Finch Beer Co.

The picture is deceiving. I thought they had a tap room like in Montrose. I called to confirm. They never answered my phone call. I shows up because I love their beer, but this is the production warehouse. So disappointed. I love their beer and it’s good, but I think they should care about people to follow them and let them know they don’t have a tap room.

We were brewery hopping in the area & couldn't wait to go to Finch. Was very disappointed to find out this building was just their brewing warehouse - no tasting room so no beer to try. A little misleading when Finch is included in the Chicago Brewing District. I'm sure their beer is good, but never got a chance to try it.

I can't recommend this tour enough. Come here to pregame something because it's unlimited samples throughout, and the servers have a heavy hand. Get the Groupon and it's only $10-12 for two people, and you get a glass to take home! Love the taste of their beer and the tour is interesting when compared to other brewery tours - they get into the specifics of bottled versus canned.

Despite the liquor license preventing selling growlers or cans form the facility, the tour is nice and enjoyable, and they give you as many tastes as you want during, before, and after the tour for the whole hour! And you get to keep the glasses! Really fun way to spend an hour, and cheap, too. Good beer.

I visited Finch's Brewery as part of a brewery tour offered on Groupon. The tour was affordable ($6/person) and it included 1 hour tour of their brewery with a guide explaining the brewing process, unlimited beer samples for duration of about 1.5 hours, and a free Finch's beer glass. Their beers are very hoppy and my favorite one is Black IPA. I also enjoyed their Threadless collaboration beer: it's beautiful to see two great native Chicago company doing a collaboration effort. This place doesn't have a tap room and is very non-descript from the outside. The staff is super friendly, generous on the pouring, and ready to answer your every question. They offer t-shirts and other items for sale, but cash only. I would recommend this brewery visit and their beers to everyone.

Great hospitality. One of the brewers had opened their workshop and allowed some people in to try their beers for FREE. We got a tour and everything.

They have said their tap room is "opening soon" for about two years now. Don't say opening soon unless you truly are opening soon. Also terrible at providing updates as to the status/progress.

Obsessed with their can design. Killer beer too!

I was wondering when this would start happening. I've been on so many beer tours now, the information is of course repetitive and unless a tour does something exciting to spice it up (a la Argus Brewery), it gets monotonous. Prior to the tour starting, you can immediately start getting samples of their brews. Generous samples. I'm talking they basically fill up your entire pint glass sample. If you haven't been on a brewery tour before, you will find it very informative. They take you around their brewery while going through the brew process. I picked up some bits and pieces as I do with each brewery tour but I didn't find anything overly unique about the Finch tour. Once the tour finishes, they give you a completely reasonable time limit to hang out and have more 'samples' (ie their really full pint pours). They had all their signature brews on tap (Threadless IPA, Facist Pig & Cut Throat Pale Ale) + one cool new one (Wet Hot American Wheat) + some bottled brews to try. If your goal is to drink on a tour, they will go above & beyond your goal. The downside is there isn't a single chair in sight so you have to stand the entire time you're drinking. Personally I'm not a fan of standing & drinking and could have stayed longer to sip more drinks, but jetted after the tour due to this. Maybe that's their goal though! The guys working at the brewery are all great - really friendly, knowledgeable about Finch & the whole brewing process plus seem to have that passion I love seeing in beer guys. They said perhaps one day they will open a tap room, talons crossed!

Tried their beer for the first time the other day and fell hard for the sour beer! Absolutely love the flavor, and it is very drinkable at any time of day. The Finch packaging is super cute I might add, and I'm looking forward to coming back for an official brewery tour!

The picture is deceiving. I thought they had a tap room like in Montrose. I called to confirm. They never answered my phone call. I shows up because I love their beer, but this is the production warehouse. So disappointed. I love their beer and it's good, but I think they should care about people who follow them and let them know they don't have a tap room.

I miss Beau. He annoyed me, but he was at least funny with his cornball jokes that I refused to laugh at. We've done this tour 3 times now as our friends who backed out the 2nd time had us come with this last time. Never again. "You've done one tour, you've done them all." For the most part, this is true. Unless you have some awesome history (like Argus) or have some insanely huge brewery (like Lagunitas), you know what to expect going on these tours. The first time we came, they filled up our glasses from their tap and we actually got to walk around on the "tour". The second time, they poured from cans and you could walk around a little, though the amount of people had greatly increased. The guide the second time was knowledgeable, but quiet and therefore pretty boring if you were in the back and couldn't hear. This last time, they poured about a half inch of beer and we walked down one side for the entire "tour". You couldn't hear the guide as this group was even bigger than the last time, he didn't seem to actually have answers to a fair amount of questions being asked and as people started to walk back for more beer, he said something like "yeah, go ahead and drink the rest of the time, whatever." Is being on Groupon consistently actually working out? They mentioned that the northeast accounts for a large part of their sales and I believe it, since they have a fondness for mediocre beer out that way. If you want people to buy your beer (and enjoy the "tour") you need to have entertaining people talking about your product and to give out more than a half inch pour, because it really isn't indicative of the quality. I don't need to get drunk, but at least give a decent pour to make me want to go out and buy your beer. The only guide who did that was Beau.

I need to lay the lumber to these clowns once and for all, because they're now on my local brewery sh*t list along with Two Brothers. Beer snobs rag on this place constantly, and I actually found myself irrationally making excuses for them by trying to hone in on their positives (I.e. making maybe two above average beers). But after my latest experience at their facility, I've realized they deserve all the ridicule. This is a company that always made mediocre beer, and in a surging and highly competitive market, have stubbornly remained stagnant. That's their prerogative. What irks me is that all they have to offer people, besides weak-ass beer, is a boring and highly regulated tour. If their cheap asses continue lessening their pours, they'll have to serve beer to people with a medicine dropper. This comes off as me being mad for not getting more free beer, but I'm mostly mad I couldn't get buzzed enough to forget how boring the tour, and the guy conducting it was. They need to accept the fact that the only incentive to coming here is for people to get their day drink on. Not to listen to them drone on about boring beer making blather you hear at every other brewerys' tour, or their uninspiring backstory. Much of that is their own fault for being too stubborn to change. Look, Finch's, there's a reason you're never NOT on Groupon. You can't lure people in otherwise. So the least you could do is not be incredulous to the people that do come in, and accommodate them. I know they're "too craft beer" to listen to suggestions and not do whatever they want to do, but it would behoove them to visit Argus' brewery, take the tour and take notes. If you're not going to make stellar beer, or have a taproom for people to hang, at least make your tour fun. I've endured way too much bitchassness from the people at this company, and the beer isn't worthwhile. There's no reason to come here unless you enjoy punishment.

I used to live not too far from this place and had no idea this place even existed!!! You wouldn't even know as this building has ZERO signage outside, thankfully it was easy to find the address! I came here with some friends for a brewery tour...I have PLENTY of winery and brewery tour reviews on my page. I've said it before, I'll say it again... if you've been through one, you've been through them all! But, it's always a different experience of course, along with different beer. The staff were super friendly the day we visited with our groupon. We booked the tour in advance online with no problem. Upon arriving we got our pint glasses and got to sample some beer ... they had them light to dark which was super helpful. I'm not a fan of dark beer but I seemed to like one of them the best. They do not sell beer here, and their warehouse is located in the area of North Ave & Cicero. The space isn't huge but the tour takes you through the entire process with some information about what they do there and how they make beer and concludes with the bottling process. At the end of the tour we were able to hang out and drink more beer. It's something to pass the time on an afternoon during the chilly months. It's worth checking out... just look for the address to the place, you won't see a "Finch's Brewery" sign out front :)

How the heck does this place stay in business? They produce arguably the worst beer in the city and apparently have no customers. A grand total of 1 Yelp review in the past THREE YEARS? smh

I got a groupon for a beer tour here. I came with a friend and had a good time. they allowed us to try all of the beer and learned about their process. The staff was all very friendly and the beers were great! We also got to keep the beer glass we had for our tasting. One thing they could do to make the beer tour better, is to offer the beer for sale so you take it home right away. I'm just a business minded person, and since is hard to find their beers in all stores, I think that is one place they can easily make money.

Super small brewery tour... They have a lot crammed into a little space, but it's legit! They give ya a rundown of how beer is made and that's about it. But, it's essentially an all you can drink event! Sign. Me. Up! We got half pours from cans, six choices... Threadless was my favorite! Get the groupon! Have a good time!

In the summer, I worked at Andersonville's City Made Fest and met a lot of local brewers, which is how I discovered Finch's. We initially had plans to tour Half Acre, but we didn't arrive early enough and decided to call Finch's. We were able to make reservations on a smartphone on the way over. The tour is only $10 and for what you get, it's a steal! We were the second group to arrive, and I immediately recognized the gentleman who would be leading our tour. My memory is a little foggy this morning, and I unfortunately can't remember his name. :( Anyway, he was awesome as our tour guide, and you can tell he is super passionate about beer! They announced that you could drink unlimited beer on the tour and had four on tap. I started off with the Facist Pig, which next to the Threadless IPA is my favorite. All you can drink beer for $10 is awesome! I would definitely do this tour again, especially over some of the other larger breweries in Chicago. If you haven't been yet and are thinking about it, visit Finch's the next Saturday you can!

Read several of the other reviews. I really don't understand them. We had a group of 4 who went on a tour yesterday. Our tour guide, Frank, was great. He was fun, witty, and made the entire tour and process of brewing understandable to people who don't normally brew beer on a daily basis. I've been on many brewery tours and this one was my favorite. 1) The advertise unlimited samples. They really do give you unlimited samples. I believe the expression they used was: "We aren't in school." If you wanted to stand at the table the whole time and drink, they really wouldn't care. 2) They specifically tell you why they don't have signage. They can't sell beer from that location. I read a few reviews that were all jazzed up about that point. Look up the address and go to that address. Not that hard. 3) I will say that our tour guide, specifically, was awesome and extremely knowledgeable. I understand that this can vary, so for those who didn't have Frank, I'm so so sorry for you. 4) Some of the other complaints I saw were that of "there's no seating" or "the tour is too short", etc etc. I mean, you're paying $10 for unlimited beer, (generous samples too), a free pint glass, and a little info. I think if you're paying more, you can complain about things, but this is clearly not going to be anything more than a $10 operation, and it was an awesome one! Have some more beer and chill out. 5) Hopefully they open up a tap room where you can just hang out and actually buy merch, because while it wasn't a huge deal not to be able to buy their product after the tour, that certainly is a fun part of many brewery tours. Overall - the tour and tour guide were great. For $10/person it was a great way to spend part of a Saturday afternoon. Don't have too high of expectations, this is not a huge brewery. It is a smaller, awesome place.

Let's be upfront. This is not a brewery tour. Yeah, they say it's a tour. Yeah, the Groupon you may or may not purchase says it's a tour. But it's not a tour. It's a marketing event. Finch has sort of a weird reputation in the craft brew scene, and this "tour" all but confirms the rumors. Now, it's not a bad facility. And I bet a lot of the folks that work here love what they do. But calling what they let you come in for a tour is a bit misleading. You come in, you check in and get your wristband and glass. Then you're directed to go drink. Cool! Unlimited half pours! Who cares that they're opening room temperature cans, and the ladies pouring the beers aren't affiliated with them in any way and are expecting tips (don't forget to bring singles!), the beer is FREE. So you're kinda left to freely roam as you drink your beer until the beginning of the so-called tour. Eventually their tour guide rustles you and the rest of the ridiculously large group up for what quickly becomes obvious to be anything but a tour. It's five minutes of talking about how beer is made (I guess a little more specifically how they make beer, but it's just barely personalized), although I mostly just head the conversations about all things not-beer happening around you. At this point, you realize it's not really the tour that this brewery is interested in sharing with you. Especially when the tour guide specifically asks you to please buy their beer. Then it's back to the drinking! If you're cool with paying $6 a person (Groupon prices, who knows what they charge for a regular tour) to drink a bunch of mediocre beer they wrote off as a marketing expense, then this is the tour for you!

Mike bought a brewery tour on Groupon, of course. We decided, why should our lives stop just because we had a baby?? So we packed up our little and headed on over. We had signed up for the 1:00 tour and showed up at about 12:40. When we checked in they told us we couldn't get in until 12:45...and asked us to come back. Hmmmm...weird?? I thought so. That is until I got in there. There's nowhere to sit, or even a waiting area. It's literally the factory that they make the beer in, with two tables set up with the cans of beer waiting to be poured into your glass, the glass was the best part. It was a little warm and humid out so the beer was only cold if you got it right when they brought it out and were lucky enough to notice them opening a new can...so there was a lot of staring at the pourers haha. Growing up in WI, I've been to lot's of brewery tours, this was definitely different. Chicago, stick to pizza. Let WI handle the beer.

Where do I start? Finchs brewery was great. Beau knew a ton about making beer. He was super attentive to the group and not to mention patient. Most the guys in my group are not hop heads but they were able to find a beer they enjoyed. This was an excellent experience as a whole. Every single person on the tour wanted to return later in the future. We were even able to order in some pizza. I recommend this place to everyone. If you want a place that allows you the taste their beers for the price of the tour not to mention the pint glass, this is it. This is a great value for your money.

Got the groupon for the tour and tasting. Chill place. We got to sample 6 different beers, an unlimited quantity. After sampling for a bit we did a tour and the brew master went over the process and how their operation works. After the tour we had til the end of the hour to continue sampling and ask any questions and mingle. Everyone gets a Finch's brew glass. For the money i paid, it was most definitely worth it. As far as their beer is concerned, I am a fan of their Blonde ale the most. I also enjoyed the pale ale and it was interesting to try the black ipa which i have never heard of. I say check it out and yelp it. Support your local businesses!

Came here with a Groupon for a brewery tour. It was simple to sign up, I just had to email them what days and times I was interested in visiting and they emailed me back a confirmation. One of the best parts of the whole experience was that we got unlimited tastings throughout the tour. When we first arrived we got to sample beers, and got to sip as we went through the process of how the beer is made and manufactured. After the tour ended we got to continue to drink until our hour was over. At the end we also got to take home our Finch pint glass! I enjoyed all of their beer, but would say I was partial to their ales. If you are a beer lover, check it out! Worth the money! For more pics and details check out: http://www.stellasout.com/touring-a-brewery/

I purchased a groupon and a group of 4 headed here for a tour and tasting. Making a reservation for the tour was easy. There's a statement on their website that tells you if you have a groupon, you have to email them for your reservation. I emailed in my name, my preferred tour date/time, and groupon code and got a response back within a couple hours that we were all set for the tour. A couple days before the tour, I got an email reminding me of the upcoming tour date and giving instructions on how to find the place. There's no sign, but it's a black brick building with a red door. It wasn't too difficult to find, but there was no address. Cut forward to the day of the tour. We arrived, and were told we were not listed on the tour list. Strange. I had printed out my confirmation emails and showed the employee, and they admit they made a mistake - they had us down for the next Saturday's tour. No worries though, they gave us our choice of souvenir glasses (mason jars, traditional logo style glasses, or a more rounded beer glass) and we got to tasting. The tour starts with about 20-30 minutes of mingling and drinking. For this reason, I recommend going with a friend or two. There are bartenders giving out sample size tastes of their beer on tap and from cans. I truly liked each beer, but my favorite was the Secret Stache Stout. Chocolate-y, coffee-y, and just plain delicious. The tour itself was informative, but it was a bit startling to see how small their operation was. It honestly reminded me of a large-sized home brewer set up. Our tour guide was really nice and quite knowledgeable, and he made the experience fun. After the tour, there's a bit more time for tasting before the next tour starts. Don't look to linger too long though - there's no tap room to sit with a pint, nor is there food to purchase. Also, they can only sell to distributors, so you can't take any home with you that day. We got there around 2:50 and concluded around 4:30. Oh yeah, and parking was a breeze. There's pay to park spots a bit south of the brewery on Elston, but if you head north, parking is free on Elston as well as on the side streets (no permit needed). I would recommend this tour.

I've been on a few brew tours before and this one was just really disappointing. The staff is very nice and warm upon checking in and registering for your scheduled tour group. After checking in, we could immediately begin bending the elbow, which is pretty sweet; however, all the beer was served from cans. I would only expect that the brewery would have their beer on a tap of some kind. Despite that down fall, you can drink all you want (or can?) during your scheduled tour time. So while on the very, very brief tour, you can pop by the little table and get a refill. The tour itself was the most disappointing part. Our tour guide wasn't that knowledgeable about to the brew process or the types of ingredients the company uses. For example, I asked where their grains come from, and they said they will find out and let me know. I can only imagine this is more common question and they should already know. Perhaps they should think about assigning two guides per tour group to ensure all "basic" questions can answered. I gave our tour guide a benefit of the doubt and thought maybe their newer, so I asked the individual refilling our beers, but they didn't know either. He instructed me to look at the bags of grain in the brew room to see the origins printed on those bags. Overall, it was just a poor quality brew tour. For a smaller company that has been around since 2011, I would have hoped they hold higher standards for their company and their brew tour experience.

Okay. Ben responded to both myself and my friend to apologize for the oversight, explaining that the tour leader thought our appointment was at 2PM (still no call though? To see where we were? He just left?). They are considering ways to make up for the misstep. Oh, and friend will be refunded promptly.

Sometimes, moms need a day out. Enter, Finch's Brewery Groupon. I got together my mommy friends and ventured out to an unmarked building on Elston. We walk in and after checking in they give you a pint glass and ask what kind of beer you'd like (3 on tap - we had Threadless, Awesome Cabeza and Fascist Pig). As we waited for people to arrive, we milled about in their storage room and drank (there were probably about 25 people total on our tour). They announce at the beginning of the tour where the bathrooms are and that you are welcome to get a refill at any time during the tour. Score! The tour began and we started to get a little tipsy (hey, we are new moms and our tolerance is awful after abstaining for a year). Our tour guide was good - knowledgeable and patient and able to talk over our drunken babbling (sorry about that!) It was the run of the mill brewery tour information - but I love seeing how each place does it a little differently. And it's great to see how excited the employees are to share their product. The tour lasted about an hour. It's a small place - you won't get lost inside if you have to take a bathroom break or get a refill - I'm amazed they could fit an entire brewing operation in there! All of their beers were very tasty. It's a great deal (even without the groupon) and I highly suggest checking it out. It gives you a new appreciation for what you're drinking and puts a great personal connection to your beer! All in all, a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon. And again, sorry for our drunken revelry (and the glass I broke :( ). Thanks for helping a few new moms unwind.

Went on a brewery tour here a couple of months ago thanks to the bestie. We had an awesome day!!! We learned a Lil about beer brewing. We drank A LOT. We ate some hops. In case your wondering it tasted like garlic. I personally think the best part was the unlimited amount of beer we got to drink. I was not planning on getting drunk it just happened :/ not that I'm complaining. These beers aren't what I usually lean towards bc they're IPA's. They mostly have that skunky bitter taste to them. They had this one in a blue can I think it was a wheat beer it was definitely my fave. I also got adventurous and mixed two of the lighter beers. It was a winning combination in my book!! Even if one of the employees looked at me a Lil funny. If you're looking for a chill activity to partake in on a Saturday with your friends hitting up a brewery is definitely a good idea!! One of the employees was super cute n cool too. He was even telling us about another brewery that offered a gluten free beer.

FINCH BEER DOES NOT HAVE A TAPROOM, DO NOT GO OUT THERE (as of May 1, 2019). I'll change this rating once they open their taproom again. Why 2-star? How about I hopped an L to go out there to find that they don't have a taproom. The website didn't reflect that at the time, although it now says its taproom will soon be opened, but gives no details or timeline. There are two other taprooms within walking distance and we ended up there, so the trip was not wasted. From one of the bartenders, it is pretty common for people who venture all the way out to this warehouse looking area and be disappointed that Finch no longer has a taproom. To add insult to injury, they don't even have a decency to put a sign on the lone red door for information. Our group circled the building to figure out that Finch doesn't have a taproom there! As out of towners, we asked other residents and bartenders for recommendations and we were told by two people to head to Finch, so that tells me not even the local folks are aware that Finch does not have a taproon now... but please DON'T waste your time to head out there! They are not opened! So for that, I give you 2-star for bad information.

So like many other I picked up a Groupon to this place and was super excited to check it out. To start lets chat prices shall we? I've done Goose Island and MANY of MI wine/beer tours and I must say so far, Finch's you have taken the cake as far as price to amount of alcohol! They have some beers on tap and the rest are served from cans. Its nothing like the Goose Island one where you sit around after the tour and get your little samples of beer that are about 2 sips worth. Here you mingle in the production area and can try all the beers and go back for a seconds of some. You get about a good 30 mins or so to mingle and try the beers. Tour time. So The tour is about 20 minutes or so. Finches can not sell you any alcohol nor can they offer you some chips and a bar stool. They are just a production facility so its like if you or I decide, "HEY I want to make BEER in my garage!" but on a much larger scale of course. The tour guide was a super nice and funny guy. All in all, I would highly recommend the tour/tastings. Because of the tour my group of four fell in love with the stout beer they had our to taste and I even fell more in love with the Wheat beer. So thank you Finch's and the staff for growing my vice problems. Helpful Tips: -Bring singles! No no there is no stripper... but there is two different tasting stations and the people pouring your beers are serving you, so drop a couple singles in! -Bring cash as well if your like to pick up a hat or shirt. They will take credit card but they prefer cash they said. -Most of all: BE OPEN! I usually wont go for an IPA but Finch's was really good and I would actually pick it up for a night of pizza and beer.

Delivered as expected! Its very local to me so I went for the tour with a few friends. We arrived early and enjoyed Unlimited Pours of their beers. Nothing that knocks me out, but I dig their Stout(I am a bit snobby) Small place but they really packed the tanks in there. Fairly short tour with the usual run-down of the process. Pretty cool if you haven't seen a brewery before or didn't know how beer was made. Well worth the money! Free Pint Glass and about 45min of beer! :-) Give the tour a try! Support Local Brews!

Really enjoyed the tour, staff was knowledgable and friendly. The beer was very good, especially liked fascist pig. Also met a lot of cool people on the tour, I highly recommend checking it out.

We decided this year that instead of getting my uncle a weird gift related to beer, that we would start a new tradition: Christmas brewery tours. a $10 tour that includes all you care to drink and a cup to bring home = Christmas tradition hit. The space is cool, the beer is great, the only bummer was that the "tour" guide did not project loud enough to reach over people that were way more interested in the beer drinking than the beer making process - at times we were standing right in front of him and could barely make out what he was saying because it was so loud but I think that is more the fault of the other people that came than of his.

Tour was great, as were the suds before during and after; but this place is in the middle of nowhere.

Great tour, super informative, fun and a significant amount to drink. Love I and would absolutely do it again.

this tour is a must. we had the groupon for $12. 10 beers for 12 bucks can't be beat. u can get there 1/2 an hour before your tour starts and they let u use your own judgment for when u should leave. our tour was at 1pm and there were still people from the noon tour there when we left at 230. very informative on the brew making process if u haven't been on one before. if u have, it's still worth it for the generous amount of beer u receive.

Boy was this $10 tour a blast! We were able to have a group tour and everyone could buy tickets online. Bottomless beer was great! Our tour guide was awesome...hysterical and really informative. Favorite brewery tour thus far in Chicago.

Not a fan of this place. My friend and I purchased the "groupon" for the brewery tour and found the staff to be even more over this place than us. Story goes: we called to say we were coming late to the tour and probably need to reschedule or come later, and of course Finch does not answer their phones, you have to email. Fast forward, no response from the email, so we figured we show up late and ask a person directly. Once arrived at brewery, we told the staff members our situation and they gave us the classic eye-roll annoyed face and scolded us for not being on time. (Well shit happens, that why we tried calling). But the best explanation I have ever heard from employees came out of their mouths that day, reason to why they don't answer the phones is "because it rings way too much and you should just use the email." My friend and I might be "old school" but REALLY!!? Note: the beer tasted pretty salty after that, nothing I would get "hoppy" about.

I enjoyed both the "Happy Half Hour" and the tour. Frank the tour guide gave an informative non-scripted tour of the brewing process. He gave a thoughtful explanation of why cans are superior to bottles for both the environment and for the beer.

The beer is swill.The tour is necessary to sell this swill as it wont sell itself.They seem to hope youll buy the circus because the beer itself is terrible