Our Beers


PALE  ALES

Hoppy – Illinois Pale Ale

Loaded with citrus and Cascade hops grown on our property.  Grapefruit aroma, but there’s no fruit in this full scale IPA.  Alcohol By Volume (ABV) 7.0% , International Bittering Units (IBUs) ,125 IBUs



Tube the Creek – Session IPA

A little smoother than one of those super hoppy IPAs.  Something you could drink all afternoon on your tube in the creek. This one is brewed with Simcoe and Amarillo hops, then dry hopped with our own home-grown Cascade hops. ABV – 5.4% , IBUs - 98.7


GRIPA Beer -- Gluten Reduced IPA

This is our regular session IPA (Tube the Creek) treated in the fermenter to reduce the gluten level to less than 20 ppm. Dry hopped with our own home-grown Cascade hops.

 ABV – 6.9%, IBUs – 98.7


Mighty Oak  -- ESB (Extra Strong Bitter) English Pale Ale

Like the mighty oak that stands like an anchor for the brewery on the bank of Hickory Creek, this pale ale serves the same roll for our fall line-up. Heavily hopped in a way to give a lot of hop aroma but without being overly bitter. ABV - 7.1%, IBUs - 19.5 


Collar County Kolsch

No 312 here! This is a clean, fresh beer on the lighter side with a little orange zest thrown in just for fun.  Like “Bill’s Pils”, this is intended to be a beer for folks who don’t normally drink craft beer.  ABV – 5.4% , IBUs - 17.4


Foxxy - Roggenbier

 

Brewed with barley and equal portions of wheat and rye malts. Ours is in the Gose style, so expect sour tartness. This is a good middle-of-the-road beer for those times when you don't want either a dark or a hoppy beer. ABV - 3.8%, IBUs - 24.4


Ginger Radler - Shandy

Our version of this popular German shandy is a 50-50 mix of our Collar County Kolsch and our own home-made ginger ale. This makes it a cool, refreshing summer thirst-quencher, especially after a long cycling ride (“Radler” also happens to be the German word for “cyclist”!)  ABV - 3.3% , IBUs - 17.5  


Red October -- Irish Red Ale

Our first submarine-themed beer, in honor of my proud service as a submariner in the U. S. Navy! A traditional Irish red ale heavily hopped with East Kent Goldings, this is a bold red ale that's perfect for watching sports, fighting cold wars, or just kicking back. ABV - 5.89%, IBUs - 19


Marley's Ghost -- Christmas Ale

Marley's Ghost is a major character in Charles Dickens' immortal story "A Christmas Carol."  Marley is also a nearby town in New Lenox Township.  Marley also happens to be the name of the street where Hickory Creek Brewing was founded. So what better name for our annual Christmas  ale? We change the recipe every year, but it's always spiced up with a variety of flavors and a big dose of Christmas spirit. ABV - 6.1%


BROWN  ALES

Blind Squirrel – Brown Ale

We’ll have two variants of this fine brown ale.  One with black walnuts grown on our property and one without.  Because even a blind squirrel can find a nut sometimes. 7.74% ABV, 17 IBUs


Beam Me Up, Scotty -- Scottish Ale

Malty, smoky, and with a touch of peat, this is one fine Scotch ale. ABV - 5.66%, IBUs - 11


PALE  LAGERS  AND  PILSNERS

Bill’s Pils – Czech Style Pilsner

Why Bill’s Pils?  Because he’s my brother and that’s what he drinks (only this one is more of a craft brew). ABV 4.33% , IBUs, 24 


DARK  LAGERS

Marley Marzen -- Oktoberfest

Since our beer themes celebrate the greatness of Will County, Illinois, we named this traditional marzen style lager after the little town of Marley located right up the road from us. Lightly hopped with Tettnang and Hallertau hops, this light copper colored fall beer is smooth and malty with a hint of sweetness. ABV - 4.92%, IBUs - 19


PORTERS  AND  STOUTS

The Beav – English Style Brown                            Porter

Coffee notes and hints of chocolate.  Everyone wants to hang out with the Beav. 5.7% ABV, 28 IBUs


Buzzy Beaver -- English Style                 Honey/Vanilla Porter

We brewed a batch of our regular porter, The Beav, and added honey  to make a dark summer beer with a hint of sweetness. We’ll also have another variant of this smooth English Style Brown Porter flavored with vanilla.  ABV – 5.0, IBUs – 38.5


Whack the Beaver – Imperial  Porter 

Brace yourself!  This is one Big A$$ beer.  Brewed with nearly twice the normal grain bill, the porter flavor comes through but with a smoky, bourbon-ee  kick. (Yes, there’s a story behind this one, but it’s probably not what you’re thinking.)  

ABV – 6.2% , IBUs – 61


BELGIAN-STYLE  ALES

Chip Monk -- Belgian Tripel

A tripel is a modern version of the beer that Trappist monks first brewed in Belgian abbeys more than 200 years ago.  Brewed with Continental pilsner malt, Belgian candi sugar, and spicy yeast, this deep golden-colored ale has distinctive hints of clove and packs a deceptive punch with a high ABV content. ABV - 7.2%, IBUs - 25.1

 


WHEAT  BEERS

Elwood Blues – Blueberry Wheat                           Beer

I was working on a nice wheat beer, then this guy comes along with a harp and a briefcase full of blue-berries. Goes well with a cool water sandwich and a Sunday-go-to-meetin’ bun.  ABV – 5.8% , IBUs - 18.8


SPECIALTY  BEERS

Offspring of the Korn - Spiced                         Cream Ale

This corn-based brew is spiced with coriander and orange zest to give it an extra kick.  ABV - 7.2%, IBUs - 36.7