From the latest Friends with Benefits newsletter (5/29): Available beginning this morning (Castle Vav & West Lakeview Liquors): Glaucus - A Belgian Style IPA, 8.0% ABV, dry and refreshing, just in time for this heat! $8.99 / 22oz Blood of the Unicorn, 8.5% ABV - Imperial Hoppy Red Ale, mega piney hops on this guy! $9.99 / 22oz Opening of their own bottle shop currently targeted as an 'August/September opening date.' Great to see good stuff continuing to come out of Pipeworks.
Not yet. Wanted to take some of it out on Lake Michigan Sunday but forgot- should get into some of it tonight!
Drinking a Smoked Porter right now, and while it's not my favorite style, it's done well enough for me to down a whole bomber by myself. Excited to try the new ones!
stoked to try Blood of the Unicorn. wasn't a fan of the original EOD, but I thought the newest version was fantastic.
Agreed - the blue wax End of Days is 100% better than the first batch. Blood of the Unicorn and Glaucus are both pretty tasty as well. I also hear the upcoming Barrel Aged Smoked Porter bottles will have more whiskey flavor to them.
Chillin at GI after picking up my bottles. Really excited for these. Also I have to say blood of the unicorn label is amazing.
That is my lone complaint about the beer. I love how these guys listen to what we say and tweak the recipes. Class act all the way and it shows they care.
anyone try hyper dog or close encounters? that's sitting in my fridge but i haven't gotten the chance to down them. hitting up san fran/petaluma tomorrow for about 5days. Lagunitas and Russian River here i come.
Gladly got my bottles of Blood of the Unicorn and Glaucus! Can't wait to try these both after last week having Hyper Dog, Close Encounters, and Ninja vs Unicorn. Thank you Pipeworks!
West Lakeview Liquors always gets good-sized shipments of Pipeworks. For those of you that collect glassware, here's another reason to head over there to pick the newest releases...
Even though I'm getting one for being a FwB I'll for sure pick up another. Looks like I have yet another reason to drive into the city this weekend...
The first batch of EoD was the 2nd beer we brewed on an unknown crazy ass system not meant to do what we are doing do it, so there was some dialing in. The 2nd batch of Hyper Dog should be vastly improved also when it comes out in June, similar to EoD improvements. Likewise Jones Dog will also be improved once we brew that again, maybe in July. Today we're brewing more Ninja vs Unicorn since it seems to be sold out of every store except Binny's South Loop who put it in a weird spot in the store while Chris was in Belgium with Vav and they only sold a few cases. Friday we'll be brewing a lovely golden strong ale (not a triple!) that'll be in some 750's, very refreshing beer. Next week we'll be another refreshing brew, the first of many saisons. Also, Close Encounter, happens to be one of our favorite beers we've brewed, we think it's tits. Seems like a black IPA when it's fresh, but after a month or so it really settles in to what it is, a piney hoppy double stout. Binny's Lincoln Park has a fair amount of it since we released that beer twice back to back (not on purpose) and it's on sale right now for a $1off if anyone feels like stocking up...
Stopped by Binny's on Grand last night around 5:30 and there was still a few bottle of Ninja vs Unicorn left. Also saw the Smoked Porter, End of Days, and Close Encounter. Limited quantities of each so no guarantee they're still there. On a side note - great job Pipeworks! Delicious stuff. I can't wait to see how the smoked porter tastes with some age on it.
Just noticed Kristina at West Lakeview Liquors put our beers on sale also and she will ship for people out of the area. http://www.wlvliquors.com/index.php?target=categories&category_id=775
Just opened my bottle of Hyper Dog last night - I liked it and will try to find another bottle to age. Something about vanilla in a beer makes me need to age it to mellow it and make it smoother. I thought some aging (either in the bottle or in a barrel) of Abita's Vanilla Turbodog would have made it a stellar beer. Anyway, the aroma of Hyper Dog was incredible. Was a lot thinner and muted tasting compared with the aroma. Still liked it and look forward to trying more of their beers.
thanks for that. Maria's for 2 weekends in a row had Stone's smoked porter in vanilla on tap. great beer.
What would you guys say is different about the newer EODs? I wasn't crazy about the first go around either, but I'd give it another shot. @Pipeworks - what are you plannin on 'fixing' with Jones Dog? I thought that one was pretty good as is.
It was a brand new system and nothing was dialed in. The beer is now 8.2% ABV opposed to the 6% it was before, it's much much fuller in body, more balanced, and tasty. Personally, big fan of Jones Dog but that one is getting an ABV bump as well and bigger body.
I really enjoyed Nvs.U but my bottle of Close Encounter was absolutely flat for some reason. Looking forward to future releases though.
If you get a spare few hours, head up to Bear Republic in Healdsburg, 30 min or so north on the same freeway the other two are off of. Well worth the side trip.
Thanks Pipeworks! Bought up all I can find of your beer (at a disadvantage living in the suburbs). I have an artist brother and girlfriend (degrees from AAA in Chicago), if you guys ever need anything.
I picked up two blood of the unicorns, a glaucus, a barrel aged smoke porter, and an end of days the other day. Can't wait to try them. I also ready about Froggy Style, a wheat porter, but haven't seen it anywhere. Has this been released?
I love double stouts and I love really hoppy beers, but I am just not feeling them together. To each his own, I guess. I love Jones Dog, Hyper Dog, NvU, and everything else I've tried from them. I referenced the Froggy Style in my post above. It's listed as a wheat porter. I want to try it, but I'm kinda thinking I'll feel the same way. Wheat beers are okay and I love porters, but I can't imagine what a wheat porter tastes like.
Just finished a smoked porter... unique, very good. I wasn't able to get the new EOD but luckily a friend is kind enough to share.
