Goose Island Beer Co.

Behold the renowned Chicago Brewery – a true icon. Regrettably, A-B has taken control of the most famous brands, but fear not, as Goose Island's Chicago locations boast their own unique, non-mass-produced beers that remain truly exceptional. The establishment features a delightful bar and hospitable servers, ensuring a pleasant experience. Despite some mass-produced beers on tap, there's always something extraordinary available. Goose Island holds the honor of being Chicago's inaugural craft beer brewery, etching itself into my memory with fond recollections.

 

So I will admit upfront I enjoy the ambience and gastropub feel of clybourn more. However here at Fulton they do have rotating bcbs specials including rare single barrel one-offs which is always a treat. The rest of the list is not a creative but solid. Service is slower but they are friendly and beer centric. Hosting prop day outside shows off the inbev might, but this taproom inside still has slight reminders of GI's roots

After years of procrastinating and visiting the other two GI locations (y'know, when there actually were two other locations, RIP in Peace GI Wrigleyville), I finally stopped into the proper Fulton Street location. The space is relatively small, just a bit of a brick-and-hipster stuck to the side of the brewery to skip some suds to the tour groups and weirdos like me who, for whatever reason, wanna grab a drink from the source. God, we're strange. Anyway, there were some cool offerings not available elsewhere, some standards, and some to-go options. Servers are fine, they know what they're doing; didn't have any of the food on offer, but some of it sorta/kinda looked sorta/kinda tasty from the distance I viewed it at. Ain't I just so much help? Anyway, I'm glad I finally made it in to the Fulton location: it may not be a place I would necessarily patronize on a truly regular basis, but it works as something along the lines of a dessert, a place for occasions (special or otherwise).

 

 

 

This is the iconic Chicago Brewery. Unfortunately, A-B has hijacked the the most well known brands, but the Chicago Goose Island locations have their own beers (not the mass produced) which can still be awesome. This location has a very nice bar and friendly servers. There will always be something amazing on tap, even though some of the mass produced beers are also on tap. Goose Island was the first craft beer brewery in Chicago and always will be a place that I have great memories of. Any MBA's out there? Kind of a must stop for Chicago.

 

 

 

This brewery is tucked off in what feels like one of the annex's of Chicago, having sat in the Uber for a long while. The exterior feels very cozy, with a handful of outdoor tables along the side walk and a food truck parked adjacent. Interior is a high-ceiling, dimly lit space with approximately half the light coming through the large front windows. Interior space is shaped somewhat like a "P" with a bar running down the length of the "P". Seating is available opposite the bar with slightly more intimate and standing-room area available in the "D" of the "P". Despite visiting on the Chicago Marathon day, when thousands of additional tourists are in town, the bar doesn't feel overwhelmed with patrons. Bar staff handles pours quickly and efficiently, offering up a few suggestions, but not lingering on conversation. Tap list and bottle list are strong, and are for the most part up-to-date. We only noted one bottle that had 'sold out', but was not mentioned on the tap list (no stamp noting it). Selection on tap spans a wide array of styles, leaning towards the more light and sessionable, with the bottle list focusing on cellared beers from years prior. Prices seem to be fair, with older aged beer fetching a higher price. Worth a stop to try some of the harder-to-find Bourbon County variants, otherwise not really worth a trip considering how many of the tap list beers are available around the city both on tap and in retail stores.

busted while in town for a concert. pretty happening place and right off the get-go i’d say without hesitation that this isn’t my crowd. that said, once you get past that the service and the selection were fantastic. was able to not only try on-site bottles of vintage BCBS variants but also leave with a few. totally worth it if you can’t get past the crowd of bros throwing back pints of green line.

 

 

 

 

The bartenders here were superb. All Cicerone and extremely knowledgeable about beer. The selection is terrific with many cellared aged beers. Special shout out to Pete for going above and beyond. Highly recommend visiting if you are in Chicago!!

 

 

This place looks absolutely massive from the outside, as it understandably should, but on the inside, it's surprisingly quaint, especially on a busy Friday evening. Space is at a premium and even though the bar is relatively large, it comes across more like a gift shop at times, with a few views of the packaging area. Either way, you will be crammed in here real good.

Staff does their best taking and serving orders at the bar, especially when they have to limit orders to one 6oz. per. Considering their pedigree and catalog, they have no issue pulling out all the stops whenever they want. The taplist was outrageous when we were there and when something kicked, something even better came on. Then there's the ridiculous cellar list, which was reduced a little by the time we arrived, but still absolutely killer for those that have not had access to GI's bigger stuff over the years.

 

 

Pretty good size tap room with a variety of tap offerings. They also have an extensive cellar list including '08 BCBS and several past Prop and Coffee BCBS offerings, however they are all well above original retail. Service was sketchy, i waited for 5 minutes while 4 bartenders split a small pour of beer, before taking my order. There was also a bearded bartender with a man bun who was condescending and rude. Worth going to once, but not a place I would seek out again next time in Chicago.

Woot! The famous Goose Island tap room, finally!
First of all, what a lovely place and decor. But I was a bit confused when we entered as no one was there to guide us where to go or to greet us. We waited for a while and just walked around and sat in the back. Their beer selection was quite nice and I definitely liked the bourbon barrel aged one I tried. It was strong, dark, sticky, creamy, slightly sweet and very aromatic. Overall, an awesome place and will visit again!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Great new venue, nice taproom, stopped by while they were offering a bunch of Bourbon County Stouts on tap. Staff was very friendly and efficient. Light and airy feel to the location. Great experience

 

 

 

Nice small brewery located just outside of downtown. Little small for the area to sit and hangout but very nice. Brewery tour was nice and tour guide was very cool.