Josh Noel – Page 25 –

Phase Three Brewing, which has produced about 1,800 barrels of beer since launching, will boost production to about 3,000 barrels a year.

Phase Three, one of Chicago’s trendiest breweries, finds a home of its own in the northwest suburbs

January 14, 2020 at 8:34 p.m.

One of Chicago's trendiest breweries finally has a home of its own. Phase Three Brewing, a tiny operation specializing in the fashionable hazy style of India pale ale, plans to...

Metropolitan Brewing co-founders Tracy Hurst, left, and Doug Hurst at their taproom overlooking the Chicago River. Metropolitan is "an exceptional brewery making exceptional lagers," says Adam Vavrick.

Chicago’s decade of beer: The breweries that shaped the city’s craft scene

January 2, 2020 at 9:21 a.m.

In 2010, Chicago was a beer drinking afterthought. Sure, the metro area's dozen or so breweries included a handful of luminaries — Goose Island and Three Floyds, mostly — but...

A worker rolls joints at Cresco Labs in Joliet on Dec. 17, 2019.

How to get high: Tips on smoking, edibles, microdosing and more as recreational weed becomes legal in Illinois

January 1, 2020 at 10:06 p.m.

Not long ago, there was nothing complicated about using marijuana. We simply "smoked weed." We "got high." The great majority of us barely knew a thing more about what we...

Craving: Candy — a dreamy holiday crawl through Chicago’s sweets and confections purveyors

January 21, 2020 at 11:00 a.m.

Whether you're dreaming of sugar plums or chocolate gelt, a gingerbread house heavy with peppermint and gum drop decorations or ribbon candy stuck together in your grandma's cut-glass bowl, the...

Heineken wants you to skip beer in January (but it does want you to drink a Heineken product)

December 23, 2019 at 3:22 p.m.

Here's the state of things for the beer industry: Heineken — yes, Heineken — wants you not to drink beer in January. As consumer tastes trend toward healthier living —...

Bigoli is paired with creamy and sweet squash and a hint of truffle at Flat & Point.

Restaurant reviews speed-round: Quick looks at seven Chicago spots we couldn’t get to in 2019

December 20, 2019 at 1:57 p.m.

In a year notable for dozens of restaurant openings — from the much-hyped and splashy (Cabra and Cira in the Hoxton and Time Out Market Chicago) to the quieter yet...

Beer industry burnout brings lauded Texas brewer to Chicago for a new chapter and a new project, Keeping Together

December 20, 2019 at 1:26 p.m.

You may not have heard of Averie Swanson. But whoever makes your favorite beer is probably quite familiar with Averie Swanson. Swanson, 32, has enjoyed one of the swifter rises...

‘Dank’ Chicago beer will celebrate Illinois cannabis legalization with release Jan. 1

December 16, 2019 at 4:01 p.m.

Revolution Brewing is on board with the cannabis revolution. And, yes, snacks will be served. The Chicago brewery will celebrate Illinois' long-awaited cannabis legalization Jan. 1 with the release that...

Half Acre co-founder Gabriel Magliaro, from left, executive chef for One Off Hospitality Paul Kahan, and Big Star co-founder Terry Alexander meet at Half Acre's Balmoral taproom to work out details of the deal Dec. 3, 2019, in Chicago.

Two modern Chicago icons, Big Star and Half Acre, coming together for new kitchen at the Balmoral Avenue taproom

December 9, 2019 at 5:53 p.m.

Half Acre Beer Co. and taco joint Big Star were collaborating on a beer this summer when Half Acre's Gabriel Magliaro pulled aside one of Big Star's founders to ask...

The new investors in Kings & Convicts includes Richard Mahoney, chairman of the board of The Wine Group, which owns wine brands that include Cupcake, flipflop and Benziger.

Unlikely Ballast Point brewery sale executed with help of wine magnate behind brands like Cupcake

December 6, 2019 at 10:53 a.m.

Since word broke of the craft beer industry's most improbable sale to date — tiny suburban Kings & Convicts snapping up flagging California legend Ballast Point — a basic question...

All Stories