The Glunz Beer Expo Showcases Great Beers
By Staff in Food on May 16, 2012 9:20PM
The Glunz Beer Expo #XVIII came to the Donald E Stephens Convention Center in Rosemont this past Monday. The event is an industry-only soirée, but even though only the cool kids were invited, your average Joe the-beer-drinker can still reap the expo’s benefits. Chances are, if a beer is a hit at the expo, you’ll likely come across it at one of your favorite watering holes in the city or the suburbs. The event is a chance for industry tastemakers to meet directly with the breweries they’re ordering from, and to hang with the middleman distributor.
This year’s roster of booths included 51 different breweries and importers. There was quite the selection, from craft and local breweries like 5 Rabbit to Pabst Brewing Company and St. Killian Imports.
Though we didn’t get a chance to snag any Zombie Dust at the 3 Floyds booth, and we never got around to buying Dark Lord on the black market, we still got to enjoy a lot of beers we haven’t had the privilege of trying yet. Here are some of the most memorable.
Beer: Ephemere
Brewery: Unibroue
This Belgian-styled beer was quite different from a lot of the IPAs and lagers we tried. It’s a fruity beer, with tart apple notes and a light body. We were told there were champagne yeasts used during its fermentation. This probably accounts for its likeness to a sparkling white wine. It’s not a beer you’d continue to order throughout the night, but certainly one to enjoy on a patio or beer garden.
Beer: B-Craft Double Black IPA
Brewery: Arcadia
This heavy-handed IPA from Michigan’s Arcadia Brewery is a beer you’d buy to celebrate a job promotion or that you’ve paid off your college loans. It’s a heavy beer that nears 9% ABV. There are fruity notes at first, mainly citrus, but those notes get crushed by the roasted nut and bitter hop finish. The B-Craft was one of our favorites from the expo, which is surprising since we tend to shade ourselves towards the wheat end of things.
Beer: Blonde Dopplebock
Brewery: Capital Brewery
This blonde has received more competitive awards than the cast of Glee. And much like Glee, we were all like, “don’t believe the hype.” In other words, we were unimpressed. The malt-forward beer had a sweet, orange-citrus profile to it, and it was thick, like a melted Creamsicle. There wasn’t much else too it though, it didn’t have much depth and it’s heavy body doesn’t make for an easy drink. C’est la vie, I’m sure the Dopplebock will survive despite our opinion.
By Kyle Thacker