St. Louis loves its craft breweries, but the state of Missouri has more to delicious brews to offer outside the county lines. Take, for instance, Mother’s Brewing Company in Springfield. Mother’s opened just four years ago inside an old bakery and has grown at a rapid pace ever since. Mother’s isn’t available in St. Louis city or county (yet!), but the 20-minute drive south on Interstate 55 is well worth the trip to find out what the rest of the state is talking about.
November brings one of Mother’s best-known seasonals. Winter Grind is a delicious coffee stout made with a cold brew-espresso blend from another Springfield anchor, Mudhouse Coffee. The result is a wintery treat to please lovers of both coffee and beer. Winter Grind pours jet black with a beautiful light brown head, and the aroma packs a big espresso punch with hints of malt and smoke. The first sip hits the palate with big black coffee notes, and if you dig deeper, you’ll detect cocoa and chocolate. The medium-bodied mouth feel means this beer is rich without cloying, and at 6 percent ABV, this is smooth and easy to drink.
Winter Grind is a perfect beer to sip as the temperatures drop, but St. Louis city and county residents will have to travel a bit to find it. It’s available bottled at most grocery stores in Arnold, Imperial and much of Jefferson County, and Weber’s Front Row in Arnold pours draft Winter Grind as long as the season allows. Until Mother’s expands its distribution, take the short drive and see what the (coffee) buzz is about.
This article appears in November 2014.