This is probably the best time in American history to be a beer drinker. Over the past twenty-five years, some 2,000 craft breweries have opened up across the country with hundreds more currently in their planning stages. And they’re all making beers for a variety of tastes. There are Baltic porters and oatmeal stouts; dark ales and pale ales; English Barleywines and German Pilsners. There are sweet, malty beers and bitter, hoppy beers. There are beers brewed with fruit and beers brewed with spices. And beers for the winter and beers for the summer.
During a recent visit to Rapid City, I stopped by the Independent Ale House and sampled a few beers with some Black Hills area craft beer enthusiasts and brewers to get some perspective on what makes a good beer.
Joining the conversation were Independent Ale House owner Justin Henrichsen; Bob Cronin, founder of the Ale Riders home brew club; Laura Peel, craft beer manager with Eagle Sales of South Dakota; and Jeff Drumm and Matt Melanson of Crow Peak Brewing Co. in Spearfish.