Quite a few things going down Thanksgiving weekend in the beer community in Eastern Iowa. Everyone knows that Goose Island Bourbon County Stout releases on Black Friday but there are a ton of other goings on happening with local bars and breweries too! Below you will find a list of many releases taking place, not just BCBS. Also, a big update on future Big Grove pins and an update on their new brewery too! I’ll hopefully be updating this as the list continues to grow. For more info on Lion Bridge’s release, make sure you clink the link to their Facebook page. If you have more news, shoot me a message and I’ll get it posted ASAP!
Another Road Brewing
Another Road will be having a free lunch with a beer purchase. They will have beef stew made with Dry Pump Stout, beer cheese soup made with our Honey Wheat, and Brownies made with our Vanilla Porter. We will be tapping the Vanilla Porter at noon, As well as setting out food. This is all taking place on Small Business Saturday. Another Road brewing is located in Marion, IA.
Benz Beverage Depot
Benz Beverage Depot will be handing out samples and releasing Goose Island Bourbon County Stout on December 10th from 10-Noon. Allocation information will be coming soon. On November 23rd they will be having a whiskey tasting. 10% off wine beer and spirits all day, and on November 25th it will 15% off wine beer and spirits.
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Big Grove Brewery
Here is the release schedule for future Big Grove pins. Make sure you mark these on your schedule. Also, some picture updates below on the new brewery coming to Iowa City next year!
11/18 Boomtown with ginger, Honey, Vanilla
11/25 Que Onda Roja with Dates and Figs
12/2 IPA with Juniper
12/9 Arms Race Pale Ale with Pineapple, WL Amarillo
12/23 Russian Imperial with Ginger, Clove, Allspice, 
Molasses
12/30 Que Onda Roja with Tart Cherries’
**30bbls serving vessels and a 60bbl fermenter.
Bootleggin’ Barzini’s
Barzini’s will be having a 6:00 p.m. release on Black Friday for regular Bourbon County Stout and the limit will be 2 per person. Any other Bourbon County offerings will be available via lotteries during December along with many sought after bourbons and whiskies…..Pappy something I hear. If in the Iowa City area check them out!
Brick Bar and Grill
Bricks is hosting Stout and Wars and although the event is sold out there may be some tap lines that still have some greatness in them. Here’s more from Bricks:
11 of the 12 beers should make it through the event to be available at around 5 pm on December 10th when it finishes. (Vanilla Rye will be the only bottle pour of this event). To recap the full lineup:
1. Founders Brewing Co. Kentucky Breakfast Stout
2. Goose Island 2015 Bourbon County Brand Stout
3. Stone Brewing w00tstout 3.0
4. Stone Brewing Xocoveza Charred
5. Oskar Blues Brewery Barrel-Aged Ten Fidy
6. Big Grove Brewery Richard the Whale Praline
7. Odell Brewing Co Jolly Russian
8. Goose Island Bourbon County Vanilla Rye 2014
9. Third Base Brewery TBD Stout
10. Founders Brewing Co. Lizard of Koz
11. Avery Brewing Company Vanilla Bean Stout
12. Evil Twin Brewing Imperial Biscotti Break
Confluence Brewing Company
We will have extended taproom hours and beer specials throughout the week of Thanksgiving! Make sure you stock up on beer for your holiday gatherings. Our hours and specials are listed below.Tuesday, November 22nd- noon-10pm. $2 off 64oz growlers, $1 off 32oz growlers (new and refills).
Wednesday, November 23rd- noon-10pm. $2 off 64oz growlers, $1 off 32oz growlers (new and refills).
Thursday, November 24th- Taproom CLOSED.
Friday, November 25th- Black Friday special! $1 off pints of “black” beers from noon-5pm.
Saturday, November 26th- noon-11pm. No beer specials.
Sunday, November 27th- noon-7pm. No beer specials.
Coralville Brrr Fest
Brrr Fest tickets go on sale on Black Friday. Brewmaster/VIP tickets sold out in less than a week last year. Date for this year’s Brrr Fest is January 28th. John’s Grocery and Coralville Hy-Vee will be selling general admission tickets as well.
Coralville Hy-Vee Wine and Spirits
The Coralville Hy-Vee Wine and Spirits will be having a Black Friday bourbon county release 11/25/16. Their release will start at 6:00 am and be 2 per person limit on Bourbon County Stout and 1 per person limit on barleywine.
Iowa Brewing Company
Iowa brewing company is having a Ready for Eddie party on the patio Thanksgiving morning from 7-12. They are offering $3.00 beers and an escape from parades and family. unless your family is cool, then you can bring them along. More details on our Facebook page.
Johns Grocery
John’s Grocery will be filling Richard the Whale, Richard with Coffee, and Richard with Praline starting on Black Friday @ 11:00 a.m. They are hoping to have Bourbon County in at the same time but it all depends on the truck drops. BCBS Barleywine will be released sometime in December.
Kickshaw Barrel Works
Kickshaw Barrel Works will be doing a Pipo preview at Lion Bridge Brewing Company in Cedar Rapids on November 26th. Here’s more on Pipo:
7% watermelon sour, fermented for 5 months with Kroul Farms watermelons.Lion Bridge Brewery
Lion Bridge Brewery
Lion Bridge will be having their Maple Disaster bottle release on Saturday, November 26th starting at noon. They will also be selling 2nd Anniversary Biere de Garde bottles and will have maple disaster, Coffee maple disaster, and Biere de Garde on tap that day as well. Click HERE to link to their Facebook event page, should be great!
Madhouse Brewing Company
Not technically Thanksgiving week but Madhouse will be hosting a Barrel-Room Open House and tasting party. According to their Facebook page, which you can visit HERE, this is the list of brews that will be available:
Join us for a beer release party and grand opening for our new Sour Barrel-Room events space.
NEW BEERS TO BE RELEASED:
-2016 Madhouse Wee-Heavy – Imperial Scotch Ale aged in Heaven Hill Bourbon barrels. Caramel and toffee aromas with sweet malt flavors. Available in 750ml bottles.
*Madhouse Fruit & Spice Series – A collection of sour beers, each showcasing a unique flavor combination of fruit and spice. Available in 750ml bottles.
-Strawberry Fields – Strawberry/Basil
-Mango Tango – Mango/Cardamom
-Velvet Fuzz – Peach/Lavender
-Maui Wowie – Pineapple/Coconut
Mt. Vernon Road Hy-Vee
We will be doing a first come first served basis on all bourbon county that we get, limit one or two depending on how much we receive. Delivery should be early in the morning but no set time. On Tuesday, November 22nd they will be releasing a barrel-aged Maple Disaster by Lion Bridge starting at 5:00. Limit 1 per person.
Oakland Rd Hy-Vee
Oakland Rd. Hy-Vee in Cedar Rapids will be releasing on the 28th at 4:00 pm and limit 3 person until it is gone.
Quarter Barrel Brewery and Arcade
Quarter Barrel Brewing will be releasing Ebenezer Old Ale on Black Friday. This is a recipe that the brewer and his wife have homebrewed and shared with friends and family for years before opening our brewery. Since they weren’t able to open in time to release a full scale version last year, it was brewed in February and set it off to age. A more limited availability whiskey barrel aged bottled version will be available closer to Christmas.
Red’s Alehouse
Reds Alehouse is planning a BOCO event on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, and are still hammering out the details. They won’t have the 2016 release since that doesn’t drop until Friday but they are hoping to have some vintages and other cellared Goose Island brews available. All the information will be out in the next day or two! They will also be opening their doors Thanksgiving morning from 8-9 a.m. to do growler fills!
Sanctuary Pub
The Sanctuary Pub in Iowa City will be tapping the Boulevard/Firestone Walker Collaboration on Black Friday. Here’s more on that brew:
Collaboration No. 6 will be composed of the following beers:
Boulevard Bourbon Barrel Quad – 45%
Based loosely on the Smokestack Series’ The Sixth Glass, this abbey-style quadrupel is separated into a number of oak bourbon barrels where it ages for varying lengths of time, some for up to three years. Cherries are added to make up for the “angel’s share” of beer lost during barrel aging. Selected barrels are then blended for optimum flavor. The resulting beer retains only very subtle cherry characteristics, with toffee and vanilla notes coming to the fore.
ABV – 11.8, IBU – 19Firestone Walker Stickee Monkee – 35%
Brewed with Belgian candi sugar and aged in a selection of fine bourbon barrels, Stickee Monkee trailblazes its own category as a “Central Coast Quad.” The name Stickee Monkee is a nod to the Central Coast’s native Sticky Monkey flower, as well as a shout‐out to the Belgian monks who pioneered the Quad style. The Belgian candi sugar imparts a signature molasses sweetness to the beer. Meanwhile, maturation in bourbon casks brings ample barrel expression with notes of toasted oak, coconut, leather and cigar tobacco.
ABV – 13, IBU – 45Imperial Stout X – Tart Cherry (Whiskey Barrel-aged) – 10%
Our special treat for lovers of big, complex stouts, the Imperial Stout “X” series offers a year-long roster of limited releases, each with a significant variation. This riff spotlights the addition of tart cherries to fermentation as well as a lactic souring on the brewhouse. The result is a perfect marriage of robust, smoky maltiness and bracing tartness. Unlike the release version of Imperial Stout X – Tart Cherry, this portion was briefly aged in previously used whiskey barrels.
ABV – 11, IBU – 64Firestone Walker Velvet Merkin – 10%
Velvet Merkin is the beer that almost wasn’t…Indeed, this vintage oatmeal stout’s comical (or is it scandalous?) name went off the grid for several years, but now it’s back due to popular demand. Velvet Merkin is aged for a full year in retired spirits barrels from Heaven Hill, Woodford Reserve and others, yet manages to offer mind-boggling balance and restraint. You will wig out when you taste Velvet Merkin’s rich milk chocolate, bourbon and espresso flavors, preceded by aromas of vanilla, coconut, toasted oak and mocha.
ABV – 8.5, IBU – 33Collaboration No. 6 – Barrel-Aged Blend will be released starting in the Greater Kansas City Area on November 7th (draft) and November 8th (750 mL bottles) and will be sold through Boulevard’s distribution network. Areas that normally see Smokestack Series limited release beers like Saison-Brett or Rye-on-Rye should expect to see Collaboration No. 6 in the coming weeks.
Mt. Vernon Road Hy-Vee in Cedar Rapids will be releasing Lion Bridge Brewing Maple Disaster bottles starting at 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday November 22nd. This brew has been aged on Cedar Ridge bourbon barrels. There is a 1 bottle limit on from 5-6 and any bottles left will be up for sale. The bottles will be 750 ml flip tops.
If you are in the Cedar Falls/Waterloo area and have some time on your hands today, head on over to Uncle Harry’s Five and Dime and taste some great beers from Odell Brewing Company.
‘Tis the season for stouts! Don’t let the unusually warm weather deter you from sipping on a nice, thick, frothy, stout and once you get a taste of this beauty from Summit you could picture yourself drinking this year round!
It seems like forever ago since we saw Abrasive on the shelves but this week it should be making its long awaited return. Surly Abrasive should be hitting the shelves in Iowa as early as tomorrow! Here’s more on this brew:
Kickshaw’s next bottling will be of “Bibelot”, an ale aged and fermented in Cedar Ridge Malted Rye barrels. Here’s more from Bill and Kickshaw on his latest bottling:
Kickshaw brewer/owner Bill Heinrich has updated his next project coming down the bottling line. “Curio” will be hitting shelves hopefully by the end of September. Here is Mr. Heinrich’s description of this brew:
Barn City Brewing will be coming to West Des Moines at 9500 University in West Des Moines! Pete Faber is the man behind this venture and here is more info courtesy of Pete’s Facebook account: