We’re taking our taste buds on a trip down south thanks to listener Crystal Nguyen we get to sample five unique and tasty beers from the Dallas area. There’s a beer that’s even better when sipped, one that might be made with “Skittlemalt,” and one that inspires the singing of “SkaMan.” Also, we’re thinking big for our eventual Texas show; we look for new innovations in leather pants (and stray cat storage); and we’re putting sippy-cup lids on snifters.

Beers Reviewed

Celestial Beerworks [Dallas, TX] - Murphy’s Law (Dark Lager)

Turning Point Beer [Bedford, TX] - Dangerouser Salad (Berliner Weisse w/ blueberry, vanilla, coconut, almond, and granola)

Community Beer Company [Dallas, TX] - Hop Unity: Green Edition (Double IPA)

Bitter Sisters Brewing Company [Addison, TX] - Family Trip (Belgian Tripel)

Peticolas Brewing Company [Dallas, TX] - The Usual (Barleywine w/ cherries, fresh orange peel, bitters and whiskey soaked American oak chips)

We’re flipping to Side B of the 2022-2023 Deep Wood releases for this episode, and it’s a whole lineup of immaculate bangers. It’s two ryewines, one stout, and two barleywines with a bigger emphasis on special barrels and extended wood-aging to create the magic in these 12 ounce cans. Plus, Craig’s looking for new ways to trick his Apple Watch; Ryan will trade you half of an open can of DBVSOJ for a Switch controller; and we get to hear the syrup-drinking story again.

Beers Reviewed (2022-2023 releases)

Ryeway to Heaven (Ryewine aged in bourbon barrels)

Boss Ryeway (Ryewine aged in WhistlePig The Boss Hog VIII: LapuLapu’s Pacific barrels)

V.S.O. Dark Mode (Imperial milk stout aged in bourbon barrels)

Straight Jacket (English Barleywine aged in bourbon barrels)

D.B.V.S.O.J. (Cuvée of barrel-aged English Barleywines aged 1-3 years and rebarreled and aged in Templeton Rye barrels)

More breweries are embracing malt-forward easy-drinking options as an essential part of a seasonal lineup, and the Schwarzbier may be one of the styles seeing the most taplists these days. For this show, we put five locally-made Schwarzbiers through a blind tasting to help us better understand the style and see how subtle variations can make all the difference for our arbitrary rankings. Also, we fit Chicagoland breweries into boy band archetypes; Craig’s going hard on the Schwarz puns; and Ryan tries to assert himself as the young/cheeky one. 

Schwarzbiers Reviewed (Blindly)

Soundgrowler Brewing Co. - No Ice

Skeleton Key Brewery - 7th Evil Ex

Half Acre Beer Company - Schwarzbier

Riggs Beer Company - Schwarzbier

Pipeworks Brewing Company - Select Schwarzbier

Since throwing open the doors to their Lincoln Ave. taproom just a few months back, Hop Butcher has worked to offer some draft variety by stepping outside of the style(s) for which they’re most recognized. For this episode, we got our hands on four cans that are not IPAs to see how well one of the country’s best haze producers can make something for the hop-averse. Also, we say hello (and goodbye) to Winter Break Ryan which opens an unclosable rift between the hosts over crewneck sweaters and turtlenecks. We also consider the missed opportunity of an Italian Pilsner show; Ryan bores the bartender with his old man shit; Craig’s got a bizarre preference with beer and pizza; and we have a bold new marketing plan for HBFTW and the White Sox. 

Beers Reviewed

Cricket Hill (ESB)

Supreme Being (German-Style Pilsner)

Double Saaz (Italian-Style Pilsner)

Magic [Collaboration with is/was brewing] (Saison)