AleFest Chicago (3rd Annual)

This Saturday July 11 will be the 3rd Annual AleFest Chicago.
It will be in a large field just outside of Soldier Field Stadium from 2pm to 6pm.
We went last year and had lots of fun and overall thought it was excellent. Therefore, I am definitely going again this year.

It is $40 for admission, but that gives you 20 samples from a selection of over 150 craft beers, a commemorative AleFest sampling glass, and event sampling guide with informative beer and brewing references, along with many other features. This year, the proceeds will go to support the Illinois Craft Brewers Guild, and on their website they elaborate on this year's special "ReplicAle" which will be the style of Belgian Wit.

If you love beer like me, and this time and location is convenient for you, you should try to make it.

Last year, I wanted to write about my AleFest 2008 experience but never got around to it, even though I had plenty of material (reviews, photos). Hopefully I will write about my AleFest 2009 experience, soon after attending this Saturday.

I also have literally tons of new photos and beer reviews that I have been meaning to post, but have been extremely busy for the past 6 months. I will have to figure out a way to get this blog up to speed this summer.

Pub Pics - Elephant and Castle Pub in Chicago

Pub Pics - Small Bar in Avondale, Chicago

Oktoberfest & Pumpkin Beer at Delilah's Follow-Up

A couple weeks back (I gotta write more often on this blog!) I went to Delilah's in Chicago for their Oktoberfest & Pumpkin (& Autumn Beer) "Festival". I did not buy the $20 tasting for all the beers (2 oz. each, I think). I have already had many of the beers on the list. So, I just had four beers that I have never had before. I also tried to get some photos, but as expected Delilah's is just too dark.
To the left, you can view the list of beers offered at Delilah's - just click it to view larger.
Here are my ratings.

Weihenstephaner Festbier - The glass is full

Arcadia Jaw Jacker Spiced Ale - The glass is half empty

Breckenridge After Rakin' Autumn Ale - The glass is half full

Lakefront Pumpkin Lager - The glass is empty

In general, I am not really into pumpkin ales. I say ales, because as you can see from my rating of the pumpkin lager above, I just don't think pumpkin works well at all in a lager. Recently, I had a pumpkin ale that I thought was really good and enjoyable to drink, so I made it the Beer of the Month for this October. It's Brooklyn Brewery's Post Road Pumpkin Ale.

I'm back! And probably going to Delilah's tonight.

Don't worry. Highway to Ale is not dying. I had to take a break for a while, since I was moving and starting a new job. I am all settled in now and actually making some decent money, so I have some new interesting beers about which I will write. However, I haven't really figured out my internet situation outside of work, so the minimal internet access at home has definitely contributed to a decrease in my posting. Looks like I will combine July, August, and September for what will be my most recent "Monthly Beer Review and Rating" at the end of this month. For the past two months, I have actually been minimizing beer bottles that I would have to recycle by drinking primarily growlers of different styles of beer from Emmett's Brewery in West Dundee and Piece Brewery in Chicago. I do have some regular bottled beer to also review and rate.

Just now I put up my pick for Beer of the Month for September on the right sidebar - it's one of my favorite seasonal beers and it's called Heavy Handed brewed by Two Brothers. I didn't get around to posting a Beer of the Month for August before, but there will be one in the list. I also have many more things that I have been meaning to post, such as some beer related events that happened way back in the Spring and Summer. And, of course, I have lots of "Pub Pics" and a few new "Weird Beer Thursdays" lined up for the near future.

Ok, regarding tonight, Delilah's in Chicago is having an "Oktoberfest and Pumpkin Beer Festival". This is rather perfect since I haven't had the chance to write about Oktoberfest beers in particular this month, and I am also still trying to determine which pumpkin beer I like the best. So I will probably check this out. I'll try to get some photos, but not sure if they will show up well since it is usually so dark in Delilah's.
From Delilah's website, here's the info for tonight:

Oktoberfest & Pumpkin Beer Festival

On Tuesday, September 23rd, Delilah’s will be hosting a comprehensive tasting of Oktoberfest, Harvest, & Pumpkin beers. We will be tasting every possible version of these beers available in this market – plus a five year vertical of Ayinger Oktoberfest.
Beers to be tasted include but are not limited to:

• Ayinger Oktoberfest
• Paulaner Oktoberfest
• Hacker-Pschorr Oktoberfest
• Becks Oktoberfest
• Goose Island Oktoberfest
• Summit Oktoberfest + Sierra Nevada Harvest Ale + Buffalo Bills Pumpkin Ale
• New Holland Ichabod Pumpkin Ale
• Dogfishead Pumpkin Ale
• Lakefront Pumpkin Lager & O’Fallen Pumpkin Ale

This is guaranteed to be ideal for both the new enthusiast as well as the long term aficionado – and talk about becoming an educated shopper.

Tuesday, September 23th, 5pm - 9pm
Delilah’s - 2771 N. Lincoln Ave. Chicago
(773) 472-2771
There is no cost to attend and the various beers will be available to purchase by the 2oz sample or whole bottle/pint - information about the beers will be available. Call with any questions.

Things are very busy!!! More exciting posts soon.

I am currently moving. It is a lot of work. When I am done, hopefully by Sunday, I will write more posts. Such as the Monthly Review and Rating for July, a new Weird Beer Thursday, and many more. And, of course, I will celebrate by drinking some good beer. Cheers!

Pub Pics - M.T. Barrels in West Dundee

M.T. Barrels is in West Dundee, Illinois, and has a rather comical name. It is just steps away from what has turned into one of my favorite breweries (and tavern/restaurant), Emmett's Tavern and Brewing Co. in West Dundee. So if don't live way out northwest from Chicago, and you make the trek out to West Dundee, then you could try both while your out there. Thanks to my girlfriend's family, I am now an official member of Emmett's Beer Club and we have been going pretty regularly for dinner and mug night on Tuesdays.
On Saturday June 14, we attended the Elgin Brewfest 2008, which I haven't yet written about and probably will not write about. I know of it because my friend/fellow beer connoisseur Seth lives in Elgin and tells people about it each year. You can check out a great slideshow of photos that he took of the Elgin Brewfest 2008 on his blog here. After the fest ended, I headed over to West Dundee to have some ale at Emmett's, but they were closing, so we went to M.T. Barrels and enjoyed their American Pale Ale (pictured below) and Amber Ale, both of which I can recommend. I cannot recommend their other beers.