While perusing the beer section of a local store, trying to figure out what to review next for Little Village, my eyes were drawn to the discounted price ($3.99 per bottle) of Turbone Wheat Ale, brewed by the Birrificio Montelupo of Montelupo Fiorentino, Italy. I thought: Why not take a chance on Turbone Wheat Ale — especially since its normal price is listed at $7 a bottle? Oh, let me count the ways …
Craft Beer Reviews
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Des Moines IPA is LV’s May 2014 Brew of the Month
May’s beer of the month is the well-balanced, Iowa-brewed IPA from Confluence Brewing Company: Des Moines IPA. Though some IPAs are overwhelmingly dry and bitter, John Martin, the head brewer at Confluence, proudly admits that he wants his IPA to have a balance of malt and hop characteristics. Instead of going overboard with abrasive hop […]
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FilmScene celebrates Craft Beer Week, unveils rooftop happy hour
In the 1980s, beer aisles looked very different. According to Chad Young, the craft brand manager at 7G Distributing, there were few options…
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12 oz. Curls: Sanctuary to host sour ale tap event with Central Waters brewery
This Wednesday at 7 p.m., Sanctuary Pub is hosting a sour ale event with Jordan Aberman, the sales manager at Central Waters Brewing Company in…
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Beer Reviews: Central Waters Brewing’s Glacial Trail IPA
While camping a couple weeks ago, a friend brought a sixer of Glacial Trail India Pale Ale, brewed by the Central Waters Brewing Company of Amherst, Wisc., which I later tried for myself.
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12 oz. Curls: Deschutes’ Hop Henge IPA
While watching the second half of the NCAA men’s basketball championship game earlier this month, I enjoyed a bottle of Hop Henge Experimental IPA, brewed by the Deschutes Brewery of Bend, Ore.
According to the beer’s webpage, Hop Henge is Deschutes’ “annual exercise in IBU escalation … it’s all hop, no apologies.” Available January through April, Hop Henge is brewed with “an outrageous amount of Centennial and Cascade hops.” The beer is also heavily dry hopped, a brewing process where hops are a
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Sucha Much IPA is LV’s April 2014 brew of the month
The Kalona Brewing Company’s signature IPA, Sucha Much, was named after a song by Paul Cebar and the Milwaukeeans titled “She’s Such a Much.” According to Lew Brewer, Kalona’s co-owner and head brewer, the song is about a girl who is “such a much.” “We just felt that way about the beer,” he said. While […]
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New beer alert: Surly Brewing Company comes to Iowa
The Surly Brewing Company of Brooklyn Center, Minn., has begun selling a limited amount of beer in the Des Moines, Ames, Cedar Rapids and Iowa City areas and plans a larger rollout in 2015. Surly made a grand entrance last Thursday, taking over the taps at El Bait Shop in Des Moines. Surly spokesman Lee Jones said representatives dropped off a pallet of BLAKKR, an Imperial Black IPA, for distribution by Johnson Brothers of Iowa.
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Dank as promised: A review of Stone Brewing Company’s Enjoy By 4/20 IPA
While perusing the beer selection at the New Pioneer Food Co-op, I found a little something I could not pass up: Enjoy By 04.20.14 IPA…
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Frost Line Rye is our March 2014 Brew of the Month
Just as March is stuck between seasons, the beer of the month, Summit’s Frost Line Rye, is a seasonal between seasonals. Offering spice and malt alongside an invigorating and energizing tease of citrus, Frost Line Rye befits a month when temperatures rise and the days lengthen but the snow still flies, the trees are still […]
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12 oz. Curls: Busch injects a little flavor into their new Signature Copper Lager
Though many craft beer drinkers hold Busch and other macro lagers in contempt, I am willing to bet that most of us have been Busch drinkers at some…
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Zipline Brewing Company makes Iowa debut with tap takeover at Red’s Alehouse this Wednesday
Zipline co-founder and head brewer Marcus Powers said distribution in the Hawkeye State will officially kick off with tap takeovers at Red’s Alehouse in North…
