Sierra Nevada brought 5 beers to the party including Ovila and their Homegrown Estate IPA (pictured)
Blarney Stone is one of those places that does a great job of catering to the two subcultures on the local beer scene. It balances serving beers that the craft beer lover can appreciate , without alienating those that still drink mass marketed macro brews. This is a role important to the growth of the craft segment because lets face it, craft beers and craft beer parties are alot more fun. A good way to create a bridge into the much more awesome world of beer from small, independent breweries..is to bring a party with 60 world class beers for all to enjoy. The Winter Solstice was exactly that as this beer festival in the south burbs allowed pub entry for everyone, with the option of purchasing tickets if you wanted to take part in the fest.
We were last here for the Summer Solstice, an affair that extended into a huge tent along the side of the building and, the outdoor patio. That party was easily the best I’ve ever been to in Oak Forest. During this four hour fest we sampled 15 of the 60 brews. We also made some friends near the east section of a packed pub where the band was playing and, made a toast to the fact that there were still awesome beer events to be had this late into the year.
Two Brothers Resistance IPA on cask!
One of my favorites on this day was the Resistance IPA on cask from Two Brothers Brewing in Warrenville. This beer was a big reason why we only tried 15, we kept going back for more. Brandon -The Windy City Distributing Rep who was pouring all the Dos Bros offerings mentioned that this was one of the few times they ever put Resistance in a firkin. The IPA is aged 4 weeks in French Oak Foudres. I love the flavor profile on this one. Its sweet, mild and sessionable for a beer near 7% ABV . The mellow, oak aged character, the aroma of pine and citrus all played well together. Its medium body and light carbonation made it one of the beers I would refer people to when asked. The clear copper color and smooth finish made it made very approachable for patrons looking to step outside their comfort zone
Friends of Blarney Stone & Crispin Cider
The party was spread out into 3 different sections of the building and, much to my delight there were women who love beer everywhere! The ladies of Blarney Stone shared some of their upcoming plans for this pub and restaurant that has over 40 taps in house. In the near future they will be using their 2 party buses to launch a series of local brewery tours. There are also plans to bring a beer and food pairing to the pub around Valentines Day…Stay Tuned! (subscribe to the CBG calendar for all the forthcoming details)
This event was loaded with several dark ales, barleywines and stouts. Heres a quick run down of the other beers we enjoyed at Winter Solstice.
The Vixen Sam Adams 8%ABV Chocolate Chili Bock
Krampus Southern Tier 9%ABV Imperial Helles Lager
Iniquity Southern Tier 9% ABV Black IPA
Estate Homegrown Sierra Nevada 6.7 ABV IPA
Big Eddy Leinenkugal 9.5% ABV Russian Imperial Stout
Vida y Muerte 5 Rabbit 6.3% ABV Muertzenbier
5 Vulture 5 Rabbit 6.4% ABV Oaxacan Dark Ale
Delirium Noel Brouwerij Huyghe 10.5% ABV Belgian Dark Ale
Northwind Two Brothers 9.5% ABV Russian Imperial Stout
Resistance Two Brothers 7% ABV Oak Aged IPA
Bare Tree Two Brothers 11% ABV Barleywine
Double Cream Bells 6.1% ABV Sweet Stout
Hinterland IPA 6.8% ABV
Ovila Sierra Nevada 7.5% ABV Abbey Dubbel
–Nkosi
The Blarney Stone is located at 15400 S Cicero Ave in Oak Forest. It has been family owned and operated for 18 yrs. Blarney Stone has over 40 beers on tap and 80 bottles.
For more scenes from Winter Solstice at Blarney Stone be sure to visit our facebook page (dont forget to hit the like button)
Blarney Stone Owner Kim K (left)
