Craft Beer Week in Underway in Louisville

Calling all beer snobs! Calling all beer snobs! Louisville Craft Beer Week is underway! Don’t worry if you’re just finding out, there are plenty of beer-centered events still to come. Now through September 29th, restaurants, bars, and pretty much anyone in the city that is able to serve alcohol, is celebrating the art that is craft beer.  

Louisville has a reputation for being a city of bourbon lovers, and rightly so in fact. Our city is steeped in bourbon history, being part of both the bourbon and urban bourbon trails.  In recent years however, craft beers, micro-breweries, and organic brewhouses have become exceedingly popular among Louisvillians and are sneaking up the preferential totem pole. The past several years have unveiled a slow emergence of availability of these unique brews, followed with a high supply and demand. This has lead to the popular niche market of craft beer in our community.  With the opening of a variety of beer stores, bars, and restaurants that carry these specific beers, Louisvillians have finally been able to open their minds, palates, and  hearts to what is craft beer.

“Craft beer” is defined as a beer brewed by a small, independent, and traditional brewer. Although those three words are wide open for interpretation, the general idea is pretty clear. Small means under 2,000,000 barrels per year, independent means that no larger than 25% of the company can be owned by big business (like Coors, Miller, or A-B), and traditional means that it’s an “all malt flagship” not using corn or rice to lighten body and increase mass appeal like the big dogs.

If you are on either side of the spectrum, either you are a master cicerones or know nothing about craft beer but just want to try some out, this week’s Craft Week will have something for you. Each night of the week, there are just under ten places to go with craft beer and food pairing specials. One of my favorites for tonight, Wednesday September 26th, is Rocky’s Sub Pub’s Indiana vs. Kentucky Tap Off.  Rocky’s across the river in Indiana has amazing views of downtown Louisville as well as great Italian eats. The restaurant and pub has put together a dueling list of both Bluegrass and Hoosier Ales to go head to head against each other for a battle of Kantuckiana.  Some of the featured Kentucky Ales will be BBC-Zin Saison- Funky Saison ages in Zinfandel barrels, BBC- Boubon barrel Stout Falls City- English Pale Ale Kentucky Ale-Bourbon Barrel Ale-IPA (New Release) Against the Grain-Kottbusser-German Ale with oats, molasses, and honey. Beers from Indiana include- New Albanian Hoosier Daddy-Crimson and Cream Ale Three Floyds Risgoop-Mikkeller Collaberation-Bareleywine Flat12 Moustache Ride-Bourbon Barrel Aged Vanilla Amber Sun King- Grapefruit Jungle- India Pale Ale Sun King-3-Anniversary Ale-Hoppy Black Alt Great Crescent Brewrey-Bourbon Barrel Stout Aged in Woodford Barrels.

Thursday night I have to mention one of my favorite events, Pint Night at Mid City Mall Valu Market. I think the idea of drinking beer while grocery shopping makes the tedious task unbelievably  better. Thursday night from 4pm-7pm you can drink and shop at the same time and keep your pint glass for $3.00. Scott Shreffler and Phil Dearner (Aka BeerPimp) will be sampling their beers for $.25 a taste. Fill your own growler too for only $6.00 with select varieties of BBC and Schlafly beers.

Friday night Westport Whiskey and Wine will be hosting an outdoor event at Westport Village to celebrate Craft Beer Week. From 6pm-9pm you can taste beers from 6 local breweries, get delicious food from some local food trucks and enjoy some live music.

To close out the week, I suggest going on Saturday to the Germantown Shotgun Fest. From 2pm-11pm the Nachbar will host a drinking in the street event with food trucks, Flea Off shops, community awareness booths, and of course a lot of good beer. 

These are only a few of the great events going on for Craft Beer Week. For a full list of everything going on, go to http://louisvillebeer.com/calendar.