Category: tap rooms

Inbound and Modist Celebrating One Year in the North Loop

By on April 12, 2017in breweries, general beer, MN, Modist Brewing, new beer, tap rooms

Two of the breweries that make up the new brewery hot spot in town are celebrating one year anniversaries. Both events are free to the public but you’ll wanna get there early because the parking can be cumbersome in the North Loop.
Modist will celebrate on Saturday with a bash that will include live music, live painting, a beer release, and fundraiser supporting Free Arts MN. The Curious Goat is the food truck in residence and will be there selling food all day. Their anniversary beer will be a bright pink kettle sour fruited milkshake IPA called Turbulent Juice.

Details:
We’re having a Music Concert, Live Painting, Beer Release, Free Arts MN Fundraiser Party!

Our first year in almost in the books, and it’s already been a crazy ride. Now it’s time to celebrate. On April 15th, 2017, we’re going have 4 live music acts, and have 8 artists create live art on large canvases, and release a crazy beer – all while raising funds for Free Arts Minnesota. There will also be a dunk tank.

The music lineup will feature 4 MN artists, including:

– The 4onthefloor (9 PM)
– Greg Grease (8 PM)
– Sarah White (7 PM)
– Nato Coles & the Blue Diamond Band (4 PM)

and DJ sets by:
– Sophia Eris (5 PM)
– Mike 2600 (also the designer of our First Call cans 🙂 (10 PM)

And it’s all hosted by Go953MN’s Auggie 5000!

Alongside the musicians, 8 LOCAL ARTISTS will each be creating a piece on 4′ x 4′ canvas that will be auctioned off to the benefit of Free Arts MN, an organization that supports the artistic and personal development of youths in challenging circumstances.

Some of the artists involved, include:

– Wes Winship of Burlesque of North America(also the designer of our DREAMYARD cans)
– DWITT
– Artists from Rogue Citizen, including Lizardman, Dalsen, and Blaster
– Erin Sayer
– Joy Spika
-Meduza

We’re also helping out Free Arts MN by having an Art Supplies Drive. If you’re in the giving spirit, here is a list of supplies they’re in need of. Please bring something from the list along with you on the 15th:

-glue sticks
-scotch/masking/duct tape
-canvas paper/multi-media paper
-t-shirts
-drawing pencils
-kneaded erasers
-sharpies
-cardstock paper

We’ll also be releasing another one-of-a-kind beer. It’s still a secret. More details soon!

We’re going to have custom birthday donuts from Sssdude-Nutz!

We’re going to have a make your own button station from SiK PiN!

We’re going to have a dunk tank!

Inbound will celebrate next Saturday (April 22nd) with live music, a Berliner Weisse release, one-off beer infusions, and games. Mighty Axe Hops will also be on-site to talk about locally grown hops. The Outlaw Grill will also be there serving food at the event.
Details:
Thanks for joining us on our journey into beer. This celebration is all for you. You’ve been through the seasons with us, drank all 55 beers we’ve released, and you continue to impress us with your ability to pack our taproom each and every day.

It’s been a wild ride, but we’re excited celebrate 1 Year of Beer together.

Let’s Party:

11am: Taproom Opens
12pm: Live Jams by Alex Rossi Music
12pm: The Outlaw Grill-Food Truck
1pm: Free Brewery Tours [Every hour, on the hour. 20 slots per tour. Sign up in the Merch Shop. Must have close-toed shoes.]
2pm: Local Vendors – Mighty Axe Hops & Brewing a Better Forest
7pm: Live Jams by DJ Adatrak
12am: The party ends, but come back tomorrow for Sunday Funday!

Beer:

20+ craft beers will be on tap
New Beer Release – Berliner Weisse
Tons of new infusions

Games:

Life size jenga
Bean Bags
Tons of board games

Outdoor patio will be open (pending weather)
Minnesota Twins game is at 1:10pm
It’s Earth Day, so learn a little about locally grown hops from Mighty Axe Hops or donate to Brewing a Better Forest and help water local trees.

Happy birthday to both breweries!

Cheers!

Starkeller Now Open in New Ulm

By on March 5, 2017in August Schell Brewing Co., general beer, grand opening, new beer, tap rooms

It’s finally here. The all sour taproom headed up by Jace Marti (of Schell’s) was given the go ahead from the TTB recently and they’ve opened the doors and are ready to serve (check their social media for hours) their popular Berliner Weiss beers. “This story began in 1919. Prohibition happened, so for 13 years we were making soda” according to Jace. He is of course referring to those beautiful cypress tanks they purchased (and repurposed for the Starkeller) back in 1936 which were much cheaper than their steel counterparts. “We couldn’t afford new equipment after prohibition so we installed wooden tanks instead of steel ones.” The vessels were used at Schell’s from 1936 until 1991, mostly for Deer Brand Lager.

One might ask why they decided to use these cypress tanks from 1936 at the new space. Well there are a couple of reasons. For one, they’re gorgeous, rare, and they add a ton of character to the space. “These are the last 10 tanks like this in the world” says Marti.  Another reason is that the bacteria and brettanomyces being used at the brewery like a tiny bit of oxygen which steel tanks can’t provide on their own. The cypress tanks breathe a little which allows a very small amount of oxygen in without ruining the beer.

Why Berliner Weiss? Schell’s has always made traditional German style lagers but Jace wanted to do something a little bit different. So he went to Berlin to learn about a style of beer they were brewing over there that had roots in other parts of Europe. “The French brought the sour technique that they learned in Belgium over to Berlin” he says.

The second oldest family run brewery in the country is once again changing the way we think about beer. From Belgium to Berlin, and now to New Ulm. Welcome to Sour Country.

 

Cheers!

Got the Winter Blues? Modist Has You Covered

By on February 8, 2017in cooking & food, food pairing, general beer, misc. mn beer, MN, Modist Brewing, new beer, tap rooms

Summer festival season is still months away and the Modist crew wants to fill the void on February 18 from 5 pm until 10 pm with music, food, and beer. They’re partnering with ZZQ Smokehouse and Genius of Fun Promotions for the event which will feature music from Hurricane Harold & Doug Otto, Brothers Band, Black River Review, and Jorgensen Tagg Band.

Tickets will cost $39 and include:

3 pints of beer (see list below)
2 BBQ (pulled pork or chicken) sliders and a side (potato salad or coleslaw)
Live music
Specialty beers
Discounted room rate ($149) at Hewing Hotel

Modist will be serving their flagships TOATS, Smoove, Wasteland, pHresh, and First Call—as well as something from their Deviation Series and several specialty beers. Additional food and beer will be available for purchase at the event.

Cheers!

New Breweries to Look Forward to in 2017

By on January 22, 2017in breweries, general beer, misc. mn beer, MN, new beer, tap rooms

This is going to be very good year for new breweries here in Minnesota with many set to open this spring. The latest wave of brewery openings have been fairly disappointing but there is reason for optimism this year. Here are a few of the highlights to consider.

Barrel Theory – This highly anticipated brewery is set to open in Lowertown right next to Dark Horse. Brett Splinter and Timmy Johnson both formerly of Surly are looking to introduce some interesting barrel-aged offerings east of the river. Quality beer is going to be the theme here and given their experience, we should be very excited. Expect some very big beers and plenty of barrel-aged sours to come out of this space.

Oakhold Farmhouse Brewery – You know those fantastic sours that have been coming out of Fair State? Yeah, the owners of Oakhold are behind many of those and they are planning to open a farmhouse brewery out of Midway Township near Duluth, Minnesota. Expect some fantastic mixed culture sours along with some traditional farmhouse beers similar to those found over in Belgium or France.

Hoops Brewing – Canal Park has long been a popular tourist spot in one of the most picturesque cities in Minnesota. Soon it will be home to Hoops Brewing, headed up by the man (Dave Hoops) who put Duluth on the beer map while he was with Fitger’s Brewhouse. Now his team will be led by former Fitger’s Brewhouse brewer Melissa Rainville—who I’m told will be tasked with developing many of the recipes for their lineup. Expect a taproom that will welcome anyone including hockey fans, a group that Dave feels very much a part of. They will create a solid lineup of flagship offerings and will proudly feature a barrel-aged program that is certain to please even the most discerning palate.

Star Keller – We’ve been waiting for far too long for this place to open. Jace Marti (from Schell’s Brewing) has been concocting recipes and plans to make more of those fantastic Berliner Weiss beers in the Noble Star collection, as well as a variety of blended mixed culture sours, and even a Flanders Red Style. My biggest concern about the Star Keller is the location. Here’s to hoping that New Ulm embraces having an all sour taproom in town.

Most of these breweries are expecting to open this spring, but I’d expect Oakhold to take a little while longer with a late 2017 opening date.

Cheers!

Modist Introducing the Deviation Series

By on October 13, 2016in cooking & food, general beer, hops, misc. mn beer, MN, Modist Brewing, new beer, tap rooms

The brewery in town known for pushing boundaries is launching a series of beers they’re calling Deviation. Keigan Knee and his crew of brewers plan to make use of a 10-barrel fermenting vessel they installed 6 months ago with the sole purpose of experimenting with ingredients and processes to create new beer experiences.

These “experiments” will be taproom only releases and will not be made in large batches unless they are successful—measured strictly by popularity with their patrons. Those cute names they’ve given their flagships offerings will not apply to this series. Each batch will only be assigned a number beginning with 001 and 002. The first two will be available in the taproom on Friday, October 14th beginning at 7 pm for 001, and 8 pm for 002.

Deviation 001 is being described as a dark beer that was brewed with pilsner, rye, wheat, and coffee malts. The hops used in this batch were Amarillo, Cascade, and Columbus. Only 17 kegs were produced so it won’t last long. 5.6% ABV, 43 IBU, 21 SRM.

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Deviation 002 is a wheat monster. In fact, it was brewed with 100% wheat malts (which is very uncommon) and tons of Citra, Bravo, and Ella hops. This should be a beautiful, hazy looking beer due to the use of 100% wheat malts. Only 20 kegs were produced. 7% ABV, 88 IBU, 4 SRM.

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These releases are one-of-a-kind so you don’t want to miss out.

The Modist vision:
At Modist, our aim is to modify beer and how it is perceived by defying rules and
expectations. We don’t abide by established style guidelines and refuse to bend to pre-
conceived notions. We push past traditional brewing by embracing creativity and
unconstrained experimentation, taking an innovative approach to ingredients and
techniques in order to harness raw inspiration and create a new beer experience.

 

Cheers!