Une Annee Brewery in Niles

Favorite breweries: It’s always tough for me to go against Phase Three. They just really do consistently high-quality and consistently great beer styles and innovations. Their Pixel Density Lite still has all the complexity of one of their regular hazy IPAs, but it’s more drinkable in the summer at 4.5%. 

I like Une Année/Hubbard’s Cave in Niles too. They produce a really good combination of styles, and they usually have around 30 beers on tap. The location is great, they have a fun beer garden and the BBQ is smoked in house. Their dessert-style stouts, like the Coffee Cake, will blow you away with the flavors.

Drinking tendencies: My favorite, especially with my English heritage, is definitely a pale ale. I find I have to judge every brewery with how well they do a pale ale.

IPAs and hazy IPAs have dominated the scene lately, and you can get more creative with those for sure, but there’s just something reliable about a good, straight-up pale ale. I also seek out cask-conditioned ales, which I love. 

Alarmist Brewing

Recent beers that have caught your eye: Definitely Poppycock, a fantastic English-style pale ale that I had on cask, and Pantsless, an American pale ale — both from Alarmist Brewing, who just has a really good handle on this style. Panda Party is a dark lager I had on draft at Forbidden Root that had some great flavor complexities you won’t find in a lot of other lagers. 

Panda Party is a dark lager I had on draft at Forbidden Root that had some great flavor complexities you won’t find in a lot of other lagers.”

What are you looking forward to grabbing on draft late this summer?
More and more dark lagers for sure. There’s a hazy pale ale from Jackie O’s Brewery in Ohio called Who Cooks for You that I look forward to seeing at bottle shops in the area. And the Premium Rye lager from More Brewing Company too. 

District Brew Yards

Favorite beer bar: My go-to is Beer on the Wall in Park Ridge (they also have locations in Arlington Heights and Elmhurst). I love the family-friendly ambiance in there, they know me and my habits now, and they always have a great selection of new beer to try. And even though it’s not a true beer bar by definition, I’m a fan of District Brew Yards and the breweries they have on site. We go to the West Loop location in Chicago a fair amount after work, and there’s always something for everyone. And the BBQ is quite good as well.

I love the family-friendly ambiance in Beer on the Wall. They know me and my habits now, and they always have a great selection of new beer to try.”

Secret beer spot: Illuminated Brew Works is an interesting, tucked-away brewery in Norwood Park on Chicago’s far northwest side that could easily be missed the first or second time. Unique vibe and some solid beers. 

Best brewery you’ve hit on vacation: Foam & Folly Brewery in Grand Junction, Colorado. We were just there last summer. Very interesting, eclectic space. They’re relatively new, but they’ve got an interesting selection of beers already (Editor’s note: Foam & Folly’s taproom is temporarily closed until April of 2025 due to nearby construction). Grand Canyon Brewing & Distillery in Page, Arizona by Lake Powell too. It’s a large, beautiful brewery, inside and out. Leatherback Brewery in the Virgin Islands is great too.