Robin Shepard
Joe Callow brings his Hopstinguisher and other brews to Madison.
Among the newest beers to appear in Madison are from the Forgotten Fire Brewery of Peshtigo. The brewery is named for the Peshtigo Fire of 1871, “forgotten” perhaps only in comparison to the Great Chicago Fire, which took place on the same day. (Nonetheless, the Peshtigo Fire is still the deadliest wildfire in U.S. history.)
Forgotten Fire beers started appearing in Madison about a month ago. Owner Joe Callow, who also owns Forgotten Fire Winery, is currently making his beer with the help of the Stevens Point Brewery. He’s hoping to break ground on a new 12,000-square-foot brewery in Peshtigo by the end of the year.
His offerings in Madison have included Hopstinguisher, a session IPA, and 5 O’Clock Beers, an amber lager. Others to watch for as this young company increases distribution include Cherry Radler this summer and Stein Hoister, an Oktoberfest, this fall. Callow also intends to use his wine-making experience to develop a line of wine barrel-aged beers.
So far, Forgotten Fire beers seem to have generated only modest excitement in the Madison beer community; however, look for the recipes to be tweaked in the near future. Forgotten Fire beers are available in six-packs of 12-ounce bottles for around $8-$9 each.
Robin Shepard
Lone Girl opens in Waunakee
The first in-house beers from Lone Girl Brewing went on tap June 18.
This Waunakee brewpub opened in early June, serving other local beers. Now that its new brew house is up and running, the initial line of its own beers includes the light-bodied Speakeasy Ale at 5% ABV, a citrus-focused IPA that finishes at 6.5% and a bold, dark, sweet stout that ends up around 5% ABV.
Another Mr. Brews to open
The latest Mr. Brews Taphouse is set to open the week of June 20 at 5251 High Crossing Blvd., on Madison’s far east side. It’s the ninth restaurant for the Wisconsin-based company, which has five other locations in the greater Madison area. “Madison is a very demanding market with craft beers,” says company president Steve Day. The new location is about 3,000 square feet and will feature 64 tap beers and an outside patio that can seat 60. “We typically try to have 60% of our beers be as local as possible,” says Day.
The company is still working on plans for a Cottage Grove taphouse at 425 West Oak St.; Day is hoping that location will be open by late fall.
Beers to watch for:
It’s Berliner Weisse season. Next Door, One Barrel and Parched Eagle all have versions of this old German style on tap right now.
Vintage Brewing is offering Kindled Spirits, a rauchhelles that’s made with German beechwood-smoked malt. There’s a touch of bacon and campfire in every pint; it finishes at 5.7% ABV.
The Great Dane-Hilldale is planning to release a cold-press coffee IPA made with coffee from local roasters Kin-Kin in early July.
