Suds: October 3

Well, fall’s finally setting in and that means only one thing: decorative gourd season, motherf***ers. Yes, I know that’s a little more upfront and graphic than you’re used to on this blog, but who wants to avoid the best parts of fall? The foliage, the crispness and of course, the decorative gourds.

Seriously, it's frickin' fall.

I, for one, welcome our gourd-bearing fall overlords. In celebration, grab a Lakefront Pumpkin Lager and let’s get to Suds.

-Lots of news coming out of this years Great American Beer Fest. First, big winners from the City of Big Shoulders. Congrats to 5Rabbit for winning the fruit beer component. As someone who is confused by fruit beers, this seems like an incredibly difficult category to win.

-More on the Chi-Town victories.

-I’m not going to go state by state to pick out winners, that’s what this nifty device is for. I will point out the interesting ones, like this big win from The Vintage in Madison, which took home a silver medal for their scotch ale.

-Cap Brewery won? Color me surprised…

-Town Hall Brewery is the lone MN victor, wow.

-And Old Style? Wait, what?

-Never forget what happened with Goose Island. Also, never fail to acknowledge their ambitious beers.

-Ein Bier, bitte!

-Finally, when you’ve said Wisconsin, you’ve said it all.

Not quite ready for decorative gourd season? What are you waiting for? Follow us on Twitter (@midwestbeer), Facebook or send an email to mwbeercollective@gmail.com.

The first batch

Hey everyone. Today we’re debuting a new feature at MwBC: “Suds.” Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday we will bring you the best in beer news from throughout the Midwest (and some places outside of the Midwest as well). It wouldn’t be fair if I didn’t link to my inspiration for this series.

-For this first edition of Suds,  grab a Central Water’s Mudpuppy Porter to combat the cold, and check out this piece in today’s New York Times book section. How many have you read this year?

-No details, but Half Acre in Chicago is planning a big holiday bash, On Photon. If you made it to their party for Chicago Craft Beer Week, expect all those things and more.

-Beer Here: A review of Sand Creek Breweries cranberry brew to kick off the holidays.

-A little late, sorry, but New Glarus has a coffee stout for you. Stay warm.

-Readers from the City of Broad Shoulders, do this, like, right now. Goose Island pub crawl.

-Surly Brewing Company from St. Paul, MN in this episode of BrewTV.

-New survey shows men prefer to toast beer over bubbly. I concur with that notion. The headline betrays the reality though, as it’s only a 60-40 divide.

-Modern redesigns for Red Hook, New Belgium and others. I have to say, the New Belgium label looks pretty sharp.

-And finally, best beer review I’ve read today: “Damn, this year’s @tyranena Hop Whore Imperial IPA is their best yet. I wanna french kiss it.” (from mwmicrobrews on Twitter).

Speaking of Twitter, don’t be shy and follow us! @MidwestBeer.

Much on the mind…

Hey All,

Welcome to our blog. It’s about beer. Or it will be anyway. More information as it becomes available, look for an official opening sometime soon!

In the mean time, enjoy your favorite beer from the Midwest. May we suggest some Ale Asylum from beautiful Madison, WI to start?

Thanks for your patience.

-Brian and Anthony