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Owen Ogletree's Brewtopia Brewsletter
August 3, 2021
Owen is founder/editor of Brewtopia.info, columnist for Southern Brew News and Beer Connoisseur Magazine, lecturer at Knoxville's Brewing & Distilling Center, founder/director of the Atlanta Cask Ale Tasting and Classic City Brew Fest, a BJCP National Beer Judge and Great American Beer Festival judge.
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Follow our craft beer adventures...
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- We Are So Ready for a Beer Festival!
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25th-Anniversary
Classic City Brew Fest
Saturday, August 28, 2021
Hotel Indigo's Outdoor Patio & Deck
Downtown Athens, Georgia
We've made the exciting move to Hotel Indigo's covered patio and big observation deck in downtown Athens for Saturday, August 28, 2021. Please join us!
With the breezy outdoor space with plenty of room, we feel that this year's Classic City Brew Fest format will offer a safe environment for attendees to enjoy an amazing array of 50+ exclusive cask ales, loads of local draft beers and special bottle shares. You can't miss this! If you have tickets from the original date, these are still good. If you still need to purchase tickets before they sell out, click the button below. The event benefits the Athens Area Humane Society.
VOLUNTEER: Reply to this email to let Owen know that you'd like to be a volunteer and pour a cask at the event. Volunteers can sip while they pour. It's fun!
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- Northwest Atlanta's Craft Brewery Boom
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By Owen Ogletree
Craft brewery taprooms tend to bring renewed energy to neighborhoods, and the brewery boom taking place just northwest of downtown Atlanta has currently produced nine outstanding beer destinations. Colloquially known as West Midtown and Upper Westside, these rather compact areas of sprawling Atlanta provide a motherlode of memorable brewery tours and tasting experiences. Reserve a nearby hotel room, activate your favorite rideshare app and plan to visit all of these exceptional craft beer artisans.
 Atlanta Brewing Company
2323 Defoor Hills Rd NW
Started in 1993 in an old brick warehouse near downtown, Atlanta Brewing ranks as Georgia's oldest operating craft brewery, and the company remains focused on its heritage and community. 2006 saw the relocation of the brewery to its current Upper Westside digs where patrons can savor exclusive taproom brews and popular flagship beers such as Hartsfield IPA, Homestand Pilsner, Hoplanta West Coast IPA, Soul of the City Pale Ale and ATL Amber. "As Georgia's original craft brewery, we strive to create innovative new products while also respecting classic styles," notes Atlanta Brewing's Christiane Arguello. "It’s our belief not to chase trends unless they align with our core values and passion for brewing. Cheers to 28 years of brewing in Atlanta!"
Bold Monk Brewing Company
1737 Ellsworth Industrial Blvd NW
Since opening its doors in late 2019, Bold Monk has become known as one of the most unique and appealing brewpubs in the country. Bold Monk's space encompasses a European-inspired central bar, bright dining area, cozy rear booths with a view into the kitchen, an upstairs "library" bar, a forested beer garden, and an event-friendly "cellar room" that houses four beer-aging wooden foeders. "The idea of bringing a taste of Europe, in every sense, to Atlanta was the basic inspiration behind Bold Monk." states co-owner and brewmaster John "J.R." Roberts. "From our art gallery, to the bookstore, to our focus on gathering together around great beer and food as a community, we've nurtured the shared spirit of the Trappist monasteries of Belgium." With its horizontal bladder-lined serving vessels, Bold Monk maintains 32 draft beers, including its exceptional Discipline Dubbel, The Way Tripel, Indominus Quad, Shared Spirit IPA and Brother Ivan Imperial Stout. Mouth-watering dishes include European-style pizzas, steak & frites, bitterballen and gourmet sandwiches and burgers.
Dr. Scofflaw's at The Works
214 Chattahoochee Row NW
With a raw attitude of independence, Scofflaw Brewing charts its own path and has received recognition by Beer Advocate, Craft Beer & Brewing and USA Today as one of the best new craft breweries in America. Scofflaw's main facility and taproom, housed at 1738 MacArthur Blvd NW, sits around four miles from the brewery's stylish new Dr. Scofflaw's experimental brewery and taproom in The Works development of the Upper Westside. Dr. Scofflaw's features a 50-barrel brewhouse and a hip, industrial bar pouring a range of exclusive taproom brews alongside Scofflaw's flagship beers. Owners call the place a combination of "laboratory and beer garden" with a set of spaces that include a patio and a large taproom with windows that provide views of the brewhouse. Fox Bros Bar-B-Q plans a food hall and test kitchen adjacent to Dr. Scofflaw's. Craft beer and barbecue? Count us in.
Fire Maker Brewing Company
975 Chattahoochee Ave NW
Fire Maker had the misfortune of opening its doors in 2020 just as COVID lockdowns began. Fast forward to 2021, and the brewery was just named the second best new craft brewery in America by USA Today. CEO Elliott Hall sees the term "fire maker" as an ambitious, motivated person who overcomes challenges and obstacles to achieve success. Fire Maker Brewing's success revolves around its 30 different draft taps that pour an exciting range of beers, seltzers, hard ciders and coffee. Expect classic styles such as an Irish dry stout, maibock, rauchbier and a variety of IPAs. Experimental brews also highlight the impressive beer list, and customers love to imbibe in Fire Maker's accommodating taproom and cedar-lined patio. Plans are also underway for a 4,500 square-foot beer garden. Elliott Hall adds, "When folks come here, we want to give them a memorable experience - one that encourages customers to bring friends and family again and again. With so much variety on tap and so many seating options, we like to think we can appeal to just about anyone."
Monday Night Brewing
670 Trabert Ave NW
This brewery's pioneering, original West Midtown location spawned Atlanta's love for Monday Night's personable brews that include Slap Fight IPA, Drafty Kilt Scottish Ale, Bind Pirate Blood Orange IPA and Han Brolo Pale Ale. The owners got their start by homebrewing after work on Monday nights, which eventually led to the brewery's slogan of "weekends are overrated." Monday Night's West Midtown facility offers a spacious taproom and patio. The brewhouse also produces Monday Night's Hop Hut ales - a handcrafted, small-batch IPA series brewed with an exciting array of malts and hops. "This taproom-only series offers our guests something unique, including New England, West Coast, milkshake and experimental IPAs," explains Monday Night's Stephanie Grant. "We're proud of our Hop Hut series, which has allowed us to share with Atlanta our passion for making some of the best beers in the country."
Round Trip Brewing Company
1279 Seaboard Industrial Blvd NW
Round Trip's 26,000 square-foot brewery opened in February of 2020 with 9,000 square feet of drinking space shared between the taproom, event space and beer garden. Craig Mycoskie, Round Trip's CEO & head brewer, graduated from the University of Georgia back in 2007 and worked at various breweries in Colorado and Texas. With his knowledge and experience, Mycoskie set his sights on returning to Georgia to establish a new brewery that showcases classic German styles. "I believe that breweries that focus on quality in the form of assertive yet well-balanced beers that finish clean are the ones that do best in the long run," Mycoskie declares. "This is a must with the delicate, German-style beers that our customers are enjoying. But, we are not going "full German," which allows us to play around with hybrid styles by using German ingredients and techniques in new American beers. Isar Haze, our hazy IPA that we brew with a hefeweizen yeast and grain bill, is a great example of the experimentation we are doing."
 Photo: Heidi Geldhauser
Second Self Beer Company
1317 Logan Circle NW
Second Self resides in an unassuming office and industrial park between Dr. Scofflaw's and Round Trip. Jason Santamaria and Chris Doyle began the brewery in 2014, followed by consistent expansion and increased production capacity allowing for Second Self beer availability in Georgia, Alabama, South Carolina and even Puerto Rico. Head to the kid-friendly and dog-friendly taproom for flavorful beers and a variety of creative events and food trucks. Santamaria notes, "Our fresh approach to both ingredients and technique ensures a quality craft product, yielding our popular Thai Wheat, A.T.aLe, Havana Night, Molé Porter and many others. With hemp-infused sparkling water Cirrus, Rudi’s Hard Seltzer and other beverages in the works, we're on track to become a one-stop beverage incubator in Atlanta. A selection of our beers made in collaboration with My Abuelas Food, La Fría and El Velorio can now also be found in Puerto Rico."
 Steady Hand Beer
1611 Ellsworth Industrial Blvd NW
The owners of Steady Hand have taken an old warehouse on the Westside and converted it into an attractive and inviting destination for socializing over delicious beer. The taproom offers a "woodland" vibe, 24 taps and occasional live music. Look for house beers that include Cloudland Hazy IPA, Paradise Waits IPA, Flower Business Double IPA, Imperial Coffee Stout, Future Mind Porter and Guava Cake Sour. Through commitment, hard work and patience, founders Brian and Kevin Sullivan overcame all the long hurdles in making Steady Hand a reality. The brewery's name comes from the Sullivan's ancient Gaelic family motto of "Steady Hand to Victory." Brian Sullivan says, "Building our community of fans and supporters of the brewery and becoming a colorful part of the fabric of the community in which we reside is of the utmost importance to us."
Urban Tree Cidery
1465 Howell Mill Rd NW
Urban Tree Cidery, located just around the corner from Monday Night Brewing, produces a superb range of classic and experimental ciders. Urban Tree loves being in the middle of the area's burgeoning craft beer scene and is one of the participating tasting rooms on the Atlanta Beer Bus tours. Urban Tree's founders learned to create ciders at the Cider & Perry Academy in England under the tutelage of world-renowned cider producer Peter Mitchell. Urban Tree's Jackie Annise explains, "UrbanTree currently offers 12 different cider varieties on draft. We are currently the only cidery within Atlanta city limits, and there are only five cideries in the entire state." Annise's flagship ciders include Harvest Apple, Wild On Cherry, Bottoms Up, Orange U an IPA and FC Fan Cider - the official local cider of Atlanta United soccer.
This article first appeared in:
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- Brick Store's New CASK BAR
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Walk to the top of the stairs at Brick Store Pub in Decatur to check out the new cask ale bar that's decorated just like a beautiful section of a historic English pub. Stored in the adjacent vintage cellar room that's kept at 50 F, the cask ales get pumped into pint glasses in the cask bar using authentic hand-pull taps from the UK. Brick Store wants to offer four delicious cask ales on most days from breweries such as Sierra Nevada, Wild Heaven, Good Word, Wrecking Bar and Three Taverns. Expect unfiltered, living ales with soft, natural carbonation that allows the malt and hop notes to shine through. Renovations are still going on in Brick Store's upstairs Belgian bar that will reopen soon.
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 Tantrum Brewing
Folklore Juicy IPA
From our friends at Tantrum Brewing Company in Cleveland, Georgia:
"In March 2018, the Tantrum family-owned craft brewery broke ground in the mountainside of Cleveland, Georgia, seeded by a single dream of creating a community around beer."
Check out Folklore IPA, Tantrum's popular ale that's loaded with El Dorado, Citra and Mosaic hops. The beer bursts with juicy notes of citrusy hop flavor and holds an ABV of 6.4% along with 45 IBUs. It's hazy and wonderfully dry-hopped.
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- 08/28/2021 - CLASSIC CITY BREW FEST, Athens, GA. 25th-ANNIVERSARY. 50+ exciting cask ales, local Athens draft beer booths, live music from Jim Cook, Hotel Indigo food booth and extra-special beers uncapped each hour! Tickets are on sale now.
- 01/22/2022 ATLANTA CASK ALE TASTING. Mark your calendars for one of Atlanta's favorite craft beer fests that's returning in 2022 to the wonderful Bold Monk Brewing.
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UP NEXT...
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Owen Ogletree and Terrapin's Spike Buckowski travel to the windy city of Chicago to report on the city's best craft breweries.
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