Tap List | Vine Street Brewing Celebrates KC Public Library One for the Books

A few weeks ago, you may have seen a new beer release called One For The Books by Vine Street Brewing Co.

Originally released on Nov. 16, Vine Street made it in collaboration with the Kansas City Public Library in honor of its 150th anniversary. But there’s more to the story than just a simple beer release.

In case you missed it, the two created a Kentucky Common with flavors of vanilla, caramel and some toasted malt. The easily approachable yet distinctive beer reflects the library’s commitment to serve the community for the past 150 years.

The beer is the first of a full year of events the library has planned throughout 2024. Not only will the library be collaborating with community businesses such as Vine Street, but it will be hosting various events such as branch birthday parties, speaking engagements and more.

While the brewery may have released the beer for their taproom, there will be an additional party for its release. On Dec. 5, the actual 150th anniversary of the library, the Plaza branch location will host a celebration starting at 6 p.m. Vine Street’s own Kemet Coleman and The Phantastics will be providing music for the evening.

The event will feature food and beverage, including One For The Books. Bookmarks featuring the beer’s label will be thoughtfully placed around the library within library books. Please note they will not be included with cans of the beer.

Congrats to the Kansas City Public Library on such a big milestone and the Vine Street team for playing such a pivotal role in the announcement. 

Beer Releases 

BKS Artisan Ales — 633 E. 63rd St., Kansas City, Missouri — has released a new version of their Current Past series. Current Past (Black Label) is a 7% West Coast IPA that utilizes different hops with each new iteration. This one was dry-hopped with Strata, Mosaic, Mosaic Cryo, Citra, Citra Cryo and a little bit of Columbus Cryo hops.

Strange Days Brewing — 316 Oak St., Kansas City, Missouri — released a new lager with an international flair. Their newest beer is called Hana Yori Dango, which is a 5% Japanese-style rice lager. It was brewed with whole grain Jasmine rice plus dried Cherry Blossom flowers imported directly from Japan. The lager is nice and light yet balanced. The combination of the hops, rice, cherry blossoms and bready malt create a unique yet complex bouquet of aromas and flavors.

ExBEERiment — 925 E. Lincoln Lane, Gardner, Kansas — got dark for Black Friday, but not with a stout like most other breweries. Instead, they released a double dry-hopped black IPA named Dark Energy. Despite its appearance, the 8% IPA has a light body with roasty flavors along with additional floral and citrus flavors and aromas. The well-balanced beer is smooth and quite an easy drinker.

City Barrel — 1740 Holmes St., Kansas City, Missouri — wanted to say thank you to all of their great customers over the years so they did exactly that. Their new beer Thank You! is a dry-hopped saison. The 7.6% beer is a taproom exclusive. The New Zealand Rakau hops give the saison a fruity flavor before a crisp, refreshing finish.

Diametric Brewing Co. — 949 N.E. Columbus, Lee’s Summit, Missouri — teamed up with multiple area breweries for the last Missouri Loves Company beer of the year. Brewed in Columbia at Logboat Brewing’s recently expanded brewery, the last beer of the 2023 series is an 8% double IPA. The brew boasts big citrus and tropical notes with guava and pineapple leading the way. You can find cans at Diametric as well as at several other breweries around the KC metro area.

Discourse Brewing — 7211 W. 97th St., Overland Park, Kansas — has a new IPA flowing on its taplines. Alberto’s Mosaic is an homage to Albert the cat. It’s a 6.8% hazy IPA SMaSH (single malt and single hop) beer. Alberto’s Mosaic strictly uses pilsner malt and Mosaic hops. Discourse will donate $1 from every taproom pour and $3 from every four-pack sold to Great Plains SPCA. 

Beer Events

Friday, Dec. 1

Red Crow Brewing — 1062 W. Santa Fe St., Olathe, Kansas — collaborated on a beer with Vine Street Brewing and will be throwing a release party. The beer was originally released last year, but exactly 100 bottles have been held back and will be available starting on Dec. 1. The bourbon barrel quad makes a great Christmas gift for your beer loving friends and family or a tasty treat for yourself. Be sure to get there fast as those 100 bottles will disappear quickly.

Transport Brewery — 11113 Johnson Drive, Shawnee, Kansas — is kicking off a two week pet items drive. The items will be donated to the Great Plains SPCA, which has a wish list that you can visit here. You can get $1 off your beer for every item donated. If you donate full, unopened bags of dog or cat food, you’ll receive a free crowler. Items like clothing, toys or leashes should be new or gently used. 

Saturday, Dec. 2

Servaes Brewing Co. — 10921 Johnson Drive, Shawnee, Kansas — is throwing a Holiday Open House and Beer & Cake Ball Pairing. The brewery will be releasing four holiday beers along with four cake balls by Suzy Belle’s Sweets to pair with them. In addition to the pairings, you can pick up one of their 12 Beers of Christmas boxes. While there’s a limited amount available, you can also get 12 cake balls that pair with the 12 beers. If that wasn’t exciting enough, you can also get some Christmas shopping done. Country Gourmet Mixes Shop, Elston Valley Candle Co. and Pennington Pottery will be selling goods in the brewery from 12-4 p.m.

Crane Brewing Co. — 6515 Railroad St., Raytown, Missouri — has a birthday to celebrate. The brewery will be throwing a party to mark eight years in business. The brewery will be releasing multiple beers including their 8th Anniversary Barrel Aged Stout. There will be drink specials all night plus a special anniversary bingo starting at 7 p.m. and more. 

Sunday, Dec. 3

Cinder Block Brewery — 110 E. 18th Ave., North Kansas City, Missouri — has an event that will help you tap into your creative side for the holidays. Cinder Block is throwing a Winter Wreath Making party along with The Arrangement KC Floral. Instructions on how to create your own unique wreath will be provided along with some fun materials. Sip on a beer while making your wreath. Tickets run $70 and will go quickly as space is limited.

East Forty Brewing — 1201 W. Main St., Blue Springs, Missouri — will be welcoming a special visitor to the taproom. Straight from the North Pole, Santa Claus will be visiting East Forty for a Santa Snap ‘N Sip. Kids and families can get their photo with St. Nick that they can use for holiday cards or simply for memories. Of course, plenty of beer will be flowing for the adults while the kids play with Santa.

Alex Andujar is a former beer sales rep turned personal trainer. When he’s not training clients you can find him trying new beers at many of Kansas City’s great local breweries.