Author: ryan

Ryan Anderson (that's me!) is the editor & founder of MNBeer. Much has changed since the fall of 2005 and I'm proud to have been a part of it all. Sometime I'll tell you about my grand theory that links craft brewing to punk rock. Just ask.

The World’s Largest Single-Site Malting Facility is in Our Back Yard

This weekend our friends at Rahr their new malt house and other new spaces to tons of neighbors and brewery folks this past weekend on Saturday. As some of you know, I had the pleasure of being on-site as the new malthouse, lab/pilot brewery and distribution center were being completed. It was a massive undertaking that was completed ahead of schedule. Not bad!

Rahr President and CEO William Rahr. Photo: Christina Rahr Lane

Rahr President and CEO William Rahr. Photo: Christina Rahr Lane

According to president and CEO Willie Rahr, “This project is focused on taking our quality, capabilities and service to an even higher level. We’re adding 28 full-time employees at our home base in Shakopee to make this growth possible and meet the needs of a thriving brewing and beverage industry.”

For any of you unfamiliar with the Shakopee company, Rahr is a family-owned company that manufactures malt and distributes malt and other ingredients to brewers, distillers and other beverage-makers worldwide, including almost all (90%) of Minnesota’s breweries from August Schell to Steel Toe. Nearly 1/4 of American-brewed beers contain Rahr malt. That’s a lot of 2-row, 6-row, pilsner and wheat malt!

The brand-new “malthouse 6” ads over 100,000 square feet of production space, making Rahr’s headquarters the largest single-site malting facility in the world. The expansion increases the annual malting capacity from 390,000 to 460,000 metric tons enough to brew about 6 billion bottles of craft beer.

Technical Center - research brewery and lab. Photo: Christina Rahr Lane

Technical Center – research brewery and lab. Photo: Christina Rahr Lane

The expansion includes a 20,000-square-foot research brewery and technical center that enable Rahr to test the performance of its products in an actual brewery environment, as well as an 80,000-square-foot distribution and packaging facility. This facility is used primarily for warehousing and bagging by Brewers Supply Group, a Rahr Corporation subsidiary that supplies premium ingredients to brewers, winemakers, distillers, and home fermentation retailers.

Matt Brynildson from Firestone Walker had this to share: “Firestone Walker Brewing Company has been partnered with Rahr Malting since 2001.  We have enjoyed a long and productive relationship through many years of growth and an ever-evolving beer landscape.  Consistent, clean and good flavored malt is at the core of all good beer and Rahr has delivered world-class malt to us year in and year out.  The talented and dedicated Rahr team has playing a key role in the success of our brewery.” 

 

A Guide to Autumn Brew Review 2016

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By Jeremy Zoss

The 16th annual Autumn Brew Review will be held this Saturday, September 17th at the Historic Grain Belt Brewery. Autumn Brew Review (ABR) is one of the largest and oldest beer festivals of the state, and for serious craft beer fans it is considered one of the most important beer events of the year. This guide will help you prepare for the event and maximize your beer-tasting enjoyment.

About Autumn Brew Review

Autumn Brew Review is the largest and longest-running craft beer festival organized by the Minnesota Craft Brewer’s Guild. The non-profit outdoor festival feature unlimited beer tastings from local and national craft breweries, as well as a few ciders, wines, and non-alcoholic samples. Each visitor receives a commemorative tasting glass and guide, and can also enjoy games, food vendors on-site, beer educational sessions and more.

About the Minnesota Craft Brewer’s Guild

The Minnesota Craft Brewer’s Guild is a trade group for Minnesota breweries. Most Minnesota breweries are members, but not all. The Guild works to promote Minnesota craft beer and to educate consumers about the great beer made in Minnesota. In addition to Autumn Brew Review, the Guild organizes events like Winterfest, All Pints North and the Land of 10,000 Beers exhibit at the Minnesota State Fair.

The Breweries

This year, 135 breweries will be participating in ABR. The list includes established locals like August Schell Brewing Company, Dangerous Man, Fulton, Indeed, Summit, Surly, Town Hall Brewery, and many more. ABR is also a great place to sample beers from some of the state’s younger breweries, including Bald Man Brewing, Disgruntled Brewing, Roundhouse Brewing, Wayzata Brew Works, and other breweries in their first few years of operation.

Of course, not all the breweries at ABR are local. Many heavy-hitting national breweries will participate as well, including Alaskan Brewing Co., Deschutes, Evil Twin, New Belgium, Oscar Blues, Sam Adams, Stone, and more. ABR often serves as the launching pad for national breweries entering the Minnesota market for the first time, and this year is no exception. For many visitors, ABR will be their first exposure to national breweries like California’s Alpine Beer Co., Michigan’s Arcadia Ales, and the Colorado Saison specialists Funkwerks.

The Beer

ABR is more than an excuse to drink large quantities of beer – it’s about quality, too. No matter your tastes, make sure you seek out some hard-to-find brews in your favorite styles. Here are a few of the rare brews this writer hopes to sample at the festival:

  • August Schell’s – Harmony of Spheres, Orbital Drift, and Tidal Disruption Weissbiers
  • Bent Paddle – Double Shot Double Black American Black Ale
  • Dangerous Man – Imperial Chocolate Milk Stout
  • Evil Twin – 2014 From Amager With Love Imperial Stout
  • Funkwerks – Multiple saisons
  • New Belgium – 2016 Le Terrior American Wild Ale
  • Prairie Artisan Ales – Prairie Bomb! Imperial Stout
  • Surly – Barrel-aged Pentagram, Vanilla Oak Aged Darkness, One, Two, Three Anniversary Ales
  • Toppling Goliath – King Sue Imperial IPA

Preparation and Tips

Here’s some advice to help you maximize your enjoyment of ABR:

  • Here’s the most important advice of all: make sure you have arranged a sober driver to pick you up after the event! If you can’t try to travel via public transportation.
  • In advance, make yourself a pretzel necklace. Lace several dozen pretzels on some string to wear around your neck. There will be plenty of food available to purchase at the event, but eating a pretzel between beers will not only keep you from getting too intoxicated, it will help reset your palate between samples.
  • ABR has an app! Grab it from the Google Play store or the Apple App Store and use it to plan your visit.
  • Expect big crowds and long lines. ABR is a big festival, so you will have to wait in lines. You won’t get a chance to try every beer you want, especially those tapping at specific times. Go with the flow, and don’t sweat if you miss out on a hard-to-find beer.
  • Skip the standards. If you’ve had a beer before, don’t ask for a pour. There is only so much time to drink, so focus on seeking out samples from breweries you haven’t visited yet, or exciting new offerings from your favorites.
  • There’s no shame in dumping beer on the ground. Drink every last drop and you’ll be drunk before you know it. Take a few sips and pour the rest – unless of course it’s too delicious to waste!
  • Drink plenty of water. There are rinse stations throughout the event for rinsing glassware, but the water is drinkable. Staying hydrated will keep your palate fresher and stave off intoxication.
  • Remember that festivals aren’t a completely fair way to try beers for the first time. No matter how many pretzels you snack on or water you drink, your palate will be pretty shot by the end of the day. Just because a beer didn’t stand out at ABR doesn’t mean you won’t love it later.
  • Don’t be a dick. Even with long lines and big crowds of people who have been drinking for hours, ABR generally has a pretty chill vibe. Everyone there is united by the love of craft beer, so most visitors get along pretty well. Don’t be the one that ruins the fun.

GRRRL Beer Rep Party at The Happy Gnome

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The local beer scene is loaded with talented ladies. Whether they’re brewing beer, selling it, or serving it—they are a big part of this exploding beer scene. Local beer reps Gabby Rudisill from Ballast Point, Tara Alcure from Surly, and Sarah Meyer from Bent Paddle came up with the idea to celebrate women in the industry by bringing people together at The Happy Gnome in St. Paul just ahead of Autumn Brew Review. They are calling this event GRRRL Party, but guys are encouraged to attend as well.

They’ve also invited some reps from Family Tree Clinic, an organization that supports women’s health by providing care and resources for all. Come down to The Gnome and try out some special beers from all of these breweries and bring some cash to donate. On tap will be Hopmosa, Ballast Point Pumpkin Down on oak, Surly Four, Urban Growler Rhubarb Wit, Indeed Whiskey Queen, Bad Weather Tippin’ it Down and more.

See you there!

9.14.16

The Happy Gnome

498 Selby Avenue

St. Paul, MN 55102

Summit 30th Anniversary: West London-Style Ale

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Well this doesn’t suck. Our friends at Summit Brewing Company have announced the third beer in their 30th Anniversary Series: West London-Style Ale. Come celebrate with Summit on Sunday from 10am-4pm at Brit’s Pub in Minneapolis if you’d like to toss this beer down your gullet before anyone else gets a chance to do so. They’ll also have a smattering of other Summit offerings and lie music from Freddie Manton & The Southsiders and Hard Day’s Night Beatles Tribute Band.

If you can’t make the event, look for West London-Style Ale on tap and in six- and 12-packs of cans the second week of August.

Beer details? Okay. Brewer Damian McConn dreamed up a British-Style Best Bitter making use of the classic Maris Otter malt (Crisp? Simpson’s?) with some traditional and more modern hop varieties, Endeavour (UK), Cascade (US) and Motueka (New Zeland). The fine folks at summit describe the beer as “medium-bodied with toasty, graham cracker malt flavors, complemented with hop flavors and aromas of loganberry, redcurrant, grapefruit and lime.” Sold. I’ll drink some.

“The 30th Anniversary Series showcases the unique qualities and attributes that have helped drive Summit forward over the last three decades,” said McConn. “We kicked off the series early in the year with a powerful Double IPA, followed up in late spring with a classical German Keller Pils, and now we’re staying across the pond as we enter August with a thirst-quenching session ale packed with flavor. West London-Style Ale presents complexity, character and drinkability in a low ABV beer with an assertive hop profile that doesn’t overwhelm beer lovers.”

West London-Style Ale Deets:

ABV: 4.6%
IBU: 40
Color: Light Amber
Malts: Maris Otter
Hops: U.K. Endeavour, U.S. Cascade, New Zealand Motueka
Yeast: Multi-strain yeast comprised of private collection U.K. ale strains formerly utilized by an old British Brewery

Food Pairings: Cotswold cheese, traditional fish and chips, ploughman’s lunch, Cornish pasty, roast beef, Cumberland sausages

Get Your Autumn Brew Review Tickets at NOON TODAY!

Look forward to many smiling faces at Autumn Brew Review. Hi Chelsea!

Look forward to many smiling faces at Autumn Brew Review 2016. Hi Chelsea!

(TL-WR*) Tickets are $45 and you can grab them here. Autumn Brew Review takes place on September 17th from 1-5pm.

Yes today… Tuesday, July 26th. Don’t screw this up!

The Minnesota Craft Brewers Guild-sponsored festival is one of my very favorite festivals and if past history is any indicator, you’ll want to be on your computer right at noon for a chance to grab tickets as everyone else seems to enjoy the event as well.

ABR runs from 1-5pm Saturday, September 17th at the Historic Grain Belt Brewery in Northeast Minneapolis and will feature more beer than you can possibly drink from more than 130 participating breweries. If that’s not enough for you, there will be live music, food vendors, beer education and more.

*Too long, won’t read. Lazy fuckers.