A long time ago in the 1980’s, a guy named John Hall made a trip
across Europe. Along the way, he tried a lot of beers that he thought would be
great to have in the United States. As is too often the case, the story would probably
end there with the phrase, “Yeah, that’d be cool.” But with John, that was not
the case. He was trying to fly home and got stuck in Dallas as all travelers
have at one point or another. John picked up a magazine and started thumbing
through it. He happened upon an article about boutique beers gaining popularity
in the U.S. It changed him forever. John says, “I must be the only person in
history who made a major career change on the basis of a Delta Sky article.” We
should all thank the author of that article and be glad that John was stuck at
D/FW.
In 1988, John started Goose Island Brewery and began making
beer in Chicago. He made some, drank some, and shared some. Eventually, he
started inviting people to watch the process of beer making. He developed a
following with his beers and in 1995, expanded the brewery. A short time later,
he expanded again. His beer repertoire was growing. He pioneered the idea of aging beers in Bourbon Barrels. Thanks for that, brother! He now makes a lot of
different beers. Some are only available at certain times of the year, but
others, like the one I’ve been drinking lately, are available all year round. For
reference there is a beer calendar on their website. As usual, I listed it
below.
John named the Sofie Farmhouse Ale after his granddaughter.
Something I would totally do too. Farmhouse Ale was originally made by farm
owners in Belgium as an easy drinking summer beer for when farm hands needed a
break in the middle of a hot day. Now you don’t have to bale hay and fix fence
line to enjoy a Farmhouse. All you need is a cool beer store. The beer is aged
in wine barrels with some fresh orange peels added. This gives the beer a
distinct citrusy taste without being a fruit beer. You taste all the toasty malt
and fresh hops and the orange is an afterthought. It is crisp and clean,
refreshing and smooth. What a beer!
Sofie the beer is 6.5% ABV and 25 IBUs. Cheers!
Go see more about beers at www.gooseisland.com
See what else is going on at www.talkingsimian.com
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