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Scratch's Hours 2023

 

Fri - Sun12 PM - 8 PM

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You may arrange to pick up beer to go during the week by calling the brewery or sending an email to info@scratchbeer.com

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southern illinois microbrewery & farm
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  open for on-site enjoyment Fri-Sun. See our hours. 

   info@scratchbeer.com   cash only

   we do not allow buses. parties of 12 or more please call ahead
 

SERVICES
Anchor 2
ABOUT US

ABOUT

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scratch Brewing Company is a farmhouse brewery located five miles from the Shawnee National Forest in Ava, Illinois. Named one of the top four breweries for foraged beer by Outside Magazine, and one of the most beautiful places to drink beer in the world by All About Beer Magazine, Scratch Brewing Company focuses on farmhouse beers and other styles brewed with home grown and locally farmed and foraged ingredients. The brewery has an ever rotating selection of styles enhanced by the innovative addition of local ingredients, such as nettle, elderberry, ginger, dandelion, maple sap, hickory, lavender, juniper, and chanterelle mushrooms. 

 

Owners Marika Josephson and Aaron Kleidon create beer whose aim is to showcase the “terroir” of Southern Illinois. For their efforts, they were nominated for a 2020 James Beard Award for Outstanding Wine, Spirits, or Beer Producer. Their book, The Homebrewers Alamanac, has become an indispensible guide to those seeking more information on brewing with native plants. Beer Advocate said that its "stunning photography makes this book a high-end addition to your homebrew library."

 

Scratch bottles special release offerings and distributes beer to select bars and liquor stores in Illinois and in half a dozen other states. The brewery also supports local artists and artisans, commissioning original ceramics, t-shirts, posters, bottle openers, and other merchandise. In 2017 it opened the Serpent Room, a collaborative project with artist Brett Douglas Hunter, who brought the room to life with his original floor-to-ceiling art and sculptures. The Serpent Room is available to rent for private events and for non-profits; more information is available below.

Mason jars
Sage
Wheezy and the goats
Outdoor fire pit
Goat house and hops
Juniper
Aaron foraging for ingredients
Scratch beer
Anchor 1
BEER & FOOD LIST

Draft List for Weekend of September 29 - October 1

*we are cash only!*   *all prices include tax*  try a flight of 4 for $12 

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foeder-aged porter ($6 snifter/$17 growler fills)

oak barrel-aged porter brewed with sweet cicely. rich and chocolatey with notes of vanilla and licorice with a lightly tart, cherry-like finish. 6.9% abv

  

hickory farmhouse ($6 snifter/$17 growler fill)

rustic farmhouse ale brewed with toasted hickory bark, fermented with our house culture, then conditioned for a year with a wild brettanomyces yeast strain. dry and effervescent with a hint of incense, toasted marshmallow, and earthy bitterness. 5.6% abv

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black cherry sour ($6 snifter/no growler fills-we have bottles)         

sour black beer brewed without hops; made with wild cherry bark and a hefty dose of chocolate malt in the grain bill. fermented with our wild house culture, the beer gives flavors of chocolate-covered cherries, incense, and baking spice. 5.6% abv • 750 ml


wild carrot & nettle ($6 snifter/$17 growler fills)        
light golden farmhouse ale brewed with wild carrot leaves, and stinging nettle. earthy and spicy effervescent. 5.2% abv

 

session saison ($5 goblet/no growler fills)                    

low alcohol classic farmhouse ale. brewed with pilsner malt fermented with house culture. boiled for 2 hours over a wood fire. some might say this beer is a crispy crusher. 3.8% abv 

cedar pale ale ($5 goblet/$15 growler fills)    
classic pale ale brewed with juniper branches. light breadiness with a touch of pine and citrus and a smooth fi
nish. 5.0% abv


barrel-aged cedar ($6 snifter/$17 growler fills) 

sour beer brewed without hops. bittered and flavored with cedar branches and aged for a year in a neutral oak barrel. 6.2% abv


131 ($6 snifter/no growler fills-we have bottles)

this unique farmhouse ale is an imprint of its place and time. brewed with 131 different leaves, roots, bark, flowers, seeds, and fungi from the height of the growing season, it conveys a subtle earthiness and spice that is characteristic of our location in southern illinois. 5.3% abv     

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oven beer ($5 goblet/$15 growler fill)

sour beer brewed with a Lithuanian-style mashing technique in which the mash was roasted in our wood-fired oven for three hours to promote a deep caramelization and bready crust. the baked mash was then sparged,  filtered and fermented with our sourdough bread culture. an easy-drinking sour beer similar to a kvass. 4.5% abv

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non-alcoholic   coffee from dark matter ($5) • basil soda ($4)

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Bottles


Cold bottles available for here and all bottles available at cellar temp to-g0

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dandelion ginger tonic ($15)

bottle-conditioned sour beer brewed without hops. bittered and flavored with southern illinois-grown dandelion, ginger, carrot tops, and clover, and fermented with our wild house culture. 4.4% abv • 500 ml

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maypop ($17)

sour beer brewed without hops. fermented with our wild house culture and flavored with wild southern illinois passion fruit (maypop from our property). tropical aromas with a sweet-tart finish. 4.6% abv  •  500 ml

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strawberry rhubarb  ($17)

sour beer made with local strawberries and rhubarb fermented with our house culture.  5.5% abv  •  500 ml

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dry-hopped sassafras ($17)

sour wheat beer brewed with sassafras leaves from our property and Illinois-grown Macinac hops. refreshing summer beer with notes of citrus and pineapple. 4.1% abv • 500 ml

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honey beer ($17)

sour tripel-style strong ale brewed with local honey and fermented with our house culture. classic dry and spicy character with a peppery phenolic aroma, which morphs to bubble gum and blonde stone fruits as it warms. 8.9% abv • 500 ml

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black cherry ($17)

sour black beer brewed without hops; made with wild cherry bark and a hefty dose of chocolate malt in the grain bill. fermented with our wild house culture, the beer gives flavors of chocolate-covered cherries, incense, and baking spice. 5.6% abv • 750 ml

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black walnut ($20)

dark lager brewed with southern illinois black walnuts, crushed and toasted in our wood-fired oven and added to the boil. fascinating flavors of nocino, sweet baked bread, and stone fruit.  6.2% abv • 750 ml

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black trumpet biere de mars ($20)

dark farmhouse beer brewed with black trumpet mushrooms from our property. notes of earthy chocolate with a crisp finish and a cellared mushroom character. 6.9% abv • 750 ml

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Food


 *Pizzas available starting at 4:00 on Fridays and Noon on Saturday and Sunday

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Our food is almost entirely locally sourced. Bread is made entirely with local flour from Janie’s Mill in Ashkum, Illinois, fermented with our sourdough culture, and baked in our wood-fired brick oven. Pizza dough is made with King Arthur flour. Produce is foraged on our land, grown on property managed by our farmers Kris Pirmann and Adriane Koontz, or purchased from local farmers. Goat cheese is from Baetje Farms, located outside Ste. Genevieve, Missouri.

Wood-Fired Oven Pizza (approximately 12 inches)

Our pizzas are stretched lovingly by hand. Please allow 20 minutes or longer if we are busy. 

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Fresh Tomato, Basil & Mozzarella ($15) 

Topped with fresh heirloom tomatoes from our garden, mozzarella, olive oil and fresh basil

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Pepper & Sausage ($15) 

Topped with house-made tomato sauce, sliced fresh peppers from our garden, sausage from wenneman's, and chevre goat cheese

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Bloomsdale Cheese Platter ($18) 

One of the world's finest goat cheeses is made at Baetje farms, just over the river in Ste. Genevieve, Missouri. A gold medal winner, chosen as one of the top 16 cheeses in the world at the world cheese awards, the pyramid-shaped Bloomsdale is a mold-ripened cheese rolled in a mixture of ash and salt. As the cheese ages it becomes softer and creamier around the rind and takes on blue cheese flavor compounds. Served with Scratch's house-made bread. 


Picnic Plate ($20)
Feeds 2 people or 4 as an appetizer. Assorted foods from our garden and breads made with Illinois flour from Janie’s Mill. All of the sides were prepared in our kitchen with our own garden-grown produce. This week we have:
  Wedges of House-Made Bread (contains nuts)
  Herb Salt

  Olive Oil

  Pickled Beets

  Kimchi

  Pickled Okra

  Pickled Squash

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Hearth Bread To-Go

Freshly Cracked Wheat & Spelt Loaf ($9)

Mountain Oat Rye Loaf ($9)

THE HOMEBREWER'S

ALMANAC

Our book on brewing with farmed and foraged ingredients is available at all fine booksellers!

 

The book features 36 plants that add unique character to your beer, which you can grow in your garden, gather from your yard and other wild spaces, or buy from farmer's markets. Chapters focus on individual plants with information about how each has been used historically in food, medicine, and drink, and how we've used them here at Scratch. Recipes are included in each chapter, along with beautiful photographs by our resident photographer, Aaron Kleidon.

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The Homebrewer's Almanac has been featured in Brew Your Own magazine, Craft Beer & Brewing, and was a top choice in Imbibe Magazine and Zymurgy's holiday gift guides. Beer Advocate magazine says "Marika Josephson, Aaron Kleidon, and Ryan Tockstein share their successes in this guidebook to homebrewing with foraged ingredients... Kleidon's stunning photography makes this book a high-end addition to your homebrew library."

 

You can buy a copy of The Homebrewer's Almanac on our online shop, which comes signed by authors Marika Josephson and Aaron Kleidon. You can also find the book at your local bookseller or on:

IndieBound

Barnes & Noble

Amazon

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HOMEBREWER'S ALMANAC
EVENTS
CONTACT

RENT THE SERPENT ROOM

AT SCRATCH

The Serpent Room is a manifestation of the creative energy of local artist Brett Douglas Hunter, featuring his original art and sculptures. The room is available to rent for business events, birthdays, receptions, and other moderately sized gatherings for people who want a private bartender and an intimate, colorful space to enjoy with close friends, family, or colleagues. We have room for seating for 50 people with a bar that can handle 4 different taps of Scratch beer. This is an extremely unique space that is unlike any other place you may have considered renting for your event.

Rates vary by season and by weekday or weekend rentals.

 

Please email or call the brewery (info@scratchbeer.com) for more information on the space and on pricing.

CONTACT

264 Thompson Rd

Ava, IL 62907

 

info@scratchbeer.com
618-426-1415

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Due to our limited space and small parking lot we do NOT allow buses. Parties of 12 or more please call ahead.

HOURS

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Mon - Thurs: To-go only

growler and bottle sales by appointment. Please call the brewery at 618-426-1415 or email info@scratchbeer.com to schedule a time to come by

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On-site winter hours:

Friday: 12 PM - 8 PM

Saturday: 12 PM - 8 PM

Sunday: 12 PM - 6 PM
 

We are CASH ONLY and have an on-site ATM.

ACCOMMODATIONS

 

Below are the closest accommodations to Scratch. There is more camping, and more B&Bs, inns, and hotels in Carbondale and farther south in the Shawnee National Forest and along the Wine Trail.

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Camping

Johnson Creek Recreation Area in Ava

Lake Murphysboro in Murphysboro

Mudline Lodging in Ava

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B&Bs, Inns, and AirBnB

Old Bank Studio in Ava

Renovated 1930s Farmhouse in Vergennes

Oxbow Bed & Breakfast in Pinckneyville

Historic Hull House Inn in Murphysboro

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Cabins

Lost Trail Cabins in Ava

Stay up to date on Scratch happenings!

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