All posts by Andrew Schmitt

Andrew is just a guy that likes beer. You can usually find him on the twitters or spending time with his family.
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Wander North Distillery Announces Ribbon Cutting in NE Minneapolis

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Signature Vodka Already Headed to Stores

Years of planning and preparation are paying off for Brian Winter and Wander North Distillery. The new craft distillery has just announced the ribbon cutting ceremony for its manufacturing facility and sampling room at 771 Harding St NE, Suite 150, Minneapolis, MN 55413. The new space will officially open at 2:30 pm on August 13, 2014 in a ceremony sponsored by the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce and attended by city officials who assisted Wander North owner Brian Winter in the process of launching his business.

A 400 gallon, handcrafted, made in America still.The ribbon cutting ceremony will kick off Wander North Distillery’s open house, which is open to the public and will include food, tours and tastings of Wander North’s signature product, Outpost Vodka. The event also serves as a kickoff event for Wander North’s retail sales. Outpost Vodka will be available in stores beginning August 15. Made from Minnesota-grown corn, Outpost Vodka will be available at multiple retail accounts. A list of locations can be found on their website, wandernorthdistillery.com. Future spirits from Wander North will include gin, bourbon and whiskey.

Wander North Distillery was conceived in 2011 by Northeast Minneapolis resident and military veteran Winter. “It amazed me that there was all this great beer being brewed in Minnesota, but the booming craft distilling industry hadn’t yet caught on here,” said Winter. “Recent law changes in Minnesota have made distilling a viable business here, and I’m thrilled to be joining the first wave of Minnesota craft distilleries.”

Recent changes to the law will allow Winter to transform the distillery’s sampling room into a full-fledged cocktail lounge similar to a craft brewery taproom. Until then, Wander North will be hosting tours and tastings most Saturdays.  Reservations can be made through the distillery’s website. Winter expects that Wander North’s cocktail room will open roughly around the same time as the new facility for NorthGate Brewing, located in the same building. Collaborations between Wander North and NorthGate Brewing are already in the works, as are collaborations with several other local craft breweries.

“I’m truly excited to be joining the exciting world of local craft distillers and brewers,” said Winter. “This is a great time to be in this industry and I’m thrilled to finally introduce my product and facility to Minnesota consumers.”

Let’s hope that for the sake of consumers and distillers alike that the state and city officials that helped Wander North open their doors also help them secure the ability to sell bottles of their own products.

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Sierra Nevada’s Beer Camp Across America brings one-off collaboration beers to Minnesota

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How does a pioneer in the craft beer industry like Sierra Nevada Brewing celebrate a west coast to east coast expansion? Road Trip!

Chico, California’s Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. is opening a brand new in Asheville, North Carolina. To celebrate the occasion Sierra Nevada is throwing a traveling caravan festival from coast to coast and releasing a collaborative 12-pack. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nM7BrsN8qVo The release of Sierra Nevada’s Beer Camp Across America collaboration 12-pack is a feat that is absolutely unprecedented. It is logistically impressive that 12 of the top brewers in the nation came together for this celebration. Impressive becomes astounding when you look at the names of breweries on the collaborations beers.
Sierra Nevada Beer Camp
No other industry would do a collaboration like this. Can you see Ford Motor Company working with Chevy and Toyota to celebrate a milestone? Would Chevrolet and Toyota want to take part? I doubt it. Burger King and McDonalds? Nope. It is clear how much the craft beer elite respect Sierra Nevada Brewing.

Every single beer in the Beer Camp Across America collaboration 12-pack is unique. The brewers developed these recipes together specifically this occasion. They have never been seen before, and they will never be brewed again. The beer will be distributed across the nation using Sierra Nevada’s network of beer distributors. This is a big deal. Beer lovers across the country will get to taste beer from brewers at places like 3 Floyds, New Glarus, and Russian River. Some beer enthusiasts will trade beer from these renowned breweries, but most won’t. This is might be the only chance for many to try beer from many of these brewers, and they are all in one convenient package. These beers are all “one and done” as they say. So, get them while you can. beer camp

The off-sale 12-packs are scattered here and there around town, but your best chance at enjoyment is hitting up one of the various tapping events around the Twin Cities area. Sierra Nevada Beer Camp Across America

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Lake Monster Brewing to open Saint Paul brewery and taproom in 2015

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Lake Monster Brewing has announced a partnership with real estate developer First & First to open a new microbrewery and taproom at the Vandalia Tower complex located at 550 Vandalia Street in Saint Paul. Construction will begin soon and Lake Monster plans to begin production at the new brewery early next year and to open the taproom next summer.

Lake Monster Brewing has been producing beer at Sand Creek Brewing in Black River Falls, Wisconsin under the supervision of Lake Monster Brewmaster Matt Lange. Their two flagship beers – Empty Rowboat IPA and Calhoun Claw Pilsner are available across the Twin Cities.

Lake Montser Brewing IPA“We’ve been very happy with the quality of beers and the growth of our brand under our current brewing arrangement, but the plan has always been to build our own brewery in the Twin Cities,” said Lake Monster Brewing Founder and President Matt Zanetti. “We are very excited to be partnering with First & First on this project creating a home for Lake Monster in Saint Paul.”

“Brewing is continuing to boom in Saint Paul and I congratulate Lake Monster on joining this diverse and growing industry in our city,” said Mayor Chris Coleman. “I look forward to celebrating with Lake Monster when they open next year.”

In addition to increasing Lake Monster’s production capacity and opening their own taproom, the new brewery will provide the opportunity to expand into brewing many other styles of beer.

Lake Monster Brewing Logo“The new brewery will give us a chance to experiment and try out a whole bunch of new styles and recipes, many of which will only be available in the taproom,” said Lake Monster Brewmaster Matt Lange. “As a brewer, this is where I get to have some fun.”

The Lake Monster Brewery in the Vandalia Tower Complex will sit near I-94 and University Avenue, one block south of the Green Line. Lake Monster will join several breweries and taprooms to make the Green Line the most delicious section of mass transit east of the Mississippi river.

Legislative Events, Newsfeed

Minnesota Republican Gubernatorial Candidates on Sunday liquor sales

Most of the Minnesota Republican candidates for Governor took part in a debate last week. The debate was moderated by Up & Em hosts Jack Tomczak and Ben Kruse, with help from Rachel Stassen-Berger & Aaron Rupar. Missing from the debate was GOP candidate Marty Siefert.

The debate covered a wide range of topics. We took the liberty of condensing the audio to beer / liquor related questions. You can find the full audio here.

Kurt Zellers said he would sign a bill legalizing Sunday sales, but he also defended his votes against repeal in the past. All the candidates taking part were requested to answer via twitter which #Mnbeer they would buy on Sunday. Jeff Johnson made it point to say he supports a repeal bill, the rest gets a bit comical…

What do you think of the their answers? Let us know in the comments or via social media.

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Surly Darkness 2014 Artwork – Updated

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Surly Darkness 2014 artwork by Minneapolis artist Erica Willams has been released.

Erica’s macabre theme fits the tone of Surly’s Russian Imperial Stout, which is released around Halloween each autumn. This year Darkness descents on Brooklyn Center on October 25th. Are there people in line yet?

From the bottle:

The legendary Harpy tortured unwary travelers by stealing their precious food and drink. This year’s cruel creature defends her cauldron of Darkness with razor claws and dead stare of malevolence. Don’t mess with her Darkness.

She is hoarding this massively opaque barrel aged Stout screaming with notes of chocolate, coffee, dried tart cherries, vanilla, rye whiskey and raisins. The thick body of this Russian Imperial Stout finishes sweet, with a piney resinous hop character.

Dare if you will to open the bottle and steal the from the imagination of our 2014 Darkness artist, Erica Wiliams.

Update

Plenty of people picked up on the fact that Darkness is barrel aged this year. Brewer Todd Haug confirmed the fact on twitter. He also said that there will be even more Darkness than ever, about 30K bottles.


Surly Darkness 2014

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Bauhaus Brew Labs opens in NE Minneapolis

Bauhaus Brew Labs, the latest brewery/taproom in the heart of Nordeast Minneapolis’ Brew District, will celebrate the grand opening of their taproom on Friday, July 18th.

Bauhaus brew as been popping up on draft at select bars and pubs around town, but this is the first time that beer drinkers can visit “The Haus.” The space was funded partially with contributions to their successful kickstarter campaign.

Bauhaus Brew Labs pints
Credit: Veronica Villalobos-Andrew

The brewery’s 2,000-square-foot taproom features a massive hand-built bar made from reclaimed Minnesota barnwood set inside a vast, industrial early-20th Century warehouse. “The Haus” will feature stage for live music, a “Beer It Forward” board that allows drinkers to gift a beer to a friend, trivia, and karaoke.

bauhaus Brew Labs taproom board
credit: Veronica Villalobos-Andrew

At the July 18 opening, Bauhaus will be pouring three of its four core offerings: Wonderstuff Neü Bohemian Pilsner, Wagon Party West Cöast Style Lager, and Stargrazer German Style Schwarzbier. The Sky-Five! Midwest Cöast IPA will debut in the coming weeks.

Bauhaus Brew Labs Coaster
credit: Veronica Villalobos-Andrew

Bauhaus’ regular taproom hours are Wednesdays through Fridays from 3 to 11 p.m., and Saturdays from noon to 11 p.m. Look for local food trucks to be on-site to compliment the craft beer.

It is time for a Haus Party!

1315 Tyler St NE
Minneapolis
Minnesota
55413

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Du Nord Craft Spirits wins Triple Gold Medal for L’etoile Du Nord Vodka

Triple Gold Du Nord Craft SpiritsCompeting against distilleries from all over the world, Minneapolis Du Nord Craft Spirits, L’etoile Du Nord Vodka, took home a Triple Gold Medal for Taste, the highest award possible, and a Bronze Medal for Packaging in the 2014 MicroLiquor Spirit Awards. The awards are only open to distillers that produce less than 50,000 bbls of spirits annually. The Triple Gold Medal award is presented when all judges award a gold medal to one spirit, no small feat.

“It’s humbling to be selected for a triple gold. It’s nice to know that a small shop like ours stands out” said Du Nord co-owner and distiller Chris Montana.

L’etoile Du Nord Vodka is the first product from Du Nord Craft Spirits. The vodka has only been on the market since May of 2014. L’etoile Du Nord Vodka is the only vodka on the market using both corn and sugar beet sugar as a base. Du Nord Craft Spirits prides itself on being local: the corn comes from co-owner Shanelle Montana’s family farm in Ivanhoe and Cold Spring, MN, and the sugar beets are grown in Minnesota’s Red River Valley. L’etoile Du Nord is hand crafted at the south Minneapolis distillery.

“Minnesota has great natural resources that help to craft great products,” said co-owner Shanelle Montana, “we always thought L’etoile stood up to the very best on the market and now we have proof.”

The next liquor from Du Nord’s will be Fitzgerald Gin. The Gin is set to be released in August of 2014. Fitzgerald will be a limited release product with the final formula to be decided by visitors to the soon-to-open cocktail room.

Legislative Events, Newsfeed

Harriet Brewing now filling any growler

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Harriet-Plus-Growlers-625x400
© Harriet Brewing

South Minneapolis craft brewery Harriet Brewing has announced that they will now fill any CLEAN growler customers bring into the brewery.

The change comes as a result of the Growler Freedom Bill authored by Sen Reinert, Sen. Osmek, and Rep M. Anderson.

“I’m happy to announce the Governor has signed the Omnibus Liquor bill into law on May 13, making the Sunday tap rooms and growler refill provisions effective immediately,” Sen. Reinert said. He added, “While there remains much more work to be done in Minnesota on the Sunday Sales issue, these small provisions are a step in the right direction and will lead to greater economic opportunity for our booming craft brew industry.”

The ability to refill growlers has always technically been legal, but many Minnesota craft brewers were hesitant to refill them without explicit permission. Brewers that choose to refill growlers (and it is a choice) will likely use some sort of sticker or label to cover the existing branding on refilled growlers and meet labeling requirements. And of course, don’t try to get your growlers filled on a Sunday, that would be just crazy…

To get all the details on Harriet Brewing’s revised growler policy follow this link.

Are there any other breweries refilling growlers? Give us a shout on facebook or twitter and let us know.