Who better than the readers of The Growler to nominate and vote for the finest of the finest in Minnesota beer, spirits, food, arts, and culture? We had a tidal wave of votes to determine the winners of the 2019 Kind-of-a-Big-Deal Readers’ Choice Awards, and we’re proud to share the results with you. These are … [ Read more]
2019 Year in Review: Beer, Cider, and…Seltzer
November 26, 2019 by
From 30,000 feet up, American craft beer looks to be settling into a new, stable normalcy. After years of double-digit production volume growth, craft beer grew at just 4% in 2018 and according to the mid-year report by the Brewers Association, 2019 is projected to stay steady at that mark. But look closer and … [ Read more]
3 Minnesota Cideries take home awards from U.S. Cider Open
November 19, 2019 by
Three Minnesota cideries took home awards from the sixth annual U.S. Open Cider Championships, with the final round of judging held in Buffalo, New York. Duluth’s newest craft cideries shined. In the Perry & Pear Cider category, Wild State Cider won bronze with their Pear Cider, while Duluth Cider garnered a gold medal in the Anything Goes … [ Read more]
Wine and Cider Guide 2019
August 29, 2019 by
Each autumn, the branches of apple trees and vineyard vines hang heavy with the fruits of a long growing season. Every ray of sunlight, drop of rain, and nutrient in the soil have been soaked up to produce plump clusters of grapes and swollen apples filled with the juices, tannins, sugars, and acids that the … [ Read more]
A Quick Guide to Cider Styles
August 29, 2019 by
You know your beer styles and wine varieties, whiskey vs. whisky, and what you want in a gin. But what about cider? By no fault of its own (we blame the Prohibitionists who torched America’s once-plentiful cider-apple orchards) cider has fallen by the wayside for many drinkers, often being shunned due to misconceptions that it’s … [ Read more]
Polishing the Apple: Elevating the cider cocktail beyond a simple bar drink
August 29, 2019 by
You’ll be forgiven if your conception of cider cocktails until this very moment consisted of snakebites on St. Patrick’s Day or the mulled stuff that Uncle Randy enjoys spiking just a little too much. Before Lars Olsen was tapped to create Minneapolis Cider Company’s new in-house cocktail program, his view of the genre was even … [ Read more]
Cooking With Cider
August 29, 2019 by
When cooking, quality ciders can bring the same level of brightness, fruit, and acidity to food dishes as white or red wine. But with the wide-ranging flavors in cider—from sweet and apple-forward to dry, acidic, and funky—its utility in the kitchen is more versatile than that bottle of merlot or pinot grigio slowly losing vitality as … [ Read more]
Univ. of Minn. awarded $100k grant to research apples for state’s cidermakers
June 6, 2019 by
This May, University of Minnesota researchers, in collaboration with a collection of local cider producers and apple growers, were awarded a $100,000 grant to explore the production of cider and cider apples in Minnesota. The Speciality Crop Block Grant, which enables state agricultural agencies to administer federal funds for specialty crop research, will provide funding … [ Read more]
Essay: Old World Lessons on Spontaneous Fermentation and ‘Wild’ Cider
June 5, 2019 by
Nate Watters is the co-founder and cidermaker at Keepsake Cidery, Minnesota’s only 100 percent spontaneously fermented cidery. All opinions expressed are his own. Life is full of moments that change us. Sometimes they are little nudges, gently changing our course—maybe a lyric in a song heard at First Avenue. Sometimes they are hard shoves, changing … [ Read more]
Now Open: Minneapolis Cider Co.
May 17, 2019 by
The mission statement behind Minneapolis Cider Co. is simple: “Welcome to cider.” “We put it on our glassware, we talk about it, that is our guiding ethos in everything that we do,” says co-owner Jason Dayton. “It’s about: how do we enthusiastically welcome people to the category, and how do we guide our work every … [ Read more]
Now Open (Or Damn Close): Wild State Cider in Duluth
April 9, 2019 by
Duluth’s local cider scene is continuing to grow this spring with the arrival of Wild State Cider, situated in the Lincoln Park neighborhood, home to Duluth Cider, Ursa Minor Brewing, and Bent Paddle Brewing Company. Wild State Cider is a collaboration between longtime friends Adam Ruhland and Andrew Price, who first met in 2008 as … [ Read more]
2018 Kind-of-a-Big-Deal Readers’ Choice Award Winners
December 4, 2018 by
Each year, we ask our readers to nominate and vote for the best of the best in Minnesota beer, spirits, food, and arts and culture. This year, a record number of readers cast their ballots to determine the winners of the Kind-of-a-Big-Deal Readers’ Choice Awards. These are the breweries and bars serving up great craft … [ Read more]
Year in Review: Minnesota Beer & Cider in 2018
December 3, 2018 by
By the end of 2018, the United States will have more than 7,000 breweries and brewpubs in operation. To help that sink in, consider that a decade ago that number was 1,574. And 40 years ago, in 1978, there were just 89. This astounding growth in the number of breweries—the vast majority of them independent … [ Read more]
Now Open (Or Damn Close): Duluth Cider
November 14, 2018 by
For enthusiasts of everything craft, Duluth is living up to its name as the Zenith City. Breweries and distilleries are flourishing and have quickly become fixtures of the city’s cultural and nightlife scenes. With all of these great beers and spirits available, it seems only natural to ask: Where’s the cider? Duluth will soon be able to point to the … [ Read more]
First Look: Number 12 Cider’s North Loop taproom is open for business
November 6, 2018 by
Cider is flowing in the North Loop as Number 12 Cider’s new cidery and taproom opened last week. The taproom, located at 614 5th St. N. in Minneapolis, adds to the craft credentials of the neighborhood, which already boasts Inbound BrewCo, Modist Brewing, and Fulton Brewing’s taprooms within walking distance of each other. Number 12 … [ Read more]
