This content was originally published by The Hop Review, a digital magazine that joined the Hop Culture family in March 2020.
This piece was written by Tom White.
In this week’s Hoplinks, a brewer runs for office, a beer-centric calendar is up for grabs, a major local brewery looks to open a new space, more cease and desist letters are sent, and another Trappist brewery is on the horizon. All of this and more in the latest links below.
SOUTH LOOP, CHICAGO — Curtis Tarver of Vice District Brewing has announced he’ll run for public office as the Illinois State Representative. While we can’t speak to his political policy, we can verify he provides quality conversation over a pint or two. Check out our original interview with Curtis and his business partner Quintin prior to their opening, as well as our more recent follow up as the brewery looks to expand into the ‘burbs. [THR Wire]
LAKEVIEW, CHICAGO — Believe it or not, the holidays are nearly upon us and that means it’s time to start thinking about your shopping list. You can check your beer loving friends off your list right now with Bitter Pops’ Beer Advent Calendar. The curated package includes 24 unique beers, with several additional perks including a limited number of “golden tickets.” If that sounds like your thing, grab one now at the shop or online here. Check out the video below for a closer look at the goods. [THR Wire]
LOGAN SQUARE, CHICAGO — Less than a year after opening “The Dojo,” their onsite bottle shop, Pipeworks plans to open a full blown brewpub in Logan Square. The brewery this week held a community meeting to get feedback on their plans, which was reportedly met with mixed reception from the locals. We’ve seen similar receptions from concerned residents before and the projects have always moved forward, so we’d expect nothing less from Pipeworks. We’re looking forward to this one. [DNAinfo]
HOLLAND, MI — New Holland Brewing Company has made the leap into cans after being a stalwart of the bottle format since their inception in 1996. The company will offer two of their beers in cans starting next month, with a third following in early 2018. The majority of New Holland beers will remain in bottles for the time being. [Holland Sentinel]
BANGOR, ME — Another day, another cease and desist letter sent between breweries. This time, AB owned 10 Barrel Brewing is bringing the hammer down on Maine’s Mason’s Brewing Co. over their use of the word “Apocalypse” in one of the flagship beers. Whatever the result of this battle, it’s brings into questions many other apocalypse themed beers, including 3 Floyd’s Apocalypse Cow and Noon Whistle’s Gummypocalypse. [Bangor Daily News]
USA — The Brewers Association is going on the offensive with a new ad campaign aimed directly at AB InBev. The tongue-in-cheek ad launches a (fake) crowd funding effort to buy out the beer behemoth worth $213 billion. While you may not be able to make a donation to this campaign, head to your nearest local brewery this weekend and help support the cause. [Brewbound]
LEICESTERSHIRE, UK — There may be another addition to the coveted Trappist brewery list in the near future as monks at the Mount St Bernard Abbey in central England have been given permission to build a brewery. If accredited, the brewery would become the first of its kind in the UK and only the 12th Trappist brewery in the world. [Leicester Mercury]
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Photo of wrench and barrel aged beer at Pipeworks Brewing from our 100th interview at the brewery in Fall 2016 — by Jack Muldowney.