Heading to Chicago\Milwaukee

Hackney's on Printer's Row is actually a good place to get a bite to eat, and they have a good beer selection.Delilah's has good beer at good prices and is a fun place to hang.Though I haven't been there yet, one place I'd definitely try to go is Revolution Brewpub. They have a separate brewery too, so make sure you hit the pub.

Sugar Maple is probably your best bet in Milwaukee, then maybe Roman's Pub. The Milwaukee Ale House is kind of fun, really big, and if you sit out on the back patio you can watch boats pull up all day and see some nice scenery.

 

Don't know how much time you have, but it's only a two hour drive from Milwaukee to New Glarus. There are a few reasons to possibly consider this.
One - The brewery is a great place to have a drink in the summertime, and Puempel's Olde Tavern in "downtown" New Glarus is awesome. Also gotta try the swiss bakery around the corner, yum.
Two - You'd also be right by Madison at that point, and could hit Capital Brewery. They have some pretty solid German style beers. Do the tour or sit in the biergarten, a nice way to spend some time.
Three - On the way back to Milwaukee you could stop by Tyranena, a smaller brewery with some solid choices.
All in all, makes for a good time.

 

Right down the street from Sugar Maple is The Stone. They had a few different taps when I was there than Sugar Maple. Would be worth checking out since its only a block or so away.

 

Milwaukee advice/info:

I heard that the owner of the Bomb Shelter (Greg Landig) passed away and since then the bar has been closed. Feel free anyone to correct me if I'm wrong on this, but I don't think you'll be able to go there.

Another suggestion less than a mile from the Sugar Maple is Roman's Pub. The owner can be fastidious (e.g. don't pay with a card and cash out each drink, don't ask for samples, don't come in a big group, etc. etc.), but he has some really good beers on tap at times. It is a little overpriced there (maybe a couple bucks cheaper at Sugar Maple, but the flights are really expensive at Sugar Maple). While Roman's has fewer beers (31 vs. 65ish), sometimes he'll have a special beer or two that you're looking for. Right now, it looks like he has New Glarus Barleywine, GI Imperial IPA, Capital Eisphyre, Tyranena Down N Dirty Chocolate Oatmeal Stout, and FFF Artic Panzer Wolf --> all great beers from around here on tap right now. http://www.romanspub.com/beersel.htm

There's also Palm Tavern (same owner as Sugar Maple) which has a really subdued atmosphere. A lot of the allure is in the imports, but occasionally they'll get a rarity like Black Note for a few days. I'd suggest at least checking beermenus to see what they have.

Hope that helps!

 

For Three Floyds on tap in Chicago, I strongly suggest you look at Beer Menus right before you show up -- you can actually look up by specific beer if you really want to try something specific. I would say generally your best bets for Three Floyds are likely going to be Local Option and Map Room (well, unless you drive down to the brewpub itself). Map Room always has the flagship Alpha King, often has one of Dreadnaught or Arctic Panzer Wolf, and sometimes Zombie Dust. Occasionally, the cask is Three Floyds. Local Option almost always has somewhere between 2 and 4 FFF beers on tap.

Hopleaf is a great bar but if Three Floyds is truly what you're after, you'll probably only find one on tap there, two if you're lucky. You go there for Belgian beers on tap you find in very few other bars in the city (or elsewhere for that matter).

 

Check out the Fountainhead, Haymarket, Revolution and be sure to pick up some Half Acre.

 

In Chicago Local Option and in Milwaukee Palm Tavern and Burnhearts. Also Uncle Mike's in Kenosha usually has at least 4 or 5 NG taps incl seasonals and thumbprint beers as well as a shit ton of bells beers if you're into that.

 

If your in Chicago you can't beat the local brew. Checkout Haymarket, Revolution and Piece pizza and brewing.

 

Beermenus is great but take it with a grain of salt. I've had many experience when it was incorrect, and/or not current. It's also no where near a comprehensive list, but it's a great starting place and relatively accurate.

I agree with everyone's suggestions on Chicago. I'll also throw in a few options that I haven't seen mentioned.
Bar: Goose Island
Beer: Pipeworks

 

Cannot agree more with mjohnson17 above. Beermenus is a fine tool but hardly the end all/be all. Especially since it relies on bars/restaurants/stores to keep information current, it's the sort of website that's really only as trustworthy as bars/restaurants/stores make it.

As for where to find Three Floyds on tap, I'll second Local Option. I find prices a little high and the food not so great (I also hate having to read off the blackboard to see what's on tap), but you'll find 2-3 FFF taps for sure (well, probably). Hopleaf will have Zombie Dust or Alpha King, pretty much guaranteed, but probably not more than that. Maria's Packaged Goods & Community Bar will probably be a bit too far off the beaten path if you're in town for a short time, but they also get some good FFF beers. It's worth noting that most bars seem to get Alpha King, Zombie Dust, Gumballhead or Pride & Joy these days. Maybe Dreadnaught or Arctic Panzer Wolf -- which is to say, you could head to Local Option and still only find 1-2 FFF beers, and only 1-2 of their year-round offerings. Just to help set expectations, is all.

Map Room is a great bar, but it can get crowded pretty early. They have a solid line-up of local/regional beers and you will no doubt drink well. They are also cash only and do not serve food. Map Room is also pretty accessible via the city's Blue line (pick it up at LaSalle and Congress). Not too far away to the Northwest is Revolution's brewpub -- certainly a must stop since I think they're nailing it these days. Hopefully Double Fist will still be available -- it's a lovely double pale ale.

Hopleaf will find a tap for any local brewery, but there is definitely a strong focus on Belgian-style beers, too. They recently started lunch hours (opening at 11:30am) which might make it easier to visit than in the past. Food is excellent, as well. They're about a 10-minute walk from the Red line (pick that up at Harrison & State) in the Andersonville neighborhood. Acre isn't too far and they tend to get decent beer on tap. I prefer the food at Hopleaf.

In Printer's Row, Hackney's is definitely a good destination. Miller's Pub is a few blocks to the north and is a worthy destination, too. If you cross the river into River North, Jake Melnick's has a great selection, but it's not exactly focused on local/regional beers - a fair amount seems to come from out West and the rest is via Shelton Bros. distributing -- which isn't bad, at all, but if you're looking specifically for local/regional beers, you may not find too many options. Clark Street Ale House serves up a good amount of local/regional but I feel like they don't clean the tap lines often enough. No food. Farmhouse is a lovely restaurant with amazing beer -- possibly as many FFF options as you might find anywhere else, actually, but prices might be higher than you'd like to spend for dinner at a bar (and, really, it's more restaurant than bar, if that makes sense).

Cannot second enough the suggestion of Pipeworks. Ninja vs. Unicorn (a double IPA) is easily the best DIPA I've had in ages (second only to Dreadnaught from FFF, in my opinion). You will not find them on draft and they only distribute to a few stores at the moment. All bottles are 22oz. and every other week or so, they send out something new. Hard to say what will be on shelves too far in the future but you can count on it being worth trying, budget/suitcase space allowing. Closest to Printers Row would be the River North Binny's (off Grand Ave. at Franklin) or the South Loop Binnys (Roosevelt and Jefferson). If you're looking for bottles of FFF... it's a complete crap shoot. Most stores seem to get deliveries on Tuesday or Wednesday and there's no telling what will show up (could be a few cases of Zombie Dust... could be some Robert the Bruce) -- and regardless, most stores seem to be sold out by the time the weekend rolls around. Warehouse Liquors or Printer's Row Wine Shop (and the former, come to think of it, also gets Pipeworks bottles but I'm not certain offhand) are probably your best bets (those two Binnys' mentioned above might work out, too, but they tend to be pretty high traffic and beers rarely even hit the floor before selling out).

 

If you do not want to travel up to Milwaukee a place on the main interstate between Chicago and Milwaukee is Uncle Mike's Highway, they have 87 taps, they have a lot of Wisconsin stuff on tap, plus they do have some Three Floyds on tap.

 

Certainly hit up Revolution Brewing and stock up on some Pipeworks to bring back.

 

If you are going to go to Binnys...definitely go to the South Loop location, it is 10X bigger than the one on Grand. Also, near that Binnys (a mile or 2 west) is a bar called Three Aces...they had Goose Island BCBVS on tap this week...if you are lucky they will have some variety of Bourbon County on tap while you're in town. Plus it is a nice bar with good food and a lovely beer garden.