Introduction to Illuminated Brewery
NORWOOD PARK — Every June, a quiet residential neighborhood on the edge of the city becomes ground zero for the Gay Agenda — served up one pint or four-pack of tallboy cans at a time.
The Brewery’s Unique Atmosphere
Filled with eclectic items like a life-sized Leather Face animatronic, a mural depicting the Eye of Providence and a taxidermy wolf, Illuminated Brew Works has become a funky, occult-themed oasis in Norwood Park. The brewery, tucked in a neighborhood often considered Chicago’s suburb within the city, opened its IBW Lodge at 6186 N. Northwest Highway in 2021 after brewing out of a warehouse in the West Loop for six years.
The Gay Agenda Beer
Since 2017, Illuminated has been brewing Gay Agenda, a Pride Month-themed hazy India pale ale with peaches. Gay Agenda is now sold in liquor stores across the city and as far away as Utah. This year, Illuminated is brewing about 100 barrels of Gay Agenda, one of its largest batches to date, and it commissioned 20 colorful phallic tap handles from Chicago Pyro Shop to celebrate.
Jeff Fox poses for a portrait about the Gay Agenda beer at Illuminated Brew Works, 6186 N. Northwest Highway, in Norwood Park on June 6, 2025. Credit: Colin Boyle/Block Club Chicago
The Concept Behind the Beer
Buckman brought the idea of starting a Gay Agenda beer to his friend and occasional Illuminated beer canner Jeff Fox eight years ago. Fox backed the concept and even dressed up in leather pants, a leather vest and a matching harness to pose for the beer’s colorful label.
The Label Design
Troy Strand, Fox’s husband of 20 years, remembers bringing the couple’s dogs, Winston and Benny, to the label photoshoot. Seeing Fox posing on a throne-like chair, Strand suggested using the dogs in the shot to make it look like Fox was being pulled on a Boston Terrier-drawn chariot. Strand got the terriers to jump up with a handful of treats, and some editing for the label gave them laser eyes with a backdrop of classic Grecian columns.
Supporting the LGBTQ+ Community
Ten percent of the profits from Gay Agenda go to the Broadway Youth Center, an arm of Howard Brown Health that supports LGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness.
Availability and Events
Every year, Illuminated hosts a Gay Agenda release party and other events. A dance party celebrating Pride Month kicks off Saturday at 8:30 p.m.
Cases of the Gay Agenda beer at Illuminated Brew Works, 6186 N. Northwest Highway, in Norwood Park on June
