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Joe Formanek started homebrewing in 1987 as an undergraduate in Microbiology at the University of Minnesota. He was bitten by the brewing bug after taking a tour of Summit Brewing Company within a year after they had opened in St. Paul in 1987, and he has been going ever since. Joe later went to Graduate School at the University of Illinois and helped found the Boneyard Union of Zymurgical Zealots (BUZZ) Homebrew Club. He currently resides in Bolingbrook, IL, is a Director for a food ingredient company in Itasca, IL, and is a proud member of the Urban Knaves of Grain Homebrew Club. Joe holds a National Judge ranking with the BJCP, and is a previous Midwest Regional Rep and Vice President of the organization.
Over the years, Joe has received many honors related to homebrewing. He has won numerous BOS awards at local and regional competitions, is a 6 time winner of the Midwest Homebrewer of the Year award (1999, 2001-2004, 2007) and won the American Homebrewers Association Meadmaker of the Year award in 2004. Joe is a 2 time winner of the American Homebrewers Association Ninkasi Award (2000, 2006) for winningest brewer in the final round of judging, and was honored as being named one of the two homebrewer winners of the 2011 Sam Adams Longshot American Homebrewing Competition with his Russian Imperial Stout, which was distributed nationally in the 2012 Longshot multipack.
Southbound Brewing Company’s Rockin' Chair is an interpretation of a Double British Brown ale, a style that is quite difficult to find commercially.
This ale has a deep brown color with a fair, off-white stand of head. The aroma exhibits a toasted brown, caramel and roasty malt... Read More
Tropic Dream by New Realm Brewing is a fruit beer, pure and simple. The impact of the fruit juice being used in this offering is massive – perhaps overwhelming, all things considered. This is being evaluated as a BJCP Category 29A Fruit Beer as per the 2021 guidelines... Read More
This brew pours a hazy gold with a lingering, finely-bubbled white head that leaves an attractive lacing. The aroma in this brew is quite assertively complex and amazingly fresh, with a combination of dankness, lemon and lime zest, melony and fruity hop character along with a hint of sweet malt... Read More
Veltins Radler by C. & A. Veltins is being evaluated as a Cat 29A Fruit Beer as per the 2021 BJCP Guidelines. This is a lightly alcoholic lemonade-based brew designed to be a Summer refresher. It has beautiful visuals, but the overall flavor balance could be... Read More
Upland Persimmon is an interesting attempt at using a rather obscure fruit in an American Sour application, though it is an offering that might improve with age. The sample was evaluated as a 28C Wild Specialty Beer (according to the 2015 BJCP guidelines), and was bottled on January 2017... Read More
Éphémère Strawberry & Rhubarb by Unibroue is an offering with quite intense fruit character, though the base Belgian beer character, particularly the fermentation flavor, is somewhat subtle. Considering that the base beer is a Wit, this is a bit more acceptable. This beer is being evaluated... Read More
