Hey Guys! I'll be making the flight to Chicago next week and had a few questions. Where are some great places to grab some great craft beers? I'm from NY. Hoping to find some great gems on shelves in stores. What great beers can I find on shelves in Chicago? Any chance of finding any Toppling Goliath, Abraxas, 3 floyds, or rare Bourbon County beers on shelves? Any beers I've never heard of that I need to try? If these aren't really available on shelves, would anyone like to trade? I have Other half, Bissel Brothers, Tree House and other goodies that I could bring with me. Any help would be much appreciated! Thanks guys!
You can definitely find Three Floyds. Bourbon County is tough but probably available at a premium. There is Toppling Goliath but we aren't getting the top shelf stuff yet. And Abraxas is definitely gone. Put something up on the trade forum for an IP trade, you'll probably get some bites with the stuff you're talking about bringing.
Abraxas is long gone. Bourbon County stuff will be scare and/or overpriced as well. TG will be plentiful, but cans only and probably old ones. Lots of FFF too, it depends on what you're looking for. Revolution Straight Jacket is probably the best local I can think of that you might find on shelves. You might want to try some Spiteful or Surly (doesn't look like that makes it to NY) pale ales too. Not sure how much Half Acre or Pipeworks you actually see in New York, those are two of the best. There are dozens of places to drink depending on your location. My favorite suggestion is the Half Acre/Dovetail/Begyle/Bottles and Cans area (there's also a bunch more stuff that's not far).
Thanks for the responses guys! Keep em coming! I'm excited to hopefully get to try 3 Floyds for the first time and hopefully get some more Toppling Goliath than I've had. Is Zombie Dust easy to come by? Is that brewed year round or seasonal? I don't even want to ask about their stouts haha I assume those are literally impossible to get a hold of. Anyways, someone PM me if they are looking to make a trade in Chicago between next Thursday the 18th and Sunday
Zombie Dust is year-round, but it's not super-easy to get. It's usually gone the day that it arrives in stores. You can track it down with a little effort. It's much easier to find on tap, check beermenus.com. I'm not sure which "stouts" you're looking for. They have a few, but they're distributed fairly infrequently. I believe Wigsplitter is out around now. You should be able to acquire some others. Dark Lord Day is this weekend, so there should be a ton of that floating around the trade market. Chicago Craft Beer Week happens to be the weekend you're in, so there are a ton of events going on. http://chibeerweek.com/events.php
Heya, head over to West Lakeview Liquors, I saw that they are selling some rare beers today. I saw some BCS and Abraxas.
If you just want to try Zombie Dust (rather than finding bottles to take home), many places tend to have it on tap. Local Option seems to always have it on (tho at $7 for a 12 oz pour it is a bit of a gouge), and both Clark Street Ale House and Stout Barrel House (blocks apart in River North) have rotating FFF handles with ZD on about half the time
On Sat night, went to Bad Apple for Perennial 17 (Mint Choc Stout), and they had recently replaced w Abraxas. Pretty pricey at $7.50/6oz pours, but damn delicious. These "Chicago Trip" threads from last week should be useful. I made a few posts in them: https://www.beeradvocate.com/commun...g-to-do-before-cubs-game.506150/#post-5424799 https://www.beeradvocate.com/community/threads/chicago-6-6-6-8.508314/#post-5426210
Great! The more places you guys name drop the better! I'm honestly going to try to look into all of these
I know you mainly referred to looking for beers on shelves, but if you want some Bourbon County on tap (or even bottle consumption at bars), there will be plenty of it flowing later this week.
Yeah I've been looking into all the events that they have having that week and sounds like I can get a bunch of it. Hope the bars aren't too crowded. I'll be with the GF and she will hate me if I make her run around the city for no reason haha
No worries man, always good to get an update on what's happening the specific days you're in town (i.e. CCBW!). Referenced those threads bc I made some in-depth posts, and those links will take you directly to my postings. That first link/thread covers alot of the go-to spots in Chicago.
Hey BA's going to Des Plaines for conference this weekend. Any notabale bottle shops to hit up? Looking for any BCBS Prop, Rare, FFF, or Parabola. Many thanks in advance!!
Prop and Parabola aren't on shelves anymore. Rare 'could' still be at a Binny's but I think most are out. That said, Binny's Des Plaines, as well as Prestige Wine & Spirits in Des Plaines are two great places to hit. If you have time, check out Mikerphone Brewing in Elk Grove Village. They have somewhat limited hours, so check their hours before going.
