It’s with sadness that we recognize the passing of two craft beer publicans.  Ric Hess, the owner of Sheffields in Chicago passed away suddenly at the age of 48.  From the facebook page dedicated to raising a toast to him:

Ric Hess was the owner of Sheffield’s in Chicago. He was a craft beer fan, a Cubs fan, a writer, …

Ric, passed away suddenly of a heart attack while walking upstairs to his home, located above Sheffield’s. …

As Greg Hall of Goose Island said – “In my mind his was the first craft beer bar. In the early 90s, when imports still ruled, he took a chance on all the crafts, and really pushed Goose and Bell’s in particular, Anyone who opened a brewery regionally went to Ric first and got a handle. He was extremely supportive of the local beer scene.”

Mike Roper, owner of The Hopleaf said – “When most saloons in Chicago poured only Old Style and the like, Sheffield’s was way, way ahead of the curve in offering the best of the emerging American craft beers. He introduced Chicago to Bell’s beers. So much of the aesthetic that I sought for my venture came from what Ric had brought to Sheffield’s.

Monday The 31st of January @ 8pm Central if you have a glass in front of you raise it and toast to Ric.

We also lost a craft beer pioneer in Don Younger.  He was the owner and proprietor of the famous Horse Brass pub in Portland.  Jay Brooks at Brookston Beer Bullitin wrote a very nice remembrance that I encourage you all to read.

from oregonlive.com

Cheers to two craft pioneers that will be missed…

According to Ratebeer.com’s annual amalgamation of ratings and special beer geek metrics, we are the best brewery in the world for 2011.

RateBeer Best 2011 — AWARD RESULTS

January 27, 2011
(Santa Rosa, CA) This is my favorite time of year. We get to take some time in order to honor many of our favorite people in the beer industry. Because without all the people behind the beer, behind the distributors and behind the retailers, we really are nothing. The people out there that are doing the hard work to put beer in our glasses have truly earned our recognition. It’s my great pleasure to announce the results of RateBeer Best 2011.

Nearly 3 million times, RateBeer beer reviewers worldwide have raised a glass to review a new beer. We have tallied those scores and now present them as our competition results.

RateBeer Best was again the largest beer competition in the world — 130,000 beers from over 10,000 brewers worldwide were tallied. A particular emphasis was placed on tastings from the last year’s performance. Additionally, brewpubs, bottle shops, restaurants and bars from around the world were awarded prizes. Cheers to all the winners and to everyone who keeps the world of craft beer growing as a fun, cooperative community devoted to excellence.

In their top 100 beers we have Dark Lord at #7, Dreadnaught at #22, Barrel Aged Dark Lord at #25, Vanilla Bean bourbon barrel aged Dark Lord at #35, and Behemoth at #76.

Additionally, in their style breakdowns, Admiral Lord Nelson is #5 in the category of ESB, Dread #4 in IPA, Darklord #5 in stout, Behemoth #4 in strong ale, and Alpha King #1 in American Pale with Cenotaph creeping up to #4 in the same category.

Also of note is the brewpub clocking in at #36 for best brewpubs in the world.

read more here

Our new Chef Mike Sheerin, was recently challenged as part of the Reader’s Key Ingredient series where chefs challenge each other to make a dish using an unusual ingredient.  Read about Mike’s dish using Guaje seeds here, and watch the video from Sky Full of Bacon’s Michael Gebert below.

Sorry Folks, just a friendly reminder.  Back to normal on the 29th.

Recently on ABC 7, Chef John State from Seasons 52 restaurant in Schaumburg, made some buffalo chili featuring Robert the Bruce.

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?section=resources/lifestyle_community/food/recipes&id=7881043

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/video?id=7883168

Ladies, please try not to stop Cool Breeze on the street for autographs.  He doesn’t care for the paparazzi and public glamor that this job inevitably brings with it.  We will hopefully post a link to the piece once it airs.

January 22nd is the 13th Annual Chicago Beer Society Brewpub Shootout.  Our new chef, Mike Sheerin, formerly Chef de Cuisine of Blackbird, will be serving up delectable tidbits paired with our very special beers.

As a result, we will all be busy and unavailable for Brewery Tours.  Thank you for your understanding.