There was a time when the term “outstate” carried an offensive connotation around Fergus Falls, Minnesota, with some residents even campaigning to get people to stop using the term. So when co-founders Dan Mohagen and Patrick Lundberg decided to name their brewery Outstate Brewing Company, it created some buzz around town. “When we explain [the … [ Read more]
Now Open (Or Damn Close): ONE Fermentary & Taproom in Minneapolis
November 13, 2019 by
Since its conception, ONE Fermentary & Taproom has been out to break the mold. Initially, ONE was planning to open a brewery without a brewhouse. Instead, the brewpub would only be outfitted with a variety of fermentation vessels and partner with other breweries to mash, boil, and ship them wort—the sugar water a brewery ferments … [ Read more]
Now Open (Or Damn Close): Fat Pants Brewing Co. in Eden Prairie
November 8, 2019 by
When it comes to food and drink in Eden Prairie, just about every chain and franchise you’ve ever heard is represented. But nestled between Purgatory Creek and the gargantuan Eden Prairie Center mall complex lies something the booming southwest suburb hasn’t seen in a long time. A brewery. Fat Pants Brewing Co. is set to … [ Read more]
Now Open (Or Damn Close): Forgotten Star Brewing Co. in Fridley
November 7, 2019 by
The wait is over. Fridley, Minnesota, you have now officially been baptized into the Twin Cities brewery scene. Located in one of Minnesota’s most historic buildings, in the sprawling Northern Stacks complex off East River Road, Forgotten Star Brewing Co. is an overdue and much-anticipated addition to the craft brewing congregation of the metro. “[The … [ Read more]
Now Open (Or Damn Close): Mineral Springs Brewery in Owatonna
November 6, 2019 by
Anytime Tim Pelton visited the Minnesota State Fair, he would always feel disappointed when looking at the Minnesota Craft Brewers Guild map. “On the big Minnesota brewers map, there was a big hole right where US 14 and I-35 intersect,” he says. “There wasn’t a brewery [in Owatonna].” After several years of fun, planning, and … [ Read more]
Now Open (Or Damn Close): Falling Knife Brewing Company in Minneapolis
October 11, 2019 by
When they were just under two weeks away from opening, Falling Knife Brewing Company’s chief revenue officer, Dan Herman, admitted there were still things left to do. “I’ve got about three months of work to do in the next 13 days,” Herman says. “But I’ve got an understanding fiancée and a need to never sleep.” The … [ Read more]
Now Open: Inver Grove Brewing Company in Inver Grove Heights
October 3, 2019 by
A brewpub isn’t just a brewery with a restaurant or restaurant with a brewery. It’s an agent of change, according to Megan Seiler and Glen Bruestle of Inver Grove Brewing Company, which opened on September 21. Bruestle and his wife Kate and Seiler and her husband Don, who own the brewpub with head brewer Taylor … [ Read more]
First Look: Copper Trail Brewing Company’s new taproom in Alexandria
September 5, 2019 by
I f there’s been one constant at Copper Trail Brewing Co. since they opened in 2016, it’s been growth. “Our plan was—start up, get the loan […] and as we get comfortable with our system, we’d add [additional] tanks,” Graf recalls their plan from 2016. But business at Copper Trail took off much quicker than … [ Read more]
Now Open (Or Damn Close): Fergus Brewing Co. in Fergus Falls
September 4, 2019 by
Mounted on the northernmost wall of the brewing space, Saint Arnold of Metz presides over the final preparations at the nearly-opened Fergus Brewing Co. “He’s the patron saint of brewers,” shares head brewer Andy Beck. “He watches over me when I brew. He got a lot of people to drink beer instead of the contaminated … [ Read more]
Now Open: Forbidden Barrel Brewing in Worthington, Minn.
September 3, 2019 by
When Worthington, Minnesota, was settled in 1872 by professor and Prohibitionist Ransom Humiston and A.P. Miller, it was meant to be a town free of alcohol. But then, as the town residents tell the tale, Civil War veterans moved to town with a thirst for beer. Next thing you know, Humiston is destroying a keg … [ Read more]
Now Open: Trout City Brewing in Preston, Minn.
August 15, 2019 by
A giant trout statue welcomes you to Preston, Minnesota. Downtown, a bicycle rack shaped like the fish jumps out of the sidewalk. The city has dubbed itself “Minnesota’s Trout Capital,” so it’s only natural that its new brewery, opening August 15 next to the National Trout Center, would name itself accordingly—Trout City Brewing—and prominently feature … [ Read more]
Now Open (Or Damn Close): Thesis Beer Project in Rochester
August 13, 2019 by
The central thesis of Thesis Beer Project is to make good beer and do good. Located in Rochester’s uptown neighborhood a stone’s throw away from Mayo Clinic’s Saint Marys campus, Thesis Beer Project will be the city’s sixth brewery when co-owners Allyson Palmer and Adam Fredericksen open its doors on August 13. The building is immediately … [ Read more]
Now Open: White Bear Meadery in White Bear Lake
July 31, 2019 by
From our professional football team to cultural lore, Vikings play a leading role in Minnesota. But Josh and Dana Eckton believed it wasn’t easy enough to find the seafaring Scandinavians’ drink of choice—mead. To help change this, the Ecktons opened White Bear Meadery on June 29 in Gem Lake, Minnesota, with the goal of helping … [ Read more]
Now Open: Alexandria’s Ida Graves Distillery launches honey-based vodka and organic gin
July 17, 2019 by
Brock Berglund and Anna Wilson’s 77 acres outside Alexandria, Minnesota, are beautiful, bordering on idyllic. The land is enrolled in the Minnesota DNR’s Conservation Reserve Program, in which private land is set aside to encourage wildlife habitation. It’s full of native grasses and pollinator plants. The DNR even installed a berm to create a wetland … [ Read more]
Now Open (Or Damn Close): 22 Northmen Brewing Co. in Alexandria
June 12, 2019 by
June 15, 2019, will mark the grand opening of 22 Northmen Brewing Co., and the realization of a longstanding vision for the owners of the adjacent Carlos Creek Winery. Tami and Kim Bredeson have contemplated building a brewery to complement their winery as far back as 2009. With a successful Kickstarter campaign, the hiring of … [ Read more]
