It's not as if craft beer is anywhere near finished growing. But in 2016, it has firmly reached the mainstream. Along with that mainstream comes a year-round embrace of craft beer, which includes more well-curated beer menus and brewery taprooms than most of us could ever hope to get to. If you want it, there is a unique beer experience to be had in Chicago literally every day of the year. Part of the reason for that has been the work put into events like Chicago Craft Beer Week, which not only showcases the industry's ingenuity, but also creates an all-important community that endures long after each Beer Week has ended.