Fat Orange Cat and Evil Twin NYC beers on their way!

June 7, 2024Leave a comment

FAT ORANGE CAT CANS:

Fat Orange Cat FOC 4th of July Kittens 6/4/16oz CANS – Limited Edition Hazy IPA w/ Mosaic, Centennial and Simcoe. 7.4% ABV – CT
Fat Orange Cat FOC Baby Kittens 6/4/16oz CANS – Lovely Hazy New England IPA. with a tiny hint of sweetness on the nose. Up front we find a relaxed medley of fresh citrus, mangos, and pineapple. It finishes with a hint of pine and invigorating grapefruit with just enough bitterness to cleanse your palette and invite you back for another sip. 6.5% ABV – CT
Fat Orange Cat FOC Baby Kittens GALAXY 6/4/16oz CANS – Baby Kittens with Galaxy Hops. Hazy New England IPA. 6.5% ABV – CT
Fat Orange Cat FOC All Cats Are Grey in the Dark 6/4/16oz CANS – FOC Legendary White Stout – 7.2% ABV – CT
Fat Orange Cat FOC Traffic Lights Turn Blue Tomorrow 6/4/16oz CANS – DOUBLE NE IPA. The combination of Citra, Mosaic and Eureka hops creates a grapefruit/citrus flavor profile in this hazy, creamy and fruity Double IPA with a dry and refreshing finish. 8.5% ABV – CT
Fat Orange Cat FOC You Had Me At Meow 6/4/16oz CANS – Sour Ale with Papaya, Tahitian Lime, & Alphonso Mango⁠. 5.7% ABV – CT

EVIL TWIN NYC:

EVIL TWIN BREWING NYC – OUR MOST POPULAR IPA 6/4/16oz CANS – Flagship IPA brewed and Double Dry-Hopped with all Citra hops. 6% ABV – NYC
EVIL TWIN BREWING NYC – OUR SECOND MOST POPULAR IPA 6/4/16oz CANS – Flagship West Coast IPA! Brewed with Columbus, Simcoe, & Citra hops. 6.5% ABV – NYC
EVIL TWIN BREWING NYC – CHOPPING WOOD 6/4/16oz CANS – DIPA DDH with Mosaic hops and brewed w/ Raw Wildflower Honey!⁠ @eviltwinbrewingnyc X @trilliumbrewing A collab. for the ages! 8.5% ABV – NYC
EVIL TWIN BREWING NYC – BOW TO YOUR SENSEI 6/4/16oz CANS – West Coast IPA. Brewed and hopped with Columbus, Simcoe, & Mosaic. 7% ABV – NYC
EVIL TWIN BREWING NYC – PEACHES N CREAM 6/4/16oz CANS – A Deliciously Refreshing Sour Brewed With Peach, Vanilla, And Milk Sugar! 5.5% ABV – NYC
EVIL TWIN BREWING NYC – I USED TO DRINK DIPA. I STILL DO, BUT I USED TO, TOO 6/4/16oz CANS – Double IPA, Double dry-hopped with Cashmere, Comet. 8% ABV – NYC
EVIL TWIN BREWING NYC – I INSTANTLY GET ANNOYED BY ANY HYBRID FOOD CREATION, NO MATTER HOW DELICIOUS IT SOUNDS – 6/4/16oz CANS – Triple IPA. Double dry-hopped with Citra & Riwaka. 10.1% ABV – NYC
EVIL TWIN BREWING NYC – ET STAY HOME 5 – SPRUNG EDITION 6/4/16oz CANS – Sour Ale. Brewed With Passion Fruit, Mango, Peach, & Peach Tea. Notes Of Peach Snapple, Sour Gummies, & Mango Juice. 7% ABV – NYC

Humble Forager beers, seltzers, and cocktAles on their way to Iowa from Abu Nawas!

May 17, 2024Leave a comment

HUMBLE FORAGER MIXED PACKS:

Humble Forager Humble Bumble Mixed Pack 2/12/12oz Sleek CANS – Brand New Bumble Buzzed Seltzers Mixed 12 Pack (2/cs) Featuring:
- Humble Bumble v1: Citrus. 5% ABV – MN
- Humble Bumble v3: Mango Piña Colada. 5% ABV – MN
- Humble Bumble v8: Pineapple Cherry. 5% ABV – MN *New to the Mixed Pack*
- Humble Bumble v9: Pomberry. 5% ABV – MN
Humble Forager Enchanted Island Mixed Pack 4/6/12oz Sleek CANS – CocktAle Inspired Delicious concoctions 6 Pack (4/cs) Featuring
- Enchanted Island (v1) Painkiller: Pineapple, Coconut, Orange, Nutmeg. VEGAN 9% ABV – MN
- Enchanted Island (v2) Jamaican Punch: Passionfruit, Tangerine, Cranberry, Lime, Pomegranate Simple Syrup, Coconut. VEGAN 9% ABV – MN
- *BRAND NEW* Enchanted Island (v7) Lava Flow: Pineapple, Coconut, Strawberry, Banana. VEGAN 9% ABV – MN
Humble Forager Coastal Fruited Mixed Pack 4/6/12oz Sleek CANS – Intensely Fruited sours like you’ve never had before. 6 Pack (4/cs) Featuring:
- Coastal Sunrise (v1). Fruited Breakfast Pastry Sour w/ Blueberry, Maple Syrup, Vanilla, Cinnamon. VEGAN 6% ABV – MN
- Coastal Sunshine (v4): Fruited Sour w/ Passionfruit, Mango, Pink Guava. VEGAN 6% ABV – MN
- Coastal Sunset (v7): Fruited Pastry Sour w/ Mango, Coconut, Madagascar Vanilla beans, Cinnamon, Brown Sugar. VEGAN 6% ABV – MN

HUMBLE FORAGER CANS:

Humble Forager PinSeeker Pilsner 4/6/16oz CANS – PinSeeker Crisp Pilsner is meant to be enjoyed with your longtime friends, new acquaintances and cherished loved ones. 4.2% ABV – MN
Humble Forager Hook Setter Amber 4/6/16oz CANS – Whether you are playing on the water, relaxing after a day of work, or just in need of delicious refreshing beer, Hook Setter Amber Lager has your back. Brewed with the highest quality German malts and Czech hops before cold lagering, the old-fashioned way for 6 weeks. Don’t rush through life moments, enjoy the ride with a Hook Setter by your side. 100% VEGAN. 5% – ABV – MN
Humble Forager Elevated Perspective DDH DIPA 6/4/16oz CANS – DDH DIPA Packed with Nelson Sauvin and Citra hops, this new brew is a Hazy IPA lover’s dream! 8% ABV – MN

Iowa Eats: Moski’s BBQ; Cascade, IA!

April 29, 2024Leave a comment

I frequently make trips from Cedar Rapids to Dubuque and along that stretch of highway I’m always looking for a place to stop by and have a quick bite to eat…..and a few months ago I found a hidden treat in beautiful Cascade, IA, Moski’s BBQ!

I was suggested for the brisket sandwich, I added some of their house smoked sausage, smoked mac and cheese, and baked potato casserole. The chopped brisket sandwich was delicious. I don’t like my bbq overly sauced, and this sandwich had just the perfect amount of sauce to it. Melt in your mouth brisket and the addition of their house made pickles and pickled onions made this a top tier sandwich. The beef sausage was smoked to perfection, wonderfully spiced, added a couple pickles and onions to every bite of this as well. Onto the sides….the baked potato casserole was delicious and then I tried the mac and cheese. I’ve tried multiple smoked mac and cheese dishes and have always walked away from them with a “meh” take or leave it result. Either too dry, too smokey, not enough flavor, something missing. Not at Moskis. The BEST smoked mac and cheese I have ever had. Creamy and full of flavor, the smoke is there but does’t over power the rest of the ingredients. I loved it.

I want to try everything on the menu, but I would love to replay my first meal there over and over. Well worth the visit to Cascade! I can’t wait to get back! Cheers!

Lua “Roam” and variants online sales start tomorrow! (4/10)

April 9, 2024Leave a comment

Courtesy of Lua’s Facebook page:

ROAM SET RELEASE

ROAM was initially released as a collaboration with our friends at @dimensionalbeer and when we decided to bring it back, we knew we had to do a few variants with the D-Team as well.

Sales for our ROAM set go live tomorrow (Wednesday, April 10) at 10AM online via TOAST (link in our bio) and will remain on sale, online, during our regular business hours until sold out.

Each ROAM SET will contain one (1) 500mL bottle of the following:

ROAM (12.7%)

Monster cookie inspired imperial stout with peanuts, peanut butter, granola, and cacao nibs

LIMBO (12.7%)

Imperial stout with peanut butter, honey roasted peanuts, coconut, & maple syrup

TROUBLE (12.7%)

Imperial stout with peanut butter, honey roasted peanuts, bananas, & marshmallows

There will be no limit on sets per order, and proxies are absolutely allowed. Picking up for a proxy? Just be sure to have their name/order number ready for us when you’re picking up .

Draft pours and bottle pickup start at 11AM here in our Sherman Hill taproom on Friday, April 12 and must be picked up anytime during our regular business hours by end of day Sunday, April 14.

For those coming thru Sherman Hill this weekend, we will also have a special, in-person only 4th bottle available for purchase when you’re here. More on that later this week!

Iowa Eats: The Flying Elbow; Marshalltown, IA!

March 19, 2024Leave a comment

If you’re craving a ridiculously good burger, hot dog, or the best tater tots you can find, then you need to head to Marshalltown, Iowa and check out The Flying Elbow (229 N 13th St, Marshalltown, IA) A professional wrestling themed burger joint, with wrestling themed names for their burgers/dogs/and fries or create your own perfect burger! Not only do they have great food, a nice array of Iowa brewed beers as well. I like to try a bit of everything so we ordered quite the haul to try, here’s a look at the deliciousness that went down!

BEER

Sweet, delicious, frothy, beer. The perfect accompaniment to a burger or a dog. The Flying Elbow had 12 beers on tap and I went with Adventurous Warrior from Adventurous Brewing and followed that with a Big Grove Easy Eddy. Cold and delicious.

STARTERS

Ok…here’s where I was blown away….the damn tots “Vader Tots” to be more precise…..so good, had to get two orders. Shredded hash browns with cheese, seemed to be some smoke in them as well, deep fried and served with a cherry smoked ketchup. Absolutely outstanding and worth the drive to Marshalltown alone!

BURGERS/DOGS/SANDWICHES

Burger #1 – The Tombstone – The Undertaker would be proud to have this burger named after him. Tons of flavor in this one. Toppings of havarti cheese, guac, bacon, sour cream, and a hot sauce called Death Valley Hot Sauce that added a perfect kick to this burger. Would order again.

Burger #2 – The Briscoe Burger – an homage to the Briscoe Brothers and patty melts! Nothing like a patty melt starting off with Brioche Texas Toast! Add swiss/american cheese, smoked bacon, mayo and tomato and you have a tough to beat patty melt!

Burger #3 – The Vinnie – pretty much a Big Mac on steriods. My favorite of the bunch and definitely worth seeking!

Sandwich #1 – Jake the Steak – smoked tri-tip thinly sliced and doused in a chimichurri, bell peppers, onions, cheese, and mayo. Tri-tip smoked right out back on one of their smokers and the flavor shined. Perfect amount of smoke, extremely tender chew. Absolutely, a wonderful sandwich.

Dog #1 – The Punk – named after the “Second City Saint” CM Punk, this is their take on the traditional Chicago style hot dog but amped up a bit. Neon green relish, pickle spear, sport peppers, red onion, diced Roma tomato, mustard and celery salt. Delicious!

There’s no question I will go back. Terrific food, tasty beer, and a wonderful and unique ambiance and experience for a pro wrestling fan. Not a pro wrestling fan? No worries, the food here is totally worth your trip!

Humble Forager is back! Here are the brews!

March 4, 2024Leave a comment

Humble Forager Brewery:

Humble Forager Eastern Seaboard Hazy IPA 6/4/16oz CANS – Double Dry Hopped New England Style IPA with Citra, Mosaic, And Galaxy. Layered With 3 Grains and three Hop Varieties. Barley, White Wheat, and Oats create a gentle resting place for the loud aromatics and juicy hop-driven flavors exploding from within the Citra, Mosaic, And Galaxy Hops. 7% ABV – MN
Humble Forager Coastal Sunshine V4 6/4/12oz Sleek CANS – Fruited Sour Ale with Passion Fruit, Mango, Pink Guava. A delightful combination of Fresh Passion Fruit mixed with Indian and South American Mangos, finished with aromatic Pink Guava. Smooth and vibrant layers of Fruity Goodness all balanced by a tart base beer. 6% ABV – MN
Humble Forager Enchanted Island V1 6/4/12oz Sleek CANS – Painkiller CocktAle Inspired by one of our favorite Caribbean cocktails, The Painkiller. Packed with pineapple, orange, coconut cream, and nutmeg, we gave this creamy delight a gentle carbonation for extra refreshment. Drink it straight from the can, over ice, or with a shot of coconut rum. Our Painkiller Cocktale is sure to give your tastebuds a tropical beach bar vacation. 9% ABV – MN
Humble Forager PinSeeker Classic Pilsner 4/6/16oz CANS – Pin Seeker was created to be enjoyed with your longtime friends, new acquaintances, and cherished loved ones. Whether you revel in the moments, plan your crew’s next adventures, or reminisce about life’s chapters, Pin Seeker will be right there with you. 100% VEGAN. 4.2% ABV – MN
Humble Forager Hook Setter Amber 4/6/16oz CANS – Whether you are playing on the water, relaxing after a day of work, or just in need of delicious refreshing beer, Hook Setter Amber Lager has your back. Brewed with the highest quality German malts and Czech hops before cold lagering, the old-fashioned way for 6 weeks. Don’t rush through life moments, enjoy the ride with a Hook Setter by your side. 100% VEGAN. 5% – ABV – MN

Humble Bumble Hard Seltzers By Forager Brewery:

Forager creates a variety of brews that could be enjoyed across a wide range of activities while always using the highest quality ingredients. This newest addition of Humble Bumble fruited hard seltzers is no exception and is made with 100% real fruit and sweetened with honey. They are gluten-free, packed with bold flavors, and contain absolutely no artificial flavoring. Cheers to exploring new opportunities.

Humble Forager Humble Bumble V1 4/6/12oz Sleek CANS – Citrus Buzzed Seltzer made with Calamansi, Blood Orange, Tangerine, Orange Blossom Honey, Staghorn Sumac Blossoms. 100% NATURAL FRUIT | SWEETENED WITH HONEY | NO ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS | LOW CALORIE DRINK | GLUTEN FREE. 5% ABV – MN
Humble Forager Humble Bumble V7 4/6/12oz Sleek CANS – Buzzed Seltzer made with Coconut, Pineapple, Passionfruit, Mangosteen, Banana, Clementine, Goldenrod Honey, and Lavender Flowers. 100% NATURAL FRUIT | SWEETENED WITH HONEY | NO ARTIFICIAL FLAVORS | LOW CALORIE DRINK | GLUTEN FREE. 5% ABV – MN

Lion Bridge celebrating 10 years this week!

March 4, 2024Leave a comment

Iowa Eats: Either/Or; Des Moines, IA

January 8, 2024Leave a comment

I wrote this review for Little Village Magazine which you can check out by clicking HERE:

The latest venture from the group that brought you Lua Brewing company has seemingly taken over Grand Avenue in West Des Moines! Either/Or restaurant (6222 Grand Ave. Des Moines) opened their doors in early Fall of 2023 and has been consistently busy since.

“Lua is about craft beer and food. It was our first, so it’s always our baby, but it’s small. Either/Or is bigger on just about every scale. We still do craft beer and handmade food as well as we can, but we have cocktails, we have a private event space, we have a huge patio with green space and a playscape and five fire pits. We have twice as many team members and so much more space. At Either/Or, you can do date night or you can do family night or you can do Friendsgiving. It’s really flexible for any occasion,” said owner Scott Selix.

Their cuisine can be described as elevated American fare with the focus being on the quality of the food that they put out. All of their burgers are ground in house, juices squeezed fresh for their amazing cocktails, and the always fresh and never frozen concept. “We have a great team. Our head brewer, Zack, did the draft beer list with input from all of us. Our chefs, James and Cesar, did the food menu. And then it was a group effort on making high-end cocktails. So it was a collection of people. And the one thing they all had in common was we created what we like. The beer list has Bierstadt and Sierra Nevada and Confluence and Lua, but also High Life and Duchesse, because that’s what we like to drink. The food menu was a collection of foods we’ve been inspired by. Cesar, our chef de cuisine, is of Mexican heritage, and so there’s some fresh Mexican inspired dishes. But he and James love Asian food as well, so there’s some Asian influence. We also make homemade bologna, which is a very lengthy process and is distinctly European/American. We grind our own burgers everyday, and we only source 100% Iowa-sourced Certified Angus Beef. We pretty much said “let’s create a restaurant we’d want to dine at,” and that’s what we did! So the food is approachable, but unlike stuff you’ll find elsewhere and always homemade (see the Bologna).”

On why the ownership group chose this particular location for Either/Or, Selix responded, “It’s actually just barely east of the WDM border, so still in Des Moines by about 100 yards. But I played soccer at the soccer fields just south of Either/Or. Some partners on the building showed us the space and once whit and I saw it, we were set on it being a restaurant. Those partners live within walking distance, so they saw potential in the building. And then we saw it right away too. The huge patio, the connection to my old soccer club, the great location on Des Moines’ front porch from WDM, it all came together pretty quick with the tremendous team we have.”

On this particular Friday, I had the pleasure of taking my two daughters with me to check out this restaurant. They are both familiar with Lua Brewing as we’ve frequented that place many times, and so when I told them the owners of Lua(Scott and Whitney Selix) have opened a restaurant and we are going to get to try it tonight, they were extremely excited. Upon entering, you are greeted with colorful and eclectic decor. The bar pops and the open kitchen gives you an inside look at how your dishes are put together. A very cool, casual, and comfortable feel right away.

We were seated immediately, although the place was already very busy. The menu had many options that appealed to us so limiting what to order was a tall task for 3 hungry patrons. The beer list was loaded with delicious options, noticing that Lua had multiple beers on tap made my decision easy though.

BEER
I went with their latest double IPA, Dancer. Although it checks in at 8.6% ABV, it’s scarily drinkable and I had to convince myself to not order another. I love the hop combo on this beer and the creamy texture it brings. Lua makes some of the best beers in Iowa and this one is right up there for me as a favorite. Fantastic beer, a beer of the year candidate for sure!

APPETIZER

Quite a few delicious options on the appetizer portion of the menu, but the clear cut favorite that my daughter’s chose were the Mexican cheese curds. If cheese curds are on the menu, there’s a 99% chance that my kids would have me order them. These cheese curds, however, were very much more inspired than just your basic fried cheese curd. House battered and served with pickled fresno chiles, cilantro and a chipotle ranch dressing these were some of the best cheese curds any of us had ever eaten. The perfect bite consisted of a curd, a pickled fresno, and a leaf of cilantro with just a tiny bit of dressing. It hit all the taste buds. A great dish.

MAIN COURSE

We decided to do a bit of sharing and order a couple of sandwiches. I asked our waiter what Either/Or was known for besides the smash burgers, the fried bologna was recommended. I also wanted to try a vegetarian dish so I got the Italian mushroom sandwich. This bologna sandwich is unlike any you have had. It’s not your Oscar Meyer bologna sandwich. It’s made in house and the flavor is off the charts. Almost a pepperoni spice to it, it melts in your mouth and they stack this sandwich high with it. An excellent sandwich. The mushroom melt made you forget you weren’t eating meat. Loaded with perfectly cooked mushrooms and topped with a delicious homemade giardiniera and a side of jus, this sandwich would be perfect for not only a vegetarian diet, but even the biggest carnivores can get behind a sandwich this tasty!

DESSERT
There was no question what dessert we were going to order. My kids have been rice pudding lovers since they were little. Either/Or’s rice pudding was extraordinary. Either/Or added some apple compote and then topped their pudding off with a sesame tuile, which is a baked wafer. A great final dish to cap off a really wonderful meal.

OVERALL
I’m really excited to see what Either/Or brings to their menu and what they will come up with for their seasonal offerings. Their menu is ever changing and the way they play with fresh ingredients and the detail put into their dishes is commendable and appreciated. This place will be consistently busy, their food is delicious and approachable. This ownership group is doing all the right things and they continue to set the bar high for other establishments. If you are in the West Des Moines area, this is a must stop for a truly wonderful meal!