Lunar Brewing

[Rene G]

As soon as I walked into Lunar I loved the place. So many brewpubs seem stamped out of the same corporate mold but Lunar has some character. It’s an old, dark, long bar room with the original fixtures intact and lots of old Christmas ornaments (mostly moon and stars) hanging around. Nothing fancy but very comfortable.

My opinion even went up a notch when I noticed a Stone Beer (Third Stone) on the list, something I’d never seen made in any microbrewery. Before the advent of copper boiling vessels some breweries used heated stones to boil the brew in wooden kettles. Sugars caramelized around the hot stone which was then used to prime the secondary fermentation. With my first sip, my opinion went down a notch. It had a smoky, burnt taste that didn’t thrill me. Another notch down when the brewer told me there were no stones involved, the malts were simply pre-scorched before brewing. Still another notch down upon sampling the Moonbeam Steam beer (drinkable but thin). We moved on to the Red Moon Rye-sin and Blackstar Stout and things didn’t improve much. My friend neatly summed it up: "These are all just odd." Nothing was downright terrible but there wasn’t a beer I could work up much enthusiasm for. Most were a bit light-bodied, harbored some off flavor, or both. Believe me, I really wanted to like them. I also tried the Kosmic Kolsch and Yellow Moon Rice-in’, both light brews without much to like or dislike. Perhaps the most successful were the 2 Belgian style beers, Darkside Dubbel and Neil Armstrong Ale, hefty 8% brew.

Even though I didn’t find the house beers to my taste I still like the place and would stop by again if I’m ever in the vicinity. They have several guest beers on tap and a nice selection of bottled beers. If I lived close by I’d likely be a frequent customer.

Lunar Brewing Company
54 E St Charles Rd
VIlla Park IL
630-530-2077

[David Hammmond]

Rene,

As I think I mentioned when we shared drinks at Hopleaf apres Inspiration Cafe, I've been to Lunar, too, and found the atmosphere most congenial -- the night we were there, we talked with the barkeep for a few hours.

I wish I had something of substance to add to your review, but you have (as usual) given such a solid accounting of the experience, that it's hard to add anything of value.

I will say, however, that you touch in an off-handed way on something I think about all the time: how much does food (or drink) really have to do with the experience? You said you didn't much care for the beer at Lunar, but you also said you'd be a regular if you lived in the neighborhood. On the chowathon, there were several places that served okay stuff (e.g., Filbert's, Edna's) but provided excellent atmosphere (which, in the case of Filbert's, was basically a drafty factory with a friendly soda gnome).

I think we Chowhounds tend to focus on what we put in our mouths -- I'm totally with you in your recognition that there's other "inputs" that should be taken into account. I think we tend to shun "ambience," but whether we recognize it or not, it affects what we taste and how we respond to the overall experience.

[Vital Information]

I am a huge believer in atmosphere, ambience and their cousin, service. I believe if you have those things, and offer a great dessert, people will come away loving your place. Just as we taste with more than our tounges, we taste an establishmenbt with more than its food.

A lot of "chowhound" places that maybe seem atmosphere-less, I would question whether there really is no atmosphere. How about Kabbabish. A dump, yes, but warm in its own way. In other words atmosphere does not equate with fancy-schmancy.

Rob

[David Hammmond]

Right, I think "ambiance" sometimes connotes emphasis upon form rather than flava, frilly exteriors with no meat.

Kabbabish is an excellent example of a place that many would say was ambience-free. Clearly, though, it's got personality and character, and I find it way preferable to the phony ambience of say, TGIFriday's or Cracker Barrel or one of those many other relatively popular places with pumped in artificial atmospheres.

[goethean]

I have to say that I think you got unlucky with your choices in beers. All of the ones that you chose are beers that Lunar brews infrequently or rarely. The beers that they have on a regular rotation are much better: from their current selection, their Moonshine Imperial Stout, their British Bitter, the Armstrong Strong Belgian, and the Dubbel are excellent in my opinion. I can also vouch for the Old Ale, although that probably won't come around again till the fall.

And I disagree with you about the Steinbier--I found it not distinctive enough. Good to know that it's not an actual Steinbier, however.

Their beers are uneven in quality (I don't like the porter, strangely enough), but I prefer an adventurous brewpub over the many safer, more boring ones. I hope you give Lunar another try.

[Rene G]

I really appreciate you mentioning Lunar and probably enjoyed it more than you may think. I’m sure I’ll be back but it’s a real pain for me to get to. Given the choice between Lunar and somewhere like Rock Bottom I wouldn’t hesitate for a second. I’d urge everyone to go and see how they like it.

[Jim Dorsch]

Boscos in Nashville has done a stone beer for a number of years.

A small brewery in Baltimore, Brimstone, used to do a stone beer. The company was bought by Frederick Brewing Co, and the brand is basically nonexistent today.

I've always enjoyed Rauchenfels Steinbier from GE, but it's a bit difficult to find in my area.