Limestone Brewing Co.

Well this post is coming a bit later than I had planned, but it's getting written none-the-less which seems to be an accomplishment in itself given my motivation these last couple of weeks. Today's post is on a place I've been wanting to try for a while. I stumbled across Limestone Brewing Co. on my way to Fox Valley Mall. I happened to glance over while traveling down Route 59 and the words Brewing Co. caught my eye. When I got home and did a little research on Limestone I got very excited to try it...

Fast forward 4 months to January 21... my first trip to Limestone...

I went to Limestone on a pretty chilly day so I was definitely ready to get into some big beers. This brewery/restaurant is in the far corner of a big strip mall so at first it is kind of hard to find. The sign above the building is pretty big and if you're looking for it, it's pretty easy to see.

Location aside, Limestone has a nice feel to it. It's very spacious inside. Even on a busy weekend I imagine there being plenty of room. There is a central bar area with some high tables and as you get away from the bar you get more traditional tables and booths. The bar is very big and would allow one to comfortably enjoy both food and drink. There is also a giant colorful chalkboard on the back wall that lists all the beers on tap and the food specials of the day. It's very well put together and catches the eye instantly. I started looking at the beer list on the chalkboard before I realized I had a list right in front of me on the drink menu.

Per usual at a new brewery, I ordered a tasting flight. (It's the flight used as the picture for this post.)The taster came with a total of six beers and as the picture above shows they were very generous servings. I generally try not to judge a beer off of a traditional sample, but this flight gave me a pretty decent idea about what some of Limestone's flagship brews have to offer. There were a total of six beers, four of which are available year round and two which were seasonal. The six beers I tasted were Electric Park Gold, Old Chicago Amber, Donndubham English Dark Mild (one of the seasonals), Pilcher Pale Ale, Frostbite (another seasonal), and Dolomite Oatmeal Stout. Overall I was really impressed with the offerings in this flight. I have a whole bunch of notes I took on my phone, but for the sake of time and length I'll just point out some highlights. If I tell you everything I wrote down about every beer I think that takes the fun out of trying them yourself.

The Frostbite really stood out to me because it was one of the least overwhelming spiced beers I've had this holiday season. The cinnamon, orange peel, allspice, and nutmeg all worked really well together. My palette wasn't overwhelmed at any point during the tasting. I felt like this beer was really straight forward. It didn't try to get to fancy with the spices, and made for a nice drink on a cold day. I generally try to avoid spiced beers but this is one I would absolutely come back to. I also really enjoyed the Pilcher Pale Ale. I'm partial to the more citrusy hop varieties, so this pale ale sat really nicely with me. I can't wait to come back for a growler on a hot Midwestern summer day. The Old Chicago Amber was the last brew that I found myself wanting another taste off. I just thought the balance between the caramel malt and hops was spot on. And it wasn't really heavy like some Ambers I've had. It made for another very enjoyable drink. I found myself rationing it as I went about my tasting.

After the flight, we decided to delve into some of the food menu. Eventually we decided on the spinach artichoke dip and quesadillas. Both were really good, but the spinach dip really stood out to me. I loved it and usually I shy away from that dish. I also took it upon myself to try some of Limestone's more unique beer offerings. I don't know the availability of this beer right now, but at the time they had a beer on tap called Ukrainium Krusher, which is an oak aged Russian Imperial Stout. The server informed us that this was a very special beer, brewed in very limited quantities. At that point I had accepted that I would not be leaving without trying this beer.

The Ukrainium Krusher was served in a tulip and had a dark brown, almost black color. Accompanying the opaque color was a whispy tan head that left minimal lacing. The bouquet had hints of bourbon, mostly vanilla, oak, chocolate malt, and caramel malt. The barrels had definitely left their mark on this brew. On first sip, I found this beer to be rather complex. I had a hard time at first placing the variety of tastes. Eventually I narrowed it down to coffee, oak, and chocolate with a little bit of roast rounding out each sip. It was surprisingly smooth given the alcohol content. I thought the chocolate and coffee really balanced each other out well and the oak added to the robust flavor. The aftertaste was mostly roasted coffee with a slight hint of hoppy bitterness. This beer had a very heavy body and minimal carbonation. Overall I thought it was a really solid beer. I really enjoyed the coffee flavors it had to offer, as well as its overall smoothness and I'm actually hoping to go back Saturday to see if they have any left.

The last beer I tried was one called Brew Monkey and it was Limestone's take on the Belgian Trippel style. As many of my friends know, I'm very partial to Belgian styles and I really enjoy trying the different American takes on them. What better beer to end the night on than a trippel? This beer came served in a snifter glass. It poured a clear, dark golden color and had whispy white head that left no lacing on the glass. It had a fruity bouquet, which was to be expected given the Belgian yeast characteristics. I got a nice malty sweetness at the beginning of the taste which was followed by a tart fruitiness and hints of bananas and clove. The aftertaste was mildly fruity, but dissipated to nothing pretty quickly. I don't know if by this time my palette was feeling the abuse from the Krusher but I felt like I wasn't tasting this beer like it was meant to be tasted. It had a medium body and very little carbonation. Overall it wasn't the best beer I had the whole night, but it was an enjoyable brew regardless.

I really enjoyed my trip to Limestone Brewing Co. The food I had was great, and I was really impressed with the variety of beers they had to offer. It's also one of the closer breweries to my house so I feel like I will be getting very acquainted with their beers as the year progresses. Next time I go I hope to try some of their dinner menu. It all sounded fantastic. I also can't wait to dive into some new brews and pick up a growler!

Cheers!