Chicagoist's "Beer of the Week:" Reader's Choice #3

By Chuck Sudo in Food on Jun 18, 2008 6:00PM

Occasionally I receive e-mails from readers asking what taverns or restaurants they can find the "BotW" selections and if I could include them in the reviews. Admittedly I take for granted that readers know I buy most of the selections from one of two stores: Lush Wine and Spirits University Village location and Archer Liquors. But knowing that a certain bar carries a "BotW" selection may spur some readers to both seek out the beer and the bar. That's doubly good for the economy.

This week's "reader's choice" selection comes to us from Todd Wiltse, who clued me to this beer during my visit to Weegee's a few weeks back. Todd lives a few blocks away from Weegee's and was nursing a Stovepipe Porter from Vermont's Otter Creek Brewing as midnight rolled to one a.m. Stovepipe is actually one of the better representations of an American-style porter. You can see the deep color and fast dissipating foam in the photo. The malts on Stovepipe have a good smoky quality to them, coupled with a hint of coffee and semisweet chocolate that becomes sweeter on the finish. But Stovepipe also balances out with some decent hoppiness to it so that your jaw doesn't seize while drinking.

It's also fairly light-bodied for a porter. I would definitely serve this at a barbecue during the dog days of August without blinking an eye. If you're still interested in visiting Weegee's but don't want to partake of one of their cocktails — although that's still highly recommended — you can order a bottle or two of Stovepipe Porter, Chicagoist's "Beer of the Week" courtesy of Todd Wiltse.