Brew Madness

I like to think of myself as a beer connoisseur. I enjoy trying all different kinds of beer and ale, especially the local brews and micros. When I travel, I always try out the local beer. There are a lot of good ones out there. Last night, I attended a fund raising event for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. It was called Brew Madness Prost to a Cure! Now, for a beer lover and someone who enjoys giving back and helping out with great causes, this was a perfect event.

There were many booths with beer and ale from all over. Many brewed right here in Wisconsin. Milwaukee isn't nicknamed "Brew City" for nothing you know.  Along side the beer booths were food stations; cheese and meats and many other fine Wisconsin-made food products. A live cover band for entertainment. There was also raffle tickets and a silent auction. I put my name down on one or two things, but didn't have the winning bid. All proceeds from this event go toward the mission of the CF Foundation: to cure and control cystic fibrosis (CF), a life-threatening, genetic disease. Great beer, great food, and a great cause!

At the start of the evening, I set out to sample at least one beer from every booth, and succeeded. Not only were most of these beers really good, but some of the name's of them are pretty clever. At the end of the evening, I was going to pick out my Top 3 favorites. Here's a list of some of the one's I tried:

• Louie's Demise, Milwaukee Brewing Company (Milwaukee, WI)
• Sofie, Goose Island Beer Company (Chicago, IL)
• Hefeweiss, Sprecher Brewery (Milwaukee, WI)
• Ranger IPA, New Belgium Brewing (Fort Collins, CO)
• Wisconsin Amber, Capital Brewery (Middleton, WI)
• Belgian White, Point Brewery (Stevens Point, WI)
• Painted Ladies Pumpkin Spice Ale, Tyranena Brewery (Lake Mills, WI)
• Best Brown Ale, Bell's Brewery (Kalamazoo, MI)
• Hopdinger, O'so Brewery (Plover, WI)
• The Big O, O'so Brewery (Plover, WI)
• Snake Hollow IPA, Potosi Brewing (Potosi, WI)
• Cave Ale, Potosi Brewing (Potosi, WI)
• Dragonfly IPA, Upland Brewing Company (Bloomington, IN)
• St. Patrick's Best, Strangford Lough Brewing Company (Northern Ireland)
• Legbiter, Strangford Lough Brewing Company (Northern Ireland)
• Tail Waggin' Double White Ale, Grand Teton Brewing Company (Victor, ID)
• Victoria IPA, Sonoran Brewing Company (Scottsdale, AZ)
• Abita SOS, Abita Brewing Company (Abita Springs, LA)
• Kruiken, Brouwerij de Molen (The Netherlands)
• Hop Nest Monster Extra Pale IPA, Pangaea Brewing Company (Neshkoro, WI)
• Pulling Boat Pale Ale, Pangaea Brewing Company (Neshkoro, WI)
• Black Douglas Ale, Broughton Ales Ltd. (United Kingdom)

And at the end of the night, I had to choose my favorites. In no particular order, my Top 3 are:

• Tail Waggin' Double White Ale, Grand Teton Brewing Company (Victor, ID). Brewed in the Belgian style, using malted barley, wheat malt, candy sugar and unmalted rye. An excellent addition to any wheat beer lover's beer catalog.
• Black Douglas Ale, Broughton Ales Ltd. (United Kingdom). A dark brown bodied ale with a hint of caramel and burnt toffee.
• Sofie, Goose Island Beer Company (Chicago, IL). A pleasant surprise. A tart, dry, sparkling ale with a hint of citrus almost like a cider, but not. An interesting, champagne-like ale. Very good.

Other favorites not quite making the Top 3: Milwaukee Brewing Company's Louie's Demise, Point's Belgian White, Tyranena's Painted Ladies Pumpkin Spice Ale, and Bell's Best Brown Ale.

All in all a great evening for a great cause!   Cheers!!