Bangers & Lace + Une Annee Collaborative Brew!

Earlier this month, we very subtly hinted at an upcoming collaboration between Bangers & Lace and Une Annee Brewery. And now, we think you’re ready for the big news!

We spent some time tasting through numerous styles of beer — hey it’s our job — before deciding on what was exactly right for us. Eric was on the committee, so you knew it was going learn towards an IPA. And Une Annee pays particular attention to Belgian styles, and that’s when the magic happened and the Bangers & Lace + Une Annee ISA was born.

Our ISA (India Saison Ale) is an IPA brewed with Saison yeast — so it’s totally drinkable in mass quantities — just in time for summer and Chicago’s beloved patio season.

Our collaborative brew will be regularly available at Bangers & Lace, but you can also find it in select retail spots — you know, just in case you can’t pry yourself away from your episodes.

And save the date for the Release Party on April 1st — no foolin’ — when Une Annee takes over our famous Chalkboard 6 Pack!

Special Guest: The Lagunitas Couch

We’re tapping a special delivery of Lagunitas’s Fusion Ale Thursday, March 20! It’s a Brownish Ale, made with music fest goin’ beer lovers in mind. And one of our own music fest goin’ beer lovers -- you remember Eric, right -- will be spinning Blues/Psych/Funk & Fusion tunes all night.

And the couch featured in that very cool video we posted up there? It’s become the unofficial mascot of the Lagunitas team, having traveled from California to DC to Nashville to Austin. The couch will be at Bangers & Lace tonight, too, along with some of the Lagunitas crew making their way back from SXSW.

Stop by, raise a glass, have a seat...you know the drill.

Chicago Reader's Spring Cocktail Challenge

Remember when Nick killed it in Chicago Reader’s biweekly cocktail challenge? Oh, sure you do, because he made you do what no one else has ever convinced you to do: consider mixing up a cocktail with Miracle Whip in it.

In the spirit of a little healthy competition, The Chicago Reader throws a cool bash that brings together the crème de la crème of Chicago mixology, this time letting them use non-gross ingredients, pitting their best cocktails against one another.

On Friday, March 21st, we’ll be rooting for our own Nick O! He, along with a bunch of cocktail-making peers, will be mixing up a fabulous Spring-inspired cocktail. So ditch those plans to chug green beer with the college students, because you could be enjoying an array of grown-up green cocktails instead (the theme is green and we’re betting more than a few bartenders will opt for matching that shade).

While you’re busy sampling the 20 mixologists' best springtime libations and deciding who pulled off the most impressive drink, you can also enjoy complimentary wine from City Winery, beer from Shiner, and bites from Chop Shop.

Grab your tickets here, so that you can join us in Nick’s cheering section. Not convinced? Check out the video from the Fall 2013 event to see how much fun we had at the last one!

Bangers & Lace + Une Annee Brewery

We’re brewing up some trouble with Une Annee! Details coming soon...

On Tap This Week

Ronnie Higgins Guests Bartends! (Tuesday, February 18)*

We’re finally getting around to our staff holiday party, because it’s oh...February. But we wouldn’t be so cruel as to close up shop entirely just because we’re taking a little time off. We called Ronnie Higgins — a trusted friend — to babysit you man the bar. He’s been busy over at The Revel Room, but we promised we’d pay him in bangers.

Which brings us to our next point: our kitchen will be closed tomorrow night, but we called a food truck near and dear to us — Chubby Wieners will be onsite to fulfill your need for encased meats.

*Tuesday hours: 4pm-2am

George Dickel (Thursday, February 20)

The best medicine for cabin fever is a shot — of Dickel. We’re serving up $7 George Dickel Tennessee Whisky pours — including rocks and highballs — and $8 George Dickel Manhattans.

Meet and Greet with 4 Hands Brewing Co.

Barrel aging is all the rage, but we all knew that already, didn’t we? This Wednesday, we’re adding to the hype when we host a Meet & Greet with the Founders and Head Brewer behind 4 Hands Brewing Company, from St. Louis, Missouri. They’re making beers inspired by the American craft movement that push the limits of creativity, particularly via a barrel -aging program that will knock your socks off.

Meet & Greet with 4 Hands Brewing Company

Wednesday, February 12th

7pm

We’ll have six 4 Hands Brewing Company beers in our Chalkboard’s six-pack! Notables include (but not limited to):

Cuvee Ange

Inspired by the French Oak wine barrels that once housed all French wine varietals, fermented with wild yeast and aged in a combination of Cabernet, Merlot, and Grenache barrels with raspberries and blackberries. Cuvee Ange is a fruity, tart, complex ale that pours a bright rose with aromas of fruit, funk, and wood.

Beyond the Bricks

This new debut, a Belgian Strong Golden Ale, is aged with apricots in Chardonnay barrels.

Cheers, Cristiana!

Cristiana DeLucca isn’t exactly a new face around Bangers & Lace, but we thought you needed a little pick-me-up in the middle of this snow-filled and freezing Winter. Cristiana is no stranger to the service industry, but she spent a bulk of her pre-Bangers & Lace career at the notable cocktail haven, The Drawing Room. She began her stint as a server, absorbing everything about the place before the siren’s song of cocktailing lured her behind the stick. She apprenticed under Charles Joly for years, and when he moved onto greener pastures, Cristiana took over his position as Beverage Director.

Some time later, when Cristiana knew it was time to move on to a new spot, she put her beer goggles on —  as in, she wanted to learn more about beer — and what better place to settle down than Bangers & Lace?

After asking a fair amount of questions and trying everything that was put in front of her, she’s got an awesome handle on her beer game. Right now, Cristiana is particularly fond of Sours and Imperial Ales and isn’t naturally drawn to the super-hopped styles — we expect Eric has something to say about that — though she’s constantly trying to test her palette with challenging spirits and styles.

Cristiana calls herself a “situational drinker” so while she’s got a rhyme and reason to her personal booze selections, there’s no definite favorite in the mix, though she does admit to going for something a bit bigger (like lines 20-26 on the chalkboard) when she’s got the night off.
Educating drinkers and spreading good taste is not something Cristiana takes lightly, she’s also a Portfolio Embassador for The Back Bar Project, where she orchestrates recipe sharing, tastings, 
education and training.

You’ve got three chances every week (Wednesday, Friday and Saturday) to grab a cocktail from this master mixologist and expert beer provider!