Three Floyds was my first craft brewery visit and has remained my favorite.
Brewpub
The food is absolutely delicious. Nick and I had the bacon fat popcorn and white cheddar mac'n'cheese with bacon. As you can see, if it has bacon, I'm on board. Everything on the menu looked scrumptious as well. When we visited in September of last year, they had a special batch of Zombie Dust that was aged in a cask. Yum. If you're not a heavy metal fan, be warned. It's their music of choice.
Brewery Tour
The brewery tour itself was pretty underwhelming, but it's understandable with such a small facility. And it's free! It was about 20 minutes long, and we entered through a garage door to view the facilities. It's a nice add if you're there, but I don't think I'd do the tour again.
Empty bottles along the entrance // Munster Water Tower // The crowd as we wait for our allotment (photos courtesy of NK) // Enjoying Dark Lord on draft
The Day had finally come! I'll admit, even the ticket buying process was intense. Nick and I were prepped at 11:55am, laptops open, ready to click. By 12:05pm, they were sold out. I secured two tickets for Group C. Nick didn't get any. My sister Stephanie and her boyfriend Chester were able to snag some as well. Once we realized we both were going, Steph and I looked online to see what we should expect, and we planned for an awesome day.
I understand, although we were newbies, that DLD isn't what it has been in years past. Veterans always mention that. But I thought it was absolutely phenomenal! And if you make beer as good as Three Floyds does, I'd imagine that word would spread fast, so it's expected that it won't ever be like it was "in the beginning."
Dark Lord Day tickets // Available Dark Lord Variants of 2013
The organization process for getting into the grounds was a bit flawed. It was a process engineer's dream to fix, according to Nick (who does that for a living, ha ha). There was a line to get in weaving almost all the way to Calumet Ave. Everyone started breaking open their beers while they waited, and that was half the fun. You walk along the road and people laid out empty bottles in the grass like trophies, to display what they had the privilege of bringing and trying. Everyone was so friendly and were just there for the sake of good beer. What better crowd could you ask for?
The organization process for getting into the grounds was a bit flawed. It was a process engineer's dream to fix, according to Nick (who does that for a living, ha ha). There was a line to get in weaving almost all the way to Calumet Ave. Everyone started breaking open their beers while they waited, and that was half the fun. You walk along the road and people laid out empty bottles in the grass like trophies, to display what they had the privilege of bringing and trying. Everyone was so friendly and were just there for the sake of good beer. What better crowd could you ask for?
We tried Dark Lord on draft, which was delicious. Many people say they don't really like Dark Lord, they just like to come for the fun. I'd have to disagree. I'm a stout fan, and although Russian Imperial Stout can be a little intense, I thought it was tasty. Yes, its 700 calories a bomber, but it's thick, syrupy goodness.
When we started gathering for our group to get our Dark Lord, we also made a lot of friends. After about a two and a half hour wait, we made it towards the entrance of the brewery. They gave us a scratch off to be able to buy a special barrel-aged edition of Dark Lord. Yes, you still have to buy it, but if you're lucky enough to win a scratch off, the bombers are like liquid gold. The options this year were Port Barrel Aged, Moscatel Barrel Aged, Bourbon BBL with Chilis, and Bourbon Vanilla. Sadly, no dice for any of us.
You can also purchase a lot of their other beers after you receive your Dark Lord. The strange thing was that they had a list of beers available, but they were all abbreviated. For example, GB, ZD, RR, TI. I had some trouble deciphering which was what beer, and with a mix of drinking all day and being flustered, I ordered one of everything. I didn't regret it though.
Overall, Dark Lord Day was an eye opening experience to the amazing world of damn good beer. It was a beautiful day. We ran into a lot of familiar faces. We made new friends. We tried some delicious brews. Could it get any better?
Cracking open our first Dark Lord
Advice:
- Its cash only - bring lots!
- If you plan on trying indulging in as many beers as you can, I recommend a hotel. There are also a lot of bars in Chicago that organize bus rides.
- Get any merchandise when you first come in, as they ran out of sizes as the day went on (if you're into getting tshirts, etc).
- If you're in the area the night before, definitely get your non-Dark Lord beers from the pub. It was a little cumbersome to try and carry two cases all the way back to the car after a few beers.
- Bring a few snacks for when you're waiting in line. And they don't allow coolers, so bring backpacks or smaller insulated bags.
- Bring coozies and smaller cups for tasting
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A few favorites from here*:
Apocalypse Cow: This complex double India pale ale has an intense citrus and floral hop aroma balanced by a velvety malt body which has been augmented with lactose milk sugar. With this different take on an IPA we have brewed an ale that is both pleasing to drink and, once again, “not normal.” 11.0% ABV 100 IBUs
Zombie Dust: This intensely hopped and gushing undead pale ale will be ones only respite after the zombie apocalypse. Created with our marvelous friends in the comic industry. Art by Tim Seeley. 6.4% ABV 60 IBUs
Moloko: This Milk Stout is brewed with a portion of golden naked oats and lactose milk sugar to give it a rounded and full-bodied mouth feel. With a deep roasted and slightly sweet maltiness. 8.0% ABV 30 IBUs
*All descriptions taken from Three Floyds
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