Almost immediately after opening its brewpub three years ago in Logan Square, Revolution had two-hour waits for a table and you’d often see a cup over one of the signature fist-shaped tap handles, signifying a popular beer had run dry. Last spring, founder Josh Deth opened a 50,000-square-foot brewing facility in Avondale. Here the crew pumps out signature brews with a 45-barrel setup, experiments with barrel aging and uses the canning line to carry out Deth’s mission to get more craft beers into aluminum. 2323 N Milwaukee Ave (773-227-2739); 3340 N Kedzie Ave (773-588-2267).
Other nominees 5 Rabbit Cerveceria, Half Acre Beer Company, Metropolitan Brewing, Pipeworks Brewing Co., Solemn Oath Brewery
Note: The print edition of this article mistakenly stated that Revolution Brewpub opened four years ago, that retail demand for Revolution's beers was the primary factor behind the opening of the Kedzie Avenue brewery, and that that facility is located in Albany Park. We sincerely regret these errors.