18th Street
Hammond, IN
Start Date: 2013
The bands that will be performing at the upcoming Decibel Metal & Beer Fes on April 22-23 in Philadelphia are no doubt familiar to Decibel readers, but we wanted to shine a little light on the craft beer underground by spotlighting the breweries that will be pouring their beers at the festival. Drew Fox, founder/brewer at 18th Street, gives us the lowdown on this very metal Indiana brewery.
Tell us about how 18th Street Brewery got started?
18th started off in my backyard as a home brewing venture in 2010. I really started getting into it and eventually took on an apprenticeship that led to a full-time brewing position at Pipeworks Brewing in Chicago. Eventually I wanted to go out on my own and 18th Street Brewery as a brewery was launched in 2013.
Was the metal aesthetic that’s in all of 18th Street’s artwork and many beer names part of your plan for the brewery from the beginning.
Yep. Our first beer released officially as 18th Street Brewery was called Sinister.
You have a ton of amazing labels on your website. What are your core beers and how many seasonals do you typically brew in a year?
A couple of beers that would be considered “flagships” are Hunter, a double milk stout; Jade, an American pale ale; Villain, a double India pale ale; and Under Crown, a double India pale ale. As far as seasonals, we brew a rotating cast of beers and are always trying new recipes. Sometimes we’ll only brew a beer once; sometimes we’ll brew a beer only once or twice a year.
Have you collaborated with any bands on a beer?
We have, but it has been awhile. We have a few local bands we are talking with currently about some projects. We have some great bands around the Northwest Indiana/Chicago/Chicagoland area. As we continue to grow we are looking to get more bands involved with releases and special events such as our annual Barrel Massacre.
What’s the most metal beer 18th Street brews?
Shit, probably Sinister. It was our first beer out of the gate. It has more than nine hop varieties in it. We only brew and release that once a year.
Why should attendees of first annual the Decibel Metal & Beer Fest seek out 18th Street beers at the festival? Give Decibel readers your best pitch.
Our beer is fucking delicious.
Anything you’d like to add, any upcoming projects?
We work nonstop around here. We’ve got a lot of great events and releases planned for 2017, as well as a new chef in our kitchen who is killing it, so we’ll be doing more beer/food related events.
To get tickets to the Decibel Metal & Beer Fest, go here.
