Beverly's Horse Thief Hollow Brewing Mines Gold With Little Wing

CHICAGO — The team behind Horse Thief Hollow Brewing in Beverly knew they had something special in their Little Wing Pilsener when it started gaining recognition three years ago.

But even after the American Pilsener which is named after a Jimi Hendrix song captured a bronze medal at the Great American Beer Festival in 2020, Horse Thief Hollow Brewingco-founder Neil Byers figured that he and his fellow brew masters knew they could take the beer’s success even farther.

Fast-forward to 2023 when Little Wing won a Gold Medal at the World Beer Cup, which honored the entry into the International Pilsener category — one of the toughest in the competition. Now, Horse Thief Hollow has entered another gold medal into its brewing trophy collection after Little Wing won gold in the 2023 Great American Beer Festival in Denver.

Little Wing was one of two Illinois beers to capture gold at the event, joining Sew Hop’d Brewing in Huntley, whose Alt 140 took home top honors in the German-style Altbier category.

Judges evaluated nearly 9,445 entries from 50 states, Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico, including collaborations between professional breweries and pro-am collaborations from professionals and amateurs.

Among those, 303 medals were awarded to 263 breweries across 99 categories and 175 beer styles. Gold, silver, and bronze medals were awarded.

Here’s the list of Illinois brews honored over the weekend:

• Gold Medal winner: Alt 140, Sew Hop’d Brewery, Huntley, captured gold in the German-style Altbier category
• Gold Medal winner: Little Wing, Horse Thief Hollow Brewing, Chicago, captured gold in the International-style Pilsener category
• Silver Medal winner: Helles Rauchbier, Double Clutch Brewing, Evanston, captured silver in the Smoke Beer category
• Silver Medal winner: Boathouse Reserve Imperial Stout, Crystal Lake Brewing, Crystal Lake, captured silver in the Experimental Wood-Aged beer category.
• Bronze Medal winner: Grodziskie, Sketchbook Brewing, Skokie, earned bronze in the Historical Beer category
• Bronze Medal winner: Lil’ Space Booties, MORE Brewing, Huntley, earned bronze in the Juicy or Hazy IPA category
• Bronze Medal winner: Barrel Aged Count Chungus, Werk Force Brewing, Plainfield, earned bronze in the Wood and Barrel-aged Strong Stout category

For Byers — who did not immediately return a message to Patch on Monday seeking comment — the continued success of Little Wing is extremely satisfying.

“About six or seven years ago, I told the team I wanted to create a beer that was refreshing in the summer, satisfying in the winter, approachable to a non-craft beer drinker, and interesting to a craft beer drinker. Never in my wildest dreams did I think we’d have the best Pilsner in the world,” Byers told the Daily Southtown after the Beer World Cup victory earlier this year.

Byers opened Horse Thief Hollow in 2013, combining a variety of house-brewed beers with Southern cuisine in a comfortable setting. According to the brewery’s website, Byers worked to set up his space in a 5,900-square-foot space formerly occupied by a carpet store.

The brewery has 90 seats in the renovated space which Byers completed by restoring the vaulted wood beam ceiling and worked with family members to complete the overhaul of a brewery that has, over the past 10 years, become a haven for award-winning beers.