-
-
Ad Space
(728 x 90)
Sign up today!
Ale in the family
Two brewing brothers get their kicks tinkering with limited-edition artisan beers.
Like most artists, Jason (right) and Jim Ebel of Two Brothers Brewery finance their passion with reliable money-makers.
From the Warrenville brewery they’ve built from the ground up over the last decade, the Ebels kick out four solid beers year round. Of those, their amber Domaine DuPage leads the pack in popularity and is sold in nearly 100 spots throughout the Midwest (and in most liquor stores and better bars in Chicago). Its success enables the brothers to play around with interesting artisan beers that only get a limited run. In other words, when the 3,000 bottles of a special release like Philosopher’s Stone are gone, they’re gone.
And they went fast. When the tart black saison beer (saison is a Belgian term referencing seasonal farmhouse ales) was released last fall, beer geeks snatched up the whole batch in three weeks. Likewise for 10, the Belgian-style kriek lambic (think sour cherry) that debuted in April: It sold out in less than two weeks. The 10 is the first beer in the Two Brothers Opus series, a project for which the Ebels will release one lambic a year—each year’s beer is a blend of a new creation combined with the lambic that preceded it. The results are as interesting and as complex as beer gets.
In addition to experimenting with special projects, the Ebels also brew beers that are released at each change of season. The Northwind Imperial Stout is a hearty winter warmer, Brown Fox is the perfect brown ale to transition into spring, Dog Days is a golden lager that ushers in summer, and the fresh-hopped Heavy Handed IPA recently hit shelves. The next Opus release is scheduled for late 2008, but in the meantime, the brothers should have plenty to keep them busy.—Heather Shouse
