Brrr Fest is a little less than two weeks away and all that are attending are in for a no doubt feast of wonderfully brewed beers by Iowa’s finest! Along with a stellar beer festival, party goers will have the opportunity to see how great the Iowa River Landing really is and how it’s becoming a destination for food and beer lovers! One of the many places is right across from where Brrr Fest will be taking place and that is Backpocket Brewery. Backpocket has been bringing out the big guns for years now during this festival and this year one of the beers they will be releasing is Dark Day and I just happen to be sipping on a bottle right now!(Thank you Aaron!) Before, I get too far into this brew, here’s the details for the brew:
Boiled for 24hrs, this BA imperial chocolate stout has multiple layers. The dark chocolate, cherry puree, toasted coconut & roasted pecans remind us of a classic german chocolate cake.
Pre-party info for Backpocket includes:
Pre-Party that include a pour of Dark Day, Maple Syrup BA Waffle Stout, an all you can eat breakfast, AND we’ll be releasing a pin variant at 10am!
Alright, let’s tear into this bad boy. As you can see by the picture, I’ve framed it up REAL nice!
– A nice viscous pour, thick with a small tan head. Smell of dark fruit and chocolate on the nose. Took a few sips with the beer being freshly poured and chocolate was dominant and blended very well with the barrel. With a beer like this, it’s best to let it sit or even just drink it room temperature. As the great Travis Lange will advise you, if you order a big stout, order another beer to drink while the stout sits and warms a tad…the fella is not wrong. Flavors pick up and sometimes if feels like you are drinking another tasty brew. When Dark Day warms, the cherries start to flood in and the slightest touch of coconut starts coming through. Chocolate still shines though..description says German Chocolate Cake which I’ve never had, but if it tastes like this, get me a slice soon! Definitely worth seeking, and if you’re heading to Brrr Fest, definitely a reason to stop into the Backpocket taproom! Along with this brew they’ve just released a DDH Galaxy version of Bubba, Tiki Sour is back and if you get there in time to try the Maple Syrup BA Waffle Stout you’ll be having yourself a lovely day.
Courtesy of SingleSpeed’s Facebook page, here’s what the brewery has in store for Saturday’s event!
•𝐒𝐚𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐝 – Double Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Milk Stout (11.4% ABV).Twice the barrels, twice the fun. First, 12 months in Cedar Ridge Bourbon Barrels. Second, 3 months in Woodford Reserve Double Oaked Bourbon Barrels. •𝐓𝐰𝐨 𝐂𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟐 – Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Milk Stout (10.9% ABV).Two cows walked into a barrel 12 months ago… and finally, they awakened. •𝐓𝐢𝐩 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐨𝐰 ‘𝐕𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐚 𝐁𝐞𝐚𝐧’ – Milk Stout (6.2% ABV).All of the cocoa and espresso goodness you’ve grown to love in Tip the Cow, with an extra layer of decadence .•𝐓𝐢𝐩 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐟 – Session Milk Stout (4.5% ABV).2x GABF ‘Session Beer’ medalist… What more do you need to know?
Might want to get to Waterloo this weekend! Cheers!
Chocolate Coconut Candy – 8% ABV A Pastry Stout with Coconut and Chocolate
Beer Zombie – Hawks Blood –Horus Collab – Triple IPAHawks Blood, DDH West Coast Triple IPA 11% (Collab Horus Aged Ales) Collaboration with Horus Aged Ales (Oceanside, CA) Double Dry Hopped with Motueka, Citra, Nelson, & Hibiscus. BEER POURS A RED COLOR
Beer Zombie – Zombie Whip – 8-Bit Brewing Collab Peaches & Cream, Heavily Fruited Sour Ale 8% (Collab with 8-Bit Brewing Company) Heavily fruited with peaches, vanilla, and lactose. Collaboration with 8-Bit Brewing Company
Down with the Thiqqness – Pastry Stout 13% Pastry Stout with Graham Cracker, Vanilla, Marshmallow Fluff, Chocolate, & Coffee
Spin to win – Strawberry Banana Coconut v2: medium thickness pour Round two of this beast is hitting the taps here at the Hoosier Brewing Co soon! The first round of this beauty holds a strong 4.20 on Untapped! There is a ton of strawberry and banana in this recipe and we finish it with a light touch of coconut making this one heavenly brew.
Fruit Fusion: Limoncello Soft Serve: thin pour Our next version of Fruit Fusion comes from a super popular drink combo but with a twist! We use loads of Limoncello softserve ice cream along with tons of real Lemon, and finish with a heavy dose of Limoncello smoothie mix! This one is super unique and will please the sour beer fans for sure.
PIE FACE: Blueberry Caramel Cheesecake: medium pour Our Pie Face lineup is still our strongest brand and this new brew might hit the top of the charts! It is freak’n delicious. We paired fresh pureed blueberries with jug after jug of caramel topping and finished with our cheesecake crust treatment.
NEW – Astronaut – Imperial Peanut Butter Porter
POG – passion fruit/ Orange/ Guava Sour – (7.2% ABV) 𝗣𝗢𝗚 is our brand new fruited sour making it’s way to the market! The name stems from the blend of Passionfruit, Orange, and Guava which give it’s delicious tangy flavor. Tropical oscillations converge with a sharp acidic kick for a blast of fruit-punch! After one sip, you’ll want to play for keeps.
MORE to Life – Helles Lager – (4% ABV) A fresh batch of 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗟𝗶𝗳𝗲 available now for all those looking for some crispness cheer(s)! This classically brewed American Lager is brewed with American malt, rice, and corn and is truly festive during any season. Lagered in our traditional horizontal tank, this certified crisper lends an intricate yet sessionable experience that will always keep you coming back for MORE….and cheers to the good life!
Another year in the books, and like every year since I’ve been doing this blog and releasing my Top 10 I was once again blown away by the amazing beers that our Iowa brewers and their staff have made for us this year! Not only that, the resiliency shown by breweries/restaurants/bars during the past few years cannot be overlooked and huge thank you to all service industry workers! Cheers to you! Onto the TOP 10! LIST CRITERIA *Beer must have been brewed in Iowa *Beer must have been released in 2021 *Annual releases not counted unless a new adjunct had been added to that particular beer
Like every list, I know opinions will differ and I’m looking forward to reading what your top 10 list was for this year! Once again, so many beers, so little time, and I know I wasn’t able to even scratch the surface as to the beers I wanted to try!
**Big Grove Richard the Whale Chocolate Coconut Cake– – this year’s “Golden Ticket” beer during the Richard the Whale release, and like every year, it does not disappoint. Chocolate and coconut shine as this is wonderfully balanced, great for any time of the day, another win for Big Grove with this beer!
**Lion Bridge Silvia – Farmhouse ales are a style that goes overlooked and thankfully is making their way back to some breweries, and Lion Bridge not only made a great one, but possibly my favorite beer of the year. It was a perfect accompaniment to the Thanksgiving dinner table..not just one bottle either…If you’re a saison/farmhouse ale fan this is one to definitely try!
**Pulpit Rock Island Life – first enjoyed on a guy’s trip to Decorah and was blown away by the wonderful tropical flavor this beer brought. Maybe the setting had a lot to do with it, but I’m pretty sure it’s just a great beer to drink!
**Gezellig Long Story Short – 4.9%– smoothie sours/seltzers were all the rage in the beer world this past year and Iowa breweries sure made a whole lot of good ones. One of my favorites comes from the lovely folks in Newton, Iowa at Gezellig. Strawberry starbursts and pomegranate helped make this a flavor packed brew!
**Lua Brewing Dawn – 13.5% – part of last year’s “Resolution” I set for myself was trying to make it to Central and Western Iowa more often to taste what the breweries are pushing out there, especially the ones that don’t get much distro to Eastern Iowa..I kind of failed in that endeavor, however, I did get to Des Moines a few times and was able to procure some Lua brews! One that really stood out was this imperial stout. Coffee and a hint of vanilla make this decadent brew stand out, and hides that ABV very well! Looking forward to more from Lua in 2022!
**Clock House Brewing Barrel Aged Peanut Panic Porter – 12% – the base beer was one of my favorites in 2020 and then adding it to barrels and resting it on peanuts, cocoa nibs, and vanilla really added more depth to an already wonderful beer. The misconception from some was that this was a peanut “butter” beer, not the case, straight up peanuts and the balance of the flavors comes through remarkably!
**Adventurous Easy Peel (triple dry hopped Mosaic)- 8.3% – the 2nd Easy Peel I’ve had this year and I think the Mosaic barely beats out the El Dorado for me. Both very good and the combo of the mosaic hops and cryo mosaic hops really stands out. Excellent beer, any of the Easy Peel beers from Adventurous would be a safe bet!
**Lion Bridge Percussive Maintenance Macaroon – 11% – Chocolate and coconut paired with a great barrel is hard to go wrong and Lion Bridge balances this beer perfectly. There are some beers that you’ll always remember opening and pouring and this is definitely one of those for me. One to sip on yourself or share with someone you care about….a moment making beer for sure! One of the best of the year!
**Lua Pushpop: Because My Heart is in Iowa – Lua Pushpops can be hard to come by if you live in Eastern Iowa, luckily they sometimes drop a few beers off at Tin Roost in North Liberty to get us a taste here in Eastern Iowa. Mango and cherry beer, super thick and delicious. Lua dominated the slushie/sour landscape in the beer world! A trip to Des Moines in needed soon!
**Dimensional You Down with OCP – 13.1% – Pastry stouts can be hit and miss with me. Many are too sweet for my liking, and the adjuncts are too dominate over the base beer, but not with this one…Dimensional added 100 lbs each of oatmeal cream pies, oatmeal cookies, and toasted coconut to this big beer and it worked wonderfully. Not too sweet at all, in fact, if the 13.1% wouldn’t drop me I could easily see myself sipping on glass #2 letting the beer warm me up in the Iowa winter!
Join us this Friday, December 31st at noon as we release Clock House Black IPAComprised of carefully selected Black malts to achieve a deep, rich roasted dark malt flavor with hints of chocolate and rye. Bittered and dry-hopped with Centennial, Mosaic, and Amarillo hops that attribute to classic bitter pine notes. Available in 16oz 4-packs, growlers, and on draft.
Clock House is kicking out a big boy this coming Thursday as they prepare for a bomber release of a barrel aged stout! Here’s more:
FORBIDDEN The cellar doors have opened. This Monster Imperial Stout was aged for over a year in Cedar Ridge Rye-Bourbon Blended Barrels then Rested on a touch of Cacao Nibs and Vanilla Beans. Bombers of Forbidden will be available at noon on Thursday, December 23rd until supplies last. These will be sold exclusively inside our taproom. Pre-sales will not be offered. Available on draft. $22 per bottle.
BINARY CODE Bourbon- Maple Barrel aged for over one year. This Imperial Stout is as smooth as it gets. Notes of molasses and maple rounded off with sweetness on the back end. Bottles of Binary Code will be available at noon on Thursday, December 23rd until supplies last. These will be sold exclusively inside our taproom. Pre-sales will not be offered. Available on draft. $20 per 500 ML bottle
The next XXplosion beer from Clock House Brewing in Cedar Rapids will be released this coming Friday, December 17th starting @ 3:00 p.m.! Here’s more from the brewery on this beer:
Join us this Friday as we bring back the very first variant of our XXplosion series! We took loads of raw Blackberries and added them to our base kettle sour. Fruity, sweet, and delicious!Available in 16oz 4-packs and on draft!
Friday night, December 3rd, sitting on a high raise table overlooking some of the best chefs in the state, maybe even the country, put on an absolute clinic on cooking, plating, and presenting some of the most wonderful food I’ve ever had put in front of me, all the while sipping on the yet to be released Richard the Whale Well Baked and Shadeshine IPA….I thought to myself…all food/beer lovers need to experience this one day and how lucky I was at that moment to get to take part in it. Big Grove has been the upper echelon on their releases, especially the Richard the Whale release, and every year they make it even more enjoyable with their food and beer offerings, but the one thing that shines even more than those things is just how amazing their staff is. Friendly, helpful, and just overall looking like they are happy to be there. This setup was a spectacle, setup like an Iron Chef type feel, video displayed on TVs showing the chefs plating, the amount of work and thought put into everything was evident. I won’t be breaking down every dish, I’ll trickle some pictures here and there, take a look and let your mouth water.
Watching the chefs put their talents on display for a 15 course dinner of foods that elegant was the ultimate treat. The care about what they serve, the interaction with the diners, and pure joy and smiles they had throughout the night was reflected in every dish. I do want to implore you, that if the chance to go to a Big Grove beer dinner is ever on the table for you, no matter what..do it…it’s worth it..it will be completely worth it….do not hesitate…this group of people simply do it the best!
Thank you Janelle for having me, thanks to all the chefs especially Ben, Sean, and T.J., thanks do Doug and Matt, thanks to Andy for sampling out some of their amazing beers…now it’s time to make your mouth water with some pictures! Cheers and thank you BG!
21 Beers of Bad Luck DIPA – Beer Zombies Collab We got together with the friends in the band Bayside to brew up a collaboration to celebrate the end of their tour ” 21 Years Of Really Bad Luck” a massive DDH Hazy DIPA with Citra, Mouteka & Galaxy. Get ready for a big blast of fresh citrus, over ripe guava, a whispering og stone fruit and a back end of bright grapefruit.
Cash Imperial Coffee Stout Imperial Coffee Stout Collaboration with Mostra Coffee. Notes of Dark Chocolate, Espresso and Rich Malt
Juice Wolf TIPA – Ferrous Falcon An unfiltered Triple IPA with a crazy grain bill highlighted by Golden Promise and Chit malt. This is dry hopped three different times with Cashmere, Citra, Galaxy, and Nectaron. Collaboration with Electric Brewing
Mosaic Revengeance DIPA – Beer Zombies Collab 100% Mosaic hopped version of Mason’s Revengeance. Collaboration with Beer Zombies Brewing!
Nice Spruce NEIPA An Unfiltered IPA with a resinous punch and a touch of fresh Spruce tips on the finish, it’s the season.
U Too Can Tropical Sour Between broken fingers, spilt coffee, snapped pencils, negative Tinder matches, and Tiger King season 2, we’ve all been through some shit, but if Toucan can make it through, U Too Can. Introducing U Too Can, our Tropical Sour brewed with wheat, barley and oat malt. Then conditioned on a blend of passion fruit, strawberry, banana and pink guava! Don’t stress, with 6.4% ABV you’ll be nice and relaxed.
Liquid Strata Crystals NEIPA Ever been shot into the Strata(sphere) so quickly that your crystals turned into liquids? Introducing Liquid Strata Crystals, our continued exploration into “What do hops taste like?” This Double Dry Hopped Strata New England IPA hopped & double dry hopped w/ Strata.
Blueberry Double Marbles Milkshake IPA Feeling BLUE? Well then we have the perfect marbles for YOU. Blueberry Marbles is back, and this time as a flavorsome double version! This milkshake DIPA is laden with a plentiful harvest of fresh blueberries, sweet vanilla, creamy milk sugar, and hopped with Mosaic to really compliment the sweet berry profile. Roll into the brisk weather and lose your marbles over a succulent blueberry juice bomb today! (8% ABV)
Away from the Norm Amber Making its way to you today is 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗼𝗿𝗺 which is now available in cans for the very first time! This award-winning American Amber Ale recipe has dark shades of natural gold on full display. Moderately sweet maltiness is balanced with a steady hop profile for a smooth yet complex flavor. Meanwhile, subtle notes of dark molasses and caramel hover right under the palate and really boost the overall composition. (6% ABV)
Swerski Dunkel 𝗦𝗪𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗞𝗜 is a traditional German-style Dunkelweizen specially crafted for when da good guys storm the field in search for gridiron glory. A smooth dark wheat profile provides a rush of banana, chocolate, and sweet fresh bread flavor that’s sure to make da almighty Ditka proud (pictured last). (5% ABV)
DDH Double Space Boots DIPA This Double Dry-Hopped DIPA delivers a hefty cargo of Citra and Galaxy to create an atmospheric symphony of mango, pineapple, and bright citrus. Not to mention the metagalactic notes of fresh peach and melon that’s carried on the back of an extraterrestrial haze. Each 16oz can also features a temperature-sensitive ink on the “More” logo so you can finally enjoy your beer in the 4th-dimension. (8% ABV)
Morever DDH IPA We went on a quest of developing an IPA that one would want to drink again, and again, forever and forever. 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 is a beer with mid-level ABV, which utilizes Citra, Motueka, and Simcoe hops, for neverending flavors of pineapple, grapefruit, & tangerine, followed by slight bitterness and a smooth, refreshing finish.
Non-alcoholic Variety Packs Your favorite N/A beers now in a variety pack! West Coast IPA, Juicy IPA, Italian Pils & Floridaweisse all included in this 12pk! These are going to be a huge hit. See below for pricing & case quantity discounts.
Fishing With Horus Imperial Stout A 13% ABV imperial coffee stout w/ coconut, hazelnuts, coffee and maple syrup. This is our collaboration with our great pal Kyle From Horus Aged Ales out of Oceanside California.
Chubby Bunny: Hot Mango Loads of mango puree have been smothered with a touch of chocolate, and finished with habanero peppers and marshmallows. This combo is out of this world and will strike the curiosity of most beer drinkers.
Pie Face: Banofee Pie Louisiana celebrates their pie cravings with this well known southern pie “BANOFEE”… It features a heap of banana puree, is paired with a mountain of rich caramel sauce, and finished with a medley of cream to give it a rich, caramely gooy’ness that you will never forget. Spin to Win: Pitt Boss: Blueberry, Pomegranate, Black Currant: Three fruits perfectly matched by cupid himself. This brew features ungodly amounts of pure fruit. It is tart, rich, and features a wonderful mouthfeel.
Fruit Fusion: Apple Crisp Alamode This one will surely hit the top of our Untapp’d list as our last apple pie brew grew quickly as a local favorite. We have upped the ante with this medley by pairing apple puree with caramel, cinnamon, graham cracker, and a sea of soft serve ice cream! The soft serve turns our sour brews into a rich creamy (frothy) beer that makes it tough putting down the glass. Once you take a sip, you will want another… or ten 🙂
SPIN TO WIN: CROSSFIRE Next up in our popular Spin to Win series is CROSSFIRE! This series features fruit… lots of it… and ONLY FRUIT! This combo is super crazy with Watermelon, Cucumber, and Lime! It is light, refreshing, and a change of pace from the thicc boys! Don’t be confused.. we brought in pallet loads of fruit for this brew! It is tart, flavorful, and memorable!
ROLL THE FRUIT: MANDARIN COOKIES Our Roll the Fruit series features brews that are inspired by cannabis strains. Mandarin cookies is a popular strain that has hints of citrus and vanilla cookies… SO WE loaded this bad boy up with tons of Mandarin orange puree, kiwi, sweet orange, and a sugar cookie treatment! This one is solid… and super unique!
FRUIT FUSION: GARRETT’S JAM When a customer asks for a new brew… we deliver! This one is named after the patron who inspired the recipe. It features tons of banana, coconut, and topped with rich caramel and soft serve ice cream! What’s there not to love!?! This brew delivers.
Spin to Win: Guacamole There will never be a better beer for TACO TUESDAY!!!! This brew is totally off-center and features a well known fruit-AVOCADO! We bought a truckload of crushed avocados and added it to our sour base. We added a touch of lime, and a touch of cilantro and BAM! WE GOT GUAC! Time to get yours before this awesome brew is gone.
Some beer news out of Dubuque, as Dimensional is getting ready to release two new beers to us in the coming weeks! Here’s what’s on the horizon courtesy of Dimensional’s Facebook page:
We are jolly to say we have TWO barrel aged beers that are ready to come out of their long slumber in barrels. We will be doing this release the similar to way we did Anny/Lampy Rub release. Please read the following details carefully. *Hank(2021) is a 13.5% imperial stout aged for 14 months in Blaum Brothers Bourbon Barrels and then rested on peanuts, marshmallows and Cacao! Hank is a beautifully blended, rich stout that perfectly balances the adjuncts with the bourbon notes from the barrel. – Tickets for Hank will be sold online via Etix at 7pm on Sunday, December 12th at this link: https://www.etix.com/ticket/p/6555720/ – Hank will be sold in 2, 500ml bottle packages.- The limit is one set per order. – If you score a ticket for Hank, bottle pick up will begin on December 18th at 11am at the taproom. – Proxies are allowed for pick up. They must have a screen shot or printed copy of the buyers ID and Etix ticket to be scanned upon pick up. *Flabongo: Blend One is a 6.9% kettle sour that was aged in a Blaum Brothers Gin barrel and then infused with pineapple, pink guava and orange puree. This tropical cocktail inspired liquid will definitely take you a warm place! – This gin barrel aged smoothie sour will be available in 750ml bottles. – Due to the low bottle count, we will be releasing this beer first come, first served at 11am on December 18th at our taproom. – Limits will be determined upon turnout and final bottle count. – For those of you lining up, we will open the garage up around 9am to keep ya’ll from getting frost bitten. Facebook event page will be up soon.
Join us this Friday, December 31st at noon as we release Clock House Black IPA
Facebook event page will be up soon.