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For this year's Bourbon County beers, Chicago's Goose Island is returning to what made the brewery the OG in the first place: its barrels.

What to know: Bourbon County Brand Stout debuts on Black Friday — an unofficial beer holiday — and easily ranks as the most widely anticipated beer release each year, writes John Frank, our resident beer nerd at Axios Denver.

The lucky Chicago-area beer fans who won the Prop Day lottery get an early preview this weekend.

What's new: The 2021 lineup features the original stout — the first-ever bourbon-barrel aged beer — and seven limited-edition variants. 

The beers are winning rave reviews for the refined wood and spirit characteristics imparted by the barrels from distilleries that include Old Forester, Blanton's and Elijah Craig.

This year's Proprietor's Stout — a rare and "special beer for Chicago," the brewers say — is inspired by the classic strawberry shortcake ice cream bar, blending fruit, coconut and vanilla combined in a decadent liquid treat.

💭 John's thought bubble: In a virtual tasting with Goose Island's beer wizards, three editions of this year's Bourbon County stouts stood out:

Bourbon County Stout: The original this year is the best I remember with strong baker's chocolate and vanilla notes that make it silky. It's also intentionally lower in alcohol at 14%.

Reserve Blanton's: The beer rested for 18 months in barrels that once held the much-hyped Blanton's Original Single Barrel Bourbon. A sip reveals a maple note that compliments the oak and tobacco flavors.

Double Barrel Toasted Barrel: The expression of the barrels from Elijah Craig barrels is more prominent than any other variant and features rich flavors of marshmallow and dark fruit.

Between the lines: The quantities released of each Bourbon County are small, so expect Black Friday lines at specialty shops and big box beer retailers that get allocations.

The most easily available bottles are the original, as well as the Classic Cola, Fourteen and Cherry Wood variants.

If you find the Reserve 150, Reserve Blanton's or Double Barrel Toasted editions outside Chicago, you essentially won the lottery, so enjoy.

2021's biggest beer release is all about the barrels

Bourbon County Brand Stout easily ranks as the most widely anticipated beer release each year.

The lineup of 2021 Bourbon County Brand Stout from Goose Island. Photo courtesy of Goose Island

The lineup of 2021 Bourbon County stouts. Photo courtesy of Goose Island

For this year&#x27;s Bourbon County beers, Chicago&#x27;s Goose Island is returning to what made the brewery the OG in the first place: its barrels.What to know: Bourbon County Brand Stout debuts on Black Friday — an unofficial beer holiday — and easily ranks as the most widely anticipated beer release each year, writes John Frank, our <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="resident beer nerd" data-vars-click-url="https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781493041435/Beer-Lovers-Colorado-Best-Breweries-Brewpubs-and-Beer-Bars-Second-Edition" data-vars-content-id="2243fba7-cd3b-4932-8989-6a0eee6251be" data-vars-headline="2021&#x27;s biggest beer release is all about the barrels" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://rowman.com/ISBN/9781493041435/Beer-Lovers-Colorado-Best-Breweries-Brewpubs-and-Beer-Bars-Second-Edition" target="_blank">resident beer nerd</a> at <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Axios Denver" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/denver/authors/jfrank" data-vars-content-id="2243fba7-cd3b-4932-8989-6a0eee6251be" data-vars-headline="2021&#x27;s biggest beer release is all about the barrels" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/denver/authors/jfrank" target="_self">Axios Denver</a>.<ul><li>The lucky Chicago-area beer fans who won <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="the Prop Day" data-vars-click-url="https://www.gooseisland.com/propdays" data-vars-content-id="2243fba7-cd3b-4932-8989-6a0eee6251be" data-vars-headline="2021&#x27;s biggest beer release is all about the barrels" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.gooseisland.com/propdays" target="_blank">the Prop Day</a> lottery get an early preview this weekend.</li></ul>

Food and Drink

Illinois brewers won 10 medals at last weekend’s Great American Beer Festival, Axios Denver's John Frank reports from Colorado.

Why it matters: GABF is America's premier beer competition, and winning one of the 300-plus medals helps put a brewery on the map.

This year the festival celebrated its 40th anniversary and a return after a two-year pandemic hiatus.

By the numbers: The 2022 contest was the most competitive to date with 2,154 breweries submitting more than 9,900 beers.

Local highlight: Chicago's Maplewood Brewing Co. took home a Gold Medal in the Oatmeal Stout category for its "Fat Pug" beer. 

Fun fact: The Logan Square brewer, which opened in 2014, launched Illinois' first-ever brewery and distillery under one roof. 

Haymarket Beer Co. won Silver in the American-Belgo-Style Ale category.   

On Tour Brewing Co. won Silver in the American Pilsner category. 

Alarmist Brewing took home Bronze in the American-Style Lager category. 

Ravinia Beer Co. won Bronze in the Juicy or Hazy Pale Ale category. 

Plus, several other Illinois breweries took home medals. 

Editor's note: This story was corrected to note Maplewood Brewing Co. took home a Gold Medal for its "Fat Pug" beer, not Fat Pub.

Illinois brewers win 10 medals in national competition

The Great American Beer Festival is the country's premier beer competition.

Photo of guys posing on stage accepting an award. 

 Maplewood Brewing staffers posing on stage with their medal. Photo: John Frank/Axios 

Beer

Illinois brewers won 10 medals at last weekend’s <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Great American Beer Festival" data-vars-click-url="https://www.greatamericanbeerfestival.com/the-competition/2022-winners/" data-vars-content-id="482d88b9-f27f-4d8b-987b-dda86ee17896" data-vars-headline="Illinois brewers win 10 medals in national competition" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.greatamericanbeerfestival.com/the-competition/2022-winners/" target="_blank">Great American Beer Festival</a>, <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Axios Denver" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/denver" data-vars-content-id="482d88b9-f27f-4d8b-987b-dda86ee17896" data-vars-headline="Illinois brewers win 10 medals in national competition" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/denver" target="_self">Axios Denver</a>&#x27;s John Frank reports from Colorado.Why it matters: GABF is America&#x27;s premier beer competition, and <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="winning one of the 300-plus medals" data-vars-click-url="https://www.greatamericanbeerfestival.com/the-competition/2022-winners/" data-vars-content-id="482d88b9-f27f-4d8b-987b-dda86ee17896" data-vars-headline="Illinois brewers win 10 medals in national competition" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.greatamericanbeerfestival.com/the-competition/2022-winners/" target="_blank">winning one of the 300-plus medals</a> helps put a brewery on the map.

Chicago, get ready for one of the most bananas Bourbon County Brand Stout (BCBS) that Goose Island has ever produced. 

Why it matters: BCBS revolutionized craft brewing when it was introduced in 1992, and even though the brewery is now owned by giant Anheuser-Busch, it remains one of the most coveted and refined beers of its kind. 

What to know: Saturday's Prop Day — the release party for the brewery's legendary bourbon-barrel aged stout — features seven variants, none more interesting than the local-only Proprietor's blend.

The 2022 edition tiki-cocktail-inspired stout features banana, coconut, lime and — for the first time ever for the brand — pineapple.

The intrigue: It's a Rorschach test of flavor. In a recent tasting, the panel couldn't agree on which flavor is dominant among the coconut, banana or pineapple, Frank says. 

But it recalled a Mounds candy bar with a smooth thread of banana.

Details: The other Bourbon County stout variants — available nationwide on Black Friday — include the return of a coffee edition for the first time since 2017 and a 30th anniversary reserve aged in four Jim Beam brand barrels with bottles offering different blends.

The lineup "keeps one foot forward while ... giving a little tribute to the past," Goose Island president Todd Ahsmann tells us.

🍺 John's tasting notes: The reserve is a special journey in bourbon barrels, but the Sir Isaac's Stout featuring figs and graham cracker flavoring is the most intriguing — a display in both big flavor and restraint to keep it from becoming too sweet. 

Featuring 10,000 pounds of Black Mission figs, it is aptly named an "adult Newton" after the cookie it evokes.

Goose Island Proprietor's Bourbon County is one crazy (good?) beer

Get ready for one of the most bananas Bourbon County Brand Stout ever produced.

Proprietor's Bourbon County Stout 2022. Photo: Courtesy of Goose Island

Chicago, get ready for one of the most bananas Bourbon County Brand Stout (BCBS) that Goose Island has ever produced. Why it matters: BCBS revolutionized craft brewing when it was introduced in 1992, and even though the brewery is now owned by giant Anheuser-Busch, it remains one of the most coveted and refined beers of its kind.

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Business

The barrel is the star of this year's Bourbon County stouts from Goose Island.

What's happening: The Chicago brewery, owned by Anheuser-Busch, made six variants for its 2023 release that showcase freshly emptied barrels from six much-loved bourbon distillers.

Why it matters: Bourbon County Brand Stout — released once a year in November — is the original bourbon barrel-aged stout and remains a standard-setter in the beer industry.

What they're saying: "We consider the barrel to be an integral ingredient in this beer, as much as the malt, the hops, the yeast that go into brewing and fermenting this beer," Daryl Hoedtke, the senior brewmaster, said at a recent tasting.

Mark your calendar: The Bourbon County celebration starts Saturday in Chicago with Prop Day, the debut of the city-exclusive variant, which this year is inspired by the flavors of rice pudding.

The nationwide release of the other variants is Nov. 24, Black Friday.

What to know: The newest edition is the Angel's Envy 2-Year Cask Finish Stout — aged in Angel's Envy bourbon barrels and Ruby Port wine barrels for a year each, lending a flavor of cherry and spice.

The Eagle Rare edition also is aged two years and showcases hints of vanilla and American oak.

The standard Bourbon County is aged in Buffalo Trace, Heaven Hill, Four Roses and Wild Turkey barrels.

The intrigue: For the second consecutive year, bananas are the featured ingredient in one edition. The Bananas Foster Stout was first released in 2017 as a Proprietors Stout only available in Chicago, but now it's going national.

💭 Thought bubble: My favorite sip is the Backyard Stout, which is finished with a blend of mulberries, boysenberries and marionberries.

The tartness of the fruit blends nicely with the barrel tannins and cocoa sweetness of the beer.

Taste test: Goose Island's 2023 Bourbon County stouts

Bottles of Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Stout

Goose Island's 2023 Bourbon County Brand Stout lineup. Photo courtesy of Goose Island

The barrel is the star of this year&#x27;s Bourbon County stouts from Goose Island.What&#x27;s happening: The Chicago brewery, owned by Anheuser-Busch, made six variants for its 2023 release that showcase freshly emptied barrels from six much-loved bourbon distillers.

Credit: Data: Brewers Association; Table: Thomas Oide/Axios

Illinois' largest craft breweries rebounded in 2021, just a year after the pandemic walloped the industry.

The state of beer: Revolution Brewing, the state's top craft brewery, saw a 10% increase from 2020 sales last year, according to an exclusive Axios analysis of data from the Brewers Association.

Maplewood Brewing boasted the highest increase, at 19%.  

West suburban Two Brothers Brewing decreased 1.5%. 

The big picture: The craft beer industry grew by 1% in 2021. In Illinois, 17 breweries opened; seven closed.

Revolution placed 38th among the nation's largest 50.

Wisconsin's New Glarus Brewing placed 12th.

Between the lines: The annual data — published in the New Brewer journal — is the most comprehensive breakdown of Illinois' craft beer industry.

Yes, but: Not all craft brewers are represented in the rankings, because some don't submit data to the industry's trade group, the Brewers Association.

Our analysis looked at sales from breweries, brewpubs and taprooms, but excluded contract brewers and non-independent breweries.

What's next: The association's Bart Watson, who compiled the data, says 2022 is producing mixed results. Industry growth is projected near 5%, though inflation on the cost of raw goods, particularly grain, has been a challenge. 

IL craft breweries rebound

Revolution Brewing, the state's top craft brewery, saw a 10% increase from 2020 sales last year.

Illinois&#x27; largest craft breweries rebounded in 2021, just a year after the pandemic <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="walloped the industry" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/2021/04/07/craft-beer-pandemic-sales-slump" data-vars-content-id="dbf67fc5-4f5b-4855-8a51-efe7c6c8f25c" data-vars-headline="IL craft breweries rebound" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/2021/04/07/craft-beer-pandemic-sales-slump" target="_self">walloped the industry</a>.The state of beer: <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Revolution Brewing" data-vars-click-url="https://revbrew.com/" data-vars-content-id="dbf67fc5-4f5b-4855-8a51-efe7c6c8f25c" data-vars-headline="IL craft breweries rebound" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://revbrew.com/" target="_blank">Revolution Brewing</a>, the state&#x27;s top craft brewery, saw a 10% increase from 2020 sales last year, according to an exclusive Axios analysis of data from the Brewers Association.

John Frank

Featured stories

Taste test: Goose Island's 2023 Bourbon County stouts

Goose Island Proprietor's Bourbon County is one crazy (good?) beer

Illinois brewers win 10 medals in national competition

IL craft breweries rebound

2021's biggest beer release is all about the barrels