Calm down, Russian Imperial Stout, don't lose
your head. (Photo: www.thekitchn.com)

The source of the interview mentioned below is kind of complex, so bear with me ... the Twin Cities’ branch of AOL’s “City’s Best” bar, restaurant, entertainment, etc. news aggregator has an interview with an obscure craft beer brewer from Chippewa Falls by the name of Jake Leinenkugel. (Never heard of him.) Leinenkugel talks about growing up at a local brewery, the craft beer explosion, and his company’s future beer-based plans.

It’s actually kind of a boring interview, though the mental imagery of a little Jacob Leinenkugel running around the Leinenkugel Brewery machinery – unsupervised – is oddly entertaining. He says the recently rereleased seasonal brew “Leinie’s Limited” (aka Northwoods Lager) will be around through March, and their “Big Eddy” Russian Imperial Stout will be back again next year.

I missed Northwoods after it went away, so I’d like to get my hands on some “Limited” soon, if only for the cool black labels. I just saw a whole bunch of Russian Imperial Stout at Festival Foods last weekend, so I’m sure it can still be had. I hear it’s good. Has anyone out there had it?