Oct. 02--What it is: BrickStone Brewery asserted itself as a serious player in 2012 when it won an unlikely bronze medal for its American pale ale -- simply called Brickstone APA -- at the World Beer Cup, one of the world's pre-eminent beer competitions. The hype was confirmed when Brickstone APA won an even unlikelier gold medal at the nation's other major competition, the Great American Beer Festival, later that year. Brickstone APA appeared occasionally on draft or in bottles in the following years. But now that Brickstone has launched a production brewery in its hometown of downstate Bourbonnais, its award-winning APA will be available in abundance.
In the can: A top-flight APA doesn't need to do a lot, but it needs to do it well -- and Brickstone APA does it. An initial burst of peppery bitterness gives way to attractive citrus notes, namely mango and grapefruit. Brickstone APA winds up with a clean, bitter finish, but accompanied by a lingering juicy sweetness.
Alcohol: 6.25 percent
Drink it with: The food should be kept simple for hop-forward beers, and preferably with something relatively neutral and a bit fatty. Therefore: a thick and juicy burger.
Find it: Brickstone APA is available in six packs of 12-ounce cans at better beer stores and is reliably on tap at the BrickStone brew pub in Bourbonnais (557 William R. Latham Sr. Drive; 815-936-9277).
More information: www.brickstonebrewery.com
jbnoel@tribune.com
