Meet the Brewer: James Heckathorn, Court Avenue Brewing!

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Who are the people that are brewing the wonderful beer in the state of Iowa? I’m sure some of you know many of them and others, maybe not. I thought it would be great to get to know the brewers of Iowa, their backgrounds, their likes, and what they have coming up in the future. First up, Court Avenue Brewing’s James Heckathorn!

NAME: James Heckathorn

BREWERY: Court Avenue Brewing Co.

LOCATION: 309 Court Avenue; Des Moines, IA

How long have you been brewing and where have you brewed?

I will have been brewing professionally 2 years in August of this year. Before that, I worked at various other breweries in FoH positions – Twisted Vine, 515 and then Reclaimed Rails, where I was given the opportunity to brew on their pilot system. I had about 3-4 beers that were well received, especially under the tutelage of Mike Street, who gave me excellent guidance and advice throughout. It’s how we became such good buds! 

Aaron Knapp, the brewer before me at CabCo, was also bartending at Reclaimed with me and when he was getting ready to take on his new adventure at Epic Brewing in Colorado, he asked me to apply for his position at CabCo. I didn’t feel ready but my friends and family rallied behind me and encouraged me to apply and the rest is history. 

What is the size of your brewery?

Court Avenue Restaurant and Brewing Company is a 7bbl system. A Specific Mechanical 2 vessel that has seen its fair share of brewers, hah! We are nearing 26 years here at CabCo and this system is at least that old. Being so manual and involved, it really brings a certain aspect of romanticism to brewing that I find appealing. Most days, at least! 

What beer from Court Avenue would you pick to give to complete
stranger to try and why?

I would honestly give people two beers, one to show where we come from and one to show where we are going.

Pointer Brown Ale is the oldest recipe in house, a beer that has been consistently brewed since we opened our doors in 1996. It’s an English Brown Ale, so expect chocolate, caramel with a touch of dark fruit and a full mouthfeel that is infinitely drinkable. A true Iowa classic. 

Earthbound NEIPA is our newest flagship that I began developing about a year ago. Hazy IPA is the style that got me into brewing and it continues to be a style I am passionate about. This is my take on the archetypical representation that everyone has come to expect in hazy IPA. Citra, Mosaic and a bit of El Dorado, plenty of oats and wheat malt and a low flocculating yeast strain. Earthbound is the first step forward in a modern vision of CabCo.

Who would be at your drinking table, dead or alive, to share a beer with?

This is a great question! Fritz Maytag – he did so much for craft beer and it would be cool to get insight into the beginnings of modern craft beer; Christopher Hitchens – He was a witty guy and I think he’d keep drinking long after everyone else had left the table. Would be a bender for the ages; Conan O’Brien – I could be his friend, definitely. 

Do you have a favorite food and beer pairing?

A pilsner and sushi or spicy wings with an IPA!

What is your favorite beer in the world not made by Court Avenue and why?

Ayinger Bavarian Pils is a beer that continues to stay with me and luckily we can get it here. Any well done German pilsner, really. 

Anything you’d like to pub for Court Avenue?
We will be releasing our 4 -way collaboration with Flix Brewhouse, Reclaimed Rails and Brightside Aleworks on the 31st of March. Cosmic Bear is a massive imperial pastry stout that was aged on star crunch and marshmallow. 

I also gotta mention our Mug Club – It’s the best way to become a CabCo insider and it comes with a whole mess of perks for $40 a year. 10% off your tab, 24oz pints in your mug for the same price of a regular pint, a Mug Club Party every month where we shower you with a new beer release and free food, and last but not least, exclusive bottles that are only available to Mug Club members. Rumor has it the next bottle is an Eagle Rare BA imperial stout aged on a ton of vanilla beans…..

Huge thank you to Mr. Heckathorn for taking the time out of his busy schedule to answer a few questions! Make sure to say to him and the other staff at Court Avenue Brewing when you visit, sign up for their Mug Club and keep an eye out for the Eagle Rare BA imperial stout! Cheers!

Untitled Art, Humble Forager, and Blackstack coming from Pequod

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Green Time Machine Pixie Mix Seltzer 
Bursting with Apple and Watermelon flavors, this Pixie mix will take you back to the simpler days of riding bicycles and drinking those juice boxes, nostalgia at it’s finest. 

Coastal Sunrise V6 – Fruit breakfast sour  6% ABV

This new beer is made with peaches, Pineapple, Vanilla beans. Maple Syrup, pecans and cinnamon. From Austin – “Imagine a Pineapple Peach cobbler with pecans and maple syrup.” – wonderful, just wonderful

NEW – Foggy Footpath DDH DIPA 
A brand new Hazy IPA made @ Fairstate brewing featuring Citra Cryo, Mosaic, and El Dorado cryo hops!

City pages – “Best IPA”  Hazy IPA  7% ABV 
Despite our best efforts we’ve never got this when they were around. Hand selected mosaic & mosaic cryo with a beautiful lot of nelson sauvin from New Zealand. Figured since we were the only ones voting this year, we could do the tally ourselves!
Too Soon – Fruit sour – 8th State brewing Collab
Imperial Berliner Weisse w/ Pineapple, Plum, Rhubarb & Passionfruit (7.2%)
The second act of our collab in 3 parts with our buds @the8thstatebrewing from Greenville, SC Imposingly quantities of Juicy Pineapple, Bassy Plum, Punchy Rhubarb & Passionfruit Nectar with delightfully tart Foeder Fermented Mixed Culture Imperial Berliner Weisse Style Base. Too Tasty… Too Soon?

Lua releasing multiple beers Saturday, April 2nd!

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Lua Brewing out of Des Moines will be releasing some amazing beers in bottles and cans on Saturday, April 2nd! This is going to be an immensely popular release and it’s first come/first serve so plan accordingly! Here are the details from Lua:

Barrel Aged Stouts and Our First Can Release

Please join us Saturday, April 2 at 11am for our first CAN RELEASE. We’ll also release two new barrel-aged stouts.

The stouts will be released in 4-packs with two 375mL bottles of each blend for $100. Cans will be in 4-packs. All will be sold on a first come, first served basis when we open at 11am. Limits TBD.

WANDER (14.2%) is a blend of imperial stout bases aged 23 months in Willett and Weller bourbon barrels. Baker’s chocolate, espresso, vanilla, barrel.

FLEETING (13.9%) is a blend of imperial stout bases aged two years in Weller and Heaven Hill Rye barrels, before being rested on a massive amount of coconut. Rich fudge and coconut.

SUN FOR MILES (6.6%) is our new *flagship* hazy IPA. Generous amounts of your favorite hops were added both in the whirlpool and at dry-hopping, giving Sun For Miles bright flavors of POG juice, white peach, and sticky cannabis.

TINY BEAM OF LIGHT (5.7%, not pictured) is our beloved all-citra Hazer Lazer™. Crushable, sessionable, yet immensely flavorful, TBOL boasts dank aromas of nectarine, melon, and passionfruit. This beer is meant to be consumed in multiples.

SCIENCE IS MAGIC THAT WORKS (9.0%) is the result of some seriously cutting edge science in collaboration with our buds at Toppling Goliath and Sapwood Cellars. We utilized a revolutionary thiol-releasing yeast strain from Berkeley and Phantasm, a new-age form of powderized grape skin from New Zealand that is loaded with thiol-precursors. Mash hops, whirlpool hops, and a generous dry-hop with some of TG’s dank, extraordinary Nelson Sauvin hops produced huge notes of passionfruit and sauvignon blanc grapes. Thanks to TG and Sapwood for pushing the envelope with us on this one.

NAPPING UNDER THE ECHO TREE (7.0%) is a fruited sour featuring dragonfruit, passionfruit, mango, and guava.

SOME GRACE (7.0%) is a berry donut inspired sour, and features Oregon marionberry, boysenberry, blackberry, blueberry, and over 2,000 Krispy Kreme glazed donuts.

“Zach Morris Cellphone” coming back April 13th from Lion Bridge!

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Another re-release coming from Lion Bridge as they are bringing back “Zach Morris Cellphone” on April 13th! Here are the details from Lion Bridge on this brew:

Zack Morris Cell Phone (Hazy IPA, 6.8%) – This beer is based on a mixed drink of the same name that maybe never existed. Back in days of yore, Quinton, founder of LBBC, was told by a barfly to order a ZMCP and that it contained orange. When he went to order it, the bartenders shrugged their shoulders, and the barfly had vanished. In an attempt to bring closure to this mystery, we have made a massively dry-hopped hazy IPA with orange puree and hope that it brings Quinton some peace.

Taproom opens at 3pm, available on draft and to-go packs! 

Lion Bridge bringing back “Peachy Keen” and “Me Time”!

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Two tasty brews will be returning to Lion Bridge brewery tomorrow (March 23rd)! Peachy Keen and Me Time make their anticipated returns when the brewery doors open at 3 p.m.! Here’s more on these two beers from Lion Bridge:

2 fan favorite Lion Bridge beers returning tomorrow on Wednesday 3/23.

Release #1 is Peachy Keen Kettle Sour with Peach Gummy Rings !

200lbs of Peach Gummy Rings had a little rest with our house kettle sour and the result is just peachy, just Peachy Keen!

Release #2 is Me Time Hazy IPA.

What’s tomorrow, Saturday? Wait, what? Wednesday!?!? Hey, it’s ok to reach for a bit of Me Time tomorrow when the taproom opens at 3pm. Let the Citra and Cashmere dry hop be your aromatherapy, and then give the can a crush when you’re done for some added stress relief!

Untitled Art, Artisanal, MORE, Weldwerks, Modist, Blackstack, and Wild Minds coming from Pequod this week!

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Juice Drops Mango Lotus IPA – Collaboration with Toppling Goliath (limited amount available)
Here’s the 2nd collab between TG and UA, this time brewed at Untitled art. Juice Drops is an IPA featuring Lotus hops, accented with Mango Juice and mango puree. 

Warheads Seltzer
A mixed variety of the Warhead Sour candy seltzer including:

  1. black cherry
  2. watermelon
  3. blue raspberry
  4. Green Apple

Warheads Xtreme Ale Sour beer  
A mixed variety of the Warhead Sour candy ales including:

  1. Watermleon
  2. lemon
  3. blue raspberry
  4. Green Apple 

NEW – Brain Fuzz
Inspired by the classic Lime Rickey. Tart citrus and sugary cherry meld perfectly into a comfy nest of marshmallow sweetness. Luscious and vibrant red, and bursting with stone fruit. 

Main Course – DDH DIPA
DDH DIPA 𝗠𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲 is back and tasting juicier than ever! Viscously dry hopped with Citra and Idaho-7 for a banquet of peach marmalade, glazed pineapple gummies, and ripe starfruit with a pear-like, melony finish. Subtle bitterness provides some balance to the predominant juice composition which makes this NEIPA truly a chef d’oeuvre. (8.3% ABV)

Pineapple Dbl Marbles 

Our latest installment of our Marbles series is a certain kind of nautical nonsense that will make even the crabbiest of flounders say “shiver me timbers!” 𝗣𝗶𝗡𝗲𝗔𝗽𝗣𝗹𝗲 𝗗𝗼𝗨𝗯𝗟𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝗥𝗯𝗟𝗲𝗦 is a Milkshake-style DIPA with Pineapple, Vanilla, and Milk Sugar and a scrupulous helping of both citra and chinook hops. A tropical upsurge of pineapple heaves a coffer of straight dole whip that resolves with a bounty of sweet island tang. (8% ABV)

Blueberry Cobbler

Sour Ale brewed with vanilla, milk sugar, graham cracker, blueberry puree & with natural flavors added

Juicy Bits IPA
Our flagship IPA features a huge citrus and tropical fruit hop character from the Mosaic, Citra & El Dorado hops and softer, smoother mouthfeel from the adjusted water chemistry, higher protein malts, and lower attenuation. The end result is a beer reminiscent of citrus juice with extra pulp, thus the name Juicy Bits.

Pineapple Upside Down
We think we bested Betty Crocker on this one. 🍍🙃 🍰
Pineapple Upside-Down Cake Berliner

Mosaic Extra Extra Juicy Bits
MXXJB is *always* fashionably late (tag that friend 😆) but you know they’ll be looking fabulous by the time they show up, and keen on all the hot gossip. Rumor has it that this Hazy DIPA is bursting at the seams with notes of pineapple and tangerine.. talk about a diiiiva.⁠

Werk – IPA 
This 6.2% IPA has been around the block before, (for this iteration, we made some notable modifications to the grain bill, as well as significantly increased the amount of dry-hop additions) absolutely loves attending brewery safety meetings, is a real hard werker, but knows how to punch out right at 5pm and certainly doesn’t take werk home.

Key Lime Pie 
Key limes, vanilla beans, and a hint of graham cracker?.. YOU KNOW WHAT TIME IT IS and you best believe we’re welcoming back Key Lime Pie with arms wide open. In case you haven’t had a chance to try KLP yet, this 4.2% citrusy Sour Ale is tart, creamy, complex, and dangerously drinkable.. 

Juicy Fish DBL IPA – Pinthouse brewing Collab
Juicy Fish is a delectable 8.6% DIPA that is bursting at the seams with papaya, guava, pineapple, and grapefruit, brewed in collaboration with our buddies over Pinthouse Brewing in Austin, TX. This fruit-bomb DIPA is a mashup between their flagship Hazy, Electric Jellyfish, and of course, our beloved Juicy Bits.

Crippling Predictability – Triple IPA  (Blackstack Brewing
Collaboration)
Two of Minnesota’s finest breweries coming together to knock out a banger IPA. or as the cool kids say – “This shit slaps”. A Modist x Blackstack collaboration New England Triple IPA w/ Maris Otter, Boho Pils, wheat & flaked oats. Hopped & double dry hopped with Black Stack’s selected Cashmere, our own select Citra, Strata, Sultana & Cryo El Dorado.

Olde Omen – Bock
All ye who drink this elixir beware, ancient traditions and rituals are upon thee. Steeped in history and celebrations, this beer is our Modist omen of fun times.

Introducing Olde Omen our Bock Dark Lager Bier w/ heritage German Munich Malts, hopped with Sultana, long boiled & lagered.

Dreamyard – Hazy IPA 
An New England IPA that’s made from oats and wheat. Splendidly hazy with aromas of stonefruit, pineapple, and citrus. An insane amount of Citra and Sultana hops per barrel make this beer an incredibly juicy and citrusy treat with an approachable level of bitterness.

Dear Diary – Triple IPA – TIPA (10.0%)
Dear Diary, what a day it’s been… Misunderstood quantities of hand-selected Strata, Michigan Chinook, El Dorado & Cashmere Cryo. What does it all mean? …and furthermore, who cares?

Piano Lessons  – Dbl New England IPA – DIPA (8.1%)
How much did you practice this week? Be honest… Diligent additions of Hand Selected Citra Cryo, El Dorado & Mosaic Cryo with A sprinkle of Sabro. I swear, it sounded way better at home. Can I switch to guitar?

Untitled Art, Wild Mind, Humble Forager, Fair State, and Collective Arts coming from Pequod!

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Lychee Sherbet – Berlinerweisse
A bright Berlinerweisse made with Lychee Juice and Milk Sugar for body and mouth feel. 

Non – Alch Lychee Sherbet
A non alcoholic version of the beer above – Berlinerweisse made with Lychee Juice and Milk Sugar for body and mouth feel. 

Humble Bumble is finally back and better than ever. Due to the wild success last year, this year Humble Forager’s Seltzer line – Humble Bumble Buzzed Seltzers will go into 16oz cans – still 4pks.

  1. Version 1 – Blood Orange, Orange Blossom Honey, Tangerine, Staghorn Sumac Blossoms, Calamansi Lime
  2. Version 6 – Passion fruit, Rio red grapefruit, Red Dragon fruit, Hibiscus Blossom, and wildflower honey
  3. Version 7 –  Mandarin, Calamansi Lime, Mango, Chamomile flowers and Wildflower Hoeny
  4. Version 8 – Morello Cherries, Calmansi Lime, Pineapple, Honeysuckle Flowers, and Basswood Honey

All of All of Us – IPA 
Orthodoxy is usually limiting, wherever it pops up. IPA is no exception. Hazy IPAs must be straight juice, malt sweetness, no bitterness. West Coast IPAs must be hard-edged, super bitter, and piney. We need to free our minds, people! All of All of Us is one vision of the future for IPA. Hazed, yes, but more as a byproduct of hop-loading than as an intentional aesthetic. Juicy and tropical, absolutely, but blended productively with old-school hops chosen carefully to lend a balance of pine and citrus to the picture.

Vienna Lager
Crisp and malty amber lager brewed in the Viennese tradition for maximum drinking pleasure. Toasty but not heavy, with a well-balanced hop profile, Vienna Lager is truly “beer flavored beer” for those who enjoy, well, drinking beer.

Fairstate Pils
A German-style pilsner, dry and crisp with a grassy hop aroma from a large kettle addition of Hallertau Mittelfrüh. One hop, one malt, lager yeast. Simple and delicious.

Roselle – Sour 
Roselle is infused with hibiscus flowers at flame-out, lending the beer it’s citrus flavor, ethereal fragrance and deep pink color.

Heated Agreement Hazy DIPA
Heated Agreement is a thing that happens to all of us—you find yourself in what feels like an argument, but you’re actually just agreeing with someone over and over, at an elevated volume. This DIPA is the liquid equivalent of that. Fermented with an insane yeast that produces abundant tropical aromas, and hopped to the gills with our Perrault Farms Mosaic, Mosaic Cryo, and some choice Idaho 7. Think freshly bottled Sprite mixed with some funky tropical chewing gum, overlaid with a waft of dankness.

Big Doinks IPA  
Extra dank IPA with the stickiest of hops available

IPA #20 

How much Citra can we put in one IPA? We decided to find out and bring it to you in the latest of our IPA Series! We used FOUR different types of Citra hops for a beer that showcases everything we love about one of the craft beer world’s go-to hops. Regular Citra combines with Citra CRYO, Citra INCOGNITO and Citra SPECTRUM for sweet, fruity aromas of bright grapefruit and orange citrus, with flavours of lemon meringue pie combined with juicy tropical fruits. 

Dark Fruit Citrus – Fruit sour This beer is dark, tart and uses our award-winning Prophets and Nomads as the base! With a cloudy midnight coloured pour, the first sip is surprisingly sour but full-bodied with berries. The Himalayan Sea Salt and Coriander give this beer a through-line of salinity and dry finish.⁠

Thew celebrating 4 years this Saturday, March 12th!

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Thew Brewing in Cedar Rapids will be celebrating their 4 year anniversary this coming Saturday and will be releasing a special brew as well as having Hacienda Las Glorias food truck on site! Here’s more from Thew:

We’re turning four years old and can’t wait to celebrate with you! Stay tuned for special beer announcements!

Saturday 💙
Noon: Chip’s Date – Mint Chocolate Chip Imperial Stout bottle release 💙
12-5: Hacienda Las Glorias & La Cantina food truck on site 💙
3:30-6: Drag show pop up with Lexi Belle & Friends and CR Pride (family friendly!)💙
7:30: Doors open for 8PM Comedy Show

Glyn-Mawr Winery in Mount Vernon starting “The Local Beer Club”!

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Glyn-Mawr Winery-The Local in downtown Mount Vernon has decided to build off of their popular wine club and offer a Local Beer Club for those interested. The link to the form is below and is free to join but signing up requires an obligation to purchase one variety 12 pack per quarter. This is an awesome deal for any beer lovers and would be a great gift as well! Check out the details below and click the link to sign up:

We’re so excited to roll out The Local Beer Club as a partner to our Wine Club!

This clubs offers a loyalty program to our customers, filled with savings & perks!

As a beer club member, you will enjoy:

🍺 15% off your variety 12-pack each quarter!

🍺 10% off all branded merchandise AND 10% off growler fills everyday!

🍺 Half price on our new growlers!

🍺 Invitations to beer club member exclusive events!

🍺 A free Local pint glass with pick up of your first order!

Our club is free to join…your obligation is agreeing to purchase one variety 12-pack per quarter (we curate the 12-pack) to take home and enjoy!

If this sounds like something you’d enjoy, just complete this Google form to get started!

https://forms.gle/xJFJGYAshH24Ru8f6