Here on Windy Hill we have been really excited about the documentary that has been produced on homebrewing in southern Illinois. We were flattered to appear (somewhat prominently) in the video. David Kidd, of our local PBS affiliate station WSIU, filmed and produced the documentary over much of last year. If you missed the broadcast version that aired over the weekend you can see the streaming version here. I think it does a great job conveying the dynamic and exciting change that is happening in the local beer community. For example, two breweries are in the process of opening by brewers featured in the film. Our friends Aaron, Marika and Ryan are in the final stages of opening Scratch Brewery in Ava. Having already sampled their beer and food I am confident they will quickly build a following of pilgrims in search for quality and meaning in their beer. Also featured in the video, Ken Rhude has broken ground for a new brewery to be located at The Bluffs winery. Ken is an excellent brewer and I believe he has great plans for Little Egypt Beer. These two breweries are actually in the general vicinity of an area northwest of Murphysboro and I see them as pinning down the north end of the soon to be Southern Illinois Beer Path. I could go on, but lets just say that great beer things are happening in southern Illinois. With Big Muddy Brewing in Murphysboro we will soon have 3 breweries in a 15 mile radius. There are even things happening to the south, but I'll save that for another post.
