Ohio Brewery News
10.18.2022
Cleveland Beer Week and Beyond
It’s an exciting time on the shores of Lake Erie right now: the Cleveland Guardians are thrilling fans in the playoffs, winter warmer ales are making their annual return to shelves, and Cleveland Beer Week is in full swing through Oct. 23. You can see the full list of events at clevelandbeerweek.org, but here are some highlights hosted by Cleveland-area breweries:
- Tuesday, Oct. 18 – Culture Yourself at Collision Bend Brewing Company: A beer and cheese pairing event with libations from more than 40 breweries on hand (advance ticket purchase required.)
- Saturday, Oct. 22 – Barrel Bash at Butcher & the Brewer: Ten Ohio brewers and eight distilleries team up to offer unique barrel aged beers (advance ticket purchase required.)
- Saturday, Oct. 22 – Pumking Party at Southern Tier Brewing: Vote on which of three new Pumking variants wins this year’s taste-off (advance tickets available.)
Casks for a Noble Cause
Unfortunately, the cask night event planned for Cleveland Beer Week was canceled, but Noble Beast Brewing has stepped up to provide a home for those one-of-a-kind beers. On Wednesday, Oct. 19, you can stop in at the Noble Beast taproom to try samples of eight unique cask beers from The Brew Kettle, Brick and Barrel, Boss Dog, Collision Bend, Hofbrauhaus, Terrestrial, Unplugged and, of course, Noble Beast. Tickets for the event can be purchased at the bar, with all proceeds to benefit the family of Beau Mooney, a friend of the brewery who passed away in August. Noble Beast has also released an extra hoppy edition of their flagship Evil Motives IPA in Mooney’s honor. Details on the cask night event and the special Evil Motives release are available at instagram.com/noble_beast_brewing
The Long Wait for Stout Season
Northern Ohio winters pair perfectly with robust, boozy stouts, best enjoyed next to a crackling fire while the lake effect snow piles up on the sidewalk outside. In fact, state officials are already preparing for an unseasonably snowy winter, with the first flurries possibly falling as early as this week. So how’s your beer cellar looking? Are you ready?
Masthead Brewing has a big boost for you in these cold, dark winter months. On Friday, Oct. 28, online sales open for Sunkiller, a 15.8% ABV imperial stout aged for 19 months in Blanton’s bourbon barrels. To complement this bluster-buster brew, Masthead will also release a version of the stout aged on coffee and Madagascar vanilla beans. If 19 months in a barrel isn’t enough for you, get your hands on a bottle of The Anti-Life Equation, a 16.2% ABV imperial stout aged for 10 months in Blanton’s bourbon barrels, then an additional 10 months in Madeira rye casks. Or, if you need one last taste of autumn, pick up Muay Thai in the Sky, a fresh hop double IPA made with whole Idaho 7 hop cones. Details on this huge release are available at facebook.com/mastheadbrewingco
No Mistake by the Lake
Historical fact: Ohio was once one of the world’s most prolific barley growing regions, as the state’s brewing industry relied on local crops to produce their beer in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Unfortunately, when Prohibition became the law of the land, Ohio ceased to be America’s barley basket.
However, as our state’s craft brewing industry has grown, local barley production is making a comeback. Origin Malt is investing heavily in Midwest-grown barley, contracting with farmers across the region and developing new, interesting, flavorful malt varieties for craft brewers. Saucy Brew Works was chosen to conduct the first trial of Origin’s new Regina barley malt, creating an imperial pilsner called Make No Mistake. The simple but strong style allows the qualities of the malt to shine through, with a complementary addition of Saaz and Sorachi Ace hops to provide balance.
Make No Mistake is available now at Saucy Brew Works locations throughout the state. Get more details on this pioneering beer at facebook.com/saucybrewworks
One Trick to Get a Treat
A quartet of breweries south of Cleveland have teamed up again on a special taproom crawl event starting this weekend. Visit Blue Monkey Brewing in North Royalton, Broadview Brewing Company in Broadview Heights, Hoppy Dude Brews in Hinckley and Schnitz Ale Brewery in Parma between Oct. 22-31 to earn a limited edition Halloween Bar Crawl 2022 glass. However, to get your brewery crawl passport stamped at each location, you need to be in the Halloween spirit: that means donning a costume or some other kind of Halloween attire, so get dressed up to get those stamps! Get the details at broadviewbrewingcompany.com