This Week's Beer News: Asking About "Black is Beautiful" in 2025
Who's still making this beer?
Weathered Souls, the Texas brewery that launched the Black Is Beautiful beer collaboration project for charity, closed last September. With the progenitor gone and the events of 2020 now approaching five years in the rearview, I wondered this morning: Are any breweries producing a Black Is Beautiful beer this year?
Hundreds of breweries all jumped in to produced their version of a Black Is Beautiful beer in 2020 and 2021. As of today, however, it appears that most brewers have moved on from its production. I scanned a lot of the Untappd entries for Black Is Beautiful beers from many top breweries, and recent check-ins are few and far between. Another unscientific indication: Most of the Instagram posts using the #blackisbeautifulbeer hashtag are from at least 55+ weeks ago.
With many positive things happening for Black brewers and beermakers in Chicagoland — Moor’s and Funkytown have both either just opened or just announced plans to open places of their own, while Turner Haus continues to build its community in Bronzeville — I didn’t want this year’s Black History Month to go without an acknowledgement here.
So far, all I’ve seen is Pilot Project Logan Square pouring Funkytown’s Baltic Porter version. Tell me what I’m missing! Is anyone else in Chicagoland or around the Midwest making a Black Is Beautiful beer this year? Let me know so I can celebrate them later this week.
As we mentioned on Friday, Links Taproom - soon to be Links Taproom and Brewery - is being revived and taking over the On Tour space, as reported first by the Chicago Reader. Per Block Club, they’re going to have the transition complete by the time Phish plays the nearby United Center in mid-July.
Job alert: GO Brewing is looking for a Packaging Operator.
Crust Brewing is taking over Irving Park’s Leader Bar, turning it into Crust Tap Room.
Chicago Magazine published this short profile of Hop Butcher for the World. You may recognize the byline.
The ILCC updated the regulations as it regards how retailers can present alcohol-infused products like boozy ice cream; you can read the full press release here.
Old Bakery Beer Co. hosted their first Meow Market; a portion of beer sales and vendor fees go toward helping a nonprofit that finds homes for shelter cats.
The 8th annual Donut & Beer Festival lands in South Bend in May. Start planning your trip now.
WISH-TV discussed Upland Brewing’s new Taproom Exclusives program.
The Gazette chats with brewery taproom owners to talk about declining sales, with comment from BIT Brewing, Clock House Brewing, Iowa Brewing Company and others.
The Brew Detroit brand has been purchased … and will no longer be produced in Detroit. The company who owns Dark Horse and ROAK picked them up and will be producing their beers in Marshall.
After 20 years with the brand, Bell’s Brewing EVP Carrie Yuenker will leave her role after completing one more Oberon Day.
MLive tells the story of Tahquamenon Falls Brewery & Pub, which has been making beer in the U.P. since the mid-90s. (It takes a while to get to, but the food and beer is pretty good.)
HopCat is back in expansion mode, with the announcement of a new location in Southgate.
The Auburn Hills location of Blue Skies Brewery has closed, but other locations will remain open.
Signs of life: 5,000 beer lovers descended on Grand Rapids this weekend for the guild’s Winter Beer Fest with nearly 500 different beverages available in 20-something temps.
RacketMN looks at five new stouts from Minneapolis-area brewers, including one coffee stout from Elm Creek Brewing that sounds like more coffee than stout.
Less than a year after moving to a new location, Humble Monk Brewing Company announced their impending closure.
The recently-closed Railroad Brewing Company has a new tenant: A bar called Avon Brewing Company Presents ZZ’s Big Top, which will change its name to Big Top Brew House.
From Wisconsin Public Radio: “A new civil lawsuit against Minocqua Brewing Company owner Kirk Bangstad alleges that he has defrauded his donors by using funds raised for his liberal super PAC to pay himself nearly half a million dollars.” The Journal-Sentinel has their own coverage here.
WPR has another indepth story on Bangstad’s many issues, including his PAC paying $333,890 to two organizations with no information about them available.
Six weeks after acquiring Good City Brewing, the team behind Explorium Brewpub announced their plans for the brewery’s three taprooms, including the closure of one of them and a new concept for the east side location called Proprietor’s Table and Taps.
The American hops industry is in trouble. Vinepair looks at why, and what comes next.
Last week’s most-clicked link: Our first tie! An equal number of you were interested in the gueuze I was drinking and the site I ordered it from.
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