Some Milwaukee things come and go while some become icons. Mandatory Milwaukee is all about the latter. This week: supporting Milwaukee breweries by purchasing beer on Black Friday.
As we inch ever closer to the holiday season, we’re all bound to get swept up into the consumer-focused madness of “Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday” while we rush to complete our seasonal shopping. Amid all the corporate-fueled darkness, there are glimmers of good. Of course, there’s “Shop Small Saturday,” in which people are encouraged to spend their money locally—which should always be something shoppers try to do whenever possible and feasible, but we digress.
Through the years, another Thanksgiving-adjacent shopping tradition has developed: Black Friday beer releases! Yes, every late November, breweries all over the world make room on their shelves and draft lines for inventive limited beer releases. It’s a chance for breweries to put out barrel-aged offerings, reprise bygone beers, release fruited sours or pastry stouts, or create any number of other refreshing rarities.
At a time in which craft brewing is struggling for countless reasons, Black Friday releases serve as an annual reminder to patronize, support, and appreciate independent breweries while they’re still around. Here in metro Milwaukee, there are no shortages of ways to partake in this beer-based tradition this year. On Friday, November 28 (and earlier in some cases), a wide range of local breweries will be opening early to sell hordes of beer appreciators craft brewed creatios that are limited in quantity and typically high in alcohol content.
It’s a way to celebrate the wide diversity of local offerings available to us here in “Brew City,” an opportunity to buy gifts for the beers lover in your life or stock up your fridge for the long winter ahead, and give a much-needed boost to an industry that’s currently experiencing financial hardship. You can see great (and significantly more comprehensive) Black Friday Beer round-ups at Visit Milwaukee, Milwaukee Magazine, and OnMilwaukee, but here are a few standout releases we’re especially excited for this time around.
Amorphic Beer
The Riverwest brewery will be opening at 9 a.m. MKE Bento (and potentially a mobile coffee and bakery vendor) will be set up on-site. This year, Amorphic will be releasing two Black Friday beers, a Bourbon Maple Syrup Barrel Aged Imperial Stout and an Imperial Czech Dark Lager that was aged in blackberry wine barrels. Both will be available on draft in the taproom and for pick-up (while supplies last). You can pre-order on Amorphic’s website.
Black Husky Brewing
Also in Riverwest, Black Husky Brewing always gets an early jump on the November beer releases with its “Ahead Of The Pack” beer. This year’s, a Belgian IPA, will be released the day before Thanksgiving in its taproom on the corner of Locust and Bremen.
Central Waters Brewing
Next Friday, Central Waters will be releasing two brand new beers that were made at the Milwaukee taproom and that are exclusive to that location. Starting at 9 a.m., customers can purchase a Triple Black IPA and an Ice Wine Barrel English Barleywine.
Component Brewing
Situated in the Lincoln Warehouse at the edge of Bay View, Component Brewing is going hard this Black Friday. They’ll be opening at 11 a.m., and will have the Hot Box MKE pizza truck set up on the patio from 12-5 p.m. In terms of beer, they’ll be debuting a Barrel Aged Hazelnut Mocha Swirled Stout on draft an in bottles, bringing back its Supreme Haze The Lord! double hazy IPA (its 2023 Black Friday release) both on draft and in cans, and will be tapping/pouring its last sixth barrel of last year’s Turtle Sundae swirled stout until its gone.
Dead Bird Brewing
“Milwaukee’s only vegan arcade brewery” will open at noon and will release its beloved Black Friday favorite “Beanut Putter” chocolate peanut butter imperial stout. Beyond that, they’re going to be offering three collaboration beers, including: a English Barleywine (made with Torzala Brewing), a “Belgian witbier winter warmer hybrid” (made in partnership with North Pillar Brewing), and a so-called “wild shandy” (a collab with Titletown Brewing). All four will be available in four-packs in limited quantities.
Gathering Place Brewing
Gathering Place will be paying homage to Briess—its malt supplier that’s based in Chilton, Wisconsin—by putting out two Black Friday beers inspired by Briess malted milk balls. Both the “Milk Ball Stout” and “Mocha Milk Ball Stout” will be available at both Gathering Place locations (and Sahale in Grafton, which Gathering Place owns) on draft and in 16-ounce cans. The Riverwest taproom opens at 10 a.m. next Friday, followed by Tosa at noon, and Sahale at 3 p.m.
Lakefront Brewery
Our friends at Lakefront Brewery always go all out for Black Friday beer releases. This year (its FIFTEENTH YEAR doing this!), Milwaukee’s largest craft brewery will offer “four different varieties of their rare liquid” and will give a collectible Black Friday souvenir wrapped pint glass to anyone who buys at least four Black Friday cans. Honestly, there’s a ton going on with this one, so we’ll just include a link to the press release if you want more info.
New Barons Brewing Cooperative
New Barons’ 2024 Black Friday beer release was so well-received, they decided to run it back in ’25. Their “Crispy Cabin Vibes” BA Doppelbock will be available both on draft and in bottles starting at 9 a.m. on Black Friday. There’s currently a pre-order for bottles (limited to just 240 made this year!) on the New Barons site.
Ope! Brewing
Out in nearby West Allis, Ope! Brewing will be OPEning (<-sorry!) at 9 a.m. next Friday and releasing two new Black Friday barleywines. One will be aged in Apple Brandy and Maple Whiskey barrels and the other will be aged in Rye Whiskey barrels. Keep an eye on Ope!’s social media for more info on pre-ordering.
Third Space Brewing
Almost last alphabetically but certainly not last in terms of what they have lined up for November 28, Third Space Brewing is doing a ton at its Menomonee Valley taproom for Black Friday. They’ll be opening at noon, at which point they’ll be selling some festive special beers in canned four-packs, including its “Bourbon Barrel-Aged Eggnog Stout” and a holiday gathering-suited fruited sour called “Kara’s Holiday Punch.” From 2-6 p.m., the Tots On The Street food truck will be slinging spuds outside the brewery, and Tavern Pedalers will be providing live tunes from 3-5 p.m.
Torzala Brewing Co.
In addition to the collab with Dead Bird that we mentioned earlier in this article, Torzala Brewing Co. (located on the second floor of the Lincoln Warehouse) will also to a collaborative release with Soul Brew that blends Torzala’s Cold IPA and Soul Brew’s BLM Kombucha. Beyond the collaborative releases, Torzala will also release two other Black Friday beers next Friday, including a Belgian Chocolate Quad and a Harvest Ale that’s made with roasted pumpkins. The brewery opens at 9 a.m. on Black Friday!
Water Street Brewery
All Water Street Brewery locations will open at 11 a.m. on Black Friday and will be tapping two new holiday-specific beer offerings. Both the “4-Wood” Belgian Quad and the “Slow Red House” Italian Grape Ale are aged in red wine barrels. There are no take outs, so maybe get both and stick around for lunch or dinner to get a nice base before heading on your way.
And if waking up early to stand in line for beer isn’t your thing, we get it! In that case, we simply encourage you to visit your favorite taproom on non-brewing holidays, swing by to pick up a four- or six-pack directly from a brewery, or at the very least make a concerted effort look locally from time to time when ordering at a bar or browsing liquor store shelves and grocery cases. Holiday or not, support local craft breweries!
