Photo credit: Lakefront Brewery
If it were up to the brewmasters of Milwaukee, it seems we'd stop calling the Friday after Thanksgiving "Black Friday" and start calling it "Beer Release Friday."
In 2010, Goose Island (based in Chicago) started the trend of getting beer lovers to line up for the opportunity to pick up something special with the release of their Rare Bourbon County Brand Stout. Lakefront Brewery followed suit in 2011 with the release of their first Black Friday beer.
As the craft brewery scene has exploded in recent years, other breweries have stepped up their game with their own special Black Friday beer releases.
Here's a timeline of the most anticipated Black Friday beer releases this year:
Friday, Nov. 23 @ 6 a.m.
Explorium Brewpub | Holy Cowza!
Explorium Brewpub opens it's doors early on Black Friday for breakfast and the release of Holy Cowza! The rum barrel-aged coffee imperial brown ale will be available on tap and in 22-oz. bombers, but there will only be 300 bottles available for sale.
Friday, Nov. 23 @ 8 a.m.
Lakefront Brewery | Black Friday Barrel-Aged Imperial Stout & Black Friday XXX Vintage Reserve
Lakefront's Black Friday release party has turned into a pilgrimage for area craft beer lovers. Doors open at 8 a.m., but diehards gather outside the brewery starting Thanksgiving night. Customers can purchase up to three 22-oz. bottles of Black Friday for $20 a bottle and one bottle of the XXX Vintage Reserve for $30 a bottle. The XXX Vintage Reserve is a blend of 2015, 2016 and 2017 Black Friday.
Friday, Nov. 23 @ 9 a.m.
Discount Liquor White Whale Weekend Sale
Doors open at 9 a.m. at Discount Liquor's Milwaukee and Waukesha locations for their annual White Whale sale. You can expect a number of special releases, including Goose Island's Bourbon County Brand Stout in bottles.
Friday, Nov. 23 @ 10 a.m.
Raised Grain Brewing Co. (Waukesha) | Santa's Sack Spiced Ale
Brewed each year since 2015, Santa's Sack Ale gets the barrel-aged treatment this year. Four unique beers have been brewed for this special release: regular, bourbon barrel-aged, brandy barrel-aged and port barrel-aged. Mixed four-packs will be available for $15 on Black Friday only. Any remaining bottles will be $20 after Black Friday.
Friday, Nov. 23 @ 11 a.m.
Eagle Park Brewing Company | Big BOTM's Up Milkshake IPA
An imperial version of Eagle Park's BOTM's Up Milkshake IPA with blood orange, tangerine, mandarin, lactose, and vanilla.
Friday, Nov. 23 @ noon
Broken Bat Brewing Company | While We Wait Spiced Winter Ale
While We Wait is a malty, spiced ale flavored with sweet orange peel, seeds of paradise and coriander. Broken Bat founder Tim Pauly says it's the perfect beer to get us through the winter months while we wait for the 2019 baseball season to begin.
Third Space Brewing | Liquid Layers Spiced Barleywine
2018 marks the third consecutive year Third Space will release it's Liquid Layers Spiced Barleywine. As in 2017, they will also release four barrel-aged variants. This year's variants were aged in maple-bourbon, rye, bourbon and port wine barrels. Pig Tails MKE will be serving food.
Westallion Brewing Company | Candy Cane Lane Peppermint Stout
Westallion opens it's doors early at noon for the release of their peppermint stout made with locally-grown mint and crushed up candy canes. It will be available on tap and in 22-oz. bottles.
MobCraft Beer | Moo-waukee
MobCraft to release Moo-waukee, a white chocolate milk stout, the August 2018 crowdsource vote winner. Bottles can be pre-ordered for pick up and they'll be on sale in the taproom. Also, MobCraft recently partnered with Hidden Kitchen MKE to make gourmet pizza available to taproom patrons.
Friday, Nov. 23 @ 1 p.m.
Urban Harvest Brewing Company | Imperial Chocolate Whiskey Stout
For the third year in a row, Urban Harvest plans to release a limited quantity of their 2018 Imperial Chocolate Whiskey Stout. Rich, dark malts lay the foundation for the addition of cocoa nibs and whiskey-infused oak in this stout.
Biloba Brewing Company (Brookfield) | Door County Cherry Lambic & Two-Year Barrel-Aged Russian Imperial Stout
Biloba will have special hours on Friday, open 1-10:10 p.m., for the release of its Door County Cherry Lambic and a two-year barrel-aged Russian Imperial Stout.
Friday, Nov. 23 @ 2 p.m.
Melms Brewing Company (Hartland) | Wet Funeral Scotch Ale
Doors will open at 2 p.m. for the release of Wet Funeral. The heavy-style scotch ale is 8.7% ABV and has a light, smokey finish.
Friday, Nov. 23 @ 3 p.m.
7th Annual Black Friday Beerfest at The Garage at the Harley-Davidson Museum
Beerfest is back again at the H-D Museum. Here's a list of participating breweries. Admission from 4-7 p.m. is $45 and includes a food voucher. VIP admission ($65) opens at 3 p.m. and includes a ticket to the H-D Museum for later use.
Saturday, Nov. 24 @ 7:55 a.m.
Super Saturday at Ray's Wine and Spirits
Ray's is slowly unveiling the limited releases they will have available over at their Facebook Event page. So far, they've announced they will have Toppling Goliath Morning Delight and Central Waters Rye Barrel Stout available for purchase.
Saturday, Nov. 24 @ 11 a.m.
Eagle Park Brewing Company | Booze for Breakfast and Booze for Breakfast: French Toast
This is the second year of Eagle Park's release of Booze for Breakfast on Black Friday. The French Toast version has an addition of Caccia Cinnamon. Both come in at 11% ABV and will be available for purchase in 16-oz. cans.
