Great Lakes Brewing News Archive

Illinois Beer News

Originally Published: 10/97

By Chuck Gollay

As the warming sun of summer fades and the verdant flora unleash the majestic hues of autumn, fear not the impending winter. For while the sun turns cool and the wind blows chill, we can take comfort in the beers of fall and winter. Since time immemorial, brewers have reacted to the early setting sun and cold weather by producing beers higher in strength and flavor to warm our souls.

In Chicago, as in much of the beer world, September marks the beginning of the great German Oktoberfest. The American Homebrewers Association describes the Oktoberfest style as:

A lager from Munich with a distinctive malt sweetness as well as a toasted malt aroma and flavor resulting from the use of Vienna and Munich malts. May be sweet on the palate but should have a fairly dry finish. The hops are distinctly German but are not usually prominent in either aroma or flavor, simply in balance. Dark gold to red-amber. Oktoberfests and Märzens are slightly stronger than Vienna-style beers.

Brewers in the Chicago are already in the midst of preparing their interpretations of this world classic style. Others are preparing for extended festivals featuring Oktoberfest beers, authentic German food, German oompah-style bands, and lots of fun and frolic.

America's Brewpub in west suburban Aurora celebrated Oktoberfest this last weekend in their outdoor pavilion. For those of you who have never been there, America's Brewpub is located in an historic roundhouse building formerly used to service locomotives. This circular buiding houses not only the restaurant and brewery, but several offshoot areas such as the oyster and raw bar, the cigar and cognac bar, the Walter Payton museum, and an immense outdoor area that is encapsulated by the surrounding edifice. The area features a huge gazebo that is perfectly suitable for entertainment of all types, as well as a large pavilion with several fire pits for warmth and ambiance.

It was in this area that head brewer Tom Sweeney and the staff of America's Brewpub held their hugely successful fest. Several area breweries were also in attendance, making the event a truly regional affair. Also serving their beer were Founders Hill Brewing Company, Glen Ellyn Brewing Company, and the Box Office Brewery of DeKalb. Despite the rain and cooler weather, Sweeney stated that the crowds were immense.

Founders Hill Brewing Company head brewer Karl Fitzloff has brewed his version of Oktoberfest beer. Aptly named Grunder Hugel (Founders Hill in German), this all malt beer is brewed entirely with Vienna and specialty malts. The resultant beer should be rich, malty, and toasty, and is a beautiful orange in color. Fitzloff eagerly awaits the October 8th unveiling. Last year's version was extremely popular, and this year's batch should be equally so.

This is a busy time of year for Founders Hill, as they have already appeared at the aforementioned festival in Aurora and have plans to participate in simultaneous festivals in Naperville and Chicago early in October. Also in the works is a trip to the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) next month. Karl has several entries in this year's event, including his wheat beer, raspberry wheat ale, Hidden River Red Ale, stout, and Christmas beer.

In addition to all this, at the brewery they are featuring the winning recipe from their Brewers Dream competition held earlier this summer. The contest was a search for the best India Pale Ale, and the winning recipe was brewed by local brewer Michael Uchima. The scaled up version is available on tap now through next month.

Glen Ellyn Brewing Company is equally busy this month and next, as their schedule virtually mirrors that of Founders Hill. Brewmaster Shawn Quigley and crew participated in the Aurora festival, and have plans to attend the Goose Island Oktoberfest at Navy Pier as well as the Naperville fest. Quigley's version of Oktoberfest is due out next week, and will be the featured beer at Glen Ellyn's own festival October 20th.

This event will be a Brewmasters Dinner with an Oktoberfest theme. Look for collaboration from the brewery and kitchen to produce some outstanding German classics. Dinners such as this are a popular event here; the last one featured a five course crab feast, complete with suggested beer pairings. The event was completely sold out well ahead of time, which attests to its popularity.

Mr. Quigley has several new beers in the works, including a seasonal pumpkin ale. This will be an amber ale brewed with real pumpkin in the mash and several spices to create that pumpkin pie kinda thing. Also debuting this season will be a Scottish 80 shilling ale and an India Pale Ale. In addition to the craft brews, Glen Ellyn is now serving three homemade sodas available on draft, cream soda, ginger ale and root beer.

South suburban Flossmoor Station Brewing Company is introducing its first ever lager, a Märzen, in time for its own Oktoberfest scheduled for October 4th. This festival, which will include several area businesses and restaurants to create a real community event, will feature a three piece German oompah band and other live entertainment. A large tent will be erected to house the outdoor event. Look for the music to rock and the good times to roll. In addition to the new lager, head brewer Todd Ashman will be serving up a Belgian style Witbier later this month, among his many other excellent beers. Like many other brewers Ashman is sending several of his best beers to the GABF for the competition. These include his Panama Red Ale, Pullman Porter, and a classic dry stout. Floosmoor Station currently features the largest number of house brews available on tap in the Chicago area.

The granddaddy of all Chicago area Oktoberfests will undoubtedly be the Goose Island Beer Company affair, to be held at Navy Pier. Scheduled from October 9th through the 12th, look for multiple breweries to be in attendance along with the mighty Goose, serving up all manner of entertainment to the adoring throngs of festival-goers.

Moving to the north side, the brewpubs in that area not only have to cope with the impending Oktoberfest, but with many internal changes as well. O'Grady's Brewpub and Restaurant has undergone several sweeping changes, not the least of which is a change in brewers. Longtime brewer Chris Akin is out, having returned to Kansas to continue his college education, and local brewer Bob Ward is in as head brewer. While Akin produced many clean beers, they were known more for their neutrality than anything else. Ward, an assistant brewer at Golden Prairie and Star Union Breweries, promises to make changes to the beer lineup. The changes will be gradual, so that longtime patrons are not shocked by the new brews. Look for a reformulated Chicago Fire Amber Ale, as well as Ward's own versions of Oktoberfest and pale ale. Also in the works is a Sierra Nevada-inspired American Pale Ale, featuring Perle hops for bittering and Cascade hops for flavor and aroma. Yet another project is a Christmas beer, brewed in conjunction with beer maven Randy Mosher, which will be Belgian in style.

Mr. Ward is a long time member of Brewers of South Suburbia (BOSS), a well known and well respected homebrew club in the southern suburbs of the Windy City. Ward, who prefers to let his brewing speak for himself, is an accomplished brewer, having won 15 brewing awards in 11 different beer styles. Beer fans welcome Ward and eagerly anticipate his first offerings.

As for Oktoberfest, O'Grady's has plans for an in-house festival to be held on October 20th. Look for a collaborative effort between the brewery and kitchen, which also boasts a new chef. Details are sparse right now, but should be forthcoming in the next week or so.

Moving farther north, Flatlander's Brewing Company will be serving up its version of the fabled German festival for over three weeks, from September 26th to October 19th. Local patrons are familiar with the outdoor beer garden here, which will be tented and heated during the prolonged event. Flatlander's has seen a spate of changes lately as well. Head brewer Bill Stephenson, who took over from brewer and part owner Rick Westerveld just a few months ago, has departed. Kris Huber is the new head brewer, just two weeks in position as of this writing. His Oktoberfest beer will be the featured attraction at the festival, which will also feature traditional German music and contemporary music as well.

Flatlander's has also initiated a family Sunday brunch that includes more than 100 food items and jazz entertainment. The buffet brunch runs from 10 AM to 2 PM, and will have "almost everything you ever dreamed of having available (to eat)", according to Flatlander's VP Brian Margulis.

At Mickey Finn's in north suburban Libertyville, several changes have taken place as well. Longtime brewmaster Chris Swersey has left Finn's for a brewing position in Tempe, Arizona. Long time assistant brewer Ryan Ashley has been promoted to head brewer, and Bill Stephenson, formerly of Flatlander's, has moved into the assistant brewer's position.

Ashley has just returned from a two week journey to Munich, Germany, where he gathered as much information as possible about German beer styles and brewing processes. His Oktoberfest is already on tap, and a Dunkelweizen and a Dunkel Münchener (a dark Munich lager) will appear on tap later this season.

Finn's cask conditioned ales continue to flow freely, and that excellent tradition will continue. Ashley coyly alluded to several surprise offerings from the English hand pump, but would not elaborate. The brewery staff has sent several offerings to the GABF, including last year's award-winning Gudenteit Hefeweizen, a pale ale, an oatmeal stout, a Scotch ale, and a doppelbock.