While the independent Goose Island Clybourn Brewpub has offered tours for awhile now, the main Goose Island Brewery has mostly just been open for special events. That changes later this month. Goose Island has spruced up its brewery at 1800 West Fulton Street and it’ll be offering brewery tours of the space, plus opening a slick new tasting room. We got a peek of the space last Friday, drank some beers and went on a tour.
The tasting room will be open 2–8pm on Thursday and Friday and noon–6pm on Saturday, though hours will probably change after they’ve worked out any kinks. Expect eight beers on draft, plus a cask. There will be ubiquitous beers like 312 and IPA, plus brews unique to the brewery, like the refreshing My Shout, made with Australian sparkling ale yeast. Every third Friday, they’ll pour a version of Bourbon County Stout, and each Saturday, they’ll pour a sour beer. They’ll also offer growler pours to go.
The brewery tours, which last 45 minutes, will be offered hourly between 2–5pm on Thursday and Friday and hourly from 1–4pm on Saturday. The tours will cost $12, which includes beer samples and a pint glass to take home. You’ll need to sign up for the tours online, and since they’re limited to 10 people, make sure you do it early.
The tour covered a lot of ground in a short time—it included visits to the wild fermentation room, where Sofie and Matilda are made; the innovation room, where brewers work on special beers for the taproom; a deck that overlooks the brewing operation; and the barrel aging warehouse, which is located across the street and filled with wine barrels and bourbon barrels for aging beer. Plus, we had samples at each stop—it’s enough beer for a slight buzz, but not so much that you won’t retain anything you learned.
The new tasting room and tours are slated to open at the end of March, but we’ll update with an exact opening date when we have it.