Meet the Brewer: James Heckathorn, Court Avenue Brewing!

March 30, 2022March 30, 2022Leave a comment

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!

Lua releasing multiple beers Saturday, April 2nd!

March 25, 2022Leave a comment

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.

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

March 9, 2022Leave a comment

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

Clock House bringing back “Java Gypsy” with 2 variants on March 11th!

March 9, 2022Leave a comment

A personal favorite makes it’s return as Java Gypsy is coming back to Clock House with a two variants available! Release is on March 12th, here’s more from Clock House:

JAVA GYPSY is back on Friday March 11th. And this year we brewed up something special for you! We brewed not 1 but 2 specialty brews for you, featuring our friends from @roasterscoffeehiawatha and @roastedonross .
For the first variant we decided to team up with Roasters Coffee House in Hiawatha! One of our favorite beans from them in the past has been their medium roast Caramel Pecan. If you can remember way back to our very first coffee porter (yes the one without a name) we actually used this flavored bean to craft that delicious brew. These beans provide very strong notes of pecan and sweet caramel that meld together in perfect harmony.
We teamed up with Ross Street Roasting Co and ordered a variety of their delicious offerings. After cold steeping three types of beans we were blown away by the results. All three were unique and delicious. It was hard to select our favorite from the group! After much thought and consideration we decided on their Bohemian Gothic. This bean gave our porter notes of chocolate and subtle smoke without coming across bitter. We’re excited to release this delicious offering! Be sure to look for their beans in stores.
We will be selling mixed 4-packs for $14. And each volume will be available on draft as well.

Drink This! Reunion Tropic Nightmare DDH Brett IPA

March 2, 2022Leave a comment

When Reunion was teasing this release and having Wake involved in the brewing process, I was already sold. Reading further about this release and being a fan of Brett IPAs, I was super excited to have the chance to get my hands on some of these brews! Here’s the description from Reunion:

Brewed in collaboration with the wizards of WAKE BREWING. This nightmarish IPA was fermented with Brettanomyces Claussenii for a funky and tropic twang and dosed with heaps of Cryo Mosaic, Citra Lupomax and El Dorado Lupomax.

There have been a few Brett IPAs that I’ve really enjoyed. I was lucky enough to score Allagash’s “Little Brett”, which I enjoyed, but wanted a bit more hop presence. The Stone Enjoy After Brett IPA was tasty and I did purchase multiple bottles and enjoyed them. Crooked Stave has been a favorite brewery of mine and their Hop Savant was outstanding, tons of barnyard with a splash of hops….and then Tropic Nightmare came along….

First of all, this beer is beautiful..I’ve had a fresh pour from Reunion and multiple cans and it’s a stunning beer. Orange juice look with a thick frothy white head. Aroma is hops up front, dank and lovely. If you keep your nose in the glass for a bit longer you get that barnyard funk that brettheads love and desire!

Extremely refreshing! The funk shines and is wonderfully balanced with the hop bill. Tartness from the brett on the back of the tongue but also that refreshing and juicy splash of hops. Complex and delicious. Lots of flavors going on in this beer and for me, all of them wonderful.

This has been such a sight for sore eyes release. Something different, something new and a tip of the cap to Reunion and Wake for going in on a style that hasn’t necessarily dominated the market and totally crush it with Tropic Nightmare. Worth seeking, I’ll need more! Get to the brewery on the Coralville Strip and Drink This beer!

Thew Brewing celebrating 4 years on March 12th! Releasing Chip’s Date (imperial stout with chocolate and mint)!

February 28, 2022Leave a comment

Thew Brewing will be celebrating their 4th anniversary on March 12th and have a lineup of events/beers/food to celebrate with! Here’s what’s going down on March 12th:

Noon: Bottle release of Chip’s Date (imperial stout with mint and chocolate)

Hacienda Las Glorias & La Cantina food truck will be on site 12-5 PM

3:30-6:00 PM: Pop-up drag show with Lexi Belle & Friends and CR Pride (family friendly!)

7:30 PM Doors for comedy show – Zach Martina featuring Leslie Mitchell and Mitch Banks, hosted by Travis Bails. Tickets available at shop.thewbrew.com

Big Grove celebrating 5 years in Iowa City on March 12th! 5 beers to be released including Velvet + Apple Brandy Imperial Stout!

February 19, 2022Leave a comment

5 years in the books for Big Grove in Iowa City and what better way to celebrate than releasing 5 beers for their beer-loving fan base to indulge in and help with the anniversary fun?! Here’s what’s happening at Big Grove on March 12th:

Let’s celebrate together on Saturday, March 12. To kick off the fun, we just opened the pre-order window for some special new and returning brews we’re brewing. More news and events to come for a week’s worth of fun on March 7-13… but for now you can check out this awesome release at our website’s shop tab.
Velvet vanilla imperial stout
Apple Brandy barrel-aged imperial stout
Bourbon barrel-aged imperial stout
Cannonball hazy double IPA
Northside Helles

Dimensional tickets for Barrel-aged “Can-D-Bar” go live on 3/6 @ 7 p.m.! “neat” imperial stout releases 3/12 – taproom only!

February 15, 2022February 15, 2022Leave a comment

Dimensional Brewing in Dubuque, IA is kicking off the month of March with a bang as they are set to release two beers! Tickets for their popular “Can-D-Bar’ will open Sunday, March 6th @ 7 p.m.! The following week will see the debut of “neat” imperial stout for a tap room only release starting at 11 a.m. on Saturday March 12th! Details below! Cheers!

It’s time for us to get our Barrel Aged March on. We are excited to bring back B.A. Can-D-Bar & to introduce you to our best nonadjunct B.A. Stout to date. We will be doing this release similar to our most recent releases. Please read the following details carefully.
B.A. Can-D-Bar is a 11.35% imperial stout aged for 14 months in Blaum Bros. Distilling Co. Bourbon Barrels and then rested on Coconut and Cacao!
– Tickets for B.A. Can-D-Bar will be sold online via Etix at 7pm on Sunday, March 6th. Please look for an event page to be posted soon. We will supply a link to etix on the event page.
– B.A. Can-D-Bar will be sold in 2, 500ml bottle packages.
– The limit is one set per order.
– If you score a ticket for B.A. Can-D-Bar bottle pick up will begin on Saturday, March 12th 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.
Introducing “neat”
-neat is a big thicc 11.8% stout aged in a Blaum Brothers Rye barrel for 13 months and that’s it! This Rye Barrel Aged Stout has created such a harmonious blend of the beer & barrel that we can’t wait to send your taste buddies into a state of nirvana.
– This Rye barrel aged Stout will be available in 500ml bottles.
– Due to the low bottle count, we will be releasing this beer first come, first served at 11am on Saturday, March 12th at our taproom.
– Limits will be determined upon turnout and final bottle count.
– For those of you lining up, we will open the garage early for pre game shenanigans because we love you.

SingleSpeed “Tip the Cow Day” is this Saturday (1/15), and here’s the lineup!

January 12, 2022January 12, 2022Leave a comment

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!

“Keeping it Craft” season 2 ep 3 from Lion Bridge Brewery!

January 1, 2022Leave a comment

Keeping it Craft hits the Czech Village and gets some insight on the upcoming “Barrel-Aged January” with Lion Bridge Brewery owner/brewer Quinton McClain!

What a show! A nearly hour long chat with Lion Bridge Brewing Company’s Head Brewer Quinton McClain. From turning a brutal month like January into a celebrated holiday with their Barrel Aged January, to the history behind Lion Bridge, and the intricacies behind the barrel aging process, we cover a lot of ground. Raise your favorite beverage and enjoy the ride!