I always love when small town bars are able to get their hands on some big time beers and proudly promote and serve them! This weekend, my hometown bar, Chameleon’s Pub and Grub in Mount Vernon will be tapping 3 big bourbon barrel-aged beers, 2 of which are local and also Goose Island Bourbon County stout! This beauty is, you don’t have to dedicate yourself to full pours of these high ABV brews as Chameleon’s is offering flights of them along with their other amazing lineup of craft beers. To go along with the beer, they will be having an amazing cheeseburger special…prepare yourself for….THE BACON JAMBURGER!!! Here’s more courtesy of Chameleon’s Facebook page:
COMING TOMORROW: OUR ANNUAL BOURBON BARREL TAKEOVER ON TAP We were trying to tap them today but we can’t get Richard the Whale until tomorrow. I hope this isn’t and inconvenience but we will have it for sure tomorrow!! Plus a great special to go with it. The Big Boys are coming out to play, so don’t miss out!!We have Goose Island Bourbon County, Big Grove Brewery Richard the Whale and also, Exile Brewing Co. Jesus on a Forklift. These are limited and will go fast so come and get them while you can. We will also have flights available, so try them all. Weekend Special to pair with our Bourbon Barrel Beers is The Bacon Jamburger!! A fresh never frozen Hamburger sits atop homemade Bacon Jam, and then covered with a homemade creamy Cheddar cheese spread that has pimentos, cream cheese, Korean chili paste and sriracha, finished with Lettuce, Pickles and onions. Served with our House Cut Fries. This is a great burger.
An old historical beer style that originated in Cologne, Germany; the Kölsch is a top fermented ale that ages for weeks at cold temperatures to replicate a lager. Our take on this style features locally crafted Pilsner Malt from Sugar Creek in Indiana. This premium malt creates a very clean, delicate base that allows the hops and fruity esters to shine. Bittered with Tettnang, a German noble hop that is very traditional and idigenous from the Saaz group. Thus providing subtle floral and herbal notes that can be found throughout the beer.Available in 16oz 4-packs, growlers, and draft.
Doughnut Pastry Stout – 8% ABV From the head brewery – “This beer is Chocolatey, Vanilla, frosting, cakey, sweet, rich, and decadent”.. well there goes my diet plan! Can’t wait to try this one.
Non Alch West Coast IPA Adding to their incredibly successful lineup of Non Alcohol beers comes their West Coast IPA . From the brewery – “Bringin’ you this classic throwback, West Coast IPA. This non-alcoholic beer is brewed with Cascade, Centennial and Simcoe Hops.”
Barrel Aged Chocolate Raspberry Imperial Stout The newest Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout made with Raspberry Concentrate, Raspberry puree and cocoa.
Complimentary Colors – maple blueberry and lemon fruit sour – Untitled Art Collab We teamed up with our dear friends at Untitled Art(@untitledartbev) to create a pastry-style sour beer using loads of fresh, unfermented blueberry, lemon juice, and maple syrup. We were inspired to represent something uniquely Canadian that most people have never heard of, so we decided to pay homage to a classic dessert, which is simply known by the quintessential Canadian moniker.
Warheads Seltzer variety packMixpack including 1 new flavor – Green Apple other flavors – Black Cherry, Blue Raspberry and Watermelon
Wareheads Extreme Ale variety packMixpack including 1 new flavor – Lemon other flavors – Black Cherry, Blue Raspberry and Watermelon
Mexican Chocolate Multiple infinities Stout A luscious milk chocolate oatmeal stout aged on freshly roasted Cacao Nibs, and finished with additions of Chilies, Cinnamon, and Madagascar Vanilla. This creamy stout is a decadent treat.
Dreamyard Hazy IPA An New England IPA that’s made ENTIRELY from oats and wheat. Splendidly hazy with aromas of stonefruit, pineapple, and citrus. An insane amount of Citra and Denali hops per barrel make this beer an incredibly juicy and citrusy treat with an approachable level of bitterness.
1/2bbl keg – $245.00 ( 2 available)
Reptilian Elite – DDH west coast Dbl IPA Introducing Reptilian Elite, our DDH West Coast Double IPA w/ Golden Promise barley malt. Kettle hopped & double dry hopped with Columbus Cryo, Simcoe, Strata, Amarillo & Talus
JUST CIRCLING BACK IPA (6.6%) Just wanted to touch base again & see if you’ve tried this delicious concoction filled with Hand-Selected Mosaic, Citra Cryo & Idaho 7 Cryo? Not sure if you saw my last e-mail, but thought I’d reach out to see if you’d had time. Let me know if you need anything else on our end.
THROW PILLOWS – DDH TIPA (10.4%) The joke has been made that we make Triple IPAs like most people accumulate throw pillows. Unnecessary. Over the top. Extravagant. Perhaps you even have a significant other that thinks you buy too many. Why more Hand-Selected Simcoe, Strata & a kiss of Sabro Cryo you ask? Because you deserve it & we felt like it.
Fugazi – reloads Italian-Style Pils (4.8%) Don’t be fooled, this is the rill dilly. You see that sparkle yo? Dry-hopped adoringly with healthy portions of Czech Kazbek and with a lively carb for soft lemon & heavy snap vibes. Our new favorite crispy boi, on tap and for the first time ever in these fresh ass cans, in a store near you now
Local 755 – Hazy IPA – 6.8% ABV Our All-Time Ale. Countless tweaks & nudges in the right direction over three and a half years in pursuit of our own turbid utopia. Citra, Azacca & Amarillo love from our house to yours. Despite our best efforts, we have been having quite a time keeping up with all your 755-crushing related needs.
Lion Bridge Brewery will have 3 beers returning to their lineup in February! Emperor of Ice Cream, Ziva Voda, and Hellscape will be making their way back to tap lines at the brewery and in cans! Here’s more on these three releases:
*Emperor of Ice Cream – (Imperial Milk Stout w/Strawberry, Chocolate, Vanilla, 10%) – Let be finale of seem. The only emperor is the emperor of ice cream.Pairs perfectly with a Neapolitan cheesecake from the Cheesecake Lady! Come get it while supplies last! Releases Feb. 9th!
*Ziva Voda – (Czech-style Pilsner, 4.8%) – Named for the “living water” of Czech fairy tales that heals infirmities and counteracts spells. Bohemian Pilsner Malt adds subtle richness and accents of clover honey, while the addition of traditional Saaz hops throughout the run-off and long boil give this beer the distinctive earthiness and spice associated with authentic Pilsners. Lagered for 6 weeks and brought to you for St. Joe’s Day and beyond. Releases Feb. 9th!
*Hellscape – Come join us at the taproom while we re-release a delicious Smoked Helles (5.5%)! We included Weyermann Beechwood Smoked Malt into this traditional German Lager because we love delicious smoky treats. If you’re not familiar with smoked beers, grab a pint and see for yourself!! Releases Feb. 23rd!
Let your mind drift to warmer days ahead as you sip on the latest release coming to us from Clock House Brewing this Friday, January 28th as they are releasing “Valley Gurl” sour! Here’s more on this beer courtesy of Clock House’s Facebook page:
Valley girls love it, don’t be ashamed if you do too! After over a year and a half in the waiting, we decided to bring back this highly requested sour! Brewed with Lemons, Raspberries, Strawberries, and lemonade mix to resemble an ice cold pink lemonade!Available in 16oz 4-packs and on draft.
Stompbox is hitting distro via Pequod!! More to come on this brewery and when to expect their beers to start hitting lines! On to what’s hitting shelves!
Pineapple Dragonfruit Soursop Imperial Seltzer – 9% ABV This big tropical punch drink is fantastic and takes the chill out of your bones on these freezing Wisconsin days. Pouring Bright PInk/Magenta this is one of those drinks when one gets ordered everyone who sees it will ask “hey what’s that”. This one is a winner! Also sorry i dont have a better pic but i drank the whole can and forgot to snap a photo 😦
Winter Fields – English Brown This straight icy crusher is an English-Style Brown Ale with a wide array of sweet dark malt delivered on a light sessionable body. The low ABV gives the perfect amount of warmth to fight off the bitter chills while still being easily drinkable, light and refreshing. Grab a pack today before it melts away! (3.8% ABV)
Falling Colors Porter – Hazelnut This take on our medium-bodied American Porter is conditioned on a whole heap of toasted hazelnuts to compliment the flavors of chocolate roast and rich caramel. Notes of dark fruit, sherry, and warm dark malt to keep you cozy during the tides of winter. (7% ABV)
Alpine ChateauMilk Stout brewed with Swiss Miss Philippines Hot Cocoa Mix, milk chocolate, cocoa powder, milk sugar, marshmallow & with natural flavors added. Bust out your parka, it’s time to bundle up because this next one is transporting you to the Swiss Alps. A nostalgic milk stout base sets the undertone while the Swiss Miss hot cocoa, milk chocolate, and marshmallow may help you with shaking the icicles off your face after catching some fresh tracks on a blue bird day.. We won’t judge if you decide to warm it up, add some marshmallows, and sip it by the fire.
Chocolate Cherry Cheesecake Sour Ale brewed with cherries, dark chocolate, milk sugar, graham cracker, cheesecake & with natural flavors added
German Chocolate Cake StoutMilk Stout brewed with Pecans, Coconut, Dark Chocolate, Milk Sugar, Vanilla & with natural flavors added.
Gold Dust WavesGold Dust Waves! This 6.1% IPA is our biggest (and only) release and let us be the first to tell you, it’s just what the doctor ordered to get the weekend started off right.
It’s a unicorn ThingHazy double IPA with Citra, Mosaic and Lotus hops. 8.6% ABV
Juicy Bits 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.
Neapolitan Ice Cream SourThis Smoothie-Style Sour Ale brewed with ice cream, (yes, that’s right — ICE CREAM) milk sugar, strawberry, milk chocolate, and vanilla
PB & J Fluff – 4.5% ABV Sour Wheat Ale brewed with Strawberry, Marshmallow, Milk Sugar, Peanut Flour & with natural flavors added. You’re going to want to trade your chips, string cheese, and anything else you have left in your sack lunch for this one. We’ve turned a grade-school lunchtime favorite into gem of a pastry sour. This PB&J Berliner was made possible with the use of peanut flour, nearly 1000lbs of raspberry and strawberry puree), milk sugar, and this time we also added Marshmallow fluff. This kettle soured wheat ale brings two different worlds together and makes ’em the best of friends, just like you and your 4th grade locker buddy.
Rho Ghost Bear Espresso Blend Imperial Coffee StoutRho pours Jet black with caramel colored head. Dark Chocolate cake and deep caramel are at the forfront with stone fruit and coffee backbone.
Ghost in the LaboratoryThis monster of a beer combines elements of Straight Outta The Laboratory and Parish’s DDH Ghost In The Machine in DIPA form. This is the hoppiest beer out of Equilibrium to date! Using a mashed up grain bill from Straight Outta The Laboratory and Ghost in The Machine
MC2This DIPA is our tribute to the amazing relationship that energy and mass are balanced, proportional to the speed of a photon squared. It pours a hazy tangerine color, releasing bright tropical notes of mango, pineapple, and apricot.
Super Fractal Phoenix – Eighth State Collab – Triple IPA Super Fractal, the one that started it all, Super Fractal Phoenix Set (10.5 % TIPA) a collaboration with The Eighth State Brewing Company.
Wavelength We dry hopped with Mosaic and Citra at a 2:1 ratio. Wavelength pours bright yellow with aromas of citrus and stone fruit with crushable flavors of mango and berry with a light refreshing finish.
Brrr Fest brings out some amazing beers and sometimes only the lucky festival goers are the ones who get a taste. Thew Brewing out of Cedar Rapids will be tapping a speciality beer that they brewed over Christmas specifically for their Thew Crew members, but will now be made available to Brrr Fest attendees!
Here’s more from the brewery on this brew:
Thew Brewing will be doing a special tapping at BrrrFest at 3 PM! They made a stout at Christmas for their Thew Crew members and will be sharing it with lucky BrrrFest goers. This imperial stout has chocolate, cherry, and vanilla rested on oak spirals.
Another Wednesday and a more wonderful beer for Barrel-Aged January coming from Lion Bridge today! Following the release of one of the greatest beers brewed in the state, Home Baked, and 2022 GAZPROM! and the decadent Monkey Tail GAZPROM! Lion Bridge will be releasing “Remembered Time”, this 1st ever Barrel-Aged January Collaboration brewed with Clock House Brewing and is an English Barleywine. Not only that, they will also be releasing “Fragaria” a farmhouse ale brewed with strawberries! Here’s more on these two brews courtesy of Lion Bridge’s newsletter:
Remembered Time! Release Wed 1/19 (Barrel-Aged Strong Ale, 12%) – Our first Barrel-Aged January Collaboration ever! We worked with our friends at Clock House to brew a rich Barley Wine and then blended it with some strong stout from our cellar to make something entirely new and amazing!
FRAGARIA! Release Thurs 1/20 (Farmhouse Ale with Strawberries, 5%) – We took a selection of spelt beer aged in neutral french oak with Brettanomyces and put the blend on diced strawberries. This beer has a rocky, meringue of foam and beautfiul pink hue, while the nuanced flavor and aroma of strawberries emerges more as it warms.
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.
Hazy IIPA v12 – 8% ABV Big juicy double ipa brewed with Citra, Mosaic, Nelson Sauvign, Chinook hops
Sweet & Sour Georgia Peachy O-Rings – Pontoon Brewing Collaboration Kettle Sour Berliner Weisse style ale with Peach Puree, apple and Pineapple Juice plus Peach Ring candy.
AFTER CAREFUL CONSIDERATION – DDH IPA (7.5%) Things happen fast around these parts. Sometimes you get time to ponder on it. Sometimes you just gotta go for it. Thoughtfully doubled additions of Azacca Cryo, Citra, Cashmere, Idaho 7 & NZ Motueka. Just do what feels right.
Who’s Idea is this? – Hazy Pale ale 4.8% ABV Hand selected Mosaic, New Zealand Nelson Sauvin & a dash of Columbus Cryo on a light & crispy Pilsner malt base.
Local 755 – IPA 6.8% ABV Our Foggy Favorite. Azacca, Amarillo & a Gwop of Citra. Soft, Juicy & Hazy like 70’s Home Movies.
Intergalactic Sofa Ghost – DDH New England Hazy IPA
Skafl “snowdrift”- Hazy IPA SKAFL means “snowdrift” in Icelandic, and it’s our second iteration of this kinda-sorta winter hazy IPA. SKAFL is a hair more aggressive than your average hazy, leaning into a winter-appropriate blend of dankness and fruit, with a lightly bitter edge. Hazy IPA brewed with spelt, wheat, and oats, fermented cool with our favorite German ale yeast, and hopped intensely with hand selected Sultana, Strata, and Columbus Cryo. SKAFL blends overripe tropical fruit notes with the right amount of dankness.
Tmave Pivo – CZECH-STYLE DARK LAGERFair State makes lots of lagers, we put a fair number of them in cans, but we’ve somehow never married a dark lager and an aluminum tube before. Tmavé Pivo is the sort of beer brewers get excited about. An obscure lager style that kinda only gets made in one place? Sign us up! Tmavé Pivo, essentially “dark beer” in Czech, is the Bohemian cousin to German Schwarzbier. Malty, round, with some dark malt flavor but none of the acrid roast character one might find in a stout, Tmavé Pivo is everything we want dark lager to be.
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