John S. Rhodell Brewery

September 24, 2008
I love this place. I usually stop by after work for one. There’s always a 9% to 12% abv on tap. There’s also a cask which is a bonus. This is a locals kinda of place, they don’t worry about fancy TV’s or food. They care about good beer. Mark the Brewmaster is very friendly and knowledgeable. I’ve brewed two batches of beer with him so far, it’s been a nice experience and the beer turned out great. My favorites are the MacBeth’s Revenge, Dark Star Porter, Belgium Tripel, Imperial Stout, and Double Red.

June 15, 2008
A quaint little place...most of their beers were solid...the bartender was more concerned with the regulars at the bar than us though...

May 11, 2007
Nice brewpub. Wooden tables. Very friendly and knowledgeable bartender. 8 house beers when I was there. Really wish I lived near this place.

May 9, 2007
Great place to brew your own beer. I believe one of the only pubs in Illinois that still allows you to do this. I have been going here with my family for a long time now to brew batches of 5 cases. Mark, the brewmaster, is a great guy and friendly. Great beer. Don’t expect anything fancy if you are going here for food or to watch a sports game though.

March 8, 2007
Best micro in the area. Fun place for brewing beer. Very comfortable place with a nice juke box. Only place in area with a cask ale.

January 30, 2007
Really not a bad place. Service was pretty good and the beer selection is pretty good. Essential if you are in the area.

January 8, 2007 [ Updated September 8, 2008 ]
Stopped in after dinner nearby to have a few beers and watch the demise of Tony Romo. Long layout in an old building with the bar at the end on the right across from the brewing area that others have mentioned. A nice selection of their beer on tap, and what mostly BMC stuff in their cooler. Friendly bartender offered up samples unasked and was knowledgeable about the beers. Beers were good, not great, but I thought the Hop Head IPA really stood out as being quite good with a strong hop profile. Picked up a growler of it for $14, refills $12. Kind of lacks a real strong ambiance, but a comfortable place to have a few. Update - Have revisited on several occassions. Beer is overall quite good. Usually have a cask offering, one or two high alcohol beers and a nice lineup covering various styles. Growlers are a bit pricy. It’s a beer drinkers kind of place.

August 11, 2006 [ Updated September 6, 2006 ]
I liked this place, a cozy, woody brick building with beer paraphenalia here and there. The owner was on vacation, but I found the staff to be friendly, efficient, and knowledgeable about their beers. The beers? Solid stuff. They don’t do samplers, but the bartender on hand was happy to give me a couple. The current IPA was good to this hophead; the saison, an interesting experiment. I’ll drop in again if I’m in the Peoria area.

May 11, 2006 [ Updated May 17, 2006 ]
A really nice brewpub, 8 to 9 house brews on tap, Mark, the owner/brewmaster is constantly adding new brews to the tap and is all to happy to talk about his brews. Pints are from $3.50 to $5.50. Mark, for a price of course, will let you use his equipment and brew up 5 cases of a beer of your choice. You can get Butch’s Pizza here, but food is not a focus, the kitchen is closed most days. The big beers here are usually of high quality. The Scottish ales are hit or miss. A must stop when you’re in Peoria.

April 3, 2006
visited this place april 1. They have 9 beers on tap and they rotate lightning fast. they brew 42 beers a year on a very small system. I had their ipa and it was pretty nice. Im suprised with all the beers there are no diacytl problems. My beer had none! cool, little bar with an industrial kinda feeling to it. check it out if your along the waterfront.