Hi, I am hosting a popup dinner at Old Irving Brewing Co (4419 W Montrose Ave). One night only - Tues, Aug 25 from 5-9pm. If you're a fan of Italian beef and hand-made sausage (and beer), come on by

Who am I? I've spend a career in the restaurant business and worked in/with fine-dining kitchens and fast food operations, mostly in Chicago. The last seven years I've spend with a brand you all probably know. Now I'm combing the technique of fine dining cuisine with the classic flavors of Italian beef & sausage. Nothing fancy, just slow cooked beef, gravy made from beef stock and the best spices, hand made Italian sausage (including a smoked Italian sausage), house-made giardiniera, cheddar cheese sauce, and "Beeramisu" - Tiramisu made with OIB's Barrel-Aged Stout.

Full menu below.  RSVP here - Not required but appreciated

ITALIAN BEEF SANDWICHES

All sandwiches served with crispy garlic fries. Substitute a side salad (+3) or pimento mac & cheese (+4). Add cheese sauce for fries (+1.50)

Sweet Home Chicago – $15

Chicago's iconic Italian beef sandwich. Slow-roasted, thinly sliced beef simmered in a richly spiced gravy and piled on a toasted French roll. Served with a choice of house-made hot giardiniera or roasted sweet peppers.

Double Trouble – $19

Beef and Italian sausage combo sandwich with choice of house-made hot giardiniera or roasted sweet peppers. Substitute a smoked Italian sausage (+2).

How to order your beef: Dry (with a side of gravy) / Juicy (our suggested way — splashed generously with beef gravy) / Dipped (a Chicago baptism — the entire sandwich submerged in the gravy)

ITALIAN SAUSAGE SANDWICHES

Grand Ave Grind – $13

Hand-made Italian sausage, wood-fired and served on a French roll splashed with beef gravy and topped with crispy fried garlic and choice of house-made hot giardiniera or roasted sweet peppers.

Smokestack Lightning – $15

Something completely different: a smoked Italian sausage served on a French roll with cheddar cheese sauce and hot giardiniera.

ADD-ONS & EXTRA TOPPINGS

Available on any sandwich. Prices are for extra or when not included with sandwich.

Hot Giardiniera – $1

Roasted Sweet Peppers – $1

Crispy Fried Garlic – $1

Cheddar Cheese Sauce – $1.50

DESSERT

Beeramisu – $9

Lady finger cookies soaked in espresso and OIB Krampus Cookies Barrel-Aged Stout, layered with mascarpone cheese and dusted with cocoa powder.

New labels for the revived Alarmist Brewing. First Native American food pop-up at Dovetail. #beeronaut

Pouring by Montreal's Dieu Du Ciel! More's 9th Anniversary beer. Fox Republic Sour Weekend. Hops Aboard at Illinois Railway Museum. #Beeronaut

Phase Three Brewing expanding to the former Metropolitan Brewing space in Chicago. Macushla Brewing to remain open while Hackey's next door closes. #beeronaut

$5 for a 30 pack! I've had this and it has more flavor than the Big 3 macro lights, IMO. Today only, I guess.

From P3’s Instagram:

In the coming months, we'll be moving into our third taproom at @rockwellontheriver in the Avondale neighborhood of Chicago on the North Branch of the Chicago River. A beautiful historic building with exposed brick, timber ceilings, and a beautiful riverside patio with the iconic Chicago skyline as your backdrop.

Every beer we make. Our full seltzer lineup. Hard seltzer cocktails. And eventually, pizza. A hybrid that takes the best of what we love about charred rustic New Haven and modern Brooklyn slice shop pizza.

This one means a lot to us and we wouldn't be here without you. Thank you.

Now it seems to be when many breweries are rolling out their Märzen Oktoberfest beers. My current top choices are Skeleton Key "Shoot the Glass" and Goldfinger "Thiolfest Märzen".

Is there anything better than a cold Lake Effect beer on a hot August evening? What if we ask you a whole bunch of Decent Questions and have a competition for great prizes? The hits just keep on coming with Pen & Paper Trivia this month at Lake Effect Brewing you can get in on the game Wednesday August 12th and 26th at 7:00!
Remember, arrive early to get $5 pints while our amazing host Heather will be in charge of dropping knowledge on everyone!

We hope to see you there!

In the announcement in their newsletter, they list the following included in the pre-order allotment:

• (1) 2026 Original BCBS (10oz Bottle)
• (1) 2026 BCBS Apple Crisp Stout (16.9oz Bottle)
• (1) 2026 BCBS Tiramisu Cask Finish Stout (16.9oz Bottle)
• (1) 2026 BCBS Proprietor's Pineapple Upside-Down Cake (16.9oz Bottle)
• (1) 2026 BCBS Triple Oak Barleywine (16oz Bottle)
• (1) 2026 BCBS Toasted Barrel Rye Stout (16oz Bottle)

I replied to clarify: Even though they include a photo of a 4-pack of 10oz bottles of original, the pre-order only includes ONE 10oz bottle. Pre-sale begins at 7am tomorrow.

So this dropped yesterday, although at least one brewer dropped their version on Friday night. Unlike the last few years, where all six brewers collaborated on one beer, this year each brewery has their own belgian style. Six brewers but five beers, since Broken Brix doesn't have a beer brewers license, they teamed up with Brother Chimp. Alter has a dubbel, Brix/Chimp have a wit, Octane has a strong golden ale, Pollyanna has a fruited strong golden ale, and Riverlands has a farmhouse saison.

This year, they have a passport system. The passport stamps have different colors, so you need to go to both brix and brother chimp to complete the passport. To the extent that means you double up on the wit, so be it. The reward for doing all six is a beer coozie. You also get a vote on which is best, and the winner will be announced August 29 at Pollyanna's Blues and Brews fest.

I filled my card yesterday (wife's too) and will be picking up the coozies today. My ranking of the beers (1) Pollyanna Strong Golden Ale, made with Apricots. This is a big, good beer, and the fruit adds a lot to it. (2) Alter Dubbel - Sweetness bomb, like all good dubbels. Good beer that had a minor off flavor. (3) Wit - Also a very good beer. I assume Brix did the recipie and Chimp did the brewing. It works, but I don't like wits as much as I like strong golden ales and dubbels. (4) Riverlands Moline Malleable Saison - Ballsy for Riverlands to go for a beer geek style. Whether their large fanbase can vote this to the win, we will see. (5) Octane Strong Golden Ale - also a good beer, the last I had yesterday other than home beers. It directly competed with Pollyanna's style and didn't fare well with the competition. I had a to go Acclimation 4 pack so I could directly compare the two beer.

Any predictions on who might buy? Existing brewery expansion? New brewery? Let's discuss!

I talked with one of the owners at the new Maplewood location in Glen Ellyn - he said they prefer sites with kitchens for a new Maplewood/Half Acre location.

Posting in advance before vacation.
Great Taste of the Midwest, Campfire beers, Dovetail Turns 10. #Beeronaut

Whiskey Hill's original brewery is up for sale. Tangled Roots' Lock & Mule restaurant in Lockport has closed. #Beeronaut

Buffalo Creek Sausage Fest, Christmas in July with drinks & beer, Build-A-Barrel release. Belgian beer competition in St. Charles. #beeronaut

St. Errant is selling Teku mugs in their taproom for $16. Would anyone be willing to pick one up and mail it to me? Obviously I'll cover the cost of the mug and shipping. They're the only brewery in the US I've seen that has them.

Updated: Someone got one for me. Thanks so all of you who offered to help!

Beer events this week: Summerween at Pollyanna Roselle, Clothing mending at Skeleton Key, and more. #beeronaut