We've attended the annual pig roast hosted by Slow Food Chicago and Goose Island Beer Company and can say unequivocally it isn't to be missed. more ›

This year's edition sold out in minutes, according to pub brewer Jared Rouben. more ›

Goose Island launched 312 Urban Wheat Ale in cans yesterday and some of the staff there made this video to celebrate the occasion. more ›

Goose Island is set to debut one of their flagship beers in cans on March 12. more ›

Goose Island has been doing some of its best work since they were bought by Anheuser-Busch InBev. Case in point: their Fulton and Wood limited edition draft series. more ›

Goose Island is hosting a unique sale Saturday at its Fulton Street brewery from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. Saturday. They're selling the barrels used to make Bourbon County Stout and other beers. more ›

Chicago breweries made an excellent showing at the Great American Beer Festival in Denver this weekend. more ›

Goose Island announces that all production of Honkers Ale and India Pale will go to Red Hook Brewery, while brewing of 312 Urban Wheat will be split between Chicago and a New York A-B plant. more ›

Eater Chicago has more details on the news the Tribune broke last week about Virtue Cider, Greg Hall's post-Goose Island venture. more ›

One of the actual bits of business conducted during Mayor Daley's final City Council meeting earlier this week was a proposal to allow Goose Island to sell concessions during concerts at Millennium Park. more ›

Just as the emotions and brouhaha over InBev/Anheuser Busch's purchase of Goose Island subsides comes news that does not paint outgoing brewmaster Greg Hall in a good light and may bring about a new firestorm. Hall apologized for urinating into two beer glasses while standing at the bar of Wicker Park hotspot Bangers & Lace. more ›

So begins Goose Island founder John Hall's op-ed in today's Tribune explaining his company's decision to sell to InBev/Anheuser-Busch last week for $38.8 million. Hall goes the extra length in the space he's given to accentuate the positives of the deal and reinforce his position that, while A-B may now own Goose Island, he'll still be the one calling the shots. Hall also takes some time to praise his son and outgoing brewmaster, Greg, as one of the reasons Goose has been successful. more ›

This morning's news that Goose Island was being purchased outright by Anheuser-Busch for $38.8 million was followed by an outcry of opinion the likes of which hadn't been seen since ... well, since A-B bought its initial 40 percent stake in the Goose Island five years ago. The initial response was fierce and furious, vacillating between concerns the beer would now taste worse because it was owned by a Belgian corporation, what the deal means for Goose Island as a brand, A-B in its efforts to control the beer marketplace, and consumers, and cries of the loaded term "sellout," as loaded a term if ever there was one. more ›

Anheuser-Busch is set to buy Goose Island for a cool $38.8 million, according to the Tribune. For those of us familiar with the beer industry, the news doesn't come as a shock. A-B (through Widmer Brothers brewing Co.) has had a 40 percent stake in the company since 2006. That deal opened the doors for Goose Island to increase its sales by reaching more accounts via A-B's national distribution network. more ›

The Chicago Journal had an interesting article in last week's edition about the good growing pains at Goose Island. Craft beer, if you're a reader of this site, is a booming business, and the article reported that Goose Island would move brewing all of its brewing of Honker's Ale and India Pale Ale to a contract brewer in New Hampshire. Contract brewing is a common practice for craft brewers who either wish to keep their beer as fresh as possible for their customers, or to start getting their product out to the masses. Boston Beer Company, the largest American-owned brewery, has contract brewers across the country. Half Acre was criticized by some for initially starting out with a contract brewer. They're now the fastest growing brewery in the city. So we placed a call to Goose Island brewmaster Greg Hall to get some clarity on their move to produce Honker's and IPA on contract. more ›

How in demand was Goose Island's Rare Bourbon County Stout? Enough so that over 260 people lined up at Binny's Lincoln Park to be among the first to buy BCS rare when the doors opened at 9 a.m. By 11 a.m., Binny's had sold out of their entire allotment: 120 cases. At $42.99 a bottle, that's a lot of green. more ›

Goose Island Beer Company is getting into the Black Friday action with the release of its Rare Bourbon County Stout. It'll only be available at the Lincoln Park Binny's at 9 a.m. and at the Clybourn brewpub at 10 a.m. Friday, before going into wide release Monday. But they've only brewed 940 cases of the stuff and, given the hype that's been brewing (catch the pun there?) over this beer, it won't be long for shelves. more ›

One of the more surprising developments that came from the brewing of Sai-Shan-Tea was the decision of Goose Island to showcase it at the annual Great American Beer Festival in Denver. The festival has grown by leaps and bounds over the past five years — this year's version sold out five weeks in advance — with an estimated 49,000 attendees. more ›

Goose Island throws an annual pig roast on the brewery's loading dock benefiting Slow Food Chicago, among the many other Dionysian extravaganzas they host on the dock. The lineup of chefs for this year's model, coming up next Sunday, August 22 from 2-5 p.m., has a list of chefs that eclipses last year's inaugural lineup. more ›

Pitchforked out? Or just drained from a weekend of non-indie rock shenanigans? You'd better stay in and save your energy, then, cause our next reader meet-up is almost upon us, this Thursday at Goose Island's Clybourn Pub. The meetup will feature the premiere of "Sai-Shan-tea," the beer our own Chuck Sudo brewed with Goose Island Clybourn's Jared Rouben and Rodrick Markus of Rare Tea Cellar. We're going to host this meetup at the scene of this tasty, alcohol-fueled crime: Goose Island Clybourn. In addition to "Sai-Shan-Tea," the brewpub's extensive list of fine beers will also be available so there'll be plenty to help keep you happy. And if Facebook invites are your thing, be sure to RSVP here. more ›

(Part 1 of this series can be read here.) more ›

Goose Island is set to increase their brewing capacity next week with the installation of a new 5,000-lb. stainless steel receiver tanks capable of holding 2,000 gallons of wort. According to the brewery, sales of 312 Wheat Ale, Matilda and the new Green Line Organic Pale Ale have each increased by 30 percent. The new receiving tank, which Goose Island had to demolish part of a wall to install, will allow them to increase their production from seven brewing cycles a day to eight, allowing them to keep up with demand and increase the brewery production by 15 percent. more ›

For four days the Sheraton Hotel and Towers downtown was overrun by a burly, bearded, tattooed mass of humanity. They had one other thing in common: they all had a deep love of beer. The annual Craft Brewers Conference and biennial World Beer Cup shone a spotlight on Chicago just as the local craft beer scene is growing by leaps and bounds. Breweries from 90 countries entered a record 3,330 beers in the World Beer Cup, in 90 style categories. Many of those beers, as well as rare vintages, were available for sampling at the conference and throughout the city. more ›

On Sunday, October 18, the chefs of Blackbird, avec and The Publican along with Pamela Fitzpatrick of Fox & Obel are hosting a five-course benefit dinner supporting James Beard Foundation. Chefs of the night will be Becky Broeske, Koren Grieveson, Brian Huston, Paul Kahan and Mike Sheerin. Pairings will feature Champagne Henriot, Napa Valley’s Blackbird Vineyards, Goose Island Beer Company and Three Floyds Brewing Co. If you must only choose one big dining event of the fall, this might be it. Hors d’oeuvres include: oysters, smoked black cod, and crispy pork rinds paired with champagne. The five course menu includes: more ›

Last year at Chicago Gourmet we attended a "Pairing Cheese with Beer" seminar led by Greg Hall from Goose Island. To our surprise the last course paired dark chocolate with Goose Island's Pere Jacques. Augh. It was soooo nice. Join Vosges Haut-Chocolate and Goose Island this Friday from 7-9pm for a Chocolate and Beer Soiree. Pair Vosges Naga truffle, which has a sweet Indian curry powder, coconut and milk chocolate, with Goose Island's Sofie Belgium Style Ale, which has been aged in wine barrels with orange peel giving you hints of citrus with a creamy vanilla finish. The party is at Vosges Lincoln park storefront (951 W. Armitage Ave.) and is $30/ person, which includes 3 chocolates paired with artisan beers from Goose Island along with open bar of Goose Island 312 beer. Also receive a 10% discount off any chocolate purchase during the event. more ›

With a little more than a month before they were to shutter the windows and drop last call, Goose Island Beer Company has reached a deal with its landlord on a new lease, allowing the brewpub that started it all to stay open well past its proposed December 21 closing. Goose Island founder John Hall, in a press release, summed it up simply: "I could not be happier."
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As we at Chicagoist ponder whether or not to add "sketchy-ass hot dogs", foie gras, and the 46th Ward to "hating on the Amish" and Macy Fields as retired subject matter, we start off this week's edition of "Your Friday Food Buffet" with, well, foie gras hot dogs. We also have a photo that should even pass reader Marilyn's sensitive eyes. That is, unless she's in favor of Prohibition. We'd Rather Help Doug Sohn Break... more ›

Well, Chicagoist certainly didn't see this one coming. Even though both sides are not commenting, the Tribune reports today that Anheuser-Busch is thisclose to purchasing a stake in Goose Island Beer Company. It's the latest twist on talks that have been going on for months. more ›

Last week in Seattle, brewmasters from around the world gathered together to have their frothy malts, potent elixirs, and hop-laden potions judged in the 2006 World Beer Cup. We found while reviewing the winners list that: more ›

It was Homer Simpson who said that “a good beer is like a good woman: it looks nice, it smells nice and you would step over your own mother to get one.” more ›