Category: general beer

“By your powers combined…” Pour Decisions and Bent Brewstillery To Merge

pdbcBent Brewstillery

Over the past several months, Bent Brewstillery and Pour Decisions Brewing Company have been working together more and more closely.  Contract brewing in the spring led to brewing and distilling in the same space this  summer and a relationship flourished.  Well, after months of living together, one of them finally popped the question and the other said YES!  The two are formally merging and re-opening as Bent Brewstillery at the Pour Decisions location in Roseville.

Kristen England of PDBC will retain the brewing reins and Bartley Blume, founder of Bent Brewstillery, will still distill. Their partnership will allow for a renovated and expanded  taproom and increased production of Bent beers & booze as well as your favorites from PDBC. Michael Agnew at A Perfect Pint has an in-depth discussion with Blume about the changes here.  Takeaway: Michael likes gin.  No,  he really likes gin.

Currently, Bent and Pour beers are both on tap and in stores, so don’t fret over finding them.  If you’re looking to fill a growler, though, you’ll need a little patience, Axl Rose. The taproom which will be closed until the end of February to accommodate construction.

Hold your tears – the name may be going away, but the beers will be the same with Kris in charge.  He’ll just be sporting a new kit, so to speak.  So hold on to your PDBC growlers until they tell you otherwise and definitely hold on to that 750 of this year’s Maroon & Bold you just finished; that’s likely to be a collector’s item someday.

Here’s to the new partnership!

Follow their progress and look for updates from your favorite internet vantage point:

Bent Brewstillery on Facebook
@BentBrewstiller on Twitter
@BentBrewstillery on Instagram

 

Chop & Brew #17: Fresh Hop Tasting Notes

A bit late on this post. You know – holidays and life and all.

Chop & Brew rounds out the triology of homegrown hop episodes with this episode in which the krewe tastes the massively hop-backed / fresh-hopped beer homebrewed in Episode 14… with hops seen in their infancy in Episode 06. For links including the recipes discussed in this episode and Chop & Brew Logo T-Shirts, see this official episode page link. Or just watch in this handy-dandy YouTube viewer.

Fresh Hop Double Session IPA, anyone?

Beery Christmas to You And All That

cousin-eddie-xmas1

Merry Xmas, Happy Holidays, etc., etc. dear readers! Christmas is a great time to share the gift of beer with loved ones, especially those uninitiated into the world of craft beer. So share your favorite winter warmer or special seasonal with family and friends this year and give the gift of great beer and great cheer.

Thank you all for another year of ridiculous traffic on the site. I still can’t believe this site gets thousands of unique visitors a day, but it does, and I’m thankful for all of you! You’re the ones that drive the site and make it all worth doing. Thanks also to our brewery, brewpub, beer bar, beer store and homebrew friends. Monumental growth in these areas makes what we do with the site all the more exciting and worthwhile.

For me, your fearless “editor,” this has been a year of change. My family added a second child, and my day gig had some new and exciting changes. Needless to say, I’ve been super busy. Thankfully the dust is all starting to settle and I’ll be able to devote more time to craft beer and look at some new permanent help for MNBeer.com. If you’re interested, let me know! Also look for a new design in the next few months.

Thanks again beer friends. Drink up, buttercup!

 

Winterfest Tickets go on Sale at Noon Today!

Winterfest 20091827205477945502533TLDR: Winterfest ticket link

Tickets for Minnesota’s premiere “locals-only” brew festival go on sale at noon today. Though Winterfest certainly isn’t a cheap affair, it’s a blast and features tons of special beers from our local breweries in celebration of Minnesota beer, winter and, well… beer.

“Come and join us for the 13th Annual Winterfest! This craft beer sampling event celebrates beer brewed in Minnesota by the breweries and brew pubs that are current members of the Minnesota Craft Brewers Guild. Chase out the winter chill with a multitude of Winter Warmers, hearty food, beer education, entertainment and music.”

Tickets are $75 + a $7 fee. Please don’t be a chump and sell them on Craigslist or Ebay.

New this year, Winterfest is moving to Union Depot in St. Paul.

Schell’s Pilsner Series Artwork

Last week we told you about the upcoming 30th Anniversary Pilsner Series from Schell’s. Lo and behold, this week, we have new artwork in hand. Check out the three new labels for the series below. Can’t wait to taste these for myself@