The Daily Parker

Welcome to a special stop on the Brews and Choos project.

Brewery: Two Tribes Brewing, Tileyard Road, London N7
Train line: Piccadilly Line, Caledonan Road
Time from Chicago: 8 hours
Distance from station: 900 m (about 1.5 km from King's Cross)

I don't know why I haven't made an official B&C stop in London before now. The UK has just gotten going with its own microbrewing industry, as evidenced by the continued success of pubs like the Southampton Arms. I've had lots of English micros, some from London. So I'm happy to report that visiting the brewery closest to my (new) hotel last Thursday turned out great.

They had two bartenders working an enormous crowd so I didn't bother them by ordering a flight. Instead I had a pint of the Campfire Hazy (5.2%, very tasty) and a pint of the Dream Pale (4.4%, also very tasty). And, because they have lots of communal seating, I talked to a pair of biology post-docs who were looking for jobs. I also read a good hunk of my book, enjoyed the low-intensity music, and contemplated how rarely London gets the kind of weather they had at that moment.

They also had tacos, in their food pop-up space. I had the chorizo. For Europe, they were really good tacos, despite the lack of taco sauce. (It's the UK.)

London has about a dozen other B&C-eligible breweries, so I might not get back to Two Tribes soon. But if you're anywhere near King's X, check it out.

Beer garden?Yes
Dogs OK? Yes
Televisions? No
Serves food? Pop-up; check the website. BYOF OK
Would hang out with a book? Yes
Would hang out with friends? Yes
Would go back? Yes

Welcome to stop #116 on the Brews and Choos project.

Brewery: Crust Brewing, 5500 Park Pl., Rosemont
Train line: CTA Blue Line, Rosemont
Time from Chicago: 45 minutes
Distance from station: 1.4 km (shuttle bus from El station—don't even try to walk it)

Have you ever heard Monty Python's Contractual Obligation Album? It's exactly what it says on the tin. And it's not their best work. (I mean, it's got a few laughs, especially on the first cut, but the boys made it clear they were flipping two fingers to their record company with that one.)

This is my Contractual Obligation Brews & Choos stop.

You see, taking the (soon to be discontinued! Oh no!) 8:20 am flight to London, with its requisite check-in time of 6:20 am, led me to getting a hotel room near O'Hare. Since Crust Brewing is just steps from the Aloft, the trip lent itself to stopping there. I didn't have high hopes going in; I didn't have high regards going out.

Wow! TVs everywhere and lots of stone surfaces to make them all really loud! Exactly my kind of place. At least they let you take the beer outside, to the Parkway Bank Entertainment District in family-owned Rosemont. I mean, who could pass up this view of I-294 when sipping on a beer?

I had a perfectly-serviceable but otherwise unremarkable hazy IPA whose value didn't even approach the $13 with tax and tip that I paid for it.

If you find yourself trapped at a convention or something out in Rosemont and you need to entertain a very junior or very suburban team who don't want anything challenging but do want to say they went to a "craft brewery," Crust will work just fine. If you find yourself at a convention or something in Rosemont but you can get away for three hours, go to Revolution, Piece, or Bungalow instead.

Beer garden? Only technically
Dogs OK? No
Televisions? Yes, unavoidable
Serves food? Full but boring menu
Would hang out with a book? No
Would hang out with friends? Not if I wanted to keep them
Would go back? No

Before I bugger off to get at least a couple of daylight hours in this sunny, 22°C afternoon, here are the most interesting stories that popped up today:

• Two Boomer economists point out that the Boomers have made an art form of siphoning wealth from the younger generations, meaning we Gen Xers will have to work longer for lower Social Security (state pensions) payments. Typical.
• Chicago's meteorological summer was warmer and drier than normal, the 18th-warmest since 1871.
• Ravinia Brewing Company and Ravinia Festival have come to a settlement that requires the former to change its name, even though the neighborhood predates both of them.
• Police have finally identified a man who died on the Appalachian Trail in 1977.
• The wholesaler taking over the stores that Kroeger and Albertson's planned to divest in order to pass scrutiny for their merger thinks it got crappy stores in the bargain.

Finally, the Chicago White Sox have surpassed their team record for losses, going 31-108 through yesterday. If they lose 13 of the remaining 22 games—which would actually represent an improvement over their performance so far—they will surpass the 1962 New York Mets' record 120 losses in a season. For reasons passing understanding, they're still charging for tickets, with box seats going for $69 and some tickets as high as $309. They have lots of seats left, though, so maybe I'll just take the El down there this weekend to see the Athletics beat them?

Welcome to an extra stop on the Brews and Choos project.

Brewery: Big Time Brewery & Alehouse, 4133 University Way NE, Seattle
Train line: Sound Transit, U District
Time from Chicago: about 4 hours by air
Distance from station: 300 m

Let me start by saying Seattle had beautiful weather last week...until just before I arrived on Thursday. That didn't stop my friend and me from visiting Seattle's oldest brew-pub, just off the University of Washington campus. As you can see, though, we opted to sit inside, and we left Hazel at home.

Now, it's important to understand as you read what follows, my friend does not like beer. Wine, sure; cocktails, no problem; beer, never. So don't take her comments as indictments of what I thought were perfectly serviceable drinks.

I tried a flight along with an unpretentious Caesar salad, starting with the Big City Pilsner (4.8%), which I thought had good malt, wasn't overly sweet, had a long-ish finish. [She: "I'm trying to think of what kind of sock this tastes like..."] The Primetime Pale (5.2%, 35 IBU) had a very hop-forward beginning and a long finish; I liked it. [She: "This is water wrung from a sock someone wore for the entire Appalachian Trail. Maybe with a broken toenail clipping."] The Scarlet Fire Northwest IPA (6.8%, 70 IBU) had a great, full-hop balance; a good PNW beer. [She: "This is like an iced tea that someone left in the sun all day and it went cloudy."] I finished with the Coal Creek Porter (5.5%, 25 IBU), which had chocolate and coffee at the beginning but an odd tart note and just enough hops. [She, pulling a face: "This tastes like vinegar and chocolate, and not in a good way."]

Well, my friend, I know what I'm not getting you for Christmas this year.

Pity the rain didn't let up. I think Hazel would have liked watching the people go by on University Way. Maybe next time.

Beer garden? Yes
Dogs OK? Outside only
Televisions? A few, avoidable
Serves food? Full pub menu
Would hang out with a book? Yes
Would hang out with friends? Yes
Would go back? Yes

Yesterday, Cassie and I walked 16.4 km (just over 10 miles), including a 10 km walk that I'd planned only to be a bit less than 7 km. I wanted to stop by Ravinia Brewing's Logan Square taproom, but alas, when we got there, the patio was closed. So we went to Burning Bush instead. In all, we spent most of the day outside in the perfect weather. We'll do more of the same today, just not quite as much walking.

Another brewery that didn't make the cut for the Brews & Choos Project—it's too far from the nearest Metra station—made the culinary news Thursday when the state fined them for their latest infusion:

The state has fined a suburban brewery an undisclosed amount after they served a special infusion of Jeppson’s Malört with cicadas, celebrating the insects’ 2024 emergence. Noon Whistle Brewing Co. in Lombard made headlines in May for combining Chicago’s infamous liquor with bugs foraged from a neighboring park.

The Illinois Liquor Control Commission’s March report includes a blurb that does not mention Noon Whistle, but it refers to a licensee selling an infusion containing cicadas: “The licensee was cited for the violation and was provided education on the issue.” A message to an ILCC rep wasn’t immediately returned. Noon Whistle’s co-founder Mike Condon confirmed the fine over email and wrote he preferred not to share more info.

Chicago went through a phase, in the late 2010s, when bartenders were gleefully infusing spirits, like bourbon, with pork. There weren’t reported fines. However, presumably, they weren’t hunting pigs and curing their own bacon. They weren’t hunting wild pigs, they were buying a product from a store or butcher. There’s no such facility to procure food-grade cicadas.

Cassie, for her part, enjoys the occasional cicada. She snapped one up just this morning on our first walk. It was still buzzing when she swallowed it, so I can only guess how it felt going down. I'm sure Malört would not have made it better.

Welcome to a second visit to stop #77 on the Brews and Choos project, previously reviewed in August 2022.

Brewery: Banging Gavel Brews, 6811 Hickory St., Tinley Park
Train line: Rock Island District, Tinley Park
Time from Chicago: 35 minutes (Zone 3)
Distance from station: 100 m

I'm re-reviewing Banging Gavel Brews after only two years because they didn't have an indoor space until December. And just look at that beautiful building! (Yes, I say while blowing on my fingernails, that is in fact my photo from Thursday evening.) Maybe it was the contrast with the exurban nightmare I visited just an hour earlier, maybe it was the perfect summer evening, maybe it was the delicious croquette I ate, but this place just shot into the Top 10 with one visit.

They really did an excellent job with the renovation. I wish I'd seen inside the house in the 1860s when Karl Vogt went bankrupt building it. Or in 1912 when it had four small apartments, or in the early 1950s before Tinley Park disappeared into Suburbistan.

They still have the huge beer garden to the east, and a huge fire pit on the north. Since it wasn't busy Thursday evening, I had my 2024 Trolley Beer (APA, 5.25) and by Clouding the Issue (DDHNEIPA, 7%) on the porch, watching the sunset and the occasional freight train. After, I walked three minutes to the platform, hopped on the Rock Island, and made the connection to the UP-N to home with minutes to spare.

The Rock Island has the most frequent service of any line except for the BNSF, with stops close to six other really good breweries. I may make a day of it again this summer.

Beer garden? Yes
Dogs OK? Outside
Televisions? Yes, avoidable
Serves food? Full menu
Would hang out with a book? Yes
Would hang out with friends? Yes
Would go back? Yes

Welcome to stop #115 on the Brews and Choos project.

Brewery: Arrowhead Ales, 2101 Calistoga Dr., New Lenox
Train line: Southwest Service, Laraway Road
Time from Chicago: 62 minutes, Zone 4
Distance from station: 400 m

For all you urbanists reading the Brews & Choos Project posts because you want to get fresh beer without driving...you won't like Arrowhead Ales. But I did promise to go to every brewery I could reach, so for the sense of completeness, and to celebrate the fact that I've now been on every commuter rail line in Chicago, here we go.

You can get a sense of the walk from the nearest Metra station by reading my previous post on why I didn't walk anywhere from the huge strip-mall containing this brewery. The train platform extends almost all the way to Laraway Road, but then you have to cross six traffic lanes (fortunately with a big median between them) and traipse through grass for about a hundred meters until you get to an asphalt strip. Then you have a huge vacant lot (it's for sale!) on one side and the road on the other. When you get to the entrance to the strip mall, you have another 200 meters of parking lot to cover before getting to a brewery/restaurant that looks like every other suburban restaurant in North America.

Ah but what about the beer? Yeah. I mean, it's brewed on-site, so it's fresh, I'll give it that. The New Lenox Pilsner (4.5%, 21 IBU) was very light, quite malty, and decent, I guess. The Weed Wacker (sic.) American pale (6.2%, 38 IBU) would be better named in the Loop, which actually has a Wacker Drive and not a lot of weed whackers. It had a maltiness that didn't quite fit the APA profile I expected, with a slight astringence and a long finish. (My note: "Nah.") The Galaxy Gator hazy IPA (6.8%, 36 IBU) had more malt than citrus, but wasn't too bad, despite being a bit bitter. I did like the Imperial Coconut Killjoy porter (9.1%, 25 IBU) because I couldn't taste the coconut, but I did get the marshmallow and chocolate. Again, not too bad, but not something I'd search for at Binny's.

The semi-outdoor area wasn't too bad, despite the 4-year-old girl literally running in circles around her parents' table. Obviously no dogs allowed as you have to go through the restaurant to get there.

So, yeah, I left feeling a deep and abiding sense of Meh. The density of the far-south suburbs just won't support much that is unique or interesting, which just adds to the never-ending cycle of mediocrity and uniformity the North American car-based suburban pattern encourages.

But hey, I've now been on all of the Metra lines. Box ticked.

Beer garden? Semi-outdoor space
Dogs OK? No
Televisions? Yes, avoidable
Serves food? Full but boring menu
Would hang out with a book? No
Would hang out with friends? Under duress
Would go back? No

My plan this evening will take me to Arrowhead Ales in New Lenox, the only Brews & Choos brewery on Metra's Southwest Service. Because the SWS has such an inconvenient schedule, getting home requires me to get to the Rock Island District station 4.3 km away.

Now, I could simply take a Lyft, but given that I'll have almost 2 hours between arriving at Laraway Road and the train departing New Lenox (with another train an hour later), and also given the weather forecast, I plan to walk there.

The only trouble is, the brewery sits in an exurban, 100% car-oriented area, 1,800 meters from the nearest sidewalk:

The intersection of Laraway Road and County Route 4, where I take the right turn towards the village of New Lenox, requires me to Frogger across a total of 11 traffic lanes and 3 high-speed turn lanes:

Then, walking against traffic (always do this!), I have another 1400 meters of 4-lane county highway to follow before I finally reach the village limits. At that point the 4-lane county highway becomes 2-lane Cedar Road, so even in the spots without sidewalks the traffic speed should be much lower.

Wish me luck! And stop funding highway expansion!

Welcome to stop #114 on the Brews and Choos project.

Brewery: Knack Brewing, 789 S. McMullen Dr., Kankakee, Ill
Train line: Amtrak Illini, Kankakee
Time from Chicago: 70 minutes
Distance from station: 900 m

I have to say, both Kankakee and Knack Brewing surprised me. I'll have more about the city in a subsequent post. For now, I'll say that this little 2-year-old mom-and-pop brewery in a rural city 100 km from my house was worth the trip—especially with the $15 round-trip fare I got from Amtrak.

The taproom doesn't have a lot of space, though it's bigger than a couple of taprooms I've visited. It has a modern vibe with a lot of whimsical touches, including a corkboard in the washroom where you can put up a photo of your dog, since they don't allow dogs inside. The back patio has a view of the river, but the front window faces an abandoned dive bar across a 4-lane stroad that gets maybe 100 cars an hour.

They make lovely beers, too. I started with the Lil' Dhrop hazy IPA (6.2%), a delicious beer with grapefruit and citrus notes and a great finish. The Thrilla Kölsch-style ale (5.2%) combined the lightness and summery drinkability of a Kölsch lager with the depth of an ale. Sure, it wouldn't pass the Reinheitsgebot, but I would have taken a pint outside if the heat index had been a bit lower. The Classic2 American IPA (6.8%) had a subtlety that you wouldn't guess from its higher alcohol content, with a dryness and lightness I really liked. And as much as I liked the Fortillo Tho hazy IPA, its 8.2% ABV took a bit away from its flavor. Since I had another hour after that flight, I went back to the Lil' Dhrop and my book, and relaxation.

They had an art fair and a food truck going in the parking lot right when I arrived, which unfortunately closed just as I got hungry. Next time I visit, I'll plan a longer stay.

Beer garden? Yes
Dogs OK? Outside only
Televisions? None
Serves food? BYOF
Would hang out with a book? Yes
Would hang out with friends? Yes
Would go back? Yes

Cassie and I spent all day outside yesterday, and today we're both pooped. We spent about 30 minutes at the dog beach before getting lunch at the Dock, the outdoor restaurant at Montrose Beach. Did Cassie enjoy the dog beach? Oh, yes she did:

From the Dock we walked 5.1 km along the lake to the new Duke of Perth:

From there, we headed home, but wouldn't you know we got distracted by the beer garden at Begyle Brewing?

By this point we'd walked over 3 hours and covered 15½ kilometers, so Cassie took a well-deserved nap:

Altogether, we walked 17.9 km (11.2 miles for the 19th-century crowd) over 3½ hours. Today we're taking it a bit easier. But Cassie was excited to take her morning walk at 7 am, so she clearly has Weimaraner-grade energy reserves.