Suds: May 4

Ten points to this guy for his ingenius liquid metal battery. 25 points to his staff of post-grads and doctoral students that helped him actually create it. Hurray, for grad students! You make the research & development world go round.

- Half Acre is opening a taproom and guests can get food delivered from local restaurants. Brilliant colla-beer-ation!

- Finch Beer is hosting a Kickstarter campaign for Galerie F featuring limited edition screen prints.

- Really cool opportunity for fellow beer bloggers: “At Zephyr Adventures, we have teamed up with World Class Beer,Untappd, New Belgium and Draft Magazine to give away two spots on our upcoming Colorado Hike, Bike, Beer and BrewPubs adventure plus roundtrip airfare to Denver.”

- Bell’s is on the docket for Fitty’s First Friday tasting at Thomas Liquor.

- Cinco de Maibock at Town Hall tomorrow.

- The 15th Annual Michigan Brewers Guild Summer Beer Festival is set for July 27 & 28.

- Calling all Madisonians (and Wisconsinites at large)! Madison Craft Beer Week is underway!

- Beer Baron on the Wisconsin colla-beer-ation, Common Thread Ale.

- A new tour brings Twin Cities residents to three local breweries.

Suds: February 1

Happy Wednesday Voyageurs. Let’s get right into the good stuff, so grab a bottle of Jolly Pumpkin Oro de Calabaza and relax with a nice helping of Suds:

Oro de Calabaza is Spanish for Golden Pumpkin

- Dorks unite with the dorkiest brew around.

- Goose Island’s celebrated Bourbon County Brand series is back to the jubilation of the masses.

- Madisonians know this pub well, but did you know about Brocach’s beer cheese dip?

- Grand Rapids Beer Week is here to highlight the great breweries in the western part of the state.

- A nice review of Chicago’s Winter Brew held at DANK Haus.

- Looking for new hobbies? Summit Brewing has you covered. Just go to their website and click “Under 21″ for great suggestions.

- Ale Asylum tasting at Steve’s Wine, Beer and Spirits.

- Ever heard of Kuhnhenn Brewing Co.? By the look of its tap list it’s time to get familiar.

What is playing right now on your Ipod? Tweet @MidwestBeer #earworm with your answer.

Suds: October 28

Last Suds was about subtlety in storytelling as I spoke of Poe’s uncanny ability to creep out his readers with psychology rather than sheer shock value. Today’s Suds is dedicated to the fear-inducing blood and gore of haunted houses. The brilliance of the haunted house is that people have the distinct knowledge of what they are getting into; a book can hide its true intention in its unread pages, divulging its secrets slowly and methodically. The haunted house bears its artifice before you even arrive, yet it still twists our stomach in knots with unrelenting terror as we walk through it.

Soap Factory's Haunted Basement. Photo courtesy of Soap Factory

Every town claims to have the greatest haunted house in the world, but here are a few notable houses in the Midwest. Illinois: Statesville Haunted Prison, Minnesota: Soap Factory Haunted, Basement, Wisconsin: Haunted Feargrounds, Michigan: The Realm of Darkness, Indiana: The Haunted Cave, and Iowa: The Haunted Cornfield

Now for Suds:

- The Packers beat the Vikings twice this season. Once on the field and once in the pint glass.

- And now Wisconsin fans can buy alcohol before sunrise.

- Nice write-up on my hometown brewery, Lift Bridge, in the Stillwater Gazette.

- Anthony’s spectacular overview of Half Acre’s Over Ale reveals just the tip of the iceberg of this brewery’s greatness. Get ready for The Chairman.

- Just bought Harvest Dance Wheat Wine at my favorite liquor store, Lake Elmo Wine Company.

- In Minnesota for Halloween? Don’t miss Fall Firkin Fest at the Hanger Room this Saturday

- Have dreams of brewing beer professionally? It may not be that easy.

- Looking for things to do in Ann Arbor this weekend? Find out about a few great events here.

There is nothing to fear, but an open beer by itself. Drink it up. Have a fun and safe Halloween weekend from the MwBoo-C. Did I scare you?