Lakefront Brewery Black Friday limited edition beer back for 2022

MILWAUKEE - Black Friday is a big day at Lakefront Brewery for beer lovers. The brewery released four limited-edition beers for sale.

For the early birds, the beer is one part of why they're out here. But it's more the tradition of getting together with friends -- waiting at Lakefront Brewery to be one of the first to get their hands on the limited edition beer.

"Right after thanksgiving dinner last night, I got here about 6:15," said Dave Armstrong, the first person in line at Lakefront Brewery. "Well it’s become a family tradition and of course the beer. Me and my son-in-law have just been doing this for years and years and just been a lot of fun."

"Black Friday beer started in 2011. We wanted to do something special in 2010, so we offered tours for people who didn’t want to do the stand in line shopping and those tours grew very popular so we started with the Black Friday beer, and it’s just grown and grown and grown," said Russ Klisch, Lakefront Brewery founder and owner.

Klisch talked to FOX6 News about why he believes this event just keeps getting bigger every year. 

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"I think craft beer is community and celebration and it’s something you want to share with other people," Klisch said. "This is going back to the roots for the city of Milwaukee and the crowd here. We have talked to them and they say yeah the beer is good but I’m coming here because of the people that I met, the people I’m going to meet and what I’m going to share with them. Helping them out, keeping them warm and giving them food, all community."

"I’ve been doing it since 2014, got started with my coworker Paul," said Jon Solum, who waiting in line for his beer. "It’s just fun, I mean you get to meet new people every day all day. There are people here from Illinois that we didn’t know until last year, got neighbors to the other side that we’re getting to be friends with and it’s just good people, good all around getting together and doing what love having a beer."

What was available

The four Black Friday beers available for purchase were:

• 2022 Black Friday™ Imperial Stout – Smooth, round, and deep. Although this year's gold standard is 14% abv, this liquid is not hot.
• 2022 Double Barrel Black Friday™ – This barleywine has been aged in both bourbon and rye barrels from Great Lakes Distillery. Flavors of caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, almond and oak, this barleywine is worthy of the Black Friday name.
• 2022 5-Year-Old Black Friday™ – Kept in rye barrels since 2017, the big, roasty, chocolatey Imperial Stout left all traces of alcohol heat in the barrel and picked up vanilla flavors, toasted pecan, marzipan, and a touch of sherry.
• 2022 Black Friday™ Christmas Cookie – A big, chewy Imperial Stout with vanilla, cinnamon and honey, then aged in Rum Barrels. Chocolatey and roasty flavors pick up molasses, oak plank and spice from the rum barrels. You can experience the taste of a gingerbread cookie with sweet icing.

Lakefront's Curdwagon food truck was on hand and open at 4:30 a.m. for breakfast. Black Friday gear will be sold, including a beanie, shirt, blanket, snifter, and bottle opener.

The beer was available while supplies lasted. The doors opened at 8 a.m.

Something fun