Beer! Beer! Beer!

One of my favorite things in the world is beer. I'm not talking about Corona or Budweiser (though I can get down with a cheap beer every once in a while), I'm talking about good, high-end craft beer. Because of that, I plan on reviewing beers I try out every so often on here. We're pretty blessed in Chicago in terms of craft beer availability; not only do we have great local breweries, but brewpubs are becoming more and more popular as well as craft beer in general!

The Map Room, located in Chicago, IL

One of my favorite bars, The Map Room, offers 26 high-end craft beers on tap, in addition to 200 different brands of beer they have available at the bar. A few similar bars have been popping up all over lately, and I could not be more excited!

A few months ago, I went to Wisconsin for the first time with Andrew and our roommate and found that the Badger State (oh yeah) had many great things to offer- and I'm so sorry for ever having thought otherwise- including a wonderful beer named Spotted Cow.

Spotted Cow is a cream ale made by New Glarus Brewing Company. It's light, sweet, not-too-carbonated and a little yeasty. In other words: perfect! Well, maybe it's not the best beer I've ever had but it's definitely a great everyday beer. I appreciate the fact that it's semi-local, being from the Midwest, not to mention the cute label. I also really like the fact that New Glarus has pairing suggestions for their beers! Here's what they suggest as pairings for Spotted Cow:

Foods: BBQ Grilled Steak Jambalaya Brats Steak Fish Seafood Linguini Limburger Sandwich Burgers Fries Stir Fry Bacon and Eggs Cheese Curds Potato Chips Chicken Sandwich Tilapia Filets Spicy Foods Pork Rinds Reuben Wings Fish Fry Nachos Cheeses: 5-Year Cheddar (Hook's Cheese) Avondale Truckle (Fayette Creamery) Silver Lewis Brick Smoked Gouda Havarti

Spotted Cow is available in 6 packs, Cases, 1/2 Barrels, and 1/4 Barrels.