Category: brewpubs

MNBeer Predictions for 2007

I shouldn’t need to say this, but I will. Everything in this post below this line is pure speculation, un-informed guesses or perhaps even straight-up bull… er baloney. So without further ado… Minnesota Beer predictions for 2007.

Brau Brothers Brewing Co. beer will arrive in the Twin Cities in 6-packs and kegs. They will deliver the first case to my house for, uh, quality control…

Finnegan’s… just pure speculation here, but we’re guessing that they’ll give a bunch of money to charity… and a bunch of beer to the folks at MNBeer.

Flat Earth Brewing Company will brew some kick-ass Belgian and/or farmhouse ales and bottle them in bombers and/or champagne-style bottles. One of their beers will have “Minnesota” in the name. Strangely enough, an elf will deliver their beer to my doorstep in the middle of the night.

Gluek Brewing Company will continue to be pimped by Dan Gladden during Twins games. When we ask nicely, they’ll arrange to give us a tour on a Saturday. See above post about delivery elves…

Lake Superior Brewing Company is going to dig out the wild rice for a new brew. The company purchases more firkins and Don starts showing up in the Twin Cities with cask-conditioned beers on a semi-regular basis. Again, remember the elves…

Mantorville Brewing Company will break into the Twin Cities market in full-force with a new pale ale made with a combination of Amarillo and Centennial hops… no, wait, maybe it’s an IPA. Due the overwhelming success, Tod closes St. Croix to concentrate on new beers and recipes. Again, strangely, this new beer ends up on my doorstep in the middle of the night. My supply runs low and it magically appears again. Who needs magic beans or a beanstock? I have delivery elves/gnomes/dwarves… whatever they are…

Pig’s Eye Brewing drops by MNBeer world headquarters one Friday even and proceeds to get us hammered. Feelings of deja vu arise, though I remember that I am no longer the 16-year-old getting sloshed on Pig’s Eye in the College Manor apartments on the campus of the FFCC in Fergus Falls.

August Schell… Dave Berg puts on a show this year at Bockfest where he jumps 2 live deer and a peacock on his bike. He wipes out but is saved by the “bock fairy” (what, you’ve never heard of her?) and her magical, seldom-seen quadruple-bock. When he is out cold, he is inspired to revamp the Zommerfest recipe with a new ale yeast (something like Wyeast’s Ardennes…) and lemongrass. Friends take to calling Dave “Evol.”

St. Croix – See above.

Summit Brewing Company puts their Amber on hold as well as their Pilsner and IPA. Their Alt makes a return and old fans finally stop bitching about the fact that it is no longer available. Summit introduces a Saison mid-summer and revamps the Pilsner recipe.

Surly Brewing Company – Two words. Imperial Furious. Local drinkers learn to order it by hand signals. (Stick your left pointer finger in the air and make a rough “F” with your pointer and middle fingers on your right hand). A New York Times article follows. They mis-quote us.

Barley John’s undergoes a small expansion. Local food critics wet themselves over new menu items. Chaos ensues.

Fitger’s Brewhouse invites Dave’s brother Mike to brew a batch of Masala Mama. Duluth fans rave for more. Beer fans rally and help pass legislation to allow brewpubs to sell their beer to distributors in Minnesota.

Granite City opens a number of new locations, including Bloomington and Minneapolis proper. A new, larger brewing facility is planned and/or built in the Twin Cities. The other location is reserved for seasonal beers.

Great Waters changes the name of their Mild, cuz a little bird told them that “Mr. Smooth” was cheesy. Unexpected food items are placed in the mash tun and result in excellent beers.

Green Mill Brewing Company gets more attention in 2007 thanks to involvement in the Minnesota Craft Brewer’s Guild and, uh, free pizza and beer for MNBeer readers…

The Herkimer surprises everyone with a highly-hopped IPA-like lager. People love it so much it becomes part of the regular line-up. It’s name? Duh. “The Prediction.” They also brew a steam beer which gets lots of attention.

Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery expands. Upward. …er… the crystal ball is hazy, folks… maybe they actually open a second location in the vicinity of the new Twins ballpark. Another cask is added to the line-up.

O’Gara’s totally revamps their brewery and surprises everyone.

O’Hara’s remodels and gets lots of attention for a new Imperial Porter that Chris brews.

Rock Bottom cranks adds a pulled beer to their line-up, much to everyone’s surprise. Men rejoice, ladies are so happy they cry, kids are jealous…

Wellington’s Backwater Brewing Company becomes a weekend destination for Minnesota beer geeks. Beer, barbecue and bowling? Yes. Parties ensue. Winona hotels are overbooked with Minnesota beer geeks.

MNBeer.com becomings a paying gig for two lucky sods. We’re all forced to work out daily, heavily, thanks to all of the free beer we’re forced to consume. Michael Jackson calls us for information on beers, wanting to know more about all of the great offerings in Minnesota.

In Minnesota, laws are passed to allow brewpubs to sell kegs to distributors. No less than 30 Minnesota bars carry at least three beers from Minnesota by the end of the year. Beer that was once only available to Minnesotans via travel to Wisconsin and beyond becomes available. Local brews, in turn, are sent far and wide. Two new brewpubs are opened as well as two new breweries.

Okay, so one of these predictions is actually, mostly factual. Stay tuned in the new year to see which one is true. I’m not telling…

Fitger’s Update

New seasonals this week at Fitger’s Brewhouse:

Joducus Weizenbock 7.5%
A German style strong wheatbock. Notes of banana, chocolate, coffee and sweet tangy wheat come through. A winterwheat if you will.

Edmund Imperial Stout 10.2%
A strong stout aged over 1 yr to allow flavor development and maturation. 10 oz only for safety.

Fitger’s Update

Sorry, I’m slacking… to much eggnog… er wild beer…

Greetings and Happy Holidays
It’s Monday December 18th so the Brewhouse will release Blitzen’s Blueberry Porter today.
Blitzen’s is a once a year beer brewed to celebrate the holidays. We brew a dark chocolate porter then add 660 lbs of wild blueberries. We let these flavors make freinds and the result is one of the Brewhouse’s more popular ales. Stop down for a growler, BUT REMEMBER NO GROWLER SALES ON SUNDAY…this year Christmas Eve falls on a Sunday.

Other new Beer releases this week:

White Pine Lager 5.7%
An amber, vienna style North Shore lager. Rich in malt flavor and full in body with the usual lager smoothness from long quiet months on the cellar.

Amsterdam Ale 6.0%
We used Belgian strong golden ale yeast to brew this batch of Amsterdam. The result is a bit more dry ale, with a very nice fruit middle and a quenching tangy finish.

Castle Danger 6.1%
A Burton-on-Trent style pale ale. All English malts and hops, slightly lower hopping rates and the typical round fruit the yeast brings too the table.

Cask Ale : Starfire

Town Hall Holliday Hours

Happy holidays all-
Just wanted to drop you a line to let you know when we will be open over the hoildays-

Christmas Eve 24th-  noon-6:00pm (sorry no brunch today) REMEMBER THIS IS A SUNDAY–NO GROWLERS!

Christmas Day 25th- CLOSED

Monday Dec.26- open at 4:00pm

WEDNESDAY 12/27- Beer Release 5:00- Winterstorm- Chocolate, orange, lemongrass, orange blossom honey, and Belgian yeast YUM!

New Year’s Eve Day 12/31- Brunch @ 9:00 before 12pm Vikings Game. Again SUNDAY-NO GROWLERS

New Year’s Day 1/1/07- CLOSED

Ho Ho Ho

Town Hall Release Schedule

Here’s the skinny from Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery:

Hey all,
Here is a list holiday release times for all you fine folks-
Wednesday, 12/20 5-6pm we will release FESTIVUS 2006. We like to make you 1800 IPA and Festivus during the month of December, this year we were a bit short of space so we combined the two beers. Festivus 2006 is a beefed up version of 1800, all the hops, more malt and more alcohol. Should offer tons of fun.

12/20 we will also have our annual mulled-ale and holiday fire. Begins at 5:00. This is a chance for all of you to have a nice warm spiced drink on us (while supply lasts) and warm your tukus by the fire before everyone splits for the holiday. Just a little thanks for your continued support. Let’s hope for continued warm weather. If anyone wants to bring in some fire-wood…feel free.

12/27 We will release a Winterstorm. 5-6pm(Let’s hope for snow) I know I’ve warned all of you Thunderstorm people about a winter version. Well, here you go! Winterstorm marks the first addition to our storm series of beers. Keep your eye open for the storms all year long. Be aware all the storms will include lemongrass and some form of honey as ingredients. Should be fun! Winterstorm is a chocolate covered orange fermented with Belgian yeast. (Lemongrass and Orange Blossom Honey)

Cheers and happy holidays!

Mike

Almost forgot-
Those crazy cats in the kitchen are talking about a New Year’s Eve event. Don’t worry…when I find out the exact details….you will be the first to know!