Category: Beer

Big Grove Happenings: April 20th +21st Richard Reserve Tapping, Que Sera w/Strawberry + Rhubarb. Plus Blackstone hosting Richard Reserve and Barrel-Aged Darkness Tapping

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big groveA couple of big events featuring Big Grove Brewery and taking place at John’s Grocery and Blackstone Restaurant in Iowa City.

**Thursday April 20th – John’s Grocery – Big Grove Brewery Richard Reserve(Richard the Whale aged in a Eagle Rare barrel w/ JBC roasters Panama Geisha coffee) growler fills.

 

**Friday April 21st – Blackstone Restaurant – Big Grove Brewery tapping Richard Reserve at Blackstone along with Que Sera with strawberry and rhubarb. They will also have Surly Brewing Barrel-aged Darkness and Pentagram as well.

Tasty things happening in Eastern Iowa with Big Grove, Blackstone, and John’s. Make sure you get out and hit up one of these events!

Upcoming Big Grove Brewery Happenings…Pralines and Richard Growler Fills Anyone?

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big groveBig Grove Brewery in Solon will be having a special cask tapping along with a 3-course pairing coming up this Friday in Solon. First thing, the beer. They will be tapping a cask of Que Sera with charred grapefruit, smoked sea salt, and roasted coriander. Along with this wonderfully refreshing sounding beer will be a paired 3 course meal. The meal will consist of:

**Aleppo and grapefruit glazed local turnip with a tarragon and radish puree, smoked Marcona almonds, and scallions
**Miso and avocado mousse with seared diver scallop and smoked nori
**Olive oil upside down cake with fresh grapefruit, candied ginger and a spiced yogurt

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This tapping will be happening this Friday April 7th!

This coming Saturday, April 8th, Big Grove will be hitting up the 1st Avenue Hy-Vee in Iowa City with some special….Pralines and Richard anyone? Here’s what they are bringing to Hy-Vee on Saturday:

From 12-5 this Saturday:
*Growler fills of Pralines & Richard, Blood Orange Arms Race, and Barrel Aged Que Sera with Cranberries.
100% sales are going towards Tour de Shank

Dubuque “The Tappening” is Happening Saturday June 10th!

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*Scott Birney is a creative mastermind!*

The City of Dubuque will once again play host to “The Tappening” this coming summer. Saturday June 10th is the day and the kickoff party for Dubuque’s River Festival event that features a list of bands.

The Tappening is a celebration of premier craft beers and their brew masters from around the State of Iowa and the tri-state area. Tap in for a day of live music, terrific beer vendors, and plenty of fun.

Located in the Port of Dubuque and on the banks of the Mississippi River, The Tappening serves as the kickoff party for Saturday night’s activities at America’s River Festival.

Here is confirmed so far with many more still to come!

  • Another Road Brewing
  • Backpocket
  • Baraboo Brewing
  • Barn Town Brewing
  • Bent River Brewing
  • Big Grove
  • Catfish Charlies
  • Confluence Brewing
  • Duber
  • FireTrucker Brewing
  • Front Street Brewing
  • Galena Brewing Co
  • Generations Brewing Co
  • Franklin Street Brewing
  • Iowa Brewing Co
  • Jubeck Brewing
  • Millstream
  • Mississippi River Distilling
  • Paradise Distilling
  • Potosi Brewing
  • River Ridge Brewing

More info can be found by clicking here. Stay tuned for more details as more brewery names are being added along with beers being offered.

Ramsey’s Wine Bistro in Marion Hosting Tallgrass Beer Dinner Wed. March 15th!

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tallgrassHidden amongst the throng of shops, stores, bars, there is a terrific little bistro in Marion, Iowa called Ramseys. One of my favorite places to go have a panini (the Italian is my favorite) and a hidden gem for craft beer lovers. Yes, it’s a wine bistro with an array wines, but Ramseys also has a stellar craft beer lineup as well!

Next Wednesday, Ramseys will be hosting a beer dinner featuring Tallgrass Brewing beers. The lineup is as follows:

Potato & Leek soup with Buffalo Sweat
Devils on Horseback with Vanilla Buffalo
Irish Boxty w/ smoked trout with 8bit
Bangers & Mash with King Buffalo
Burnt Oranges with Raspberry Jam

$40 a person and seating is limited so contact Ramsey’s at this number: (319) 447-1700

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Drink This! Madhouse Carpe Diem

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madhouseAn obvious choice for a Drink This! post but this beer is soooo damn good it’s worth another mention. People lining up anticipating the release, constant social media mentions of the brew and the beer trader pages with the many ISO: Madhouse Carpe Diem tell me that this isn’t a hidden secret of a brew and many of you already know about its greatness.

There are a few releases that I get excited about every year and this is one of them. Since Madhouse has made this beer, every year it has gotten better to the point where I would say that this year’s version is as satisfying and delicious of a beer that I can remember having. Some might say it’s too sweet, or not enough coffee, yadda yadda, to each their own, but for me, pretty damn close to perfection.

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Stores sold out fast but call around, maybe there are a few hiding somewhere or maybe Madhouse still has it on tap, or maybe you need to be one of people on the beer trading sites that put out the:

ISO: 2017 Madhouse Carpe Diem

I’m not sure what protocol is but I like to buy a beer and be able to try it, so if you are able to score one, my opinion is to drink it fresh; taste that delicious maple, coffee and chocolate as it mixes perfectly with the oats to make a creamy breakfast masterpiece! One of the best beers coming out of Iowa folks!

Do what you need to do and make sure you get to Drink This brew! Cheers!

Madhouse Brewery Releasing Carpe Diem Tomorrow (February 17th)!

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madhouseThe highly anticipated release of Madhouse Brewing’s bourbon barrel aged imperial breakfast stout, Carpe Diem, will be taking place Friday February 17th and Madhouse Brewing in Des Moines, IA. One of my favorite beers of the past year will be released along with some other breakfast themed beers from Madhouse. Here’s more courtesy of Madhouse’s Facebook page:

A breakfast-themed beer release party! Miss Molly’s Jamaican Patty food truck will be on-site serving Jamaican and breakfast foods.

Beers to be released:

CARPE DIEM: Bourbon barrel-aged Imperial Breakfast Stout made with oats, cocao nibs, Kona coffee, and bourbon barrel-aged Iowa maple syrup. Available in 750ml bottles.

FREEDOM TOAST: Bourbon maple barrel-aged Wee-Heavy with cinnamon and vanilla. Draft only.

BLACK & BLUE: Barrel-aged sour Imperial Stout with blackberries and blueberries. Available in 750ml bottles.

CATAWBA-WABA: Barrel-aged sour Saison with fresh Iowa Catawba grape juice added. Draft only.

The event starts at 4:00: For more information visit Madhouse’s Facebook page here and feel free to pick the Baron up a bottle!!

Founders Bringing “Doom” Back to 4 packs and 750’s

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foundersA barrel-aged double IPA will be making it’s way back to Eastern Iowa as Founders will be releasing “Doom”. This double ipa is aged in bourbon barrels and was last seen back in 2013. Here’s more on this release courtesy of Founder’s Brewing website:

We’ve just received the green light to share info about the third beer in our new Barrel-Aged Series: Doom. You heard it here first.

Doom may be impending but that doesn’t mean you have to fear it. A collision of worlds, the intense hop character of our imperial IPA mingles with the warm vanilla and oak notes imparted from time spent in our favorite bourbon barrels. Like all good things, Doom comes to those who wait.

We previously released Doom in 2013, although it was featured in our taproom as a draft-only option long before that. Given the number of times we’ve been asked when it will return to our lineup, we expect this news to be well-received.

Doom is the third release of 2017 in the Barrel-Aged Series, preceded by Frootwood and KBS. There are two remaining Barrel-Aged Series beers to be announced this year, with Backwoods Bastard being the fifth in the lineup.

As with all the Barrel-Aged Series beers, Doom will be available in 750mL bottles and 4-packs of 12oz bottles. Look for it beginning in May, with most states receiving theirs by early June.

3 Iowa Beers to Drink Now!

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beerbaronI couldn’t do just 1 Drink This! edition this time around as the state of Iowa is sending out so much great beer I had to do three! As we approach the 2017 Coralville Brrr Fest and with the program released this past week anticipation is mounting for ticket holders to get a taste of Iowa’s finest breweries and beers. Within the last 5 days I’ve had the opportunity to try 3 amazing beers from 3 amazing Iowa breweries. So here are three beers the you have to DRINK NOW!

img_0990**Big Grove Brewery – Buster Triple IPA** – Buster released this past Tuesday and I knew for sure I had to hit Big Grove and try this baby fresh. Mosaic hops shine with flavors of juicy fruit gum, tropical fruits, and some grassiness. A wonderful dank ass triple IPA. There is one thing that can be bad about this brew…it’s scary drinkable. An 11.4% ABV triple IPA can definitely put you on your ass if you don’t pay attention! This might arguably be the best or one of the best double/triple IPAs in the state. Follow this link to see my post on where it will be available and they also just hit the Cellar Peanut Pub in Pella with a hell of a lineup! So good, can’t wait for another glass! Cheers Big Grove!

 

IMG_0992.JPG**Lion Bridge Brewery – GAZPROM 2017** – I’ve been waiting for this release since last year. Lion Bridge takes the shitty, dark, long ass month of January and makes pretty damn enjoyable with their Barrel-Aged January releases. A new release, every week, for the month of January and all barrel-aged beers. I’ve loved the Winter Warmer and the Royal Wee but the big dog for me is GAZPROM!. The sweetness from the syrup is the perfect balance to booziness from the barrels. I say this a lot but this is a top-tier beer for me….maybe top 10? Top 5? Either way, I can’t wait to have more of this and thank you Quinton and Alec and Lion Bridge for making January tolerable!

 

img_0994**Madhouse Brewery – VIP Barrel Aged Vanilla Porter** – was happy my Mt. Vernon Road Hy-Vee had a few bottles of this, wasn’t sure if we would see it all. I had been hearing good things coming from the fine beer folks in Des Moines and was hoping to land one of these. I’ve been hit and miss with vanilla added to my beers. Sometimes I dig it when it’s not over they type vanilla extract and with Madhouse VIP I’m really digging it. The slight sweetness from the vanilla pairs with the barrel and just a faint hint of cigar smoke on the aftertaste. Viscous, tasty, and warming. An excellent companion to a chilly January evening.

There you go Iowa. Three newer beers for you to try. Hopefully all 3 make it somewhere close to your area and you get a taste, and hopefully you enjoyed them as much as I did/do! Cheers!