Now Open (or Damn Close) heads east to Stillwater, where Maple Island Brewing Company’s founders are hard at work.
By Brian Kaufenberg
Stillwater, birthplace of Minnesota, was once the seat of wealth and culture in the state. In its Golden Age, Stillwater boasted the largest opera house, the first electric lights west of Chicago, and as many as 46 saloons and six breweries. As the lumber industry faded in the early 1900s, the population ebbed, and Prohibition shuttered the last of the breweries.
Today, Stillwater’s historic buildings have been repurposed into restaurants, bars, and small businesses catering to the thousands of visitors and residents of the river town. This summer, Nic Brau and Frank Fabio are opening Maple Island Brewing Company, a 7 bbl brewery and taproom, located in the historic Maple Island Creamery on Main Street in downtown.
View from Maple Island Brewing // Photo by Brian Kaufenberg
The brewery, which was most recently a hardware store in the 1990s, takes its name from an island in the middle of Mud Lake that bordered the famous Stillwater lumber baron, Isaac Staples’ farm. Fabio and Brau chose to keep the name as a nod to the legacy Staples left behind. The brewery, directly adjacent to Northern Vineyards Winery, has a patio overlooking the St. Croix River and the historic lift bridge.
Fabio, who purchased the building in 2011 and operates his restoration contracting business on the second floor, was searching for a tenant to fill the first floor before he and Brau came up with the concept to start Maple Island Brewing Company. The two are a perfect complement to one another. “We feed off each other when we brainstorm,” said Fabio, who is the operations and logistics mind of the team.
Frank Fabio (left) and Nic Brau (right) of Maple Island Brewing // Photo by Brian Kaufenberg
Nic Brau is the head brewer and creative mind behind the Maple Island brews. He is a second cousin of the Braus of Brau Brothers Brewing and was turned on to craft beer at the Brauhaus in Lucan. He began homebrewing and the hobby quickly turned into an obsession. Last year alone, Brau brewed over 38 styles of beers and his passion rubbed off on his kids who lend a hand during brew sessions and snack on brewing grains.
Maple Island’s beer selection includes an oatmeal coffee stout with vanilla, chocolate milk shake stout, kölsch, caramel bock, single hop mosaic wheat ale, and patersbier, and Brau described his brewing style as highly experimental. “Literally anything can hit my pot,” he said.
“What I want to do with the taproom,” said Fabio, “is give people a place to go and try something they’ve never had before.”
“It’s going to be a ride,” Brau added, “We’re going to be opening in summer, in the prime months in Stillwater. It’s going to be baptism by fire.”
UPDATE: Maple Island’s grand opening is set for Tuesday, September 30. Visit their Facebook page for more information.
Frank Fabio (left) and Nic Brau (right) of Maple Island Brewing // Photo by Brian Kaufenberg
Brewer: Nic Brau
Beer: Cup of Joe Freak Show Coffee Oatmeal Stout, Killer Kölsch, IPA, Caramel Bock, Chocolate Milk Shake Stout, Mosaic Wheat, Patersbier
Visit: 225 Main Street North, Stillwater, MN 55082
Hours: Tue–Thu 5–10pm, Fri–Sat 12–10pm
About Brian Kaufenberg
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