Half Acre Brewery Tour

For our next brewery tour, Kristin and I went to Half Acre Beer Company in Chicago this past Saturday in the early afternoon. It was kind of a last minute decision, as we were on our way to Local Option (a Chicago craft beer bar Andy has profiled before) to watch the Notre Dame vs. Stanford game. Even though it was last minute, we're glad we stopped, as it was the best brewery tour we've been on yet.

In line for the tour!

Every Saturday at 1pm, Half Acre admits 60 guests at a price of $10 each to come on an hour and a half to two hour tour of their brewery. Though a little skeptic of the $10 price tag, Kristin and I soon realized this was the single best deal we've come across in a long time. This modest fee gives you a Half Acre pint glass, 3 pints of beer (from which you had 4 options) over the course of the tour, and a very intimate (in a good way) experience with how Half Acre runs their brewery.

First off, let's mention the beer, which I should add is top notch. We each had a pint of Daisy Cutter (American Pale Ale, 5.2%) and Ouija Pilz (Czech Pilsner, 5.7%). Daisy Cutter is Half Acre's most well known and best selling beer, as it should be, sitting just below Three Floyds' Zombie Dust and Hill Farmstead's Edward in my favorite beers in the style.  This was our first time having Ouija Pilz, and I have yet to look at reviews on it, but I thought it was a very delicious and representative take on the style, while Kristin preferred her Daisy Cutter.

Half Acre Daisy Cutter

Our tour lasted about an hour and thirty minutes, though it may have been longer had we not left immediately at its conclusion in order to make it to local option and see the game. The two tour guides (unfortunately I forget their names ) tag-team led us through the typical brewing process, while periodically adding details about what makes Half Acre the place it is. They were both a lot of fun, and made the tour enjoyable and understanding even for those not familiar with the brewing process.

Central Waters Brewer's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout

I can't help but mention our great time at Local Option, where we got to watch the game and I got to enjoy a Central Waters Brewer's Reserve Bourbon Barrel Stout (Imperial Stout, 9.5% - a long time want of mine), and Kristin had a Three Floyds Arctic Panzer Wolf (Double IPA, 9%) All in all a great Saturday, and I highly recommend stopping by Half Acre for some growler fills, cans, or if you are able to, their Saturday tour!