Whiner Beer Company
Microbrewery in Chicago, Illinois, United States 🇺🇸
Established in 2015
Closed in 2026
Contact
1400 W 46th St, Chicago, IL, 60609, United States
Description
Whiner Beer Co. focuses on barrel-aged beer, a tradition common in Belgium and France that is gaining foothold in the US. Industry veterans and partners Brian Taylor and Ria Neri aim to make beers for people with a wanderlust palate, a curiosity for the strange and unknown, and those who take their beer seriously, but never themselves.
Housed in The Plant, a net-zero energy business incubator located in Chicago’s Back of the Yards neighborhood, Whiner aims to promote environmentally responsible brewing. The brewery will play a major role in the operations of The Plant’s anaerobic digester. Once up and running, Whiner’s spent grain will help fuel the digester, producing energy for the entire building.
Housed in The Plant, a net-zero energy business incubator located in Chicago’s Back of the Yards neighborhood, Whiner aims to promote environmentally responsible brewing. The brewery will play a major role in the operations of The Plant’s anaerobic digester. Once up and running, Whiner’s spent grain will help fuel the digester, producing energy for the entire building.
7.9/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 7.5
12 ounce can into tulip glass, no can dating. Pours moderately hazy/cloudy medium golden yellow color with a 1-2 finger fairly dense and fluffy white head with good retention, that reduces to a thin spotty lace cap that lingers. light spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big lightly tart/tangy watermelon, cucumber, fruit skin/seed, peach, pear, apricot, red/green apple, white grape/wine, peppercorn, hay, straw, grass, wheat, cracker, white bread, light lacto funk, and yeast earthiness. Very nice aromas with great balance and complexity of watermelon, fruity/acidic/spicy yeast, and moderate pale/wheat malt notes; with bit strength. Taste of big lightly tart/tangy watermelon, cucumber, fruit skin/seed, peach, pear, apricot, red/green apple, white grape/wine, peppercorn, hay, straw, grass, wheat, cracker, white bread, light lacto funk, and yeast earthiness. Light-moderate peppery yeast spiciness, and fruit/lacto tang/tartness on the finish. Lingering notes of tart/tangy watermelon, cucumber, fruit skin/seed, peach, pear, apricot, red/green apple, white grape/wine, peppercorn, hay, straw, grass, wheat, cracker, white bread, light lacto funk, and yeast earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Very nice complexity, robustness, and balance of watermelon, fruity/acidic/spicy yeast, and moderate pale/wheat malt flavors; with a great malt/tartness and tangy fruit balance; with no pucker/astringent flavors after the finish. Fairly crisp/clean finishing. Moderate increasing dryness from lingering tartness, tangy fruit, and carbonation. Medium-high carbonation and light-medium body; with a very smooth and moderately bready/grainy/acidic/tangy balanced mouthfeel that is great. Zero warming alcohol as expected of 5.6%. Overall this is a delicious fruited sour saison. All around nice omplexity, robustness, and balance of watermelon, fruity/acidic/spicy yeast, and moderate pale/wheat malt flavors; very smooth, refreshing, and fairly crisp/clean to drink with the mellowly acidic/tangy/drying finish. Nicely soft and mellowly lactic. Flavorful and not watery for the ABV. Great balance of authentic juicy/vibrant Watermelon and Lacto/Saison yeast complexity; with a nice pale/wheat malt backbone against acidity for the ABV. Minimal residual sweetness with crisp dryness. A very enjoyable offering, and well made style example.
Tried
from Can
on 30 Sep 2019
at 02:28
8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
12 ounce can into tulip glass, canned in 7/2019. Pours lightly hazy medium golden yellow color with a 1-2 finger fairly dense and fluffy off white head with great retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Nice spotty foamy lacing clings on the glass, with a fair amount of streaming carbonation. Aromas of big lightly tart/tangy peaches, fruit skin/pits, lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit, citrus peel/zest, pineapple, pear, apricot, passion fruit, papaya, mango, honeydew melon, guava, red apple, berries, white grape/wine, wood, peppercorn, clove, pine, light banana/bubblegum, wheat, cracker, white bread dough, herbal, floral, grass, and yeast earthiness. Damn nice aromas with great balance and complexity of peaches, lemon/orange peel, citrus/fruity/tropical hops, fruity/spicy yeast, and pale/wheat malt notes; with big strength. Taste of big lightly tart/tangy peaches, fruit skin/pits, lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit, citrus peel/zest, pineapple, pear, apricot, passion fruit, papaya, mango, honeydew melon, guava, red apple, berries, white grape/wine, wood, peppercorn, clove, pine, light banana/bubblegum, wheat, cracker, white bread dough, herbal, floral, grass, and yeast earthiness. Light-moderate pine, citrus peel/zest, herbal, floral, woody, grassy bitterness; peppery yeast spiciness; and light fruit/wheat tang/tartness on the finish. Lingering notes of tart/tangy peaches, fruit skin/pits, lemon, lime, orange, grapefruit, citrus peel/zest, pineapple, pear, apricot, passion fruit, papaya, mango, honeydew melon, guava, red apple, berries, white grape/wine, wood, peppercorn, clove, pine, banana/bubblegum, wheat, cracker, white bread dough, herbal, floral, grass, and yeast earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Great complexity, robustness, and balance of peaches, lemon/orange peel, citrus/fruity/tropical hops, fruity/spicy yeast, and pale/wheat malt flavors; with an awesome malt/bitter/spiciness and tart/tangy fruit balance; with no puckering/astringent flavors after the finish. Fairly crisp/clean finishing. Light-moderate increasing dryness from lingering bitter/spiciness and tart/tangy fruit. Medium-plus carbonation and light-medium body; with a very smooth, moderately bready/grainy/sticky, and lightly acidic/tangy balanced mouthfeel that is great. Zero warming alcohol for 5.5%. Overall this is an excellent fruited dry hopped saison. All around great complexity, robustness, and balance of peaches, lemon/orange peel, citrus/fruity/tropical hops, fruity/spicy yeast, and pale/wheat malt flavors; very smooth, refreshing, and fairly crisp/clean to drink with the modestly bitter/spicy/drying finish. Very flavorful and not watery for the ABV. Awesome balance between juicy peaches/citrus zest, vibrant Citra/Loral/Equinox hop, Belgian yeast, and a clean pale/wheat malt backbone. Minimal residual sweetness with crisp dryness. A very enjoyable offering, and impressive spot on style example. No complaints.
Tried
from Can
on 30 Sep 2019
at 01:59
5/10
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Appearance 4
Aroma 5
Flavor 5
Texture 6
Overall 5
Green $2 can from vintage estates. There's not just one cat on the can, there is a bunch. All kinds of weird nifty cats looking at a running mouse, heheheh. Mildly sweet aroma. Nice clear pale pour with a big fat head. Head is 75% of pour! Taste is quite nice. Better than expected, even has shades of the big O in there, no lie! Hides its alky content rather well. Goes down very nicely. Pretty good co2 as well. In the end I'm starting to get a little bit of medicine on the palate, now the alky is starting to show thru with a tad of that processed feel in thar. Not bad overall. Don't think I picked up on the wine barrel thang.
Tried
from Can
on 04 Jul 2019
at 16:48
8/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 8
Flavor 8
Texture 8
Overall 8
Ever so slightly hazy copper and orange tinted body with a thinnish, single centimetre tall just off-white head on top. Aroma of dry grain, a dose of coriander seed, a more pungent dose of curacao and full oranges and even some sweetness from fruit at the very end - but the dry malt components and yeast are stronger though towards the end. Light to Medium-bodied; Very nice and elegant effervescence with a deep coriander seed and curacao profile at first that shows the subdued yeast strain and some mellow fruit-based sugars soon afterwards with a pleasant malt backbone and some softer grain at the edges make this complex and enjoyable. Aftertaste shows the dryness first and foremost with some more elegant dry and crisp, fruity profiles, perhaps from the wine barrel aging, but showing more of a yeastiness. Overall, a very nice and super elegant beer that is dry, but shows a great flavour and even better complexity throughout. Great on a warm/hot day as the malt isn't cloying, but the flavours are nice and dry. I sampled this twelve ounce can, purchased from BeerTopia in Omaha, Nebraska on 13-February-2019 for US$9,99/six pack sampled at home in Washington on 28-April-2019.
Tried
from Can
on 29 Apr 2019
at 07:48
6.2/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 7
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6
The Aromas are mild funk, straw and pale malt. Flavors are like nose, lightly tart enhanced by carbonation, touch sweet, and a bit of either apple or pear. Okay body and finish. Nothing special.
Tried
on 27 Mar 2019
at 01:33
7.2/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 7
Texture 8
Overall 7
Keg at Stubby's Gastropub, 3/16/19. Hazy amber. Aroma of peach, berry, pale malt, mild funk. Taste is funk, oak, lemon, peach, berry. Medium bodied.
Tried
on 19 Mar 2019
at 01:54
6.5/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 10
Overall 6
Don't get a beer dah gard often! heheheh. Pour is big foaming brew, lots of co2 in the head, brew and mouth. Beer is 2 inch and foam is 10 inch. Yes, first impression is a very good well behaved beer with lots of carbonation, cutting. Its a hair darker than pale. Yes, very good palate, one of the best I've had in a while. Smells like neutral beer but taste carries this weird almost smell-able sweet perfume impact on the back of the olfactory. Yes, its like you can taste the sweet aroma yet, none is there. Impressive finish. Yea, that tasty perfumy sweet, almost unwelcome, thing hangs around for a while in the end. Not as good as Beaver Biere de Gard but better than Beaver French Teamaker De Garde, Jolly Pumpkin Bière de Mars, Beaver French Strisselspalt or even Off Color Le Woof. This comes in number 2 out of 15 de-grades I've tasted! Yes, not bad! Petty good overall beer tasting experience, thank you. And guess, what, no not king tut, its just that I want another one but don't have one! Should have bought a six pack of this stuff.
Tried
from Can
on 19 Feb 2019
at 22:24
6/10
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Appearance 4
Aroma 6
Flavor 6.5
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Can from vintage. Somewhat mild lemony nose. Pour is clear pale. First impression is that its a little tasty, perhaps more than your typical saizzie. Interesting fun & smooth. Good co2 as well. Stands up well. Not bad, pretty impressed, thank you. Doesn't seem to have any of the ill effects of the typical domestic saison. It really grows on you thru the session. I wish I had another cannah this stuff, it was only $2!
Tried
from Can
from
Vintage Estate Wine and Beer
on 18 Feb 2019
at 23:44
4.4/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 3
Flavor 5
Texture 4
Overall 4.5
Pink can from Vintage. Label is very odd. Smell is a little off. Looks like a cloudy hefe. Taste is slightly tart but then this astringent thing sets in. Yes a decently tart beer but the astringent weird thing makes it a little difficult. I guess its from the watermelons. Good for a tick but wouldn't buy it again.
Tried
from Can
on 09 Feb 2019
at 20:21
7/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 8
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
12 ounce can from Woodman's Menomonee Falls. Slightly hazy amber, large foamy off-white head, good retention. Aroma of strong funk, bready malt, spice, cider apples, stone fruit. Taste is lemon, citrus, pale bready malt, mild funkiness. Thin. Decent.
Tried
from Can
on 14 Jan 2019
at 04:58