CU4beer: CU Beer Weekend; December 31

CU4beer: CU Beer Weekend; December 31: "Happy Brew Year! Where are you drinking this weekend? Seven Saints Arcadia Cereal Killer Barleywine Two Brothers Heavier Handed New Year..."

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; Kila Cava for New Year's Eve

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; Kila Cava for New Year's Eve: "From WCIA 3 Illinoishomepage.net Kila Cava for New Year's Eve Brian Bowman from Sun Singer Wines shows off Kila Cava. The holidays are u..."

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; Drinks with Andy: NYE

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; Drinks with Andy: NYE: "From WCIA/WCFN Illinoishomepage.net Drinks with Andy: NYE Drinks with Andy: NYE 2011 is right around the corner. If it's your turn to hos..."

CU4beer: CU Beer Weekend; December 25

CU4beer: CU Beer Weekend; December 25: "Happy (whatever you celebrate) Seven Saints Arcadia Cereal Killer Barleywine Two Brothers Heavier Handed Saturday: Closed Tuesday: Tuesda..."

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; Binge Drinking, Problem in Il...

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; Binge Drinking, Problem in Il...: "From WICD 15 ABC Binge Drinking, Problem in Illinois The holidays are just around the corner. It's a time when you may be tempted to indul..."

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; Christmas Beer and Violet Liq...

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; Christmas Beer and Violet Liq...: "From Illinoishomepage.net Christmas Beer & Violet Liquer * Dominico and Nick Bland stops by from Buvons and Corkscrew to try some drin..."

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; Extra on tap episode 20

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; Extra on tap episode 20: "From Extra 92.1 Extra on tap episode #20 They discuss Old Ruffian, from Great Divide. Sadly, AY claims this is an American style beer. ..."

CU4beer: CU Beer Weekend; December 17

CU4beer: CU Beer Weekend; December 17: "Where are you drinking this weekend? Seven Saints Bell's Batch 10,000 Arcadia Cereal Killer Tuesday: Tuesday Brewsday, Rogue Santa's Priv..."

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; extra on tap episodes 16-19

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; extra on tap episodes 16-19: "Episode 16; IPA, what does it mean? AY answers a listeners questionn. What does IPA stand for? listen now for AY's answer. Episode ..."

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; The science behind "skunked" ...

CU4beer: Alcohol in the news; The science behind "skunked" ...: "From the buzz The science behind 'skunked' beer; How to prevent it from happening to yours Skunked beer is a problem that we all face at s..."

I'm rebranding

I've created a new blog.

CU4beer.blogspot.com

That will now be the main place where I post Alcohol/Beer/Bar information. You should follow that blog.

I wanted to have a name that I didn't really have to explain to people, when they asked me where my blog was. Yes, the name is somewhat stolen from Noah's twitter page (cu4abeer), but I didn't want to take his name... even though he's pretty much left CU.

This blog (vgrid101) will be the home of all my writings: from alcohol, to religion, to the end of the world stuff. I plan to have everything I write wind up here. But I will be keeping everything from here separate from the other places. So if you just want the local alcohol news, you can go to CU4Beer. If you want to know why I'm an idiot for quitting smoking, come here.

I've removed most of the non-alcohol stuff from CU4Beer. I did import everything from here into it. If you go through the archive there and see something that doesn't belong, let me know and i'll remove it.

This blog (vgrid101) will be my personality, hatred, love, vitriol, and other crap. The other will be solely alcohol and related info.

Good luck and good racing.

Crane Alley International Rare Beer Dinner

Last night was Crane Alley's first International Rare Beer Dinner (also called the Beer Snob Dinner).

From the look of the menu, you may not recognize many of the beers. I don't know many of them. I've had the Rosee D'Hibiscus from Dieu du Ciel in bottles before, but according to the distributor... more on that later.

The first course was the Ichtegems Grand Cru Flemish Red Ale with Mangalitsa Ham, biscuits and pear. As I was eating the pears, it seemed almost as though the beer and the pear were made for each other. The pinkish thing running down the middle is the piece of Mangalitsa Ham. Mangalitsa pigs are woolly and curly haired. Their meat is claimed to be buttery and has better fat. Apparently the fat from Mangalitsa pigs is better for you than normal pig fat. It's really tasty.

The biscuits served with the pear and pork were a little spicy, but that's from the jalapeno jelly. The pears were great. Every now and then when you match food with beer/wine/something else, you come up with what seems like a perfect pairing. These pears with the Flemish Red Ale were that.

The second course to come out was endive with candied walnuts, orange supreme, Roquefort, Mangalitsa crisp, and a frisse. This was served with De Glazen Toren Saison D'Erpe-Mere. The beer was very light, and didn't have the herbs and spices that I normally associate with a saison. It was a clean, refreshing, easy drinking beer. It went well with the frisse. The endives had the rest of the filling. My first bite into it made me exclaim "Oh My God, these walnuts are overpowering". Which made me fearful of the next bite. But then I said "Oh My God, the Roquefort", then there was another OMG moment when i got to the orange supreme. Each bite was a totally different experience. After I finally finished my stuffed endives, I set about eating the frisse, with the things that fell out of the endive. That was a delicious salad. I don't normally like salad with citrus in it (or walnuts) but this was pretty darn good.

The third course was duck confit ravioli, fig-prosciutto compote and Prairie Fruits Farm Chevre. Last Wednesday, Crane Alley held a Beer and Cheese tasting featuring cheeses from Prairie Fruits Farm. The Chevre was one of my favorite cheeses that day. Then, it was served with beers from Merchant du Vin, now, it was served with La Rulles Cuvee Meilleurs Voeux. The beer was described as a Belgian brown. It seemed like one of the best English style brown ale's that I've ever had. The ravioli had a strong pepper smell to it. It wasn't unpleasant. The duck confit was amazing. The ravioli when eaten by itself didn't seem to have much flavor, but when eaten with anything else on the plate, it was awesome.

The next course was the beef filet medallion, shrimp tortillita and pasilla rouille, served with Hitachino Red Rice Ale. The beer was amazing. The beer reminded me of smoked string cheese from Kugel's Cheese Mart in Lena, Wisconsin. (They ship). I always enjoy going up to a Packer game, and before (or after) heading the 20 or so minutes north of Green Bay to go to Kugel's Cheese Mart. Then I get a couple of pounds of cheese and beef sticks. The cheese and sticks have never made the 6 hour trip back from Green Bay, regardless of how much I purchase.

The beef medallion was outstanding. We weren't served steak knives, but they weren't needed as we could cut it with our butter knife. The tortillita with the shrimp inside was amazing. I wasn't a big fan of the pasilla rouille. I may just not know how to appreciate it, but it seemed at first a little to peppery to me, and later it seemed like it had a heavy dose of paprika to it. Brad (head chef) said neither was used, and that it was saffron. Which I guess makes sense.

Next were the two deserts. The first was poached pears, with dried cherries and Madeira zabaglione (as a drizzle sauce). This was served with Birrificio Grado Plato Chocarrubica. The beer was an oatmeal stout with cocoa beans and carrubs from Sicily. It was a pretty good beer. I really liked the pears and the cherries. The pears had a slight almond flavor to it, which might have come from the sauce. There also seemed to be a bit of cinnamon somewhere on the dish (I dislike cinnamon) but it wasn't overpowering or totally unpleasant. Kridz didn't like the pears as she's a texture person, and doesn't like soft/mushy foods.

The final thing we were served was Dieu du Ciel Rosee D'Hibiscus with lemon snow gateau, basil custard, and tuile cookie. Kridz said the beer looks and smells like a flower. The gateau was very lemon flavored. It was very lemon flavored. The cookie was good. The basil custard was interesting, and the gateau was lemony.

Throughout the evening, the courses had a few common themes. You probably noticed a lot of them had pears. Also, the Mangalitsa ham was used a lot. Brad had the ham for a while and was really looking for something to use it with. Each time it was used in a dish, it was great. The pears were also a nice touch on most of the dishes.

The beer was on tap, and should still be available at Crane Alley for the next few days. I would definitely recommend going to have some of the beers. I'm sure Brad will be incorporating the ham and pears into this weeks specials as well.

Back to the beer, I was sitting across from the distributor who carried all these beers for the evening. He said he's never seen any of these in kegs before. Most of them, neither of us had heard of before. I believe these beers are carried by B. United. I don't think they'll be at any other place in town, and when they are empty, they are gone. Some of them you can probably find in bottles at Friar Tucks or at Piccadilly (Rosee d'Hibiscus for sure) but others you'll probably have to look hard to get. The beers are available on the sampler.

Beer Review; Bell's Batch 10,000

Thursday, Seven Saints became the first bar in Champaign Urbana to tap Bell's Batch 10,000. There are other places that will be getting it (Crane Alley and probably the Blind Pig) but they weren't the first.

At Seven Saints the beer is $6 for a snifter. That's not a cheap beer. It presents as an opaque black beer with a slight light brown head. The problem with a beer being served in a snifter is that the snifter really isn't a good glass for presenting beer. Sure, the bar is giving you the right amount of liquid, however, the snifter isn't really good for sniffing. Aromas need a place to collect and build. A filled snifter doesn't provide that. To overcome this, I asked for a rocks glass with just a splash of the beer in it. This gave me a much easier way to smell the beer.

It smells almost minty. There was a definite malt aroma to it as well, but it wasn't a very specific malt. Why?

The last of a series, Batch 10,000 Ale looks back to our roots, symbolizing the end of the home-brewing season with a creative take on "cleaning out the brewing supplies closet". After combing through the catalogs of many malt and hop suppliers, our brewers used over 100 different malts, grains, and other fermentables, and followed them up with a blend of 60 different hop varietals between the kettle additions and dry-hopping. The resulting beer presents a deep, chocolate brown hue and offers roasted and caramel notes from the malts mixed with an assertive hop character. Sharply bitter, the beer possesses a full mouthfeel without being heavy and will withstand aging in your cellar, if you prefer.

They used 100 fermentables to make this beast. What is a fermentable? It's anything that can turn into alcohol. Normally in a beer, that comes from malt; and normally in a beer, there is pretty much only one malt used (He'brew Jewbelations use specific malts and a specific number of malts, like 8 malts in 8 up to 14 in 14). This beer had 100. But it probably isn't just 100 malt varieties. No, a fermentable is anything that provides sugar. That could be sugar itself, honey, fruits, candy. Heck, they could have thrown in a box of chocolate.

Ok, back to the smell, I did pick up a chocolate aroma. It almost had a brownie character to it. Later, as it warmed, there was some grape in the nose. It felt thick, but also effervescent. If you leave it sit on the tongue long enough it will totally dissolve.

It tasted of dark fruits; raisins, figs, plums, maybe even a sugary prune. It also tasted a bit of syrup, without being syrupy. As it continues to warm, the bitterness is present. It's not a horrible bitter, but it's there. That obviously comes from the use of 60 hops in the kettle and in dry hopping. That's a lot of hops. It does provide a bit of bitter. It's not a specific pine or citrus bitter, it's just bitter.

The beer comes in at 9.2% but the alcohol isn't that overpowering. Although the aromas aren't initially present in the snifter, it's the correct serving size. I didn't need much more than that. It was a great beer. Will I have it again. Heck yeah, I'm thinking about going back as soon as I finish typing this up to have another.

CU Beer Weekend; December 10

There's still plenty of good beers on tap throughout town.

Seven Saints

Bell's Batch 10,000
Arcadia Cereal Killer

Tuesday: Tuesday Brewsday, Guinness Foreign Extra Stout $2.50 (not normal Guinness, this is the good stuff)
Wednesday: Whiskey Wednesday, Bourbon & Rye

Radio Maria

Harviestoun Ola Dubh 18
Southern Tier Farmer's Tan
Rogue Somer
Founders Devil Dancer
Ballast Point Dorado
Arcadia Cereal City
Dark Horse Too Cream Stout
He'Brew Jewbelation 8
He'Brew Jewbelation 9
He'Brew Jewbelation 10
He'Brew Jewbelation 11
He'Brew Jewbelation 12
He'Brew Jewbelation 13
He'Brew Jewbelation 14
He'Brew Jewbelation Vertical
Belhaven Scottish
Moylan's Dragoons Dry Irish Stout
Petrus Oak Aged Pale
Dogfish Head India Brown
Avery the Beast Grand Cru
Two Brothers Resistance
Ayinger Brau Weis
Victory Prima Pils
Founders Backwoods Bastard
Rogue Chateau Rogue Wet Hop IPA
Anderson Valley Brother David's Double
PBR

Friday: Happy Hour with free appetizers 4:30 - 5:30, special tbd (probably Rogue Somer, but it could be Southern Tier Farmer's Tan)
Saturday: $6 John Daly's, Salsa Night at 10.
Sunday: $2 wells, $1.25 PBR; Bloody Mary Bar
Monday: 25% off bottles of wine; Board Game Monday; Random Beer Specials
Tuesday: 1/2 price wine by the glass
Wednesday: $1 off all beers on draft
Thursday:$5 Mojitos, Caipirinhas, and Brazilian Cosmos; Open Decks: local dj's perform.

Blind Pig

Founder’s Breakfast Stout; Grand Rapids, Michigan, Imperial Stout, 8.3% abv
Arcadia Cereal Killer; Battle Creek, Michigan, Barley Wine, 9% abv
Breckenridge Christmas; Denver, Colorado, American Strong Ale, 7.4% abv
Unibroue Trois Pistoles; Canada, Belgian Strong Ale, 9% abv
Mikkeller From Via To; Denmark, Denmark, Imperial Porter, 8% abv
Two Brothers’ Dog Days Lager; Warrenville, Illinois, Dortmunder, 4.9% abv
Arcadia Big Dick’s Old Ale; Battle Creek, Michigan, Old Ale, 8% abv
Ballast Point Fathom; San Diego, California, Imperial Pilsener
Fuller’s London Pride; England, Premium Bitter, 4.7% abv
Delirium Noël; Belgium, Belgian Strong Ale, 10% abv
Blue Moon; Golden, Colorado, Belgian White, 5.4% abv
Duchesse de Bourgogne; Belgium, Sour Ale, 6.2% abv
Stella Artois; Belgium, Pale Lager, 5.2% abv
Pabst Blue Ribbon; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Pale Lager, 5% abv
Rogue Chipotle; Newport, Oregon, Newport, Oregon, Spice Ale, 5.5%
New Holland Cabin Fever; Holland, Michigan, Brown Ale, 6% abv
Tucher Helles Hefe Weizen; Germany, German Hefeweizen, 5.3%
Lagunitas IPA; Petaluma, California, India Pale Ale, 5.7% abv
Krusovice Imperial 12°; Czech Republic, Bohemian Pilsener, 5%
Left Hand Twin Sisters; Longmont, Colorado, Imperial IPA, 9.6% abv
Moylan’s Chelsea Porter; Novato, California, Porter, 5% abv
Lindeman’s Pêche; Belgium, Lambic, 2.5% abv
North Coast Old Rasputin; Fort Bragg, California, Imperial Stout, 9%
Guinness; Dublin, Ireland, Dry Stout, 4.1% abv

Blind Pig Brewery

Blind Pig Rye Ale
Blind Pig Oatmeal Stout
Blind Pig India Pale Ale
Schlafly Pilsner; Maplewood, Missouri, Pilsener, 4.9% abv
Two Brothers’ Ebel’s Weiss; Warrenville, IL, German Hefeweizen, 4.9% abv
Flying Dog Double Dog; Frederick, MD, American Strong Ale, 11.5% abv
Scaldis Noël; Belgium, Belgian Strong Ale, 12% abv
Goose Island Bourbon County Stout; Chicago, IL, Imperial Stout, 13% abv
Boulder Never Summer; Boulder, Colorado, Spice Ale, 6% abv
Southern Tier Oat; Lakewood, New York, Imperial Stout, 11% abv
Great Divide Hibernation; Denver, Colorado, Old Ale, 8.7%
Port Brewing High Tide; San Marcos, California, India Pale Ale, 6.5% abv
Guinness; Ireland, Dry Stout, 4.1% abv

Crane Alley

Moyland's E.S.B. 5.3%
Smuttynose Big A IPA 9.7%
Smuttynose Finest Kind IPA
Victory Prima Pils 5.3%
Rogue Double Chocolate Stout 8.7%
Original Sin Hard Cider 6.0%
Ayinger Brau Weiss 5.1%
Dogfish Head Indian Brown Ale 7.2%
Smuttynose Old Dog Brown Ale 6.5%
Arcadia Nut Brown Ale 5.6%
Troubadour Magma 9.0%
Smuttynose Baltic Porter 9.0%
Smuttynose S'Muttaroni APA 6.0%
Smuttynose S'Muttonator Doppelbock 9.5%
Mikkeller Monks Elixir 10.0%
PBR 4.2%



Monday: International Rare Beer Dinner: 7:30pm,

First Course: De Glazen Toren Saison D'Erpe-Mere
Lamb Posole

Second Course: Ichtegem's Grand Cru
Frisee and endive salad with blackberry mangalitsa emulsion, tangerine supreme and candied pecans

Third Course: La Rulles Cuvee Meilleurs Voeux
Fried Duck Confit ravioli with fig jam

Fourth Course: Hitachino Red Rice Ale
Filet medallion with shrimp pancake and apricot rouille

Fifth Course: Dessert TBA
Birrificio Grado Plato Chocarrubica/Dieu du Ciel Rosee D'Hibiscus

Tickets are $60 per person, can be purchased at the bar or through your server and are very limited.

Black Dog Smoke and Ale House

Port Santa's Little Helper
Mikkeller Green Gold IPA
Dark Horse Perkulator Coffee Dopplebock
Wintercoat Vidmoseol
Capital Winter Skal
Moylan's Dragoons Dry Irish Stout
St. Bernardus Christmas Ale
Porterhouse Nitro Oyster Stout (probably replaced Dragoons)

CU Beer Club

Wednesday: Anniversary or Holiday Beers, Crane Alley, 6:30

Bring 24-36 ounces of beer to share. December is the anniversary of the founding of the Champaign-Urbana Beer Club (15 December 2003). It is also the month of holidays: Christmas, Chanukah, Festivus (for the rest of us), and New Year’s Eve. Bring beer that has anniversary or holiday in the name.

Piccadilly

Today: Italian Wine Tasting Reminder/Big Holiday Cheese Shipment/Smuttynose, 4 - 7pm. Piccadilly on Neil.

Alcohol in the news; Homemade wine

from the buzz

Homemade wine

This article is both a plug for Alto Vineyards, and a recipe for making wine.

Alto Vineyards, a local vineyard in Illinois, has been producing wine since the late ‘80s. Jim Dubnicek, the general manager at the Champaign location, said that Alto grows French hybrid grapes that can “withstand the cold weather and are dormant in the winter.” During the winter, the majority of the pruning is done, Dubnicek added.

...

Here is an easy adapted recipe for making a dry red table wine. Many of the equipment pieces can be found at home brewing or home wine making stores, such as Friar Tuck.

...

Alcohol in the news; Boulevard Brewing Company's Sampler pack

From the buzz

Boulevard Brewing Company's sampler pack

Boulevard Brewing Company is based out of Kansas City, Missouri. ... The sampler pack has been the highlight of my week and I must say that the competition has been fierce, taking into consideration the fact that every beer in this relatively cheap twelve pack hold their own in the areas of taste, aroma and alcohol content.

I'm a fan of the pale if there's nothing else available (Hooters used to have it in bottles).

It's only two paragraphs. Two very long paragraphs.

Many adjectives in the second paragraph.

Alcohol in the news; Pefect wine and cheese pairings

From WCIA 3 morning show/ illinoishomepage.net

Perfect Wine and Cheese Pairings

Sam and Bryan pair the perfect cheeses with the perfect wines

Sam Samet from Piccadilly, and Brian McKay from Art Mart.

Le Lapin Paso Robles Clairveaux $7.99
Zinfandel
Chardonnay

Alcohol in the news; Grind Espresso Liqueur

From WCIA 3 Morning Show/ Illinoishomepage.net

Grind Espresso Liqueur

Master Mixologist Andy Borbely from Seven Saints in Champaign shows us a unique liqueur only found at Seven Saints!

Which isn't exactly true, since it's also at Radio Maria.

First they try it straight, then Andy makes a martini. Pinnacle whipped vodka, grind, Baileys, then he adds a dash of bourbon. He tops it off with chocolate infused 30 proof whipped cream.

Andy pimps out Whiskey Wednesday. Tonight is Irish whiskey. You can try the Grind from 7 to 9 tonight at Seven Saints.

CU Beer Weekend; December 3

This is a great week for beer. If you don't have plans make them now.

Sunday: Radio Maria, He'Brew Jewbelation vertical (minus #10)

Tuesday: CU Beer Club Happy Hour, Crane Alley; Smuttynose kickoff party, Crane Alley; Brewsday Tuesday, Seven Saints

Wednesday: Beer and Cheese tasting, Crane Alley

Thursday: 12 Beers of Christmas, Esquire $25. 12 samples of holiday beers



Seven Saints

Arcadia Cereal Killer Barley Wine
Flying Dog Raging Bitch

Tuesday: Tuesday Brewsday, Crown Valley Big Bison Ale $2
Wednesday: Whiskey Wednesday, Irish

Radio Maria

Harviestoun Ola Dubh 18
Sierra Nevada Estate
Rogue Somer
Founders Devil Dancer
Ballast Point Dorado
Arcadia Cereal City
Dark Horse Too Cream Stout
Southern Tier Pale
Southern Tier Oat
Scaldis Noel
Southern Tier Farmer's Tan
Dogfish Head Raison D'Etre
Jolly Pumpkin Calabaza Blanca
Port Older Viscosity
Blanche de Bruxelles
Belhaven Scottish
Lefthand Milk Stout
Petrus Oak Aged Pale
Dogfish Head India Brown
Avery the Beast Grand Cru
Two Brothers Resistance
Hofbrau Munchen
Victory Prima Pils
Founders Backwoods Bastard
Rogue Chateau Rogue Wet Hop IPA
Anderson Valley Brother David's Double
PBR


Friday: Happy Hour with free appetizers 4:30 - 5:30, special tbd
Saturday: $6 John Daly's, Salsa Night at 10.
Sunday: $2 wells, $1.25 PBR; Bloody Mary Bar
Monday: 25% off bottles of wine; Board Game Monday; Random Beer Specials
Tuesday: 1/2 price wine by the glass
Wednesday: $1 off all beers on draft
Thursday:$5 Mojitos, Caipirinhas, and Brazilian Cosmos; Open Decks: local dj's perform.

Sunday: Radio Maria is one of the 88 Chosen Bars to receive all 8 verticals of He'Brew Jewbelation. Tap 8 through 13 will feature the rebrews of their Chanukah beers, while tap 14 will have the newest release. Tap 15 will have the vertical Jewbelation, which is a barrel aged ale blend of all seven Jewbelations, aged in Rye Whiskey Barrels. (note, Jewbelation 10 got lost in shipping and should be on tap for Tuesday).

Blind Pig

Founder’s Breakfast Stout; Grand Rapids, Michigan, Imperial Stout, 8.3% abv
Arcadia Cereal Killer; Battle Creek, Michigan, Barley Wine, 9% abv
Breckenridge Christmas; Denver, Colorado, American Strong Ale, 7.4% abv
Unibroue Trois Pistoles; Canada, Belgian Strong Ale, 9% abv
Mikkeller From Via To; Denmark, Denmark, Imperial Porter, 8% abv
Two Brothers’ Dog Days; Lager Warrenville, Illinois, Dortmunder, 4.9% abv
Arcadia Big Dick’s Old Ale; Battle Creek, Michigan, Old Ale, 8% abv
Ballast Point Fathom; San Diego, California, Imperial Pilsener
Fuller’s London; Pride England, Premium Bitter, 4.7% abv
Delirium Tremens; Belgium, Belgian Strong Ale, 8.5% abv
Blue Moon; Golden, Colorado, Belgian White, 5.4% abv
Duchesse de Bourgogne; Belgium, Sour Ale, 6.2% abv
Stella Artois; Belgium, Pale Lager, 5.2% abv
Pabst Blue Ribbon; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Pale Lager, 5% abv
Rogue Juniper; Newport, Oregon, American Pale Ale, 5.2%
New Holland Cabin Fever; Holland, Michigan, Brown Ale, 6% abv
Tucher Helles Hefe Weizen; Germany, German Hefeweizen, 5.3%
Lagunitas IPA; Petaluma, California, India Pale Ale, 5.7% abv
Krusovice Imperial 12°; Czech Republic, Bohemian Pilsener, 5%
Left Hand Twin Sisters; Longmont, Colorado, Imperial IPA, 9.6% abv
Moylan’s Chelsea Porter; Novato, California, Porter, 5% abv
Lindeman’s Pêche; Belgium, Lambic, 2.5% abv
Old Speckled Hen; England, Premium Bitter, 5.2%
Guinness; Dublin, Ireland, Dry Stout, 4.1% abv

Blind Pig Brewery

Blind Pig Birthday Saison
Blind Pig Oatmeal Stout 7.4%
Blind Pig India Pale Ale 8.3%
Schlafly Pilsner; Maplewood, Missouri, Pilsener, 4.9% abv
Two Brothers’ Ebel’s Weiss; Warrenville, IL, German Hefeweizen, 4.9% abv
Flying Dog Double Dog; Frederick, MD, American Strong Ale, 11.5% abv
Witkap Pater Dubbel; Belgium, Abbey Dubbel, 7% abv
Troubadour Obscura; Belgium, Stout, 8.5% abv
Southern Tier Old Man Winter; Lakewood, NY, Amer. Strng Ale, 7.2% abv
Southern Tier Oat; Lakewood, New York, Imperial Stout, 11% abv
Great Divide Hibernation; Denver, Colorado, Old Ale, 8.7%
Port Brewing High; Tide San Marcos, California, India Pale Ale, 6.5% abv
Guinness; Ireland, Dry Stout, 4.1% abv

Sunday: Trivia Night; 7-9pm, win gift cards
Tuesday and Wednesday: Mug Night, buy a mug and get $2 off draught beer

Crane Alley

Moyland's E.S.B. 5.3%
Great Divide Hercules Imperial IPA 10.0%
Left Hand Warrior IPA 6.6%
Victory Prima Pils 5.3%
Founders Breakfast Stout 2009 8.3%
Original Sin Hard Cider 6.0%
Ayinger Brau Weiss 5.1%
New Holland Black Mad Hatter IPA 7.1%
Tommyknocker Ornery Amber Ale
Arcadia Nut Brown Ale 5.6%
Troubadour Magma 9.0%
Fullers London Porter 5.0%
Founders Cerise 5.5%
Avery Old Jubilation 8.0%
Mikkeller Monks Elixir 10.0%
PBR 4.2%

Tuesday: Smuttynose Brewery Release Party: 7pm, 6 Smuttnose brews on tap, president of the brewery, Peter Egelston will be there. Free shirts and glassware giveaways

Wednesday: Beer and Cheese Tasting: Cheese from Prairie Fruits Farm paired with Merchant du Vin imports, 7pm

December 13: International Rare Beer Dinner: 7:30pm,

First Course: De Glazen Toren Saison D'Erpe-Mere
Lamb Posole

Second Course: Ichtegem's Grand Cru
Frisee and endive salad with blackberry mangalitsa emulsion, tangerine supreme and candied pecans

Third Course: La Rulles Cuvee Meilleurs Voeux
Fried Duck Confit ravioli with fig jam

Fourth Course: Hitachino Red Rice Ale
Filet medallion with shrimp pancake and apricot rouille

Fifth Course: Dessert TBA
Birrificio Grado Plato Chocarrubica/Dieu du Ciel Rosee D'Hibiscus

Tickets are $60 per person, can be purchased at the bar or through your server and are very limited.

Black Dog Smoke and Ale House

Founders Breakfast Stout 8.3% ABV
Great Divide Hercules Double IPA 10% ABV
Dark Horse Perkulator Coffee Dopplebock 7.5% ABV
Wintercoat Vildmoseol 5.8% ABV
Capital Winter Skål 5.5% ABV
Moylan’s Dragoons Dry Irish Stout, 8% ABV
Cask: JW Lees Harvest Ale (might be gone)

Two Brothers Heavier Handed IPA has replaced something in the above tap list

CU Beer Club

Tuesday; December Happy Hour, This will be held at Crane Alley, instead of at the normal Mike N' Molly's.

Bars in the news; One-on-One with Sharon Owens, of Radio Maria

From the Buzz

One-on-One with Sharon Owens, Co-Owner of Radio Maria

It's a nice little piece on Radio.

Though Radio Maria has been a CU favorite for years with some of those classic dishes that keep us coming back for more, it also constantly presents changes in the menu, space and events that have its customers returning and growing in size. According to co-owner Sharon Owens, Radio Maria is all about fusing personal interests with the love of great dining: the restaurant features work (from the lights to the three-dimensional artwork on the wall to the tabletops) by Owens, co-owner David Spears and other Radio Maria employees past and present. Back in the kitchen, the creativity does not stop: Chefs are encouraged to explore their culinary interests as reflected in the evolving menu. buzz sat down with Owens to talk more about her restaurant.

Me in the news; The Champaign-Urbana Beer Club

From the Buzz

The Champaign-Urbana Beer club

Ok, well, it's not really me only, but my picture (from the about me, facebook, twitter...) is the one linked with the story.

Brady (who works with me at Radio Maria) went to the last beer club meeting in November, and wrote about it.

It's a good article, there are a couple of slight errors, but it's still good.

Several claim that within a block radius in Southeast Urbana—where many members reside—they have collectively amassed the best beers that exist in the world today.

I think it's a mile radius, but Brady said that the block makes it sound cooler.

Virgil, the weekly organizer of these events, was happy to break down this technical process in real terms, “The yeast eats the sugar, burps carbon dioxide and pisses alcohol. In a good beer like this one, the yeast keeps on pissing.”

I'm not really the organizer, I'm just the guy who runs the facebook page, and puts out the even invite. And yes, that's actually mostly a quote from Andy Borbely of Seven Saints, the "yeast keeps on pissing", that's all me.

Again, it's a good informative article, made especially pretty with the picture of me.