Robin Shepard
Milwaukee County Stout—one of the most memorable beers of the festival.
The 11th annual Isthmus Beer and Cheese Festival has come and gone, drawing more than 130 brewers and a sell-out crowd of 6,000 on Jan. 18, at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison. Here are a few standouts from the day and some newsy tidbits picked up from chatting with brewers.
The Explorium Brewpub of Greendale brought its Milwaukee County Stout, a rich imperial take on the style. This full bodied, sweet dark ale is aged 14 months in Maker’s Mark bourbon barrels. This beer has rarely been seen outside of its taproom and never before in Madison. The Explorium announced the beer will be released for the first time in 22-ounced bomber bottles on January 25, at the brewpub. Owner Mike Doble was on hand pouring; he says he plans to step-up distribution into Madison this spring.
Erica DeAnda of Tumbled Rock Brewery and Kitchen brought a raspberry imperial stout that was among my favorites from the day, with smooth dark chocolate malt character, fruity raspberry sweetness and warmth from its 9 percent ABV. Tumbled Rock opened this fall in Baraboo; this was DeAnda’s first appearance at the fest.
Another first-timer was G-Five Brewing Company. The Beloit brewery brought its Lava Glaciers, an imperial stout made with 100 pounds of almonds and four pounds of cocoa nibs in every 10-barrel batch. It was the first time the beer has been offered outside of the taproom. The beer, full-bodied, soft, with nutty sweetness, was among the most enticing stouts of the day.
For several months the Potosi Brewing Company has been working on a new IPA to replace its Hopsmith. Fest-goers were introduced to the brewery’s Juicy Imperial IPA, loaded with tropical character from orange and grapefruit flavors coming from a blend of Cascade, Mosaic and Columbus hops. The brewery plans to start producing it by summer in 16-ounce cans.
Another hoppy favorite was Golden IPA from Duluth’s Bent Paddle Brewing Company. This American IPA stood out for its hop aroma and clean citrus crispness. It’s made with a blend of seven different hops: El Dorado, Centennial, Glacier, Sovereign, Columbus, Tomahawk and Zeus. Bent Paddle will be stepping up Madison distribution this spring, and this is among its beers to watch for in 12-ounce cans.
Robin Shepard
Lupulin Brewing from Big Lake, Minnesota.
Another of my hoppy favorites came from Lupulin Brewing of Big Lake, Minnesota. Its Blissful Ignorance double IPA was a juicy, hazy take on the style, and strong at 9 percent ABV. The brewery’s motto, “Work Sucks, Drink Beer” seemed to capture the collective mojo of those attending the Saturday festival.
Rock County Brewing’s Dunkles Bock, a German-style lager, offered a pleasant clean malt sweetness that seemed to be looking for a soft classic cheese like the Trappist monk-inspired Belaire Port Salut-style cheese from Hoard’s Dairyman. Luckily it was offered in the adjoining booth. This was my favorite pairing of the day.
Pink Lemonade IPA from Untitled Art of Waunakee didn’t last much past the VIP session hours. Its pink lemonade character reflected the use of Lemondrop hops and an infusion of lemon juice.
Cideries were also featured. My pick was Wisconsin Old Fashioned from Brix Cider of Mount Horeb. This cider is made with Door County cherries, dried orange peel and orange bitters, leaving the impression of an iconic Wisconsin old fashioned. It’s a new cider from Brix, introduced at the festival. Brix intends to start offering it in local stores in 500 mL bottles this February.
The festival also attracts many small breweries that don’t often get the attention they deserve in Madison taphouses. From southwestern Wisconsin, Hillsboro Brewing Company brought its sweet and nutty take on a porter called Peanut Butter & Jelly Joe. Driftless Brewing Company of Soldiers Grove matched its creamy Cow Cult milk stout that’s made with organic lactose with candy chocolate balls. From the small Ahnapee Brewery of Algoma, brewmaster/owner Nick Calaway served his Two Stall Squared. This new imperial chocolate milk stout should be hitting Madison shelves in the next two weeks. It has full-bodied, smooth chocolate sweetness and alcohol warmth and it’s worth watching for on local specialty beer shelves come February.
Robin Shepard
Brewer and owner, Mike Brenner, of Vernacular Brewing Company.
Big, full-bodied stouts seemed to be everywhere during the event. Among the standouts was Daemon King from Milwaukee’s Vernacular Brewing Company. This imperial stout had incredible smooth sweetness from a big chocolate malt bill, coffee, molasses, honey and vanilla beans. It’s aged 12 months in Heaven Hill bourbon barrels. This is a big beer at 12 percent ABV.
Ale Asylum’s Baltic Porter was a surprise I discovered by asking, “Have anything hidden away and not listed in the program?” While similar to Common Thread 2017, this take has been tweaked to showcase deep dark chocolate maltiness. This beer has been offered in the Ale Asylum taproom; however, it won’t be around long because the brewery made just one small batch.
One Barrel Brewing’s Winter Break is a robust imperial stout aged in Heaven Hill bourbon barrels. It should just be appearing this week in the Atwood Avenue brewpub.
On the dessert side of festival treats, Barrel 41 of Neenah served Cinnamon Roll Crunch. This milk porter is brewed with cinnamon and vanilla and meets the definition of a pastry or even breakfast stout.
Barleywines were plentiful. Among my favorites was Clifford from Bare Bone Brewing in Oshkosh. It’s a deep reddish-bronze American barleywine, spicy and sweet from 10 months of aging in maple syrup bourbon barrels. Giant Jones Brewing Company unveiled its British-style barleywine that’s just been released by the brewery in the past few weeks. Vintage Brewing Company brought Grain Train, a beer made to celebrate the brewery’s 10th anniversary; it stood out for its orange sweetness from Kveik yeast. Another barleywine was at the top of my fest favorites: Feral Fox, an English-style barleywine from Fox River Brewing Company. It’s fermented with Brettanomyces that lends a touch of sourness. Brewmaster Andrew Roth thinks the Brett can give drinkers “a sense for how barleywines may have historically tasted.”
