Category: brewpubs

Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery Gearing Up for Barrel Aged Week

By on February 9, 2016in breweries, general beer, hops, Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery, misc. mn beer, MN, mnbeer.com, new beer

townhallbrewery

Town Hall Brewery has been hosting Barrel Aged Week for seven years now. This is one of the most popular events at the Seven Corners brewpub and it’s a lot of work so it makes sense that they’d dedicate an entire week to celebrate these brews. “These [beers] are a lot of work” says head brewer Mike Hoops. “It’s a lot easier to release them all at once.” February is also a slower month for most bars and restaurants and this was a way to get people to come out of their homes and into the brewpub. Barrel Aged Week will start on Monday, February 15th and run through Saturday, February 20th.

Mike Hoops, Barrel-Aged Week 2014. Photo: Ryan Anderson/MNBeer.com

Mike Hoops, Barrel-Aged Week 2014. Photo: Ryan Anderson/MNBeer.com

They will release about two beers per day (schedule below) at 5 PM all week long on draft and for sale in “mini growlers” and most of them should have a pretty good supply. “There’s a sizeable amount of these. We expect to sell about 150 [mini growlers] of each” says Hoops. Ticket sales are limited for these growlers and will begin on Sunday, February 14th at 10:00 AM.

The lineup looks incredible with one of the highlights being the Trois Vie Series. There are a total of four in the series, all of which spent time in French oak Pinot Noir barrels that had also stored Kentucky bourbon in them. Hence the name “Trois Vie”, or “Barrels with Three Lives.” The grouping includes a Belgian Style Tripel, a Belgian Style Quadrupel, a Barleywine, and an Imperial Stout. All of these will be released on Monday, February 15th.

When should you enjoy these beers? “These beers are aged properly and people should drink them within reasonable time” says Hoops. “Drink them with your friends.”

Great advice from a wise man.

5 p.m., Monday, February 15
• Trois Vie Series — “Barrels with Three Lives”: French oak barrels first housed in California Pinot Noir, then Kentucky bourbon, and finally Town Hall beers.
• No.1 : Belgian Style Tripel
• No. 2: Belgian Style Quadrupel
• No. 3: Barleywine
• No. 4: Imperial Stout

5 p.m., Tuesday, February 16
• Foolish Angel — Belgian Style Quadrupel aged in both Blanton’s and Woodford Reserve Bourbon barrels.
• Cuvee of Consequence — Belgian Style Strong Saison aged in California Chardonnay barrels, then finished with a touch ofbitter orange peel.

5 p.m., Wednesday, February 17
• Manhattan Reserve — Belgian Style Grand Cru with red tart cherries, aged in Woodford Reserve Bourbonbarrels.
• E.T. Wee — Scottish Style Wee Heavy aged in Elmer T. Lee Bourbon barrels.

5 p.m., Thursday, February 18
• Project 3106 — Belgian Style Bruin aged with Belgian chocolate and kumquats in Four Roses Bourbonbarrels.
• Buffalo Bock — German Style Weizenbock aged in Buffalo Trace Bourbon barrels.

5 p.m., Friday, February 19
• Maple Brownstone — American Style Double Brown with Town Hall’s brewmaster’s own maple syrup, agedin Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Whiskey barrels.

11 a.m., Saturday, February 20
• Twisted Trace — Barleywine aged in Buffalo Trace Bourbon barrels.

Cheers!

Growler Gala Fundraiser to Benefit Roosevelt High School Theater Program

By on February 2, 2016in Bad Weather Brewing Co., Bauhaus Brewlabs, beer events, breweries, charity, Eastlake Brewery & Taproom, Fulton Brewing Co., general beer, Lake Monster, Lakes and Legends, Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery, misc. mn beer, MN, mnbeer.com, Surly Brewing Co., Tin Whiskers

Growler Gala

It’s been about twenty years since the curtains were last drawn in the theater at Roosevelt High School. Thankfully Rick Spaulding and some of our local breweries have stepped up to help raise funds to revive the program in south Minneapolis.

On Thursday, February 4th the Parkway Theater will host an event from 7 PM until 10 PM where you can dance, mingle, and enjoy some drinks with friends. Pepito’s will be there selling food and beverages and there will be both a live, and silent auction where you can bid for growlers donated by the following breweries.

Excelsior Brewing
Fulton Brewery
Harriet Brewing
Town Hall Brewery
Lakes & Legends
Tin Whiskers
Northbound
Surly
Urban Growler
Insight
Dangerous Man
Boom Island
Eastlake
Sisyphus
Fair State
56
Bang
Bauhaus
Bad Weather
Lake Monster
LynLake
Sociable Cider Werks

Tickets will be $12 in advance and $15 at the door. Don’t miss your chance to help bring the Roosevelt Theater program back to life.

Details:

Thursday, February 4th from 7 PM until 10 PM.

Parkway Theater
4814 Chicago Avenue South
Minneapolis, MN 55417

Cheers!

MN Beer Notebook: News From Around Town

By on December 28, 2015in August Schell Brewing Co., Bad Weather Brewing Co., breweries, brewpubs, general beer, Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery, new beer, Steel Toe Brewing, Surly Brewing Co.

Dangerous Man

Here are some tidbits from around town as the holidays wind down.
Dangerous Man has just released their SMASH IPA and it’s fantastic. Citra lovers will rejoice over this one as it’s composed of 100% Citra hops and Simpson’s Golden Promise malt. It’s available on tap and in the growler room. Also on tap is Sour Delores #2. This kettle sour was brewed with raspberries and it is also available both on tap, and in the growler room.

The Belgian Pale Ale I helped brew over at Bad Weather Brewing is now on at their St. Paul taproom. I’ve yet to try it but I’m hearing good things. This means I may not have messed it up after all.

Surly canned more Abrasive recently and it should be available in stores throughout January 2016. Now if they’d only can Todd the Axe Man all year long….

Buffalo Trace is on the Barrel Reserve line at Town Hall Brewery. The brewery recently decided to dedicate a draft line to their spectacular barrel aged program. They’ll even have some 750 ml bottles for sale starting today at the brewery.

The popular Double IPA they call Size 11 is making a return mid-January at Steel Toe Brewing. They also have 750 ml bottles of Wee Heavy ($10) and Lunker ($20) for sale in bottles at the taproom. I’m hearing whispers that the supply of Lunker is getting pretty low, so you’d better act quickly if you’re looking to get some.

Schell’s is releasing a Bock sampler pack that is available now here in the Twin Cities. It consists of a pre-prohibition style, heirloom wheat, a 90s version, and their current variety.

Cheers!

Looking Ahead: Predicting 2016

By on December 18, 2015in beer events, Fair State Brewing, general beer, Indeed Brewing Co., Lake Monster, Lakes and Legends, Minneapolis Town Hall Brewery, Republic, Steel Toe Brewing, Surly Brewing Co., tap rooms

Predictions

This was another great year for our local beer scene where we saw breweries such as Able Seedhouse, Lake Monster, Lakes and Legends and many more open their doors for business. We saw Dangerous Man introduce their barrel aging program, Fair State and Indeed brought forth their sour programs, and Bad Weather got themselves a new home in St. Paul. With 2016 right around the corner, I decided to look ahead and forecast what we might see happen in the next 12 months.

1. Local collaborations: We haven’t seen a ton of this in previous years, but I think we’ve come to a point where we will see some breweries putting their best foot forward in unison to bring us some lively brews. Our friends over at the Growler have been hard at work putting together “In Cahoots” which is an event that they host every summer encouraging which encourages local breweries to collaborate on brews that people can enjoy at the event itself. Can you imagine the Hoops brothers collaborating on one? Now that would be one tasty beverage.

2. Special beer verticals in taprooms: Now that some of these breweries have been in operation for a couple years, I think we will begin to see “mini-events” that feature verticals of vintage specialty beers. Take Steel Toe for instance. They held an event back in November called “A Barrel-Aged Trifecta” which featured 2015 Barrel-Aged Dissent, 2012 Barrel-Aged Lunker, and 2014 Barrel-Aged Lunker available as a flight or on their own. I could see breweries like Surly or Indeed doing something similar with Rum King or Darkness, and the turnout would be huge.

3. Locally made cocktails on tap lines at notable bars around town: Technically this is already happening at Republic Seven Corners right now where Tattersall has a couple different “pre-mixed” cocktails available on tap. This is certainly a way for local distilleries to get their products into popular bars around town and showcase some of the flavors, all while maintaining the consistency by eliminating poorly made drinks. I could see this gaining momentum as the popularity of locally made spirits seems to be on the rise.

4. The rise of the Lager: Lagers have a bad reputation over the years thanks to large breweries that are more interested in volume than flavor. This is a big misconception in that you can make some damn tasty Lagers without sacrificing quality or flavor. Expect to see a rise in Lagers (such as Pilsners, California Common, Amber Lagers, etc) being brewed around town and maybe with a little twist—especially at smaller breweries (think Town Hall) where they have more freedom to change up their beer menus frequently.

5. The “death” of struggling breweries: No one wants to think this will happen, but it is inevitable that at some point some of these breweries will not make it. I honestly don’t think there will be a lot of this going on at this point, I just feel that this might be the year we see one or two turn off the lights. This should also serve as a reminder to support your local brewery and give them honest feedback so that they can fix any issues with their beer, service etc. Trust me, they’d rather hear that than close up shop.

Cheers!