[UPDATED 1/19/12, see below]
A commenter had this to say on Reddit after reading our 2011 wrap-up post:
I love Chicago, but really think the craft beer scene here kind of sucks.
Yikes…get out much? Here’s hoping you can find something that doesn’t suck in 2012, avisnova. And here’s your guide for what’s new and exciting. This is, to the best of our knowledge, a complete list of breweries that have made their local commercial ambitions known to the world. Did we miss something? Let us know.
One way to check out some of the lesser-known names on this list: a chef-homebrew event on January 21 called Brew Ho Ho. $20 for food and beer pairings. RSVP to rsvp@brewhoho.com for location.
Probable 2012 Local Brewery Openings
We called New Chicago Beer Co. (fb.com | @newchicagobeer) our most exciting prospect of 2012. This is the Evans brothers’ brewery opening in the Plant in Back of the Yards you should have read about by now. Get with it.
Arcade Brewery (fb.com | @arcadebrewery) is born of art and collaboration.
Pipeworks Brewing (fb.com | @pipeworksbrewin) is setting up shop in Bucktown and asking for your investment as they await licensing for their production brewery with retail and tasting room.
Virtue Cider (fb.com | @virtuecider) isn’t a brewery. Well, before Greg Hall, imperial stouts weren’t aged in bourbon barrels. You’ll drink it. It will open your mind. You’ll enjoy it.
Broad Shoulders Brewing is a new Motor Row joint from Goose Island and Lakefront alum Frank Lassandrello.
Solemn Oath Brewing (@solemnoathbeer) is a Naperville venture by Rock Bottom Lombard alum Tim Marshall and his friend John Barley–seriously, that’s his name. The city council removed the last major legal hurdle this fall by amending its liquor code for a production brewery and retail shop with tastings and tours, but no food. Think Half Acre.
Argyle Brewing (fb.com) is opening as a community-supported brewery, relying mainly on monthly subscriptions, in Ravenswood.
Empirical Brewery (fb.com | @empiricalbrew) has been holding some classy tasting events around town and plans to start brewing this summer.
[UPDATED 1/4/12] Flatlander’s has started dismantling its brewery to ship to a new north-suburban production brewery called Old Chicago Beer Company. Russ Sher of Flatlander’s told me via email today that the plan is for Old Chicago to become “the premier contract brewer in the midwest.” He anticipates opening in April with a dozen accounts, including Flatlander’s. Bottling and canning will be available. More details to come later this month.
[UPDATED 1/4/12] Misfit Craft Brewery (@misfitcraftbrew) is hoping to win approval to build a brewery in the old Oswego firehouse. If special purpose approval is recommended by the zoning commission and granted by the village board, plans could get rolling to open in October. Pilot batches and tasting panels are in progress.
Possible 2012 and Beyond Local Brewery Openings
[UPDATED 1/19/12] Admiral Sasquatch (fb.com | @adm_sasquatch) is honing recipes and winning in the best name category, but they’ve gone dark since June. They call themselves a “proto-brewery.” Reminds me of my ex calling me a proto-human, but more exciting.
[UPDATED 1/9/12] Strange Pelican Brewing (fb.com) has been quietly brewing and pouring at events since this summer. No word yet on licensing, location, or release plans.
[UPDATED 1/7/12] Last Bay Brewing has a unique idea: start out gypsy brewing big batches of staple beers and sell them at growler-filling stations around town, all of which have nanobreweries for one-offs. No public activity from these guys recently, seems to be very much in the idea phase.
[UPDATED 1/7/12] Brutally Honest Brewing (@BHBrewing)has been participating in some homebrew pouring events. Manned by two Certified Cicerones™.
[UPDATED 1/4/12] South Loop Brewing (fb.com | @southloopbrew) will combine with Broad Shoulders and New Chicago to drag the button of Chicago’s beer belly a tad south.
[UPDATED 1/4/12] Three Angels Brewing (fb.com) has cleared county zoning hurdles to open as an estate-sourced nanobrewery in Yorkville.
[UPDATED 1/4/12] The guys planning Lake Effect Brewing (fb.com | @lakeeffect_llc)are touring Europe tasting classic styles as I write this. They are scouting locations for a nanobrewery to open in 2012. There’s a good amount of style and recipe information posted on their site.
Spiteful Brewing (fb.com | @spitefulbrewing) is going the nano route on a Sabco system in their new Ravenswood space.
Off Key Brewing was greeted enthusiastically by the Oak Park municipal government for its nanobrewery plans, but is apparently on hold.
Low Dive Brewing (fb.com | @lowdivebrewing) is a collective of four homebrewing buddies who have been showing off their brews around town.
New Oberpfalz Brewing (fb.com) is planning to brew classic European styles in northwest Indiana.
Une Année (fb.com | @uneannee) is currently scouting for a location and plans to brew seasonal Belgian and French styles.
Powell Brew House apparently has a space at Milwaukee and Western and will brew a batch of beer for your event or collaborate on a brew with you.
Oval Brewing (@ovalbrewing) has worked out preliminary label designs and brewed batches of sports-themed beers on an impressive digital-control pilot system they built themselves. The plan here seems to be nanobrewery as well.
Corazon Brewing (fb.com | @corazonbrew)is a Latin-themed homebrew collective. They haven’t said much about their plans.
Big Dick Brewery puts dildos on their tap handles at events. No joke. Their name is a good indicator of how seriously they take their self-promotion efforts. Don’t expect this one to come to fruition anytime soon.
4 Paws Brewing (@4pawsbrewing) is aiming for 2013.
Expansions and Relocations
Revolution Brewing is building out its production brewery near Addison and Kedzie, where they plan to start packaging bombers in May and cans in July.
Three Floyds is in the middle of a major expansion.
Half Acre bought out the building it had been leasing in October and will maximize the entire space to grow production to about 15,000 barrels per year.
[UPDATED 1/4/12] 5 Rabbit has a brewhouse and fermenters on order and is planning to open its own production brewery this year. A lease on a bottling line is almost secured, but the location itself has not been pinned down yet. Watch for an interview with Randy Mosher here in the next few days with more details.
Hopleaf is growing, but not losing its charm.
[UPDATED 1/7/12] Chicago Beer Co. (@chicagobeerco) has been contract brewing their Windy City Wheat, Lake Shore Lager, and Pier Pale Ale, but plans to open their own brewery in the West Loop in 2012.
Great compilation. Keep up the good work…
Cheers!
-Marty Nachel
“Beer for Dummies”
Thanks for the kind words. Hope to see you around at a CBS event soon.
Cheers!
thanks for the mention, guys!
cheers.
Excited to try your stuff. Hope to catch you at Brew Ho Ho.
Ha! If it sucks here, it must really, really suck nearly everywhere else.
I’ve been excited for Pipeworks since their Small Animal Big Machine collaboration beer with Half Acre. Looking forward to seeing them get up and running.
Gotta love a brewery that wants to make a Berliner Weisse part of their regular lineup.
Thanks for this comprehensive list. It’s an exciting time to be a beer fan.
Also the address is rsvp@brewhoho.com
Looking forward to Brew Ho Ho. What an awesome idea for an event. See you there!
Tighthead Brewing Company, in Mundelein, IL, opened in December 2011. Check it out!
www.tightheadbrewing.com/
Truth. Tried three of their beers at a release party at Firkin, really liked the red. Hope to see them sell some more experimental brews around town. Mundelein is quite a hike.
i like the beer selection chicago has to offer. nothing compared to indianapolis, but still good.
I would love to know your top 3 breweries and bars in Indy. We’ll be making the trip this summer for sure.
It’s incredibly hard to limit it to three. My top in Indy would have to be Bier Brewery, Flat 12 Bierworks, Triton, and Sun King Brewery
Excellent List!
Excellent list. I am sure that there will be some more transitioning from dreams to fruition in the next few years. If a town in Colorado can have 50K residents and 8 brewpubs, we are way behind here in Chicago.
Trying to make it to the Brew Ho Ho but just realized it’s the same day as Brewpub Shootout. Two events in one day? Like FOBAB and 3F Anniversary Party. Hurting Livers beware.
Thank you very much for the preview. It was a very good read.
There are several good breweries & brewpubs in Indianapolis now. Northside has Barley Island & Brugge, southside has Oaken Barrel, eastside has Triton, and downtown is home to Flat12 Bierwerks, Sun King, & Fountain Square.
I think (or at least hope) the person was talking about the craft beer scene in Chicago sucking, was that for the size of Chicago there should be more. When I last lived in the city in early 2006, there wasn’t much going on. For instance, where I live now — Montana — there are over 30 craft breweries (probably at least 35 by the end of the year) and there are less than a million people in the state. The city I live in has five breweries (including the regional brewery, Big Sky), two wineries and a craft distillery and the population is 67,000. Chicago could do a lot better.
It appears it’s about to explode in Chicago though–FINALLY. I might be opening a place in the next couple years too, but we’re looking at a few other states before committing to Chicago since it will cost several times more there–hmmm, I wonder if that’s why there is a void of craft breweries per capita; )
You missed Strange Pelican: www.facebook.com/pages/Strange-Pelican-Brewing-Co/140192182727143
I tried to post this the other day and it never went through.
Hello, I just wanted to say there will be another one soon. Big Shoulders Beer Company just got a contract to brew beer in Michigan for release here in Chicago in April. So while we don’t technically have a brewery yet, we will have 2 beers, Crosstown Wheat and Hopapalooza, in the Chicagoland market before the summer. If you have any more questions, feel free to check out our facebook page, www.facebook.com/bigshouldersbeer . We will have more info up on our website as soon as its finished.
Great to hear! Thanks for the heads up. We’ll be looking for your stuff to hit Chicago.
One more for 2013: Temperance Beer Company is coming to Evanston. Working with the city right now on creating a new license allowing a production brewery and tap room. Looking forward to all of the area’s new beers!