Two Brothers Brewing Company - Pinball Pale Ale

Pinball presents a bright golden hue with good clarity beneath a robust cap of bone-colored foam. We really enjoyed how nicely fruity this dry-hopped pale ale is in the aroma department, with big stone fruit notes breaking toward apricot and peach, along with tropical fruits and a touch of tangerine-like citrus. Look for it to come through deliciously fruity on the palate too, with the softer tropical and stone fruit notes balanced by the edgier citric tones which come through fairly zesty to provide a bit of a bite in concert with moderate to firm perceived hop bitterness. There’s a nicely supportive malt backbone here too, despite this pale ale weighing in at just 4.9% ABV, making for a sessionable but still satisfying brew. For pairing options, the brewery recommends various cheeses, curried dishes, and burgers, which all sound good to us. Cheers!

Two Brothers Brewing Company is a family-owned brewery located in Warrenville, Illinois, just outside of Chicago. Prior to starting the brewery, founders Jim and Jason Ebel opened up The Brewer’s Coop, a homebrewing and home winemaking shop. Between the two of them, they were seasoned homebrewers and for years they talked about starting a brewery. Jason moved out west to hone his brewing skills at the Tabernash Brewery in Denver, CO, and also gained some experience at Mickey Finn’s in Libertyville, IL. During this time, the two still talked about starting their own brewery. Eventually, they drove their families just a little bit nuts with all the talk and finally decided to go for it and start a brewpub; but, with no real financing and no experience in restaurant management, they decided a brewery would be a better bet. While planning and working the shop, Jim earned his law degree and Jason earned his brewing degree at the famed Siebel Institute in Chicago. In 1996 they officially opened the brewery. Their goal was to bring fresh, high-quality brews to the Chicagoland area.

Over the past three decades, Two Brothers has grown in leaps and bounds, now inhabiting a 40,000 sq. ft. brewing facility with a 50-barrel system and 3,000 barrels of fermenter space. Should you be visiting the Chicago area, you can check out the Two Brothers wares in greater detail at Two Brothers Tap House in Warrenville or the Two Brothers Roundhouse in Aurora—all within 25 minutes of one another. For their latest info, visit their website at twobrothersbrewing.com.