Very cool. Our friend and all-around good guy Damian McConn has been promoted to head brewer at Summit Brewing Co.! I’m always happy to see Damian’s smiling face whenever I run into him, but perhaps more importantly, I happen to really enjoy drinking his beers! McConn has been with Summit since 2003 and previous to that spent time as a head brewer at the sorely missed Sherlock’s Home in Minnetonka. Congrats Damian!
Our friends at Limited Release Beer have a couple of new episodes for your viewing pleasure including Surly’s Darkness Day and The Bruery’s Black Tuesday. Check them out!
In case you didn’t get a chance to check out 612Brew this past two weekends at Winterfest and The Beer Dabbler, Thursday is your day… they’re throwing a release party on February 7 at 7pm at The Pourhouse in Minneapolis. The launch party ncludes all four of 612Brew’s initial offerings including Zero Hour, which will normally be exclusive to the soon-to-open 612Brew taproom.
And if beer isn’t enough, The Pourhouse will host “bandaoke,” a karaoke program with a live band starting at 10pm. We hear the 612 fellas like to sing!
Rated R: West Coast IPA meets Midwest Rye. Rated R is a beer for the Minnesota hopheads. This Rye IPA greets you with a burst of citrus hop aroma and tempts you with the spice from the rye. Rated R is 612Brew’s most full-bodied and hoppy beer, yet easy enough that your mom would like it. If your mom is awesome.
SIX: SIX is a golden-colored, American pale ale flavorful enough for craft beer fans and approachable enough to be your everyday beer. SIX is light-bodied and biscuit-flavored with a light hop aroma. It is named after the local bus number that runs past the original 612Brew test brewery, where the beer was first brewed. It’s also the first number of the company name, but you probably noticed that. We think it’s perfect for back yards, front porches and the Minnesota seasons. We think you’ll want to drink this beer any time … all the time.
Bitter Cold Winter IPA Series #1: The first in the winter series of single malt and single-hop India Pale Ale’s brewed to showcase the individual characters of the ingredients. Brewed with 100% Marris Otter and 100% single hop direct from Willamette Valley Hops
Zero Hour: Excitement is in the mystery. Zero Hour is a black ale, aggressively hopped and blacked out with Midnight Wheat. You may wonder what style of beer you’re drinking; well, turn off the lights and savor the experience.
The very dapper Lift Bridge Brewing Co.
In a flurry of snow and icy temps Winterfest 2013 has come and gone. The Minnesota History Center played host to the annual festival put on by the MN Craft Brewer’s Guild on Friday February 1st in St. Paul. This event, while potentially prohibitive in cost for some, offered an intimate setting to sample craft brews from 38 of Minnesota’s great breweries. This year showcased the staples of the MN breweries, and also welcomed a slew of new breweries.
Borealis Fermentery
As there were only 750 tickets sold, attendants were given the opportunity to talk with the brewers about their craft while sampling some tasty offerings without having to wait in lengthy lines.
Harriet Brewing Co.
It would be impractical to list all the great beers that were sampled, but some definitely stood out. A smashing availability of winter seasonals were on display but that wasn’t the only thing on tap. A few personal favorites were Bemidji Brewing Co’s Sour Red, Fitger’s barrel aged Edmund Bourbon Imperial Stout, Fulton’s Double IPA, Lift Bridge’s Silhouette, Borealis’ Homdinger and of course all the new breweries representing Nordeast Minneapolis.
The Snowshoe for Best of the Fest was again awarded for to Barley John’s Brew Pub for best beer as well as best brewery as voted by the crowd. Congratulations for consecutive years with the Snowshoe!
Thank you to the MN Craft Brewer’s Guild for putting on an impressive festival once again! I’m sure many of the attendants woke up today thankful this only happens once a season.
Surly Brewing Co.
Pour Decisions latest is Stonky Wonky, a “Southwarkian Imperial Brown Export Stout.” Rather then tryt o describe it, we’ll let them do so:
Back from the dead, the beast of all beasties. The ORIGINAL Russian stout. Announcing, for the first time in the US, THE Imperial Brown Export Stout. IBSt Export. The granddaddy of all Russian stouts. Thrale brewed this baby for Catherine the Great. Thrale’s was bought by Barclay Perkins and they made their Russian Stout world famous. Our take, Stonky Wonky, has a smidge over 10% abv with 10 pounds of hops per barrel making this a powerful delicious thing. Espresso, cocoa, dark dried fruits and deeply toasted bread. Dark chocolate truffles and rum raisins. A smooth, rich, elegant velvety depth-charge of a drink.
Look for it tonight at Winterfest or starting tomorrow in their taproom. Enjoy!