I have very little knowledge of the Chicago area and my sister is currently visiting a friend out there. She will fly me back some beer but I have no idea of stores or availability of Pipeworks and Half Acre, or if you can buy the beer at the brewery (website won't load) so I can give her some indication of how to get it. She is staying somewhere near Evanston. The Pipeworks thread is of little use to me since I have no idea what/where/how far the stores mentioned are from her. Any small breweries near Evanston that are brewing good beer under the radar? Can anyone point me in the right direction?
Have her go to Binnys. It will have all of your needs, she may not score any special release stuff but she will for sure find cans of both HA and PW. They have a location in Skokie which isn't far from where she is staying.
Temperance in Evanston is solid. I'm told Sketchbook Brewing in Evanston is actually the real deal as well, but not sure about if they package beer.
Hey, yes, Sketchbook has a lot of beers on tap and 4 in bottles at the moment. Including their IPA and two specialty in large format (Barrel Aged Belgian dark, and a Scotch Ale).
It looks like the base Belgian they bottle, Brabant, got a 94 from The Bros with some great praise....so if you like Belgian beers.
I know this is totally getting off-topic, but a GREAT place for breakfast and lunch is Alexander's in Skokie. Which is not far from Evanston. http://www.alexandersbreakfastandlunch.com/ Sorry for throwing a restaurant recommendation into a beer thread, but it's one of those places that you as you're leaving, you think about what you'll order the next time you go there. It would be a real treat for your sister.
