All posts by Katy Buxton

Katy is a sciencey, outdoorsy adventurer who likes beer. Mostly, Minnesotan beer. Follow her on the tweets and the grams at @adventure_mn, and read more of her (non-beer-related) writing at adventureMN.com
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Surly Nation Heads West

Starting May 2016, several selections from Twin Cities-based craft brewery behemoth, Surly Brewing, will be available on draft and shelves in 3 new states.

After dominating the Minnesota craft beer scene for several years, Surly began expanding its distribution 18 months ago starting with Chicago, Iowa, and Wisconsin, now they’re adding North Dakota, South Dakota and Nebraska to their distribution list.

Surly Fest 2014
Surly Fest 2014

Furious, Hell and Overrated will be featured on tap in bars and restaurants. An assortment of cans, including Bender, Coffee Bender, Furious, Hell, Cynic, Todd The Axe Man, and Overrated will be available for retail. Exact dates and locations will be listed on the brewery’s website.

The new distribution plan comes after years of NoDak, SoDak and Nebraskan Surly fans contacting the brewery, wanting to be able to buy their beers in their home states.
Surly plans to engage with their new communities by introducing itself to the three new markets with programs of events, showcases and ‘Surly Gives A Damn’ projects across the respective states.

Johnson Brothers, Surly’s existing distributor, will handle the beer in North Dakota, Nebraska, and parts of South Dakota, with the rest of South Dakota being handled by Global Distributing.

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Stone Saloon Coming Soon(ish)

A piece of St. Paul history recently made history in a whole new way.

The Anthony Waldman House, the oldest surviving commercial structure in St. Paul, and one of the oldest in the state, was a German Saloon in the 1850’s and may soon become a saloon again.

Tom Schroeder and local architect, John Yust, are renovating this historic building to look as it did 150 years ago. Photo by Craig Johnson
Tom Schroeder and local architect, John Yust, are renovating this historic St. Paul  building to look (and function) as it did 150 years ago.
Photo by Craig Johnson

This pre-Civil War limestone building on Smith Avenue, between West Seventh Street and High Bridge, has been zoned as a private residence for decades but Tom Schroeder, who bought the building in 2008, has other plans.

Schroeder hopes to pay homage to the historic building’s roots by opening a 1800s-style saloon and brewery called the Stone Saloon, producing and serving around 550 barrels of German-style lager a year.

Stone Saloon

On September 16, 2015, Schroeder received St. Paul’s first-ever historic use variance. The historic use variance is a new ordinance created recently by the St. Paul city council to permit the commercial use of historic properties. The variance was created specifically with the Stone Saloon in mind. The vote of approval from the City Council was unanimous.

Schroeder envisions serving lager brewed in the German tradition using local ingredients. Some of the lager will be casked and stored in the building’s original limestone basement. He is quick to point out that he’s interested in honoring the history of the building and that this will not be a sports bar, but an historically accurate taproom.

There are still city planning reviews, liquor licensing and other small obstacles to contend with but they hope to be able to start taproom construction in the Spring.

No word on an opening date, yet.