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Tag: beer-here

  • Revolution Brewing to Close Logan Square Brewpub After Nearly 15 Years

    Revolution Brewing to Close Logan Square Brewpub After Nearly 15 Years

    Revolution Brewing will close its Logan Square brewpub in December after nearly 15 years along Milwaukee Avenue. Revolution found Josh Deth says the restaurant, which opened in February 2010 will close on Saturday, December 14. Deth owns the building at 2323 N. Milwaukee Avenue and plans on selling.

    “Hopefully someone else will come around and want to take over and do something new concept in this space, and then we’ll consolidate down to one location,” Deth says.

    Revolution’s taproom, 3340 N. Kedzie Avenue, won’t be impacted. It opened in 2012 and was one of the first bars in the city to able to serve beer made on premises. Deth admits Revolution canibalized its clientele by forcing them to pick between the Avondale taproom and Logan Square brewpub: “We created that component of it,” Deth admits.

    The brewery, the state’s largest independent craft brewery, is known for its Deth’s Tar barrel-aged beers, Anti-Hero IPA, and more. The Milwaukee Avenue brewpub was once a hotspot with long waits, as Revolution followed in the footsteps of Deth’s former employer, Goose Island Beer. Goose Island’s original location in Lincoln Park, along Clybourn, created a strong business model mingling a full-service restaurant under the same roof as a brewery. Brewery taprooms, which don’t have kitchens and only serve the beer produced on premises, had yet to catch on.

    Yet Revolution amplified Goose Island’s blueprint, bringing more of a gourmet edge to the experience without alienating the customers who came for the company’s bread and butter — beer. Now, come December, Goose Island and Revolution’s original locations will have closed, while their taprooms will remain: “The brewpub was like a predecessor, in some ways, of today’s taproom model,” Deth says. “That is a better model for most breweries they find because it’s easier to manage, right to have to manage your brewery business, and have to manage all the complexity of a restaurant is it’s a lot.”

    Deth notes that Revolution’s cocktail program — something that didn’t exist when the brewpub opened — has improved over the last year as the craft beer industry declines, something Deth says was starting to happen even before the pandemic started in 2020. More and more customers are looking for hard seltzers, cocktails, and THC-infused drinks.

    “Our business is going to this simplification… it’s probably going to be good for our team long term, to be the more focused on the primary thing that we’re doing these days, which is wholesale production of beer,” says Deth.

    The brewpub temporarily closed during the pandemic in October 2020 as state COVID protocols closed restaurant dining rooms. While most restaurants scrambled, trying to deal with delivery and to-go, sorting through third-party couriers and their fees, Revolution had a safety net with home alcohol consumption rising and packaged good sales at stores through the roof. When it opened, the terrain for restaurants was radically different, as the cost of running restaurants had skyrocketed with labor and inflation costs exploding. The brewpub had to find new footing in this world of restaurants that had radically changed since 2010, with Chicago’s culinary expectations also changed. Revolution was once of the only games in town along Milwaukee Avenue in Logan Square, but now they struggled with standing out in a crowd that includes many heavy hitters from Federales, Andros Taverna, Bixi Beer — another brewpub — and more.

    Revolution attempted to recreate the magic, searching for a chef with a new voice. Earlier this year, they hired Rasheed Amedu, a native Chicagoan who they had high hopes to breathe new life into their menu. His run was cut short. The closure, coupled with places like Kuma’s Corner in Fulton Market, paints a dreary picture for restaurants that focus on craft beer. That’s something Three Floyds will attempt to navigate as the Munster, Indiana company preps to reopen its brewpub. Piece Pizza in Wicker Park might be the most stable of all brewpub thanks to its pizza which brings a robust carryout and delivery business. It’s also a regular winner at the Great American Beer Festival.

    Deth sees some breweries have adopted kind of a food hall experience, with an outside vendor handling the food service — Pilot Project Brewing (also on Milwaukee Avenue) and District Brew Yards are two examples. District Brew Yards relies on Lillie’s Q barbecue in West Town and Paulie Gee’s pizza in Wheeling.

    News of the closure began leaking out on Friday as Revolution told customers with private events that the brewpub could no longer host their event. Deth notes that customers often book their weddings and other functions two years in advance. They broke the news to workers earlier in the week, and hoped that workers and customers alike would hear about the news long before the annoucement made its way on the Internet.

    Deth is open to hosting more food pop-ups and food trucks at the taproom to make up for the loss of the brewpub, but says he hasn’t had time to come up with concrete plan. They’re focused on closing up the brewpub and going out on positive. He has gratitude for all his customers and says the taproom is going strong. They just secured a city permit to put in solar panels to the building and hope to invest more in the venue.

    While Goose Island moved its Lincoln Park operations to the Salt Shed, Revolution doesn’t have the backing of a multi-national corporation (Goose Island’s parent is the owner of Budweiser). Much like Taqueria Chingón’s Oliver Poilevey, who will closes his Bucktown restaurant later in November, Deth notes Revolution doesn’t have the deep pockets to compete.

    “This is our only restaurant, right?” Deth says. “We’re not a big company — we’re not a restaurant group — we don’t have the depth that a larger company has to call upon.”

    Ashok Selvam

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  • Michelin Will Announce Chicago, D.C., and New York Stars in December

    Michelin Will Announce Chicago, D.C., and New York Stars in December

    Chicago restaurants must wait until December to learn if they’ve earned a Michelin star. Like last year, the tire guide will bundle announcements for Chicago, New York, and Washington, D.C. at a private party held in New York.

    Michelin will announce on Monday, December 9 at a ceremony held at the Glasshouse in New York. Last year’s announcement came in November, and the big news was Smyth joined Alinea as the only two restaurants in Chicago will a full three Michelin stars. Daisies also received a Green Star which recognizes a commitment to environmental sustainability. There is some irony as the tire company created the guide to encourage car travel.

    Twenty-one Chicago restaurants have Michelin stars, one of the highest restaurant honors. But in recent years, local tourism boards have been attracting the Michelin Guide to their cities to help boost travel. Some have questioned whether this waters down the honor. The bib gourmands, a designation that recognizes value for the money, will also be announced.

    The guide has been rating restaurants in Chicago since 2011. The guide arrived in New York in 2005 and in D.C. in 2017. The guide is in eight American markets: California, Florida (Miami/Orlando/Tampa), Colorado, Atlanta, and Texas. It’s also in Toronto, Vancouver, Mexico, and Quebec.

    A fundraiser for Northern Thailand

    Northern Thailand has been in crisis with floods and typhoons. The government ordered evacuations, shelters were set up, and hundreds of animals needed rescue. Waters have since receded, but aid is still required. NaKorn, an upscale restaurant that opened in 2016 in suburban Evanston, is holding a fundraiser dinner to help the community. Proceeds from the Sunday, October 20 event will benefit underprivileged children and families in Thailand. There are two seatings and reservations are available via OpenTable.

    Goose Island’s Rare Day

    Goose Island Beer Co. won’t hold its annual Propreitor’s Day, an event that celebrates the Chicago-area-only release of a Bourbon County Brand Stout variant. It’s the one packaged in a blue box and the flavors change every year. Instead, Goose has unveiled a replacement centering around another variant: Rare Day. The event will take place on Saturday, November 16 at the Goose Island Barrel House. There were two sessions, but the early session has already sold out. Tickets for the $160 event are on sale via Oznr.

    Ashok Selvam

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  • Evanston’s Temperance Beer Announces Closing Date

    Evanston’s Temperance Beer Announces Closing Date

    Evanston didn’t have a brewery before Temperance Beer Co. arrived at the end of 2013. The suburb’s first brewery was a historic moment, and the taproom quickly became one of the city’s finest with hits like Might Meets Right and Gatecrasher IPA. Temperance represented the rising popularity of the craft beer movement when home brewers crowded taprooms and stood in long lines for the latest release.

    But times have changed. On Tuesday afternoon, Temperance founder Josh Gilbert announced the brewery would close on Sunday, October 27. All brewery tours had been canceled with refunds on their way. In a newsletter blast and Instagram post, Gilbert calls the craft beer world “barely recognizable” compared to a decade ago. “It’s difficult to even imagine that kind of excitement for a new brewery launch these days,” he writes.

    Drinking habits have changed, and many craft beer fans have grown older, gravitating toward bourbon, non-alcoholic drinks, or even spiked seltzers Beer can be filling. Beyond beverages, the food scene has also shifted. Food trucks were a staple at Temperance, but the excitement for mobile eating has also snarled in this age of food delivery apps.

    Temperance head brewer Claudia Jendron helped open the brewery in 2013 and was one of the few women in the industry. The taproom gave Evanston some credibility in the food and drink scene. Evanston has a long history of being a dry town. Customers, including Block Club Chicago co-founder Shamus Toomey and former Tribune beer and spirits writer Josh Noel, expressed their condolences with comments under the brewery’s Instagram post.

    Now, fans have 12 days to relive the glory days before Temperance closes.

    Temperance Beer Co., 2000 Dempster Street, Evanston, closing Sunday, October 27.

    Ashok Selvam

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  • Middle Brow Will Open a Second Location in Michigan

    Middle Brow Will Open a Second Location in Michigan

    Middle Brow, the Chicago brewpub that earned a James Beard Award earlier this year as a semifinalist for Outstanding Wine and Other Beverages Program, is opening a second location in Michigan. Ownership is keeping the exact address a secret, but say they’ve signed a lease to take over a space off Red Arrow Highway in Sawyer, Michigan, about 50 miles west of Downtown Chicago. Sawyer is along Lake Michigan and is a popular tourist destination. Co-owner Pete Ternes says they’ll take over a one-acre plot where customers can enjoy the outdoors.

    “We’ve got the drawings done, and we’ve got a lot of the engineering work done,” Ternes says. “We’re putting out bids and getting permitting in place now. We think that by summer, we’ll be able to — you know, at the very least — throw some fun parties.”

    First established as a brewery in 2011, Middle Brow would open a brewpub in Logan Square, Bungalow by Middle Brow, and offer pastries, bread, and eventually Neapolitan pizzas, and those pies deployed farm fresh ingredients from Michigan, Indiana, Wisconsin, and Indiana. By relying on a farm where they’ll grow their own hops, barley, and other ingredients, the unnamed Michigan Middle Brow project takes a hyperlocal strategy to procure ingredients.

    With lighter lagers, saisons, and kolsches the brewery features the kind of brews that drinkers could enjoy while camping or by a lake, a kind of counterpoint to over-hopped beers that were once trendy. Middle Brow centers on yeast-forward beers and letting yeast ferment spontaneously: “It’s exciting and it’s weird and it’s risky, and it makes the beer taste like nothing else you’ve tasted,” Ternes says.

    Last year, Middle Brow expanded operations becoming Chicago’s first natural winery with refreshing wines that, again, shared the same commitment to using wild fermentation. Natural wine is made with minimal intervention that, in theory, better showcases the grapes from the region.

    Ternes promises the new location will contain elements of the Logan Square venue. There might be a small menu of fresh breads for the weekend, and doughnuts and ice cream. Middle Brow Logan Square offers Chicago-style tavern pizza on Tuesdays. Those pizzas won’t make their way to Michigan, but Middle Brow may offer Detroit-style squares as a limited special. Beyond bottles and cans of wine and beer, they’ll also have robust to-go offerings for travelers making a quick pit stop.

    Much of Middle Brow’s wines were made from grapes grown in Michigan with ownership often hauling tanks of juice back to Chicago in trucks filled with tanks. Middle Brow already has ties to the Mitten State. Ternes points out they buy hops from Hop Head Farms, which is about 50 miles south of Grand Rapids, Michigan. They also source fruit for various barrel-aging projects from nearby farms. Ternes recalls family vacations in Michigan City, Indiana; and Michiana, Michigan. The concept of farmhouse brewing, using hops and barley made on the same premises, was pioneered by companies like Allagash in Portland, Maine; and Jester King in Austin, Texas. Those breweries inspired Ternes and Middle Brow.

    Middle Brow searched for the right land but knew when they needed a record of success before investors and banks would fund their operations. Fourteen years later they’re in the position to open the way they intended.

    Middle Brow Sawyer, Michigan planned for a summer opening

    Ashok Selvam

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  • Explore Ravenswood’s Newest Brewery Where Saisons Rule

    Explore Ravenswood’s Newest Brewery Where Saisons Rule

    When Mike Schalau first launched Is/Was Brewing five years ago, a Redditor shared an image of the poster for the brewery’s release party with the note: “It’s a new project focusing on saison, so they’ll be making hazy IPAs in two weeks.”

    The demand for hazies has since cooled, but the Redditor’s remark still resonates with Schallau.

    “I’m not a petty person, but I saw that and I said to myself ‘hold my saison,’” he says.

    Is/Was still hasn’t released anything but saisons, and drinkers can try six different versions of the French/Belgian style at their new taproom at 5121 N. Ravenwood Avenue., which opened in August. Schallau, who lives in Ravenswood and has been contract brewing from Begyle Brewing, says he’d been eyeing the Malt Row building since Urban Brew Labs closed in 2022.

    The taproom is simply decorated with a colorful board on the exposed brick wall showing off the draft list. There are plenty of outlets in the curving booths to welcome locals who want to use the place for remote work along with a scattering of small tables and seats at the bar. A secondary space with room for 50 more is currently being used for overflow seating but Schallau is considering adding Skeeball or other fun activities.

    Delicate, yeast-driven saisons were Schallau’s favorite style when he first started getting into beer while working at West Lakeview Liquors, a shop at Addison and Leavitt that specializes in imported brews. But when Schallau joined Pipeworks Brewing Company, he devoted himself to learning and drinking their preferred styles — hoppy IPAs with high ABV.

    “As I went from an intern there to running all daily operations and overseeing recipe development, I’d kind of fallen out of love with making beer,” Schallau says. “I was kind of lost. Then I had a saison, La Vermontois, a collaboration between Belgian brewery Blaugies and Hill Farmstead in Vermont and I was like, ‘Ohh, I forgot. This is what I really fell in love with.’”

    He began experimenting with what would become his flagship, Will Be, seeking to fill a void in the Chicago market while appealing to evolving tastes. Most of Is/Was’ beers are about 3.2 percent ABVs, topping out with a rare 6 or 6.5 percent.

    A brick building with the words “Is/Was Brewing” on a rectangle sign.

    The back of a wooden bar stocked with glasses and bottles with a sign.

    “I think that a lot of craft beer drinkers are getting a little older and their palates are developing in a different way than when they wanted to drink super hoppy beers and really acidic kettle sours,” Schallau says. “Saison has these flavors that are really complex if you want to dive into what’s going on in the beer, or you can kind of crush a couple of them and they’ll be super satisfying and refreshing.”

    The taproom shows off the style’s versatility by pouring Is/Was’ Will Be, Wisp smoked saison, and Saison Effyrayant — which is conditioned with fresh sage leaves — along with rotating pours developed in collaboration with other breweries including Revolution Brewing. Schalau plans to start making some other styles once his new production brewery is up and running in about a month. Until then, there’s a selection of six guest drafts including Goldfinger Brewing Company’s flagship lager and Hop Butcher For The World’s Snorkel Squad double IPA.

    A hand holding up a goblet of red beer under a series of taps.

    Barry Brecheisen/Eater Chicago

    A goblet full of beer on a wooden surface.

    “Instead of making a mediocre version (of a style), we’d rather get the best version from our world-class brewery friends,” Schallau said. “We want people who don’t like saison to have a good time.”

    To that end, the brewery also serves Shacksbury Cider, Dark Matter nitro coffee, and a blackberry shrub prepared with Mick Klug Farms berries and housemade malt vinegar. Schalau would like to see the brewery become a third space for the neighborhood and while he doesn’t have a kitchen, he’s already hosted a popup with Motorshucker and arranged a 15% percent discount for customers who want to pick up a Detroit-style pie from Fat Chris’s Pizza and Such around the corner. He’s also planning on hosting makers markets to show off works made by his employees and artists the brewery works with.

    Schallau says he’s been overwhelmed with the response to the opening, which brought lines out the door for nearly five hours.

    “I spent most of the last five years (brewing beer) in a 600-square-foot room without windows and most of that time I was alone, wondering if anyone was drinking it or if anyone even really cared about this thing that I cared very deeply about,” he said. “It was a nice way to kind of physically manifest the fact that people had been paying attention. It was pretty emotional.”

    Is/Was Brewing, 5121 N. Ravenswood Ave., open noon to 9 p.m. Sunday and Tuesday through Thursday; noon to midnight on Friday and Saturday

    Samantha Nelson

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  • The Best Places to Drink Along Malt Row in Ravenswood

    The Best Places to Drink Along Malt Row in Ravenswood

    Cultivate by Forbidden Root is one of many beer options along Malt Row.
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    Garrett Sweet/Eater Chicago

    Chicago is one of the biggest craft brewing hubs in the nation, home to industry pioneers like Goose Island (a subsidiary of Anheuser-Busch) and fledgling operations sharing space in brewery incubators. For brew aficionados who want to spend a day getting a taste of the city’s beer scene, there’s no better place to go than Malt Row, the name given by the Greater Ravenswood Chamber of Commerce to the stretch of breweries and taprooms along the Metra tracks in the Ravenswood Industrial Corridor. Running about a mile and a half through a residential North Side neighborhood, the zone from Irving Park Road to Balmoral Avenue is home to eight taprooms plus a distillery and a winery, all close enough for a long, boozy stroll. Try a wide variety of beers ranging from traditional German-style lagers to funky saisons made with Midwestern fruit. Check out these 10 Malt Row spots and then take home a six-pack or growler of a new favorite.

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    Samantha Nelson

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  • Where to Watch the 2024 Paris Olympics

    Where to Watch the 2024 Paris Olympics

    The GOAT. | Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images

    The best bars and restaurants to cheer on Olympic athletes at the Paris Summer Games

    Just because Chicago sports teams are awful doesn’t mean fans of sport have nothing to root for — 2024 is an Olympic year and we can all enjoy the Paris Summer Games. Much of the action will be televised live during the day. The games go through Sunday, August 11. Check out these bars which will support your Olympic-watching habits.

    Eater Staff

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  • Illinois Doesn’t Ban THC Drinks, But The Battle With Big Cannabis Continues

    Illinois Doesn’t Ban THC Drinks, But The Battle With Big Cannabis Continues

    Measures in Springfield that would ban hemp-derived cannabis beverages in Illinois — a move that the state’s breweries say would have dealt a big blow to operations — did not go forward. That includes legislation that would have begun regulating delta-8 and other forms.

    All parties involved, including Gov. J.B. Pritzker, say the issue will come up again during the next session — the growing industry needs rules, they argue. In the meantime, the summer should provide some data in terms of how popular THC-infused drinks can be in Illinois. Observers believe the state could generate larger sales — and tax dollars — compared to Minnesota. Minnesota, whose lawmakers have embraced the drinks, has become

    THC drinks have been a lifeline for struggling breweries aiming to diversify revenue streams. Breweries say they were caught off guard by bills that were introduced to regulate the THC industry — actions they say they support — and then altered to crush their business. There’s the belief that no one wants the drinks truly banned, but larger players want to weed out smaller competitors that were first to market before introducing their own brands.

    Security patrols backed by Boka, LEYE, and One Off start in West Loop

    It’s been a year since news that some of Chicago’s major restaurant groups — Boka, Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises, and One Off Hospitality Group — were organizing to deploy private security patrols in West Loop and Fulton Market. The owners of restaurants including the Publican, Aba, and Girl & the Goat, have gotten their wish. Block Club Chicago reports P4 Security Solutions is working with the groups and patrol SUVs have been spotted outside the restaurants in those neighborhoods.

    The restaurants are part of the Fulton Market District Improvement Association, and the patrols are “entirely funded by contributions from businesses and organizations.” Security guards carry handcuffs and are armed. Their shifts extend to 3 a.m., according to Block Club. Chicago police have launched nightlife or “entertainment patrols” in areas like Wicker Park and the Near West Side. P4 is supposed to augment that and serves Bucktown and Lincoln Park. Greektown is another area that has its own patrols.

    Springfield keeps the tipped minimum wage

    Observers who witnessed One Fair Wage’s efforts in Chicago to abolish the tipped minimum wage could see this building. Lawmakers in Springfield did not move forward with the measure to abolish the tipped minimum wage statewide, but the campaign is still going national. The National Restaurant Association, which earlier in May hosted its annual show in Chicago, is gearing up its opposition to the effort. After lawmakers finished their session in Springfield ended, the association sent a statement to Eater defending the tip credit (a government subsidiary fills in the gap, and allows restaurants to pay workers below the minimum wage) as a “win-win-win for tipped restaurant workers, restaurant operators, and customers.”

    “This win for Illinois restaurants will help keep menu prices down and will protect the jobs and high-earning potential of tipped workers in vibrant Illinois restaurant communities,” a statement from NRA Executive Vice President for Public Affairs Sean Kennedy reads.

    North Center diner closed after a Thursday fire

    Irene’s Finer Diner in North Center is closed indefinitely after a fire on Thursday at 2012 W. Irving Park Road. The owners announced the news on Friday morning: “We’re deeply saddened to share that due to a recent fire, we are forced to close for further notice. We are very grateful that no one was harmed. We’ve put a lot of heart and sweat into this diner, and will keep you posted on when we can welcome you once again for breakfast.”

    5419 N Sheridan Rd, Chicago, IL 60640
    (773) 878-7340

    Ashok Selvam

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  • Lagunitas Closes Chicago Taproom to Move Brewing Operations Back to California

    Lagunitas Closes Chicago Taproom to Move Brewing Operations Back to California

    Lagunitas Brewing Company is closing its Chicago taproom and relocating its brewing operations back to its original California brewery. The company will maintain its warehouse next to the Douglass Park brewery, according to a news release.

    The announcement comes a little more than a year after Lagunitas reopened its North Lawndale taproom which was closed for three years due to the pandemic. The brewery opened its Chicago facility, 1843 W. Washtenaw, in 2014. Lagunitas was founded in California in 1993. The closure impacts 86 workers, according to the brewery, and some will move west to work at the Petaluma, California facility.

    Lagunitas served food when it first opened in 2014.
    Marc Much/Eater Chicago

    An industrial bottling facility inside Lagunitas Chicago Taproom and Brewery.

    They’re moving operations back to California.
    Marc Much/Eater Chicago

    “Chicago remains a priority market for Lagunitas, and the company will continue servicing the many partner bars, restaurants, and stores in and around Chicagoland with its fresh and high-quality hop-forward IPAs and other brews,” according to a news release.

    The taproom was once a destination for beer lovers, as beers like A Little Sumpin’ Sumpin’ were popular in Chicago’s bars. The Chicago brewing facility presented a gateway to the Midwest and East Coast, as Lagunitas pursued expansion. In September 2015, Heineken’s parent company bought a 50-percent stake in Lagunitas. Two years later, the multinational company purchased the remaining 50 percent.

    When the taproom reopened in 2023, it did so without food. The news release singles out needing to “future-proof” the company and “to allow for a more efficient and flexible supply chain, with a greater focus on innovation and the acceleration of more sustainable brewing practices.” Simply put, craft breweries have struggled in recent months with several closures.

    Ashok Selvam

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  • Illinois Breweries Are Fighting Springfield for Their Right to Continue Making THC Drinks

    Illinois Breweries Are Fighting Springfield for Their Right to Continue Making THC Drinks

    The Illinois beer industry is rallying against legislation in Springfield that, if passed, could make making low-dose THC beverages illegal. The brewers claim the dispensary lobby is ramrodding a bill through the state Senate and House that would mandate breweries and distilleries that produce drinks like THC seltzers to operate under the same (and more costly) licensing requirements as dispensaries.

    Introduced in April, the Hemp Consumer Products Act (Senate Bill 3926) presents far-reaching regulations that impact bars and taprooms, which began serving hemp-derived products in February. These products are derived from hemp rather than cannabis. Licenses would come with a $5,000 application fee and a July 1, 2026 deadline to apply.

    An amendment to that bill, filed on Tuesday, May 9, which brewers say goes beyond the scope of public safety, and adds stricter guidelines for hemp-derived products. In a statement, the Illinois Craft Brewers Guild describes the legislation “as short-sighted and the monopolization of THC under the guise of legislation” and claims that the measures would “immediately prohibit thousands of Illinois businesses manufacturing hemp-based products, including craft breweries.”

    The regulations would administer a big blow to the state’s breweries, which are searching for ways to boost sales since the industry’s peak at the start of the pandemic.

    “As craft beer has leveled out, a bunch of brewers in Illinois have seen sales of craft beer replaced by the sales of hemp-derived products,” says Ed Marszewski, co-owner of McKinley Park-based Marz Community Brewing. Marz sells the most THC drinks in Illinois. These are non-alcoholic; the state forbids selling drinks mixed with both THC and alcohol.

    About 30 Illinois breweries — roughly 10 percent of the industry — make THC-derived drinks. Marszewski accuses lobbyists of stealthily “slipping in some pork.” There’s a feeling the bills were designed to get through the Senate with minimum discussion, part of larger omnibus legislation. The fear is the bills would be bundled with other legislation and arrive on the House floor for a concurrence vote where representatives could only vote “yes” or “no” without scrutiny.

    Choom Lite is a non-alcholic sparking drink with THC.
    Central Park Bar

    “The high-level goal, which is certainly applaudable — and I support 1,000 percent — is public safety,” says Glenn McElfresh, a cannabis lobbyist, advocate, and owner of Perfectly Dosed, a Chicago company that makes emulsions so breweries can manufacture THC drinks. (Hopewell Brewing in Logan Square is one of its clients.) “The secondary part of this, the part that hurts is it’s protecting the economic interest of existing cannabis business owners.”

    Brewers, like Marszewski, point to bills introduced in February (Senate Bill 2790 and its House companion, House Bill 5306) as evidence they aren’t opposed to regulation.

    McElfresh will testify Wednesday afternoon in front of state senators in Springfield to share his insights. Reps from the Hemp Beverage Alliance and Illinois Craft Brewers Guild will assemble on Thursday morning at Hopewell Brewing for a news conference to discuss the latest news.

    The beverage industry argues that cannabis companies want to be the ones selling them to customers and controlling the market. There’s also disagreement about how the bills came into existence. Brewers believe that one organization, the Cannabis Business Association of Illinois, is behind the legislation. CBAI is a lobbyist group representing dispensaries and labs around the state.

    “We share Leader Lightford’s goals to protect children, empower consumers, and strengthen our state’s legal cannabis industry,” CBAI executive director Tiffany Chappell Ingram says in a statement to Eater. “We appreciate her leadership on this important issue and look forward to continued conversations about the best way to rein in the proliferation of synthetic THC intoxicants that are currently sickening children, confusing customers, and undermining our state’s carefully crafted cannabis market.”

    US-NEWS-ILL-HEMP-BUSINESSES-TB

    Tiffany Chappell Ingram, executive director of the Cannabis Business Association of Illinois speaks in April in Springfield.
    Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images

    The bills’ sponsor, state Sen. Kimberly Lightford (D-Maywood) tells Crain’s that legislators are in the process of negotiating with the hemp and cannabis industry to design a bill that “all sides can agree upon while ensuring our common goal to have a fair, just and safe industry remains.”

    While McElfresh commends Lightford’s commitment to public safety, he claims that the CBAI and other cannabis industry lobbyists have failed to engage with brewers: “How many times have you included the Craft Brewers Guild or the beer industry in discussions?” he says. “The answer has been zero’”

    Dispensary owners undergo a detailed background check and are subject to strict security requirements. There’s resentment within the cannabis industry that breweries aren’t held to equal standards and don’t pay the same in taxes.

    Breweries feel the amendment would effectively crush any growth in their sector while allowing massive cannabis companies to thrive

    “So far we are setting these huge companies coming into the space that have seemingly unlimited funds,” says Samantha Lee of Hopewell Brewing, comparing cannabis with the early, scrappier days of the craft beer industry. “It’s a very different approach and feel.”

    Lee says Hopewell began serving THC drinks in February after collaborating with Fair State Brewing Cooperative in Minnesota. Minnesota has already been a battleground for low-dose THC drinks, as the state has seen the market soar. Marszewski notes that more than 100 breweries in Minnesota manufacture THC-infused drinks. So-called “Big Cannabis” doesn’t want to see the same success unfold in Illinois, Marszewski and Lee say.

    The Illinois Brewers Guild notes that Minnesota generated $1.5 million in tax revenue from $15.4 million in sales from hemp-derived drinks two months after that state began regulating the industry in June 2022. The guild claims the state “could generate hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue if we follow Minnesota’s model.” Minnesota’s law does have loopholes.

    The state’s beer distributors — often seen as representing the big breweries that compete with the smaller craft breweries — seem united with their smaller siblings. McElfresh says that’s uncommon.

    “This is like getting dogs and cats to agree that loud noises are scary,” he says.

    Ashok Selvam

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  • Goose Island Beer to Open Salt Shed Pub in May

    Goose Island Beer to Open Salt Shed Pub in May

    Goose Island Beer Co. will open its newly relocated brewpub at the Salt Shed next month. Opening day will be Friday, May 3, according to a rep.

    In December, Goose Island closed its original brewery in Lincoln Park after 35 years. The development, near Clybourn and Sheffield, is set for redevelopment. The Salt Shed, less than a mile south of Goose Clybourn, is a music venue that opened in February 2023 near Elston Avenue and Division Street. It’s run by Bruce Finkelman and Craig Golden. They also run Chicago restaurant group 16” on Center, the company behind Revival Food Hall in the Loop, Thalia Hall in Pilsen, and Empty Bottle in Ukrainian Village.

    The newly dubbed Salt Shed Pub will feature beers including Bourbon County Stout, Beer Hug, and 312 on draft, as well as new offerings from head brewer Mike Jacobs. Food wise, executive chef Henry Pariser — studied under Thomas Keller at French Laundry — is bringing back holdovers from Clybourn including a smash burger, Bourbon County Stout milkshake, a smoked trout sandwich, and a burnt carrot sandwich.

    The alert describes the move to the Salt Shed as a way to deepen “Goose’s existing connection with the Chicago music scene.” It mentions events like Pitchfork Music Festival and Goose’s own 312 Block Party. The latter has been held outside its brewery’s Fulton Street taproom. Goose has also routinely held another event, Prop Day — its celebration of the barrel-aged beer, Bourbon County Stout — outside the taproom. The Salt Shed gives the brewery a new option, one that’s more tailored to hosting such events.

    Goose Island debuted in 1988 and was sold in 2011 to the parent company of Budweiser. At one point they expanded with brewpubs in Philadelphia (it closed in 2020) and London. A Wrigleyville location also closed in 2015. Folks may also stumble into a Goose-branded bars at various airports. While that expansion was occurring, the original lost its luster. There’s hope a move can restore the roar.

    Look for more information as opening day approaches.

    Goose Island Salt Shed Pub, 1357 N Elston Ave, scheduled for a Friday, May 3 opening

    Ashok Selvam

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