Category: general beer

Beery Christmas to You And All That

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Merry Xmas, Happy Holidays, etc., etc. dear readers! Christmas is a great time to share the gift of beer with loved ones, especially those uninitiated into the world of craft beer. So share your favorite winter warmer or special seasonal with family and friends this year and give the gift of great beer and great cheer.

Thank you all for another year of ridiculous traffic on the site. I still can’t believe this site gets thousands of unique visitors a day, but it does, and I’m thankful for all of you! You’re the ones that drive the site and make it all worth doing. Thanks also to our brewery, brewpub, beer bar, beer store and homebrew friends. Monumental growth in these areas makes what we do with the site all the more exciting and worthwhile.

For me, your fearless “editor,” this has been a year of change. My family added a second child, and my day gig had some new and exciting changes. Needless to say, I’ve been super busy. Thankfully the dust is all starting to settle and I’ll be able to devote more time to craft beer and look at some new permanent help for MNBeer.com. If you’re interested, let me know! Also look for a new design in the next few months.

Thanks again beer friends. Drink up, buttercup!

 

Winterfest Tickets go on Sale at Noon Today!

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Tickets for Minnesota’s premiere “locals-only” brew festival go on sale at noon today. Though Winterfest certainly isn’t a cheap affair, it’s a blast and features tons of special beers from our local breweries in celebration of Minnesota beer, winter and, well… beer.

“Come and join us for the 13th Annual Winterfest! This craft beer sampling event celebrates beer brewed in Minnesota by the breweries and brew pubs that are current members of the Minnesota Craft Brewers Guild. Chase out the winter chill with a multitude of Winter Warmers, hearty food, beer education, entertainment and music.”

Tickets are $75 + a $7 fee. Please don’t be a chump and sell them on Craigslist or Ebay.

New this year, Winterfest is moving to Union Depot in St. Paul.

Schell’s Pilsner Series Artwork

Last week we told you about the upcoming 30th Anniversary Pilsner Series from Schell’s. Lo and behold, this week, we have new artwork in hand. Check out the three new labels for the series below. Can’t wait to taste these for myself@

Chop & Brew #16: Wyeast 1217 West Coast IPA

In this Chop & Brew Roundtable episode Chip, DonO and Dawson taste and discuss several IPAs fermented with Wyeast 1217 West Coast IPA (Private Collection strain for Sept-Dec 2013). The conversation focuses on the characteristics and usage of Wyeast 1217, but also includes discussion of the new high-alpha German hop Polaris and American hop EXP 5256; as well as the importance of malt bills to and general techniques for hop-forward (and malt-balanced) IPAs. Check out official episode page for homebrew recipes for the three beers discussed.