Minnesota’s small distilleries are lobbying to remove the need for those tiny bottles in their cocktail rooms. A bill numbered S.F. 3870 was introduced to the Minnesota State Senate on March 2, 2020, that would increase the limits on how much off-sale product a distillery can sell to visitors. The bill would amend section 340A … [ Read more]
About John Garland
John Garland is the Deputy Editor at the Growler Magazine. Find him on twitter (@johnpgarland) or in every coffee shop on West 7th Street.
State senate bill introduced to expand bottle sales and production limits for Minnesota microdistilleries
March 9, 2020 by
The Taste Test: 23 Raised-Glazed Doughnuts from around the Twin Cities
February 28, 2020 by
In the wee baker’s hours of a chilly Thursday morning, the intrepid Growler editorial team fanned out across the metro—from Hans’ Bakery in Anoka to Puffy Cream in Eagan, from YoYo in Minnetonka to the Donut Hut in Little Canada—in search of the perfect raised-glazed doughnut. A classic raised-glazed, you see, is a thing of … [ Read more]
We blind tasted 31 NA beers and found 7 we actually enjoyed
January 27, 2020 by
Dry January has begun its devolution into Wet February. It’s the month bookended by the imbibing holidays of Super Bowl and Mardi Gras, featuring the drinking-one-way-or-the-other Valentine’s Day smack in the middle. But as a quick postscript on January, we wonder, where did your Sober Curiosity take you? For us, it was the warming embrace … [ Read more]
Change Agents: A series of fermentation projects at Colita is making old cocktails taste fresh and new
December 23, 2019 by
We squeeze past the crush of people in the entryway and snag two seats at the end of the bar at Colita. This is how we usually eat there—take a drive on Penn Avenue, slow down at 54th Street, assess the regular chaos (is that a new crowd or the six o’clock crowd finishing up?) … [ Read more]
The Taste Test: What we learned from blind tasting 70 hard seltzers in search of the best
December 23, 2019 by
Hard seltzer came upon us suddenly. It materialized out of nowhere at a Fourth of July barbecue. In a cooler on a fishing trip. At the concession stand of a townball park. We don’t recall asking for it, and yet there it appeared in some faint shade of berry or lime, conjured into our hand … [ Read more]
Supatra’s Thai Cuisine to Close December 28
December 23, 2019 by
We’re all Crying Tigers at Growler HQ today: Supatra’s Thai Cuisine will be ending its 15-year run on West 7th Street on Saturday, December 28. A sign posted at Supatra this morning reads: “We have accepted an offer to sell our business and we want to express our gratitude for the support we have received … [ Read more]
Strong tea and sweet honey are the recipe for the perfect non-alcoholic cocktail
December 11, 2019 by
It’s all about layers,” Erik Eastman tells me. “It should taste complex without being complicated.” Director of sales for Minnesota Ice and proprietor of Easy & Company, Eastman knows a thing or two about mixing a cocktail. But he’s received tons of great feedback lately—through social media and at a meeting of the Sunday Sober Supper … [ Read more]
Loon Liquor’s Experimental Series puts Frankincense and Myrrh in the Christmas Spirit
December 5, 2019 by
Loon Liquor Co. of Northfield has spent considerable effort over the last few years perfecting a lineup of liqueurs. Their coffee liqueur is well known to The Growler staff as what re-endeared us to White Russians. Their blueberry liqueur has the purest, most clarion fruit flavor of any berry spirit we’ve tasted. And their elderflower liqueur … [ Read more]
2019 Year in Review: Wine & Spirits
November 26, 2019 by
Ready, Set, Drink! Local distilleries mounted a full-scale invasion of the ready-to-drink (RTD) category in 2019. Canned and bottled cocktails are up 40% nationwide over 2018, riding the same wave as hard seltzers and canned wine in which drinkers are gravitating towards new flavors in convenient packaging. Vikre Distillery of Duluth launched Frenchie, a pink … [ Read more]
Time after Time: We drink The Lynhall’s new temporal cocktail menu
November 21, 2019 by
We didn’t know what to make of The Lynhall when it opened in 2017. At the time it seemed torn between minimalist coffee shop and shiplapped Insta-brunch hang (with a TV studio somehow in the mix?) The food was rote, but at least there was espresso and lots of room to spread out your laptop … [ Read more]
Variety is the Spice of Whiskey
October 28, 2019 by
Whiskey aficionados know which grains they like in their spirit. They can distinguish between the sweet softness of corn, the mellow creaminess of wheat, and the sharp grassiness of rye. But do they know which kind of corn or rye they like best? Probably not. But this might be the direction that craft whiskey is … [ Read more]
New lounge cocktails at P.S. Steak: serious, fun, seriously fun
October 9, 2019 by
In the past decade, the lounge of the 510 Groveland building has been the site of some legendary drink-making. So how does P.S. Steak’s new bar manager Keith Mrotek step into this space? With confidence, but also reverence. “This space has been synonymous with Johnny Michaels,” he says, noting the former La Belle Vie barman … [ Read more]
The Taste Test: Blind Tasting 48 Oktoberfests
September 30, 2019 by
No beer style in the world is more appropriate for its season than Oktoberfest. It’s right there in the name—a celebration of autumn. Balancing the richness of Munich malt with the subtle spice of noble German hops, each sip of Oktoberfest practically feels like the leaves crunching beneath your feet. It’s tempting to think of … [ Read more]
Travail’s homage to Solera debuts Friday and we drank all the drinks
September 19, 2019 by
When Solera opened on Hennepin Avenue in 2002, it was a BFD in the local restaurant scene. Tim McKee and Josh Thoma were basking in the early critical glow of then-Stillwater-located La Belle Vie, and the tapas they installed next to the Orpheum were a revelation. It was a foundational restaurant for many in the … [ Read more]
5 Exceptional Minnesota Wines for the Harvest Season
August 29, 2019 by
September is harvest time for our local grape-growers and it’s an excellent month to head out to the vineyard. You might catch a glimpse of the harvest in progress, and some wineries even organize days for the public to help out. It’s hard work but a satisfying experience—being out amongst the vines on a breezy … [ Read more]
