Sunday Liquor Sales Hearing in House Committee

April 10, 2013 Andrew Schmitt

HF 521, a bill to legalize Sunday liquor sales will be heard in the House Commerce Committee today at 4 p.m. in the Basement Hearing Room of the State Office Building.

Please, call/email house committee members and tell them to legalize Sunday sales.

There are dozens of stores in the metro supporting this reform. Polls show immense consumer support for legalizing Sunday sales.

Share this will your beer and freedom loving friends!

Committee ChairJoe Atkins (DFL)
583 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-4192
E-mail: rep.joe.atkins@house.mn

Vice ChairPatti Fritz (DFL)
437 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-8237
E-mail: rep.patti.fritz@house.mn

Republican LeadJoe Hoppe (R)
343 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-5066
E-mail: rep.joe.hoppe@house.mn

Sarah Anderson (R)
237 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-5511
E-mail: rep.sarah.anderson@house.mn

Tom Anzelc (DFL)
517 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-4936
E-mail: rep.tom.anzelc@house.mn

Greg Davids (R)
283 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-9278
E-mail: rep.greg.davids@house.mn

Raymond Dehn (DFL)
423 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-8659
E-mail: rep.raymond.dehn@house.mn

Andrew Falk (DFL)
439 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-4228
E-mail: rep.andrew.falk@house.mn

Laurie Halverson (DFL)
407 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-4128
E-mail: rep.laurie.halverson@house.mn

Debra Hilstrom (DFL)
379 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-3709
E-mail: rep.debra.hilstrom@house.mn

Melissa Hortman (DFL)
377 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-4280
E-mail: rep.melissa.hortman@house.mn

Sheldon Johnson (DFL)
549 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-4201
E-mail: rep.sheldon.johnson@house.mn

Leon Lillie (DFL)
371 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-1188
E-mail: rep.leon.lillie@house.mn

Jenifer Loon (R)
261 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-7449
E-mail: rep.jenifer.loon@house.mn

Tim Sanders (R)
259 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-4226
E-mail: rep.tim.sanders@house.mn

Dan Schoen (DFL)
533 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-4342
E-mail: rep.dan.schoen@house.mn

Linda Slocum (DFL)
415 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-7158
E-mail: rep.linda.slocum@house.mn

Mike Sundin (DFL)
411 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-4308
E-mail: rep.mike.sundin@house.mn

Chris Swedzinski (R)
251 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-5374
E-mail: rep.chris.swedzinski@house.mn

Tama Theis (R)
223 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-6316
E-mail: rep.tama.theis@house.mn

Kelby Woodard (R)
221 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-7065
E-mail: rep.kelby.woodard@house.mn

Kurt Zellers (R)
351 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-5502
E-mail: rep.kurt.zellers@house.mn

ex-officio Lyndon Carlson Sr. (DFL)
479 State Office Building
100 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
St Paul, MN 55155
651-296-4255
E-mail: rep.lyndon.carlson@house.mn

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Get Bent

April 9, 2013 Andrew Schmitt

Bartley Blume and the folks behind Bent Brewstillery are busy finalizing plans to get their operation off the ground. They signed an agreement with Pour Decisions Brewing Company in Roseville, MN to produce Bent beer while they continue to look for a more permanent home in the Arden Hills area.

The agreement with PDBC has Bent beer being contract brewed, but this it is not your typical, hands-off, contract brewing arrangement. While PDBC will brew, Bent Brewing Founder and Brewmaster Bartley Blume, will assist and be an integral part of the brewing process. Bartley will also be responsible for ordering his own ingredients, packaging, etc.

Blume also hopes to have the distilled liquor side of his operation up and running soon. He plans to bring locally made whiskey, bourbon, and gin to the thirsty masses.

“I have a separate agreement with PDBC for me to set up my distillery in their brewery,” says Blume. It will be a stand-alone, self-sufficient distillery complete with 1.5 bbl brewhouse, 3 bbl fermenters, and stills.

Bent Brewstillery will make debut at St Paul Summer Beer Fest on June 15th.

It is worth mentioning that Bent Brewstillery is hoping to gather support for the micro-distillery bills (SF623-625 and HF940-942) that would allow samples and sales at Bent Brewstillery, and every other MN distillery.

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Reviewbicle: Two Brothers Bare Tree

April 8, 2013 Brewbicle

By Dan Belfry and Jon Buck

www.brewbicle.com

We decided to celebrate the arrival of spring with a barelywine that has a little spring in its’ step. This beer is clocking in at around 11% ABV and we were excited to try it! Two Brothers makes some great beer and this smaller (12.7oz) corked and caged offering should be no exception. We’ve got another ’10 and ’12; I swear we have other vintages, so look for them next month!

TWO BROTHERS BARE TREE BAERLEYWINE STYLE WEISS BEER

Appearance (’12): There is almost no head, a half a finger at most, which quickly dissipates into a thin white foam floating around the glass. It pours a golden hue with some red undertones, the clarity is high aside from a healthy amount of Sea Monkeys floating around. It should be mentioned that we had a guest taster this week who didn’t think very highly of the Sea Monkeys, we told her that beer was a sort of dude yogurt, with those active cultures and what not. It’s science.

Appearance (’10): Holy Bubbling Barleywine Batman! This guy’s got some carb to it, and it’s not going anywhere. A thick foamy head forms upon pouring and the foamy pudding lingers and loses little body as we review. The clarity on this one isn’t as high, has a slight haze and larger Sea Monkeys floating around. The color is almost the same as its’ younger sibling.

Aroma (’12): Smokey and meaty are forefront here, which caught us a little by surprise. It was described aptly as beef jerky by our guest taster, and there is also a floral bouquet with a sharp tang to it. We are attributing these to both the wheat and yeast in this brew. A slight alcohol presence bites at the end, but nothing overpowering.

Aroma (’10): It appears that carbonation isn’t going to be the only drastic difference between these two. The nose here is dominated by fruit and flowers, dry and sweet like a cider or champagne. Green apple tartness stands out as the nose evolves when the beer warmed up. It smells great and we can hardly wait to try this guy.

Taste/Mouthfeel (’12): Not a ton of complexity to this tasting. It starts off with strong wheat presence, with a floral tang and some sharp crispness and earthy undertones. It then moves to some sweet notes with a hints of honey and caramel, which gives no hint of an 11% beer, as the alcohol is all but undetectable here. Finishes somewhat dry with some lingering fruit notes. The lack of carbonation lets the sweet and fruit linger which personally I found to be the best part, so I’m okay with that. Barleywine style Weiss beer/Wheatwine isn’t something we’re very versed in, so not sure what the level of carbonation is supposed to be, but this seems a little low.

Taste/Mouthfeel (’10): This one, while also leaning toward simplicity, leads us down an entirely different path. It starts with an assertive sweetness, which is eased out by a green apple tartness, and leads nicely to a path of dry sweetness. While this is reminiscent of a green apple tart dryness, this is decidedly sweeter, and honey marches us to the end of this flavor profile. The amount of carbonation evident in the lingering head isn’t very present in the body. The bubbles were quite fine in the head and had little effect on the tongue and was almost like a cask beer in terms of carbonation. By contrast this was nice, as it let the flavors again linger and move slowly away.

Overall Comparison (’12 and ‘10): These beers landed quite a distance from one another on the flavor spectrum and in terms of carbonation. Oddly, the more recent vintage was the less carbonated of the two. We’re not sure if the vast differences are explained by an off batch from either year, or if this really highlights the amount of change that can happen for this beer over the course of two years. One thing we can say with certainty is that we’ll continue aging this; if the ’10 vintage is any indication, this one is a prime candidate for aging. The ’10 really blossomed in two years, as fruits and honey were abundant and delicious. Both were highly drinkable, don’t get me wrong, but the ’10 was such a gem I would recommend that you hang on to whatever year you have of these. Both are around 11% and I couldn’t have told you they were much above 6%. Kudos to Two Brothers on this one.

Cheers!

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The Minnesotan Who Gave Us Prohibition

April 7, 2013 Justin Rihn

In these days of massive budget deficits it would sound pretty strange if a politician authored a bill that would cost the Federal government $150,000,000 in beer excise revenue and tens of thousands of jobs. That number is especially shocking when you consider that the average price of a six pack was 40 cents. These severe consequences would not deter one congressman from Minnesota’s 7 th district and that man’s name was Andrew Volstead. Volstead is best remembered for the bill bearing his name that prohibited the manufacture, sale, transport, import, or export of alcoholic beverages. Known as the Volstead Act; it began some of the darkest thirteen years in American history known as Prohibition. The problem is that while this act bears his name; Volstead himself was likely little more than a figurehead. So what do we really know about Andrew Volstead?

Andrew Volstead was born to first generation Norwegian immigrants on October 31 st 1860 near Kenyon, Minnesota. Educated as lawyer in Decorah, Iowa, Volstead and his family moved to Granite Falls in 1886 where he served as city attorney and later mayor until 1902. In 1902 he was elected to congress in Minnesota’s 7th district as member of the Republican Party. While serving in public office Volstead became increasing involved in the civil rights movement and was one of few politicians willing to argue for legislation banning lynching. During the Progressive Era civil rights would become increasingly entangled with the temperance movement. The temperance movement was backed by very vocal groups, though in the minority, the Woman’s Christian Temperance League and the Anti-Saloon League.

The Anti-Saloon League, headed by Wayne Wheeler, used bullying tactics to apply pressure on politicians to support prohibitionist measures. Aided by World War I Wheeler began a campaign to align the big brewers with the German enemy since most were of German decent; Schlitz, Pabst, Busch, and Miller. In 1919 Wheeler saw his moment and wrote a piece of legislation authorizing national Prohibition. Though Volstead never admitted it, he was likely not the main author of Prohibition. As the chair of the judiciary committee it fell to him to sponsor the bill before congress. This action would cost him his seat in Congress in 1922 as it was largely unpopular with a majority of Americans who considered it violation of their constitutional rights.

Prohibition was repealed 80 years ago this Sunday and signed into law by President Roosevelt. At 12:31 AM on April 8th, 1933 the White House received cases of beer from many of the countries remaining breweries. Though Prohibition has been over for 80 years the country is still feeling the effects of the poorly named Nobel Experiment. So while Andrew Volstead may receive more of the blame than he is due, Minnesotans can still thank him for 3.2 beer, dry Sundays, and restrictive brewing laws. This Sunday we should all raise a glass of beer, well at least those of us who planned ahead, and have a drink to celebrate the end of the Volstead Act.

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The Heads and Hearts Behind Panther Distillery

April 5, 2013 Lacy

Panther Distillery - Still — “Too much of anything is bad, but too much good whiskey is barely enough.”
― Mark Twain

Although we call ourselves Beer Activists, there are emerging issues in liquor law thanks to Panther Distillery. Panther is Minnesota’s first legal whiskey distillery since National Prohibition, and is located way up north in Osakis, a small town not far from Alexandria. Adrian Panther opened the distillery in June 2012 with a goal of making fine Minnesotan whiskey from fine Minnesotan ingredients. Now, less than a year later, Panther has bottles in over 400 stores and bars extending from North Dakota all the way to the Twin Cities.

I stopped by the distillery last Friday on my way north once I realized that it is only a few miles off of the Osakis exit from I-94. The owner wasn’t in the shop, but his son was happy to give a tour. The distilling process doesn’t differ hugely from what you see with beer: Yeast and grain decompose to create mash. In distillation, however, that end product is condensed in a still to raise the alcohol content higher than beer. The still can be set up differently to change how the whiskey turns out, and additional flavors can be added to the alcohol being made. (Watch for Panther’s apple-infused whiskey called Spiked Apple Spirits coming out in a couple of months— yum!)

At that point, the product is either filtered quickly through a barrel to become Panther’s clear White Whiskey, or is sent into barrels for aging. Panther uses virgin white oak barrels to age its bourbon (which are available for purchase at the distillery!) for two years. The White Whiskey is what is available now, and the first batches of aged whiskey and bourbon will be available next spring.

Panther Distillery - Mash — “I wish to live to 150 years old, but the day I die, I wish it to be with a cigarette in one hand and a glass of whiskey in the other.”
― Ava Gardner

As I walked through Panther’s set up with the owner’s son, we discussed potential changes to Minnesota law that might impact the way Panther does business. Alongside lawmakers, Panther wants to change Minnesota’s licensing law to allow the distillery to do the same things that taprooms in breweries are able to do. The owner wants to give samples to tourists, sell bottles of whiskey in his establishment, and have a hospitality room where tourists can purchase beverages made with his product. It seems fairly simple, but has met the same opposition that the Surly taproom bill did when it was proposed.

Thousands of people have toured Panther, and not one has been able to sample Panther’s product in shop? That is pretty disappointing. After having been to the distillery and taken the tour, I genuinely hope the law changes so Panther can be an even better tourist destination. The tour I went on was really interesting, and everyone who worked there was friendly, outgoing, and clearly in love with what they do. I can only imagine how much more fun it would be to sit down and have a drink there, with the people who make the whiskey.

The good news is that since it opened, Panther has been able to expand by adding two more stills to the operation, which can only be a good thing. Next time you’re heading up north, I highly recommend a trip to Panther—the distillery is open for tours from 10am-4pm during the week, and noon to 4pm on Saturdays.

Panther Distillery
300 East Pike Street
Osakis, MN 56360
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Justin Strom, Artist: Science + Art = Beer

April 4, 2013 aaron

Justin Strom can do something no one else has ever accomplished in art before. His, never seen before, bubble technique has allowed him to capture two loves at the same time, paint and beer. The love he has for both has caused a three year drive to honor beer and push the boundaries of what paint can do. You can have a chance to view his work at The Pancakes and Booze event at The Loft in Barfly on April 6th.

Starting his craft as a home painter Justin rose to the demand of what his clients wanted of him. To rise up to the challenge he learned all he could about paint and how it worked. This started the desire to understand the science of paint and began the drive to do something with it that was never intended. This allowed him to develop him bubble technique.

Craft brewing fans will understand the desire to push what a thing can be (some of you may have tried Voodoo Doughnut Maple Bacon Ale by Rouge…). “Good beer does not happen by accident, it is created, planned, developed thru failing and understanding every single ingredient and the all aspects of the process. This in a way is the same with art, you have to know your paint and your products and be willing to fail a few times to get it just right,” says Justin. This veteran home brewer applied this determination to the over three year search to perfect his technique.

Join Justin this Saturday for the debut of this new art form. You can see the paintings on the second floor of Barfly, The Loft, at 8pm. For further details follow this link. https://www.facebook.com/events/511395498888190/

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A Visit to American Sky – Hudson, Wisconsin

April 3, 2013 Paul

Last Friday, after taking the kids over to Hudson Wisconsin’s Giggle Factory, I found my way to a relatively new local brewery and taproom, American Sky Beer. An aviation themed brewery located in the industrial park area of Hudson at 1510 Swasey Street. A stones throw from Fleet Farm. They are open Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Thursday and Friday 4-8pm, Saturday 2-8pm.

The taproom, affectionately called “The Hangar”, offers a horseshoe shaped bar, high top tables and picnic tables. A large brew space that houses a 15 barrel mash tun and boil kettle, 15 barrel fermenters and bright tanks, and bottling line. Some of the equipment came from Grand Teton and O’so breweries. Nothing fancy. More industrial. Fitting based on the theme. Not nearly as warm as say 612 or Indeed brewing.

They had 6 beers on draft and 1 in a cask (it was Firkin Friday). Their flagship beers were the Tailgunner Gold, Amber Salute and USA IPA. Their specialties were a British Bitter, Belgian IPA and a Scottish Ale. Most of the beers are self describing. The Tailgunner was a blonde ale. The firkin was the IPA on Amarillo and Citra.

I ordered a Flight and a firkin pour. Can’t turn down a cask ale. I went in order of the board. I started with the blonde. A refreshing slightly fruity session ale. Nothing to exciting here. Pretty much an accessible starter for the less crafty. The amber was a little confusing. Personally when I think amber I think of a slightly hop forward beer with some fruity esters. But I actually liked the way they put it together. Malty with a nutty fruity flavor. Malty nose with similar aromas to the flavor. I liken it to a lighter brown ale. The IPA was hoppy, citrusy, and well balanced malt profile. The owner noted that he uses wheat in the mash. I mentioned to him that with my homebrew I do the same. It adds a nice stickiness to the head and builds a nice body. Not the most aggressive IPA but not bad either. The British Bitter was probably my favorite beer. Heavy Maris Otter biscuit bready flavor. Solid bitterness from what I thought was East Kent Golding hops. I could drink that all day. Light with a good amount of body for such a low ABV. The Belgian IPA was forgettable. I found the esters to be muted. Just a lack of complexity. The Scottish ale was actually pretty decent too. I won’t pretend that I am a Scottish beer lover. It’s usually not the first beer I reach for. I find them to be too sweet. In this case it was well attenuated. Slight dry finish. Caramel, roast and malt dominate. In my opinion well done. And finally the cask IPA. Oily, grassy and smooth. I will say I thought it was a little under carbonated. I think the beer was a little young.

My overall impression? Decent. Obviously there is some growing to be done here. I really dig the space. They offer live music on Saturday nights starting at 5. The owner was very courteous. He shared a sample of a new beer with me off the fermenter. I’d say if you find yourself in Hudson its worth a visit. Cheers!

American Sky Brewing
1510 Swasey St
Hudson, WI 54016
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Flight with Bites: American IPA vs English IPA

March 29, 2013 Andrew Schmitt

Señor Wong & MN Beer Activists are proud to bring the next event in our Flight with Bites pairing series. This time around we are tasting American IPA and English-Style IPA paired with hand crafted small plates from Chef Cody Monson.

Featured Beer Style: American IPA vs English-Style IPA

Stone IPA (CA) – American IPA
COMMERCIAL DESCRIPTION
Look up “hops” in the dictionary and you’ll see a picture of Stone IPA! “Dry-hopped” for an extra two weeks, this unique process gives our IPA its bountiful hop aroma and rich hop flavor. A full 70+ IBUs (International Bitterness Units) creates this beer’s crisp and refreshing bitter character.

Founders All Day IPA (MI) – American IPA
COMMERCIAL DESCRIPTION
The beer you’ve been waiting for. Keeps your taste satisfied while keeping your senses sharp. An all-day IPA naturally brewed with a complex array of malts, grains and hops. Balanced for optimal aromatic and a clean finish. The perfect reward for an honest day’s work and the ultimate companion to celebrate life’s simple pleasures.

Brooklyn East India Pale Ale (NY) – English IPA
COMMERCIAL DESCRIPTION
Brooklyn East India Pale Ale, originally a summer seasonal, has been getting raves since becoming a year round offering in 1996. Garrett Oliver, a student of English brewing and beer history, uses English malts and hops to brew his EIPA in the classic, heavily-hopped style of the 19th century beers created for British soldiers serving in India.

Goose Island IPA (IL) – English IPA
COMMERCIAL DESCRIPTION
Our IPA recalls a time when ales shipped from England to India were highly hopped to preserve their distinct taste during the long journey. The result, quite simply a hop lover’s dream. And this classic ale adds a fruity aroma, set off by a dry malt middle, to ensure that the long hop finish is one you’ll remember.

Flight with Bites – Friday, Feb. 22nd.
$25 Per Person (includes, tax, tip and donation to MN Beer Activists)
Date: Friday, Apr. 5th
Time: 6:30pm – 7:30pm

Space is limited to the first 50 guests, so please call for reservation!

Señor Wong Bar & Restaurant
111 East Kellogg Blvd. St. Paul
P. 651.224.2019

Parking: Discount Parking available in the Kellogg Square parking ramp.

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Minnesota Beer Activists

Sunday Liquor Sales Hearing in House Committee

Get Bent

Reviewbicle: Two Brothers Bare Tree

The Minnesotan Who Gave Us Prohibition

The Heads and Hearts Behind Panther Distillery

Justin Strom, Artist: Science + Art = Beer

A Visit to American Sky – Hudson, Wisconsin

Flight with Bites: American IPA vs English IPA

Beer Consumers in Minnesota