Something Wicked This Way Comes

There’s something happening in Munster, IN. Chuck Klosterman wrote ‘Fargo Rock City: A Heavy Metal Odyssey in Rural Nörth Daköta’, which led me to Led Zeppelin’s tabloid biography ‘Hammer of The Gods’, which continually refers to the midwest as the band’s pot of gold. These fans also have beer money and spend it well. Some say California when it comes to craft brewing, others Colorado or Oregon; Three Floyds says Indiana.

The Brothers Floyd made a pact with the devil and brew Liquid Metal. They knock heads with bands like EyeHateGod to create namesake beers such as In The Name of Suffering, a black IPA full of voodoo. The brewpub is littered with Simpsons, horror and Slayer memorabilia, not to mention the best food around. There is an air of *You’re Not Worthy* and if our waiter lived in Brooklyn, I’d want to punch him in the face; since it’s Munster, I made a new friend.

My time was limited so I’ll say this—many brewers pride themselves on defying style guidelines, but it’s much harder to make a traditional recipe your own. That’s exactly what 3 Floyds does by collaborating with metalheads, tattoo parlors and comic illustrators. Zombie Dust is an ‘undead’ pale ale with graphic novel labeling. Dark Lord is an imperial stout with its own pagan holiday, Dark Lord Day being at the top of my beer calendar. Klosterman would be proud.