Matt Asay from moto-i / Herkimer talks about the basics of sake making and his upcoming Kisetsu collaboration with Fulton and Wood Series from Goose Island Brewing.
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Big Wood Brewery Taproom Opening
Award winning local brewery Big Wood is set to open its long awaited Taproom in White Bear Lake.
In 2011, the taproom bill or “Surly Law” made it possible for production breweries to be able to sell pints of their beer to customers straight out of the brewery. Several Minnesota craft breweries now have Taprooms that have become popular destinations for people looking to drink the freshest, hand-crafted local beer possible.
“We wanted to build something unique, something that fit into the existing decor of this historic town and it took a while to accomplish that. I think that we set the record for the longest, most awaited Taproom,” says Steve Merila, Partner at Big Wood Brewery.
The ambiance of the Big Wood Taproom will take you back in time. The building was built in 1906 and many of the materials used in construction were reclaimed from old White Bear Lake buildings, barns, and trees that that had fallen during storms.
As excited as White Bear residents are, Head Brewer Ty McBee, is probably more excited. Ty plans on turning the taproom into his own personal beer playground. He will be creating test recipes, special one time brews, and using the taproom to experiment with small batches.
The Taproom will be open to the public on Thursdays and Fridays from 3 pm to 10 pm and Saturdays from 1 pm to 10 pm. They will sell growlers, beer by the glass and offer tours of the brewery.
Big Wood Brewery Taproom Address:
2222 4th St., White Bear Lake, MN 55110
View Larger Map
Video: Kicking the can around with Oskar Blues
Oskar Blues Brewing expands to Minnesota. Andrew talks with the guys about the history of Oskar Blues, the new brewery, canning, and the future on Oskar Blues.
We will host Oskar Blues at our weekly happy hour Midweek Beer Geek, at Nomad World Pub.
Award winning Barley John’s Brewpub to open production brewery in Wisconsin
This is why we can’t have nice things.
Rumors have been swirling around for a while now about Barley John’s brew pub opening a brewery across the state the border in Wisconsin. It seems the rumors are finally becoming a reality. John Moore confirmed the rumor with Nick Halter of the Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal.
“I would rather have done it here, two minutes away, but that’s not the way it is,” Moore said. “The law is not in favor of brewpubs. It’s in favor of breweries.”
It is a sad fact that Minnesota laws have left brew pubs behind. When the “Surly Bill” was passed in mid-2011 it enabled Minnesota breweries to open taprooms and function like a pub that sells their own beer. Sadly, a bill that was heard in commerce committee directly after the “Surly Bill” could have given brew pubs the option to enter into distribution, making breweries and brew pubs close equals under the law. The bill was not nearly as popular as Surly’s taproom legislation, and many people (including myself) walked out of the committee hearing after the taproom bill was approved, leaving brew pubs with little support and a bill that did not pass the committee.
Elliot Ginsburg & Erin Conway from W. Michael Garner, P.A. wrote a great article on MnBeer.com about why the regulatory concerns of brew pub distribution are unfounded and misguided. It is a great article. It sure makes me regret walking out of that committee hearing early. Now that Barley John’s new brewery is being built in Wisconsin, I’m probably not the only one with regrets.
Northern Lights Rare Beer Fest
The Northern Lights Rare Beer Fest will bring some of America’s most sought-after craft beers to downtown St. Paul – but Minnesota beer drinkers will need a ticket to sip these suds.
Featuring rare, vintage, and one-of-a-kind ales and lagers from 30 craft breweries from coast to coast- including 10 Minnesotan breweries – the Northern Lights Rare Beer Fest will be held on Saturday, March 29 at the Minnesota History Center. It is the brain child of the same folks who made events like the St. Paul Summer Beer Fest a fixture of the Minnesota beer scene.
“This is the first year for the Northern Lights fest,” said organizers Juno Choi and Mark Opdahl, “and we’re very excited because it will be unlike any other beer event in the area. It will be a great chance to try some really unique, maybe even once in a lifetime, beers.”
What makes the Northern Lights Rare Beer Fest different, Opdahl says, is that each brewery will be pouring – as the event’s name implies – rare beers.
“These aren’t beers you’re going to be able to go out and buy off the shelf or on tap at a pub,” according to Choi. “These are limited-availability, vintage bottles from a past release, and in some cases brewed specifically for the fest.”
Besides rare beers and the opportunity to rub shoulders with the beer geek elite, ticketholders will also enjoy complimentary food catered in by top area chefs and live music.
The Northern Lights Rare Beer Fest is partnering with Pints for Prostates, a grassroots campaign that uses the universal language of beer to reach men with an important health message. Founded by beer writer and prostate cancer survivor Rick Lyke in 2008, the campaign raises awareness among men about the importance of regular health screenings and early detection. A portion of the proceeds from ticket sales and all proceeds from the silent auction go directly to Pints for Prostates.
Tickets go on sale Friday, February 7th at noon online and at participating retailers. For more information, including a list of participating breweries, are available at the event’s website: http://
Minnesota Breweries Launch Growler Punch Card
A group of Minnesota breweries are launching a cooperative punch card program. The “Minnesota Brewery Punch Cards” are good for one growler fill at each of the following breweries:
- Flat Earth Brewing Co.
- 612 Brew
- Bent Paddle Brewing Co.
- Castle Danger Brewery
- Excelsior Brewing Company
- Fulton
- Hammerheart Brewing Company
- Indeed Brewing Company
- Lift Bridge
- North Gate Brewing
- Steel Toe Brewing
The punch cards are $75, which averages out to $6.81 per growler fill. Not too shabby. Growler prices in MN can be a little steep. This is a great way to experience and support local breweries while getting a good bang for your buck. The proceeds from the card sales go to support the MN Brewer’s Association, the same group on Minnesota brewers that were behind the Save the Growler movement last legislative session.
Note: Cards do not include the cost of the container, only the growler fill. Breweries have final discretion on qualifying growler fills.
Let’s hope the MN Brewer’s Assoc. is looking at future legislation to allow any Minnesota brewer to fill any MN growler. Wouldn’t that be nice?
Caucusing for Sunday Liquor sales
Time to get active!
Minnesota Beer Activists are urging supporters of ending the prohibition on Sunday liquor sales to go out to the caucuses Tuesday evening and get involved. Minnesota’s precinct caucuses will be held
Tuesday, February 4, 2014 at 7:00 p.m.
Precinct caucuses are meetings organized by Minnesota’s political parties, typically on the first Tuesday in February of a statewide election year. Minnesota’s major political parties must hold Caucuses at least every statewide election year. Other political parties may also choose to hold caucuses. It is the first step for the party to select candidates and choose the party’s goals and values (called the party platform).
Below are sample resolutions you can take with you to your caucus.
DFL Sunday liquor sales resolution – Right-click to Download
GOP Sunday liquor sales resolution – Right-click to Download
Support your candidates
It is not only important to introduce resolutions, it is important to support the legislative candidates that support listening to voters and repealing the Sunday liquor sales ban.
Candidates that we know support Sunday liquor sales –
Senate
Carlson
Dibble
Pappas
Reinert
House
Anderson, M.
Anderson, S.
Drazkowski
Falk
FitzSimmons
Freiberg
Hausman
Hertaus
Hilstrom
Hornstein
Kahn
Kieffer
Lesch
Liebling
Lien
Loeffler
Loon
Myhra
Norton
Paymar
Peppin
Pugh
Simonson
Woodard
Who can attend a caucus?
- Precinct caucuses are open to the public. But in order to vote, offer resolutions, or become a delegate, you must:
- Be eligible to vote in the fall election.
- Live in the precinct.
- Be in general agreement with the principles of the political party (Minnesota does not have an party registration process).
What happens at a caucus?
- Elect precinct officers who work to organize political activities in the precinct. This could include maintaining contact lists, convening political meetings and helping with campaign efforts.
- Discuss issues and ideas for the party to support. People may bring ideas, called resolutions, to be voted on. People usually bring a typed or handwritten copy of their resolution.
- Vote for the person you want the party to support for governor or president. This is called the straw poll, which is an informal poll to learn how much support each candidate has. Candidates are officially chosen at future meetings, called conventions.
- Elect delegates to represent your precinct at upcoming political conventions that are held during an election year. The first are the political party’s county or district conventions. At these conventions, delegates endorse candidates to represent the county or district, and then choose a smaller number of delegates for the party’s congressional and state conventions. These delegates will endorse candidates to represent the congressional district or statewide offices such as governor or U.S. Senator.
Duluth Senator Roger Reinert on Sunday liquor sales in the 2014 legislative session
Senator Roger Reinert (D – Duluth) talks about why 2014 is the year to pass Sunday Liquor Sales.
