Heard about them through the grapevine and I am curious. Has anyone been down to S. Illinois to try them out?
I've also been pretty interested in them. Some of it seems a bit gimmicky but if it tastes good who cares? Would love to trade someone for some growlers but seems a bit out of the way. Looks like St. Louis is the closest 'big city'.
I am in Evansville so it is a 2 hr drive but I was thinking about making a day trip if people said it was worth it.
We went downstate a couple months ago. Scratch is great - wonderful rural location, very intimate/comfortable bar and most if not all of their brew is made with locally grown ingredients. Well worth a trip. I wanted to live there. And I can't wait for the next excuse to drive 5 hours for some really good beer. Go. NOW..... If you're in the area, hit Big Muddy, too.
Here's their current beer list (09-27) familiar $1 sample · $4 pint · $10 growler fill beers brewed true to style (or close to it) roggenbier rye, munich malt, and wheat combine to create a light-bodied, sessionable beer that is only lightly bitter with a bready malt character and a crisp, dry finish. 4.5% abv forest · foraged · fire $1.50 sample · $5 goblet · $12.50 growler beers brewed with ingredients cultivated regionally, foraged on our land, or brewed over a wood fire fresh basil ale deep golden ale bursts with sweet basil flavor up front and is complemented by east kent golding hops, which give a slightly spicy and fruity earthiness. 5.8% abv cascade harvest ale similar to the chinook harvest, this belgian pale ale is brewed with cascade hops from our vines. a more pronounced fruitiness and deeper gold color distinguish this beer. 5.7% il fortino silky oatmeal stout brewed with lavender harvested from an italian agriturismo called “il fortino” in the abruzzo region. velvety body mimics the velvety texture and aroma of lavender. congratulations on your wedding, elena and maurizio--some people go on vacation when they go on vacation, we never stop thinking about beer. 6.7% abv filé p.a. II american pale ale brewed with dried sassafras leaves which mimic a fruity american hop character. Lemon, orange, peach, and green tea aromas all from sassafras leaves blend with a lightly bready malt character. we've upped the amount of sassafras leaves in this version. 5.6% abv strong saison 7.3% abv belgian farmhouse ale that has been conditioning for about 4 months. crystal clear with a foamy white head and beautiful peach, citrus, and pepper aromas. fancy $2 sample · $6 goblet · $15 growler fantastical, free-spirited, flummoxing, fascinating rye saison, aka "forest ale" strong belgian farmhouse ale featured in Draft magazine. brewed over a fire with wild rose root, wild ginger, spice bush and chanterelle mushrooms for a rich, spicy, peppery finish. 9.1% forest honey aleit's back! nettle, wild ginger, rose hips, spice bush, and 15 lbs of honey combine in this farmhouse tonic. medium-bodied and dry with a distinctive herbal finish. 5.5% abv spicebush tripelstrong, blonde belgian abbey ale brewed with spicebush berries for a bubble gum and peach aroma and a spicy, peppery finish. 8.3% abv
Thanks for the push, they are doing great things down there. I did not try a bad beer I would say most were way above average. Some of the beers got over shadowed by a few wow beers. The Basil was amazing it really added a bright character to the beer and if I didn't kick the keg it would have came home with me. I brought home the Cascade Harvest which is a great Belgian Pale Ale and the Rye Forest Ale which is really hard to explain the rye and other elements add a really unique and delicious spice character to the beer. I will be back and this is a little brewery to watch once they start bottling and getting some distribution. As a plus there is one of the best BBQ joints in the county in 17th street just down the way in Murphysboro.
one of the brightest among the crop of new IL breweries. went camping in shawnee national forest and visited scratch the next day. probably my favorite trip of this summer. great people behind great beer.
Got to try their beers at Mash Tun Festival this year and was blown away by all of their offerings! Great people and even better beer!
This place is awesome! I live about 20 minutes from there and hit it up all the time. Because they are fairly new they are kind of just throwing things against the wall and seeing what sticks, but most of there ingredients are grown on sight which is awesome but does tend to create similar characteristics in the current beers they are serving.
Bringing this one back...had a couple of their offerings on tap in Chicago. Awesome stuff..I wish they were a little closer for a day trip. Does anyone live near the brewery?
2+ hours for me. their 2 yr anniversary party was awesome. great venue, chill crowd, good music, and very well crafted & original beers. if i were only so lucky to have them in my immediate backyard. they are tucked away perfectly though in southern IL. . . not an industrial complex for miles. just goats, chickens, some great folks & great authentic brews.
