How a Puppet Metal Band and Illinois Brewery Came Together for an Amazing Beer Release

Wake Brewing & Throwing Goats celebrate the 4th annual release of the seasonal nordic stout, Krampusblüd.  Charlie Cole, from Blue Cat Brewing Co, and I got the collaborators in-studio to talk about the upcoming release this Friday at Wake in Rock Island.

There's a LOT to unpack here and even with the 15-minute interview, I don't feel like I touched the surface of the brilliant Puppet Metal of Throwing Goats, or the enviously authentic branding of Wake Brewing.

I'm really hoping to get these guys back at some point next year.  But until then...

You've Heard the Tale of Krampus, Right?

In European legend, there is a half-goat, half-demon monster that punishes misbehaving children at Christmastime.

Santa makes his naughty & nice list and give toys to the good little boys and girls.  Meanwhile, it's not coal that gets put in the stockings of the bad eggs...they get sticks and branches or if they're really bad he eats them or drags them to hell.

Merry Christmas!

How Did Krampusblüd Come to be?

Seth Chappell is the personal assistant to Beardo (pronounced bey-Ahr-doh) and the official historian for the iconic puppet metal band, Throwing Goats.

Sadly puppets have always been seen, in Beardo’s own words, as “second handed citizens” so the band never really had the success they deserved.  Many other “flesh covered” bands saw success in genre’s that pulled from direct influence of Puppet Metal.

See?  I told you we only scratch the surface on this thing.  Anyway, Seth came up with the concept for the beer as just a creative outlet and decided the idea was perfect for Wake Brewing.

Justin Parris, from Wake Brewing, says he wanted it to be a darker beer, and using a nordic yeast fit really well with the concept of Krampus.  Added coffee notes & a little bit of vanilla to make one of the best seasonal beers in the Quad Cities.

We were so focused on the Krampusblüd I didn't get a chance to geek out about Wake in general. One thing that makes a business stand out is the branding and Wake's love of all things metal is so authentic I wanted to dive into that more.  I wanted to talk Motorhead and Decibel Magazines Metal & Beer Fest and other collaborations.  Hopefully, I can  get him or his brother Jason back in for Wake round two.

When Can You Get Krampusblüd?

You can get Krampusblüd at Wake Brewing this Friday, December 2, 2022, when Krampus himself taps the keg in the afternoon.

This, of course, is a limited run so get some while you can.

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