinoisbeer.org. They could be gone by the time this episode comes.
00:56:57
Speaker
It's true. um We're getting down to to the the bitter end, and especially if you want one of those coveted VIP tickets, like now now is the time for sure. Do it. well We'll have the link in the this episode in the next at least one more i think after this because we're getting real close to being at bug yeah i think i already have it up on our link tree so nice i love it click that link yeah absolutely and uh keep supporting the guild and then all these things and keep supporting all our local breweries we we can't stress enough you know we we do drink a lot of beers from all over the united states and sometimes the world but for the most part we we we drink a lot of of local beers and i think that you know
00:57:35
Speaker
It's not on purpose. It's just that's what's really good for us and that's what we have access to. so We've got good stuff here. why yeah Why deviate? Yeah, absolutely. Chicago, I still feel is a...
00:57:48
Speaker
underappreciated maybe for around the United States of how awesome we have beer here. I know we've got some, some big names here, but there's, there's so much more than just the bigger names that people may know around the United States. i mean, just, and I know that's the same way with other cities, but Chicago is, is pretty, and Illinois itself, but you know, there's, there's a lot of of great beer in our home.
00:58:08
Speaker
Yeah, no Chicago. I, I, I'm a little biased, but I would, I would put up there with any beer city in in the United States by far, you know, we're talking about, 70 breweries that are consistently making some of the best in high quality and most high quality beer in in in the world, I would venture to say. And, you know, from places like Dovetail doing old world styles all the way to some of the experimental breweries that we have.
00:58:31
Speaker
You know, we are we are blessed and and it's an industry that we we we are super lucky to have here. and and Just to remind everybody, we did win the first gold for the hazy IPAs and JABF. That's right. The OGs. We're kind of a big deal.
00:58:46
Speaker
May have come from you know the east. We'd take it in the Midwest. Also the home of Barrel Age Stout, Absolutely. i mean, we're kind a big deal. i feel like, you know, Chicago, we're always overlooked. That's all right. That's what makes us tough. the Second city, you know? Yeah, Well, Ray, we appreciate you joining us again. Thank you so much. Thank you, Ray. Yeah, we you're always welcome. And hopefully we we bring you on a little bit more. I know you're a busy guy.
00:59:09
Speaker
But, you know, the holidays are always good. I'll see you FOBAB. Absolutely. yeah ah Brandon, love everybody. Love you too, man. We'll see where you next week. Thanks, guys. Bye. Oh, I did the bye.
00:59:24
Speaker
This has been The Malting Hour. Be sure to follow us on all social media by searching The Malting Hour and at themaltinghour.com. You can also follow us individually on social media. Brandon can be found on Instagram as bmdub81, on Twitter bdub81, and on Untappd as bdubdrinksbeer.
00:59:42
Speaker
Tony can be found on Instagram and Untappd under Ace of Elps Chicago, on Twitter the Ace of Elps Chicago. Clark can be found as Clarkowski on all three. Dan can be found on Instagram as hip underscore underscore hops and to hip hops on YouTube. Be sure to subscribe, like, and rate the show on your preferred podcast listening platform. Until next time, cheers from all of us at the Malting Hour.