On tap at Three Wise Monks, easygoing India Pale Ale competes favorably with brewers’ similarly styled and more pungent Hop Ranch (via 2013). Beautiful yellow and pink grapefruit overtones ride above piney whole-coned Chinook-Citra-Simcoe bittering, creamy crystal malting and gorgeous floral bouquet. Apple, pear, melon, peach and tangerine fruiting sweetens stylish grapefruit, pineapple and orange tang. Passive mango, papaya, passionfruit and guava tropicalia hidden beneath the surface.
On tap at The Drafting Room, indelible yellow grapefruit-juiced entry picks up floral-daubed tropicalia over pungent whole-coned hop bittering and piney hemp oiling. Tart orange-peeled lemon rind crisping deepens tangy pineapple-mango-papaya-nectarine-tangerine undertones for fruitful delight.
On tap at The Drafting Room, lulling fruited moderation utilizes locally pressed apples, but fails to truly intrigue. Sweet cider stead too ineffective against murky hop astringency and flailing lemon-peeled bittering. Vinous green grape tartness never fully integrates with sweet ‘n sour red apple signature.
On tap at The Drafting Room, succulent sunny-hazed barleywine-styled strong ale plies floral tropical fruiting to caramel-malted honeyed wheat backbone. Resinous pine-needled grapefruit tang rides shotgun alongside orange-peeled pineapple-mango-papaya tropicalia and perfumed peach-apple-pear ripeness.
Diabolically dichotomous dark ale hybrid effectively contrasts brown-sugared cinnamon spicing and pumpkin pie sweetness against brooding black chocolate-embittered coffee milking, fudgy cocoa richness and salty pumpkin seeding. Mildly creamed caramel malting brings out ancillary gingerbread-spiced Graham Cracker nicety to counter ashen charcoal acridity. Tertiary chocolate rum cake, glazed pecan, hazelnut praline, charred walnut, dried cherry and dry burgundy illusions graze cinnamon-toasted nutmeg, cardamom, sage and sandalwood licks. Tenacious!
Perfect molasses-draped Christmas dessert offering brings creamy S’more-like Graham Cracker marshamallow roast and Nestle Quik cocoa powdering to brazenly tar-like hop char. Chewy lactose richness fortified by dark-roasted milk chocolate, chicory-smoked coffee beaning, burnt caramel sweetness and light vanilla daub. Busy flavor profile never falters.
Exemplary full-bodied red ale with vibrant India Pale Ale leanings brings summery tropical fruitiness to wintry evergreen freshness. Zesty grapefruit-peeled orange rind bittering and resinous pine sapping thicken over brisk mineral-watered crisping. Ancillary honey-spiced pineapple, peach, tangerine and mango tang picks up rosy floral aspect.
Summery bock lager (bottled for Illinois’ Local Option Bierwerker) brings beautiful floral bouquet to up-front sugary citric spicing and bittersweet raw-honeyed herbage. Clean-watered minerality and doughy pale malted breading provide base for lemony grapefruit-yellowed tartness and brisk navel orange tang. Peppery oregano-basil niche picks up teensy black tea snip.
On tap at Twisted Elm, fudgy winter warmer spreads maple-sapped golden and Blackstrap molasses atop sweet toffee, dried cocoa, bitter Baker’s chocolate and sour dried fruiting. Toasted hops fortify ancillary tobacco-roasted crisping. Distant port and burgundy undertones waver.
On tap at Shepherd & Knucklehead, dramatic mocha-doused Christmas seasonal (2013) picks up dry hop-charred bittering to deepen dark chocolate-milked coffee bean assertion over soft-watered base. Molasses sinew drapes ancillary vanilla, anise and walnut illusions. Dryer than most stylistic competitors.
On tap at Shepherd & Knucklehead, up-front peanut buttering gets smeared across gunky mocha nuttiness and sharp roasted hop bittering. Soft-watered silking contrasts rich dark chocolate milkiness as grape-jellied peanut butter sensation recedes. Pine nut, hazelnut and walnut illusions indulge oats-charred coffee snip.
Bountiful bourbon-barreled Imperial Stout allows hop-charred Peruvian coffee roast to embitter molasses-smoked dark chocolate segue, cocoa-buttered vanilla creaming and sour cherry uprising. Sweet bourbon, burgundy and whiskey illusions heighten mocha theme. In deep recess, oaken grape tannins gain strength over tertiary espresso, cocoa nibs, anise and raisin undertones.