XII's - Threadless X London Balling

     This time I wanted to do something other than the traditional bottle for twelves... After my stay in Colorado, I realized that I had been a "bottle snob" for entirely too long!! How could I have assumed that canned beers were subpar to a bottled beer, but then be ecstatic about a certain beer on tap that's essentially canned in a cooler behind the scenes?! How foolish of me... What really swayed me while in Colorado is that, even though it's an outdoor fitness fanatics wet-dream, not much is better than enjoying a nice cold brew after accomplishing a hike or while cruising down the slopes in the mighty Rockies!! I mention "not much" because it's also nice to be able to burn some of the planet's finest herb without all the stupid social stigma that accompanies it elsewhere... BUT - With those luxuries come the responsibility to enjoy them properly, thus you can't be bringing glass bottles to some of the most amazing mountain-land in the world!! Hence my recent appreciation of those breweries who are electing to can beers for those types of occurrences... Oskar Blues, Dry Dock, Sanitas and Upslope come to mind when I think of my favorite canned selections from Colorado's outstanding microbrew scene...
     Illinois is likely the closest behind Colorado as far as the microbrew scene is concerned, with Michigan trailing slightly behind them rounding out the top three... Those not being facts, just a guesstimate from what I've gathered from my travelings... So while looking for an Illinois brew, Finch's IPA collaboration with Threadless was an easy selection due to Threadless being quite an interesting and attractive company for artists the world over... For those who are unfamiliar, their products are made from art and graphics that have been submitted and voted on by the general public!! Founder Jake Nickell doesn't just take artists' work and create products for the sole use of the company, he's set up a payment structure in which the artist receives monetary compensation for their work!! It's currently set so the artist receives a 20% cut of the unit price, with the minimum being $1... A nice way to give back to the artist(s) involved since it can be basically anybody who has submitted work, as opposed to companies only working with other already accomplished artists or companies... Makes me wonder if the graphic for the can was chosen via submission??
     Since I've yet to do a writeup on a canned beer, I thought this to be a perfect opportunity to do so... Also, having just been exposed to Against The Grain's brews in the form of their delicious "Kentucky Ryed Chiquen," it was a no brainer to indulge in their barrel aged barleywine... Plus, the fact that it's in a rather unfamiliar shaped bottle was entirely too fitting for this month's edition of "Twelves..."

Fuck It, Dude... Let's Go Bowling...

     In 1998, Joel and Ethan Coen first released their comedy "The Big Lebowski" at the Sundance Film Festival... Story goes, it received mixed reviews at film festivals and major theatre debuts, but has since evolved into a cult classic!! It has gained such a large following that there is now an annual "Lebowski Fest," which is essentially a viewing and bowling party themed around the characters and situations within the movie... Hosted originally in Louisville, Kentucky in 2002, it has since spread to many metropolitan cities nationwide...
     The movie's cast is low-key phenomenal, (Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi, Philip Seymour Hoffman, John Turturro, Tara Reid, Mark Pellegrino, and even Red Hot Chili Peppers' bassist Flea - to name a few) as each character executed their roles in exquisite fashion... Of equal preeminence was the movie's score, consisting of excellently placed tracks which brilliantly accompany each character or situation... The plot, however, seems to be one of the least celebrated aspects of the film... It's Pulp-Fiction-esque, in regards to it having multiple underlying story lines applicable to each individual character, all adding bits and pieces to the overall plot, which, in the end is ultimately secondary to all the comical anecdotes each character encounters...
     Since it's central storyline has never been the most celebrated aspect of the film, I believe it's the love for the characters that has truly been embraced by the "Lebowski communities" everywhere... So much so, that Pipeworks Brewing in Chicago has brewed a Lebowski inspired White Russian Imperial Milk Stout!! Russian stouts aren't typically creamy in nature, but when modeling a beer after a White Russian, it only makes sense... Now join me in indulging in the aptly named "Hey, Careful Man, There's A Beverage Here!!"

Nothing Like A Stick To The Nuts On All-Star Weekend

Many moons ago I had my first affair in the craft beer world with Rogue's "Hazelnut Brown Nectar…" I credit that brew alone with being the one that got me interested in the craft beer world and everything that it has to offer… Needless to say, I now have an affinity for nut brown ales, as they are extremely nostalgic to me… So much so, I made sure my first home-brewed beer was a honey-nut brown ale!! I had other experimental trials in my home-brews, but the one I was most excited about was the one I screwed up during the bottling stage… It was supposed to be my "Peanut Butter Chocolate Milk Porter," but after reading that I could use maple syrup as my conditioning agent, I chose to take that option over the tried and true priming sugar… It turned out to be a complete failure as my brew was severely under-carbonated and tasted like weird chocolate milk… That was the last time I had thought about peanut butter in a beer… Then I came across "Stick To The Nuts!!"

When my eyes first grazed the bottle, I was immediately drawn to it's graphic due to the hockey influence of their brewery's name - "SlapShot…" As one of my previous articles states, hockey and beer is the perfect marriage!! The graphic has a little peanut hockey player as well, further intriguing me to the quality of its' contents… The only downfall I could find upon my initial inspection of the bottle was it's from Chicago, and not that Chicago is a bad place, but I'd assume the brewery is full of Blackhawks fans… But with this being All-Star weekend, I figured I could put my distaste for the 'Hawks aside and enjoy a hockey influenced brew in the spirit of the best sport in the world!! Also, as much as I'm NOT a 'Hawks fan, I respect the players of the game, and the fact that they have five individuals from their roster in the All-Star competition is no small feat…

So with a small, weird sense of disloyalty, I chose to enjoy this brew as I watched the final day of the All-Star weekend… Hopefully I'll be able to find out what a beer brewed with peanut butter is TRULY supposed to taste like… And for the record, I'm only hoping "Team Toews" wins due to them having Minnesota's Ryan Suter on their roster!!

Deceiving Looks - Master Of Disguise

Stone has always been a brewery that pushes the brewing envelope, especially when it comes to IPA's, as they brew more of that style than any brewery that I'm aware of… They don't discriminate though, as last year they released a pair of smoked porter varietals, and then asked for consumers input as to which one they preferred better… I preferred the vanilla version over the chipotle version, but both were delightful concoctions… I must also give them a nod for encouraging consumer feedback and participation, which is evident in their porter experiment, as well as their recent Xocoveza collaboration with a homebrew competition winner!!

This particular brew caught my eye because I've never even heard of a stout that's not dark in color… It made me think of how Black IPA's were a recent trend, and the back of the beer even mentions how they've been accepted as somewhat normal in the realm of IPA's… I've always had an affinity for the darker styles, so I've wanted to try every Black IPA I could get my hands on… Making me think - If a Blonde Stout is anywhere near as good as most of the Black IPA's I've consumed, it's sure to be a real treat!!

2015 - The Year Of The Squarian

Happy New Year!! Welcome to 2015, "The Year Of The Squarians" as dubbed by The Kid With The Green Backpack - XV… If you're unfamiliar with the work of XV, I suggest getting acquainted with the music of this young Kansas resident via your favorite music source!! With the new year, the common accompaniment are resolutions, typically a few things in each individuals life that they wish to achieve in the coming 52 weeks… Though I rarely wait 'til a certain date to induct change into my life, this year I decided it was time I make a change and I gave myself a resolution - DRINK MORE BEER!! It may seem to be a juvenile resolution, but it's a reasonable one that can be somewhat easily accomplished and is inherently fun!! To clarify, by "more" I'm speaking in terms of variety and style, not an increase in total beer consumed… I rarely consume more than a bomber in a standard session, and hardly ever pick up anything larger than a 4-banger - MAYBE the occasional 6'r making its way into the fridge… Picking up smaller quantities at a more frequent rate will allow me to try more brewer's products more frequently, whilst not overindulging in alcoholic beverages… So to those who've decided this will be the year they have the rock hard body they've always wanted - More power to ya, and I hope to catch ya at the beach!! You bring your six pack, I'll bring mine…

The Perfect Marriage - Hockey & Beer

     Though winter is officially upon us, and the general consensus is that people wanna stay inside during the next few months, things are slightly different when being from Minnesota... It's a beautiful thing that an ice rink during the winter months is as common a sight as a baseball diamond during the summer - And I state that with no exaggeration... There's a public outdoor rink for just about every lake in the state - 10,000 for those who don't get out of their bubble too often... Along with hockey, there's yet another joy in life that's best savored cold - BEER!! As just about any hockey player will tell you, hockey and beer are an extremely common union, a belief that reaches much further than the state lines of Minnesota... Probably also helps in explaining why so many hockey players have false teeth somewhere in their dental repertoire... Though it's much more sensible to enjoy a case of relatively cheap beer when playin' some stick on the pond, enjoying a nice craft brew once the skates come off is never a penalized play...

Focal: A Photo & Film Expo

     On Friday December 12th, the Locallective Loft made its' space available for "Focal: A Photo & Film Expo" hosted by Modest... The venue was somewhat hidden, as the only indicator that there was a show being held upstairs was a small slab of wood with "Modest Show - Please Shut Door!" written on it... Once inside, the stairwell led immediately to a beautifully painted graffiti piece with the silhouette of the Chicago skyline seemingly "burning" through the upper right corner of it... That led you past a row of stickers, flyers and business cards of those associated with the shows production, all in front of a studio area, where it looked as if pieces were in the process of being completed... After collecting some memorabilia, we did what any respectable art-show-goer does - We hit the bar!!

XII's - 72 Imperial X Christmas Ale

 Breckenridge Brewery - 72 Imperial [Small Batch Series - Chocolate Cream Stout] (12oz ---> Lefthand Pint Glass : 7.2 ABV : 11 IBU)

  This beer was for some reason singled out at my local store and was the only one available on the shelf… There could be a few reasons as to why, but it seems they're usually placed there after having been available for a while, (over a year) or, what I assumed happened to this beer, one of the 4/6 pack became victim to a break and they had to be sold as individuals… If this happened to be a beer with some age on it, hopefully the 7.2 ABV helped it age gracefully…

  The large car graphic wrapping around almost the entire bottle insists the "72 Imperial" is somewhat of a classic vehicle, and a small amount of research uncovered it is exactly that, a Chrysler to be more specific… To add a nice touch to the "72" theme, the '72 Imperial fittingly had a 7.2 liter V-8 engine as well… Also, since it's a chocolate cream stout brewed in Colorado, they chose to use Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory's "dark chocolate" in the brewing recipe…

Video: Grant Skate Park, Chicago - Opening Day

Image borrowed from SkateNoize.com

     Skateboarding has always been a staple in my life... Having learned how at a young age, I've come to appreciate and love the simple joy of smooth pavement and wide carves... In the beginning I put many miles on a hand-me-down John Lucero X-2, so longboarding is much more my style these days... Not to say that I don't enjoy rocking out some street lines from time to time, it's just that I've found that my roots have translated to a greater affinity with the longboards... I've always had the luxury of living relatively close to a skatepark, thus I've always been able to acquaint myself with the scene whether on solo missions or through good times spent with friends... That scene has been kind to me, so I do what I can to show it support in any way I can!!

     I came across Modest Inc., which is a dope boutique shop in Forest Park, IL when picking up some art supplies one afternoon... I began following them on Instagram and they posted a flyer which promoted the opening of a new skatepark in Grant Park!! I thought it odd that Chicago would be opening a park in the first week of December, but a little research has has lead me to believe it was to allocate funds from a budget back into the city, thus ensuring further funding in the future... With three acres of street park being strewn across downtown Chicago a few hundred yards from the lakeshore, it's no wonder $2.65 million is the tab on the project... So hopefully someones fiscal year was saved with the official opening of this project occurring when it did, even if it'll most likely be covered in snow within a matter of weeks...

Salty & Sweet - Salted Belgian Chocolate Stout

New Belgium Brewing X Perennial Artisan Ales - Lips Of Faith Series: Salted Belgian Chocolate Stout [Stout Brewed With Chocolate] (22oz ---> Left Hand Pint Glass : 9% ABV : 35 IBU)

There are few things in life as satisfying as watching Minnesota hockey and enjoying a finely crafter brew… They're out there, but the list is fairly short… And much the like the fashion world, with the changing of seasons, breweries also begin to release "season specific" styles, and hockey season is a good indicator that winter warmers are soon to be bountiful in any liquor store… With it still being fall, I figured a "Belgian" chocolate stout would be a light introduction before I dove fully into the winter beer mindset… But when the holiday season fully kicks into gear and Grandma makes her sugar cookies with a Hershey kiss on top, they wouldn't be heavenly without the dose of salt she adds to the recipe to balance out the sweetness… Thus, a salty chocolate stout is one I'm in no hurry to pass up!!