We take pride in our beer festivals here in the Midwest, and the Windy City is no exception. This past weekend over 6,000 people showed up to sample from over 100 breweries at Chicago's third annual Beer Hoptacular. After selling out their first two years, the event relocated to Riverfront Theatre and held three separate sessions over two days in order to accommodate more breweries and more beer-lovers. This still proved to be inadequate though- Beer Hoptacular sold out again on Saturday.

Although the old Rainier Brewery closed its doors in 1999, the facility has not yet seen the end of its brewing days. In 2010, the Emerald City Beer Company moved in with a beer lab and tasting room built directly into the old Rainier cold room. Though the Emerald City Beer Company made some renovations to the space (such as adding a bar and covering the cork lining on the walls), the historical significance is not lost as you take a tour of the facility. The tasting room is built upon an old loading dock, and you can view the old Rainier lagering tanks through a window in the (new) brewery.

The last time I was at Holiday Valley, my cousin broke her wrist snowboarding, and that night nearly broke my nose when she rolled over in her sleep and hit me in the face with her new cast; but these two sour memories could not possibly outweigh all of the good ones I have of this place. Flying down freshly groomed trails, drinking hot cocoa in the beautiful lodges, and eating the best chicken pot pie of my life are just a few of my favorites, but this weekend I made a few memories that were very different from the rest.