Denise D.
Yelp
Hands down, my favorite micro brewery in Chicagoland. Hailstorm even has the only (ONLY) IPA I can tolerate: Cumulus. Seriously, it's tasty! I can detect all the hops, sure, but don't feel like they are assaulting me as hops usually do. That is a skilled brewmaster, my friends. They've got several barleywines (which will Mess. You. Up. Be careful) and I've heard great things about their sours, but I don't do sours, even though Hailstorm's has the best name ever: Ich Bin Ein Berliner. (Hilarious).
Thankfully, Hailstorm does a wide variety of brews for every taste. You're not stuck with all hoppy beers as is the (annoying, tired, played out) trend elsewhere these days. Being the malt-forward beer drinker I am, I love the South Side Red, Crash Test Dummy (a spot on Belgian style tripel), and the Vlad Imperial Stout. Oh, and when it's available, Take Me To Your Liter (Octoberfest). Many of these are for purchase at Binny's, but a visit to the brewery is a lot of fun. Check the website--on the weekends they often have live music and food trucks (there's no kitchen). They have fun parties, too-- I had a blast at their last anniversary party and love attending their Halloween costume parties and checking out the fantastic costumes (WHILE drinking Octoberfest--what a perfect evening!)
I'm planning a trip here soon--I'm dying to try the Am I a Hipster? imperial milk stout and the Nimbus pale ale (hell, if I like the IPA from the same line, I'll probably love the pale). See you there!