Chicagoland NE IPAs (2018)

More Brewing in Villa Park too (where Shaun went). Based on comment responses, they're looking at June.

Can't wait considering it's almost perfectly equidistant between work and home.

 

I just noticed this post. How the #!&@% are you getting to the West Loop in 10 minutes from our area? Do you have a jetpack I can borrow?

 

Still....with a jet pack

 

I'm with ya man. My 2 favorite breweries in area will both be in the suburbs. And I HATE the suburbs. It's disappointing, but at least they're close-ish unlike Hailstorm or Penrose.

 

Go back to the world from which you came.....

 

Now see if that works for some Treehouse IPAs

 

I mean, we got down to Forbidden Root in less than 15 minutes last week. It doesn't help that most times even thinking about driving seems to make traffic worse, but thankfully 290 usually turns into less of a shitshow after the Harlem exit

 

I'm still going jetpack.

I can generally make it to Pipeworks in that time, anything like Forbidden Root, Half Acre, Revolution, ect is more like 30-45. I still do it, what ends up getting cut is bottle shop/bar trips.

 

As a suburbanite who despises traffic and is close to murdering a dozen people each time on the way to Half Acre, I'm happy to see quality beers made in the burbs. Shaun (when at Ram, and soon with More), Noon Whistle and Mikerphone are all quality breweries regarding IPAs and stouts (two styles I seek out more than others). My murderous rage isn't quite as frequent.

 

Ive been told the availability of hazy IPAs has an inverse correlation with the crime rate. This proves it to me.

 

I feel the same way. Mikerphone is farther from home, but the drive is much easier and frequently less time consuming. Hell, I'd almost rather drive to FFF than HA sometimes. Easier to park too.

 

Come on...that's just city charm! Honestly, I don't consider it that much worse than a lot of other parts of the city. I certainly have my times getting fed up with the traffic, but we have to remember...there's a reason why everyone wants to be in certain areas, and bitching about the traffic isn't that dissimilar to bitching about high beer prices - there is an easy way to avoid them!

It's funny to hear people from some suburbs talk about getting to Pipeworks rather easily - that is such a pain the ass for me to get to from where I am. I'd love to get there more often, but it takes a minimum of an hour round trip, and that's when traffic is not crazy.

 

Like everything, it's relative. I'm in the near-west burbs, so Pipeworks is a quick trip down North Avenue. Pretty much everything else is farther east and through more traffic.

On the plus side, Noon Whistle and More will be no problem for me and Mikerphone isn't too bad. I see trades with city folk in my future.

 

Half Acre is easily served by a Lincoln Ave bus or the Brownline, anywhere else and it is indeed a pain. It isn't close to Lake Shore Drive or the expressway so I can see how it is a pain for people not in the area.

 

Oak Park is notorious for having available parking, but not being able to park your car anywhere unless you have a permit for those zones (luckily I do). I saw 5 cars with tickets on the street in front of my building while walking to my car this morning. A lot of times the parking situation in the city frustrates me even more than that, especially on weekends. I know it's to be expected, but it really bites when it takes 15 minutes to drive down there, and another 10-15 minutes (sometimes longer) to find parking.

It's not going to stop me from ever coming into the city, since we live a block from the Harlem/Lake Metra and Green Line as well - so the train is always an option if the brewery/bottle shop is a decent walking distance